Musicman20

[quote name='Pete Academy' post='825758' date='May 2 2010, 06:47 PM']I would just start with simple octaves in a disco style. This way you'll practise a clean thumbed note and a precise popped octave at the same time.[/quote] Good idea...thanks. My pops arent so bad, but my thumb and muting the strings inbetween notes is poor at the moment. I dont want to start playing anything ridiculous, as the slap lines I tend to hear that I like are fairly simplistic, just tight and funky! Basic Flea lines (ive found a few) are probably a good place to start, and just octaves up and down the neck with a metronome.

[quote name='The GroovyPlucker' post='825628' date='May 2 2010, 04:44 PM']I see you have the Jeff Berlin Combo and a 1x15, how does it sound for you, plenty of punch I guess, but does it have warmth and grunt, me's thinking MB is more for Bass twiddlers & noodlers in the upper registry? I like the root bottom end grunt, but need portability, can also noodle, but need that warmth as well as tightness, am I looking in the wrong place, or just got the wrong set up? The GroovyPlucker[/quote] From what I hear the Jeff Berlin is pure old school with the modern Markbass sheen! A nice combo!

I would add the Markbass NY121, which I think is the same dimensions?! Anyway....one of the Markbass 1x12s. If thats not enough, sell the combo and get an amp with cabs. The LMTube isnt, IMO, worth the extra over the LM3. I would stick with the LM3 or the F1/500. The LMTube adds very little in terms of tube warmth. The power sections of the F1/500 and LM2/3 are the optimum setup when it comes to tone. There are some negative reviews of the LM 800/LMTube 800....they dont sound like the LM2/3 for some reason. Personally, I nearly did what you did and got a combo. Very light and awesome tone. BUT, I dont think it would be loud enough for me. The Jeff Berlin might cut it for me...might. If I get any Markbass cabs itll be the 2x10 (x2) or one of the 4x10s. I like the Markbass amp tones...and I like how well made they are.

[quote name='ezbass' post='825711' date='May 2 2010, 06:02 PM']The entire thread has been removed from TB, something to do with using the press release or something, how crap was that? I hope we're safe from that sort of thing BC.[/quote] Has it? I got shot down straight away by all the mega-Lakland fans. I stated id seen some appalling QC one recent Laklands and they just werent having it. Excuses all the way through it. Not good enough....the previous Laklands ive heard were very very good, but since the Skylines became more popular, the modern retail price is way too high. Time will tell. Lakland make very nice neck profiles so I hope they actually keep going and get better,

[quote name='bottlebassman' post='825599' date='May 2 2010, 04:06 PM']My ear has always been drawn to the bass it seems! I think it probably has a lot to do with The Stranglers being the first band I really "got into" in the late seventies, JJ Burnel's bass lines being extremely prominent, particularly on the first 3 albums. I just always seem to listen out for the bass, no matter what style of music it is! (Maybe that's why I found "and justice for all" a poor album after "master of puppets")[/quote] Master of Puppets was awesome. I do like And Justice but Tallica wasnt the same. I cant understand why metal wont let bass be prominent. Some bands do, but not many. Then again, most modern metal is boring to play anyway....just mindless chugging.

[quote name='Clarky' post='825135' date='May 1 2010, 08:51 PM']OK Gareth, last one! I've got Britain's Got Talent to watch .... well actually am going to [s]perv over[/s] watch 'Vicky Cristina Barcelona' with Scarlet Johansson Anyway about 60cm at its longest and I think you could get it down to 44cm at its shortest (but that was an estimation as am in a hurry!)[/quote] Thanks ill measure that up and test it tomorrow.

[quote name='Clarky' post='825096' date='May 1 2010, 07:58 PM']Just shortened the strap as much as it will go and the top edge of the belly cut out on Sid is about 1cm above my belly button - there's scientific for you! But should allow you to hold up one of your Precisions and visualise. Frankly, much higher than that and you start looking a d*ck/slap merchant in my view [/quote] Thanks Clarky. I have another request! When you get a moment, could you measure the distance from strap pin hole to strap pin hole when the strap is laid flat off the bass (on the very highest/shortest setting)? I can then set my old strap up at that length and see how it fits. Thanks n sorry for being a pain!

[quote name='Clarky' post='825077' date='May 1 2010, 07:34 PM']Thats the very same one that I have - I have it slung medium to medium/low (Mark King and Sid Vicious I ain't), its adjustable as it has rectangular holes cut in it and you thread the bottom half of the strap through these as many times as you want to get it the length you like. I think it will do anything other than short. I have it on my Oly White bass Sid right now and I've never noticed any colour come off it[/quote] Cheers! Id quite like it to be able to be fairly high for the covers band, and a lower setting for my originals band which is more pick style. Will it go fairly high up do you think?

[quote name='Clarky' post='825077' date='May 1 2010, 07:34 PM']Thats the very same one that I have - I have it slung medium to medium/low (Mark King and Sid Vicious I ain't), its adjustable as it has rectangular holes cut in it and you thread the bottom half of the strap through these as many times as you want to get it the length you like. I think it will do anything other than short. I have it on my Oly White bass Sid right now and I've never noticed any colour come off it[/quote] Cheers! Id quite like it to be able to be fairly high for the covers band, and a lower setting for my originals band which is more pick style. Will it go fairly high up do you think?

[quote name='discreet' post='824648' date='May 1 2010, 10:33 AM']Er... not Mono or Comfort, but may I refer you honourable gentlemen to an entry in another recent thread concerning comfy straps? [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=85640&st=20&gopid=824636&#entry824636"]Minotaur Strap[/url] EDIT: Platypus, didn't you have one of these?[/quote] Very impressed with the look of the Deluxe Black... I hope this leather wont rub colour onto a white bass, will it?! Probably just paranoid. Ill have a good think. Leather + padding seems a bit better than the Mono.

I might go for one of these Minotaur straps. Plain black with padding: [url="http://minotaur.gr/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=28&products_id=52"]http://minotaur.gr/catalog/product_info.ph...;products_id=52[/url] Well, its their deluxe one so Im expecting it to be awesome. How short and long will they get? Lastly, daft as it sounds, has anyone found the leather 'rubs' onto their light coloured instruments? A lot of mine are white.

Orange Bass Terror or TC Elec RH450.

[quote name='Grand Wazoo' post='825004' date='May 1 2010, 05:50 PM']And don't forget Ed's review on the 25th Anniversary, which is A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!! [/quote] I do like it, in fact a while back that was the bass I HAD to have. But the prices here in the UK put me right off. They are releasing it as a Reflex arent they? I still reckon Big Al 5 SSS is for me though....totally crazy design, but I love it. Ill be old school with the colour combo though.

[quote name='dub_junkie' post='824974' date='May 1 2010, 04:53 PM']are you going to change your order and go with the Big AL 5? I owned an Albert Lee guitar for a few years. great shape imo. they've discontinued the ice blue now but I guess I'll take whatever I can when the exchange rate gets better and I can import a used one.[/quote] Im gonna keep the Ray 5 coming....I know its the one 5 string Ive been after ever since I started on their 4 string basses. But, after that gets 'paid off', I think a Big Al 5 SSS is in order.

Ive decided, after thinking about it for a while, that this bass is damn cool. The 5 string is even cooler... dont know why. My next bass had to be a Big Al 5, SSS. For some reason, I really dig what EB do...a lot. High quality, flexible, excellent electronics, cool looks. At first I didnt really get into this shape, then I saw this: [url="http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r309/bovinehost/BigAl5/bigal481.jpg"]http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r309/bo...l5/bigal481.jpg[/url] Perfect

[quote name='essexbasscat' post='824902' date='May 1 2010, 03:08 PM']Three of us in our school band played guitar. One of us had to take the bass and it ended up being me, for non musical reasons. Once I'd got to grips with it though, I realised it was actually really fun to play. That's when I took the paper round to pay for my first bass and and speaker. Always been keen to play every instrument I could get my hands on though and discover how it fitted in with the whole picture, whatever that landscape was at the time. Years later, ended up with 14 different instruments and sold most of them to get my first Goodfellow once I realised my true love is the bass. More recently offered to play guitar in my band when the right guitarist couldn't be found (at the time). Found myself soon after contemplating watching someone else play bass in my band. After a while, I realised I felt really sad and upset at the thougth of it Backed out of the guitar thing and stayed with my bass You know when something is instinctively right. T[/quote] +1 I still flirt with guitar; nothing like a Telecaster cranked through and Orange Dual Terror...awesome. I really like using delay on guitars. BUT, it feels different. I pick it up and think 'what is this child's toy I have acquired?!'

My pick style is spot on, and my finger style has come on leaps and bounds! I now also want to build up a semi decent slap technique. Nothing crazy...just a nice strong technique. I need a few exercises to get back into it. I know how to do it, and I realise what's a decent technique (ish) but what can I do to build everything up?! At the moment it feels a little weak. Any basic songs or lines I should try with a metronome? Thanks

The 1000w version will give you loads of clean headroom should you need it. I'd still like a 500 or 1000 version but I'm not sure how much use it would get with what I've got. Doesn't stop me wanting one though ha ha.

The pics will make me want one. I think the bodyshape and pics are awesome!

[quote name='bass5' post='777823' date='Mar 17 2010, 08:07 PM']Well yes and no: in british pound the Big Al costed me £142 more but if you read below you'll see why The price for the 25th here was a lot more expensive so, I didn't buy it in UK but directly in the US, had it delivered to one of my offices in New York, then got a "collegue" who travels frequently between New York and London to smuggle it over as hs own bass... hush hush. The retaill price here in UK for the 25th was far out of my reach, something around £2750, but buying it in the states I saved just under £1300 hence the 25th costed me £1450 Paid in USD $2,310.00 ££ Equivalent £1,456.76 R.O.E. $/£ 0.63 UK Price was £2,750.00 Saving total £1,293.24 For the Big Al I had to buy it here as I couldn't possibly ask "my friend in US" for a similar favour, that was a once in a lifetime favour, so I have shopped around the major Bass stores here in UK and The Bass Gallery in Camdem won by offering me the best quote = £1599.[/quote] Ive just realised how cool the Big Al bass is, esp the 5. I had no bass GAS until I saw the vids. Oh heck....once im cleared paying for this lot, I want to try one. 5 string, SSS, sunburst, vintage pearl white plate. MMM.

Thanks eveyone. Where can I find a decent quality leather strap if I go down that route? Any recommendations?

With countless friends turning to guitar, and a few of them drumming, we had no bass player in our group. Now, I didnt just play bass because no one else wanted to, I actually thought it looked cooler to play bass. I liked the big fat strings, longer body and cross between being rhythm and driving the melody. Back when I got into music seriously Nirvana were at the high point, along with many other grunge bands. I was also into some 'good' and truly awful metal. I noticed that barely any bass was audible when I listened to metal...and it annoyed me. Especially on 'And Justice For All' by Metallica. I kept on going and loved playing bass. I knew it felt right. BUT, I remember when I realised 'yes, this is a good choice'. I started to get heavily into the modern melodic punks bands that came about after the grunge scene started dying off. It was fresh, fun, positive, melodic, and some of it required being damn good at your instrument. About 60% of the records I listened to had really really strong and 'high in the mix' basslines. Some of the bassists were even playing solos! I was i my element. This was also when I realised how cool the Fender Precision was. My best mate took the piss out of my vintage style White/Tort MIJ Fender P. He said it looked stupid in alternative music. Guess what, he was wrong. Now the Fender P is the instrument I feel at home on. To cut a long story short, the modern punk scene, especially coming from America, had some amazing bass players, and I still listen to it on a daily basis, (as well as more subdued calmer music). Now I realise why I was always into the Nirvana songs that were faster paced!

[quote name='Duarte' post='824118' date='Apr 30 2010, 02:42 PM']oooh, good choices. HS Stingray 5 would be my choice of the fivers (possibly a classic 5...) What finish did you order on the classic? Flame or birdseye?[/quote] Cheers! It took me ages to 'get' which 5 string was right for me, and then I did even more research into which pickups would be right. The HS is the best of both worlds for what Im after. The Classic 4 is going to be birdseye

Ah, no Dan means it wont be Lakland For me anyway.

I think that's the end of the Lakland that we all know. The past few I tried were not upto standard. Is Dan no longer part of it then?