petebassist
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Everything posted by petebassist
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It's a half way finish between matt and silk varnish I'd say - so I'd have to sand the whole of the back of the neck - thanks, Pete
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Hi, I've got a new Eastman double bass, which is great, but it's got a small patch on the neck that is slightly rough. It's not a big deal but I notice it because it's somewhere I position my thumb a lot. Has anyone sanded a neck with 600+ sandpaper or similar and oiled with linseed oil? I'd be interested in any tips. Thanks, Pete
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[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Welcome on board it's a great forum ![/font][/color]
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[size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]I've just upgraded to a new double bass, so up for sale is my ¾ size Stentor 1950 (AKA Student 1) with a carved top and laminate back and sides. The bass is light, rock-solid, and currently strung up for pizzicato. It does have several scuffs and chips mainly around the bottom rims having been gigged at retro-festivals, bars, open mics etc, so it's not pristine, but nothing that affects the playability or the structural integrity of the instrument.[/font][/size] [size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]I believe this bass is around 10 -15 years old, I've owned it for six. It's currently strung with Presto Jazzicato black nylon wound steel rope core strings, which to my ears work great on this half-carved bass and give a lovely gut-like thump sound, and they amplify well through your average PA. They're also light and easy on the hands – perfect for those long performances.[/font][/size] [size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]Included are the original 'solo' tuning strings (for bowing) and bow that came with the bass (probably a stock Stentor bundle bow), so if you want to play arco you could put these strings back on. The action is low, so it's easy to play. The bass has a nice chunky rubber end-pin to protect your floors, and a lightly-padded cover/gig bag, which will keep the rain off.[/font][/size] [size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]Come and give it a try in central Bristol. Collect from central Bristol, cash/Paypal on pickup, thanks.[/font][/size] [size=4][b][font=Arial, sans-serif]Standard Stentor Features & Specifications[/font][/b][/size] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]· [b]Body:[/b] Hand finished wood[/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]· [b]Top:[/b] Solid Carved Spruce[/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]· [b]Sides:[/b] Laminated Maple[/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]· [b]Back:[/b] Laminated Maple[/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]· [b]Finish:[/b] Transparent brown varnish[/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]· [b]Bridge:[/b] Fitted maple[/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]· [b]Neck:[/b] Maple fingerboard[/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif]· [b]Tuning Pegs:[/b] Brass geared[/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][font=Arial, sans-serif]Photos (Please note: Stand and pickup are NOT included)[/font][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif][url="https://goo.gl/photos/LLwznZ2tuvkffTgu8"]https://goo.gl/photo...wznZ2tuvkffTgu8[/url][/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][size=4][font=Arial, sans-serif][url="https://goo.gl/photos/S21f1X4WSgV69Ef78"]https://goo.gl/photo...1f1X4WSgV69Ef78[/url][/font][/size][/indent] [indent=1][url="https://goo.gl/photos/RftzdGHs8UXVT81U6"]https://goo.gl/photo...tzdGHs8UXVT81U6[/url][/indent] [indent=1][url="https://goo.gl/photos/3XWVvzGXVjsATZSG8"]https://goo.gl/photo...WVvzGXVjsATZSG8[/url][/indent] [indent=1][url="https://goo.gl/photos/y5cbSU2hC8xB64qS9"]https://goo.gl/photo...cbSU2hC8xB64qS9[/url][/indent] [indent=1][url="https://goo.gl/photos/xxQ7c9TDZHJNAfMHA"]https://goo.gl/photo...Q7c9TDZHJNAfMHA[/url][/indent] [indent=1][url="https://goo.gl/photos/mJPmrZByYtrUYYfk6"]https://goo.gl/photo...PmrZByYtrUYYfk6[/url][/indent] [indent=1][url="https://goo.gl/photos/MApJdXn8v3cNF8q96"]https://goo.gl/photo...pJdXn8v3cNF8q96[/url][/indent] [indent=1][url="https://goo.gl/photos/RBtTm5r1MpmUw4yf8"]https://goo.gl/photo...tTm5r1MpmUw4yf8[/url][/indent] -
Thank you Jerry. I don't think I've seen a better bass performance for a long time - amazing attack and energy. From reading some of the expert comments here, it's obvious that I don't know about bass, which is fair enough ;-) I know his style is different to Bernard Edward's, but I was entertained & inspired. Good Times...
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Thanks for sharing that crackin video. I'd be happy to put a bridge back on, but I wouldn't attempt a sound-post. I believe you need a special sound-post tool to position it through the sound hole, and X-ray eyes...
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What Blue said :-) ... For me, having a great drummer is the key, and of course a great singer. Everything else hangs nicely off that. People with the same level of commitment that you have, whatever yours is. And once a gig's booked, IT'S BOOKED. On a practical level, I'd find it impossible to operate without a proper group calendar for booking stuff.
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I've got the basic Pure Preamp, which I believe is similar to the XLR but doesn't have the phase switch. Great piece of kit, and you can clip it onto your belt and control your volume & tone without having to move about the stage - life saver!
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Welcome mate, I saw some lovely Sandbergs at the London Bass Guide Show recently, and played one. Nice bases...
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What Upright to get as a first buy to learn on??
petebassist replied to JamesFlashG's topic in EUB and Double Bass
I have a Stentor Student 1950 3/4 hybrid, completely standard I think. I'm six foot one and with the end pin fully extended the nut is about level with my eyebrow when in playing position, which I understand is the rule-of-thumb recommended height for playing when standing up. Works well as a gigging bass because it's light compared to other 3/4 size bases that I've tried to lift... I don't know about body size. -
Interesting post, you pretty much summed up my experience of getting into music as a teenager, then switching to double bass in later life or 'second life'. However, I worked my way up from open mics and street parties and stuff before my first proper gigs, so I made my gaffs playing to one man & his dog. I see a lot more younger people playing double bass these days, which is is great.
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Maybe Kris Kedzior at KK could help you out & mail you some.
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FarWest Redhead EUB For Sale
petebassist replied to Monkey Steve's topic in EUBs & Double Basses For Sale
The workmanship on these looks amazing, and the only thing that puts me off buying one is the lack of an adjustable bridge. What's the action height set to at the end of the finger-board? -
Having tried a couple of EUBs in a shop (Stagg, Aria SWB Lite), the main issue with the stick basses seems to be that they swivel a bit, or can be a bit wobbly when the end pin is right out. As to sound and build quality, that's a different matter from what I read. The Yamaha SLB-200 seems to be the most highly rated EUB (check out Chris Min Dokey on youtube), and I've read good reviews sound-wise for the MK electric upright made in Italy. Be interested to hear how you get on...good luck.
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As I'm looking to uprgrade my Stentor gigging bass, I dropped into Turner Violins today in Nottingham to look at a couple of basses. I rarely get the opportunity to visit somewhere like this that has a large number of instruments, and since learning upright bass I've only played one or two others in retail shops. Even though my budget wasn't huge compared to the cost of most of the orchestral level instruments that they have there, I was made to feel very welcome by the staff, who were friendly & professional. I tried a Michael Poller, a Gewa, and a couple of more expensive fully carved older basses. The bass I eventually decided was for me was slightly outside of my budget at the moment, so needs a bit more thought (AKA selling off everything I can get my hands on to raise cash), but it was great to try out different basses, so I hope to get back there soon. Cheers, Pete
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Interesting to hear that Alan is back in business. Does anyone know where to find out more? Can't find the old website.
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Hi, have you ever raised the bridge on one of these and if so, do you know the maximum height you can get between the string and the fingerboard? I tried an NXT and CR4M at the London Bass show a couple of weeks back but the action was way too low for me, so I couldn't play it pizzicato as I do with my acoustic upright. I have considered a stick bass for easily carrying around to rehearsals, open mics & the like. Thanks.
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Bassix EUB - headless / cello body / composite neck
petebassist replied to timo's topic in EUBs & Double Basses For Sale
Mr Hatswell's a genius! If you could easily switch to the string speaking length, I think it would be a great little gigging instrument, especially being headless. -
Regarding technique, there was some amazing shredding going on and loads of techniques that I hadn't seen before on bass (tapping up and down the neck at the same time with two different hands), but I have to say that I loved Glen Matlock's comment "I don't do any of that fancy stuff" as he brought a bit of punk/old school attitude to the proceedings. Also I thought Dave Ellefson from Megadeath did a great session - awesome tone & sound. And Remco seemed to create a wall of sound over at the Eich amps stand seemingly without hardly moving his fingers...very nice. BTW I'm not intending to kick-off a discussion about old-school vs latest techniques here - just a bit of feedback on the event.
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You definitely had to get into the right queue - blood splattered zombies (one guy was walking around with a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire :-), knitters, brides to be, and of course bass players. This was my first LBGS and I loved it. Met some great people & heard some great music.
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Quality Hungarian Double Bass For Sale
petebassist replied to gcordez's topic in EUBs & Double Basses For Sale
Greg, is this the bass & setup that you used for Paper Crane? BTW I only ask out of interest, it's a stunning bass but not within my budget. Pete -
johnnigel Hi, I'd be very interested to hear how you get on over at Thwaites or Caswells. I'm in a similar position wanting to upgrade from my Stentor 1950 gigging bass to a better quality bass. My budget doesn't stretch to the Contrebass shop, and I wouldn't wanna drag something from there round the type of gigs I play. Turners in Birmingham/Nottingham seem to be another of the shops that carry a reasonable number of basses, but I haven't had time yet to get up to Beeston in Notts. Good luck with your search. Pete
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[size=4][font=tahoma,geneva,sans-serif]Hi Burns-bass, regarding the exercises, it's not a thumb-off exercise specifically in a book, it's the jazz dead notes exercise from 'Jazz Upright Bass Featuring Ed Friedland', which I do regularly, and sometimes thumb-off with just the weight of my arm & arm muscle holding down the string. I don't know whether it's advisable as I have no formal training except that from Ed's DVD and great advice from Geoff Chalmer's website, but it works for me & reminds me to not rely purely on thumb pressure to hold down a string. Ed does advise keeping the thumb light behind the neck so that the hand is free to move up and down the neck.[/font][/size]
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I do a few press-ups to maintain my arm & upper body strength, this makes a huge difference. Particularly when I remember to let my left arm take more of the strain and keeping my thumb light behind the neck - I even do one of Ed Friedland's warmup exercises with my thumb off the neck to remind myself to use my arm weight. I treat rehearsals and gigs a bit like training for a 10K run, if I haven't prepared enough I know I'll be knackered, but then that's probably down to my sloppy technique ;-) good luck...
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Saw a guy today carrying a double bass on his head, much like a Nepalese sherpa carrying gear up a mountain. It looked like it was in a thick padded bag, but he didn't seem to have anything on his head to balance it. Might give it a try the next time I have a local rehearsal ;-)
