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Metal bass players thread


Iron1

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I looked around and didn't find a thread like this, so figured I'd start one. 

If you play bass in any form of metal, here's a place to chat about it.

Share pix of your bass, gear, etc.

Share info on what you play and what you play it through.

General chat related to bass players who lay the foundation for metal of any sort. 

 

Here's my bottom end toys: 

1994 Ibanez EXB445 & 2020 Yamaha TRBX164

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I run them through an Axe FXII XL+ using a mixture of Mesa and Soldano amps 

 

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I'm not sure if what we play classes as metal, but there are certainly some 'heavy as metal' parts to a good number of our songs, so on that basis I shall post within this thread! 

My main bass at the moment is an ACG 6 string 33" scale bass, we tuned half a step down for our songs and this bass is perfectly suited to that. Excellent array on tones to allow the bass to thunder along or shine at the top of the mix. 

Amp wise, it's a Mesa Boogie Strategy Eight:88 head with two Mesa Vintage Powerhouse cabs throwing out circa 450w of obscene valve power. 

Effects wise, I went from a massive board to a Line 6 Helix and haven't looked back. Does everything you need it to do and a fair bit more. 

All in, that set up is about as good as I have ever played and works brilliantly with our music, for the metally parts and the slightly lighter parts! 

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I've recently joined a metal band. I guess it's stoner metal but none of us are stoners! We've got a slightly unusual sound with baritone rhythm guitar and a 5 string bass both tuned to drop A#.

I'm playing a SUB Ray 5 through a Trace Elliot GP12SMX with a 4x10 and 1x15 and usually a nice bit of overdrive from a Earthquaker Plumes or some fuzz from an Orange Fur Coat

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We were not what you would call a metal band but when we first started we were very hard rock and I always tried to bring this influence into our later incarnations. I am, or at least the last time we played, using an Ampeg SVT2 Pro head going into a Barefaced big twin. My go to basses are the American standard P and J basses although I have been known to use varying mixes of my many other basses including my Sandberg California. I recently sold a Spector Euro which was perfect for metal as it had the most beautiful tone.

Edited by ubit
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I’m not a metal player, but this seems like a good place to ask a question.

On some other threads there is talk of “Dingwall and Darkglass” as a staple of some metal sub-genres. Could anyone explain to the uninitiated what gear, what sub genre and what sound is achieved?

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57 minutes ago, Nail Soup said:

I’m not a metal player, but this seems like a good place to ask a question.

On some other threads there is talk of “Dingwall and Darkglass” as a staple of some metal sub-genres. Could anyone explain to the uninitiated what gear, what sub genre and what sound is achieved?

Its very popular in modern progressive metal.  Some Dingwall basses come with a Darkglass preamp built in. Check out a bassist called Adam "Nolly" Getgood for a fairly typical example of the sound you'll get from that setup.

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I've never been a "metal player" but I have played in a couple of "metal" bands, essentially just filling in on a temporary basis for live gigs rather than as a proper member....one was a straight forward 80s style metal thing, the other and slightly more interesting was a kind of "industrial metal" outfit that used a lot of laptop backing and 'noises' as well as the usual Gtr, Bass, Drums..

Amusingly in the first one was told... "don't worry about what you play too much, no-one listens to the bass in metal "   and was warned off doing much else but root note "plod"

The other thing was a bit more dense and complex, with all the laptop synthy malarkey in the background....with this mob, myself and a guitarist ( who was also just a temp ) were given a CD each and left to get on with it, we had to suss out the whole set with no additional information ( it was quite down tuned too) we met up a couple of times to compare notes and agree on the awkward bits ! ...I think we had a couple of weeks to get it sorted, which we did to an acceptable level anyway !  In the event I was obliged to 'break in' another guitarist subsequently as the first guy only did a couple of the gigs and ducked out, hey ho

Gear used in my "metal experiences" was as follows ...Rickenbacker 4001... Hohner Jack headless  bass.... Hartke 3500 amp ( which I think are a total piece of $hit btw! ) and a couple of random 15" cabs, with metal speakers ( appropriately enough! ) can't remember exactly what they were now.

....There FWIW my brief foray into "Metal".. ;)

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I play nothing but metal. Mostly Maiden and Megadeth, which I use a pick for but lately I’ve been getting hung up on my wrist position and picking technique to the point of overthinking it and probably making it worse. Sometimes I have a crack at whatever metal track tab gets suggested on YT. Kreator tabs seem very hard to come by online, I find.

I warm up to 80’s (guilty pleasure) rock like Whitesnake, Def Leppard etc which I play using finger picking. Am currently trying to develop my finger picking to three fingers so I can switch with the Maiden tunes but it’s going to take some time and practice to build up the finger strength (all things I am often short on). With the pick I've got the attack but with the fingers I've got the speed so it's a work in progress ...

I bought the JS2 Spectra last summer but really, have no gear to speak of. I have a little practise amp and a second hand Boss tuning pedal. I do have a virtually soundproof room for practising in though.

The background photo on my profile of the Jackson is a picture I took myself at a David Ellefson gig in London a couple of years ago. I went out for a drink with him afterwards.

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@MHMSWC#03

Maiden songs can be played with 2 fingers the best tip I was given was to barely touch the strings, pick really lightly and crank the gain. That's how Steve Harris does it. 

Hallowed Be Thy Name was the one I learned. Its a real endurance test but I suffered with fatigue more with the pick.

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4 minutes ago, SteveXFR said:

@MHMSWC#03

Maiden songs can be played with 2 fingers the best tip I was given was to barely touch the strings, pick really lightly and crank the gain. That's how Steve Harris does it.

Absolutely 👍

I just want to learn the 3 fingers technique, I want to see if it makes life easier with the Maiden stuff.

I started with very heavy Alice Picks but I use the Petrucci Jazz Dunlops now and it's really helped, being more lightweight.

 

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For three-finger technique, practice AC/DC stuff, just regular eighths. It'll develop your right hand in no time. It's all about consistency note-to-note and breaking out of the habit of your index finger always being on the one. AC/DC is great to develop that as you don't need to stress too hard about what your left hand is doing and can focus on getting the right in shape.

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1 minute ago, Doctor J said:

For three-finger technique, practice AC/DC stuff, just regular eighths. It'll develop your right hand in no time. It's all about consistency note-to-note and breaking out of the habit of your index finger always being on the one. AC/DC is great to develop that as you don't need to stress too hard about what your left hand is doing and can focus on getting the right in shape.

That is a great tip, thank you. I play DC every day (no brainer). Note to note consistency is where the work is needed for sure.

I have been doing it with my third finger being on the one. (321 121 321) Is that what you meant?

 

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Unsure but I do feel we are about eight posts closer to defining the ages-old question, one that surely taxed the wisest minds in times of antiquity, namely “what basses are any good for metal” all we need now is to be about 80 million posts closer to an an actual answer

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14 minutes ago, MHMSWC#03 said:

That is a great tip, thank you. I play DC every day (no brainer). Note to note consistency is where the work is needed for sure.

I have been doing it with my third finger being on the one. (321 121 321) Is that what you meant?

 

I do it as 3123 2132 1321 3213 2132 1321 etc, every bar a different finger is on the one but the right hand pattern doesn't change. It takes a bit of practice but soon just becomes a muscle memory thing where your right hand takes care of itself. It's great for faster playing too, much less likely to fatigue as you spread the workload out. Getting your ring finger to sound the same as the other fingers is the challenge, though, you should never be able to distinguish by ear which finger is hitting the string.

Edited by Doctor J
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20 minutes ago, MHMSWC#03 said:

... third finger being on the one. (321 121 321) Is that what you meant? 

? ? ?

6 minutes ago, Doctor J said:

I do it as 3123 2132 1321 3213 2132 1321 etc, every bar a different finger is on the one but the right hand pattern doesn't change...

This ^^ makes more sense, and is very easy to do, once you've worked on it slowly. It becomes second-nature for any 'four on the floor' riffs. First on one string, then across the strings, eventually string skipping. Try it..? B|

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8 hours ago, Doctor J said:

I've been playing metal for a long time, among other things. Current favourites are this Blade B4 and Hamer Chaparral. The amp, since the early 2000's, has been an ABM with a compact 2x10 and 1x15.

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Nice set up, nice to see another Ashdown fan! I have the Ashdown ABM115 Compact 500 Watt, I was thinking to get an Ashdown 2x10, 4x10, or 8x10. My concern is foot print. How do you get on playing small venues? Ashdown have some used 8x10 for sale at the moment at a very good price.

Edited by Triumph_Rock
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Yes I play metal, I will post a photo later of my gear. I have Sterling Stingray Sub 4 HH, Rickenbacker 4003S5 ( on its way to me ), Ashdown Little Stubby 30w Head, Ashdown ABM 115 Compact 500w cab.

I play Saxon, Accept, Marilyn Manson, AC/DC, Judas Priest, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath. I find playing Iron Maiden hard due to the speed. My teacher selected Wicker Man for my first Iron Maiden track. Next song I am learning is the Trooper! See how that goes.

My biggest influences and favourite bands are Iron Maiden, Motorhead, Megadeth, Saxon. 

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