queenofthedepths

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='451150' date='Apr 1 2009, 08:13 AM']I reckon an out of time "live" feel is ideal to practice with. Gives you a more realist training exercise for when you are thrown into the real world battlefield.[/quote] Surely that's not a good thing on a loop, though?

Fair point - I use my acoustics loads too, especially late at night. You reeeally won't get a nice sound with a little amp, though. Anyway, how come you don't want to buy another cheap one if you're afraid to damage your more expensive basses? Surely the same would apply to a £500 acoustic? My main acoustic that used to go everywhere with me (before I got the cheap one) is one of these: [url="http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/ba-580/10397"]http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/ba-580/10397[/url] I should probably stop linking you to 5-string basses if you want a 4, though, right?

[quote name='The Funk' post='448496' date='Mar 29 2009, 05:22 AM']I'd say the only thing that's changed is the number of ideas has dropped: good and bad. Everyone plays it safe by copying the other thing that sounds ok because it kinda sounds like that other thing that came out once that was good. The ratio of good band members to a band has probably dropped too. You don't get bands like [i]Deep Purple[/i] anymore, where everyone's actually pretty good. Most young bands I've seen have been carried by one overly talented person. The other young bands I've seen have a few excellent players in the band but crap, uninspired songs. Everyone's afraid of not making any money from music because the music industry is dead, so everyone's more desperate to be accepted. As I see it, jazz, blues, rock n' roll and metal were never about being accepted or playing it safe. Cream lyricist Pete Brown blames the '80s for killing music, when record companies tried to force punk and disco together. Jack Black's character in [i]School Of Rock[/i] blames MTV (as did Biggles and possibly Dire Straits). The record companies blame the internet while putting out samples of samples of covers by fakes. The artists blame the record companies while spending more time on a music video than on making the record or trying to write a decent song. The fans don't treat music as an art form anymore, they don't treat it as a product anymore, they treat it as an instantly disposable passing distraction. I don't think there's a general decline in standards. I think the days of music as a business are over. It's sad but I've come to terms with it. Ironically there's never been a better opportunity for an overall rise in standards. If we all accept we're not going to make any money from this (with a very small number of exceptions) we can be freed from having to worry about impressing the people with the chequebooks and focus instead on trying to make music we love that we think is as good as the stuff we listen to at home.[/quote] A big +1 from me - couldn't agree more.

[quote name='Etienne' post='445158' date='Mar 25 2009, 05:07 PM']Why do so many drummers play those horrible over-tightened piccolo snares?!* *EDIT: Specifically I mean using the aforementioned drum when it doesn't suit the music being played at all (imagine if AC/DC's drummer used one for example?) [/quote] Ugh, I hate them too! There are plenty of places they sound great but mostly they don't! The perfect drumkit would have one of them as well as a normal snare. [quote name='lazzer' post='447927' date='Mar 28 2009, 10:14 AM']My main drummer is getting there now after lots of "encouragement" from me! However my biggest pet peeve is when the count in doesn't match the tempo he starts playing....... :-( Lazzer[/quote] +1 My drummer does that and he's really good otherwise!

[quote name='Pissman' post='448401' date='Mar 28 2009, 09:13 PM']There were Nu-metal bands in 1989?[/quote] If there were, perhaps the genre needs a new name?

Standards in nu-metal have dropped rapidly since 20 years ago??

If you're going to take a little amp, why not just use an electric bass? I've yet to hear one of those little amps that doesn't sound hideous anyway... I don't have trouble making myself heard with [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_hbb35ntfl_5string_akustikbass_fretless.htm"]my cheap acoustic[/url] (sweet Moses, that's more than twice the price I paid for it!!!), but I do play very aggressively on acoustic. I suggest a fretless, because that will eliminate your biggest problem..!

[quote name='BigAlonBass' post='447598' date='Mar 27 2009, 06:49 PM']If you feel you have to boil them, pour the boiling water from the pan through a sieve (or even hold a pan lid slightly askew, so the water runs out.) Let the strings dry naturally, on kitchen towel or a piece of old cloth. Heating and quenching can weaken the structure. I used to do this regularly, until I tried Meths. (You can't drink boiling water, but............) [/quote] ugh, you shouldn't drink meths if it's full of dirt from your strings

[quote name='EssentialTension' post='438617' date='Mar 18 2009, 08:09 PM']You could play a righty reverse Gibson Thunderbird lefty and then you'd have an upper horn.[/quote] What's the neck dive like on an upside down Thunderbird??

You'd think there'd be some of those collectors among us, though, wouldn't you? I think most of us would like to own a piece of history like that, even if we can't afford it or just aren't willing to spend so much on something so impractical. I suppose anyone who can afford to splash out £50,000 on a bass they'll never play is too busy to come on Basschat!

Is there anyone here who's actually paid an obscene amount (or anything above its useful value at all...) for an instrument just because of its age/rarity? And I mean OLD age - I think the price of a new bass is obscene compared to the used market, but that hasn't stopped me buying several myself. Does anyone know anyone who's bought one of those crazily-priced 60s Fenders on eBay?

[quote name='thepurpleblob' post='438132' date='Mar 18 2009, 11:25 AM']From a technique point of view, that'll be like starting from scratch. I hope your frustration tolerance is up for it BTW.... I have often wondered about the whole lefty thing. Both your left and right hands are doing complex activities so why is any easier to play a left hand bass if you are left handed?[/quote] It's because the dominant hand is stronger and plucking requires more controlled strength than fretting.