pecodk

Bought a Fender Roscoe Beck from Walshy. Arrived today. Mint condition as promised. Easy to deal with, answered a lot of questions, shipped fast. Very pleased and will do business with Walshy again in the future. A+++++

@StringNavigator cannot stop laughing  I'm sure many of the things you mention are very true. It's hard to be a Rockstar. I'll just stay home and be safe

@paul_c2 I don't plan to play in a band but who knows - for now I'll just play with Chic, Bootsy and some other guys   Didn't buy the cheapest stuff out there. So for a beginner I think I'm fine for now

2 minutes ago, paul_c2 said:

I know you're kinda joking, but a few points worth making: 1) most of the time, the "tone" produced isn't that player-dependent. The note is fretted by the left hand and the right hand plucks the string. Yes you can pluck it in different ways, different positions, but a "normal" pluck is not in itself distinctive between different players. The tone is much more dependent on the strings, pickups, signal chain (if any effects etc used) and the amp. 2) You want a setup which gives a fairly "normal" even tone, for example you don't want to have anything weird going on with weird pickups, or tons of effects, or distortion, or compression in the signal chain. You want it so you can hear what's right and what's not. Playing with loads of compression (that might be from overdrive/etc) is not ideal for beginners because they don't hear the variation in dynamics they have themselves.

Thanks for the advice @paul_c2 From what I have read and seen on YT I should set my sound flat and only tweak a little if I want to hear the sound of my bass. So that is what I do. Maybe it's not correct? I don't use compression, don't add a lot of bass etc. Still I really like the sound (I like disco/funk) I get thru the speakers. But to be honest I'm sure I could get better sound if I had experience playing/setting up gear. But for now a sound that sounds nice to my ears is just great. I had someone play my bass when I bought the amp/speaker, I just listened. This guy (experienced bass player - well actually 2) was blown away by the sound of the bass. Deep, punchy, crisp, clean - yes all of the things I personally like. When he/they played all was set to flat with only minor adjustments. So that is what I try to copy when I set it up at home. I only have sound (when others are playing my bass) to make my decisions upon - because I'am totally green and I know it will take a while before I will be able to play something that sounds the way I like. I heard it's all/mostly "in the fingers of the player".  Right now my fingers won't even do what I ask them to  Practise makes "perfect"  

35 minutes ago, paul_c2 said:

I think that's a bit of a generalisation - possibly true for the really small combos of around 10W-20W. Once you get into something around the 30W-50W range, then a decent sound (at a volume level suitable for home practice) can be achieved. I think its true to say that an amp has a "happy" volume range, beyond or below which in theory it can go but it loses a bit of its nice tone. Thus, a very large amp would probably not sound great at very low volumes, where a smaller one does better.

I can't play a decent tone anyways, I'm a total beginner

10 minutes ago, Grangur said:

Hey @pecodk, I was in a similar position to you 9 years ago. Started at 50 and play at home, never have gigged, but tried being in a band and come to the conclusion that it's not for me.

I play using either a MarkBass LM3 and a Barefaced One10, or a Hartke B70.  I have a Zoom B3, but not into playing through cans. I guess it does depend on your style of playing.  Thrash Metal at a polite domestic volume won't really cut it. But I'm happy with what I have.

Good luck with the new gear and enjoy the bass-journey!

Thanks Grangur - I'm sure I will enjoy what I bought (sounds great even at moderate volume). Now it all comes down to practise I guess. I cannot imagine I will be in a band - but as others said: you never know 

Update,

Ok, so first I bought an Apogee Duet. But had some issues and it didn't sound great to me. Went to the music store and tested an amp + some speakers. Brought my bass of course. I ended up buying an EBS Reidmar 500 amp + Classic Line 410CL speakers. I think this will do for now. Who knows what the future will bring? Thanks for all your advice - it's really appreciated

P

Bought a Ken Smith CR4 bass from Geert. Geert answered a lot of my questions, sent soundfiles/videos and even shipped the bass 1 day before my my money transfer was in his account. All in all a very good experience. Highly recommended. And the bass ... it's in great shape and sounds nice. I am very pleased.

Thanks Geert.
Peter

1 hour ago, Sibob said:

Either a decent interface or a decent headphone amp will do you. Interface wise I’m biased (work for Focusrite), however 99% of the time I use a 3Leaf Enabler headphone amp/EQ for home practice, I have no amp for home use other than dragging out my gigging rigs (never happens). Good headphones help of course, I use KRK KNS8400.

The Enabler is discontinued and usually quite sought after used, but the Shift Line Olympic MkIII looks impressive, tube preamp, EQ, aux in, headphone amp and cab sim! Don’t know how it sounds though.

Si

I'll take any advise I can get - biased or not. I always have the option to google and see what others write and then make a choice based on that. Thanks for your suggestions Si 

2 hours ago, project_c said:

I play through headphones at home, I have never found an amp that sounds good at home volume. There’s nothing more uninspiring than the sound of a bass amp at minimum volume for me, plus the acoustics of your house will have a huge impact on your tone, and every house I’ve lived in for the past 10 years had terrible acoustics. My amps sound great in the garden, but I don’t always want my neighbors to hear me fudging my way through some random jazz solo I’ve just transcribed. Studio monitors are probably a better idea but also need a decent sounding room, and relatively tolerant neighbours. 

What works for me is a decent interface (all the ones you mention are fine) straight into Logic, no plugins, and some proper studio quality headphones. Input levels and gain are key to getting a good tone, too quiet and you’ll sound thin and crap, too loud and you’ll clip and distort.

Lots of people can’t stand a dry signal or playing through headphones though, it’s a personal choice.

Food for thought. You gave me many good points to consider. Thanks project_c

8 hours ago, Dem Jolie-blues said:

Well I tried,  James Jamerson,  legendary  bass player on most of THE motown hits would spin in his grave, (died@47), if he thought you were copying him with a commodore 64, sigh

I bet he would

10 hours ago, Gottastopbuyinggear said:

This.  From experience IK Multimedia Amplitube or Line6 Pod Farm are excellent, and I know there are lots more. You can get great sound through headphones if you need to practice quietly, or maybe add studio monitors if you’re not worried about volume.  

Out of interest why will you never gig? If you simply don’t want to then great, but don’t rule it out just because you’re only just starting to play. 

I'm 50 years old and just starting out. I always wanted to play the bass. Grew up hearing Motown, Bootsy, Parliament, George Clinton, Temptations, Mark King, Marcus etc. So I decided to buy a decent used bass (Ken Smith) and now I need the rest of the gear so I can start playing. So considering my age I don't expect to do gigs - just for my wife (not that she will like it) behind closed doors (and maybe annoy my neighbours by playing loud (if I go for an Amp+cab)). Hopefully I'll get a little funky before I turn 60. If so I'm a happy camper - gigs or not

Yes why not support Basschat when buying used. I already did - and I will buy more stuff thru this forum in the future, that's for sure

4 minutes ago, Dem Jolie-blues said:

I'd be looking at maybe an Ashdown valve  combi with 12" speaker, not too big, the company has  excellent  aftermarket  reviews, even on secondhand  stuff, it could do from bedrooms to small gigs,  when it rains, take yourself to a fair size music shop, try what you can, take your own axe, and if all their stuff is new,  look for secondhand of what you like, in Basschat first of course !

Think I will go with some brand new stuff. Thanks for your suggestion dlloyd

If I need to rumble the house down - then what suggestions do you guys have. I like Motown, old disco and funk. Hit me

A ha ha ha - thought so Dem Jolie-blues. Why not make as much noice as possible 

Thanks Ambient

I use Apple so Apogee wouldn't be a problem. When I read about Apogee there are lovers and haters. Some like Apollo better, others prefer Focusrite. Some suggest to go thru a pre-amp, others don't. That is where I get confused. Is there some kind of "must have" to get a great setup?

that doesn't mean I cannot buy some great gear for personal use. I just bought a good bass and are looking forward to start playing. I will play at home and have looked at different options. Could use some advise from you guys.

I have read quite a lot but still I'm a little worried I might buy the wrong gear. Many bass players (seen on youtube) use Apollo, Apogee duet etc. and a small cabinet/studio speakers when playing at home. I like the idea but I don't want to sacrifice good sound (if that's the case). I also looked at different options regarding "real" amps and cabinets such as Aguilar, Genzler, Markbass etc.

I want something I will enjoy using for a long time. Hope to get some great input here before I spend my hard earned money.

What are the pros and cons of Apollo, Apogee vs amps/cabinets. Any feedback will be appreciated a lot.

Thanks in advance.
Peter

Fender Jazz int. series.

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