mcnach

[quote name='zonular' timestamp='1472623835' post='3122616'] Hey folks, long time lurker, first time poster. To try and cut this short, I've picked up a bass a few years ago in a trade. Played guitar for years....bass to me is far more satisfying. The bass in question is a Ibanez atk400, its a beauty, I can get a lot of tones out of it feels great. Looking to add to the collection, which would you consider first. Simple p bass, a short scale, five string or fretless. I would add I do have smaller hands and I'm only playing with friends nothing major, although id love a cover band. What's in your collection? [/quote] hand size is not very relevant. Some people have smallish hands yet prefer wider necks. I initially liked thin Jazz bass necks, as I was used to guitars, but after a while I found the bigger necks more comfortable. I'd suggest a Precision, because it produces classic tones you cannot get close to with your ATK. But don't get the first one that comes across. Try many until you find 'the one'. I thought I didn't like Precision basses until I found a good one The fretless would be a cool different instrument to have, but it depends on how much you like the fretless sound. I have one, but I don't use it all that much. I would not worry about 5 strings until you find yourself needing one. Switching to 5 string is not difficult once you find the instrument with the right neck for you, but I find the effort unnecessary if you don't need a 5-string and you love the 4-string you normally use.

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1472558329' post='3122066'] Right, experiment conducted (swapping the constant thickness full shim with a partial shim) and I've got some interesting results (assuming it isn't me fooling myself). The Curbow has a very long neck pocket that extends all the way to the pickup (which I think is in the Stingray position) so I ended up using a relatively thick shim of about the same thickness as the original full pocket shim. As expected it changed the neck angle a fair bit (not stupidly different obviously) and I got a greater range of adjustment available with the saddles. I'd previously got the G and low B saddles pretty much down to the deck so my action has now improved a fraction, in that it's lower (the bridge itself is angled back so you get less height adjustment per turn of the saddle screw than you would with a conventionally situated bridge). I think I might be getting a little note choking at the very highest frets because of the change in neck angle - I haven't changed the neck relief. This very minor note choking doesn't bother me. I don't see much change in the dead spots; I don't think they're any worse. The biggest change to my ears is the sound seems somewhat harmonically richer - this is a GOOD thing! I might just be hearing a bit more noise from the frets with the change in neck angle but I might well have changed the way the neck/body combination vibrates because there's less of a connection between the two with a partial shim. I've read more than once that bolt on neck instruments often sound brighter than neck through designs and some believe it's because the fundamental is stronger with a neck through... in other words the neck/body junction of a bolt on can favour the harmonics a bit more. I'm wondering if this is what I'm hearing? I can see why people use partial shims - they're easy to fabricate and install but I really didn't expect to hear an improvement in tone! The partial shim will be staying! [/quote] I think your change in action may be more responsible for the changes you hear. If there's minor choking on the higher frets, there will probably be other effects with strings vibrating and hitting the frets at other locations in ways that are not obvious 'choking' but resulting in a change of the sound. The bass will probably be more responsive to how light or hard you pluck too, because of that. Do you notice something like that?

[quote name='cana.dan' timestamp='1472554375' post='3122008'] It's ready! It will be in my hands tomorrow! [/quote] ooh! very nice!

That's an awesome looking rig!!!

[quote name='MoJo' timestamp='1472500372' post='3121650'] Not sure. Just play it? [/quote] no, the obvious third choice, and the reason I did not vote in your poll as that choice was not included, is "selling the Ibanez and getting a 5 string with a spacing that you find familiar already". That would be my choice, and if I need a 5 string (I decided I don't), I'd get another Lakland 5502... as it made the switch between 4 and 5 string much easier. I'm not against putting effort on things, but I am against putting more effort than you need. Dealing with different string spacings etc is all perfectly doable, but why put up with that if I don't have to?

[quote name='MoJo' timestamp='1472080728' post='3118431'] I recently got an Ibanez SR305 in a trade. For the price point, it's an excellent instrument. Well put together with a nice array of tones. My only gripe is the string spacing at the bridge, just 16.5mm. After years of play four string basses spaced at 18-20mm, the Ibby feels alien to me. In every other way, it's great. Even my band mates like it, but as soon as I put on my Jazz bass, it's like taking off a pair of new shoes and putting on a pair of comfy slippers. I'm almost certain that if I were to play it exclusively, eventually the muscle memory would kick in, but that would mean leaving my four stringers in their bags and weeks/months of discomfort and hard work. I'd be interested to know what other BC'ers would do. Would you spend time, exclusively playing the SR or would you put it up for grabs in the 'For Sale' section and stick with what you feel comfortable with. [/quote] I was the same... until I tried a few 5-string basses with 19mm string spacing. As long as the neck is reasonably shallow I find them very comfy. The Lakland 5502 was the best I've tried and playing it was very very easy (for me) compared to most other 5-string basses, so I only needed to worry about remembering the thickest string being a B and not an E So... I'd sell and get something with wide spacing... but try as many basses as you can, as neck profiles vary a lot, it's not just the spacing. The Lakland was the best by far, for me. But the Squier Jazz V DeLuxe, despite it's chunkier profile, was not bad at all and well worth checking out too. A lot cheaper too, if that matters.

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1472549555' post='3121950'] Just for fun Jack - install LAME for Audacity in one click via this URL: [url="http://tinyurl.com/makejackhappy"]http://tinyurl.com/makejackhappy[/url] You'll have to do use IE or Edge though unless you have a ClickOnce extension installed for Firefox or Chrome. (btw if you don't have Audacity installed it will try to install it and fail as the package in the repository for it is currently broken, just ignore the errors!) [b](for anyone interested in how this works, check out [url="https://chocolatey.org/"]Chocolatey [/url]and [url="http://boxstarter.org/"]Boxstarter[/url])[/b] [/quote] oh, pretty cool, thanks!

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1472489047' post='3121514'] If you want to convert a WAV file into MP3 in Reaper you simply choose one of the variations of 'render to MP3'. At this point a window will open in Reaper saying 'mp3 encoder not loaded'. Then you go to lame and download the codec and stick it in the appropriate directory. It's dead easy; if you've used Audacity you'll have no problem. [/quote] Really? It's been so long I forgot I had to do that! ah well... it is really easy and a one-time operation, which is why I must have forgotten I did it... but if not downloading additional software is a must, then that rules out Reaper too I suppose!

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1472468123' post='3121272'] Please DON'T immediately jump in and tell me I need Audacity. I already tried it. Twice. I have no interest in an editor that omits vital files & plug-ins due to "copyright issues" and invites me to source them elsewhere and plug them in. So, once we step away from the Audacity base-camp, what's out there? My needs are VERY simple ... take a WAV file from a rehearsal or a gig (perhaps 2Gb, usually less), save individual tracks as mp3 files, maybe apply some amplification, maybe opt for a fade-in & fade-out, erm, that's about it. Free would be nice but NOT essential. I've spent far too long looking through obviously fake 5-star reviews of crap features and virus-ridden malware, and I'm well aware that almost all of the 'free' downloads are a disaster waiting to happen. I just don't know which ones (if any) are safe to use. I'm talking Windows here, not Mac. [/quote] Reaper! Not free anymore, but only $60 and it's very very good. You can download and try for 60 days without feature limitations: [url="http://www.reaper.fm/download.php"]http://www.reaper.fm/download.php[/url] It does a lot more than you say you need... but it's really simple to use. There may still be places where you can get their older 'free' version before they went fully commercial. I used to have version 0.999 or something like that, the last one before going commercial, which already was stable, takes up next to no space, light in resources usage, and does all the basic editing already. If interested I'll look for it and I can send it over, but you will probably find it online still. If you like it, the $60 is worth paying, in my opinion. They did a great job and provided a serious DAW for almost no money compared to what other bigger names wanted. I like supporting that if I can.

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1472511400' post='3121773'] I can see your thinking behind liking the idea of the full-contact of the full pocket shim. I don't think this is a problem with a partial shim as long the connection is solid. The difference between a full pocket shim and a partial one is with a full one, if you effectively want to lower the bridge 2mm, then you will need a 2mm full pocket shim. [b]If you, instead, used a partial shim, you would only need something like a 1mm shim[/b]. Also, if you use a full shim, this is visible as a gap a the the place where you look at the neck in the pocket. If you've used a partial shim the neck touches the bottom of the body in the pocket and nothing is going to be visible. [/quote] probably quite a bit thinner than 1mm. I have often used business cards, which may not be the best choice as they do compress over time, but with a business card thick shim you probably get those 2mm or so already. A little shim goes a long way!

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1472415542' post='3120994'] Sounds like a cool weekend. Fun, great story. Blue [/quote] Thanks, it was fun and a video that I cannot find how to embed here: [media]http://www.facebook.com/rob.bache/videos/1504131166267545/[/media]

[quote name='darkandrew' timestamp='1472490389' post='3121531'] Thanks. It's the first time I've done this sort of thing on a bolt-on. My other basses are all neck-throughs and my guitars are all set-necks. Everytime I buy a new bass or guitar I promise myself that I will leave it as it is - I think I managed to last about 30 mins before giving in to the overwhelming urge to give this one a thorough set up! Maybe next time. [/quote] Ha! but that's the thing, if you can set it up nicely, why not? And in bolt-on basses it means you have to consider neck angle as yet another variable to play with. Glad it worked out!

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1472465992' post='3121236'] The only time I've played with an electronic kit the player didn't have proper monitoring and I was straining to hear him from the PA speakers. That was a very poor stage sound. It's left me with an ambivalence towards electric drum kits. This is one of those "if it ain't broke. . . . " subjects for me. I love the physicality of a well played traditional kit right beside me. I used to play with a very loud guitarist who insisted that my amp was equally loud. I used 6 10's and had FOH in that band. I was happy with a level coming back through the monitors, but he wanted to [i]feel[/i] the bass behind him. I've just done my first gig with the drummer to the side of the stage facing me and now I get it. The feel (the Oomph) of the bass drum pointing right at me gave a huge boost to my playing. [/quote] Yeah, I get that we're used to having that loud thing making a racket next to us, and it feels a little disconcerting at first... but your bad experience above wasn't the kit's fault! It's like saying I broke a string on my white bass and ever since I feel weird about playing white basses... If you have an electric kit, then you must have it through the monitors, otherwise it's pretty crap. I played a 'quieter' type of gig at a local bar where they specified we should use their Roland e-kit so that they can control the levels completely. The drummer did have a small monitor pointing at him, but there was precious little monitoring for anybody else, they relied on our own backline turned down a lot. It was hard to play when you can see the drummer make movements with his arms from a corner of your eye, but without the usual accompanying sound... it was hard to keep time. But that wasn't the kit's fault, it was just a badly thought set up.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1472328299' post='3120422'] We just did most of the 2 hour set with no back line or monitors, I think I've found the point where you do need something! Pah, sound guy that didn't know what he was doing [/quote] Did you remember to check your bass was plugged in? (joking, of course... but 'a friend' of mine once had issues with his gear that turned out to be fixed simply by plugging in )

[quote name='grumpyguts' timestamp='1472455595' post='3121145'] My next bass will be a 5 string Jazz. I played a Squire VM Olympic White - liked it a lot @ £316 from GAK it looks a decent buy. However for £460 from Thomann I can have a red one of these. What to do? I was happy with the neck profile on the Squire, anyone know how the Miller bass compares? [/quote] red wins, I'm afraid

Nice job!

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1472235909' post='3119754'] I had a similar problem with my Cort Curbow 5 (bought secondhand via eBay) where both the G and the low B were causing problems because I couldn't get them low enough. The saddles are of a cast design, which could have been filed for a deeper groove, but for me it was easier to raise the whole neck with a shim. [/quote] that's the type of situation where I'd normally use a partial shim on the bridge end of the pocket. Very thin, for a tiny increase in angle goes a long way several inches down the string towards the bridge. I haven't needed a full pocket shim ever, but I guess in some cases it can happen.

[quote name='darkandrew' timestamp='1472229327' post='3119691'] I know it's already been discussed, in a previous thread,that a partial shim across the last screws can lead to the neck bowing due to the part of the neck that's above the void in front of the shim being pulled into it and creating a ski jump at the end of the neck. I've been thinking about this - is this actually likely as it's not just the neck that would have to bow but also the truss rod that's going through it? I ask this because I've just taken ownership of an Ernie Ball Sterling bass whose E string saddle is as low as it can go but needs to go a bit lower, and so I was thinking about putting a shim in the neck pocket and was wondering whether to use the Ernie Ball partial shim or make my own full pocket shim out of maple veneer. [/quote] partial shims are fine... I very much doubt that that extra cm occupied by the shim can be the cause of a 'ski jump'. Shims like that are typically used to change the neck angle. If you don't need that angle changed but you still think you need the fingerboard raised a bit, an even full pocket shim would be best, but it's less common than just needing to alter minutely the neck angle.

[quote name='Trueno' timestamp='1472396213' post='3120780'] The reason I don't like them is because I've been there and done that. I can assure you I'm not missing any kind of treat. [/quote] our experiences disagree... welcome to BassChat then, business as usual

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1472393481' post='3120760'] I wouldn't call what I make as "income". But over all, if I ignore the couple that I've lost money on, I've built a modest bass fund. To do this I've bought and sold a lot of budget basses. I normally make a modest profit. I've sometimes made over £100 on a bass[b] (not on those bought/sold on BC)[/b]. [/quote] there would be nothing wrong with that...

[quote name='Trueno' timestamp='1472279345' post='3119966'] Drummer turns up with an electronic kit... I'm out! [/quote] Then you may miss a treat. A *good* e-kit is great and sounds great onstage too.

[quote name='JamesBass' timestamp='1472389187' post='3120716'] So my band are booked to play an engagement party of Friday night, 2 x 45 mins with a half hour break, fee all agreed etc. So today I've been told that the couple are now trying to book a singer, who sings to backing track to play in the half hour break, apparently the singer will need to use our PA and mics etc. Now I'm not exactly happy about this, we are being paid two fees, one from the venue as we are playing in the pub rather than in a function room and they needed/wanted a band for that night anyway, and we are getting a fee from the couple. Our fees aren't exactly astronomical roughly £350 total, it's our first function gig as a band so we've charged less than an ideal rate to cut our teeth and get a foot in the door etc. What does the board reckon to this? Personally I feel offended that they are looking to book an act to play between our sets, and I'm definitely not happy to let her loose on our PA. [/quote] They cannot offer the singer the use of your equipment before asking you. It's not theirs to offer. I'd be annoyed too. I might be tempted to ask for a low 'rental fee' to make a point. But it really depends on what rapport we have with them. I'd insist on us operating the PA: I would not like someone let loose on the mixer twiddling things (so many clueless people...) that you've set up to work for your band.

[quote name='luckydog' timestamp='1472243749' post='3119834'] So roughly how many basses/gear items per year qualifies as a trader, and is it OK not to identify oneself as such ? In the last decade I've bought no basses, 2 amps, and sold no basses and 1 amp. None on BC. So that's def not me ! Curious what volume of gear other peeps buy/sell yearly, what is normal here? LD [/quote] I don't care, personally. If you have a bass for sale that I want, I don't care how many more you sold that month. What does it matter?

[quote name='luckydog' timestamp='1472236121' post='3119755'] Hmmmm are so many peeps here in the habit of buying/selling basses regularly enough to get excited about? How many peeps here look upon trading basses as a source of income ? I am curious, and suspect it's more than I first thought....... LD [/quote] That's a good question. I doubt there are many at all. And those who do... good luck to them. I see nothing wrong.