Fionn

It nice to see that there are a few choir singers here, albeit with very different music to the Gaelic songs I’m familiar with. Aye, it’s sublime, to be sure. I was singing tenor before, which was an almighty challenge. Just joined a new choir though, where I’ll be singing bass. Far more into my comfort zone, and more where I’m at in my soul. Looking forward to this. It will be interesting, given this bassist’s brain that I’ve developed over 25 years.

Nah ... she’s buried under the patio now, with the others.

Standard model? What’s your verdict thus far? How you getting on with the shorter scale length on those?

Prague ... hmmm. I’ve only been once, about a decade ago. The band I was in were playing at the Prague festival. I thought that it was the most beautiful city I’d ever seen. Too hot in the summer though. It’s random and intense. Weird stuff happens there. Scotland happened to be playing the Czech Republic at football when we were there, and we ended up playing a bunch of impromptu evening gigs for the Tartan Army in this big sweaty dump called ‘The Shamrock’ (avoid). Almost went blind drinking home-distilled moonshine with Slovakian farmers who were in the same digs as us, in town to see Anthrax. I befriended a herbally-inclined sound guy after a festival gig which led to being at a gigantic rave on the outskirts of the city where everyone was dressed entirely in white from head to toe (I’m not a raver). I got hit upon by an Irish transvestite. Some useful advice though ... Beware hot-looking Romany women who pretend to be all over you whilst going through your pockets. Great place! 😀

Ahhh, sorry... I didn’t read the post properly. I get you. Nose grease is the WD40 of Bassdom 🙂

I only ever play flats (Ernie Ball Cobalts), and I find that they are sticky for the first few days of play. After that though, they are fine. I wouldn’t put anything in the strings just yet. Play them a bit more. See how you feel about it this time next week.

I must say, the experience of being part of a choir has not only made be a better bass player, but a better musician all round. I didn’t have any formal training in music. I started playing as a teenager, so moved and inspired by the early output of Jamiroquai/ Zender, that bass was the direction I took. 25 years later and no regrets. Bass is still my primary instrument, and the one I love above all. My musical tastes have remained very much rooted around that hemisphere of music too, but deeper, naturally. However, a few years ago, by some bizarre accident of events, having had no previous singing experience and no involvement in traditional music, I found myself joining the local Gaelic Choir. It was a revelation, and there was no turning back. There is something ethereal and electrifying about standing in the midst of 30 voices when you’re locked tightly into a complex arrangement of a big piece. Whether it’s sensitive and beautiful, or vigorous and bold, the emotive power of the situation is huge and unquestionable. There are strict technical requirements though, and these are what have made me the better musician. Firstly, I had to learn how to read music and, by default of the learning process, my sight-reading is ever improving.By absolute necessity I’ve developed a greater sense of subtlety, restraint, and discipline. A more refined sense of place and, as a result, the whole. My natural timing has improved, and the basic nature of choral singing has made me infinitely more harmonically conscious. Also, the specific process of learning, breaking down into tiny detail and reconstructing a few select pieces over many months, and the inherently complex nature of the arrangements have allowed me to understand music in a way I never would have otherwise... and it’s all transferable to bass. Choir singing happened randomly, and out of the blue, but now that it’s part of my life I love it. I’m more of a musician than I ever was before, or ever would have been without it ... and I’m grateful for that. Are there any other choristers here? If so, what benefits have you perceived? Tell me something of the kind of choir you’re in 🙂 My choral experience has been entirely in the (Scottish) Gaelic language, in both men’s and mixed choirs, in performance and competition, Scotland, and abroad.

Check out the Warwick (RB) Alien. Those have a 32” scale.

Also, I must add ... with it having a both gain and volume controls, it’s possible to get a very decent overdrive on. Pretty handy having that there at the very tail end of the chain. It gives me post-filter/ modulation dirt options (all my other distortion is in front of the filters/ modulation). I’ve found it to be a surprisingly versatile little piece of kit. It has added breadth to my palette, sure ... and I only set out for a clean boost

I use the eq on my boost, sure. It’s good for coming in fat and loud when it’s time to get dubby.

I use the Mooer true bypass clean boost. It’s as clear as a whistle. Got an eq section too. Cheap as chips and perfectly up to task. This one ... https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/mooer_pure_boost_fx_pedal/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI5OO0s5zN3gIV1eR3Ch1bbwzHEAkYASABEgITdvD_BwE

There are a few on the market now. What are folks experiences with the various models? Any particular pro’s or con’s associated with whichever pedal? Any tone-suckers to avoid?

Everyone knows that Stuart Zender played on the first three Jamiroquai albums, with Nick Fyffe replacing him on the fourth album ‘Synkronized’. However, nine tracks were written and recorded for that album with Zender as bassist and co-writer, before he and the band parted ways. To avoid any legal entanglements all of those tunes were dropped by the band, completely removing Zender from that album ... although it is said that the recordings are around. Does anyone know where to find this stuff? I’d love to hear it.

Very classy 🏆

Folks ... What size of bubblewrap roll to buy, assuming I want to pack a bass (in a gigbag) inside a standard bass box? (think of the bubblewrap as being rolled up into tightish balls). Would this do it? (50cm X 100m) ... https://www.amazon.co.uk/500mm-Quality-Bubble-Small-Bubbles/dp/B07BRCSVLM/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1541260938&sr=8-5&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=bubble+wrap+large+bubbles+100m&dpPl=1&dpID=31MYWEfpP8L&ref=plSrch Ta’

Sorry man. I sold it about a year ago

Westfield Thumb Bass Copy. Passive, Vol/Vol/Tone. I paid £60 for this, with a cheapo 20w practice amp, decent padded gig bag, lead, and strap thrown in. Good points: Decent tone of mid-pronounced character, Lovely Ash Body, nice dark rosewood on the fretboard, real abalone dot markers. Looks amazing. Bad points: Totally unbalanced with severe neck-dive, Horrible neck finish, terrible fretwork- uneven frets with rough edges, buzzing all over the place, didn’t stay in tune, needed frequent truss-rod adjustments, low output. Would I recommend? ... No