Geek99

I [b]really[/b] do like the look of that jazz in the first post. I clicked yes, but I actually prefer a light sunburst on nice wood, to a natural finsih, but prefer both to an opaque painted finish.

[quote name='bubinga5' post='262757' date='Aug 14 2008, 09:57 PM']He he...well she is a bass player and the thread is erm...great bass player photos.. [/quote] She appears not to be plugged in though, and I dont think wireless was invented back then?

thanks, I tried the metronome too (cant post here until lunchtime) and it does seem to be so. I tend to have the Zoom on reasonably quiet, maybe thats why I'm not hearing the (lower) drum sounds very well - I can hear the hi hat easily. I was looking out for drum sounds (like bass drum on beat s 1 & 3 and snare on 2 & 4) as described in Bass for Dummies and failing.

hi, I'm struggling a little with the drum machine. This is partly because I dont play in a band, and also because the manual isnt that great on this topic (Its quite good on the others). I know you can set the speed using the tap button/light, but when its just playing a pattern say "Rock" at 100bpm, am I right in thinking that the tap light shows each beat? Or is it each beat one? I've been trying to place the drum sounds against the beat/this light and failing - it doesnt seem to mark out beat one in any obvious way. Any ideas what I'm missing? thanks

yes, you are correct about "roots" - the "fifth" is the note that is two strings across and two frets down, or alternatively seven frets down the same string from your starting point. There is more to it in melodic terms than that though thats the simple version.

they're very easy to find on ebay -bone, plastic, brass etc.

well, unfortunately I dont have long arms either which might offset the short fingers problem. There are comparatively few music stores round our way and thtey tend to stick to the budget end of the market, hence my question about rickenbackers - I've never seen one in the flesh to try. Interesting to hear that BigRedX had no trouble with a 36 though

I'm really hankering for a jazz bass (probably a Squier VMJ) - I dont have the longest fingers in the world though. I've read that Rickenbackers have a shorter scale, does anyone know if that extra inch makes them that much easier to play? I want to know if the extra money is worth it for the comfort! thanks

tapping your foot does come in time (pardon the pun) - my foot always seemed welded to my fingers, slowing down or speeding up as the notes varied in length and offering no guide whatsoever to the beat, However in the last few days, with hard practice , its got better. I just sat there playing resolutely and slowly in time to the metronome with my fingers and tapping my feet. Recommend Bass Guitar for Dummies, also recommend "Stuff Good BAss PLayers should know" by Glen Letsch and also "100 tips for bass guitar" by Stuart Clayton (which utterly changed my thinking about all this)

I didn't get one.

I have a few subjects that I work on in rotation, I have to split them as I have little time so have to find time to practise when I can. 1. metronome - practising playing along with it, and subdividing beats. 2. left hand dexterity - getting those smaller fingers to move independently. 3. keys - I play though all the major scales in circle of fifths rotation, and all over the neck. I start as low as I can (even if I go out of mode) and then go up and across all the strings getting to the highest note in that key on the fretboard. Blues scales and minor scales are coming shortly. This is to fix the scales, and fretboard map in my head rather than learn a box. 4. some pages, usually one, from my current book (bass styles by stuart clayton) 5. Jamming to drum machine pattern for a few minutes (so I listen to drum sounds, not just clicks) I do any two of these each time I practise. Little and often works best, I find. Edit - I fully endorse NJE's book recommendation - its that book which made me play a given scales all the way up and across the nexk rather than just in a box -also recommend Bass Guitar for Dummies.

He wears glasses, and he isnt my boss. I was clocked-off at the time so I'm okay on that one. Apparently their last two bass players left due to other commitments. they've done a few gigs, I'm still learning and havent done any! I think it may all be a bit "root-and-fifth" to start with.

I've just started a new job, in my first week now. I was just reading basschat, and had read down about as far as the login box when one of my new colleagues swooped from about 15 feet away and asked if I play bass and want to try out for their band. Wierd feeling!

i find the Zoom b2.1u does everything I want, to be honest, plus it has a drum machine, metronome and tuner. I wouldnt go back to individual effects now.

Rutger Gunnarson was pretty good on Summer Night City, although Abba really isnt my thing. I'd like to add Kirsty Newton who plays bass for Mitch Benn, and of course second/third/etc John Taylor, if I end sounding a quarter as good as him, I'd be happy.

does anyone have a link for SX - I do like their 70s look jazz. Do they actually sound like the real thing?

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='238422' date='Jul 13 2008, 11:39 AM']That story is truly the stuff of urban myths! Hope they get a bundle for it. Be interesting to know what the legal position on it is though, is it theirs to sell?[/quote] I have a degree in Law, although I'm not too hot on conveyancing specifically. I [i]think[/i] the position is that when he bought the house, he also bought any remaining contents also that the owner didnt take with them. Its probably "been abandoned" given the length of time. Given the high value, the original owner (if he could absolutely prove that it was his; bill of sale, photos of him playing it in the garden etc) could make a case for its recovery and restitution to him, but since he chose to leave it there/forgot about it/was too wasted to notice then or since he'd probably have to compensate the current owner of the house to a fair extent. EDIT: I looked it up in my notes, I was right in my initial thoughts

yes, very nice - that part about 40 seconds in where he moves up to the 10th fret - THATS the sound I was asking about - sort of a quacking, rasping sound. He doesnt seem to be doing any short slides up to the notes (as a previous poster quite reasonably suggested) even though it does look like he's using a lined fretless.

I'm hankering for a Squier VMJ, but will probably wait until I go tot he US next.

thanks for the link, I will read that. Not suite sure my meagre skills are up to fretless at the moment.

I have one ( a £60 cheapie with "Spider" on the headstock). I know this is below the price range you quoted and accept its limitations. Its loud enough un-amped to practice with, but thats all. There is little adjustment, beyond filling down the nut or the bridge if the action is uncomfortable, there is no intonation adjustment. The pre-amp has presence, volume, treblle, mid, bass and whilst that is good, the string to string balance isnt great. You can really hear any finger noise through it. It is good for picking up and practising, and I suppose that there is some marginal benefit in working your fingers harder to play as the action is a little higher . I'd echo the above posts and say get an electric that sounds a bit acoustic.

[quote name='Mikey D' post='245540' date='Jul 22 2008, 05:11 PM']The riff is actually a part played forward and a section attached to it which the tape had been reversed as said in teh above mentioned clasic albums program. It was put in supposedly because it was Bakhiti's birthday. However, I don't believe its the same forward section reversed, as the notes/rhythms are different. Apart from the great playing from Bakhiti (and it being fretless with minimal vibrato), I suppose the only thing that makes the sound is the EQ'ing and compression. What a bass sound though.[/quote] I wasnt thinking about [i]that[/i] song in particular (it was one that kept going on about "having diamonds on the soles of your feet"), I was thinking more generally about African bands like The Bhundu Boys and so on, who do all seem to get that same sort of sound. I should have been more clear, it was just that hearing the Gracelands tracks set me off on this train of thought. I hadnt considered that it might have been a fretless, or a defretted instrument. I just really like the sound and wondered if I could get it. Thanks for all the input though I may experiment with the defret setting on my Zoom.

I'm jsut curious about this - I was listening to a the radio when a Paul Simon track from Gracelands was played - you know the ones with the jangly African guitars (that sound like a Strat) and that nice sinuous, thumping bass sound. Does anyone know how to achieve that bass sound? Is it in a particular instrument line, or particular amps? Or is it done with Eq and effects? Obviously there is also a certain amount of finger input by the player too, but I'm ignoring that for now. thoughts?

[quote name='cheddatom' post='244443' date='Jul 21 2008, 02:24 PM']I find that very strange. Maybe time for a format![/quote] yes, just got a 64 bit machine that I need to put XP on, so may try again. It'll get a new windows disk (being x64) so may work better as the drivers and stuff will all be more up to date)

As someone who is still somewhat p1sspoor but ws a lot worse, I have some sympathy - it wasnt till I went back to basics and worked hard on my timing, posture, left hand positioning and scalar knowledge that I started to sound even halfway reasonable. You'll do better with a tutor than by trying to do it yourself as I did.