dmccombe7

Not sure if this is the correct sect to post but thought i should mention how good these guys are. 8 piece band incl Bowie. 2 guitarists, bass, drums, 2 kys and sax/gtr player. They covered songs right across Bowie's career from Space Oddity to Blackstar all done to absolute perfection. I've never seen a tribute band get such a warm welcome and they had the audience on their feet dancing almost the full 2nd set. Bass player (Joe Hope) was really good with an interesting style varying between normal fingerstyle and using finger & thumb to a few pick songs and some slap thrown in for good measure. Nothing overkill just good clean bass playing that IMO showed a true competent bassist. Some nice fretless work on some songs. I think he was using a Squire PJ and his fretless looked like a custom Warwick but not sure with TC BH series amp. He had a great sound thru the PA so not sure what his own stage sound was like. Deep low end with clear mids and highs. Fantastic bass runs covering a huge array of Bowie styles. Very versatile. He had a very light touch playing style too and just seemed so relaxed. He was also the main backing vocalist and covered quite a wide vocal range. All in all a great band. Ed Blaney doing the Bowie act was 1st class and i've seen a few of the Bowie tribute acts over last few years but think these guys nailed it all. Well worth a look if you get the chance. Dave

[quote name='markdavid' timestamp='1489251831' post='3255519'] you generally tend to measure at the 12th fret without pressung down on any of the frets [/quote] That's what i was always told and pretty sure that's the guidance from Warwick but when it was mentioned to measure at 17th i rechecke Fender guidelines again and it said check at 17th fret. To be fair there wasn't much diff between the 12th and 17th heights but if you are looking at very low actions it could make a difference as to whether you get buzz or not. Dave

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1489142333' post='3254668'] I'm assuming you're all using a steel rule to measure string height, well I can't tell .2mm accurately even with a magnifying glass, if anybody's using a different method please tell, as said before I use a pound coin under the 17th fret, different coin widths are available. [/quote] Set of digital engineering calipers that i bought from Aldi for £9 few weeks ago. I found it easier to measure the string width first then from the top of the string down to the first fret and deduct the string width will give an accurate string height but its probably a bit extreme for most people. I always had calipers available from my place of work so it was just a lot easier to borrow them for a night. Other than that i would use feeler gauges. Before that i would literally use a steel ruler and judge as best as i could to nearest 0.5mm Dave Dave

[quote name='markdavid' timestamp='1489149024' post='3254749'] I use one of these [url="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Zuanjia-Function-Electric-Acoustic-Millimeters/dp/B017IFV3E6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489148991&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=String+Action+Ruler+Gauge&psc=1"]https://www.amazon.c...ler+Gauge&psc=1[/url] [/quote] I forgot i had one of those. Used a set of digital engineering calipers and feeler gauges. Bought the digital calipers from Aldi for £9 few weeks ago. Great buy and really handy for various things. Dave

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1489084978' post='3254290'] I get confused about what's considered high. I think of my bass as being set quite low at the moment, at 2mm (G) to 2.5mm (E) at the 12th fret. But reading through this thread, that might be considered high? I think double bass has messed up my perception of this stuff... [/quote] That's approx where my action was but decided to try dropping it and playing safe i dropped it to 2.2 on the E at the 17th rather than 12th fret as per Fender guidelines. Did check at 12th fret and not much difference in height to be honest. If ok at next rehearsal will drop to 2mm on E. Fender guideline is 2mm (+/- 0.4mm) on all 4 strings. Bass def feels a lot easier to play at home and no fret buzz altho i am playing a bit lighter than at rehearsal. Dave

[quote name='Wolverinebass' timestamp='1489085580' post='3254298'] I have nothing against ES, but I think saying he writes all his own songs is a bit much as like most folk of his ilk these days (Jake Bugg being another) virtually all the songs are co-written with a team of folk. Much like James Blunt as well. I'm sure I read that they all used the same lady who wrote a load of stuff for Pink, but the name escapes me. I suppose this is nothing new, but it's something I think gets lost in the noise of publicity for people. Whilst I find all the folk I mentioned above make music I don't like, they all seem like folk I'd like to meet and have a laugh with. [/quote] Same with the much acclaimed Adele. I heard her recent album was also co-written yet no mention of that at the awards ceremonies. Did see Pino on morning TV with Ed Sheeran as he is very distinct player as well as his looks. I was more interested in watching Pino and as there was only the 2 of them it was retty god. Can't even remember how the song sounde but Pino was exceptional as always. Dave

Mark King does get some fret buzz in the clip but he is a very aggressive style and it suits what he does. Geddy Lee i just can't tell how good the action is on his bass from the angles but it does look reasonably low too. I guess when you have a bass tech looking after your gear its always in perfect condition and set up for you. I would love to hear their views on how they set up a bass for the artist. Dave

Took your advice and have dropped the action on my new Precision Deluxe and re-read the Fender set up spec which is 2mm (+/- 0.4mm) at 17th fret. I knew the action was a little higher than my normal setting however i was gonna wait until string change as i use a lighter gauge than ones supplied. Decided not to wait and droppe it to approx 2.2 to 2.3mm on E string and was very surprised just how much a difference it made. Difficult to explain but the bass just feels easier to play even with my usual aggressive technique.. I still need to tweak the neck but will wait till string change for that. Doesn't need much tho. If this is ok at next rehearsal i might drop a little more for the next weeks rehearsal. So you can teach an old dog new tricks after all. Thanks for this post. Dave

Thought about that but i think the effects send would then cut the signal to the power section. If i can't get it to work then i might well look at a pre-amp with stereo power amp feeding a 2x10 cab and 115 cab. Dave

I like their bass VID clips on youtube. Funny, interesting and some nice playing too.

Think its down to personal taste and how they sound to you rather than what we think I personally find some class D amps a bit light in the depth department, some are a bit harsh sounding and others too clean sounding. Main reason i went for the Markbass was i heard friends play them with same type of basses i had and they all sound great and were able to cut thru the mix in various style of bands ie Prog 5 piece, covers bands and general rock music. It just suited what i was looking for at that time. You def need to get out there and try the different types before buying. Dave

I have the Markbass 121 combo and ext cab and find it useful for most styles but like someone said its down to your personal opinion on what sounds best for you. There are so many lightweight combos out there. One lightweight head i had was the Genz Benz streamliner 600 (tube pre-amp) and i've seen them circa £300 2nd hand. Add a decent cab at circa £300-£400 and you should have a fantastic combination. List is endless with that budget i would have thought. Dave

[quote name='spectoremg' timestamp='1485450012' post='3224068'] Love the model number. [/quote] I never clocked that earlier. Nice one. I'd buy it just for that model number Dave

Recently been using a TE GP7 150W head with either a TE 2X10 or Orange OBC115 but had some issues with tone fade. Was suggested it might be the Effects Return jack socket. To prove that theory i set up my GK MB200 head into the OBC115 with the line out to the TE amp effects return and using power amp to feed the 2x10. It proved that the power amp was sound all night and therefore jack socket was faulty when not in use or pre-amp was faulty. What did come out of it was one of the best sounding rigs i've used in years. It had the low depth from the 115 and the clarity of the 2x10 both having individual control of volume to provide a balance between cabs. My query is that i now want to use my GK1001RBii to feed one cab and add a decent power amp with seperate volume to control the other cab. Can i use the direct balanced output to feed the 2nd power amp ? I currently use the tuner out socket to my Korg tuner. Any suggestions welcome Dave

Dave

[quote name='markdavid' timestamp='1488902552' post='3252794'] I tend to set my basses as low as possible, I play with a light ish touch and set them up just to the point were they buzz if I really dig in. If I cannot set the bass up to what I consider a satisfactory action for me then I will send them off for a fret dress. Fender spec feels crazy high to me , 2.4mm !!!! You could almost fire arrows with that [/quote] Serious question but what style of music do you play. ? I'm only askng because i've tried lowering my action on basses over the years to find too much rattle or buzz but i have more or less always played with quite an aggressive style in Rock or Prog bands where the attack suited what i was doing. I've recently changed to a more sedate band and was seriously considering dropping action as i don't need the aggressive tone with the current band. Dave

Mate is working today but will get a look at soundclips later tonight. No matter who you get they should enjoy working with you as you all sound pretty competent on the clips i heard. Good choice of songs too. Dave

Sent to a few friends in Glasgow area and will pass on if they are interested. ? Had a listen to your soundclips and sounding good. Like Tightrope guys. Dave

[quote name='KevB' timestamp='1488815522' post='3252001'] So I guess the real question is 'what is solo4652 actually doing now?'..... [/quote] Update please. I don't want to appear any more stupid than need be. Comments welcome of course without issue provided they're nice ones. Dave