sub-a-dub

I LOVE IT - Excellent!!

Re Avatar: Are they black olives on peppers - [Very tasty looking - you might be on to something there...] or is it just a play on the old cucumber sandwich (with spagetti-type beard dressing)? (Says he, somewhat shamefully but never-the-less opportunistically jumping on the "wrong-forum" band-wagon...)

Hi all, I hope ye don't mind me putting in my tuppence ha'penny worth?... I have recently started to use the V Bass and the GR 20 in tandem with the Roland midi A/B box at some gigs - not a lot yet mind (not too many gigs where I get to try this lot out!...) but enough to get a good feel for them. I run the V-bass in stereo through the GR-20;stereo monitors (when needed); and then in stereo through the PA. I run a direct signal through the lot into my amp and feed this seperately into the PA. First of all - when these work properly they are awesome - the sound is huge an the quality is outstanding -especially in stereo!! The units themselves haven't given any problems - it's just that there is a lot to get your head around when using them in a live context... Regarding the GR 20 specifically: After the initial messing about, I have found maybe twenty usable sounds, but these are so good and usable, that I will keep the unit for these alone. Most of the sounds are good, but I said to myself at the outset that if I could get a handfull of really useful sounds, that I would keep the unit. This is for live use - in a studio setting (especially for demo-ing etc..), the full palate would probably come more into play... RE tracking - I have found that there is no comparison between the two units regarding tracking; IMHO THe V-Bass wins hands-down!! (More later...) On tracking, the GR 20 is apparently the best regarded of Rolands synths and it does perform very well. It is great for pads, strings, synth sounds and there is a great "breathy sax" (et al...) that is very usable, but the main problem I have found is with the unintented triggering of "phantom" sounds when using certain patches. Over time this problem has lessened a little, largely because I suppose I have had to both tidy up my technique and I now approach using the GR-20 in a different light to normal bass use; the bass is just the trigger and you need to adapt the left and right hand technique to tease a little more out of the more challenging sounds. The unpredictability still remains however, no matter how careful I am, and can be particularly apparent - surprise, surprise! - on the lower frequencies... Pick-up set-up and sensitivity settings etc are important and I spent a lot of time trying to get this as good as possible, with positive results, but I would still be hesitant using some of the more unpredictable sounds live. THis is more to do with the fact that I am no virtuoso though (more enthusiastic and maybe moderately competent on a good day, cough-cough! ...but I still get "the call" from time to time...), and I will try to persevere with working on the technique required to get a little more out of the sounds... In the meantime, understated use seems to be garnering positive feedback, and our guitarist has since purchased a GR 33 which is now mounted on an acoustic, so fun-and-games await no doubt... The V-Bass tracking is outstanding, as are the sounds and the effects - I'd imagine the synths, fretless, double bass would be hard to beat..., and I'd love to share a bit more of my experience with this and find out a bit also if any-one is interested?... I must have a look in the forums for other threads... BTW: I bought both of these units (and the 2 GK3B pups which are mounted on a fretted and fretless jazz bass) very reasonably - there is no way I could have justified shelling out the bones of a grand and a half on a whim, and to me this is the crux of the matter - having now used both units, on reflection I would probably have shelled out for the full price of a V-Bass; it is worth every penny!!! The fact that I picked a 3 month old GR 20 up for less than 250 quid (incl PUP) certainly justifies keeping it in the arsenal - I just don't know would I pay out for a new one... All the best, A slightly tipsy sub-a-dub... Now where is my hot-water-bottle?...

Hi, Maybe have a look at this thread also - there may be something of interest: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=44274"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=44274[/url] A lot of the ground has been covered here but there might be something useful... I had this problem once and threw in my tuppence-hapenny worth on the other link, there was a lot of useful advice/different takes from differect BC'ers on the problem. Lot of interesting thoughts on this here thread as well!... Thanks a lot, Sean

[quote name='Telebass' post='446479' date='Mar 26 2009, 10:00 PM']Howdy! Great intro! An excellent demonstration of sod's law if ever there was one. Gigs will come, never fear![/quote] Hi again, ...yeah, I always tried to treat the "all the gear; no ear" maxim with respect and a tad of trepidation when indulging in trigger-happy-type purchases... I wish somebody had warned me about the "big rig = no gig" one though!!... All the best, Sean

Hi, I've had similar problems. The fact that you say the problem is apparent through the length on the string suggests that dead-spots are not the problem here and a look at either the string gauge or the action on the G might help. Could be a combination of both. I have sorted this problem in the past through tweaking the pickup profile (this obviously might not counteract the problem if you are dealing with a set-up problem, but it should help a little), the action/set-up and if this didn't help you might consider putting a slightly heavier guage on the G. Another factor worthy of consideration might be the bridge?... Best, Sean Oh, have you tried the bass with different sets of strings? Just curious - it might be a factor and I have recently strung several of my basses with DR strings (40 - 100's) and there is a very even response across all the strings on the basses I have put them on, with a marked improvement in the electric and acoustic output accross the board, with the exception of the G on a fretless which is still somewhat limp, so I might need to look at that... EDIT Sunday: I was mulling over the problem with the fretless and I noticed that the lack of vol is apparent when the bass is played unplugged, so this points to a set-up issue and as the bass is a relatively new build it probably needs some settling-in time... This leads me to ask - have you noticed whether or not your problem is apparent when the bass is played unplugged? If it is, it looks like it might be a set-up issue and you probably don't have to worry about electronic issues at all! I hope this helps - I am no expert, but this was a problem that plagued me over the years from time-to-time, and it's only recently when I have had the time and resources to experiment a little, that I have been able to make any head-way: In my case I have been able to get around the problem through looking at a combination of set up and electronic tweaking...

Greetings from Ireland, I've been knocking around here on BC for almost six months or so... I arrived here by accident, through chasing a bass on the net, and I've been too-ing and fro-ing ever since. I've been playing for years - first stint in the early '80's to early '90's playing almost exclusively with bands doing original material - lots of telly, recording and gigging etc but never managed to make a proper living... Took a break for a few years (a rest from the "scene", college) and stood-in for a gig in 1996 and have been playing again ever since. Cover bands, original and playing anything from rock, funk, disco, soul, and trad - all low-key and I have a proper job now as well so we don't have to eat our stage-gear any more!. Busy until last year when I seriously invested in equipment etc and the gigs then promptly dried up!! Apparently we live in hope though, so watch this space... All the best, Sean

....maybe it depends on the bass - sunburst or natural finish with a nice grain looks good without the scratchplate, don't some of the pickguards look cheap/poorly finished also? Mind you, it's a toss-up as to which looks better: a 3TS with or without a t/shell plate... The jury is out on that one as far as I'm concerned... I built a 62RI fretless recently and had to think long and hard about the scratchplate. I almost reluctantly put one on to avoid possible accusations of building a Jaco clone, but as the finish and grain on the sunburst alder body were so beautiful and unmarked I left it off in the finish. There is a kind of abstract image of the bass in my profile - gives a general idea of the smooth uncluttered lines etc... I have a spalted maple jazz that came with a plexi pickguard and off that came as well, but I have a couple of Olympic whites' and there is no way in hell the t/shell puckguards would ever come off those babies!! Guess it's all a matter of taste... Regards, Sean

Hi all, Greetings from the edge of the economic precipice known as Ireland I bought a Bacchus standard here recently from Funky Dario(Custom spalted maple top/h-stock, ebony board) and the quality of the woods/components and finish is outstanding. Unplugged the thing sings - wonderfully resonant, ringing harmonics, even and true up and down the 'board. The only thing I would change is the Bartolini pre, but only because I would prefer a slightly different config (it is treble/bass boost only, with mid trim post in the cavity). Outside of this the bass is top quality, and absolutely beautiful to boot!!! It sounds beautiful plugged in also - the sound clips will verify this, so good in fact that my slight reservations over the pre will more than likely be over-ridden unless I can aquire a pre that allows me to retain the beautiful custom knobs - otherwise it would now be housing an audere or east pre, and probably be a bass for life! Here is a link to Darios' sales thread (I saw that Ped helped configure!!) so I hope nobody minds me referring ye all to this thread as I haven't taken photos yet (outside of the one in my avatar): [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=27777&hl=bacchus+spalted"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...bacchus+spalted[/url] Dario (based in Paris) has an agency for Bacchus basses and he is playing the bass in the sales thread!! All the best, Sean

(Cut andPaste from my reply on a previous thread...) ...PJB (Phil Jones) briefcase, suitcase or sixpack? ( 2 x 5, 4 x 5 and 6 x 5 respectively...) I was on the look-out for a long time for a small portable rig and read great reviews on these - so much so that I bought a way bigger PJB rig that does big and smaller gigs (its got a 6 x 5 & a 9 x 5 cab they can be used in unison or seperately) and got a Roland micro-cube RX for acoustic/ VERY small gigs... All the best, Sean [url="http://philjonespuresound.com/PJWeb11_Bass.aspx"]http://philjonespuresound.com/PJWeb11_Bass.aspx[/url]

...PJB (Phil Jones) briefcase, suitcase or sixpack? ( 2 x 5, 4 x 5 and 6 x 5 respectively...) I was on the look-out for a long time for a small portable rig and read great reviews on these - so much so that I bought a way bigger PJB rig that does big and smaller gigs (its got a 6 x 5 & a 9 x 5 cab they can be used in unison or seperately) and got a Roland micro-cube RX for acoustic/ VERY small gigs... All the best, Sean [url="http://philjonespuresound.com/PJWeb11_Bass.aspx"]http://philjonespuresound.com/PJWeb11_Bass.aspx[/url]