Richard R

Welcome aboard!

That is quite astonishing. How long did the build take you, including the thinking and planning which must have been considerable?

Ever get one of those weekends...? The Friday Practice: Friday was a dreadful day at work, I got shredded for the plan I had proposed so I was tired and not really with it for Friday's practice. I decided to give my "new" V-bass synth rig an airing, as there were some songs where long notes would be good and so I could try different sounds to see how they worked (think bass+pads), and use a modelled bass for the normal rhythmic stuff. The setup is an HB Musicman 5 string, fitted with the Roland GK-2B hex pickup and into the V-Bass COSM Modeller and synthesiser. Link to my  post in Effects Thread This band are all used to each other, and most of the songs we knew, and we had a youngster on cahon as well as the drummer, and double trumpets. I was looking forward to the practice to clear the fug of the day away. The practice was a car-crash! Nobody was on form, we just didn't gel at all and it was just not right on so many levels. I was struggling with the bass as the string spacing is much narrower than my normal one and it dives like a stricken submarine. Playing with the band was much harder than noodling at home - my left arm was killing me by the end of the practice and I was making mistakes everywhere. I spent yesterday with a headache (I think I was just worrying) and I didn't have time to practice anything, I was dreading this morning. The Sunday Service: The practice before the service was much better than Friday. I struggled with "Come people of the risen king" and "Immortal Invisible, God only wise", but everything else was tolerable from me and everyone else was back on form. Straight after we finished the practice I had to go and deal with there being no signal to the projectors for the congregation words and preacher slides, so I sorted that out just before the service but missed the band prayers. We played the "pre-service" song ("On That Day", new to me) which was good and then, as the worship leader started to welcome everyone and introduced the service, the sound engineer walked up onto the stage and told me there was no sound at all on the livestream. So I unstrapped the bass and resolved that - which at least got me out of playing "Come People of the Risen King" as that was the first song. The rest was OK, but I wimped out on "Immortal, Invisible", by playing fewer notes and almost no volume. By the end of the service my left arm was on fire, even though I'd slathered on half a kilo of ibuprofen during the sermon. I have no idea how the congregation felt about it, other than one lady who said how much she enjoyed "On That Day" as it was one of her favourite songs. The summary: Good - the V-bass sounds are really good in a live context. The modelled "Active bass+TE Amp" sounded great and groovy and the modelled "8 string+octave" mixed in with the normal signal was just right for long sustained notes. So I'll definitely want to use that more and use some of the other options as well. Fretless and DB might get an outing. The 80's synths perhaps less so. Bad - that bass! I can't really complain as it was free on the recycling thread and I wanted something I could fit the hex pickup to other than my #1 Brawley. But how anyone can play something like that I have no idea. Had that been the bass I bought when I just started I would have given up. I know that most people won't notice or care about the bass sounds, but I am sure the V-bass is worth persevering with at church. I do need to find a new base instrument though. Or butcher that one.

A while back I bought a very soft, padded, eye-mask for sleeping on a plane journey. I've since found it invaluable in the summer, or when I need to hit the sack in the evening to be up for an early start.

I always understood that was exactly the case. If you have a line of cellists playing right handed, and one in the middle left handed, then there is a high chance of elbow- bumping etc. So everyone plays right-handed. Of course, it could be something more, sinister...

Looks like a whole lot of fun! As I have, wistfully, said before: one day I will own a bass with swifts on the fretboard...

This, quick, before he changes his mind!

Just post on the thread that you'll try to make it, you don't even need a bass TBH, as there are usually a lot, though the Sinsonido will be appreciated. I can't make that one, or the SE one later on unfortunately 😪

Welcome aboard! A friend lent me his Sinsonido as the very first bass I ever played. Fun things. Check the events thread, and see if you can make it to the SW Bass Bash in October. Lots of nice people to meet and talk to - and the best food of any bash as @scrumpymike will tell anyone within earshot.

Even if it is out of manufacturer's warranty, you have coverage under The Sale of Goods act. That states (and I paraphrase massively), that goods should last for what a reasonable person thinks they should, taking into account the cost. I've had external hard drives with 12 months warranty fail at 19 months, and had them replaced, as it's reasonable to expect them last two or three years.

Good news - Nov 12th is already in my diary so doesn't need to be added. Bad news - I am playing in church that Sunday with both my wife and daughter for the first time this year, and it's my son's birthday weekend. Aaaarrrggggghhh!!!!

Well that's fighting talk! @petecarlton, we need to sort out the date for the next Midlands Bash, and then commence the Five Year Plan for BassBash Domination.

An excellent video, thanks. I'll definitely be trying this, but my singing is notoriously inaccurate. I'm not tone deaf, I can hear it's not right, I just don't have consistent control. So either my singing will improve or my playing will get worse, wish me luck. 🫰

The Grateful Dudes, at the Hare and Hounds in Birmingham. Really looking forward to this!

I had never actually heard this song before. Maybe best enjoyed while playing it live to a room full of happy punters, rather than listening to at home on headphones.

Merci pour vos messages. J’ai oublié la plupart de la Français que j’ai appris il y a 40 ans. Maintenant, je dois l’utiliser à nouveau, ce qui est une bonne chose. (Corrected with MS Translator!)

I shall come as a leaf-peeper.

We really should have recorded a video of the setup demonstration @Andyjr1515 gave at the last bass bash!

Dumb question time: What's the difference between lacquer and varnish? I have varnished tables, floors, etc, in the past and not had to wait weeks for things to harden. Or maybe I should have?

Welcome aboard! UK Brummie here, but I have been to Virgennes in Vermont on business many years ago. Vermont is definitely on my list of states to revisit as a tourist.

Welcome aboard! Maybe a careful choice of fretless bass, strings and amplification could get you at least close to the sound you want without knackering your hands playing DB/EUB?Probably worth asking on the DB/EUB thread. And if the Bass Bash Cymru in South Wales happens then definitely get along and meet people. 👍

Out of time for sound clips. There are some sample demos on the Roland site https://www.roland.com/uk/products/v-bass/

Having played around with it last night, the biggest problem is neck dive on the bass. There isn't space for the hex pickup on my #1 bass, so I can't fit it there. I'll have to try another strap. That aside: matching the volume on the different patches will take some time, and understanding the whole interaction between parameters is very confusing. And the first patch I tried to make won't allow me to mix in the native bass sound. Hours of fun to be had 🤣

The only song of hers I know is the obvious one. Having read her obituary on the BBC news I realise I probably should have paid more attention to her work.