tinyd

Here's a quick reference sheet from Bert Ligon that summarises some of the most important aspects of walking bass lines in one page - it's obviously no substitute for everything discussed above, but it's handy all the same. Bert_Ligon_Fundamental_Bass_Lines.pdf I got it from here - there are a few more bass-specific downloads as well: http://nationaljazzworkshop.org/freestuff.php

You're correct that it isn't actually a 0 and 1 travelling over the wire in a digital cable, and that it is something like a square wave. But the circuitry / protocols used to send the data will convert these to digital data and eliminate any differences. As long as the cable itself is capable of reliably transmitting a signal, it will work, and all digital cables meet this requirement unless they're actually broken. Once this "bare minimum" requirement is met for a digital cable, it is impossible for it to make any difference to sound quality. It's the same if you download a track from iTunes, it's been read from a disk in a data centre somewhere, transmitted internally over a bunch of bog-standard ethernet cables and optical cables, broken up and bounced between various servers around the world, and then maybe down a phone line to your router and finally wirelessly to your phone. At the lowest level, all of these 'hops' involve some kind of analogue signal and can consist of crappy cabling or a dodgy connection, but the protocols that are used make sure that you get either an exact copy of what was sent, or nothing at all (if something is seriously wrong). What doesn't happen is that you get a better- or worse-sounding file depending on the quality of all these components. One slight caveat here is that many digital services like Netflix and Skype use a technique called 'adaptation' which deliberately modifies the quality of what is being sent to you if your connectivity is poor. But this is deliberately engineered to happen and it would be pointless in an audio system since all cables are more than capable of handling the bandwidth required.

Hi all - I was working through @geoffbassist's lesson on playing Chamber Mates with the bow - I found the rhythm a bit tricky so I had a go at transcribing the head. Here's the transcription if anyone's interested and please let me know if there are any mistakes as I'm no expert when it comes to dots. I posted this to the Theory forum as well but I took the liberty of posting here as it's a good example of something to play with the bow. Cheers Chamber Mates.pdf

I was looking at Geoff Chalmers's lesson on playing Chamber Mates by Paul Chambers. I found the rhythm of the melody a bit tricky so I had a go at transcribing it. I'm no expert at transcribing but I think it's about right - if anyone has any corrections I'd be glad to hear them - cheers Chamber Mates.pdf

[quote name='No. 8 Wire' timestamp='1510326163' post='3405647'] It's more complicated than that though isn't it? A whole load of overlapping definitions and identities; geographical, political, historical...as you say, best left well alone. I think the only definitive thing you can say is if you hold a UK passport you are British... even though you may also be something else too. [/quote] Yep, and I think the term British Isles is still (just about) valid if used in a purely geographic context because apparently the convention for archipelagos is to name them after the biggest island.....But like you say, given the history it's probably best to steer clear Anyway, arguing about whether bands are rock bands or not and then whether they deserve a place in a list is more fun anyway

[quote name='Jimothey' timestamp='1510325111' post='3405632'] That was the point I was making is the fact that the band was formed somewhere in the British Isles make them British or Is the fact the members of the band were born somewhere in the British Isles make the band British??? [/quote] The reason why the term "The British Isles" is not used much these days is precisely because most of the people who live on one of the islands are definitely not British.

[url="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.maurobattisti.drumgenius&hl=en"]DrumGenius[/url] is great - a library of high quality loops. You can't create your own but you can change the tempo of the loops within a certain range. There's a lot of emphasis on jazz loops but there are plenty of others as well.

Another vote for the J-Tone. There are without doubt more natural-sounding pickups out there but the J-Tone gives me a usable, consistent gigging sound every time I use it with virtually no feedback.

I saw a covers band in a pub near me a while ago and the bass player played slap lines on a large part of the set, regardless of genre. On paper, this would normally ring all sorts of alarm bells for me but he (and the band) really made it work, injecting a bit of life into the set and getting everyone dancing. So I guess this would indicate that you're better off arranging the songs in an interesting way and playing to your strengths rather than worrying too much about replicating the tone from specific recordings.

Thanks @Beer - the Headway looks like the right tool alright but I agree about the price - the Allen and Heath sounds like a good alternative. I'm reluctant to spend too much money just because the mic setup could be fiddly, prone to feedback and generally not that usable in a gig, but I guess I'll always be able to sell any gear on again if it doesn't work out for me.

Thanks very much for the replies, I didn't know about either the Schatten or Art Tube preamps so that's good to know. It hadn't occurred to me to use the effects return on my amp so thanks for that @bassace. I guess I just need to figure out if a setup like this will actually work at a gig.. Thanks again

Hi there I've seen a few posts about AKG C411 pickups being used for double bass and I'm thinking of trying one and blending it with my existing pickup to see if I can get a more natural sound live. I have a question that I'm hoping someone can answer. Basically, what other gear do I need to use a C411 with a bass amp, especially if I want to blend it? I have a GK MB150 but it only has one input so I'm guessing that I'll need some kind of mixer but do I also need something to match the levels between the C411 and my existing pickup? Thanks in advance for any info.

[quote name='T-Bay' timestamp='1497038343' post='3315545'] Just heard two tribes on the radio, it's an awesome bassline. [/quote] Great bassline! Worth re-posting this I think.... http://youtu.be/IBWY8oAnnww

[quote name='JimBobTTD' timestamp='1496118452' post='3308856'] I have counted with him (1-2-3-4; 1-2-3-4) and he is mostly ok with it. I think he understands them but has a bit of anti-elitism in him that makes him reject music theory. [/quote] If he thinks that being able to count up to 4 is "elitist" then I wouldn't hold out too much hope for him Joking aside, I think that he needs to really focus on this stuff - as @chris_b says, this should be treated as a show stopper.

I have a GK MB150 - it's pretty good - a bit "boxy" occasionally but I'm pretty happy with it. It also sounds really good with my Fender Jazz

I'm no sound engineer so I could be way off, but it bugs me that the kit in general these days is often mixed almost as if it's a set of separate instruments. Whereas if you listen to the great drum sounds (both recorded and live), the kit sounds like a single instrument - John Bonham always had that sound and obviously some of it is just that he was a great drummer, but there's something about how his kit was recorded and mixed that made it sound much more together IMO.

[quote name='SubsonicSimpleton' timestamp='1493474956' post='3288627'] On the whole I think you've done a really good job in all aspects, but two things jumped out at me - personally I don't think the initial unaccompanied guitar riff works well as an intro because when everything else enters the change is jarring and it feels like an intro to the intro proper - I would just chop that first 10sec off completely IMHO. [/quote] I agree with this - it's a really good song and generally the playing and production are great, but that same guitar part is a bit off IMHO all through the song. But this is coming from someone who's never released anything approaching this kind of quality so please take my comments with a large pinch of salt!

I think all my reasons are ultimately caused by other band members who like the idea of being in a band, but are not interested in doing the work to play the music as well as they can. This is either laziness or an example of the [url="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect"]Dunning-Kruger Effect[/url] where they believe themselves to be much better musicians than they actually are.

This has to be one of the more 'niche' threads on BC Mine point away from the jack socket when full on btw...

[quote name='Jus Lukin' timestamp='1493289070' post='3287145'] I used to play in (and left) a touring show which, believe it or not suffered this. After nearly four years on the road I discovered that the drummer hadn't ever listened to any of the source material. It's no wonder things wouldn't hang together right on stage. I was playing with a guy who had never heard the records we were supposed to be replicating! [/quote] I used to play in a Latin band where most of the members never listened to Latin music, which worked out about as well as you might expect. Preparing for each gig was like pulling teeth with half the band seemingly having to learn their parts from scratch each time.

[quote name='Marc S' timestamp='1490958317' post='3269377'] Hi Bill, and others I'm tempted by a KK myself. I too wonder why it gets pigeon-holed for salsa, as surely, it's suitable for other genres of music too? [/quote] It does have a classic sound for salsa, but it's definitely used in other genres. I remember spotting one Home Alone. John Candy's polka band uses one, so that's at least one other non-salsa example

Shine Eye Gal by Black Uhuru and The Humpty Dance by the Digital Underground both have great basslines that are just a slide between two notes.

If I was a drummer I'd rather play funk - have a go at Cold Sweat and see if that cheers him up!

I have an Intellitouch PT-10 - I use it clipped on to the bridge. It works very well with the DB plus it has a really clear display that's also handy for quick intonation checks on dark stages.

I agree with most of the above in that playing without a drummer can be a good thing, but @MoonBassAlpha's suggestion is worth considering - in a lot of Latin bands the horn players will often play hand percussion when they're not soloing. It depends though on how rhythmically competent they are - it's surprisingly hard to play clave properly, especially if there aren't any other percussion instruments.