sammybee

I was asked to think about covering some 'Rush' (Geddy Lee)....

I've been around the block a bit and like to think I'm fairly open minded when it comes to music, and whilst rock isn't my #1 choice, I was totally underwhelmed by what I heard in the bass department. Sure there were a lot of notes being played, but it didn't sound that great (lack of space, rhythm, groove etc). Am I missing something or does anyone else feel the same way?

I'm down to two, one with flats and one with rounds.

#1 EBMM Stingray 2006 Special Edition in Buttercream strung with flats

#2 Fender US RI 1975 Jazz Bass natural finish strung with rounds

Between this pair, I can cover all my bases!

You're doing better than me for Latency! (M1 MB Air 8gb). I monitor through my interface. I DI everything and record dry then add amp modelling and fx to taste once I'm happy with the take(s).

bass -> yamaha mixer -> audient interface -> logic. Always record dry/flat and add minimal fx/processing after. Bass is a Stingray 3eq 4H with flats.

5 hours ago, J66Bass said:

Hello , I firstly definitely did not bad mouth him on Fb and it’s definitely not my genre, i gave his name and it’s very common to do it to warn

Sellers About perhaps a possible scam , I believe my FB POST is entirely fair and about awareness on someone who I BELIEVE  is a scammer or not , I did everything on my side to wait 3 weeks on a sale , not point to deal who someone is behaving this way ,  not reply in any messages, no apologies, nothing, basically nothing , completely pointless and disappointed, a simply explanation on his part will have been welcomed, I received not a word, now if you believe I’m incorrect well I’m sorry…and will delete my post on Fb , also I like to point it pay a fee to be refunded while We agreed it will be not refunded I have proof of textsss  I only became aware he paid a fee a few day ago when I call PayPal myself.., 

I saw the post on FB, I think you should delete it if you haven't done already. Unfortunately, 'ghosting' and 'non-communication' is a very common thing when you are buying and selling over the internet - I don't agree with it, but it is the way people are these days. Not just buying and selling basses, but any communication they percieve as 'uncomfortable' - many people just block or avoid the person in question. I don't think this behaviour means they are a scammer, yes it stings a little bit if you've waited a couple of weeks for a sale. But on the positive side, you have his deposit. I'd take that as a win, & leave the poor bloke alone

Perhaps he wasn't a scammer, fancied the bass, paid you a deposit and couldn't come up with the rest of the funds? You're being a bit harsh on the fella, particularly how you're bad mouthing him on FB

You want one of these... https://reverb.com/uk/p/akai-mpd16 - It's a bit old, but I think fits your use case perfectly. It has standard MIDI on a 5pin DIN connector. Only £40

Love the colour!

18 hours ago, TheGreek said:

I disagree. 

 

If you want to prioritise stuff you should think about learning the basics - playing really - rather than stuff that you will only need to know once you've reached a certain level of proficiency.

 

I've been playing for over 30 years on and off and have only become confident fiddling with set ups in the last 5 years or so.

 

Spend your time practicing rather than worrying about 2mm at the 12th fret.

This is the only thing you should be doing and the only advice you should really heed on this thread! Take your bass to someone local that knows what they are doing and get them to look your bass over. You'll thank @TheGreek for what he has said!!

I'd recommend iRealPro if you want 'presets' and don't want to program stuff yourself. Not expensive and does more than just drums

Good Times - Chic/Bernard Edwards

I Want Your Love - Chic/Bernard Edwards

She's A Real Mama Jama - Carl Carlton

Dont Look Any Further - Dennis Edwards

Act Like You Know - Fat Larry's Band

Keep my smiling at the moment

I've had up to 7/8 basses at a time. I'm down to two (a Stingray with Flats and a '75 RI Jazz with rounds), but honestly I never pick the Jazz up these days. It is really liberating just being able to pick the bass up and play it. I don't get GAS anymore and am far, far more considered with my bass related purchases. I love being able to focus on the one instrument and really enjoy it for what it is. I still lust over guitars though

3 hours ago, MichaelDean said:

Can I hire you to talk to my wife about a new bass?

Absolutely - you should talk to my accountant too! He has a great way of making big purchases sound affordable

I wouldn't spend £3k on anything BUT a new Stingray if I were in the market for a new bass. I think I've had my current 'Ray for about 10 years (not selling it anytime soon), so if I wanted to replace it £300/year (based on a 10 year ownership) seems a small price to pay for something that gives me so much joy.

£80 - thats a bit of a bargain. I'm sure you could flip it for at least double if you don't like it  I have an older Kurzweil at home that my daughter plays and she absolutely loves it. The piano samples/sounds are really nice

I've been an MPC user since 2004 - started with an MPC 2000xl, then an MPC 3000, flirted with MPC 1000, MPC 2500, MPC Studio. My current MPC's are an MPC 2000xl special edition, and an MPC Live. The latest incarnations are fantastic songwriting tools, but nothing makes pumping drums like the 2000xl and 3000. It's amazing what you can do with an MPC Live/One/X, guitar and bass -> and have a great deal of fun while you're at it

46 minutes ago, SumOne said:

^^^

Isn't going onto a Drum Machine thread and saying why you don't use drum machines and why other shouldn't the equivilant of going onto the Effects forum and saying why Effects pedals aren't needed (a hangable trolling offence on Talkbass!) . 😉

 

I get where you're coming from, but there continues to be quite a big market from hardware drum machines. There are pros and cons to either method.  I guess all those people using hardware could be wrong, or perhaps they are in different situations and people like doing things in differernt ways.

I think we are all wrong, and the 50k members of the MPC forums on FB are too  Anybody want to buy an MPC Live & an MPC 2000xl - I'll consider myself schooled!

7 hours ago, TrevorG said:

Very jealous (but not of the weight). Great sound and clearly great construction. I have the Elf with the 2X8. Nice and light but not the same. 

Yes a touch on the heavy side! I think I may fit casters to the bottom

When I started out I was given one piece of advice, buy a bass that makes you want to play - and spend as much as you can on it. 

I know bass prices are crazy atm, but I think this advice still holds true. Learning any instrument is hard (particularly once past the teenage years), and if you have a really nice instrument you will be more inclined to continue the learning journey & not give up at the early hurdles (there are many)

Plus if you splash on a 2nd hand usa/mex Fender you will get all your money back if you decide to sell... A cheap Harley Benton, you'll struggle to sell for half what you pay

3 hours ago, TheGreek said:

Welcome to the TE Appreciation Club.

 

They're amazing,  aren't they...

Thank you... yes utterly amazing.. although I'm not sure my neighbours would agree with you

25 minutes ago, Kiwi said:

Mainly so I don't have to use a computer.  The setting up to record saps my creativity and I'm firmly opposed to designed obsolescence. 

One of the main reasons I love my MPC(s) (And hardware in general), is that the process doesn't hinder you from making music. I always find if I try to write music within Logic that I'm composing with my eyes rather rather than my ears. Yes it comes out perfectly sequenced, but at the expense of sounding robotic & plastic-y

You'll find (as @SumOne says) there is a 'lot' to it, but it is very intuitive, tactile way to make music. As a die hard lover of vintage (old, heavy and clunky) gear I was really sceptical about these new fangled MPC's but I'm really glad I took a punt on mine. Even if it didn't do drums, it would be worth it for the audio recording/loop pedal/fx functionality

There she is in all her glory! Super clean considering her age

I've never really been excited about amps/cabs before as I don't gig and my bass playing is limited to recording (DI into the desk). I picked up an old Trace Elliot combo today and WOW. The tone and power from this thing is just awesome. It's a bit weighty, but these things are utter bargains for what they sell for today. Excited to put it to use, and it might even inspire me to get out there and play live!

9 hours ago, bartelby said:

 

 

My Roland R-8 from the 80s wasn't a drum machine, it was a "Human Rhythm Composer". It had parameters for adding a degree of randomness to velocity, pitch decay, timing and a couple of others. 

I'd hope modern machines can do this.

 

I used to midi it to a sampler for triggering other sounds.

 

 

But (good) human drummers, don't really add randomness to their playing, which is why the R-8 (to my ears) sounds a bit weird when you turn on the humanising feature.

MPC's allow you to do all sorts of funky stuff with the timing (push/pull, swing, turn quantise off etc, etc). If you're looking for the ultimate control of your drums, I'd be shortlisting one

On 15/02/2023 at 11:56, Lozz196 said:

Fortunately for those local enough the Northampton branch still has the same area/amount of stock as ever.

I'm not so sure about that.. I was in there last weekend and it was looking a bit sparse. The basses they stock seem to be the same ones that were there 6 months ago (ie. crap ones no one wants to buy)

I bought a GHS fast fret & got charged a few quid more than PMT are selling them for on their website.

It will be a shame when (not if) they shut down the physical stores