fatback

[quote name='thisnameistaken' timestamp='1328137355' post='1522656'] I'd rather see what I could do with a decent piezo and a decent preamp first. [/quote] +1 to that, although I confess to having both on the same bass on the belt and braces principle. Never had to use the mag though.

You only need a mag pickup like Schaller if you'll be using steel strings and mean to play very loud. They do sound more like a bass guitar than a db though. imo if you need to go that route, I'd go the Kent Armstrong mag pickup instead. Quality and not much dearer. To be honest, going straight for a mag without knowing you definitely need it (and you probably don't), you'd miss out on the real db sound. just imo, of course. Lots of love for BassMax round here, and if you've got the cash and a luthier to fit it, the Full Circle is superb.

My spiro weichs are about the same height Gareth mentioned. No buzzing problems at all. I don't slap though, so I don't need to get under them. Wouldn't like to have to cope with them much higher.

I'm pretty jealous of that check too, although i rightly defer to WPD on all things OTP. I'm pretty sure the one you got is the better one; the other is certainly Chinese. You'll have a ball. as Bilbo says, don't worry, just have fun. I'd add though that the left hand posture is still important; you don't want an injury. But once you're aware it takes only a couple of minutes to get right.

I was trying to get the art of the left hand and found there isn't a european supplier, has to come from the states. The other I er came across somewhere.

[quote name='artisan' timestamp='1327954529' post='1519487'] it's ace isn't it,makes bass guitar seem boring & weedy [/quote] So true. I hardly touch my bg anymore. I had to make myself play it last week cos I suddenly got nervous I might have to do an unexpected gig on same, but it felt like a chore. As for the blisters, I found right hand blisters were much less a problem if I worked at playing with the sides of my fingers mostly, rather than the tips bg style.

Sorry if I've missed you mentioning it, but have you tried the wing pickup fitted on the G side? When I had a bassmax i got a vastly better sound with it mounted on that side and much less prone to feedback as well. Just a thought.

On the biz of travelling to buy a bass, if you've got transport it culd be the best journey you ever made. I did a round trip of 700 miles to get mine, and boy was that worth every mile. Just a 2c worth.

+1 to choosing whatever your preferred teacher uses. I abandoned the bow early on as being too much at once, but took it up again lately. If you're going to use French, do yourself a huge favour and get hold of the DVD 'Art of the Bow' by Francois Rabbath. An absolute revelation (and a joy to watch). Like everything he does, it's marvelously thought through, and you couldn't have a sounder foundation. I'm a Rabbath fanboy, I know. But people on here who know have described Rabath's bowing as 'like an angel', and even I can see what they mean. That DVD alone would make me choose French over German, but it would probably be of enormopus benefit even fro German, because it explains so much about why any bowing sound is the way it is.

[quote name='artisan' timestamp='1327493072' post='1512134'] thanks for the replies guys. I do plan on buying OHM's bass if i can sell my MM & he can meet me somewhere (i don't fancy driving all the way to surrey),but if he sells his first i'll have to look else where + i do like the look of the Thomman basses,mainly the flame or blueburst finish. i do fully expect the cheaper DB to be pretty crap so that's maybee not an option for me as i do like good quality kit,but it will depend on which BG I can sell.. [/quote] Honestly, consider waiting rather than buying crap. Learning to play a decent one is hard enough.

Although Thomann do good basses, I'm not sure about the cheaper one you link to; that's probably Chinese. You want a european one. I've no direct experience of these, but when I was buying i got a lot of good advice from the good folks on here. The Thomann product codes seem to be: 1/11/111 laminated basses 2/22 laminated basses with carved top 3/33 carved basses with flat back 4/44 carved basses with swelled back 5 carved basses with swelled back and flames. All the above are european except the 111. There seems to be a fair bit of love around for the 2 and 22. If you get lucky and have a bit of patience, a second hand bass could give you much better value though. Great you're taking the plunge. You won't regret it. Cue lifetime obsession.

Bought a H2 recorder from Pete. Thoroughly nice man to deal with and a most pleasant transaction. Beat the record for speedy delivery to my neck of woods as well.

Depends a lot on what amp you've got, though. I gave up using a preamp in front of my EA Doubler. Didn't make any useful difference to the sound, and it was one more piece of kit to set up. I carry a Dave Hall DI/EQ in case of amp failure. btw, it might be worth comparing the DHA with a Fishman. Apart from the notch filter, I didn't find the DHA any worse - it's a very good EQ and DI, and it's much cheaper than the Fishman. How do you find yours?

[quote name='Immo' timestamp='1327242597' post='1508193'] Answering the question stated in OP - ContraBand. [/quote] A Richter of basses?

[quote name='bassvid75' timestamp='1326989785' post='1504823'] no one for Ludwing Streicher method? i did and very helpful [/quote] Is there any good web source for his method? Always interested in anything that isn't Simandl.

[quote name='rockabillybob1' timestamp='1326474978' post='1497805'] trade it in for a double bass [/quote] Mmmm, what he said

Most likely you will scream with frustration; humbling won't be the half of it. All i'd add to the good advice above is that it's an instrument that insists on being take seriously, and that means a daily practice routine. If you do that, you will amaze yourself. If you're haphazard you'll probably find it too punishing and quit. I came from fretless and having the ears hugely helped. As for left hand techniques, there are methods that better suit bass guitarists than the usual classical methid, but you'll find what suits you once you get going. Go for it. You will never regret it. Biggest surprise of all in a band context is the sheer weight of that sound. No going back.

Very interesting. I'm not sure that what they're looking at is entrepreneurship though. I recognise what they're talking about in terms of managing creative teams, but management and entrepreneurship are not the same thing, although overlap is usual. In my (fairly wide) experience, entrepreneurs are driven, individualistic, inspirational but often disorganised, difficult to constrain and often containing the seeds of the project's destruction. Rock stars, anyone? When they suceed, it's often because of the moderating influences around them, often people who work to mitigate the chaotic side of their natures. Maybe why entrepreneurial partnerships vcan be very successful. Are there any notable jazz partnerships?

[quote name='MusicLover20015' timestamp='1324575500' post='1475866'] if u dont want to spend much have a look at Aldi. it may not be name branded but Wow its 80 quid or around that area and its got everything. Bluetooth/remote control/memory stick input/usb/the memory cards etc etc It is great and it lights up blue xD [/quote] Went for this one - great price @ €59. Good sound too, but can't for the life of me work out how to browse the folders. Any idea?

[quote name='Clarky' timestamp='1326060915' post='1491860'] Its part cos I'm still a bit rubbish on DB and part cos I'm used to 'on the fly' fingering! But seriously, what fingering do you use for playing say G sharp, A, F, E sharp on the G/D strings - is that all sliding your first/fore finger up and down the board or does your second/middle finger come into play at any point - its the semi-tone shifts I am not sure about [/quote] I kind of cheat, in that I've added a thumb position at F# on the E string. I can't manage the bottom end pivots with the lowest thumb position at G on the E string. So with thumb on F# (on E string), I'd use first finger for the G sharp, second for the A, third with fourth for the F and second for the E. I don't use three on its own apart from way up the neck, and I always support four with three. One of the hardest things to remember about the Rabbath method, i found, apart from being accurate with the thumb positions, is pivoting with 4 always paired with and supported by three. That's not the same as the bass guitar 1234 fingering at all. So of the four possible notes reachable with a pivot, say G#, A, A#, B, the two higher ones are played with the same pair of fingers, three and four together. This way, i get no problems with third finger strain at all and very few probs with the little finger (none if I remember to support all the time) As you well know, Clarky, i'm only a beginner at this and I may have the wrong end of lots of sticks, so please take anything I say with a large pinch of etc. :0

From what folks have said on here, I imagine very few use a mic live. Too many feedback problems. As for piezo pickups, the only answer seems to be a lengthy and expensive process of trial and error to find something that suits your particular bass. On the PA side, again I think most people feel a need to have the option of independent amplification, and even with the pa you'd need some monitoring. Good luck with the never-ending quest.