Doddy

[quote name='slap_it_hard' post='966196' date='Sep 23 2010, 10:25 PM']Hey, Personal experience tells me that Acoustic image suck for double bass. I had a combo, light as a feather, with the 10 & downfiring 5 for a Double Bass & the thing couldn't handle it! Had it brought back from the states too. had to get shot of it, & glad I did! Ampeg, the Mutts Nutts![/quote] I'm really surprised at this. I know a few guys who use Acoustic Image amps and they have all handled the bass brilliantly and sounded great. I usually run my bass like this.... Realist pickup > Aphex Bass Exciter > Roland Cube 100 The cube is a nice little amp for smaller gigs or pit work(It comfortably handles both electric and Upright). I have also used my Genz Benz/Bergantino rig for louder gigs,and sometimes I use a Hartke 2x10 instead of the Bergantino 4x10.

[quote name='maxrossell' post='966444' date='Sep 24 2010, 10:04 AM']I'm primarily a guitar player, and the reason us guitards don't like PRS is that they're "bank manager" guitars. You pay three grand for it because you've been lusting after it since you were thirteen, but you never take it out of your house because it's too valuable and everyone says stuff like "more money than talent"[/quote] Oh?! I know a load of guitar players who love PRS and regularly take them out of the house. Funny that.

I've certainly noticed this trend. It used to annoy me,but now I just get on with it. It still annoys me a bit,but I just think about it the 'correct' way and just play. I've also noticed that the players who do this also refer to a song as being in a certain key based on what the first chord is,regardless of whether that's the key or not.That's thrown me a few times when I've been asked to learn a tune in a different key.

I've done both,and ultimately it's a gig. I don't get what the problem is on either count.

Billy Sheehan is now endorsing Hartke. They've certainly picked up some serious players over the last couple of years.

Well....as Fender own the name 'Jazz Bass' I'd say that they are a 'proper' Jazz Bass. Everything else is either a copy or an evolution.

I've been using the Realist for the last 7 or 8 years and never had any problems at all...even at high volumes. I find that it amplifies my bass very cleanly and reproduces the bass' acoustic sound pretty accurately. The new David Gage Soundclip looks like a great idea and it's being getting some great reviews.

Check out 'Serious Electric Bass' by Joel DiBartolo. It's not a basic book by any means,but it has plenty of scale and modal exercises.

Metronomes are your answer,although a drum machine is even better. Set it up slowly and play along accurately. Playing it accurately and correctly is the most important part- Speed will come naturally over time. One thing is for sure though.....It won't be sorted out by Monday.

I've heard about this before....

Check out the Ibanez GWB35 if you want brand new. Although that Alembic Epic is sweet. It's always worth looking at the secondhand market

I've got two metal cases. One currently contains, -3 instrument cables -3 microphone cables -3 Patch cables -4 way -10 metre extension -Tuner -DI box -Volume Pedal The other case has.... -2 sets of strings -2 instrument cables -4 way -Allen keys -Screwdrivers -Pliers -2 Microphones (one vocal,one cab) -Music Stand light -In ear Monitors. I have batteries,picks and pens scattered between the two cases.

[quote name='silddx' post='959209' date='Sep 17 2010, 10:45 AM']It's when you do it ONLY for the money and do gigs you don't enjoy that it is sad. I never wanted to do that so I have a good day job career that is flexible enough to allow me to play in the bands I want to play in.[/quote] I don't think it's sad. I'd rather play a gig that I don't particularly enjoy than get a day job. If you are making a living from playing it can be hard work,the same way as any other job can,and the gig you may not enjoy may be the one that pays your phone bill that month.......and it's still better than stacking shelves or putting cones out.

[quote name='kingforaday' post='959183' date='Sep 17 2010, 10:16 AM']trouble with hot rods and brushes is most drummers seem very reluctant to even try them in my experience[/quote] The trouble is that a lot of drummers see and use brushes as a quiet version of a stick which they are not-brush playing is an art in itself,which a lot of players don't realise. As far as stick size,the loudest drummer that I've played with over the last few years uses little 7A's.

[quote name='endorka' post='958934' date='Sep 16 2010, 11:08 PM']I know this is the case with some drummers, but it doesn't have to be, it is just down to poor or limited technique on their part. I know some drummers who can groove or swing like nobody's business, while playing in a restaurant at conversation level. Unfortunately they are rare beasts, who are always busy. Funny that :-) Jennifer[/quote] This.

I sometimes catch myself using the floating thumb technique,but it's pretty rare that I do. Usually I have my thumb anchored somewhere,often on the B and E strings. If I'm playing on the upper strings on either a 5 or 6,I've noticed that I tend to anchor my thumb on the A string while my ring finger mutes the E and my little finger mutes the B-very similar to the way that John Patitucci does it. I've never spent much,if any,time trying to do any of this.It's usually born out of necessity and creeps in to my playing over time. I did try to practise the floating thumb,but it was uncomfortable and felt like my hand had no stability,yet I have done it on gigs without thinking about it.

I'll keep out of this,because my gigs are nothing like that.

So,after being a fan for years but always missing them on tour,I finally managed to see Barenaked Ladies at Rock City in Nottingham on Tuesday. Great show,and bass player Jim Creegan was all over it. He's got some great chops on both Upright and on Electric and appears to have quite an aggressive right hand technique. For those who care,he was playing a Hofner 500/1 and an old Gibson Les Paul Triumph,aswell as an Upright.

It depends on the speed of the piece as to how I'd play this. Generally,I'll use one finger to play both notes by moving it rather than barring,although if it was part of a fast semi quaver thing I may use two fingers.

For me there are a whole load of variables that may affect being 'in the moment'. Obviously the audience reaction can make a huge difference,but maybe one of the band isn't 'feeling it' and it creates a bad vibe amongst everyone else,or you may have had a bad day and you're thinking about what you are going to eat after the gig or whatever,and you find yourself just going through the motions and not really getting into it.Sure,you dance around and smile but you just don't really 'feel' it. On the other hand,the crowd may be small and uninterested but the band really gets into it and everything works.

I've got major love for the EMMA DiscumBOBulator

I play in a couple of bands that have everything written out and so my first few gigs with them I was sight reading the charts (no rehearsals were involved). After a few gigs I started to move away from the charts but put them off to the side of me so that if there were any hairy moments I could just glance over to them.Then,a few gigs later I felt comfortable enough to not use the charts at all. It's all a matter of repetition and feeling confident enough to be able to go without them. It's the same on jazz gigs... rather than follow the charts every time,on some gigs I just decided to not set up my music stand and it's surprising how much you remember when you have to.

[quote name='ezbass' post='952062' date='Sep 10 2010, 05:41 PM']Unfortunately it's more a case of who you know rather than what you can do (same can be said for many other professions too). It's all about starting small and networking, networking, networking. It's a tough road, but if that's what you really want to do then you should stay the course. Good luck.[/quote] I think this is only partly true. While who you know is very important,you can network your arse off but if you can't handle the gig,for whatever reason, you won't get called for jobs. All of the guys that I know who are making a decent career out of playing are great players that get the calls because they can nail it with no hassle. I've been doing a pretty decent job of making a living as a musician for the last few years and my dad has been doing it for about 35 years. In fact,right now I'm in Italy waiting to play a couple of gigs at the F1.

[quote name='yorks5stringer' post='933461' date='Aug 23 2010, 11:13 AM']Diane Birch: Bible Belt, what a voice and check out the players in the band, like George Porter Jr. She's also on Live at Daryls House with Daryl Hall, well worth watching.[/quote] That's a brilliant album. Adam Blackstone's Bass work on it is great. It's just a great album all around. I'm listening to the Velvet Underground 'Loaded'

[quote name='silddx' post='949140' date='Sep 8 2010, 09:24 AM']And that is why blues evolved into jazz. There aren't many musicians around with a "large enough vocabulary on the instrument" who are content to continue playing 12 bar.[/quote] There are tons of great players who regularly play 12 bars-it's the bread and butter. But improvising underneath a soloist does not mean it moves into a jazz direction. A good player will still keep the feel of the tune while still being able to react to the music that is going on around them.