Skol303

Demo it first... always try the demo before taking the plunge! 😉 I think the Ableton demo is 30 days last time I checked, which should be sufficient time for you to love it or loathe it. YouTube tutorials are ideal for learning the basics. Another great suggestion! GarageBand is often overlooked a being “a bit of a toy”, but it’s a really good DAW: one of the easiest to use and capable of producing music as good as any other (just with limited functionality). If you own a Mac it’s defintely the place to start and offers an easy progression to Logic is you need more tools at your disposal.

Regarding Ableton... it’s roots lie in live performance and that’s where it initially gained notoriety as the tool of choice for people wanting to performing live with a DAW... which inevitably appealed to DJs and electronic musicians. Hence it’s now ubiquitousness in those scenes. But it can of course be used as a regular DAW in home studios. @Leonard Smalls of this parish uses it to great effect, for example. I have the ‘light’ version myself and it’s very good indeed - and very different to other DAWs (in a good/interesting way). Given that I don’t perform live, I just found that I wasn’t making the most of its functionality - and the functionality I was using was already available in my DAW of choice (Reason). Hence I didn’t explore it any further. If I was starting over, however, I’d certainly consider Ableton. It’s the world’s most popular DAW for a reason. Another strong contender rarely mentioned here is Fruity Loops. Lots to choose from 😉

I'd wager that running a successful YouTube account - especially those that rake in the million$ - takes a lot more graft and far longer hours than it would appear.

^ This in spades. On Basschat we're very much blurring the lines between work and play / profession and hobby. And I imagine that in our day jobs, most of us do what is asked of us by our clients. We might make suggestions and rescue clients if they're truly heading for calamity, of course. But we otherwise do what we're paid to do, within reason. Session musicians are no exception. And how many of us here are professional session musicians? Exactly. Also just to add, there is far more objectionable content on YouTube than Scott's Bass Lessons. To me, he always comes across as a nice bloke and I feel we should be supporting such champions of our oft-ignored instrument, as they are in short supply.

^ Good responses above. Can’t go wrong with Focusrite for audio interfaces. They offer great products for small/home studios (the Solo, 2i2 and 2i4) right up to multiple i/o interfaces for pros. I previously owned a 2i4 and loved it: a rock solid interface with very low latency and super-easy to set up. Quite literally plug and play on a Mac. There are cheaper alternatives, but Focusrite is money well spent. For DAW software, there are lots of options and as mentioned already. They all essentially do the same thing - but in different ways - and they all require some commitment to get past the initial learning curve. Here’s a useful summary of the most popular DAWs from 2018 for reference: https://www.gearslutz.com/board/best-studio-gear/1211889-10-most-popular-daws-right-now.html Most of them are available as free demos. Best advice is to shortlist a few, try the demos (using YouTube tutorials to get started) and pick whichever you feel most at home with. This will take a little patience, but it’s time well spent and will help to avoid frustration further down the line. Once you’ve made your choice, stick with it and learn it well. You want to reach the point at which using the software becomes second-nature. The time commitment involved is very similar to learning a musical instrument - with enough practice you can stop thinking about where the notes are just focus on expressing yourself. I have experience of using Reason, Reaper, Cubase, Ableton, Logic (Mac only) and Maschine; and eventually settled on Reason and Maschine as my tools of choice (with Logic being a close contender). But take that with a pinch of salt, as what works for me may be unsuited to you.

I have a JB Rithimic V (passive 5-string) and regardless of whether you're wanting to emulate his tone or not, I can testify that they're nice basses. Best neck I own and superbly playable, especially with 19mm string spacing on the five which suits me nicely 🙂

Snap! I use those exact same two mics. I don’t have a great need for recording mics and find the SM57 and C1 have me pretty much covered. I use the SM57 for vocals and bass cab re-amping; and the C1 occasionally for things like piano (it sucks on vocal as it has a big spike in the high end that really messes with sibilance). But to be honest I could easily get by with just the SM57 as I tend to record most instruments DI’d. I also have a couple of acoustic measurement mics: a UMIK-1 and another cheaper one (can’t remember the brand). They’re obviously for a specific purpose but can be used quite nicely on things like acoustic guitar. I’ve had an EV RE20 on my wishlist for a long time and keep an eye on eBay and elsewhere for one going cheap, as it would cater for my bass/vocal needs quite perfectly. And I still hope to find a vintage U47 at a jumble sale... 😉

January's Composition Challenge is now underway! Here’s the image for your inspiration, chosen by November's winner, SH73… Rules: Avoid any content that other forum users may find offensive. Make sure you have permission to use any 3rd party sounds and samples in your track. Entries should be no more than five minutes long and written/produced during the month of the competition. The deadline for entries is midnight on Thursday 24th January.

Well done Robbie! 'Tis an honour to win the festive shindig 👍 January's competition will be launching in the 'Rec forum ASAP...

Done. I’ve now unpinned this thread so it can ‘float’ tonight, buoyed only by the support of fellow Basschatters. So if you’re sat at home this New Year's Eve, then why not show some support by listening and voting? Do it now! Think of it like a bunch of Basschatters playing a private gig in your home. You can join in, or you can ignore it and hide in the loo, probably checking the TV listings on your phone for the re-run of the Mrs Brown’s Boys Christmas Special, whilst pretending to be interested in music. Yeah, I see you 😉 So c'mon. Let's end the year with as many votes as possible! Cheers and a sincere best wishes to y'all for 2019. It'll probably be even crapper than 2018, but heh, things can only get better, right? Someday? Maybe!? I mean it has to get better, right!? Skol x

I'd hazard a guess that your well-considered hypothesis is wrong. Engineers of all sorts can of course work with whatever instruments and musicians are put in front of them. But throughout the world of sound engineering, it's common to find that the 'classic' gear choices are often the most simple. And the passive P-bass seems to fit that category. Not much that can go wrong. No faffing around. Does the job well. But if you want to rock up to a studio with your Ritter then I'm sure nobody would turn you away.

From my own very limited and certainly non-professional experience of recording studios... P-basses are popular because their sound is so dependable. And yes, of course it's all in the ruddy fingers! But aside from that, with a P-bass the sound engineer/producer generally knows what to expect. Same goes for certain brands of guitars. They're like the 'industry standard' of their instrument type. And they wouldn't have acquired such familiarity if they sounded crap, either. They're also a doddle to fit into a mix. I record my own P-bass with the tone rolled fully off and it rarely needs much more than a few dB of compression; it just sits in the mix almost perfectly 'right out of the box'. I'm certainly not a P-bass fanboy. I find the constant lusting over what to me essentially boils down to different colours very disinteresting ("Ooh, a red one! Like the blue one, only red! Wow!"). But they are undeniably classic instruments, in terms of both aesthetics and sound.

I’ve bought plenty of stuff from Gear4Music without any problems. Their next day delivery service comes at a premium, but I find it exceptionally good if you need something hastily. I’ve had two separate items from them that I decided I didn’t want; contacted them to arrange a return and both times they just said “keep it and here’s a refund”. Admittedly both items were under £50, but that’s pretty amazing service in my book. I’ve also purchased and returned other items I didn’t want with no quibbles and immediate refunds. (Yes, I am a fussy shopper). They’re a massive company and of course some orders are going to go awry. But my own experience of buying from them has been 10/10 every time. But then I tend to have the same experience with the courier companies that frequently get panned on here. So as always it seems, it's a case of YMMV.

Sorry G! Too much sherry. Now fixed.

Added 👍

It's time to vote in Basschat's own poor-man's version of Jools' Annual Hootenanny... the December Cover Song Challenge! Please listen and vote for your favourite three songs: MoonBassAlpha Skol303 Dad3353 christofloffer Bleat lurksalot Jean-Luc Pickguard AntLockyer Brook_fan Bilbo xgsjx Voting ends at midnight on New Year's Eve.

In a covers band? Got something recorded this year? Then flaunt your assets in the... DECEMBER COVER SONG CHALLENGE The deadline for entries is today! This is a great opportunity to hear some of each other’s music over the Xmas holiday. So if you have some songs knocking around on your hard drive, then pick one and send it in. SoundCloud links are preferred but YouTube (incl. live footage) is also welcome. And it definitely doesn’t have to be a Christmas song 🙂 Do it now!

Best purchase: a well-used but otherwise excellent API 512c pre-amp, which I bought for a steal from a friend (rather than, y'know, actually stealing it from him). Truly a classic bit of kit and the sound of very many recordings, bass or otherwise, since the late '60s onwards. Worst purchase: another bass synth pedal.. this time the Behringer BSY600. Again bought very cheaply (I have a keen eye for bargains) and it does produce some useable sounds, but I struggle to get much variety out of it. Build quality is typical Behringer too - i.e. plastic toy. Pfft!

Haha! So what colour is the boathouse door at Sterling Lines? 😁 I grew up near Sutton Lakes, just north of the town. Very rural. Happy days.

Ideally yes. But we're not inundated with entries (yet) so a blind eye can be turned... "There's room at the Inn". Etc 😉 PS: just noticed you're in Herefordshire. I grew up there. Weaned on cider.

Dear Satan Santa, I’d like one of these please… …only £7000. Chump change, right? And I bet it sounds great on metal. That or a cure for GAS. Which would free up some funds for me to pay for some of the other suggestions above 🙂

Thing is, whatever horrors can be dreamt up are guaranteed to be found somewhere on the Internet. I particularly like this in the comments section: "I played this on a library's computer wired to the PA system and they said it was an act of terrorism."

You're a sick man, Lurks. And twisted too 😁