mcnach

[quote name='Greggo' timestamp='1364056758' post='2021486'] Think mystery partially solved with this one! I played bass acoustically and can hear the weird boomy overtone! It's mainly on e and a string. Seems that when string is plucked over pickup it makes the string "ricochet" off a fret and choke the note slightly (I think it's the 20th) hence the almost harmonic "boom" that it creates, but isn't fret buzz. I've increased height of strings but still happens. Not sure where to go from here, wondering if it might need a neck adjustment? When I check relief neck is very straight so thinking needs relief. Any ideas? [/quote] Hmmm, it doesn' sound like what that other guy had. I personally need to hear it. I'm lost.

That would be most useful. I remember a while ago someone with a complaint that sounded a bit like yours. It turned out to be his technique. His way of plucking a string involved a soft slap followed by the pluck, which resulted in a "thud" before every note... Hard to describe, but the clips made it obvious. If you can upload some clips it'll help.

[quote name='GregBass' timestamp='1364042233' post='2021195'] For the OP: Can you please explain the concept of reigning in GAS? I don't understand. [/quote] It's like a bassist's unicorn, from what I hear...

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1364049126' post='2021327'] You're not in trouble, but your picture is. Sorry guys, but you know what reaction to R*********** copy headstocks brings to our doorstep. [/quote] even for cakes? (it's a cake, isn't it? I hope so, I'd bite it)

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1364038920' post='2021133'] I'm a bit of a techie, I've designed and small scale manufactured gear and still repair stuff. First my actual experience with behringer. I've had two EP series PA amps and they have been utterly reliable and are well made, also a Xenyx mixer, which is utterly reliable also. I used XM8500 mic's, the SM58 look alike which sounds slightly better than the SM58 but with slightly worse feedback control and much more handling noise. The mic had to be rewired and I can't tell you how bad the original soldering was. I think to understand Behringer you only have to think what they are trying to do. To make stuff cheap you have to look at costs across the board. Labour costs and electronics are cheap so the boards are often OK. Materials costs are similar if you make them in the UK or China so shaving materials costs is worth doing, slightly flimsier mouldings, cases and crucially connectors can cut costs. Quality control is expensive as you need skilled workers to do this. After sales care is also expensive. Anything with cheap connectors is going to be less reliable and rushing me-too products onto the market can lead to problems. Having said this behringer won't actually want anything unreliable to come out of their factories they will just engineer a compromise which keeps costs down. Components like speakers which have a significant materials cost can't have the costs shaved without affecting the quality, so the speakers are designed to a price. Most of the dissatisfaction seems to be about the products with speakers in. Ultimately the reason I am wary of Behringer because of their after sales. Some of the retailers I talked to have said that the new distributors in the UK don't provide the support out of the guarantee period that other companies do. Because of the method of construction (shared by most electronic stuff these days) repairs are difficult without new boards being available. No worse than say, Apple but something you factor into what you are prepared to pay. Personally I'd rather pay 10-20% more and get a better product but this gap isn't filled by many manufacturers. Behringer represent great value and the reliability isn't as bad as their reputation but you will find the odd bit of horsemeat if you dine at this end of the market. [/quote] very good post! Thank you!

[quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1364035738' post='2021075'] Their pedals are hit and miss, [/quote] you need bigger boots...

and this thing is not yet done! But we are getting there. An aluminium control plate (thanks soooo much, apa! ) arrived today. I need to choose the layout carefully and drill the holes... but it's going to look something like this (knobs may be different)

I sold a pair of Gotoh Jazz pickups to Jono a few months back, and I totally forgot to leave feedback, it seems! Sorry! Nice guy, we exchanged a few messages, very pleasant and easy transaction. Glad you are liking the pickups, and sorry for the delay in leaving feedback!

[quote name='lands297' timestamp='1363900340' post='2019274'] Evening everyone, I've an unusual question. I've a Yamaha BB414 with the stock pickups, the pickups themselves now have foam pads underneath them to raise them up to just under the strings like my old Attitude bass that had Dimarzios that didn't have exposed pole thingies exposed - and wouldn't 'pop' every time the string touched. Now, does anyone know of a solution similar to covering the stock pickups with a vinyl capping of some sort or another in order to stop this as I don't want to resort to either changing pickups or dropping them as this doesn't fit with how I play. If you think this is picky let me tell you about taking a bastard file to the frets Cheers everyone, I'd very much appreciate any help with this.. [/quote] A bit of transparent nail varnish. 60 second by Rimmel. Put a few coats over each polepiece in just a couple of minutes... and you are done. Easy to remove if you want to in the future.

clips to illustrate? by description alone it's hard to know what it sounds like.

[quote name='bassman344' timestamp='1363989158' post='2020755'] Every bassist needs a person to reign them in when GAS takes over. I have to admit that if I was left to my own devices Id probably be bankrupt and living on the street in a cardboard box but would have more bass gear than I could play in 5 lifetimes. I have my very own little voice in my ear as I am contemplating and browsing which sounds like this, "One out - one in" OR "Have you got the money for that ? dear......" OR "Not in this lifetime sunshine" Whats the best GAS stopping policy on basschat ? [/quote] does it fit in the room? do you still have cash for holidays? ok then...

[quote name='elephantgrey' timestamp='1363987219' post='2020719'] Disclaimer: this is purely theoretical, i've not actually tried this, but the theory is sound. (i kept meaning to try this out in the studio, but the whole time, everyone i was recording whilst i was there had good enough headphones.) You could aim two ams at the spot you'll be standing, and reverse the phase of one of them. With some careful positioning (about 90 degrees from each other) this could cancel out the noise elsewhere, whilst you should be able to hear it fine. [/quote] unless I misunderstood... what you can do with that approach is have a spot where you don't hear (much - it's never perfect) but you'll still hear a lot everywhere else...

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1363954459' post='2020047'] There is some Behringer gear that is truly crap. Anyone remember the tube rack processor, where the tube didn't actually do anything and was illuminated by an LED behind it? [/quote] I still have a guitar amp, a Behringer AC112... pretty sweet amp, actually. The overdrive is not very good, and the effects are best forgotten (they work, but nothing great, I only use a bit of reverb)... but it has a pretty nice clean voice. I have had quite a lot of compliments with it. It has a 12AX7 valve... and a small grill where you can see it glow. Well, only it does not glow at all... there is a led under it. Why??? The amp sounds good without that BS!

[quote name='Ziphoblat' timestamp='1363876411' post='2018766'] I'll never forget a gig I did when I was playing an EBMM Stingray and some fairly seasoned bassist (to put it politely) from one of the other bands wandered up and questioned what on earth that was in a sort of "you kids and your crazy modern things" way (not as if they'd been around for 35 years at this point) as if it was some crazy cheap physically challenged copy of a Fender. [/quote] Ha! I had a not too dissimilar situation with my Stingray too. I played a gig, opening for another band, and after we did our thing I was at the bar, and this older guy tells me "nice little bass you played, sounded good". That sounded like a compliment. But he followed it with how he used to play bass years before, but he played Fenders, you know? The way he said it clearly showed me that he intended to impress me, and that to him Fenders were to top. I heard his stories, nodded, laughed with him. Then I told him a bit more about my bass, how it was designed by Leo Fender himself after he quit Fender and started a new company called MusicMan... I felt a bit silly trying to big up my bass who somebody who did not matter, but I just could not resist it.

It's obvious that corners have been cut on cheaper stuff, like Behringer. My OP was not really about Behringer, 'though. It was about being biased by names, and about building a shrine to big names and condemning to hell other names (supported by many people who have no first hand experience of the gear), and how that gets taken out of context and proportion. I could have spoken about Squier. On TalkBass I remember years ago Squier being often beaten to the ground as utter crap, and gave you the impression that a Squier bass would pretty much disintegrate in your hands as you play it over the following year or so. And that's not true. Some may have been a bit naff, and used plywood bodies... but they are not going to just break down, normally. I found it sad to read from teenagers who have no money talking dismissively about their "crap Squier" (that they saved up for, or their parents bought them), just to fit in with the group... It's even sadder that some might feel... I don't know, embarrased even about using a Squier and a Behringer. That is sad. I wish I could have played something like an Affinity series Squier and a Behringer amp back in the day!!! Of course, if I have the money, I am happy to pay more for something I believe to be better build and offers me a sense of security. It has to sound good, first of all. That's why I bought a TC RH450, after owning a Behringer BX3000 head (which sounded fine). Funny how on my second or third gig with the TC RH450, as I turned it on for soundcheck, it emitted a pop, followed by a small cloud of smoke... and the amp was dead. I did not have my Behringer with me that night but there was a Peavey head as back up and used that My Behringer practice amp sounds better than any other similarly sized practice amps I've tried... and I don't really want to spend £300 on something I will only use in my room if I like the sound that something that cost £107 new, even if it says Behringer on it. Some would not even try it because of the label. To each his own.

I have used the Line6 G30 for 3 years or so now... it's brilliant. No compression or delay... just make sure you get a decent pouch for it as the built-in clip on the transmitter is prone to breaking.

So I'm doing some work at home, and I take a break. It's sunny. The living room feels warm (the heating has been off since 8.30am despite being just above freezing temperature outside)... and I feel the basses were looking at me... I recognise that look. Go on then... picked up the Jazz, plugged it in for a bit. I really like the sound of this amp. It's only a small practice amp. Single 10" speaker, 40W or so. Nice tilt-back design. Compact. I have had this amp since 2007. It's nearly 6 years old. It's a Behringer BXL450A, and I think it's very nice for home practice. It does not have huge lows (tiny cab) but it's got depth. I barely touch the built-in graphic EQ and don't mess about with the dual channel thingy or contour knobs... just a simple basic good tone, and I'll let the bass do its thing. If it dies tomorrow... I'd like to find another, only, of course, they're no longer made. I know it's not the best amp around. But it does its job really really well. It has travelled a lot with me, seen a lot of action over the years. Still holding on just fine. It's not the only Behringer item I own that I could speak similarly about. I have had a small mixer for years, seeing daily action. It works well, no problems. I no longer use the V-Amp2, as I barely use my guitar and never record... but it was the better sounding of the available units at the time (to my ears... and I bought several of them to try side by side before I decide to keep the V-Amp2 and sell the Roland, J-Station, Vox Tonelab...). Even the pedals... Ok, I did not keep any of them, I did not find one that I really liked... but I see many of them being used regularly, for years now, and they have not disintegrated as many anticipated. It's so pathetic when we see someone roll their eyes when they see your Behringer whatever, or a nod of approval when you take the bass out and they see a famous logo like Fender (who has build many fantastic instruments, and some dogs too)... I played a few gigs a while ago using a Jazz bass clone made by Westfield. In a small bar setting (these were "acoustic" sessions), you notice people looking at the headstock and trying to read what it says. Often. I'd like to think some did it because the bass sounded nice and they thought "hmmm, I want to remember that brand, in case I come across one of those in the future", but I don't think that happened much. It did sound good, although going straight to a small PA via a MXR Bass DI+ was not the best way to get the best tone out of it. Today I mostly play my Jazz clone made by Vintage. Now, this one sounds really good. Admittedly, it has the Fender US pickups that were on my 75RI as well as the control plate & electronics of the 75RI too... and that helps a lot. The VIntage is just a very nice feeling bass... and it was my first bass, so I have a sentimental attachment to it... so I made it sound great. Still, I sometimes notice that "oh, a cheap bass" kind of attitude (sometimes, I even hear things) from the gear nerds. Funny, I never get them telling me later "your bass sounded awful, get rid off that piece of sh*t". But maybe that's because I play bass, and nobody remembers the bass player (kidding )

[quote name='jessicaRabbit' timestamp='1363766285' post='2017096'] Part of the reason why I stopped playing bass years ago was that the bass I played was far too heavy for my stature. I'm a slender, 5'6 (okay, 5'5 1/2) woman and I'm looking to make an investment in a solid, lightweight model. I really don't know where to start looking although my mind jumped to a Squire Vintage Jaguar? I faintly remember this model being mentioned by a friend of mine for its lightweight-ness. My budget is up to 400 pounds, preferably around 200 but I'm willing to stretch it to get a decent model that will last me a good while. Any ideas? Also sorry if this is a redundant topic, I blame my noob status on here preemptively. [/quote] if lightweight is important, see if you find a Cort GB74. The pickups are a bit polite, but the bass overall is pretty good, it's not expensive, and it's extremely light yet well balanced. It has a thin Jazz-like neck. I got one used a while ago... pretty cool bass

[quote name='xilddx' timestamp='1363777903' post='2017335'] I'm interested in why so many players on here seem to be in covers bands. Is it because you enjoy it more than originals? Can find a good enough originals band? Doing it for the money? The challenge of having to be so versatile? You are in both originals and covers - why? The crowds are better than originals? Not meant in any way to be inflammatory, but I can't ever imagine wanting to be in a covers band. We do a few covers in a couple of bands, but they are vastly different to the originals, apart from Walking on the Moon which we did for fun once, and it wasn't that much fun anyway Another thing I find hard to understand is covers bands who chuck in a few originals into the set. What does that achieve? [/quote] I'm in both, although my covers are "specialised", as in only songs by RHCP or only songs by RATM. Those are fun and easy, that's part of the appeal. Some may not have been technically easy for me, as the RHCP started out when I could barely slap,, and I saw it as a challenge to help me learn... but they were easy in the sense that well, you just play what it's on the song, and that's it. I do add my thing here and there, but I don't have to think of a good bassline for a song. It's also fun in that people are familiar with the songs, and if they are fans, the reception is awesome (and if they're not fans, why did they come to see you? ) The originals, on the other hand... it requires more work. I'm never satisfied with my basslines, they seem uninspired to me... and sometimes I try to compensate by making them busier than they have to... until I hear a great simple bassline and go back to square one. But it's a good challenge, it's dynamic, songs change, evolve... and it feels good to create something from scratch that people who never heard it before go "hey, I like that!"... But it's harder to find good gigs for originals bands. At least good gigs. We have played lots of sh*tty gigs, and I am sure we are not done yet. After three years, we have progressed and play mostly better gigs, the band makes a bit of money that pays for promotion, recording, etc... but we played lots of sh*tty gigs for no money, or a beer... all for 30min of "glory" hoping there will be one person in the crowd that might go home and decide to check us out online and come to our next gig and bring friends... I like to have both the covers and the originals, as both have different pros and cons.

Cool speech, liked it!

You will want to be friendly with the midrange, and you will love something that allows you to adjust easily the midrange, to best fit in with the other instruments and find your sonic space