bluesparky

[quote name='Doctor J' post='347509' date='Dec 6 2008, 09:05 PM']I've got a three band Stingray and I find myself using the mid knob quite a lot. It makes a huge difference in terms of how much the bass melts into the back in a band situation or comes right to the front of a mix. Personally, I couldn't imagine using a Stingray without one.[/quote] +1

[quote name='Doctor J' post='347509' date='Dec 6 2008, 09:05 PM']I've got a three band Stingray and I find myself using the mid knob quite a lot. It makes a huge difference in terms of how much the bass melts into the back in a band situation or comes right to the front of a mix. Personally, I couldn't imagine using a Stingray without one.[/quote] +1

Not really for me either, my fingering is sloppy enough at the best of times, without adding something else to the equation! But then again, for every few people who don't think it's for them, there are probably another bunch of people who think it's the mutt's nuts.

I always wanted the old Trace Elliot head with the UV, it was the coolest thing in the world! Nice job.

[quote name='BOD2' post='346148' date='Dec 5 2008, 09:35 AM']Ah... in that case if I send you my address will she send me all of your back copies of "Space Rats In Leather", please ?[/quote] Ha Ha!

Although i can't really join this thread with stories from place i've played, i can offer many from places i've worked. Of course, people do get protective over their local venues and i'd hate to upset people, but.... As far as place to load in, the worst are: Folkstone Lees Cliff Hall, horrible push down a slope and the trucks have to reverse down which means you're pushing up a ramp, up a hill, then up in the truck, and then have to tip the flightcases onto a slope. Grim. Even the dolphin has gone now! Albert Hall used to be horrible, but much better now the floor is the lift. Glasgow barrowlands has a load in of many, many stairs, but the rock hard local crew carry everything up the 4 flights of stairs, if you want to see some tough guys, go there! I've done tours of Scandanavia, all of the gigs were in ice arenas, after a month of 18 hour days walking on covered ice floors, your knees ACHE!! also grim. Southend cliffs pavillion amongst others, has a comedy extreme rake on the stage, so if you turn a back on a flightcase it'll end up in the front row of the stalls if you're not careful. Whilst working on the "James" tour earlier in the year we did a gig in the (then brand new) Sheffield Academy, all very nice, but it was that new when we arrived, as i walked onto the stage in the morning i saw a chap drilling into the wall. I asked him what he was doing and he said he was installing the electricity for the venue, shouldn't be long! They were literally finishing the building around us as we were loading in, they just about did it before the doors opened that evening! I did Girls Aloud (insert joke here) at the restaurant next to the diving pool they used in the Barcelona Olympics. It was dull lumping the gear down the (MANY!!!) stairs, but the view across the city was amazing. I used to work at Essex Uni Student's Union (back when i was an unwashed student) and it's venue literally used to be a car park! Tours used to to come in and the crews and bands would always moan about the structural look of the place and the location. It was nothing we could do about it so we used to get a bit defensive and miffed about it all. Now, as a result i'm always a bit cautious about slagging off venues as more often than not there is someone who does care about it - it's their life and income, but due to financial restrictions they can't do anything about it. Whilst on the Bigger Bang tour last year, we used a large 10 tonne crane to lift a lot of the trusses and stage sections onto various parts of the 80ft high set. As we turned up to Sporting Lisbon's footie ground where the gig was at the start of the day, we saw that the guy in the crane was sitting in the cab literally reading the manual and was on the phone trying to work out how to use it, now THAT was not a welcoming sight!. Any venue where the lift breaks is dull, especially when it's a truck lift and it's stuck inside!!!!! Good venues however include: 02 - best arena in Europe, i've got some great pics from standing on the roof of the arena below the canvas - the arena itself is a self contained venue, ready for when the canvas itself gets removed. UEA (not an easy thing to say with me being an ipswich boy!), Whilst on the Bigger Bang we did the main square in St Petersburg, amazing experience. On the same leg, we did a beach in Montenegro, the beach was literally 100 metres from the stage. We knew where we were heading after we were set up! Oops, Sorry, going off track! Er, last time i played a gig, it was in a marquee, and it was muddy!!

It's probably my missus, she's fed up of the pile of mags next to the bed, so she's sending them out to people to get rid of them! Good mag though, i enjoy it. Nice read.

Back in my early teens i was desperate to play guitar, having idolised Nuno and Slash, and my music teacher at school knew about it. When i started my GCSE's i was the only student in my music class and my music teacher said he needed to expand the music department's equipment stock and said he'd buy a bass guitar & amp, and a drumkit. I bagged the spot at school bassist (even though i'd not played a note yet) and my best mate did the same for the drumkit - and became a very good drummer too as a result (he also converted from being guitarist too, saying that drumming was much cooler). Apparently an electric guitar would overpower the school orchestra and wasn't really necessary whilst a bass would enhance the orchestra and definitely had it's place, so i ended up learning the bass (I bought a guitar for home soon after but I quickly 100% converted to bass quickly after that and haven't looked back).

Practice more, and better - actually make it count. Get out of the house and play with other humans rather than i-tunes and a drum machine. Do a gig (shock horror!) And also not to buy anything, i've got everything i need - haven't i?

Well, for me, my answers are: When you practice, when you sit down and say "right, here we go", what do you all do? Usually sit down at my desk, pedals, amps and books usually still setup from last time, and start warming up with scales and exercises, then fire up i-tunes and learn and play along to some songs, then see where it all takes me, whether it highlights things i need to work on. Then fish through what i've been doing recently and see what i need to improve on. Do you go through variations of the same thing, or do something radically different each day? Habit is big in my life, so it's usually the same old thing, i try and start new things but then forget i've done that next time! Do you practice all scales every day, or concentrate on arpeggios one day, modes the next, 2 & 3 octave scales on another? I usually whip through the basics of scales and arps and modes, but will concentrate heavily on one for each session When you warm up and / or do dexterity exercises, do you always do the same ones or look for new ones each time? As previously mentioned i usually rattle through the same old excersises, but try to do new things, or try to remember things i've not written down. Do you stick to one genre of music in one session or vary it? Usually i stick to rock, pop and funk, i try to have frustrated dabblings with jazz but don't seem to progress. How do you stay disciplined? My biggest failure! - i'm easily distracted. I've started keeping a practice diary to shame myself into seeing what i actually achieve from each session and how much i waste! Do you work towards specific goals, either long term or short term? (be it mastering a rather tricky piece, or a technique or your own goals) I've done all the trinity college exams, and will do RGT's too as soon as i think i can think i can fit the exam in. I also disect REALLY tricky pieces and block through them bit by bit, practice by practice until it all slowly starts to come together. Do you dismiss things you've tried several times, but haven't nailed (for me it'd be up-down thumb slapping and playing Jaco's chromatic fantasy to speed), or do you refuse to be beaten and spend lots of time on it? As far as techniques go, i think i can do all i ever need to do / will use in public so i don't try to be an amazing tapping wizard or be able to play semi-quavers at 230 BPM, I realise there are bassists in this world who will always be better than me and there are targets i'll never reach. It took me a lot of years to come to terms with that!! Do you dismiss things as not being relevant, either not for you or bass playing in general? As i said above, it took me a while, but i've realised that i don't have to be able to play everything, be as good as everyone or be able to do everything, Where do you source new ideas of things to work on? - obviously working or playing in a band will always have an input on this as the setlist always increases. I don't have time to be in a band or regular lessons, so i rely heavily on this forum for help!! How much percentage of your time do you spend on theory or do you only know what you need to know? I used to spend a lot of time on theory and i keep that knowledge topped up. Recently i don't seem to be increasing my knowledge and i'm aware of that, so i've started thinking about doing the Associated Board's theory exams to keep me interested and knowledgeable. I know there are a lot of questions here, and i don't expect answers from everyone on all of them, but I'm just looking for inspiration and wondering what everyone does,... Thanks you - or thank me, seeing as i'm replying to myself!

[quote name='Mrs Tinman' post='339470' date='Nov 28 2008, 11:58 AM']*swoon* [/quote] *Blush*

I was looking for info about people's practice regime and after a search i thought i'd revive this thread. I thought i'd add my thoughts and questions to it - i'm watching deliverance on ITV4 and trying to take my mind of the SQUEAL LIKE A PIG BOY! bit!! So, questions i have are: When you practice, when you sit down and say "right, here we go", what do you all do? Do you go through variations of the same thing, or do something radically different each day? Do you practice all scales every day, or concentrate on arpeggios one day, modes the next, 2 & 3 octave scales on another? When you warm up and / or do dexterity exercises, do you always do the same ones or look for new ones each time? Do you stick to one genre of music in one session or vary it? How do you stay disciplined? Do you work towards specific goals, either long term or short term? (be it mastering a rather tricky piece, or a technique or your own goals) Do you dismiss things you've tried several times, but haven't nailed (for me it'd be up-down thumb slapping and playing Jaco's chromatic fantasy to speed), or do you refuse to be beaten and spend lots of time on it? Do you dismiss things as not being relevant, either not for you or bass playing in general? Where do you source new ideas of things to work on? - obviously working or playing in a band will always have an input on this as the setlist always increases. How much percentage of your time do you spend on theory or do you only know what you need to know? I know there are a lot of questions here, and i don't expect answers from everyone on all of them, but I'm just looking for inspiration and wondering what everyone does,... Thanks! all input is grateful!

Some of me, at work, rest and play!

OK, i guess i didn't think about it, but then again i'd think all of us could be wary about putting something they're not 100% sure about onto their pride and joy if they didn't know if it'd do it any good or harm. To be honest, i didn't / don't know the ingredients of WD40, (i just know what it stands for!) so wouldn't know whether to judge if it'd be detrimental to the health of my beasts and i've only used it on big pieces of machinery that take a regular beating in all weathers.

Ok, i may go and get some more then! Thanks guys. Are there any other similar products on the market, or is fast fret the market leader / best? I've heard about rubbing certain oils into the neck when changing strings, but i've not really done anything about it. Does it matter if it's rosewood or maple as to what oil you use? Is the oil just "lemon oil" or is it an oil specifically marketed for axe wielders? [quote name='BOD2' post='335388' date='Nov 24 2008, 12:24 PM']As for the contributors on that Rick thread suggesting WD40....no, no, no. Use WD40 on your car by all means, but it's got no place on a guitar.[/quote] Yeah i saw that, WD40! ha ha, and there was me thinking about Castrol GTX too! The best use i had for WD40 was to grease up the corners of my scalextric so the cars could drift around the corners, ooh, that takes me back!!

Hi all, i have been known to use [url="http://www.gear4music.com/inventory-detail/index/?int_product_id=9533&gad=COO_5foBEgjUTSM1_6-iXBi0mZL_AyDfv5AR"]Fast Fret[/url] to add a bit of zing to my strings and make them feel a little smoother and silkier. Then someone (who's opinion i value) said it eats away at the wood in the neck and doesn't do it any good in the long run. Does anyone know anything about that? Or does anyone use any product on their strings to add like to them? I'm sure it's probably been covered before in a topic somewhere but i couldn't find anything about it. Thanks

Whilst randomly having Radio 2 on t'other day (couldn't get Radio 5 for some reason) Mr Wogan played the above song from Jesus Christ Superstar. My ears pricked up 'cos it's a simple song, i think it just had acoustic guitar and bass, but the bassline bubbled and flowed along. I'm not normally a fan of the Lloyd Webber back catalogue, but it was a pleasant surprise to hear this, with it's bouncy bassline which was almost a song on it's own, yet didn't interfere with the vocals. Certainly a song i wouldn't normally like, but the bassline certainly changed that, to the point where i ended up buying it on line. Anyone else know of a suitably embarrassing song which has a cool bassline in the background which prompts a surprise visit to i-tunes store? Another song i like with a similar busy, yet perfect for the song bass line is "what i am" by Edie Brickell. Great song.

I've got the Aphex punch factory too. It is subtle, very subtle, almost to the point of not being there. when i tried it out in the shop i tested it to it's extremes and had a noticeable effect on the sound. The small size, impressive variety of power input options and the cool meter on it was also a selling point. However, the known issue of the jack connections to the PCB is now raising it's ugly head and it intermittently drops out. Not good, this would be VERY annoying if I didn't have my gigrig, but luckily i can easily switch around it mid-song without battering an eyelid. So i'm now on the lookout for a good compressor too. The [url="http://www.ovnilab.com/reviews/maxoncp9pro.shtml"]Maxon CP9 + pro [/url] seems to be getting amazing reviews everywhere, but few retailers seem to sell it., so i can't getting my grubby little mitts on one to try it out. Has anyone else used one of these?

[quote name='silverfoxnik' post='331927' date='Nov 18 2008, 10:45 PM']Hi Mark Got a chance to check it out yesterday and it's a great piece of kit, really solid and well-made and it looks good too. Within two minutes of using it I managed to balance up the output levels on my Roscoe Beck V string, which has a really low output, with my Wal Pro2e which has a really high output.. Something that's been frustrating me for a long time at gigs. A couple of really nice features on it are the 'bright' switch, which adds a bit of zing back to your sound if the reduction in output levels affects the top end of your louder bass. Plus the Mute feature and Tuner out make it a very versatile addition to your pedalboard. The only tiny niggle I have about it is that whilst it says it's 'true bypass', I'm not absolutely 100% sure that it is. To me, there's a small but detectable difference that it makes to your sound.. However, it's such a small difference (mainly in the top end) that you'd never notice it in a gig situation.. Overall, I think it's fantastic value for the money! [/quote] Great, thanks for that Nik, will prob end up going for one now, i like the bright switch idea, will come in handy for what i've got in mind. Cheers.

[quote name='Rich' post='330586' date='Nov 17 2008, 12:43 PM']I get plenty of days when my playing blows... does that count? [/quote] That's nothing, when it's been a while between practicing, i both suck and blow....

[quote name='john_the_bass' post='331346' date='Nov 18 2008, 11:06 AM']Can anybody who has access to their Diago pedalboard give me a quick measurement from the base of the board (inside) to the edge of the lip (ie where the lid meets)? I need to know that height so I can check if I can fit a particular pedal in a position in the chain and get clearance to put the plug in over the lip. On the Diago site, it says internal height (not depth) is 85mm, but that seems really high - with that in mind, please can someone measure the height of the input jack on a boss pedal for me from the base as I know there is clearance with one of those. I could do all this myself later, but I might get an opportunity to pop out and do some purchasing in a bit, before I get home to have a look! Cheers[/quote] The height of the lip, from the bottom of the inside of the case base, is approx 24mm. I have Boss pedals butted right up against either end of the pedal board and a cable / lead will just fit over the lip without any excess strain or pressure. See a pic of my board (and my old Diago board) [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=289&pid=330458&st=940&#entry330458"]here[/url] I hope that makes sense!

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