Huge Hands

RIP to Rod. I got to do sound for Heatwave a few times in the 2000s - no Rod, but listening to his tunes played well was a fantastic experience! Another hero of mine gone in 2016

Mine was waiting for me when I got home last night. Interesting about the comments above - I was wondering why mine wasn't tuning to the B string at all. Will try it in "C" mode tonight!

Still waiting for mine, although I got an email from Reverb yesterday saying they hoped I was enjoying it and to remind me to leave feedback! I gave in and finally looked at the tracking info - apparently it left the main UK distribution centre yesterday and is on its way......

[quote name='JPJ' timestamp='1474454685' post='3138093'] ....One thing I've noticed is that she eats batteries (2 since I've gotten her) and I'm only using the tuner. I did try her electrically through the iRig into the iPad, but the jack socket (or the cheap jack lead I was using) was providing an unreliable connection. Could be that there is something amiss with the wiring too, so my next task will involve opening her guts up to see what is going on.... [/quote] I reckon you might be on to something there (i.e. there is a fault). I bought mine (identical to yours) as a deko and have had it about a year - I've not had to change the battery yet and I probably turn it on for the tuner about once a week. I have mine strung with Roto 88s (black wrapped). I had to dig the bridge out a bit to get the wrap on the bottom of the B-string through the hole, and sort the truss rod out a bit, but it was worth it. Those brass strings that came on it were way too zingy for me! I love it, it just sits next to the sofa so I can pick it up as and when I want. Enjoy yours!

[quote name='Rikki1984' timestamp='1474435486' post='3137946'] I just had an email apologising for the delay and giving me tracking info. [/quote] I've just had the same email. I'm in no rush either, so haven't bothered clicking on the tracking info.

[quote name='Funky Dunky' timestamp='1473675647' post='3132085'] Anyone received theirs yet? [/quote] When I ordered mine, I'm sure I saw some small print on the website somewhere that said they were shipping them from the States, so to expect a 2-week delivery time?

Not enjoying the cat hairs? Pfft! That is nothing! I once had a cat climb on top of the stack and vomit on the top edge. I didn't find it til I got home from work and it had slid down the side and dried. Getting that out of the hairs was not fun. I'm sure the cat was making a statement about my playing or something, but then again he used to vomit everywhere!

Have have 2x Snark SN-8 tuners (black). You do sometimes have to mess around with placement on the headstock for the low B string (especially on my EUB) but for practicality, but it doesn't take long and it is worth the slight aggro without having to use a plug in one (IMHO). Our guitarist uses one too (not sure which model). He thinks that they look terrible left on the headstock during a gig, so will take his off but we're always left looking for it on the floor after a gig. I like to know where mine is, so I'll leave it on there!

[quote name='dave_bass5' timestamp='1471902450' post='3116916'] Not sure about the piano but there is Alaska studio right opposite Waterloo station. Very central. Might be worth giving them a call. [/quote] We rehearsed a few times there last year and we all struggled with the heat and smell in there. We couldn't tell if it was BO, urine, damp, or a mixture of all three. We stopped using them for the above reason, but I seem to remember they told us they were shutting down anyway. We didn't hang round to ask if that was for a refurb or for good!

[quote name='bubinga5' timestamp='1471744596' post='3115535'] ....He must have been very aware of J Jamersons playing [/quote] If I remember correctly, he has been quoted several times in saying that Jamerson was one of his major influences. He was also on the accompanying CD on the Standing in The Shadows of Motown book about Jamerson. I love the DH Live album. I have worn it out listening to it many times! Willie's little fills and grooves are fantastic, especially on the track you posted.

I'd be interested to know how you have it coming from your guitar too. If it's fibre, I would have thought it will have limited allowed bend radius which may affect those that like to loop their cable through their guitar strap. Otherwise, it's all heavily hanging off a big plug which I would have thought would put strain on the jack socket?

[quote name='Geek99' timestamp='1469790459' post='3101050'] Jameson was drinking heavily in California and Bob Babbitt says no one really knew whose take had been used even then as the contracts for each track were often wrong - I can't see how forty years would add clarity [/quote] From what I've read of it, the stuff that gets everyone's back up is when she claims to have done the lines he recorded in Detroit, not California. She is a fantastic bass player in her own right and massively deserves her place in history, but I don't buy half of the stuff she was claiming to have done. As much as I have some of Stuart's books and fully respect him, I have to disagree on the above, I have listened to the "isolated bass" version of Bernadette so many times and I'm convinced it is Jamerson, mainly down to the feel, rather than the notes he plays.

[quote name='Bill Fitzmaurice' timestamp='1469722023' post='3100657'] Having lots of money doesn't necessarily equate to being highly intelligent. Take Donald Trump, for instance. Really, take him, please...put him in the Tower of London [i][b]and do a Richard III number on him[/b][/i]. [/quote] What, bury him in a car park?

We've just received an email from a hotel for our gig on Friday which is pretty much word for word to this. Made me chuckle when I read it, thinking of this thread. Ours said "Speakers should not be placed directly on the floor but on a raised surface. Bass level should be kept to a low level at all times". Time to crack out the beer crate. Methinks I'm not going to enjoy Friday night!

[quote name='FuNkShUi' timestamp='1469624454' post='3099813'] Don't need a mixer if you only want to run a single vocal, just plug the mic into line in or input, EQ how you want and you're away to go. [/quote] I don't really know these speakers, but from having a quick look at them online, I don't think you'd be able to plug a mic straight into it. You'd need some sort of mixer first that can convert the lower gain microphone output signal into a line level signal. I'm happy to be proved wrong though.

The most expensive bass guitar (when I paid for it) is my Sire V7. I take that to all gigs because I love to play it and it gives me all the options I think I'll ever need. It is just a bonus that it looks great (to me) too. I say "when I paid for it", because I guess my Squier JV is probably now worth the most, but wasn't when I bought it second hand in about 1991. Before that, all my basses were beaters. I've even done gigs with a one I was modding, with no scratchplate, big routs exposed, no knobs and badly sanded off paint to see if I wanted to go any further with it. I did by the way, but wasn't happy with the pickups so it just sits at home! I actually thought it looked quite cool in "development" mode! I have recently met up with some BassChatters and played some pretty expensive (what i would call) boutique basses. They were lovely to play, but I personally would spend all night panicking about bumping them off a doorway or them being nicked. That's anywhere, not even just in dives that JTUK won't play! Although in the desire to keep gigging regularly, I'm surprised he can be so picky!

[quote name='Bill Fitzmaurice' timestamp='1469479128' post='3098718'] He's bought into it. Drank the kool-aid, we'd say here. [/quote] I'm loving your replies Bill. I had a mate who once went into a hi-fi shop and did a "comparison test" between two 0.1mm thicknesses of speaker cable and claimed he could tell the difference. I reckon that shop had very wide windows - saw him coming a mile off....

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1469437811' post='3098194'] My brother in law is a pro cellist. When wanting to increase the volume he uses a cello soundbox. I appreciate the size may need to be I creased, but the idea may well work for a DB. [url="http://api.viglink.com/api/click?format=go&jsonp=vglnk_146943766111510&key=d2f6dc3d61fd72ef48d01980d6bfec29&libId=ir1t8ms001000o08000MA103zw9vlw43j1&loc=http%3A%2F%2Fcellofun.yuku.com%2Ftopic%2F6568&v=1&out=http%3A%2F%2Fccrma.stanford.edu%2Fmarl%2FCASL%2Fdocuments%2FCondax-CelloPodium.pdf&title=cello%20box%20%2F%20platform%20advice%3F%20in%20Forum&txt=http%3A%2F%2Fccrma.stanford.edu...ts%2FCondax-CelloPodium.pdf"]http://api.viglink.c...CelloPodium.pdf[/url] [/quote] I would be interested to know what sort of volume increase this gives. I would also imagine it needs to be sat on a hard floor surface such as a stage, unlike the uneven muddy grass (that I would normally lay a picnic blanket over) we can usually get playing outdoor fetes!

[quote name='pete.young' timestamp='1469206878' post='3096697'] Huge Hands, if your band is offering you the chance to learn Tuba, I'd say go for it. I did, and didn't regret it for one second. [/quote] Hi Pete - I have toyed with the idea. I have spent a few days here and there looking for an old sousaphone, but you are right, even the knackered ones are mightily expensive. I like the idea of being able to jump onto Tuba or Sousaphone for a New Orleans style jam! My problem is that if I did, I don't think the band would want me to be anything [i]but [/i]Tuba, and that's not why I joined. I joined when a particular MD wanted a bass guitar as an addition to the Tuba they had, and it was good sight reading training for me. The music is a bit out of my comfort zone in terms of what I would normally like or want to play, but I do it because it keeps the sight reading for bass guitar going. Now they have lost their Tuba player and that MD has gone, I think (to some of the more traditional members of the band) I'm just a necessary evil they have to suffer to keep the band going. I don't care about this of course, I like to wind those type of people up! The other reason I stay is that the drummer is one of the best I've ever worked with and likes to mix it up a bit (with me) when we can!

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1469201879' post='3096643'] Assuming that you can park a car / van / tourbus somewhere near where you'll be setting up, then use a PJB but get rid of the on-board battery and plug it into the cigarette lighter socket to power it. All PJB Briefcases & Suitcases come with an appropriate power lead for use in that way. BUT I doubt a Briefcase on its own will hold up against orchestral drums and a brass section. You'll need either a Suitcase or the speaker expansion unit for the Briefcase, I'm thinking. All of which said, what sort of gig involves playing somewhere where there is literally no power supply at all? I've played plenty of "fetes / outdoor stuff" and power is always needed, and power is always available. If you're playing in a public park, then (for a small fee) the local council will send someone along to allow you to tap in to the power supply in the street lighting, for example. [/quote] Thanks Jack. I guess in your experience, they are probably expecting bands where everyone needs power, even the burger vans etc. In my case, it's little village bric a brac stalls and us, so I'm usually the only one, Therefore, people tend to think it is not worth the hassle. The band does one or two annual fetes every year where they are literally in the middle of a field, or nice flowery gardens/forests. If we were well off enough to run a tour bus, it wouldn't have got that far, nor would they want my motor parked up behind us running away. I also don't think my wheezy old motor could cope with running much more than its interior lights anyway! I also remember getting to one a few years ago where the local handyman had run out around 50m worth of extensions from an old stately home to where they wanted us to play in the gardens - all lying in puddles etc. I didn't play that one, but it was mainly because it chucked it down as we were setting up and the lovely flute ladies got soaked.... Maybe I've spotted a gap in the market, or it's just a stupid situation that is unique to me. I think I might take a look down the PA speaker road - I'm looking at the MiPros now and wishing I had my bass with me to see how loud it will crank!

[quote name='yorks5stringer' timestamp='1469141180' post='3096144'] These have been successfully used for Electric Bass, don't know about DB frequencies mind? [url="http://www.astounded.com/qtx-qr12pa-100w-portable-pa-system-w-2-radio-mics-and-mp3-player.html?gclid=CL3b-YrRhc4CFYkp0wodn3kKwg"]http://www.astounded...CFYkp0wodn3kKwg[/url] This is the 200watt one, the 100 watt is £10 cheaper...! [/quote] Thanks for this. We do use a very similar MiPro unit at work (a bit more expensive) which I've often messed around with in my lunch break in our small office if I've got the guitar with me. Even without a DI box and just plugging into the line input it has a fair bit of grunt, so I reckon with a matched DI it might be good, and they are supposedly 8 hours on a full charge with good batteries. Not sure about whether you'd get that long at full tilt though! It is something I have considered as an option, I was just wondering if anyone knew of anything specifically for bass? I do mainly use the bass guitar with them because I'm not the greatest DB player (I can't bow) so it always looks wrong to me when you have a DB and no arco. I prefer to use the guitar as I can get a more whoompy Tuba sound and it's easier when trying to sight read fiddly runs, especially for intonation versus the fretless DB/EUB.

[quote name='pete.young' timestamp='1469120873' post='3095973'] I'd be amazed if you needed 4 hours power though, most concert bands only manage 90 minutes in 2 or 3 sets, most brass players don't have the lip for much more than that. [/quote] We often do concerts that may be around 90 mins, but with setting up/soundchecking (yes concert bands do this too) and breaks it often stretches out to around 4 hours. Of course I wouldn't leave it switched on over the breaks, but I was just thinking of worst case scenario.

[quote name='gjones' timestamp='1469131172' post='3096069'] Learn to play tuba? [/quote] Funny you should say that, but I think the band would be a lot happier if I did. When I joined, they had a tuba player and wanted a bass guitarist for the more modern stuff, but he left 6 months later and it's only me mainly reading Tuba parts (an octave lower) as they can't find a Tuba player to join. They usually get a Tuba dep in for the "power-less" concerts, but they've struggled this year so had to do concerts with nothing lower than a bass clarinet (they desperately need more Euphonuims and a Bass Trombonist too!)