Maverick

I was in a sort of death/thrash metal band a few years back, and the guitarist/mainman demanded I use a pick. It didn't last. I do use a pick on occasion if I think it fits but I don't take kindly to being told what to do. He also p*ssed the drummer off by essentially trying to tell him exactly what drum lines to play, so it wasn't just me.

Get your 10,000 hours done then let us know.

Go on then... 01. Silverfoxnik: Roscoe Beck V, BC Rich Eagle, Yamaha TRB5 with Norstrand p/ups and Auderre pre, Hughes & Kettner Bassbass 600 head & SWR Triad.. plus old Peavey Head and 1x15 for the Jamming Room (unless anyone has something else we can use that's better?) 02. EssentialTension: Fender Precision 62, Fender TF Fretless P, Lakland Decade, Mesa Walkabout 12. 03. Waynepunkdude : Arsenal shirt, Nick Cave underpants, Sunburst Musicman Sterling H and Ampeg SVT 2pro G&K Neo412 04. Clarky: Currently Ampeg Baby Bass, Acoustic Image/Euphonic Audio rig; By September, who knows (watch the FS forum) 05. Truckstop: MIM Fender Jazz V, pimped Kay 2B; Gem/Ampeg rig; some effects 06. Urb - either Sei Jazz or Singlecut - and maybe some pedals - possible Genz Shuttle 9 07. dc2009 - Warwick CS Corvette $$ 5, Epi TB Vs (Reverse and non-reverse), my Dean if anyone actually wants a go, Trace Head, Marshall cab (heavy and big), various pedals. 08.Shockwave - Pedulla MVP5 Mean Green machine. 09. Sibob - '71 Precision, '73 Jazz, MIA Jazz 5 if there's interest, Barefaced Compact, Orange Terror, Pedal-board if there's interest. 10. MacDaddy - Custom Shuker & Hamer Blitz or Iceni custom. 11. Essexbasscat Roadworn somethingorother + Gs112. Amp - not sure which one yet 12. Plux - Berg HT210 & HT115 Hartke LH500 Ibanez BTB 13. 51m0n - Berg ae410, MB, Focusrite and Roscoe 14.seashell - MIM Fender Precision + some sort of Marshall practice amp (I'll look it up tonight) 15.Barneyg42- Some secondhand tat bought over the years! 16.Happy Jack - Double bass of some description + Status Graphite Streamline 5 17.silddx - Hohner B2ADB Headless Boat Paddle / Home Built Chris Squire Electra Evolution 18.TomKent - Fodera NYC Empire 5, Fender Jazz 4, Vintage Stingray 5, Faker P 4 Fretless, Faker P Fretted, Krampera KVB800 Rig, some pedals too.. 19. obbm - Shuker PJ5, ACG headless 5, Aguilar SL112, Ashdown LB, GK Microstack. 20.ped - Vigier Passion bass, BC T shirts 21. Merton - Stasusey basses of some sort, Eden WT550/GK MB200 and Barefaced Vintage (who's at 19???) 22. Jean-Luc Pickguard - NS-Design CR5M, Ashbory 23. Stingray5 - Musicman, Tune, Trace Elliot, GT-6B, other stuff tba 24. Bassace - A double bass and an amp or two 25. Walman - Wal Pro 1/Custom, G&L L2500 fretted & fretless, MB LMT, BF Super 12T, assorted EBS pedals 26. SlackAlice - Squier P Bass Special........& hopefully another addition by then. Ashdown Electric Blue 180 12. 27. mcgraham - Wood & Tronics 5 string fretted & 5 string fretless 28. Pantherairsoft - Roscoe Century Signature 6 & Custom 3006 Fretless 29. Maverick - Maverick S4 Nemesis, Fulltone Bass Drive & EBS Microbass II. Possibly more, dependent on transport. 30.

[quote name='thepurpleblob' post='1297788' date='Jul 8 2011, 10:55 PM']I can think of one or two songs that would be hard to play without using open strings (technically I mean) but to say you HAVE to use open strings is a bit of stretch. It's a bit like saying you have to use a pick or you have to play a Fender [/quote] My point wasn't so much that you have to have open string[b]s[/b], rather you need that down tuned bottom note for certain songs. You can't play a low Eb on a bass tuned to E, for example, so how are you going to play the open string Eb notes in SCOM if you're tuned to E? Unless... [quote name='Doddy' post='1297790' date='Jul 8 2011, 10:56 PM']As long as you're playing the right notes,it doesn't matter what you are tuned to. If I'm playing a five string,like I do 90% of the time,should I still tune down a semitone to match the recording? There's no point,I've got the notes under my fingers anyway.[/quote] Yes, I was being a bit domain specific to 4 strings there, fair enough. Also, I am a big metal fan, which is quite heavily reliant on using the open low string as a pedal note much of the time, so maybe I'm a bit over-concerned with that.

[quote name='Johnston' post='1297552' date='Jul 8 2011, 07:21 PM']But the whole insisting on tunings is a load of crap. As long as you're playing the right notes at the right time who cares what the open tunings are.[/quote] If a song uses open strings, particularly the bottom string (SCOM does), you pretty much have to match the original tuning if you want to play it accurately in that key. There are ways around it I suppose, but won't sound so good.

[quote name='thunderbird13' post='1297384' date='Jul 8 2011, 04:24 PM']Ahh I see what your saying - I think I was wrong then [/quote] Okay, I think we're on the same page now. If you've learned it by ear, from the recorded version in E flat, on your bass tuned to E, then the song is in E flat and if you then downtune that bass a half step and keep the same fret positions it'll then be in D, which you probably didn't want. Whereas you do want to transpose songs in E down that half step to E flat, so learning them in E and keeping the same fret positions when you downtune is fine.

[quote name='thunderbird13' post='1297346' date='Jul 8 2011, 03:45 PM']Oi- your not allowed to say that - bass players have to stick together Seriously I know that Slash would have detuned for the recording but if I'm working it out and the intro is D# to G# say, then surely it doesnt matter what the tunings are it should just be a case of finding the notes and playing it where we feel most comfortable . My point is that the guitarist has changed the key by detuning and then shifting one fret up the fretboard thus going back to standard tuning and therefore making me play G and A but they dont think they are changing the key [/quote] Okay, sorry, I may have misunderstood your original post. When you said: [quote name='thunderbird13' post='1297028' date='Jul 8 2011, 12:11 PM']I didn’t think this would be a problem so I just detuned and played the songs in the “correct “ position but I was still half a step out on half of the songs.[/quote] That suggested to me that you'd learned all the songs with your bass tuned to E, then just down-tuned to E flat for the rehearsal and just kept using the same fret positions, so effectively transposing the key of the song down a half step, maybe I've misread that.

Sorry to tell you this mate, and forgive me if I'm wrong, but I think you may have been the one who was out. Sweet Child is in E flat tuning on record, so if you've learnt it by ear with your bass in standard tuning, and then down tuned and just played the same fret positions, you've gone a half step out. The guitarist was in fact playing it correctly I'd guess.

Just got back in, enjoyed that but not as much as Dan (dc2009) who won the Hartke combo. Congratulations you lucky motherfiddler Nice to meet you dood as well.

[quote name='EskimoBassist' post='1293970' date='Jul 5 2011, 09:22 PM']Afterall, he does play guitar in Murderdolls.[/quote] It's not really anything to brag about though really is it? Note: I actually liked the first Murderdolls album & lineup, they were fun, but most of the songs from that period were nicked from W13's old band Frankenstein Drag Queens. The new album written by W13 and Joey is utter rubbish.

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='1291726' date='Jul 4 2011, 02:32 AM']And there are people who've made a living from activities ranging from being able to consume aircraft parts to being able to insert beermats into unusual parts of the body and subsequently retrieve them. Good for them.[/quote] My underlying point was that musicians are often willing to listen to and pick up things from someone with great technique even if the music isn't to their tastes, and then go on to integrate that technique into their own music in a way they do like. Not just a case of "Ooh, look at the freak show".

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='1291590' date='Jul 3 2011, 10:47 PM']Taste is more important than technique, and judging by the majority of responses this man has very poor taste. [b]Nobody listens to music because the musician has great technique, if the music is rubbish.[/b][/quote] I wouldn't entirely agree with this, with respect to the general public you're definitely right, but I think musicians actually will listen to or go to watch someone like that. In fact, I'd say there's a fair number of acts out there made a living from this.

To take it one step further, is a 4 string with a 24 fret neck an ERB?

[quote name='Chris2112' post='1289344' date='Jul 1 2011, 05:53 PM']Very predictable, thankfully John Myung seems to have returned to the fold as you couldn't hear a bloody thing he was doing when he had those Yamahas![/quote] I read that he didn't actually record with the Yamahas, and usually used Stingray 5s during that period. EDIT: Wiki seems to agree in part, but says that the JM2 was used on ToT and Octavarium.

[quote name='gjones' post='1276813' date='Jun 21 2011, 11:05 AM']Interestingly she's tuned up properly to play the last song..........[/quote] Is she!?

[quote name='Cosmo Valdemar' post='1274185' date='Jun 18 2011, 10:09 PM']Examples - Opeth's bass player used Fender Marcus Miller basses for years, now plays Sandberg.[/quote] Completely unimportant point, but he's back to the Marcus Miller in their latest live vids. I'm kind of glad, thinking that Mendez's bass looked really cool is how I first discovered Marcus Miller

[quote name='Mylkinut' post='1272217' date='Jun 16 2011, 11:03 PM']In 2004 my band supported Die So Fluid in Southampton and, before the show, my guitarist and I walked in on Grog whilst she was getting changed backstage. Bass boobies![/quote] I notice a distinct lack of any attempt to claim that said 'walking in' was at all accidental!

Our ex-singer's wife would come along to every gig, have a very pleasant chat with us for about 10 minutes at the start of the night, then for the rest of the nigh would find a corner of the venue to sit, read a magazine/book, look miserable - all this during our set as well - and try to demand hubby's undivided attention where possible before whisking him off back home at the earliest opportunity.

Charlotte Cooper of The Subways. Went to see these on a bit of a whim last week as they were playing my hometown and I coincidentally happened to be back for a few days. They were brilliant! Doris Yeh of Chthonic (warning: black metal content. Do not click if you're of a sensitive disposition to such things ): Melissa Auf Der Maur: I would have said Paz for her work on the first A Perfect Circle album, but I only discovered a few weeks back that Billy Howerdel played all the bass on the album barring one track. 'Kin 'ell, I've been listening to that album for years and didn't know that! Other than that, I don't think I've heard anything she's played on.

[quote name='risingson' post='1268103' date='Jun 13 2011, 11:51 PM']I know what you mean now. If you want a bit more 'umph' to your sound then it might be worth investing in something like a Sansamp Bass Driver or an EBS Microbass. The Microbass is good because it offers you two channels to select from so you can set the two differently. The downside is that the latter is fairly expensive, but both are great for recording purposes too and have dedicated D.I outs. I don't think a compressor is what you're after here. Links to both pedals: [url="http://www.bass.se/2009/microbassII.htm"]http://www.bass.se/2009/microbassII.htm[/url] and [url="http://www.tech21nyc.com/products/sansamp/bassdriverdi.html"]http://www.tech21nyc.com/products/sansamp/bassdriverdi.html[/url][/quote] Hmm, I'm not sure I'd recommend a Microbass for adding 'oomph' to be honest. It's a great pedal, don't get me wrong, and it can do it if necessary, but I think it can be done better and more cheaply elsewhere. I can't really say anything for the Sansamp, no real experience with that.

In fairness, he is legitimately a bit odd.

[quote name='Moos3h' post='1261480' date='Jun 8 2011, 05:23 PM']I actually know this chap and he's a lovely guy that just enjoys fiddling with guitars as a project. Love it or hate it (think I know which way it's going....) there's no need to call him a knob, is there?[/quote] Calling ebay sellers that we don't know knobs is the entire raison d'etre for this section of the forums, so yes, yes there is!

[quote name='bottlebassman' post='1263000' date='Jun 9 2011, 05:58 PM']Lol! I really love DT, everything they have ever done. Especially with Jordan in the band. Gotta laugh at some of the above ^ comments about him. Everyone entitled to their opinion, but there is just no way you can criticise his talent, just no way! I have seen them live countless times and he is a truly amazing musician. [/quote] No one's questioned his technical ability on his instrument, the guy is clearly a virtuoso. But, as a member of the band I don't rate his contributions to their music post Six Degrees much.

[quote name='Chris2112' post='1262835' date='Jun 9 2011, 03:59 PM']On another note, yes, Portnoy's vocals were awful. I think was indicative of his bloated ego though, that he thought he was so important they should let him sing with his awful voice! But Ruddess has been the main downfall of the band for me. Yes, technically he is a wizard but his playing just sounds dreadful and his tone is terrible too. Sadly his ego is the biggest problem, as he constantly wants to compete with Petrucci to be the centre of attention. I'm not Petrucci fan, but he is far better to listen to than Ruddess and his dire long winded solos.[/quote] Spot on.

[quote name='Conan' post='1262771' date='Jun 9 2011, 03:00 PM']Listen to the first 20 seconds of this and tell me he doesn't! [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVJ2zbGmMAI&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVJ2zbGmMAI...feature=related[/url][/quote] I'm not saying that he [i]never[/i] talks bollocks, I'm just surprised anyone would pick him out as the worst bollock-talker of the band.