Waldo

I like the Jazz body, they look great and they sit very nicely and comfortably on you. Of course someone will come along and say 'I hate jazzes, they look sh*t and are really uncomfortable' but hey, each to their own

The Alien does look good and quite unique but as already pointed out you'll probably be able to get something better spec-wise for your money. To be honest I've never played an acoustic that I've felt comfortable on, the action seems to be really high on them and they just feel 'stiff' to me. and also this: [quote]That and the fact I've never heard one that was loud enough to compete with an acoustic guitar without amplification[/quote] +1 for thumbrests too, no way I could manage without.

[quote name='The Burpster' post='289317' date='Sep 22 2008, 05:10 PM']So you dont find it irritating when someone that doesnt own, hasnt owned or doesnt even desire to own a particular object slags it off without any foundaton? Sorry but I do..... If you'd owned 5 and they'd all been dud, then maybe your [i]OPINION[/i] would have some credibilty. I would be gobsmacked if you got any other response from any other of the owenrs of less than 'run of the mill' basses on here if you'd put that post about say; a Vigier or Shuker, Ritter, Modulus,Steinberger, Status ......etc.... Either point out that it is merely your opinion based on not owning any, or prferably keep it yourself until you have some foundation on which to base it, please.[/quote] Right so I'm 'slagging it off without any foundation' and I also must own 5 of something in order to 'maybe' have some credebility? (MAYBE? ) You also must own/have owned/have the desire to own something in order to have an opinion about it? Think about what you're saying there. I've played several PRS guitars thoroughly and I came to the personal conclusion that they were very pretty and well put together but didn't have the sound to match it, certinaly not when you factor in their massive prices. What I said was [u]'if they're anything like the guitars[/u]... I can't even beleive I'm justifying what I've said to you, I've honestly never seen someone get so riled and defensive over a peice of gear that they own. It really is fascinating

[quote name='The Burpster' post='287560' date='Sep 19 2008, 06:30 PM']And thats based on owning how many? I own 2 PRS EBIVs they are quite simply superb. The earlier fixed neck models (like Dodges above) whilst having Mojo are not as clever or versatile as the newer active EB IV (2000-2004), however in the right hands sound Waaaay funky.... I have some very nice basses and sadly none of them compare soundwise or buildwise to the PRSs..... I dont have shedloads of years playing basses but my guitarist and best mate who has been around the business for 25yrs owns + plays a PRS Custom 22's, and he has never seen or played a bass as good as my EB IVs. (including my CS Fender!) Passive it sounds like a J bass, Active it can do pretty much whatever you want and it does not hum, burp, fart, snap, crackle or pop. It sounds great with rounds, flats (my preferance) and even plastic flats.... Waldo, I promise you it will be good. I'll tell you what, if it is a mint EB IV from the above run, you buy it and dont like it I will have off you for what you paid for it how about that! Heres my 2.....[/quote] You'd think i'd just insulted your own child or something. Chill out.

[quote name='deadraven' post='287318' date='Sep 19 2008, 02:24 PM']Totally agree with yee there dude! I think timing and rhythm dont really count as theory. For me, most people have either got it or havent, you cant really 'teach' timing and rhythm in my experiences anyway! Amount of drummers I've come across that have no timing at all and never will..... [/quote] And conversely I've been in a band with a drummer who has had formal training for years, I think he's grade six or seven and whilst he could play pretty much any drum pattern you could ask him to with a particular time signature but his playing was extremely rigid, totally devoid of of any feel and completely unable to think outside of the box. He could only play the things that he's been formally taught.

[quote name='walbassist' post='287295' date='Sep 19 2008, 02:03 PM']Hello all I've been offered a PRS from the most recent production run for a really good price, and I'm just curious to know what people who have played one think of them. I assume fit and finish is top notch, but what about sound and playability? Cheers Gareth[/quote] If they're anything like the guitars they'll look nice but not be anything other than overpriced.

I feel as though I should clarify myself some more: All my learning has come from playing with other people and by playing other peoples songs. I picked up the bass becuase of the chili peppers, I then went on to learn practically all of their songs. As a result I knew my way around the fretboard quite well (and had an arsenal of funk licks!) and my playing then progressed even more after joining a band. For me, the enjoyment came from my own self exploration of the instrument and I feel that had I just taught myself every scale under the sun, I'd have skipped out a major part of that 'exploration'. I almost see it as having all the answers and for me the enjoyment comes from figuring stuff out for myself, rather than having a set of absolutes, 'you should play this particular note in this particular key'. As I said before, I certinaly don't know any scales that you can put a name to but I do know which frets sound good in a particular context and this has come simply by self exploration. The one peice of classical theory that I know i'll have been using even without realising would be the idea of rythm and timing but to be honest, that would probably have been the first thing I'd have picked up anyway.

[quote name='dlloyd' post='287159' date='Sep 19 2008, 11:11 AM']No such insinuation intended. The point is that you are in all probability using theory without realising it (and yes, you did say you don't [i]consciously[/i] use it) Unless you have some understanding of what differentiates between good and bad music (and [i]that[/i] is what theory is) then all you can hope to do is make random noises at random moments. Your understanding the fancy Italian terms. may be on your own terms, with your own choice of discription... but if you are approaching the music by anticipating what will sound good based on prior experience, you are utilising theory... even if you don't know Back in the dim distant past, I got a guitar for Christmas. I taught myself first by playing along with blues records without having the faintest clue what I was doing, just using my ears, and figured out that certain notes worked better than others. When somebody eventually showed me the minor pentatonic and blues scales, I realised I already knew them and was applying them. I just called them something else. If somebody had asked me what I was doing, I would have been able to communicate it verbally, it just would have taken longer than saying 'G minor pentatonic'.[/quote] Ok yes I obviously do use 'theory', it's just my own theory then and not the fancy italian type I've gathered that the orignal poster is wanting to know whether he should start learning the fancy italian type though, learning scales e.t.c. I certinaly don't know any scales that you can put a name to but I certianly know which frets sound good in a particular context. This is just through the process of jamming with people though and not though any learning of classical theory.

I don't have any issue with your posts at all, I feel that there are several others though who arn't as well reasoned and accepting to other peoples points of view though. When I say 'better person' I'm making the distinction between 'better person' and 'better player'. A previous post about 'critical sense' seems to alude to the learning of theory making you a better person and not just a better musician - This is something which I do disagree with, going a little bit too far.

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='287073' date='Sep 19 2008, 09:44 AM']If I was CC I'd be getting people to sign undertakings that the goods are not stolen and be taking sufficient information from them that they can be quickly located by the police if the goods do turn out to be stolen.[/quote] Yes that would certainly be the most logical thing to do wouldn't it? I think the fact of the matter is, they'd rather not know if the goods are stolen or not [quote]Hmmm, I should check my cash converters more often![/quote] Don't get your hopes up!

Wow, I post my personal experience, not even an argument, and I get people jumping down my throat insinuating that i'm some sort of arrogant person who doesn't 'do' theory and have drawn comparisons with a monkey and a typewriter. That's nice. [quote]If someone says, "This tune is in G..." does he say, "Sorry, I don't do theory... play it and I'll wiggle my fingers randomly and there's a chance something might sound okay..."[/quote] No, the answer would 'I don't actually know what that is but we can jam it out though'. What I'm saying is that we didn't all get together and say 'Ok the next song we do will be in the key of G, with the time signature of 4/8 with these notes and have a harmonic cadence here e.t.c'. Is it actually that hard to people to accept that some people just have a good ear, can come up with things in their head and are happy to jam songs out? Would just like to point out again that I wasn't even arguing a point.....

[quote name='SteveK' post='286160' date='Sep 17 2008, 07:07 PM']Glad you thought better of your original wording. Now sounds like you've got the gist of how to use theory. Steve[/quote] Sorry, what? Looks like you've used turned my personal experience into some sort of advocation for the learning of theory, that was not my intention. My experience is that any knowledge of theory that I had before taking up bass had little or no impact on my development as a bass player, I have now totally forgotten all the years of theory that I learned and I'm personally no worse off. What did make me a better player was just simply being in a band. I don't have an opinion on the matter either way, it is simply a case of you doing what you want to do. I'm just putting my own personal experience out there

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='286099' date='Sep 17 2008, 05:51 PM']I remember I went to see them when that album came out. I wasn't a fan particularly, I just went to see any band that came within range, but anyway yeah me and my girlfriend went along to see Rancid and the venue was full of 13-year-olds with their parents. So we left again. I think we ended up catching G Love & Special Sauce at a place just down the street so it wasn't so bad. [/quote] So you left because of the people in audience?

[quote name='Matty' post='286001' date='Sep 17 2008, 03:58 PM']I once auditioned for a punk band. Upon asking them what sort of bass style they were hoping for, thinking maybe JJ or Simonian the singer said: "Basic stuff really, simple like Matt Freeman..."[/quote] ....simple!

Clear

It's funny reading this thread after sifting through all the snobbery in the 'do I need to learn theory' thread. Punk theory

[quote name='doctor_of_the_bass' post='285504' date='Sep 17 2008, 12:49 AM']I actually owned that bass after it was recovered by the relevant authorities and was placed up for sale in Electromusic in Doncaster. I'm not fully aware of the deal but was told by the shop that MK had been made aware of the situation and was happy for the bass to be sold. Intrigued to know more Steve...[/quote] Sounds intriguing...

There's no *need* for you to do anything. If you're happy with your playing then great. If you're contemplating learning theory, you've got nothing to lose, give it a go Chances are it will improve your playing (which is a highly subjective notion anyway). Personally, I started playing bass already knowing a lot of music theory but I found it to be of little use, to the point of not consciously using any theory when I joined a band. I learned immeasurably more about music and how to make it by just being in a band, jamming and just getting creative with a group of likeminded musicians than I did by learning pure theory. There seems to be an air of 'learning theory will make you a better person' around here, that's taking it a bit too far.

[quote name='MuseMatt' post='285450' date='Sep 16 2008, 10:34 PM']I would love that as an EQ monitor.... just add an EQ underneath it and u can see where you might want to compensate![/quote] That VU meter combined with a rack EQ would also help you compensate for your amazingly small manhood!

Very open ended question, if you go down the second hand route you could buy pretty much any rig you like!

Just been into my local Cash Converter shops today and every peice of musical gear is labeled with the brand name, model name/number and price so they obviously do their homework before something goes on the shelf. God knows how they managed to let a Fodera slip through, a simple googling of 'empire bass' comes up with a Fodera Empire bass as the first picture

Wahey, where is he doing the clinic in Birmingham?

[quote name='stylonpilson' post='284894' date='Sep 16 2008, 11:52 AM']Perhaps its because they know that you'll then promptly run off and tell all your friends how good Bose is. And the myth continues to perpetuate itself. The reason why the demonstration is so impressive is that they have complete control over the setup. Good luck trying to replicate that demonstration in your own living room. Additionally, did you trace the wires back to check that the speakers were actually plugged into the Bose amplifier? I've heard rumours that they run it all back into a control room which is hidden from public view. S.P.[/quote] I too have heard that rumor. They're nothing but snake oil merchants who are allowed to get away with it.

[quote name='Jobiebass' post='284870' date='Sep 16 2008, 11:34 AM']If only I had the money.[/quote] I have no choice but to keep it now, especially since Reverb have come along and just wiped out half of the value of it. To think I'd have sold this in a heartbeat not so long ago, especially with the model I have