geilerbass

[quote name='truegeminis' post='239249' date='Jul 14 2008, 03:51 PM']I met him in a bar in Kingston a few years later. He's now a guitarist! ... You're not surprised are you. [/quote] Ha ha!!! I bump into him every now and then - last time I saw him, I think he probably said he was now a guitarist. Nope, no surprise there...

I love the sound of slap - there's something so gloriously satisfying about it... ...but only if it's done well and done appropriately. I still wince at the thought of one of the first rhythm section classes I had at college - we were doing a basic blues groove and working on getting the feel right with the drummer and guitarist. One of the other bass players got up for his try and immediately lashed into a sloppy flurry of slapped and tapped fills, none of which were in the notation. Thankfully the teacher explained to him, diplomatically, that he was completely missing the point. Sadly, he kept up his approach throughout the course - I hope he's figured out by now that more is not always more. That said, right now I'm going through Stuart Clayton's excellent Ultimate Slap Bass book with the purpose of getting my slap chops really tight and trying to master some of the more advanced techniques. Not because I want to show off, but because it's fun and I like the way it sounds. Simple as that. Though it's highly unlikely I'll be using any of the techniques in any of my bands.

Not the best quality, but recent. From a show in Budapest in June: -

[quote name='escholl' post='238302' date='Jul 13 2008, 03:06 AM']well i have a couple theories, and i think it should be a fairly simple fix. definitely worth bringing it to a tech, any decent tech should be able to fix the problem fairly quick and simple. def not a write off, and shouldn't set you back too much, so no worries [/quote] Cool, thanks!

[quote name='escholl' post='237977' date='Jul 12 2008, 03:02 PM']what kind of noise is it? is it like a ground/mains hum, or a crackly noise, or more of a sort of white noise? are the any clicks/pops/etc?[/quote] It's a white noise kind of sound - not really a hum, more of a hiss. No snaps, crackles or pops either.

My Trace Elliot AH350SMX has recently started adding a lot of noise to the signal that it outputs. I definitely appears to be with the amp, since it makes a hissing sound, regardless of whether my bass is plugged in or not. I'm also sure that the problem is at the output end of the amp's circuitry, since changing the gain, shape and eq settings do not seem to affect the level of the hum. Similarly the hum increases as the output level is increased, even if the gain is completely off. Adjusting the dual-band compressor knobs just boost/cut the noise at their respective frequency ranges. I also tried turning off the tweeter on my cab, but this just made the noise sound lower in pitch, obviously as it's higher frequencies are cut out. Apart from the noise, the sound quality is fine, but obviously this is an issue - I used it at a gig on Thursday and ended up having to use a DI box, because the sound man was getting too much noise through the balanced outputs on the back of my amp. Even with both the earth and ground lifts on. I'm pretty sure that I'm going to have take this in to get looked at, but does anyone have any immediate ideas about what the cause may be? Is it a write off? I have a pretty important gig coming up in less than two weeks, so I'll need someone to get it sorted asap. I was going to try one of the guys below, but does anyone have any other recommendations for amp techs in the central/north London area (I don't have a car, so will have to taxi it to whoever's going to fix it). John Kelly (Electronics) Ltd Brian Bond Ted Wood Many thanks in advance.

[quote name='Dave Dubya' post='235655' date='Jul 9 2008, 12:44 PM']There used to be a great magazine called "Bassist" which covered any level bass player and was actually an interesting read. Then, supposedly due to lack of readership, it got merged into "Guitarist" magazine - and by merged I mean bass guitar got three pages per month...[/quote] I miss Bassist. I have every issue. And I haven't bought another bass mag since Bassist stopped. Even though I won a free year's subscription to UK Bass Guitar Magazine at college, I didn't cash it in. I really don't think the others cut it.

I was so up for that... ...but unfortunately, Iron Maiden were playing the same night and I had to make a hard decision. Sounds as though it was awesome. I was particularly gutted as I would loved to have seen Reggie live, but there you go. But Iron Maiden ruled, so I guess it was a win/win situation.

I've used one a couple of times before. I'm personally not a fan of Peavey amps as I've not yet found one that is able to process the mid-range frequencies without muddying them up. They're fine with a scooped sound, but that's very limited. They make decent cabs, but I really don't think their bass amps cut it.

That looks awesome - and I don't even like white basses! That's the one problem I've found with a lot of Warwicks - they really do weigh a tone. My Streamer has been successful in giving me recurring back pain. And I've found Thumbs to often be heavier still. Which is surprising as they have quite small bodies. Must be all that bubinga... Are you going to get recessed strap locks? Recesses are definitely the way to go...

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='229689' date='Jun 30 2008, 01:33 PM']Good question. I think that Ashy's have a rep for sounding woolly which is probably true if you haven't put the time in finding the sound you're after. It took me months of tweaking my ABM evo 500 before I found my settings and when I did I found it works pretty much for different basses too. [url="http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d67/ou7shined/bass/30062008281.jpg"]Here's mine[/url] (ABM) jungle tip : if you share your amp on stage from time to time and find your settings get mucked about with, mark your settings using your g/f's (or your own) eyeliner - don't let her find out, they go ballistic for some reason. These marks can be easily wiped off and replaced as your settings evolve or permanently when it comes to sell. [/quote] I used one of these (ABM) at a band rehearsal on Friday (I always use studio amps, since I don't have a car) and had real trouble getting a desirable sound, despite lots of fiddling around. The drive gave a nice bite to it, but the sound was, as you describe, kind of woolly. I prefer a tighter sound and wasn't able to get that - maybe it's a compression thing?

Dave sorted me out with a custom jack cable a few weeks ago - excellent service and a very quick turnaround. Also very good value and high quality components. Would highly recommend getting your cables from him - I know I will be in the future.

Have been wondering about decent tuners myself and was ready to go for the Korg DT10... but that Strobostomp looks so damn good, I'm tempted to bump up my budget. What a dilemma!

If the guy described it as 'immaculate' then you have a case, as it's not immaculate - it's got scratches and dings which indicate possible rough treatment. Assuming that you've shown the guy's responses as is, it really sounds as though he's got a bad attitude and that would be enough for me to want to take him up on it. From the start he sounds as though he's just got it all wrong - particularly the bit about it being worth the wait. You've paid him a wad of cash - you shouldn't have to wait.

All the Ibanez 6ers that I've tried have been very playable and versatile. The SR506 is a great model and very good value. The SR1006 is a superior instrument, Japanese built, though feels quite different to the 506, mainly due to the neck. I've got an older Japanese-made SR1016 - this is closer to the SR506, but for me is a preferable instrument, having the vari-mid pre-amp and a slimmer neck profile. That said, I've been thinking about trading it in for another 5 string as I'm just not finding much use for a 6 string at the moment. When you're thinking about buying, give me a shout if you're still interested in an Ibanez

[quote name='dave_bass5' post='225361' date='Jun 23 2008, 08:51 PM']Maybe a mention of police involvement due to you being worried about it not having a serial number might prompt a better reply from the seller.[/quote] This. The guy sounds an utter twat. If I was selling something genuine and someone was concerned about it being hot goods, I'd do my best to assure them that it was all above board. If they had a genuine grievance, then I'd act on it. If I felt they were being unreasonable, I'd let them pursue it through the proper channels - hopefully, whoever's in the right would be vindicated by that. If you can be bothered with the hassle, I'd follow up on the police suggestion - tossbags like this need to be taught a lesson. BTW - not everyone who lives in London is a total ass!

[quote name='dangerboy' post='223088' date='Jun 20 2008, 04:47 PM']I got so sick of the way other bands and promoters mess about (especially in London!) that me and a mate have become promoters. We make people stick to time, we enforce kit-share, sometimes weeks in advance, to minimise changeovers. If you mess other bands about, we cut your set short. Then we give all profits to the bands. I think it's time that bands took back more of the power like this. What is the point of a full-time promoter anyway?[/quote] The point of a full-time promoter is to have someone who pro-actively promotes the gigs that they arrange. Unfortunately, I've encountered only a handful in London who actually do this.

[quote name='ped' post='222737' date='Jun 20 2008, 10:59 AM']Ouch! Those are sweet. I would love to play the semi fretted/fretless.[/quote] Likewise! I can see the fretted/fretless setup actually being incredibly really useful live. Shame I haven't got anywhere near the amount of cash that would no doubt be required to get hold of such a fine instrument...

[quote name='The Legoheads' post='222691' date='Jun 20 2008, 09:48 AM']Got the Samson Airline Bass too... nothing to compare it with but it does what it says on the box so quite happy with it... Just make sure you keep track of the battery useage as it can be embarassing if it goes during a gig. I think it says they last quite a long time but I do no more that 2 gigs on one battery and then I put it in my "rehearsal only" box...[/quote] This happened to me once - my own dumb fault as I knew the battery was low, but neglected to change it. I find that it's the transmitter battery (a meagre AAA) which is usually first to go.