bnt

Splendid - another Acolyte of the Temple of Syrinx. Bwahahahaha... My first Rush bassline was [i]Grand Designs[/i] (Power Windows), and I had great fun with much of Hold Your Fire and Presto. The production on Presto is squeaky-clean with the bass up front - great for study. Another personal fave in [i]Where's My Thing?[/i] (Roll The Bones), the predecessor to [i]Leave That Thing Alone[/i]. Re the older stuff: not much to add to Phaedrus' list, but Freewill is very interesting for what Geddy is doing under the guitar solo: a lot of notes, but not too many. I think I mentioned The Main Monkey Business ([i]Snakes & Arrows[/i]) already?

I don't have much time for this kind of nonsense. Some of my favourite bands from the 80s are those which [i]could[/i] have done without bassists, but were all the better for having them: Ultravox, OMD, Tears For Fears, and the like. That's not to say I expect to have things my own way, but I do know that I will be doing the bass in any band I'm in - sequenced, synthesised, sampled, or slapped, it's me or nothing.

Can't go wrong with a bit of Rush, and there's plenty on YouTube e.g [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7S9uNxUI9ng"]Far Cry[/url] (2007) is not their most gnarly work by a long shot, but it offers some fun time signature practice. Probably the most bass-visible track off of Snake & Arrows is [i]The Main Monkey Business[/i]: there are already videos up there or people making a Dog's Dinner out of it. If you have a copy of Yes' 90125 handy, that has a song called [i]Our Song[/i], which I remember Bass Player magazine calling "a one-song electric bass primer". It's one piece that I learned quite early on in my bass studies... and have relearned several times since 1984. I think Chris Squire is playing his Mouradian "Green Fish" bass on that one.

Other: Hohner B2V and B2Afl, and now the new Tune TWB43 "Hatsun's" that arrived this week.

[quote name='gilmour' post='55205' date='Sep 4 2007, 12:39 PM']Thinking about it Billy Gould from Faith No More had a crazy heavy pick sound - but he used it to emulate slapping, which begs the question "why not just slap?"[/quote] When I saw this I thought "you gotta be kidding". I've seen Billy use a pick, but I've always assumed he used fingers around the time of [i]Angel Dust[/i]. In the [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf_C95C2qUY"]video[/url] for [i]Everything's Ruined[/i], for example, it's all fingers, and some thumb during the verses, which matches what my ears tell me. On the other hand, there's Land Of Sunshine, which I play mostly thum, but which Billy uses pick for (see [url="http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=lbnVZDvUh1I"]here[/url]). If I'm going to do that with a pick, I need a bionic hand...

Some of my faves not mentioned yet: - Paul Webb & Lee Harris - Talk Talk - Tina Weymouth & Chris Frantz - (Talking) Heads / Tom Tom Club - Tony Levin & Jerry Marotta (Peter Gabriel, Tony Levin Band) - Colin Greenwood & Phil Selway (Radiohead) - Jim Glennie & David Baynton-Power (James) +1 for the Porcaro Brothers, Lee & Peart, Danko & Helm edit: add in Billy Gould & Mike Bordin (Faith No More).

Well, it's here - and it would have been with me yesterday, had UPS actually bothered to update their site to tell me it was [b]in the bloody country[/b]. They allegedly tried to deliver it to me, and I was at home, but I live in a building with a secured front door. It wasn't always secure, the lock was added because of some mail thefts... so the buzzers are [i]behind[/i] the locked door. I'm not going to say any more, lest it lead me in to yet another rant about the way thing are done here in Ireland. So I'm told to expect delivery at roughly the same time (3:30)... nothing. By 4:30 I've called to give them directions, in case the driver can't find the building. By 5:30 I'm out on the road watching for the UPS van, as a van from a digital imaging company drives in behind me, with what looks like groceries in the back, though I didn't look to closely, being occupied watching for the UPS van. The van pulls out, and my flatmate calls to tell me he's taken delivery of the bass. Good thing he was in... but I never want to deal with UPS again, ever. Muppets. Definitely ex-demo... packed OK (strings loosened, plenty of bubble wrap), in a Cort box, inside a Fender box. A little dusty, and a couple of belt scratches on the back if I look closely, but the top is excellent - thick Bubinga on Mahogany, oil finish, a bit Warwick-like. Neck over-tightened a bit, visible "hump" at normal tension, so I've taken nearly a turn off, and it's looking a lot better. I need to lower the strings, though, and I have to find my 1mm Allen key for that, or buy a new one. As it is, the string response is uneven, E string is a bit dead, so it means new strings too, tomorrow. The electronics are quiet and powerful, but I won't really be able to say how it sounds until I sort out the setup problems. In other words, the expected ex-Demo condition, no real surprises. I'm not surprised it didn't sell from the store. Apart from that, I like it: headstock is smaller than it appeared in the photo, because the neck is thinner than I'm used to at the (brass) nut, and the tuners feel solid. I'll post some photos in the Bass Porn section later, but first those cheap knobs have got to go. Gotta have solid knobs in gold, to match the bridge, x5.

I have the [url="http://www.korg.com/gear/info.asp?a_prod_no=AmpworksB&category_id=6"]Korg Ampworks B[/url], which I like: similar effects to the Pandora 3B, but with knobs on. Works great as a headphone amp, though it's only portable if you have a big back or leg pocket on your trousers. Sounds are great, especially the amp simulations (for an amp non-expert such as me), though a bit effect heavy, so I've saved my own presets in the 3 provided slots. It's now four years old, and therefore super-cheap. RRP is £89, but I bought its guitar sibling (Ampworks G) for £49 at a music show, and that was two years ago.

[quote name='lwtait' post='55027' date='Sep 3 2007, 11:03 PM']I can't understand why Geddy Lee is playing a Jaco Jazz when he has his own signature? Why not defret one of his signature Jazz basses?[/quote] Because he wanted a different sound to his main bass? The way he tells it, they were in the middle of recording when he got the idea, no time to hit the workshop. Besides, why should he mutilate a bass when he can just call his Fender artist rep and say "can I try one of those, please, eh?"

[quote name='lwtait' post='55010' date='Sep 3 2007, 10:33 PM']At London Guitar Show, Jonas Hellborg was standing next to his signature bass in the Warwick stand, and my dad walked past him and hit him with a guitar stand he had just bought. [/quote] Ah - didn't know he had a signature electric too. The [url="http://www.warwickbass.com/basses/hellborg_bass.htm"]Hellborg Signature[/url] body looks huge...

I've seen Jonas Hellborg and his signature [url="http://www.wechterguitars.com/news/player-hellborg.htm"]Wechter Roman[/url] acoustic, live. Wants.

[url="http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=rKorbU-5ihM"]Here's[/url] another clip of Narucho's [i]Akkapachi-ism[/i] solo, this time from 1994. Same bass - the Tune custom 8-string with whammy bar.

With all these stories of beautiful bespoke instruments, lovingly crafted by expert luthiers, and heading to appreciative owners who will cherish them for life... I feel compelled to share my tale of amateur industrial lutherie. The following story is not suitable for sensitive readers, professional luthiers, and owners of custom basses, and I accept no responsibility for any emotional distress, hare-brained ideas, injury or death that may result. By 1988 I was really dissatisfied with my first bass, a P-copy (Hondo?) with an OK neck but a dull plywood body. This was in South Africa, where I was an apprentice at a steel factory, and was placed at various departments for months at a time. In one outlying department the technicians I worked for were laid back, and spent a lot of time making fancy knives, some good enough to win prizes at shows. My sole knife attempt produced a glorified letter-opener (I used the wrong steel), so I decided to replace the body on my bass. I already knew I'd need to buy a new bass some time, and decided to experiment a little. I didn't like Fender shapes (and still don't): this was the period when I lusted after a Steinberger XL-2, but was also aware that the ergonomics could be difficult. I "designed" a body roughly similar to a [url="http://instruments.garyhendershot.com/Yamaha_BX1.html"]Yamaha BX-1[/url], perhaps a little bigger, with a shorter horn. I later tried reducing the headstock, but the first version had the full-size P-bass neck attached. OK, I'm in a steel factory, where do I get suitable wood, or woodworking tools? Yeah, right. I made the body out of 2 one-inch-thick plates of [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakelite"]Bakelite[/url]. No router available, so I drilled the pickup & control holes on the front plate, then the rear "rout" on the back plate, and glued them together with some evil industrial adhesive. Bakelite is bloody tough stuff: hard to cut (killed a jigsaw) and evil to work on, even with protective masks. I shaped the edges with an angle grinder, so the workshop looked like a DDT bomb had gone off inside. I bet you could go back there today, and still find orange Bakelite dust in the corners. The single pickup was an Ibanez-branded P-type, in a bigger soapbar case, like they used in the 80s, and I wired up a volume control only, no tone control. The neck was OK (no more than that), and the sound was a bit like a piano with a stronger fundamental. From memory, the closest comparison I can think of is Status Graphite - sharp attack, full-bodied and deep, but not as consistent. There were dead spots, but where there was sustain, there was a lot of it. The neck was heavy, so the total weight made the thing nearly unplayable. The horn was too short, so the neck dived as much as (insert footballer's name here). If I ever get workshop facilities, I'll be looking at Bakelite (or similar) again. It's like a prehistoric "luthite", and was the material used to make the first ever solid-body "Spanish" guitar (the [url="http://www.gruhn.com/articles/rickelectro.html"]Rickenbacker Electro Spanish[/url]). It's a b**ch to work with, however - toxic dust everywhere, and it chips easily if knocked (brittle). The Bakelite BX is long gone, and I have no pictures, which is probably a good thing. The memory is quite enough.

Got a new stepbrother who played a bit of guitar, so I got thinking "what can I play?" I found guitar too fiddly, so that led me to bass, and there was a cheap one for sale locally. Voice is my second "instrument", but I also do some elementary synth stuff, mostly because I'm the kind of computer geek who actually gets MIDI. Fear the skills! :ph34r:

Quick update: it's on its way to me OK. Dealing with that store was a bit strange... - I pay with MasterCard SecureCode - so my ID is doubly verified - they say "cool, we're packing it now, will ship it today (Wednesday)" - later, I email and ask for the tracking number - salesman's response: "I need a photocopy of your ID and credit card, before I give you the tracking number" - my response: "I paid with MasterCard SecureCode, so my ID is verified. Sending copies of ID is a risk of identity theft. Get Bent". - them: "Upps! Sorry, here's the tracking number" - all the next day (Thu): UPS does not recognise the tracking number - I waited in case it took time to get through their systems - By today I'm suspicious, thinking they might not want me to have the number, in case it showed they were lying about shipping the bass. I get back to them by email. - "Upps again! Here's the correct number." (one digit off) Turns out they did ship it when they said they did, so they're not dodgy... just confused. But I do not allow my IDs to be copied if I can help it - what does that achieve, other than exposing me to ID theft? PS: that headstock, based on the photos, still looks "a bit much" for my taste, but it might not be as bad in the flesh, er, wood. If it's OTT, I may be hitting the Warmoth website at some point.

Roundwounds do chew up softer fretboards, but some folks really need that sound. I remember Pino Palladino talking about getting his Stingray fretboard redressed at regular intervals, during the 80s when acts like Tears For Fears and Don Henley called him specifically for his fretless sound. Jaco had boat epoxy on his fretboard for this, which might have helped him.

Have a look [url="http://www.ems-synthi.demon.co.uk/emsprods.html"]here[/url] for details of the different Synthi models made by EMS. The Synthi E was the "educational" model for schools. As for what they're worth... I don't know for sure, but I'm reasonably sure it falls under the general heading of "a lot". If you or someone you know has one, there are synth collectors out there who want them, badly.Brian Eno used to use them with Roxy Music, and these days the Chemical Brothers use a Synthi AKS heavily, I read. As for the sound... see [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jmk_OkANAk"]here[/url] and [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDMW8j3Kxvk"]here[/url] (YouTube).

[quote name='Russ' post='52593' date='Aug 30 2007, 03:37 AM']There is just something mysterious and alluring about these esoteric, high-end Japanese instruments - Tune, Atlansia, etc. I'd love to go to a musical instrument shop in Japan and try some out.[/quote] So would I... the one I'm buying is made in Korea. (Like I'm going to get one of those Japanese ones for a bit over £300? I wish! )

[quote name='Sibob' post='52195' date='Aug 29 2007, 10:14 AM']The problem i'd have with this particular bass i think is the size of the pickups, or length rather. Because i anchor my thumb on the pickup to play my E, on this the pickup looks a long way from the E string compared to my jazz, or any other bass i've seen tbh[/quote] Looks to me like they use the same pups on the 4- and 5-strings. I've been playing 5-string almost exclusively, and used to rest my thumb on the B-string, but I've had no real problems since I switched to High-C tuning. So I think I'll be OK there. I'm a bit more concerned about balance etc - I'm a fairly tall chap (5' 11-1/2"), and this is a small-bodied instrument. (It looks big on Narucho, but he's quite short.)

Well, that's torn it! Now I know you guys are interested, I've got to jump on it, haven't I, or else one of you might Gazump me?... order placed a few minutes ago, ought to be here next week (or sooner). First thing I'll do is replace those knobs, I think. If this doesn't work, I'm going to sue Basschat for Aiding and Abetting GAS.

Anyone here have any experience of the Tune basses? I mentioned in [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=4796"]another thread[/url] (on Narucho from Casiopea) that I was thinking of buying one, but I've just found an ex-demo model on a German site, [url="http://www.musik-schmidt.de/osc-schmidt/catalog/tune-hotsuns-twb43-showroom-modell-p-11491.html"]here[/url]. It's nearly double the dosh [url="http://waltons.ie/waltonsshop/product_info.php?cPath=60_62&products_id=10780"]here[/url] in Dublin. It's the model I want - the TWB-43 - though I'm not so keen on the Bubinga, and would prefer the Maple. I could do with less headstock, but I'm really wondering about the sound, more than anything else. Any thoughts? Ta.

One that I've heard (though not played) is by [url="http://www.mikelull.com/"]Mike Lull[/url], in the hands of Bryan Beller. Killer sounds through his SWR rig. I heard him with Mike Keneally, though he's touring with Steve Vai this summer. Randy Jackson is endorsing them now - don't know what to make of that.

The only bloke I've heard of with one is Geddy Lee. He's using it on tour at the moment, after playing the fretless version on the new Rush album, so it's a good bet he likes it...

I'm not a Mac user at all, but I do know that the new Rush album is excellent, and was recorded on Mac(s) with Logic Audio. (Except for one clumsy master edit during "We Hold On" ). What I currently have on the PC is Tracktion 2, which is by a small company but distributed by Mackie. It has [i]no[/i] dialog boxes at all: apart from configuration, everything is done from a single screen with a logical layout. Most of the power of e.g. Cakewalk Sonar, but costs a lot less.

I really don't know what kind of bassist I am: all over the place not going to extremes in any direction. Lots of playing at home, but nowhere nearly enough gigs, and that was 15 years ago. I have an "attraction" to Jazz, simply from being blown away at Jazz gigs of various kinds, most recently Dave Holland & friends at the Barbican last year. However, I find the learning curve intimidating - I get the impression it takes a lot of study and practice before you are any use to anyone. I'm not interested in the "competitive sport" aspect of bass playing at all: for example, if I try slapping, I'm never going to compare to Marcus Miller or Mark King, who have specialised their techniques in that direction. (Did Marcus have surgery on his thumb to make it bend that way, or is he just a freak of nature?). My fingers, my bass, the strings... "making excuses" for not being a happy slapper, am I? Maybe I just prefer moderation in these things, [i]a la[/i] Chuck Rainey or Billy Gould. Actually, when I first heard Billy Gould, my reaction was [i]A-Ha![/i] - he mixes it up with an aggressive sound, which I found instantly familiar. Add in lots of bass-heavy Progressive (Squire, Trewavas, Geddy), and we're in the ballpark of the kind of bassist I might be, if I get off my keister and go looking for gigs. No wonder I'm looking to tone it down a bit...