ngombe

one of the rehearsal outfits near me (Birmingham) offer the standard midrange combos by default, but they also have a few premium rigs if you want to fork out a few extra quid. That seems like a good compromise to me, if people pay the premium they'll probably know how not to break an amp. They also provide amp / cab / pa rentals to lots of the big venues so it's a bit easier for them to have a selection. maybe you could cut a deal with a local music retailer and get some ex demo stuff on loan in exchange for some advertising / promotion. It's a far better way to audition an amp than sitting in a shop full of noisy kids all throwing down their latest guitar licks. just a suggestion - no idea if it's practical Joe

[quote name='ped' post='16581' date='Jun 12 2007, 11:00 PM']Should be an interesting read - looking forward to hearing what happens! ped[/quote] +me

thanks mate - It'd probably sound lots better if I wasn't murdering a guitar over the top of it. Hopefully my real guitarist will like it. I did wonder about the pace - I went for 90bpm to give it a dubby tempo and I tried to play with a lazy feel. I think I overcooked the P recording in terms of levels, my recording skills are even poorer than my guitaring. There's probably an OK track in there with some work but without a band at the moment I can't take it much further. cheers Joe. PS - if anyone out there want's to have a go at it and show me how it could / should be done I'd love to hear it. I know there's a lot of people here who'd really make this groove.

Lol - you crazy fool! I've never seen anything like that (the guitar and rig's quite unusual too - groan!) - I can't even begin to imagine what it sounds like but it's going to be a lot of fun finding out. superb photos Joe

[quote name='ngombe' post='15370' date='Jun 11 2007, 12:08 AM']and the P <coming soon!> taking turns on the fingerstyle line[/quote] now posted. Please join me [topic="1488"]here [/topic]if you want to comment Joe.

hi - an update and a bump from myself (talk about billy no-mates! ) I've added a short clip of the same jam but with a Precision playing the low end / finger line. As mentioned it's a follow up to another thread about [topic="1315"]Precisions[/topic] in the gear section. If anyone's made it over from that thread they can have a listen and compare and contrast with the ray version. Somehow the eerie silence here makes me think not... If anyone's got anything to say about the slap line I'd really appreciate it. I know it's not very fashionable to slap these days but I was trying to jam against the original so I picked a sound that would be distinct from the fingerstyle line. I've neither got the chops or the inclination to play very busy slap lines but I think this benefits from the empty spaces and makes a good groove to practice to if nothing else. It's not meant as a solo composition, it's just me jamming while I'm waiting for a band. <grovel>Pretty pretty please give the first track a decent listen, I think there's some good stuff in there (by my humble standards) and it gets a bit less messy after the first minute.</grovel> later Joe

Hi again - as promised I've had a listen - sounds good to me. It's not a type of music that I listen to a lot so I'm probably not the best person to comment but it sounds nice and tight and it got a big "that's good!" from my teenage daughter, probably the first positive noise I've heard from her this week I think the P sounds nice and deep and you've got a good growl on it. do you use distortion or overdrive? As for recording - I think it sounds great as a song and the playing seems spot on, so I can't think of any advice really. I'm sure some of the better players here will be able to give more useful feedback. What do you think about it? are you happy with the Stingray? is it the sound you want? Joe

Hi there. I'm a stingray player too - I've just posted a my first doodle to the forum below. It's a slap line with a stingray, It's nothing special but I'm kind of proud of it cos it's me playing at the top of my very limited game. I'll trade you some comments later - I'm at work now and I can't listen to audio due to the internet restrictions here. very best of luck with the recording next weekend Joe

I've recorded a bit of practice / doodling this afternoon that I've been messing with over the weekend. I've posted it up on the recordings board but While I was there I thought I'd do a bit of science and see if it'll help me figure the P out (big apologies to all of you who now just want to scream "what is there to figure out") I've rendered two alternative versions, with the stingray and the P <coming soon!> taking turns on the fingerstyle line for a few bars. By the logic I've picked up here I'd say the P was a better choice for the fingerstyle line - it's got a very 70's feel. Here's my experiment to find out - you can be the judges - I'm sure there'll be no impartiality whatsoever among all you Precision devotees here . You can find them on my very hasty myspace page [url="http://www.myspace.com/incompletomajorsounds"]http://www.myspace.com/incompletomajorsounds[/url] I think it might be the active / passive difference that's throwing me as probably been built around it. I tend towards a light touch and I'm used to the response of the stingray - in fact my whole technique as probably grown around the ray and the sub so I'm probably not playing the P well. I don't know what Josquin used on the original but there's a big picture of a P bass on the cover. I'm leaving this thread now as it's drifted largely into people wanting them - kind of the opposite to my situation. If I stay much longer someone's going to tell me the answer to all my problems is this original 1958 fender P with James Jameson's finger still trapped in the pickup cover after a drunken brawl with Berry Gordy that's being sold on ebay by a well known Chinese importer - and I've got no room to keep it in my house!!! I'll keep an eye on your votes though and I hope the rest of you have fun - only joking with the precision lovers - there's no doubting they're a thing of beauty . Thanks again to the many helpful people who took time to respond - I've read, enjoyed and learned from them all - and I'm working my way through all the many recommendations. Please feel free to join me on the 'ngombe's sunday' thread on the recordings board if you want to carry on chatting about the P sound and getting anoraky about EQ n stuff.

Hi - I'm quite new to this place so this really does feel like jumping into the lion's den. It's been a good weekend; lots of sun, good live music here in birmingham (especially 'Example'at Birmingham University yesterday).So rather than just go through my practice exercises I was in the mood to riff off it instead and I've posted the results up for you guys to have a listen and post any feedback you might have. [url="http://www.myspace.com/incompletomajorsounds"]http://www.myspace.com/incompletomajorsounds[/url] The recording is rough and ready - it's one take on the bass and guitar and I know I've missed the pocket here and there. I came up with the slap line yesterday so a lot of this is still improv, and I don't always make it back in time from some of the fills. The start's a bit messy as well - I'll edit it up later when I've learned how. There's another reason for this post - I'm humming and harring over whether to keep my P bass. There's a thread in gear about this. I've made a couple of versions to compare the P* and the Ray playing the fingerstyle line so people can comment on the sounds and maybe help me figure out how to use it properly. I threw in some dodgy rhythm guitar to try and make it a little more interesting. I'm really not a guitarist as you'll probably hear. My regular guitarist is away this weekend and like I've mentioned elsewhere I'm between bands so it's a one man show today. Credit where it's due - the original backing track is from Josquin Des Pres' 70's funk and disco bass - one of my favourite practice books. Normally I'd just follow it and concentrate on my timing but today I went for a wander with it. I'm not looking for a critique of the recording. I used Ableton Live, I've just recently found the record button - I don't know much more than that about recording. Anything positive or negative you've got to say about the playing / bass tone(s) / composition or feel would be greatly received. Here's a starter for 10: I think the slap line works well and I think it works pretty well as a duet in the original but I'm not sure which I prefer. What do you reckon? last caveat I promise - the myspace page is also new, my daughter made it for me a couple of weeks back and it's the first time I've really used it. It's looking a bit sparse to say the least but spare time's at a premium and I'm having more fun practicing and hanging out here during the breaks. * myspace is being an ar$e with the upload and I've run out of time today. Will upload the P version in the morning b4 work i hope.

Currently I'm between bands so the answer to question 1 if definately yes - I'm still jamming with the guitarist from the last band and we have similar tastes. Very different story when it was a 'band' - we quickly ended up playing the lowest common denominator songs that no one really liked before we broke up on musical (and just about every other kind of) differences. Question 2 - death ....... no cake ......... hang on, this is a hard one..

Currently I like playing along to / working out: most of Manu Chao's live album (Radio Bemba). Can't remember the name of the bass player. I'm also checking out the sound he gets with a P bass (there's a thread full of that conversation over on 'gear'). Genre-wise it's dub / ska / salsa / rock / world and probably a few more categories all rolled into a glorious frenzy. an album called Hustle - it's reggae covers of disco classics on the ever reliable souljazz label. Favourite tracks include Upside Down and Rappers delight. I also reach for the originals from time to time - can't go wrong with Nile Rogers and Bernard Edwards. The freemasons remix of beautiful lie by Beyonce and Shakira - it's probably never been near a bass guitar but it's got great energy. and excercises from my teacher include Jaco (the VERY easy bits!) James brown and Jamiroqui. I'm getting there but that stuff is a very long way from the light of day yet. Also some Latin and an arm numbing groove in 10 time. I've been listening to 'Under the Munka Moon 2" by alice Walker in the car - that's next in line for my exercise playlist.

[quote name='MB1' post='13757' date='Jun 7 2007, 07:26 PM']MB1. Whats it all about P Bass?(was that not a hit for cilla black?) seriously though, you instinctively know when youve got a good one.once played a second hand american one, and was very close to purchasing the bass ,and strangely enough, was talked out of it, by the guy who worked in the shop(who is also a friend).he knows, i do tend to sell ,swap ,exchange basses from time to time, and i doubt this one would have appealed to everyone due to its colour purple(wasnt the most saleable of colours at that time).definately a one that got away!. MB1.[/quote] I don't get through gear very quicly - a bass probably comes and goes once a year (is that a lot?). I bought this one at the beginning of last year when I was doing non stop overtime. It was £599 on soundslive so I figured I stood to lose about £99 if it didn't suit and that seemed worth a gamble. I don't much like the colour (candy red) but it was a ton less than the next one, if I keep it I'll have a go at royally stuffing it up with a repaint (I've seen enough of this forum to know I can find detailed advice on that). I'm not convinced I've landed a good 'un though - I'll have to try a few more out. "What's it all about P Bass?" - I thought it was George Clinton - I stand corrected.

Seymour Duncan / Basslines also make a range of P bass pickups: [url="http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/bassesdescr.shtml#QuarterPound153forSingleCoilPBassreg"]http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/bass...gleCoilPBassreg[/url]

Huge thanks to everyone (and a slightly puzzled expression for BB2000 - how did you know?). That's loads to be going on with. I'll have a go at some reggae and motown with it and see how that goes. Joe

Thanks MB - this is helping. I've only used it for a few jams but mostly I've been listening to it in isolation - perhaps it's ability to sit nicely in the mix is one of it's strong points. I love my Stingray to bits but I can see why others could have a problem with it - there's no ignoring it, it will be heard! I've got a meeeting with some local musicians lined up for the end of the month, some of them are just finishing college and are looking to put a band together - I'll probably hang onto it till then in case I get the same reaction to my other basses as you did. Thanks also Mr C. I tried a sandberg jazz a while ago and I know where you're coming from with that one - very very nice! I've never tried a gibson bass but if it's half as good as the Les Paul g**tar then it's gonna be very special.

Hi This is a question for Precision lovers. I have a US P bass that I bought about a year ago on a bit of an expensive whim. My main bass is a Stingray and it suits me pretty well, I know it's sound and I have the action just so, all in all it's got a 'just right' feel for me. Sadly the opposite is the case for my poor neglected P. I play a lot of different styles but so far I haven't really found where the P shines. I know it wouldn't be such a bass icon without reason - please help me to discover it's strengths. I don't play much rock and I rarely use a pick - So far the only time it's really sounded good to me was when I was playing it hard with a pick. The action seems high but I couldn't get it much lower, the relief of the neck is pretty much factory standard - I tried varying it but didn't get a much lower action. For fingerstyle it just seems much slower than the Stingray and much less defined in the sound For people who like them I'd like to ask - what kind of music do you think it suits? - do you have favorite EQ, amp setting etc? - any recommendations for good tracks that showcase the P bass? - how's the setup? do you string it through the body? any mods worth undertaking? - anything else that you think makes the P bass such a classic Normally I'd just part company with a bass that doesn't work for me, but I can't help thinking I'm just missing something with this one so I'm giving it a last chance. Ta Joe

Hi there. This is my first forum too - only joined a week or so ago. Everyone's made me feel welcome and I'm beginning to feel like part of this thing. How's the P bass working for you? I've got one but I'm really considering getting rid of it cos I haven't really got my head round it - I'm not sure how to get the best out of it. I'll probably ask the question to the general forum shortly. cheers Joe

Oh dear cantdosleepy - it's not going so well... At least no one's mentioned Jaco or Billy Sheehan for a while

I'd certainly liked to have learned more theory. For a long time I just slavishly copied basslines or thundered along on the root. Having some theory would have given me a lot more versitility and opened up lots of more interesting music. I'd also have concentrated on good technique from the start - that would have saved me having to re-learn later on. In reality though if I was a young teenager again I'd be far to lazy and impatient to learn music properly so I'd probably just grab a pick and turn the amp up to 11 all over again.

Mikey D and Mobius - I've sent you a PM with details. Car's full now. looking forward to seeing you all Joe

Hi and welcome (from another basschat newbie) I've also been learning again for the last few years despite having been playing on and off for years. I've also used books and had lessons, they've all helped. I've kind of broken it down into three areas - theory, technique and stamina. At any one time I'll find one of these areas is holding me back, and different approaches work for different problems. Theory's useful as it can help you jam along to most music - it's worth knowing the main scales, especially where to find root 3rd 5th and 7ths. It's also important to have fun and get some satisfaction out of playing so you're perfectly right in wanting to dive in and play. I like using books of grooves or transcriptions of pop / funk music. If you can read music there's a lot of transcriptions for vocal and piano that have bass clef - it's probably adapted but it'll help with picking up songs you want to play. I can't sight read so I go over them and annotate them - most pop music is repetitive so it doesn't take me long. Best of luck with it - bass is such a rewarding instrument. I thoroughly recommend getting a practice amp, there are times when you really need to make some noise! Joe

hope you can make it to the bash Bernmeister. I've only been in Birmingham since last august - I'm liking the music scene a lot here. Went to see 2 bands last wednesday (Mutha funkas and Kane - I may have got the names wrong?) - Both had fantastic bass players (one of them is a mate of mine but he plays in so many bands I can't keep up). I'm off to see Antibalas on sunday - they're playing just up the road from me in Kings Heath. well worth checking if you don't know them: [url="http://myspace.com/antibalas"]http://myspace.com/antibalas[/url] Please let me know if you've got any recommendations for more local bands. Ta Joe

thanks guys. I'll try and get a photo up on the bass porn board shortly. I've just had a glance through "show us you're rig" thread... yep - that's porn

Hi - I'm new to basschat (/talk /world) and I'd love to come along if that's ok. I can make June 16th, and I can offer a lift from south birmingham (I can even pick up from new street station - it's not that far from me). cheers Joe