Beer of the Bass

Another vote for Nyman! I've used it for a while now, and have never felt the need to try anything else.

I don't have a fretless any more, but my favourite strings were TI Jazz Flats, like lots of other people here. They have a bit more sustain than other flats I've tried and plenty of mids, which works well for a fretless tone. They do work best for players with quite a light touch, so they may not be for everyone. I also enjoyed Rotosound Solo groundwounds for a brighter sound. I've never quite got what people mean when calling a fretless electric tone, "upright-like", since double bass pizz tone can be anything from a dark thud (i.e with guts or orchestral strings) through to a much more singing tone (with Spirocores etc - think Dave Holland). The Thomastik flats are closer to the latter.

[quote name='Fozza' post='1041132' date='Nov 29 2010, 01:37 PM']Last question (you'll be relieved to hear) is about the bridge pickup. I'm not a huge fan of the stock one. It's too honky and tinny for me. I've looked on the web but I haven't seen any direct replacements out there. I assume any possible replacement would have to be routed. I realise much of the sound of the pickup is due to it's placement right by the bridge but does anyone know of a reasonably priced alternative which will give me more punch and smoother highs? I was thinking off a Darkstar but it's a bit heavy for my pocket and seems overkill for such an inexpensive bass. Perhaps I'll get all the tones I need out of the coil-tapped Dimarzio?[/quote] If the bridge pickup route is the right size, a toaster style pickup like this [url="http://www.wdmusic.co.uk/product/Replacement_%22Toaster%22_Pickup_Rear_SRK1R"]Kent Armstrong[/url] could sound good. They're single coils, so are likely to have more highs than the existing humbucker. I have one in the neck position on my bass, but I'm sure it would work well at the bridge also. They're intended to be guitar pickups, but work well on bass.

[quote name='macclad' post='1036947' date='Nov 25 2010, 09:06 PM']Hi i'm in the market for a set of lower tension strings to suit mostly pizz although a small amount of bowing might happen ,Clarky has recommended Innovation silver slaps but i'm not sure if they are ok for bowing, has anyone any suggestions ,many thanks in advance![/quote] Innovation Honeys could do the job, I reckon. They're not incredibly low tension, but much looser feeling than most steel cored strings like Spirocores, and they're easy to get a decent bowed sound out of.

[quote name='kingforaday' post='1031934' date='Nov 21 2010, 09:32 PM']cool, cheers for the info, things like projection and build quality are the bits that scare me really, can't tell that from pictures so thats really helpful thanks. also if anyone has any suggestions of other basses i should check out let me know[/quote] I went through two of the Primavera basses a few years ago. The sound was pretty good for a low-end laminated bass but I was distinctly unimpressed with the build quality. The first bass cracked across the end block a few weeks after I bought it due to shrinkage. I took that back to the shop I bought it from, and the replacement served me well enough for a couple of years. Both basses were quite sloppily constructed inside with badly fitted blocks and linings and lots of runny glue. There were also imperfections such as wavy grain and knots in the ebony fingerboard and chipped out bits of veneer patched up with filler under the finish. Having said that, they were a new model when I bought mine, and the distributor seemed quite concerned that I'd had problems with the first one, so they may have improved their quality control since then. Personally I would either go for the Strunal (as other Strunals I've come across have been decent) or hold out for an older German or Czech blond.

[quote name='phil.i.stein' post='1023291' date='Nov 14 2010, 11:58 AM']try marlowedk on youtube nothing too flashy.[/quote] Cheers phil, those look useful...

I'm not a big slap bass fan (meaning electric bass slap, not double bass.), but I feel like I ought to be able to do a bit if a band asks for it. During a band rehearsal yesterday, the drummer suggested some slap bass on one particular tune, I tried it and realised I could do with working on it a little. I practice fingerstyle and pick playing, and just want to add some basic slap to my arsenal. I don't like the flash, saturday morning music shop associations, and things like Level 42 are really not my bag, though I won't put them down, as musical tastes are a subjective thing. I don't mind certain types of slap groove though, especially where it's not shouting "look at me!". With that in mind, where can I find some material to help me get the basic techniques down? A book, online video tutorial or anything else would do it.

From about 5:30 in, this is a classic. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJeCaPmla70&feature=related"]Ornette Coleman - Free Jazz[/url] Edit: Actually the bit I like best is in the next part... [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaPFyIAQNIc&feature=related"]Ornette Coleman - Free Jazz[/url]

It'll work either way round, but you'd be best to connect the wire that goes to the brass surround to ground (i.e jack sleeve) and use the one attached to the piezo face as the signal.

For anyone considering the 1960 marshall-esque head, for about the same price (or less) you could pick up one of the less fashionable models of british 100 watt valve heads from the 70's and get it re-capped and tweaked by a tech. I know which route I'd prefer.

I've messed around with piezo discs in the past, and you'll get much more output if you can mount it so that the disc is squeezed a bit, rather than just attached to a surface. I'd recommend putting it in the bridge wing slot on the bass side and working out some sort of shim to wedge it in place. It will probably give a workable sound mounted that way. Personally I found it nigh-on impossible to come up with something that was sturdy enough and well shielded against hum though, so I went with a Rev. Solo pickup. The DHA should work OK as a piezo preamp - I've used mine for that before. The passive input on most Ashdown heads is also fine for piezos, as it has 4 megaohm impedance, IIRC.

I find it affects the sound leaving a clip on tuner on the bridge - it's subtle, but a noticable muting effect. Mine goes on the pegbox cheek on the bass side.

If anyone is wondering, I now have an eminence Kappa 15 (not the kappalite version) on the way as it looks to be happy in this cab, and one was going very cheaply on eBay. It doesn't give a midbass bump in this cab and has decent sensitivity. Also, it's apparently the same driver as in the Orange OBC115 cab, which a few players with similar tonal goals to me seem to like.

OK, cheers for the input everyone. I think I'm going to go with the Beta or Delta, and embrace the bump. This is kind of a "character" rig, and I'm not going to throw loads of money at it. I actually like the sound of the existing Celestion at rehearsal volumes before the excursion weirdness kicks in, so something with a non-flat response at the low end will probably do the job for me just fine. I like some of the older style hairier bass sounds, as long as there's a bit of upper mid response for articulation. It helps that I'm not a professional musician who needs to be able to cover any sound or style at the drop of a hat. And for any gigs where I want to be clean and even sounding, I can use my other setup (AI Clarus head and EA Wizzy 10 cab) and let the PA do the heavy lifting...

Hmm, we're watching it too, and admiring Mr Sklar's splendid beard, but our TV makes the bass pretty much inaudible.

Hi Stevie, have you played a cab with the beta and had a bad experience? I'm open to all suggestions as to what may work for me, but it'd be useful to know where you're coming from. I'm not trying for a flat sounding rig with this setup, so a bit of a mid-bass bump could be acceptable, but then I also don't want something that sounds like an elderly mobile disco cab! Are there really any cabs I could pick up used for £100 or so that would have better drivers than the mid-range Eminences anyway?

Cheers for the suggestions. The price of the Beta is definitely attractive compared to the 3015. So higher Qts is a desirable property in this situation? Is the Delta also worth looking at, or does the bigger Xmax of the Beta make it a better option? I think I'd rather go with a new driver than keep the Celestion and block the port, as I feel a little wary about how reliable a 40 year old speaker might be when driven by a 100 watt amp.

The band I'm playing electric bass with is looking into doing more gigging, so I'm thinking about getting my scruffy valve rig back on the go. I'm using an old Carlsbro CS100 valve head (which is ace!) into an old Peavey 1x15". The cab is currently loaded with a 70s Celestion G15B-100. I've been playing around with WinISD, but I'm unable to find any specs for this driver, so I have no idea whether it's a good choice for this cab or not, or whether I'd get better sensitivity and tone with a more modern driver. The cab sounds good at low volume, but gets a bit woofy and indistinct as the volume is increased. The cab has an internal volume of 90.5 litres and (as far as I can gather from WinISD) has the port tuned to 50Hz. It's a tubular port, so there would be scope to lengthen or shorten it if necessary. So can anyone with some knowledge recommend a driver which would work well? Since I'm using a 100 watt valve head, sensitivity is probably more important to me than ultra deep bass or huge power handling. Of course, I could always pick up a different cab used, but my budget is pretty limited, and seems like I could get a decent driver more cheaply than a new cab. Any suggestions?

FWIW, I found brand new Picato flats to be less bright than Chromes which had had 6 months of regular playing. They're cheap too. I like the slightly brighter sound of the Chromes better for what I do...

How's the sound compared to things like D'Addarios or Thomastiks?

Re. class D amps and hiss, my Acoustic Image Clarus has a noticeable hiss through my EA wizzy cab, but the hiss is almost inaudible through my old 1x15", so the high end response of the speaker makes a huge difference. Personally, it's never bothered me, since the XLR out is dead quiet, and the hiss from the power amp is pretty insignificant in a band context.

It's not an eBay link, but I spotted an Aria pro II ZZB (the pointy blue one!) going for £149 in Cash Converters, Dalry Road in Edinburgh this afternoon. I'm skint and not a pointy bass fan, but it could be a good find for someone.

Looks like a lot to take on - i wonder what you'll find under the finish? I've got a servicable rickenfaker bridge in a drawer - PM me if it's any use to you.

Old valve PA amps can be ace for bass. I have a 100 watt Carlsbro, which I like the sound of as much as any other similar size valve head I've tried. I modded one channel to a Fender style tone stack for a bit of variety, but the stock channels (which are flatter) are fine too. And given that a 100 watt valve amp is useable at surprising volumes, 200 watts should go a long way...