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Arggh, being the dunce i am i forgot to mention i'm going inter-railing this summer, Brussels Amsterdam Berlin etc etc. Anyone have any experience with shops abroad and any good ones? [size=4]I also feeling guilty about having a whole month or so of no practice. [/size]

It does bring to light how expensive double bass can be. Luckily I'm happy with my belcanto's and don't have any plans to change them for the next few years. So tim loft, the contrabass shop and possibly tom& George's shop. Any where else worth checking out? I'm going the route of buying a really nice bow first. My thinking being that while my double bass is pretty good in my opinion it's going to take longer to find one that'll really love and for the moment a better bow will help me improve as there's nothing wrong with the playability of my current bass. And the fact bass's are so damn expensive.

That could be a major problem . I might have to get a proper job if i go near the place so when i go back i can be ready. All my teachers so far have all studied with Tom so its always been a name that ive heard since i started playing. And he's the bottesini master.

Good to know. Some people's reviews made it sound like the holy grail of modern bows. My geography of England's pretty bad but would it be impossible to get from London to Tom martin out in oxford?? First cause he seems like a legend and id love to meet him and second they have the claude marchand bows which ive also heard good things about.

Ah brilliant. Thanks very much i will get in touch with them both. Ive heard mixed opinions on the contrabass shop from players over here. Have you had any experience with them? Two things as well im looking for a french bow(if that makes any difference) and id love to try out a david gage metropolitan bow if any one knows of a shop with one in stock or a player who might have a spare hour to let me have a go.

I'm starting slowly to look for a new bow to replace my yita-music carbon fiber bow which, while good, is too heavy at the tip, a bit short for my liking and i generally feel i've out grown it. So im wondering we are some good places to go to try some out? Ill be in London for a week in June as well as Stafford and down in Kent visiting the relations while i'm over. I'll also be up near Inverness in Scotland later in the summer if there's any were good up there. Not too sure on a budget but i reckon by the time i've saved all my penneys ill be looking to spend around 2 grand and be done with buying bows hopefully for ever. So were's good. Cheers Sam

Ive tried Nymanns, Petz soft and Pops. Pops has been my favorite so far until i lost it at my last concert. It definitely always helped give a big warm sound and really helped when playing pianissimo. I ordered some Kolstein all weather but it never arrived so for the last three weeks ive been rosining up once a week at rehearsals with the other players nymanns and i must say using such a little amount of rosin has really helped my playing in terms of actually getting the bow to do all the work and really learning how to get the most from the bow. Im still going to order some more kolstein and see how it goes down. But Pops has defiantly been the best so far for me.

Would it be worth taking a day trip to Dublin. I cant think of any rabbath teachers, but Dominic Dudley, Joe Csibi or Waldemhar(Sp?) are all in the symphony orchestra and could all give you some good basics to get going.

No Rabbath teachers near you? I have no idea what the crab technique is but i just practiced TP like i practiced every other position, slow and steady with as many different fingerings and movements as i could work out/manage/be arsed to do. Now im nearly finished the 1st movement of bottesini's concerto no2. Not much help, but just imagine the fluidity that you have in lower positions but use your thumb. Also take all the exercises you already have and move them up an octave as well as your scales. Also Harmonics are your friends while shifting. Ill try and remember better how i got around thumb position. EDIT: Theres simandl book 2(never used it) and the hrabe studies which go straight up there and back down and up again straight away.

Where did you buy it from? I'm on my phone and not much is coming up.

I reckon your hindering yourself not having a 5 string as you never know what song having those low notes would improve but then again using those low notes(or high notes) when there not needed is just being a sub par musician. Have the best of both worlds and get a 4 and 5 string so your always ready. For me its mainly the economy of motion and the ease of sight reading. Not having to move as much is great. 5 string double bass's have been around since before the electric was even thought of, and the violin de gamba(which the double bass evolved out of) was a 7 or 8 string beast instrument if i remember correctly. So really we've all been going backwards.

I regularly gig an MB500 and 1x12 neo cab with electric and double. Its not quite the sound im after but it performs really well and i can get some really good tones from it. Plenty of power for all my needs. I've never really used the 2nd channel though. Don't dig the sound of it.

Also ill just add, even if you might not like the idea, but join a local orchestra. First of all its incredibly fun. Second of all your sight reading, bowing, intonation and ability to become a better musician will go through the roof. It'll be pretty damn scary at first especially if your the only double bass player but it'll really push you and you'll probably start to love the bow and all you can achieve with it. When i first started my double bass teacher sent me down to the local youth orchestra about 6 weeks after starting because they didnt have one and his wife was the conductor. Looking back the stuff was really simple but it really pushed me to become comfortable with the double bass. Also it wasn't all just classical we did show tunes and some movie soundtracks. Just an idea if you have time and something that really helped me.

[quote name='Josh' timestamp='1365693834' post='2043072'] NBD for me, a Squier James Johnston jazz: [/quote] Id kill for that creamy yellow jazz in the middle. Looks about perfect to me.

I was just watching this and i too am very excited. Ive been missing my trb 6 string for a while, it just worked in everything.

Id recommend sticking with arco, it will help your intonation and playing in a way that you can hear playing pizz. Id also say no to having a tuner on a bridge, you'll start to rely on it. Only use it to make sure the instrument is in tune and to check the odd note if you really need to. Otherwise through practicing you'll also be training your ears to hear if you in tune or not. I like to break things down into 20 minute blocks when im learning stuff. So possibly spend 20 mins with the bow on a piece and then swap for 20 mins to pizz and then move onto the next piece.

+1 to music life going up and social life going down, its not something you can easily drag to the next pub and then walk home with. Ive always been tempted to do this and i see another player regularly doing this around dublin. But im always worried about wind, bus's and other traffic not taking notice.

Unfortunately Bill Evans never gave me the call afterwards. Ive never used a full circle but ive seen Renaud garcia fons use one so i imagine it must be pretty much on the money. Both my tutors blend a realist and underwood together as the realist doesn't seem to like to get loud so maybe that could be a good match.

Can you try any other pickups on your bass? Maybe the Realist just isn't a match with that particular bass. I switched from a fishman pickup (always had feedback, had to dampen everything) to a revolution solo and haven't a problem since. Bass straight into a GK mb500 and 1x12 cab, no preamp and no feedback.

Look for someone you can really get along with, there's no point taking lessons if you end up disliking the tutor. Ive had a few over the years and my current one is my favourite. Full of advice, doesn't mind being texted or phoned whenever if i have a quick question before a concert. But the main factor for me is i want someone who is a professional that has been through all the hoops and who can defiantly say no and yes.

I had quite an expensive teller adjustable bridge put on my bass with brass wheels. Its a really good bridge and hasn't effected the tone in a hugely significant away but its sort of useless. I haven't used it at all. I have yet to adjust the string height at all. Even between my classical gigs and other gigs. Stays the same height! So make sure you actually need one before you go and have one put on your bass.

Hi all, I'm looking to get a ramp for my jazz bass but since i don't have the tools or the space to make one i was wondering i there was anyone out there who makes them. It would either have to be some kind of black plastic or dark rosewood to go with the fret board and pickups. So any makers or sites that I've missed that sell standard ramps for a jazz bass. I don't have a pick guard on the bass if that makes any difference. Cheers Sam

Ive got a revolution solo mounted on my bass. Really good pickup and imo a better all rounder then the realist. Cheaper too!

Out of every 6!

Brillant stuff. Now to find the time for 6 hours of practice a day.