Finbar

I really need to get some speakers for my PC, I need more soundclips of things ¬_¬ I don't want a Hysteria-ish sound btw necessarily I think whenever anyone mentions Muse distortion, that springs to mind automatically. The distortion tone on the early Muse stuff was always much more of a dirty gritty sound than a synthy one.

I think that's the one I'd be looking at - about £230 if I remember? Something like that. I want to geta kind of gritty overdrive - a bit like Chris Wolstenholme's non full-on distortion from the Showbiz/OOS days, as well as a high gain 'guitary' kind of distortion. I think the dual channel of the DHA might work well for this... When I have the cash, I might experiment. Does this sound better/different with active/passive basses though? Does it generate a lot of noise?

I've actually been looking at some of the DHA pedals today. Not sure if one of them will do both the Overdrive and Distortion sounds I'm looking for, thinking about it. Any experience with these? Might still want to try and blend this with my clean tone though.

He used to use 2 Big Muffs I think? Along with a host of other distortions and synths. You also have to take into account his bass, his amp and all his settings. He also bi-amps, keeping a clean channel as well as distortion. It's not so simple to just get Chris' tone by using just a Big Muff. And to be honest, I wouldn't want to copy it, but something in that kind of ball park would be fantastic, obviously

Thanks guys, I'll check some of these out I don't think it's a case of being fussy though. Why is it fussy to want to get the tone you're looking for? I used to own a Russian Big Muff though and hated it. I'll have a look into some other suggestions though ^_^ The main problem with trying things out is being able to try them through my rig without first buying them, as most shops don't stock many bass distortion pedals, and my friends round these parts don't have a wide variety of distortions either.

Okay, I posted something before about a lot of different pedals, and got no response, so maybe I was being too broad. So here's something more specific. I'm looking for 2 distortion sounds, but have no idea how to get them. Hoping one or two of you could suggest a couple of options Basically, I play a 7 string bass (usually - but not always - with a pick) through a Marshall 400W valve head. Because of the differences between the sound of playing 'rhythm' parts on the E/A strings, and more 'lead' parts or chords on the on G, C and F strings, I think I really need to be looking at two different sounds. So for a lead sound, would a guitar pedal be a better option for me, and if so - any suggestions? I want something fairly high gain I think, with pretty decent sustain, but not too harsh sounding. For a rhythm sound, I was thinking of splitting my signal before the overdrive pedal, and combining it again after it, so I get my clean tone coming through as well as the distortion, keeping some clarity and low end in it all. Is this a sound idea? Also, any pedal suggestions? I think Chris Wolstenholme has the perfect distortion sound, so anything close to this would be a bonus. I've seen his rig/pedalboard so I know I've no hope of getting that with one amp and a couple of pedals, but any ideas? Thanks in advance guys

Ooft, where to start with this... I am eventually going to overhaul my entire effects rig, when I have the money for it. I know it'll be expensive, from the outset. But just so I know, I want to work out what I really want to buy, so I know how much it'll cost. Although I'll probably go second hand for quite a bit of it I guess. Basically, right now I'm running: Conklin GTBD-7 (Active) -> Boss GT6-B -> Marshall VBA400 head and Marshall VBC412 cab I find that the GT6 colours my tone too much for my liking - I really want to keep the natural tone from that amp as much as possible. It's also a pain to use, and not as versatile as separate pedals. I'm going to be buying a new 7 string, but it'll be passive. So any choices I make on pedals will be based on the fact I'll be using a passive instrument. I have a vague list of effects I want on my pedalboard to replace the GT6, and basically I'm just looking for input on what would work/what wouldn't work with regards to specific pedals and things like that. I know some of you are proper pedal buffs, so it seems the logical place to ask I think I want true bypass wherever possible, as I want to keep the natural tone of the Marshall as much as possible. So here's the list (in no particular order), with a few comments on a couple of things if I've already given it limited thought: [b]Tuner [/b] - I was thinking of a Boss TU-2, but probably a Korg DT10? [b]Compressor[/b] - Maybe a MXR DynaComp? I'm not really sure if I want a compressor or not yet though. [b]Noise Suppressor[/b] - The only one that springs to mind really is the Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor. [b]Volume Pedal[/b] - It looks like the best option may be a Morley Pro Series/Morley Little Alligator, or the Ernie Ball Junior one. Input appreciated on this The EB one has a smaller pedalboard footprint though, which is a plus. [b]Chorus[/b] - No idea on this yet. I leave chorus on all the time though. [b]Delay[/b] - Again, no thoughts yet, but a tap tempo function would be useful. [b]Looper[/b] - I'm almost entirely set on the Line 6 DL4 pedal for this, as I'm attracted to the 'play once' feature, and the user friendliness of it. Any other options? The competition seems to be the Boss RC-20. [b]Reverb[/b] - This is by no means one of the most important ones. I'm not sure if I want it yet, but again - no thoughts so far. [b]Distortion[/b] - Okay, I haven't given too much time to the distortions yet, but they'll be important to the sound. I want one as a lead sound, so something which is I guess pretty high gain and 'guitar'ish. This is mostly used for playing chords on my 7 string, and the odd lead melody with plenty sustain. Would a guitar pedal actually be better for this? [b]Overdrive[/b] - This is the second half of the distortion problem. I want something for much lower stuff, on the E/A strings mostly. Something grittier than the lead sound, with a bit of bite, but keeping the definition. I was thinking that something with a blend feature would be best for this? Correct me if I'm wrong. I've been underwhelmed with the distortions on my GT6 though so far, and my Big Muff is absolutely too fuzzy and messy for this - I want something tight and focussed. [b]Whammy[/b] - Two contenders as far as I can tell - the old faithful Digitech whammy, or the Boss PS5, with an external expression pedal. The Boss would take up less space, and be every bit as versatile though, as far as I can tell. [b]EQ Pedal[/b] - I'll basically be using this as a volume boost for when I'm doing any tapping on my high strings, as it tends to get lost in the mix otherwise. Basically I want to set it up so that when it's activated, the lower notes are the same volume, but the higher frequencies get a boost. Does this sound like a viable plan? I'm thinking the Boss GEB-7 is the best plan, as the guitar one would cope with the higher frequencies well, but wouldn't cope too well with my attempts to keep the bass frequencies at the same volume as when it isn't on. Other than that, I'll be changing my Wireless receiver to one of those in the kind of stompbox design. For the pedalboard, I think a Diago Showman would work quite nicely, and a Visual Sound 1Spot should power it all with no problems. Thoughts anyone? Sorry about the size of all this :/ Cheers, Chris

Had a reply from Jon today, he says he's pretty much back on track after the floodwaters now, just a week or so delay really. Says he's found a Stingray 5 and drawn round it now, so he has an idea of the shape. Should get some line drawings of the initial outline soon. How exciting ^_^ Unfortunately, it then becomes the point where I have to part with cash ¬_¬ I'm leaning towards side LEDs strongly now. Still not sure on blocks/unmarked though :/

Ha, I wear one of those from Gamestation most every day. Well, a PacMan one anyway. I'll see how it goes. colonopenbracket are poo... My guitarist loves them :/ Doubt I'll ever get the opportunity to see them live in order to buy a sweatband, I wouldn't pay to get in :|

I think I understand the whole gaffer tape business douggy, but are you saying put the sweatband around the transmitter and the strap together, a bit like taping it all on, but without the sticky stuff? Is the sweatband really tight enough/a good enough hold for that? If that is, I'll give it a go! Magic I don't want to gaffer tape up my nice strap for no reason though, y'see.

Bass Head and Cab (or Roland combo if it's a smaller gig) Kettle lead Speaker cable 2 patch leads 2 20ft leads Strap Chromatic Tuner Wireless unit and PSU Boss GT6-B and PSU I don't take spare basses/strings/tools, as daft as that may be. I'm always meaning to take electrical tape to stick down my trailing wires, but always forget :/ Just wondering what douggy meant when he said 'spare sweatband for wireless unit'? Is this some groovy trick involving wireless units I've never heard of?

Hah, if I ever scrape the funds together for a second custom (god, Jon hasn't even started this one and I'm already on about a second? o_O), frontal LEDs may be an option. Time will tell

Well I'm getting a custom Delano MM pickup on it. No idea how long it'll take, but Jon says they're more reliable than EMG etc, so I can hope

Currently my favourite bands are looking a little something like: The Fall of Troy - Tim Ward Element of Surprise - Jean Baudin Botch - Brian Cook

Well actually, I think Limp Bizkit's bass player, Sam Rivers, always looks good with his front LEDs, but he's the only really good example I can think of They'd get lost on a 7 string neck though I think. Only question is what colour? Think I might drop Jon an email, see how things are going

Well before I had any idea how long it would take, I was guessing on something like 5 months or so? So anything around that wouldn't bug me too much. Spreading payments out over more time also eases my wallet pains I would like to see him make some kind of start though But as he's busy, and I haven't given him a penny yet, I'm not too concerned. He's just supposed to be sourcing out a bass to draw round at the moment. From what I can tell, it seems to be waiting for third parties that slows the build time down, like pickup manufacturers. LEDs are probably going on the list of things to slap on the bass, but probably side ones. Don't want to be TOO flashy

20 minutes drive means nothing to me - I do everything on foot/bus Jon said to me typical turnaround is about 10/12 weeks once he's started a bass, but I reckon mine'll probably be a fair bit longer once he starts it. I can cope though You can't miss what you've never had

Boo! I'd really rather he stayed where he is, it's about an hour's walk from my house! I don't want to be making visits out to Derbyshire I'm sure I'll cope though. Just.

I've not really been in correspondence with Jon since the flooding, but I did ask if his workshop was alright - he's not lucky enough to be on a hill away from the water like what I am. S'alright for me in that he hasn't started work on building my bass yet, though it may well knock the build time back a bit. I'll cope though. And I'm sure all his customers won't mind a week or two's delay considering the circumstances! I really hope he gets it all back on track as quickly as possible.

Well that's the general idea of them, yes. But I do that kind of chordal work with a pick in my band at the moment - I kind of double as second guitar - and it doesn't affect the finish at all. I'm sure for some people it's a practical thing (though I never see anyone replace a scratched scratchplate Why does it matter if you're not scratching the finish if you never see that bit because of the scratchplate?), but it's purely a cosmetic thing for me. Besides, I'd rather my basses have a few dings and scratches - they're working instruments - I use them, and I'm proud to show it

Yeah, I'm actually thinking about reconsidering the scale length before it's too late - I'm going to have a razz on my Conklin and my 35" Ibanez to see what I really want I think. Jon also commented on the odd neck dimensions of that Conklin, which I hadn't really noticed, but I am very used to it. Yeah, it's a double cutaway. I'm none too fond of single cuts for the most part, they look really unbalanced to me. But that's the way it seems from my observations - people either love or hate them and there's very little indifference. The burr was entirely inspired by Jean Baudin's Hideous Claw. And a piece of wood effect laminate in my local Costa Coffee As for scratchplates - yes the clue's in the name, but I've never played a bass without a scratchplate that seemed like it really needed one for that purpose. So for me, it's all about the looks of it Again, personal opinion on that I think.