mcgraham

Loving that top! I remember how excited you were when you were telling me about it a few weeks ago. You must be pleased that it's underway

I recall reading somewhere that Stanley Clarke doesn't use conventional straplocks, or even strap pins! He just screws the strap straight onto where the pins would be. Permanent straplock!

[quote]Singing isn't the same as learning an instrument, you don't need to learn any theory and you don't have any equipment apart from your voice....Sorry, techniques would be a better word.[/quote] Minus the one. I totally disagree with your opinion. There are some singers that get by with no lessons, practice, technique, theory, but they are the exceptions with a natural talent/predisposition that less naturally talented (or failing) singers use as an excuse not to learn anything. We've seen the same arguments on the forum about amazing bassists/guitarists etc. [quote]If you can talk, you can sing to some extent[/quote] I agree with this. This is the basis of speech level singing, which is a great system that has improved my voice massively. I couldn't sing well before I took up bass and then guitar. I then got better without any work - I could cop a decent tone with my voice. But I wasn't a natural, I didn't ooze feeling when I sang, and my singable range was poor (octave and a half, with it getting more strained and 'splatty' the higher I went). So, I went away, identified my weaknesses, read up on how to address this and have spent time practicing to improve this. My voice is now significantly better, I've added an extra octave to my range, singing high is not a strain at all, and I sound good. Point that I'm trying to make is, if you want to do something well, you need to work at it. Unless you are born with all the knowledge on a given subject implanted in your head you need to go away and learn about it, and then practice what you've learned and experiment with it to make it work for you. Same goes for 'pro singers': they should know at least the basics on working their equipment, and given that microphones and PA are integral parts of amplifying their 'instruments', I would expect a 'pro singer' to know how to do that sort of thing.

[quote]It's nothing specific to music. Loads of people speak with authority on things they know absolutely nothing about. God knows why, and I wish they'd stop![/quote] Plus the freakin' one.

I was thinking about this last night. Music and bettering ones musical skills seems to be one of those areas that people abandon critical thinking. Like any other skill, it requires you to learn the best way(s) to do things, different schools of thought, weigh these things up, practice, use critical feedback, assess your progress, work on trouble areas, and do this consistently and continually. But no. We get 'musicians' who want to be a singing/guitar god/goddess without learning scales, timing, rhythm (i.e. theory!), technique, how to read charts, how to read music, the roles of other instruments, and without practice... and aspire to be like other talentless celebs with similar qualities (or lack of quality). Stupid culture.

Wow, impressive bass histories! There are some people whose history I cannot wait to read, though I may need to set a couple of hours aside to read through the list. My history is 8 basses, of which I still have 5... and I only wish to have 3. In chronological order: Squier P-bass (scrapped) Ibanez SR3006E (sold) Fender US Jazz bass (defretted and for sale) Yamaha RBX 270F (backup beater presently on loan) Fender Geddy Lee (now uber-modded - backup workhorse) Smith BSR 'Custom' 5 (sold) Wood&tronics Chronos 'Klimt' 5 (main fretted) Wood&tronics Zoid 'Hyperbass' 5 (main fretted)

They are great basses Hence why I bought two! Yes, thanks Mark for a great day out!

[quote]are you SURE bass isn't an Olympic sport?[/quote] Either way, I'm happy to just stick to the non-pro circuit

No-one else going to post? Well I had a great time! Nice day, nice basses, nice company. Shame a few slackers didn't make it but still was a good time out. Twas really nice to meet all who turned out for the get together.

Your call! I was just curious

You bringing the board on Sunday Shep?

Oh well Luckily mine's brown in colour and matte in finish so dings don't show up quite so much.

Not yet!

Excellent! OG, can you update the first post to reflect the correct start and end time of the gathering please?

[quote]Is it £20 better than a PitchBlack?[/quote] IMO, yes. [quote]would it cope with a 12 string guitar?[/quote] No. [quote]can it do guitars that are tuned down a tone[/quote] Yes. It can be set to E, Eb, D, Db, C or B standard tuning. [quote]I'd be interested in getting one if it can do bass... and down one tone[/quote] It does bass, even when all your strings are strummed. Can also be set to E, Eb, D, Db, C or B tuning as per guitar.

Great! Would be a pleasure to meet you. The more the merrier.

At least we won't have to share our basses with anyone else Oh, make it four... Mark Stickley will probably be there... it is his place after all.

REMINDER/UPDATE: [size=4][b]The event is 12.30pm - 4.30pm at Bass Direct.[/b][/size] [i]Copied from BD Newsletter: WoodandTronics Bass Event Sunday 18th April 12.30 - 4.30pm in the shop. Don't forget that this Sunday is your chance to pop in and check out the stock of Woodand Tronics basses and also meet some other owners and get to goggle at their stunning basses. There is also 10% any Woodandtronics bass purchased on the day![/i] Who's coming down? Pantherairsoft and I will be there for definite.