Busking

[lobematt]

Does anybody round here go busking on bass? If you do I've got a few q's...

What amp do you use and how do you power it? I've heard rumours of a self powering Roland amp but not been able to find any info on one.

And also what type of stuff do you play?

And most importantly, do you make much moolar from it??

Thanks!

[Pete Academy]

The amp would probably be a Roland Bass Microcube RX.

[tommorichards]

im not sure how well bass would do, unless you got a loop pedal and did a whole band thing

[Benplaysbass]

Don't know about not being able to play bass on your own on the street, this guy does alright.

[url="http://youtu.be/0RpOfc9ERm8"]http://youtu.be/0RpOfc9ERm8[/url]

[url="http://youtu.be/4JHqeePBq3I"]http://youtu.be/4JHqeePBq3I[/url]

Edited August 23, 2011 by Benplaysbass

[lobematt]

An this chap [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tOeXk8CU9s"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tOeXk8CU9s[/url]

Just after a bit of insight from anyone round here who's had a crack at it

[thisnameistaken]

I take my double bass when I go busking and I don't amplify it I just play it bloody loud. I go out with one of two guitarists and we both sing, and we find we get a decent mix without amplification so no point lugging mics and nonsense around with us.

With one of the guitarists I do a mix of rockabilly stuff and gypsy-style jazz stuff. With the other we mostly do old rocksteady and ska covers and some of our own tunes thrown in.

As for amps, if you don't want to get into using a generator or a leisure battery setup or nonsense like that, there are a few little battery-powered amps you can get. The Roland Bass Micro Cube as already mentioned, they also do a 2-channel 'Street Cube', Crate do a couple of battery-powered wedges about 15-30w, there are also compact battery-powered PA systems (Gear4Music do a decently-priced own-branded one).

There are a lot of options these days, depending on how much gear you want to carry.

Edited August 23, 2011 by thisnameistaken

[lobematt]

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='1348970' date='Aug 23 2011, 01:22 PM']There are a lot of options these days, depending on how much gear you want to carry.[/quote]

Cheers mate I'll check them out , an in answer to your last question the answer is the obvious one... as little as possible

[TheRev]

My Scrumpy & Western band are thinking of buying a couple of Roland street cubes for busking. We've busked acoustically before when we've got gigs on consecutive nights in the same area - we go out in the day between gigs and see waht we can get. IF it's a reasonably busy day (and we don't get moved on) we can get up to £150

[thisnameistaken]

Yeah we first considered busking as a way to promote our full electric band gigs - just a couple of us go out during the day with a board with details of the gig on it, and play some tunes in the afternoon before soundcheck, maybe do some more afterwards while waiting to go on. Passes the time and gets more punters in.

[Commando Jack]

[quote name='lobematt' post='1348968' date='Aug 23 2011, 01:21 PM']An this chap [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tOeXk8CU9s"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tOeXk8CU9s[/url][/quote]

That was gorgeous.

[Ben Jamin]

My nephew's got the Roland Microcube - it's got some groovy effects and an in-built tuner and all that jazz, but I find the sound to be a bit too trebly through the tiny speaker. Phil Jones does some battery powered bass amps, one of the Cub models I think, and they're pretty good!



I don't think this is the battery-powered one but you get the idea

Edit: it's the Briefcase model, I believe!

Here's an exciting review:

Edited August 23, 2011 by Ben Jamin

[thisnameistaken]

I think the Phil Jones gear is just too expensive to take out in the street. That's just my opinion though.

IME there's little point in going for hi-fi in a town centre, and an expensive boutique amp would be a massive waste of money.

[janmaat]

+1 for the double bass

or the bucketbass [url="http://bucketbass.com/"]http://bucketbass.com/[/url]

and yes, I have done it a lot, and yes there is a bucket bass and a double bass for grabs sine i moved away ... both cheap

[thisnameistaken]

I like the bucket bass but I couldn't play any of the stuff I play on it, I would need at least 2 strings, preferably three. I also sing so I prefer to not have to change position too much so I don't have to think too much about intonation.

I do like the concept though, and I agree that the cheaper you can do it the better. Also people are always impressed if you can get a tune out of something as simple as that. It's guaranteed to make money.

[janmaat]

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='1349795' date='Aug 24 2011, 01:10 AM']I like the bucket bass but I couldn't play any of the stuff I play on it, I would need at least 2 strings, preferably three. I also sing so I prefer to not have to change position too much so I don't have to think too much about intonation.

I do like the concept though, and I agree that the cheaper you can do it the better. Also people are always impressed if you can get a tune out of something as simple as that. It's guaranteed to make money. [/quote]


I guess the "coolest" and a sure money maker in the UK, because not seen before, would be a bass balalaika.

[Beer of the Bass]

Double bass looks good, and that's sometimes the most important thing in busking. You need something that makes people stop and have a look, and only then will they check out the actual music. On that basis, a bass balaika would work well too! I'm busking with a singer/guitarist, portable drum kit and occasional fiddle in Edinburgh through the festival. We amplify the singer a little and everything else goes unamped. The best way to make money out of it seems to be to have CDs available at £5 a time. They make a big difference to how much we can bring in, and it's a good way to get our stuff out there.

[janmaat]

Location matter a lot too. I was busking in London which is a pain in the ass, really. Many places, beggars come and tell you to f*** off. Others, council employees push you away on weary by-law grounds. Then, where busking is allowed, selling CD's is not. One more reason to consider bringing portable stuff: you need to be able to move after every 30 minutes or so. Some places allow you to play only say 30 minutes in one location to start with. Anyway, it is far more profitable to play the few best songs many times in different locations than to be in one place, piss off the nearby shop keepers, and play the wrong songs. That's why the hit-and-run used to be the tube (like here, in Berlin, people make A LOT of dosh playing one song between two stops and then move car). Some places, you must negotiate with the other musicians. In Covent Garden, you must apply in the morning. On the London tube, you must buy a permit. The best place in London is that foot bridge between London Bridge (the actual bridge over the river) leading to the bus station, over druid street - great acoustics, lots of people. I also found that busking outside museums work really well, as you have a nice perceptive audience - avoid busy places like shopping malls. I once had great success playing on a car park - Golden Square in Aberdeen. Loads of pensioneers came there on the way back from the opera or dinner, and they threw 2 pound coins at us - much better turnout than busy streets full of idiots.

[biro]

some three years ago I played at a pretty famous busking festival in Ferrara, Italy. All the buskers had to comply to some strict regulations, most importantly 1) no more than 20 W; 2) bring your own power supply.

When I first read the above-quoted rules, I had already been selected to play there, and I kind of freaked out as I was absolutely sure that 20 W would have never been enough to spread the love. I eventually decided to buy a roland microcube bass thinking that I could always return it. As it turned out, this little 10 W box went on to perform beautifully, and caused no problem at all. I played solo for about 3.5 hours every day, and I really have to say that its behaviour impressed me greatly.

here's a link to a short video of me performing at that festival. the video/audio quality is really bad because it was recorded with a compact digital camera. The sound is slightly distorted, but no distortion at all was provided by the microcube (although its volume knob was cranked almost all the way up!).

[url="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ANYVFAFifDvPOu93eC4g-LHkMCPjOXcOyLdxq70kUq4?feat=directlink"]https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ANYVF...feat=directlink[/url]

My needs have evolved since, and I eventually sold the roland microcube, but I maintain that it's one hell of an amplifier. If you are going to play along an acoustic guitarist or to perform solo and electricity is not supplied, then the roland microcube is probably one of the best choices available.

[lobematt]

[quote name='biro' post='1350152' date='Aug 24 2011, 12:34 PM']some three years ago I played at a pretty famous busking festival in Ferrara, Italy. All the buskers had to comply to some strict regulations, most importantly 1) no more than 20 W; 2) bring your own power supply.

When I first read the above-quoted rules, I had already been selected to play there, and I kind of freaked out as I was absolutely sure that 20 W would have never been enough to spread the love. I eventually decided to buy a roland microcube bass thinking that I could always return it. As it turned out, this little 10 W box went on to perform beautifully, and caused no problem at all. I played solo for about 3.5 hours every day, and I really have to say that its behaviour impressed me greatly.

here's a link to a short video of me performing at that festival. the video/audio quality is really bad because it was recorded with a compact digital camera. The sound is slightly distorted, but no distortion at all was provided by the microcube (although its volume knob was cranked almost all the way up!).

[url="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ANYVFAFifDvPOu93eC4g-LHkMCPjOXcOyLdxq70kUq4?feat=directlink"]https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ANYVF...feat=directlink[/url]

My needs have evolved since, and I eventually sold the roland microcube, but I maintain that it's one hell of an amplifier. If you are going to play along an acoustic guitarist or to perform solo and electricity is not supplied, then the roland microcube is probably one of the best choices available.[/quote]

Thanks man, it's small size is quite off putting, good to hear it can handle the bass!