mike257

I gigged with the guy who played that line a couple of weeks ago - Norman Watt-Roy. He's [b]AMAZING[/b]. Thoroughly nice bloke too, we bass-geeked out and talked amps for a bit. He's touring with Wilko Johnson, well worth a look if you get the chance.

The prognosis isn't good, there might be no stopping him. I keep mine out the way at the studio, there's only one at my place. So you could always just come here instead ;p

I've bust a string on stage four or five times in the last two years. That over-indulgent spare bass ALWAYS seems worthwhile when your E string collapses half a song in. It's probably my shoddy technique mind you, I play fingestyle right down low by the bridge, and eventually my E just unwinds itself across the saddle! I rock too hard for E strings

I ninja-bidded my acoustic guitar with one second to go, auctionsentry is no match for my superfly bidding skills My mate got a 5-string thumb, then promptly disappeared off on tour (he's a sound tech), leaving it in another mate's house round the corner. I might go and steal it while he's not looking, it's sat in the gig bag unplayed for 3 months!

It's a classic ebay trick. Stacks of people will search for Fender/Ampeg/Trace and suchlike... and wouldn't find the peavey. Stick "[i]not Fender/Ampeg/Trace[/i]" in the header, and it'll then be picked up in searches for those names, so the number of people who spot your amp increases instantly!! Magic

Is it just me that falls for it every time then? I'd only just started paying for my buttercream 2005 'Ray, and they dropped the 30th anniversary mahogany one. I had to be physically restrained from destroying my credit rating even further. It does seem a big con though. At the end of the day, the buttercream 'ray tends to stay at home these, and the other basses do all the hard work 'because it's a limited edition', but have you ever tried finding out just [i]how[/i] limited they are?? Nobody could tell me, but Dolphin still had the '05 on their website early this year. Maybe that'd be a fun question for the EBMM forum

I (and other band members) have had somewhat questionable experiences with GEE in Liverpool. Although there's no doubt that John Gee himself is profoundly knowledgeable in his field (a quick chat with him will teach you more about the physics of cab design than any book ever will), i've found there to be issues with the quality of their repair work on more than one occasion. Unfortunately, there's nobody else around here really, so we're kind of stuck with him!

wow, it's amazing seeing the range of styles and approaches everyone has, we've really got all the bases (basses?) covered here!! i'm 23, stingray addict, although my T-40 is slowly becoming the favourite. mostly fingers, but sometimes feel the need for that tone that you only get with some full on picking. mostly play heavy-ish alternative rock stuff, although since my band split, i've been doing stand-ins and recording sessions for all kinds, from classic rock to full-on metal (and controversially playing my gui**r a lot too). i guess i'm a pretty straightforward player really, i try and do just what the song needs, and nothing more... if that's a simple groove, or something a bit more melodic, i'm happy either way. i'm not really fond of technical w***ery... my big inspiration starting out was Tim Commerford of RATM, those enormous grooves powering everything along is just what I love about the bass. Haha, and a paid up, card carrying member of the 'watch the bass drum' club

Aww, none of mine are remotely close to being Whigfield beaters, that's incredible The last couple of years I've played with: Sikth, Still Remains, Exit Ten, Enter Shikari, Bring Me The Horizon, Architects However, my favourite fame claim... anyone ever been to a Green Day show? They do this little routine where they 'form a band' on stage, and pull people up out of the crowd to play. Well, at Old Trafford cricket ground in 2002, I was the lucky git that got pulled up to play Mike Dirnt's bass!!

Saw about half an hour of the Chilis set at Leeds Fest on Sunday, before retiring to my tent in despair. They seemed to just be w***ing off, and not really interested in playing any [i]songs[/i], much like Delberthot's experience at Hampden. However, finally getting to see the Smashing Pumpkins after 10+ years of obsessive fandom actually brought a tear or two to my eye.

I was in the manchester Dawson's a few weeks back, and they seemed pretty short on interesting bass pieces. SC in Salford is probably the best bet round there, just for the size of the place, you can get lost for hours lusting after gear, bass or otherwise!

A friend of mine at college had a flourescent green BC Rich Warlock bass.... absolutely hideous, but it was loaded with EMGs and sounded enormous. He got rid of it in the end though, because it was just TOO offensive to look at!!

Probably because of the way ebays bidding system works - what you enter is the maximum you're prepared to pay, so the highest maximum wins. However, ebay automatically places your bid to just above that of the next nearest bidder. The guy who beat you was probably bidding in £10 increments too, but ebay has just rounded him off to the nearest figure above yours. Losing ebay auctions like that breaks my heart. Saying that, I got a tasty Ibanez acoustic with 1 second to go last month. That was tense!! *EDIT* think me and jean-luc must have been typing at the same time, pretty much saying the same thing...

I've got a squire p-special, languishing unloved in a corner, that i'm eternally threatening to tart up. it already plays surprisingly well, so i'll probably start with the electrics and go from there. A bit of old school black-on-black might be nice... although i'm kind of tempted by those glowguard things. Tacky as hell, but hey, the more flashing lights, the better it sounds, right??

Is it just me, or are [i]decent quality[/i] short-ish patch leads really hard to find?? My Planet Waves 6" angled jack ones are just a touch to short for comfort in my rack, but their 12" ones only come with straight jacks. All well and good, I though, until I realised I won't be able to put the front lid on the rack without unplugging them! Anyone spotted any good'uns, longer than 6" with angles both ends??

After my band split recently, the singer and I are trying our hand at something different for a while, so we've been knocking up these little acoustic demos for a couple of weeks now. This is the only one with any bass on, but also features my (somewhat questionable) guitar and keyboard playing. It's recorded in Cubase, with all leccy guitars and bass tracked through a Behringer V-Amp (sorry), and acoustic and vox with a tasty SE valve mic i've borrowed, and a Behringer mic pre. Keys are from various VST plug-ins. Think the mix still wants a tweak here and there, but any feedback would be joyously welcomed

I've mucked about with MIDI for as long as i can remember - although that certainly doesn't make me an expert Currently use it for knocking up drum parts on home demos, and I'm also doing some keyboard playing on a bunch of acoustic stuff my singer and I are working on, so I'm having to remember how it all works!! Used to use it heavily when I did a bit of engineering. I spent countless hours becoming a zen master of Akai samplers... about 12 months before the onslaught of VST instruments rendered it a totally obsolete skill! An old band of mine used a whole bunch of synths and samples live, had a Korg M1 keyboard and a Fostex hard-disc multitracker to run it all off, and our poor drummer heard nothing but the worlds loudest metronome in his monitor for 2 years! I've often had daydreams of a mega MIDI controlled bass rig. Not because I need one, but just think of all the flashing lights I could have in my rack!!!

Well, I.... erm... I mean a friend of mine came back from a holiday in Oz with a Stingray, and after succesfully making it from Adelaide, to Melbourne, to Hong Kong, to Heathrow (and a moment of panic when I saw them literally [i]throw[/i] it onto a trolley unloading it), only for the whole family to be stopped at Manchester, all our luggage rifled through, and NOT A SINGLE QUESTION asked about the shiny new guitar I was carrying. So you never know, it might be worth a shot!

My whole band picked up the Sennheiser Freeport when sound control dropped the price to £99, and i've had no problems at all with it - apart from forgetting to change the battery every once in a while I did A/B it with my Planet Waves cables, and there is a slight loss in low end definition, but nothing that'd make a big difference on stage. +1 on the crap cables though, think I'll be on to OBBM soon for a replacement. Although, the support is questionable. I emailed Sennheiser about spares, as I wanted to buy a 2nd bodypack to leave attatched to my spare bass ( to save panic-stricken fiddling with my straplocks when I bust a string on stage!!) but 12 months later, still no reply!!

[quote name='16Again' post='31343' date='Jul 13 2007, 03:45 PM']I did the same thing! Your no freak! I couldnt afford a left handed bass and didnt have the brain to turn it up side down, so i just learned right handed! I'm the same at golf, left handed but play right handed! D.[/quote] Same here!! Although when I occasionally dabble in drums, I go full on lefty.... which upsets sound techs at gigs like you wouldn't believe I saw a left-handed piano once - no joke - keys were the other way round. Try wrapping your head round that

[quote]If I could get some of the effects from GarageBand or Logic Express into a rack I'd have those too and I could get rid of the compressor. Right, I'm off to borrow me mate's MacBook, a shoehorn and a hammer.[/quote] Well.... I don't think it'll run AU plugs from Logic, but [url="http://www.museresearch.com/"]this lot[/url] make a 2U box that runs VST effect and synths without dragging one of those troublesome computer-type-wotsits on stage with you. looks like a fun way to fill a few empty spaces!!

My gigging basses live in a lock up at the practice rooms with my rig, I do miss them Keep a 'ray at home though, for good measure (and for an occasional bit of practice!). There's the old axe graveyard behind my sofa, where the unloved squiers and epiphones live, as sentiment prevents me from getting rid. Saying that, I've taken over the dining room this week with all my muso gear for some recording... got my keyboard and my 6-guitar stand out and everything. Not looking forward to having it relegated back to the bedroom when the week is up i'm lobbying to have it permanently re-assigned as a music room, but it's falling on deaf ears!

Crikey... this makes my little collection look really pathetic. Saying that, most of them are nothing to write home about, I only started buying [i]proper[/i] basses a few years ago! Chronological order then... [b]Hohner Arbor[/b] - donated to the cause by a friend's muso dad, who realised we were lacking a bassist. The start of my 4 string career, age 14. Gave it him back 18 months later when i'd settled in with my... [b]Squier Precision Special[/b] - the first bass I actually bought for myself. A jazz neck, and P/J pickups, and it still plays alarmingly well. Sitting behind my sofa unloved due to knackered electrics, although I keep threatening to buy some parts and do it up real sweet. I'll let you know if it ever happens!! [b]Ibanez GSR200[/b] - another piece of cheap tat, loaned to me by my then-drummer when the electrics went on the squier. toneless, and also behind my sofa waiting for me to sort out the shaky neck. notable only for the kermit the frog doll swinging from the volume knob. must take him out on stage again one day! [b]Ibanez Ergodyne EDC700[/b] - A cash converters bargain, and my first taste of the world of active bassing. Seemed awfully flash after my previous outings, but the absence of wood from the body meant an absence of tone too. Went back to cash converters for virtually nothing in a moment of skint-ness. The only bass i've ever sold. [b]Tanglewood Warrior semi[/b] - A birthday present from old bandmates, the bloke in our praccy rooms only wanted £50 for it!! I've never seen another one like it, f-holes and all, but the weakest pickups i've ever encountered. Took it out on stage now and again, but the on-off risks of the P's dodgy output seemed worth it for the better tone. Currently out on loan to my mate's little brother, who is turning out to be quite the natural with it. Got to do your bit for the kids, feel like i'm passing on the torch from the bloke who lent me the Hohner!! [i] then in '04, we got serious...[/i] [b]Musicman SR4 3EQ[/b] - My dream bass... saw it in a music shop on my hols in Australia, fell in love, and that was the end of my holiday money, and the demolition of my credit limit (the first and last credit card i'll ever have, i hope). All natural, black guard, maple neck, my first REAL bass!! Still my #1 on stage, it's the love of my life. Can't see myself ever wanting to part with it. Although it does get a little jealous of... [b]Musicman SR4 3EQ 2005 ltd edition[/b] - I'd had sleepless night over this bass, but kept telling myself i couldn't justify another 'ray. Then a flash new guitar shop opened in town, and what did they have swinging on the wall? Pretty much the last 2005 ltd in the country, it seemed. My guitarist talked me into it, and one credit deal later, my 'ray had a sister! Gigged it a fair bit, but then realised I felt guilty abusing it every night, now it's my 'stay at home' bass when everything else is locked up in the studio. [b]Peavey T-40 (1980)[/b] - Gassed for this for aaaaages, when I realised the one I was spying on ebay was only 20 mins away from my house. Shot over there, and left with my first 'vintage' aquisition. Looks the biz, sustains forever, and it's the most cripplingly heavy chunk of wood I've ever played!! Comes out gigging, but only as a back-up for my 'ray. It's definitely indestructible though. I almost bought a Lakland Darryl recently, but I'm trying to learn some self-control!!