solo4652

Thanks everybody. That's a definite "No", then. Let me know if you have one lying about doing nothing, please. Steve

I've been looking for a Yamaha BB1200 for a while now, and I've spotted this for under £200: [url="http://reverb.com/item/61414-yamaha-bb1200-electric-bass-guitar"]http://reverb.com/item/61414-yamaha-bb1200-electric-bass-guitar[/url] Obvious problems are wrong tuners and a clumsy looking repair around the jack socket. Both easy fixes?? Too much of a gamble? Steve

Looks nothing at all like mine.... [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ibanez-blazer-bass-RARE-1980-MOD-/221355680609"]http://www.ebay.co.u...D-/221355680609[/url] Hold on - I've just found this thread: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/227396-blazer-on-gumtree-for-l175/"]http://basschat.co.u...mtree-for-l175/[/url]

[quote name='steve-bbb' timestamp='1385716898' post='2291377'] definitely this unless the guitarist is doing something rhythmically tight i tend to ignore the guitar and just focus on the drums and then the keys in our band - the guitar can be sort of left to its own devices to a degree because as long as drums and bass are locked together it gives the guitarist room for a bit more fluidity im always telling our singist (much to her amusement) that i havent got a clue what she is doing - its not so much wilfully ignoring her but my ear seems to zone out the vox when i focus on the drums and the structure good luck with the gig tonight [/quote] Well, I think we did a pretty decent job in the end. I focussed on the drummer and not the guitarist or singer. My intention to beef up the bass tone lasted until the soundcheck when, due to the room acoustics, it was soon apparent that I'd overdone it. I ended up pretty much back with the sound I'd started with. We got applause for every song and the venue asked us back, so we must have sounded reasonably OK. Lessons for me; focus on the drums, don't over-play the bassline, listen to singer's comments about the groove, try not to be put off when guitarist messes up. Thanks to everybody here for their help and encouragement, Steve

Quick update following rehearsal last night. Thanks to the suggestions here, I tried a number of different things. First, I beefed up the bass and pulled the mids back on the amp. Next, I simplified quite a few of the basslines I'd been playing. I'd been trying to play things absolutely correctly and probably had slightly lost the overall band-plot. Then, I paid much more attention to the drummer and less to the guitarist (who I struggle to sync. with) and finally, we reviewed all the songs and decided some needed more work before gigging them - specifically We are family, Get Ready and Heard it through the grapevine. As a band, we took some big steps forward last night and tonight's gig is now looking significantly less daunting.

[quote name='Damonjames' timestamp='1385564890' post='2289704'] No offence taking Mr Digus (did you notice the ��) I was just suggesting that like any bass, it is capable off my different sounds, a small tweak here or there may of got our dear friend off the hook with the singer. I am in a Seattle tribute band, and I am changing my tone and vols pots, hand position and right hand finger technique constantly to try and nail the sound of the original. But seriously, how good is Bern?? Come on OP, how was the gig? [/quote] We're rehearsing tonight (27th) and the gig's tomorrow night. We're at the Metro Bar in Manchester Victoria, 6-30 to 7-30 if anybody wants to come and say hello. I'll be the stressed-looking guy at the back.

I've seen many of the rehearsal rooms/studios in Manchester. The cleanest, quietest, most helpful place has to be Great Image Studios in Hazel Grove: http://www.greatimage.co.uk/

[quote name='Graham' timestamp='1385471141' post='2288578'] If you prefer the feel of the L2000, just solo the neck pickup in passive mode and adjust the tone to taste [/quote] Yes - I do prefer the G&L. It took a while to get used to the wide/thin neck but, now I have, just about every other neck feels cramped to me. I only ever play it in passive mode, otherwise the plaster comes off the ceiling. I can try neck-only pickup, but I don't like the tone at all - it sounds too dull and "shallow" to me. I normally play on both pickups, passive, with bass and treble cranked up to near max. I'm going to try rolling off the treble and adjusting the EQ on the amp, cutting some mids and boosting the bass. To be honest, I don't think tone-hunting is the answer, though.

Rehearsal tomorrow night. I'm going to take the P bass and roll off the top end a bit. I've also simplified how I play the bassline of Kiss and We are family so I can really concentrate hard on locking in with the drummer, who I find easy to play alongside. We have our first gig the following night. Maybe some of all this is pre-gig anxiety. I'll report back in a few days. Wish me luck, Folks.

[quote name='steve-bbb' timestamp='1385373592' post='2287394'] sounds like you have a delicate task of educating her to the finer arts of low end playing whilst simultaneously appeasing her control freak passive-aggressive lead vocalist tendencies and making her input feel valued and errr .... or .... forgive me for critiqueing your collective band playing without even hearing you, but maybe she is trying to explain that 'the groove isnt quite getting nailed' [/quote] Well, I think she's right when she says the groove isn't quite getting nailed. Without saying much more on this public forum, I think it might be time for a band meeting.

OK. I asked to singer to tell me more. She sent this email: "To me the bass sounded a bit clinical and too clean. It's prominent, and in time on the recordings and in rehearsal, but on songs like We are Family and Kiss for example we really need to funk it up; I think the bassline needs to have more 'swing and sway' that's what I mean by groove. It seems that you're so focused on getting it right that I worry you're not relaxed and enjoying yourself when you play!" So, the reverb thing may be a bit of a red herring. She says I play in time, but I need more "swing and sway", especially on We are family and Kiss. Interestingly, it's those two songs where I struggle to hook up with the guitarist's playing. I suspect there's more to her comments than meets the eye. I'll try more than one bass at next rehearsal but I don't think "tone" is the issue here. Watch this space.

[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1385330795' post='2287116'] groove.... she want's more low end and less high mids from you..... in other words - Get your bass out of my vocal range! [/quote] I've asked her tell me a little more about what she's hearing and what she isn't happy with. Interestingly, the guitarist says he prefers my Fender P to my G&L L2000 because the Fender has "more clank". When I asked him what he meant he said; "The Fender has more presence - more depth". Maybe the singer's hearing something similar. I'll take both bases to next rehearsal and invite comments.

[quote name='Myke' timestamp='1385329767' post='2287089'] She probably thinks that Reverb will achieve what she wants your bass to sound like but really it's something else but she doesn't realise it. [/quote] Yes - I think you're right. Something about the bass tone on those awful recordings has prompted her to make the comment. I'd like to know why she thinks there's a need for "more of a groove thing" - it suggests that she feels I'm not keeping time or hitting the groove or something. I can ignore the reverb suggestion, but there's something bothering her.

[quote name='Dom in Somerset' timestamp='1385329361' post='2287071'] Probably just too punchy sounding in the recording for her, just tell you you'll turn up your pitch deviating ecto-phlanging phase disruptortonic doo dah pedal in future and carry on as before. [/quote] I've got a Behringer DDI thingy as an emergency back up in case I need to DI straight to the desk. perhaps I could take it along, not plug it in and make a bit of a show of activating the "trans-modulating tone pump".

At our last rehearsal, I recorded some songs with my Line 6 Backtrack - the one with the on-board mic. I don't think I had the mic gain set up right and the result were some extremely distorted and, at times, pretty indistinct recordings. Because I said I would, I sent everybody in the band the recordings explaining why the recordings were so poor. I've just had an email from the singer that included this comment: "The bass sounded a bit too clean. I think you should have some more reverb when we perform so there's more of a groove going." I've asked her to tell me a bit more about what she feels isn't quite right. I don't use effects at all. Not sure whether reverb would give "more of a groove thing" anyway. Bass is a G&L L2000 generally on both pickups through a Barefaced Compact. Any thoughts or comments, folks? Steve

[quote name='Graham' timestamp='1385192351' post='2285420'] If you buy American, G&L will put your choice of neck profile on a JB1 or JB2 [/quote] Well, I'd love to. However, I shudder at the thought of the price!

[quote name='iconic' timestamp='1385155793' post='2285241'] I have an Aria STB-JB which is a jazz bass with good size p bass neck on it, they can be had for £150'ish...do they play like a cheap bass? A big fat no...super hot pups, great build, lovely finish, what not to like! Mine is a 3TS and rosewood, black ones also around, there is also an active version too n white. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YcwygMUGjM[/media] [/quote] *Sigh* - Effortless skill right there. £119 new!? http://www.goodguitars.co.uk/buy/aria-stb-jb-beginner-bass-guitar-sunburst/204

[quote name='KiOgon' timestamp='1385120062' post='2284622'] Fender Frank Bello Signature P/J pups, P 42.2mm neck & bound Jazz body [url="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/kjon51/media/Fender%20Frank%20Bello%20Signature%20Bass/Frank_Bello_onstage.jpg.html"][/url] [/quote] That looks interesting. Google here I come. Thanks,

Folks, I'm on the lookout for a passive J bass (or P/J) with a P neck - I'm used to a 44mm G&L neck. Could be a Fender, could be something else. Any suggestions, please? Steve

Is he advertising himself on North West Bands? There are always plenty of "Drummer wanted" ads on there. He'll be spoilt for choice.

I spent years assessing people's handedness. It's best to work out someone's preferred hand and eye because the two interact and correlate with dexterity. Try this; Roll up a sheet of paper into a tube. Look out of the window (not through the tube, just using your eyes) at a distant object and, while still looking at the object and not at your brother (since it's important you don't put the telescope into either of his hands inadvertently), say something like "Think of this as a telescope. See that tree over there? Take this and look at it through the telescope." Make a note of which hand he uses to take the telescope from you and which eye he puts it up to. Right hand + right eye = right dominant. He should probably play right-handed. Left hand + left eye = left dominant. He should probably play left handed. Right hand + left eye or left hand + right eye = cross lateral. Tricky. Sometimes this is associated with generally poor coordination and some clumsiness. Probably best to play with the dominant hand, but be prepared for it to be hard work. Either hand + placing the telescope on the bridge of the nose or in the middle of the forehead = cross lateral. Same advice as above. Of course, these aren't hard-and-fast rules, but they can give useful initial pointers. Steve

I've just had a noodle to watch my right thumb. When playing the bottom E, I press the heel of my plucking hand gently onto the bass body, with my thumb hovering over the E string. To move to another string, I just slide the whole lot across the strings, muting the lower-tone strings with the side of my thumb. This way, I'm able to keep the same "shape" to my plucking hand and simply move across the strings as needed. Playing Fleetwood Mac's Dreams (all on the E-string), I started to rest my thumb on the pickup but found this confused me when I played the E-string in other songs. So, for me, my thumb is always floating and never anchored.