interpol52 Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1429601038' post='2752936'] I kind of laugh when I hear someone playing a standard bassline, tbh.. [/quote] Not this, ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicko Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 I dont care what they think in the shop. I'm the customer and its my money so if I wanna play a one note ACDC line its my choice. But the whole point of trying the thing out is to see how it fits with what you do, so I thik the last time I went with: Love Cats by the cure to see how it feels and low down Scar Tissue to see how it feels and sounds up the dusty end and how it sound with more than one note ringing Some chromaticwarm up exercise stuff to check theres no duff notes anywhere Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EliasMooseblaster Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 (edited) As a lifelong fan of The Who, my usual routine for demoing guitars is to swing them round my head by the strap before smashing them against whichever amplifier the shop assistant has provided, and in larger music shops I also like to blow up the nearest drumkit for good measure, before handing the splintered bits of wood back to them and saying, "yeah, it's quite nice, but I'm not sure I get on that well with the neck..." Edited April 22, 2015 by EliasMooseblaster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Funky Dunky Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 The reason I play the riffs I named previously is that I'm a relative novice but the lines I mentioned serve a purpose; they're kind of go-to riffs to help me become at one with the bass. Pow is a speedy riff with slapping and popping. Lets me hear how the bass responds to percussive playing. Rio lets me get a feel for the neck. If I can't nail it, it's safe to say the neck is a bit cumbersome. Too Young To Die has no particular purpose other than I find it fun to play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1429701278' post='2754042'] I don't get this electric basses aren't acoustic instruments, and electrics is a major factor in sound. Lots of basses sound not great acoustically, say for instance a small body headless, but will sound huge when plugged in. [/quote] Electric basses are acoustic instrument with a pickup on to amplify the strings. If a bass doesn't sound right acoustically there is nothing you can do with a simple pickup to fix it. Obviously the pickup changes the sound a lot, so if you like it acoustically you still want to plug it in to see what it is like, but if it fails the first test, the second test is a waste of time. And the more important 'do I like playing it' is probably more important than all the other tests. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subbeh Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1429601038' post='2752936'] I kind of laugh when I hear someone playing a standard bassline, tbh.. [/quote] Yeah me too. I'll often prance around them with a cape and a crown on, really let them know how far beneath me they are. Bleedin' plebs eh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1429701278' post='2754042'] I don't get this electric basses aren't acoustic instruments, and electrics is a major factor in sound. Lots of basses sound not great acoustically, say for instance a small body headless, but will sound huge when plugged in. If a bass sounds good acoustically but has crap electrics then its going to sound bad unless you replace the entire electrics and even then the pickup placement choice might be not well thought out so your stuffed, unless you fill and re route new cavities. You might as well buy a different bass. Electric bass in my view electrics first, acoustics are a factor but a secondary one. [/quote] I agree with that, in principle. However, the basses that I've owned that sounded best, they also felt "solid" when unplugged. Hard to describe, it's not exactly how resonant they were while unplugged, and it's not weight... but they just feel "well made" and solid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='Subbeh' timestamp='1429725712' post='2754350'] Yeah me too. I'll often prance around them with a cape and a crown on, really let them know how far beneath me they are. Bleedin' plebs eh? [/quote] Yep, all in line with top 3 bass riffs to try out if they are watching. I'd think we've all blazed away in a shop for hours trying to impress when we were young.....and it just doesn't. It is the same as that sound check riff...so if you are trying to impress, then make sure you can do so... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1429728900' post='2754416'] Yep, all in line with top 3 bass riffs to try out if they are watching. I'd think we've all blazed away in a shop for hours trying to impress when we were young.....and it just doesn't. It is the same as that sound check riff...so if you are trying to impress, then make sure you can do so... [/quote] Do you have any links you could provide to audio or video of you playing? Just so we know what we should be aiming for. Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='Subbeh' timestamp='1429725712' post='2754350'] Yeah me too. I'll often prance around them with a cape and a crown on, really let them know how far beneath me they are. Bleedin' plebs eh? [/quote] Brilliant! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='interpol52' timestamp='1429731490' post='2754450'] Do you have any links you could provide to audio or video of you playing? Just so we know what we should be aiming for. Cheers. [/quote] Not really, I don't come on here to promote myself or anything I do. To me, it's a resource/knowledge share that is given freely by members, I'm not selling anything Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1429732002' post='2754458'] Not really, I don't come on here to promote myself or anything I do. To me, it's a resource/knowledge share that is given freely by members, I'm not selling anything [/quote] So how is saying that you laugh at people playing bass in shops sharing knowledge or resources? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='interpol52' timestamp='1429732369' post='2754461'] So how is saying that you laugh at people playing bass in shops sharing knowledge or resources? [/quote] I said I kind of laugh ( wry smile ) if playing a standard riff in the shop context, and half of that is that we've all done it thinking it would impress, when it probably doesn't, especially if that riff is one you recognise when you were a kid learning to play these standards ...-and the other half is that the vast majority of musicians I know have an ego...as that is what gets them up on stage in the first place. Some may hide it better than others and some may not wish it to be a factor as they know where they are in their playing, but it is there in most, IME. Someone playing in a shop is nothing to do with my thoughts about what this place is for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1429733631' post='2754483'] I said I kind of laugh ( wry smile ) if playing a standard riff in the shop context, and half of that is that we've all done it thinking it would impress, when it probably doesn't, especially if that riff is one you recognise when you were a kid learning to play these standards ...-and the other half is that the vast majority of musicians I know have an ego...as that is what gets them up on stage in the first place. Some may hide it better than others and some may not wish it to be a factor as they know where they are in their playing, but it is there in most, IME. Someone playing in a shop is nothing to do with my thoughts about what this place is for. [/quote] Nice backtracking, but I'm not buying that reasoning one bit. If your thoughts about what this place is for are nothing to do with what people play in shops, then don't comment on a thread discussing precisely that. Stick to what you do think it is for. Apologies for derailing the thread everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 Not back tracking at all....I stand by what I wrote and I've just enlarged on it. My thoughts about what this place is for related to someone asking me for clips of my playing but you'll have to ask them why they'd want it. I just said I wasn't interested in promoting or selling anything here which is why I don't feel inclined to post clips Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seashell Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 Another one for scales here. And also a little exercise using 3rds, 4ths and 5ths that my bass teacher showed me. Not that I've tried out a bass in a shop recently. But I tend to do the scales thing when other bass players are kind enough to offer me a go on theirs (at bass bashes and events, for example). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 I tend to play a mix of things. The first is usually a couple of songs I have played for years, that way I feel I can compare to how they sounded on other basses. These are generally some Husker Du songs and a couple of Interpol tunes. I also play a bass arrangement of the Portishead song Roads to sound out the dusty end and the sustain. Then I will just improvise for a while and try to check for dead spots or anything else that might be of concern. I like listening to ther people play in music shops too. Especially if they are trying out gear that I would never have thought to give a go. I had my head turned to Orange gear that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ras52 Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 I had my head turned to orange when I fell asleep in a tanning machine... #coat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 [quote name='ras52' timestamp='1429736885' post='2754523'] I had my head turned to orange when I fell asleep in a tanning machine... #coat [/quote] Nice one! That made me laugh out loud! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 I'd certainly not want to play anything to impress anyone in the shop but 'Celebrate' by The Fields of the Nephilim (it's a picky chordal bassline) and 'Calm Down, Come Down' by Throwing Muses would be two as I know what they sound and feel like on my own basses,and then maybe something I'd learned recently as it would be fresh in my mind. Other than that, some scales and chromatic runs to get a feel for how the bass plays Mind you, I'd be in there on a wet Tuesday afternoon to minimise the number of spectators ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 +1 just for celebrate. I would play that just to cheer up everyone in the shop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acidbass Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 For me - it depends on the bass Recently I was in the market for a new Precision, so tried out a few Jamerson lines i.e. Bernadette, Darling Dear, For Once In My Life If I were buying a Fender Marcus signature I wouldn't try the above lines tho! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deep Thought Posted April 23, 2015 Share Posted April 23, 2015 The opening bars of Five Minutes or Princess of the streets by the Stranglers, or probably Are you gonna be my girl? by Jet. Or Rhythm Stick if I was feeling confident. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted April 23, 2015 Share Posted April 23, 2015 [quote name='molan' timestamp='1429691448' post='2753896'] As someone who works part time in a bass shop I get to hear a lot of people trying things out. There's no real uniformity at all. Some people play recognisable stuff, some noodle around and some play very short sections all over the board listening for uniformity of tone and clarity etc. Very few people slap these days and hardly anyone plays with a pick. For a while we heard There's Nothing Like This by Omar a lot but that seems to have subsided now. It's interesting to watch serious pro players. They often have warm up riffs that they use before going on stage and they'll play these when trying a new bass. We have one regular pro customer who always plays acoustically first and then maybe just a few notes down on first three frets, across all 4/5 strings to see how they compare and then that's it. There's certainly no judgement of whether anyone is a 'good' or 'bad' player. The four of us in the shop are all of various standards of technical ability but never think of ourselves as being 'better' than someone. As has often been said here on BC, there's no real definition of what makes a good player. [/quote] When I came down to get my Demeter I played the double bass part from "The Dambusters March" For some reason it was the first thing that popped into my head. That Sadowsky was very easy to play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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