mario_buoninfante

One thing that seems a recurring theme here and elsewhere is the idea that prices will go up.

I don't wanna be a partypooper, but there's no way prices will always go up.

Hard to predict when this will stop, but it'll happen at some point even if momentarily.

Especially considering that the number of boutique bass brands increased exponentially in the last 15-20y.

What was a "unique" thing until 20-30y ago, is becoming the standard now.

Let's just consider how many people on BC, or even on this thread own a boutique bass.

And that to me means that prices, also for boutique basses, will go down.

Actually for mass produced one prices have already dropped (ie quality you get for money spent).

Just my opinion though.

4 hours ago, spencer.b said:

Looks like Jaco is playing double stops in the 1st and 3rd pics and maybe a slide or just muting all the strings in n the middle one , just watched a few of his vids and looks to me like he pretty much always has his thumb on the back of the neck using finger per fret in the middle of the neck or double bass style finger1,2,4 down at the nut end 

I think it would be less efficient to play those third chromatically up to the fifth then sixth up to octave lines that he did loads with his thumb over the top , I'm comfortable with calling thumb on the back of the neck orthodox good technique but also comfortable with acknowledging that anything can work and some players have idiosyncratic awkward looking technique yet have great technical facility 

Something more to be said about Jaco is that he had really big hands and double jointed thumbs.

All this to say that there might be occasions where he had an unusual fretting hand position.

But, I'd agree with @spencer.b, usually he had a really neat fretting hand.

well, I guess there's people who just don't give a damn about the fretting hand thumb position...
 

53 minutes ago, Cato said:

I've been a member here since, I think, 2016.

 

Pretty sure this is the first time I've ever seen someone challenge someone else to a 'Bass Off'.

 

This is surreal.

 

As you were.

I think we might be getting a little bit out of topic here.
We all have our ideas, believes, etc. and they are all valid (within reason ), but I feel like we should probably backtrack a bit and get back to talking about "where we position our fretting hand thumb" and less about "whatever I do with my thumb is better than what others do" (paraphrasing here).
I think the goal should be sharing experiences more than imposing ideas.
So, let's share and then people on the other side will do whatever they want with the info.

did you try bypassing the DI?
I would avoid having a DI between audio device and monitors.

the only thing about the monetary value of basses (and other products too), I do understand prices go up and something you paid 10 bucks 10y ago now is worth 100 bucks, but there is something be said about all that:

• value can go down as well as up, based on demand, trends, availability, market, parts cost, etc. - see analogue synthesiser in the 90s, they were throwing them at people for few hundred bucks, things that now go for 1-2-3k
• the fact that a bass is now worth 3x more than when it got bought doesn't mean anything until (and if) one sells it
• when saying that a bass is now worth 3x times more than 10y ago, are we accounting for inflation? 1000£ even only 3y ago is not the same as 1000£ now - 1y of gas now it costs more than a good Fender instrument
• there's a difference between buying basses to collect them and buying basses to use them (eg I need 1 P-bass and 1 J-bass because I'm a studio musician) - just to be clear, I don't think there's anything wrong with collecting basses
• when buying a bass is one getting any return of investment? is the person making money with it? I suppose it's "easier" for a pro musician (who earns money using their bass) to justify something more expensive, since it's the tool they use to work, not an "extra commodity"
• if prices go too high, the likelihood of selling the bass goes down

1 hour ago, Chaddy said:

I "think" you can power from non USB PC port and still hear your guitar from the input's, will just simply boost the connection in. Not sure if that will give any difference or if that make it clean ( Active monitoring on? ) 

Which is what I was referring to, but I didn't explain that in my original post. My bad. 

 

that wouldn't work. Scarlett 2i2 needs to enumerate via USB  (aka being connected to a computer/phone/tablet) in order to fully boot.
 

I love basses, I love talking basses, I love checking them out, all the types, but for me the bass is a tool I use to make music.

I'm not a collector and am not after exotic woods, particular designs and exclusive features.
That makes it easier for me to stay in the ~1k range.
I wouldn't be able to justify anything more expensive, considering my needs and the music I make.
Also, I wouldn't like to have a bass I can't take outside because I'm concerned it might get scratched.
This is all subjective though, I perfectly understand other people have totally different needs.

Welcome

I know this might be tricky, but if you could share a recording of this crackle (even made with a phone), it might reveal a bit more about the issue

I second what the other guys have been saying. If you can, try a different computer, and if you don't have one you could try with your phone/tablet too, the 2i2 is class-compliant.

Then, good if you can get better TRS cables too. Outputs on the device are balanced and I suspect (didn't check though) the input on your monitors is too.
Once you get the TRS cables, I'd recommend to try bypassing the DI box too.

It's not possible to power the 2i2 in any other way other than via USB (computer port). The device needs the enumeration part to properly boot.

Hi,

I'm selling a Novation Peak synthesiser. New, package never opened.
UK delivery included.

850£

Cheers,
Mario

SOLD

Here's the guy putting his thumb over the top.

Well, I'm listening to his music, and I don't feel I can actually say a single word about how he holds his bass! : )

I think this is the "old dispute" about the right fretting hand position.
Usually we get taught that the thumb should be positioned "parallel" to the other fingers and should rest between 1st and 2nd finger, it shouldn't go over the top, etc.
I do believe this is actually important. I think it's a good hand position and has a lot of advantages and it should be learned, preferably at the beginning of the journey.
That said, I don't think this is the hand position for all the situations. There's times when this is not the best solution. And it might well be that this doesn't work at all for some.
And, if you look at a lot of players, most have their own fretting position (and so, way of muting), and almost all of them don't stick with one while playing.
Even big big names like Marcus Miller, at times he positions his fretting hand in a way that most might consider not correct.
But, it's all so subjective. What works for one might not work for another.

An area I was planning to revisit/explore, but at the moment thumb on pickup or E string.

But, I realised that often I use my ring finger to mute the strings I'm not playing (generally E and A), and when so my thumb stays on the pickup even when playing higher strings.
I didn't develope this intentionally.
Recently I decided to start exploring new techniques, in particular using 3 fingers (standard + thumb) in an "arpeggio" fashion, if that makes sense.

Like with anything else, there are guidelines more that golden rules (apart from few exceptions I think). So I'd say that as long as you are comfortable with something and there are no clear side-effects (in this case no extra strings ringing, no awkward hand position, etc.), you're fine.
My 2 cents.

On 14/12/2022 at 21:28, patch006 said:

Look in the lefty for sale section , I have a G&L 2500 USA for sale, great bass 

Man, it does look amazing, and I'm sure it is as well.

But that said, it's not the right moment for me as I'm trying to sell one of my basses first and also, I'd (probably, not 100% sure yet) be looking for a 4 string.
But yours looks great, and is a good deal!
Thanks for sharing though.

Hi,

I was curious about the fretless offer for left-handed < ~1000£.

I'm not really considering the boutique/custom made options though, mainly because I doubt they'd fall below 1000 bucks.
Recently I saw the following basses:

• Sadowsky Metro Express and Metro Line - the latter more expensive actually
• G&L L2000 (second hand should be around £1000, I suppose)
• Vintage (brand) JJ
• Sire JJ
• ESP Custom Order (on Reverb)
• Warwick Rockbass
• Maruszczyk 4 Saiter E-bass

What else is there out there that I missed?
 

Cheers,
Mario

Cool.

Yeah, I'm familiar with these tools as I've been a Linux user for almost 10y now. I use it to make music professionally and use tools like Carla.
I'm aware of Elk too, defo a lot of potential there. Never used it myself though.

I did use Bela that, like Elk, offers a really low latency, but it's a bit of a different beast though.
Anyway, looking forward to seeing your multifx coming to life!

hey,

over the years I have been using this (https://blokas.io/pisound/) with their OS too, that out-of-the-box allows for remote controls too. worth checking it out, maybe even just for inspiration.

here's a nice demo on YouTube

2 hours ago, Reggaebass said:

A new one from Rich Brown playing some nice basslines 

 

That's a nice one. The good thing is that he (apart from being a good bassist in general) delivers the right feel and sound.
And that is not something to take for granted.

Often also very skilled bass players, when playing reggae/dub don't have the feel and body/sound required for reggae/dub.

On 06/12/2022 at 11:42, LukeFRC said:

We're not as good at building up our brands and them creating brand equity as our US cousins? 

Some of the US brands also has a very distinctive core tone, if you want a Sadowsky sound you probably need a Sadowsky. If you want the Ken Smith thing, buy a Ken smith etc...

With the exception of Status and Wal a lot of our builders make instruments less focused on their core tone thing. Gus I guess unmatched visually.
I think that makes it a harder sell to get brand equity... Every single Overwater I've played and heard has been an amazing professional level instrument - and with a tone that could sit anywhere in any genre. I guess that's why so many pro players use them... but that tone that could sit anywhere also means it doesn't stand out as much? 
(I dunno, that's my theory, maybe I'm just annoyed I didn't buy that Overwater @briansbrew was selling last week?  )

I suspect that this also due to the fact that these US brands are the ones used on a lot of music by a lot of artists we've all been listening too.
And the last century the US have dominated the media too, so we've all been exposed to their music, their brands, their artists, etc..
I'm not quite sure they have a more peculiar or unique sound, but it's the sound we hear on records though, and those are the instruments our favourite artists held.
Then of course, there are some example of UK brands that reached the same level of popularity and are immediately recognisable (look and sound-wise) like Wal, but I suppose we can all agree these are actual exceptions.

On 17/10/2022 at 10:14, fretmeister said:

Strewth!

 

On an Ibby Mezzo and on my P bass shorty I have Dunlop flats. Last time I changed the strings the sets were about £50 or so. Expensive, but they last many years so I was ok with that.

 

They are now £95!! (Or £115 for the 5 string set). I realise the exchange rate with the USA is in the toilet, but this is shocking.

 

Wish I had bought a few sets last time.  

 

On Reverb you can still find some at £69.99