mcnach

[quote name='Ou7shined' timestamp='1378940459' post='2206961'] Bit of solo effort this. Woke up this morning with an idea for bass, recorded it then edited up a video for it. All the music is played on bass. [media]http://youtu.be/eHmlIijkCzg[/media] [/quote] beautiful. Only one glaring omission: we need a picture of the "homemade bass". It's a rule.

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1378823271' post='2205123'] I suspect that the shim has always been considered to be part of the factory adjustment procedure in bolt-on basses. If the pocket is designed to give the correct neck angle and elevation with a small shim in place, there is scope to adjust the angle in both directions (either by using a larger shim or removing the shim) to correct for manufacturing tolerances. If it was designed for the perfect angle without a shim, adjustment would only be possible in one direction and any instruments that needed to be adjusted for less neck angle would have to be rejected. Viewed this way, it seems like a smart bit of design for production line instruments. [/quote] That's also my view. After all, Fender was all about making it simple and cheap to manufacture. You don't need a neck pocket and neck made to tiny tolerances, extremely precisely... all you need is to be reasonably in the ballpark, then finalise it during set up with an appropriate shim when needed. It works beautifully. It may not be very elegant, but it certainly works.

Try watching a video from BC's own "dood": [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2AG3n8KVzA"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2AG3n8KVzA[/url] I found it very very useful. It's long, but worth the watch. I watched it with my pedal in front of me, so I could mirror some of what he was doing... and it was much better and affective than reading the manual

I finally got my hands on one. I wanted one as I noticed that my Markbass CMD121P's speaker was moving quite a bit sometimes... Ok, it's not that surprising as it's a very loud beast, famously so, and therefore it must move enough air... and all that orange just makes it more obvious. Fine, I'm sure I never pushed the amp too hard and that it operates within the expected parameters... but I felt that I wanted to try one of these Thumpinators and see how much of that movement was unnecessary. First test today. At home friendly levels it never moved all that much, and as I want to remain in good terms with my neighbours I did not want to push the volume up too much. But I did push the bass knob. More than I normally do. I then slapped a bit,, nothing too aggressive. The speaker was moving quite a bit. Then I used the Thumpinator... and it was just as loud, as far as my ears could tell, but the speaker moved a LOT less. I'm keeping it! I'm curious to test it in front of effects like octavers, and see how it affects tracking (some claim it improves tracking noticeably), although I think I would rather have it at the very end of the chain, especially if using envelope filters etc. Cool little gadget. It makes me feel less concerned about using the Markbass combo on its own sometimes, when I end up playing it pretty loudly, if it tames unnecessary speaker movement.

Digital!!! There really is no question about it: do you want a car with all 4 tires or just three?

We used Dischromatics for our album earlier this year. EXcellent job.

Just bought a SFX Thumpinator pedal from Ted. Very pleasant exchange of PMs, really easy going, and he posted the pedal so fast that by the time he PM'd me to confirm it was posted, I had it in my hands. Thanks Ted!

[quote name='Rainbass' timestamp='1378754544' post='2204328'] Thanks, mcnach for this suggestion - I went out and got myself a QR10PA for busking, and busked at the weekend with two guitarists with smallish (20W?) guitar amps. They needed power, but my QR10PA gave me a nice, middly tone (not a trouser flapper, but that's OK!) and lasted the full two hours with no issue. A great solution! [/quote] Glad that you found that useful too! It's a pretty cool little box, eh? I am using a Zoom MS60-B with it now, for EQ... but I suppose one could use the amp simulations in that pedal (or similar) to find a better bass tone. Either way, using an external EQ pedal (or on-board EQ in your bass) helps a lot. When I used it with the Precision it worked but it was not that inspiring.

[quote name='essexbasscat' timestamp='1378631651' post='2202508'] Oh, also check out dual role opportunities with ska bands ! [/quote] I'm in one already, sort of (it's not purely ska, but we do have a lot of ska influence). We have a trumpet and a sax player. And three guitarist/vocalists. My plan is that as soon as I can play enough notes to contribute something to one song, one of the guitarists can take my bass for that song while I join the brass fun. But I suspect it won't happen next weekend...

[quote name='SpaceChick' timestamp='1378586310' post='2202243'] [...] suitable distance from the trumpet player as you don't want to clout him in the head when you play. [/quote] But sometimes he deserves it!

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1378569003' post='2201966'] Nice! But I thought this was going to be a list of trombone rules. You know, something like: 1. Do not play the trombone indoors. 2. Do not fill the bell of the trombone with Strawberry Munch Bunch. 3. Do not bang your slide on the TV screen (see Rule 1). 4. No parping after 23:00. 5. No playing the 'sad trombone' sound when you're upset. 6. No off-colour jokes about being a 'boner'. 7. No wearing the trombone case as a funny hat. 8. Do not empty your spit-valve on the carpet (see Rule 1). 9. Do not leave fingerprints on your bell-end. 10. Do not let your slide fall off into a goldfish pond. 11. Never share a music stand with someone on your left. 12. Er... that's it. [/quote]

[quote name='mr zed' timestamp='1378568688' post='2201958'] Fantastic - and many happy returns. I played trombone from the age of 7 to 15. I wanted one before I was 7 but my arms weren't long enough so I was playing a cornet from 4 to 7. I was involved in youth concert bands that took me to Jersey and Germany and the school band. Happy times. I gave it up to concentrate on bass guitar coz Deep Purple didn't play trombones. Enjoy! [/quote] Ha! I grew up listening to heavy rock, got into guitars and so did my brother. My brother decided that's what he wanted to do and studied classical guitar at the conservatory... but at least it was guitar. My mum's cousin's husband was a prominent session trumpet player in Spain. We'd often see him on TV etc, and when he found we were "musical" he talked to us. I remember how my brother and I just didn't want to know. Pah. Trumpet. How stupid and ignorant of us. Teenagers, eh? How can someone not like brass!? I have been discovering lately bands like "The hot 8 brass band", "Hypnotic brass ensemble", "Orkestra del sol", and many others in that vein... Listening a lot to Fred Wesley... Trombone and tuba/sousaphone... ah, I wish I had discovered them as young as you did! I have just sourced my first lessons. I remembered a great guy who played trombone in a ska band I was with briefly a few years ago... and located him on Facebook (who said Facebook sucks? ) Meeting him on Monday 16th to discuss my ambitions and what he suggests he can offer. Even if I ended up not playing it... brass instruments are just beautiful. I'd rather have that on the wall than a painting!

[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1378567710' post='2201941'] Ace! You know, using a pair of socks as a makeshift mute results in projectile socks. Try it - it's brilliant! [/quote] I have to try that!!!!

... and so does my girlfriend. This is me with my birthday present from her: She may live to regret it, but it's awesome! The neighbours may call the RSPCA thinking we torture elephants in here... but I guess that's the price to pay when you enter the world of brass. Damn, it's hard to make it sound nice! Today I managed two notes, wheeee!

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1378556561' post='2201783'] Having band members who are in other bands is always a pain in the arse. [/quote] only if you are not organised. Until one of the bands is not *really busy*, it's rarely a problem in my experience. Only then it comes a point where you have to choose the band you want to focus on. I've always had clear which is my priority... but as long as I have time for more... I will do more. I like people who play in more than one band because they tend to be more focused, and don't underestimate the increased networking ability. More and more I am discovering that getting nice gigs comes to be seen by the right people, and who you know or who knows about you.

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1378544560' post='2201577'] [b]Should we be in bands for money, or for enjoyment?[/b] I ask this because I’ve been trying to put a band together for a couple of years now, and I’m amazed at how “mercenary” a lot of musicians are. I have advertised for musicians on all the usual sites, and here’s just a couple of examples (I've had many many more like these): [i]“I live in Stevenage , got over 1000 gigs under my belt , blues / rock player , but would be interested, if the band has a go getter approach to gigging and not spending hours in a rehearsal room”.[/i] [i]“I'm 38 plenty of gig exp, pro gear, great tone, I'll be honest with you I'm in 2 gigging bands at the moment but maybe looking to ditch one, maybe both if one band gets busy, I just love playing live”.[/i] I absolutely love playing music with other musicians, especially in a "live" situation, but I also like rehearsing, and I also like playing at home learning new material, but it seems that there are a lot of people out there, who seem to put earning money first. Surely rehearsing with your bandmates helps with getting to know each other as people, helps with bonding, and most importantly, it helps with getting the band tight and ready to gig. So many people have told me they don't want to rehearse, and some of these are not even great musicians, so are they thinking they are better than they really are, and if they really are that good, why do they choose to miss out on the "team" building that comes with regular rehearsals? don't get me wrong, once the band is ready, I'm up for gigging most of the time and only going into the studio to learn new material. So is it just me, am I old fashioned, or should I just join a gigging band, learn the songs at home, just turn up for the gig, play the songs, and then go home afterwards not really knowing the guys I've just been playing with properly? [/quote] money or enjoyment? For me it's enjoyment first and foremost: I do not depend on gig money for my living. I still want to be paid if we provide a service that others would charge for. But it's got to be enjoyable or there's no point for me. I know other people for whom gig money is a substantial part of their income, so their attitude is different. They are in wedding bands and play functions for good money... Not for me, 'though. I play plenty of bars, 'though, where you still have to deal with drunks from time to time... but at least I can dismiss them (I could not at a wedding), we have security to deal with the truly obnoxious (you can't really get the groom's best man kicked out), and we play what we want to play more or less. The wedding band set lists I have seen make my soul vomit a little. For me it's enjoyment. I am in two tribute bands: RATM and RHCP. That's what we play. Some ask for Metallica, Nirvana or... even Beyonce (true story!), but it won't happen. We have played some Pearl Jam, and some Led Zep, on occasion, but because we all have played that stuff and we decided to humour someone in the audience. My originals band (I'm in two, but I have only been long enough in one) is... well, our songs. That's it. We have played plenty of small unpaid gigs. We still play plenty of small gigs, and some unpaid. But we have been making a little money that pays for a lot of the stuff we do as a band so it's become self-funding. That's great, but I'd still do it if I had to pay money for our new amps or whatever. It's a lot of fun, and we get people dancing and having a great time with us. That's what I do it for. I get to go to festivals for free and watch other great bands, and all I have to do is... what? play at one of their stages? Brilliant! Playing live is what I like. Rehearsals... not so much. I can totally get the first quote above. Some bands just practice again and again the same thing... that's not for me. Rehearsals are necessary but most bands I know overdo it. Rehearsals are there to get new material up to scratch, or to refresh material you haven't played in a while together. How many times must you rehearse a song before you decide "yup, we can play this alright together"? Then there are the "jams" where a lot of our songwriting happens... but that's something else. If a band is not going to do originals, for me it's got to keep rehearsals to a bare minimum and focus on gigs. If you play enough gigs you don't even need rehearsals

I like it a lot. Nice unobtrussive compression that does its thing without being too obvious. I guess that's what other people call "pretty transparent".

[quote name='Jonnyboy Rotten' timestamp='1378401114' post='2199810'] Anyway.. being on the hunt for a battery powered speaker which will let me play along with some mates in a field somewhere it seems mcnach has the best option with that trolley thing. [/quote] Just to add that I have been using it regularly and I still like it a lot. An EQ pedal in front of it is not necessary, but it helps as the tone controls of the thing are ok for very crude adjustments but not much more. Plenty loud! Last time I used it was last Saturday. There was an annual "big busk" think along Portobello beach, here in Edinburgh, and we went there. Three small guitar amps (two roland microcubes and one minivox), drum kit (yes, although not played very loud), trumpet, saxophone... I did not push it hard and it was more than enough to keep up. We stopped when two of the guitar amps died. I still had plenty of juice, but I don't know when the guys charged their amps. I wish mine had a battery charge indicator... I just charge it the night before just in case. Love it.

Alex bought my TC Mojo Mojo overdrive pedal. The whole transaction was very pleasant. Good communication, fast payment... a real pleasure. Thank you, Alex. I hope you enjoy the pedal!

Sean bought my EHX Bassballs nano. Really pleasant communication, easy transaction... Thanks, Sean!

I just bought Andy's J-Retro. Very pleasant conversations by email, and he sent the preamp very quickly, doing a fantastic job of the packing. He even included some extra knobs and allen keys! A real pleasure, Andy. Thank you!

Just forget you ordered anything... sit back and relax. It'll arrive and you'll be happy. Too much stress messes up your timing when you finally get to plug into it!