queenofthedepths

I can see how a metronome could be handy if you have serious timing issues, but I think Jeff's point must be that if you're used to playing with a metronome, you'll be a bit screwed for playing in free time!

My drummer friend summed this up quite nicely [quote]"this is a serious waste of time so please no requests"[/quote]

I couldn't think of anywhere better to put this and if anyone wants to respond to it, be my guest... well, their guest really... but I'm a bit mystified by this e-mail I just received and wondered what I ought to make of it - anyone ever had a message written in this sort of style before?! Are you a versatile bass player or a accomplished keyboard player and want to use your skills to the full. Yes. Well a new Bristol based rock band require your services. "Distilled Empathy" are a rock band with an orchestral feel with gothic overtones. Predominantly original material the band is aiming high with a possible record deal and promises of high profile gigs all over the UK. Although we are going for our own sound our influences are Nightwish, Lacuna Coil and Evanesence. We are very focused on our music and image and stage presence so you need to be willing to do the same. Together we can really make something spectacular If you are interested please call Karl Bauers on 07968 131 405. This is a serious request so please no time wasters.

[quote name='misrule' post='98160' date='Dec 3 2007, 02:26 PM']Sorry, how did you check it out? By the way, I got the sheet music for that Zep track we talked about earlier. It's a long way from the tab version -- and it's actually quite tricky, at least to an incompetent like me. Cheers Mark[/quote] Sorry about that... I generally assume that if I can't tell the difference, it's accurate enough - meaning that most of the bass lines I KNOW are probably a far cry from the original As for checking out Songwriter, they have a demo on their website [url="http://www.finalemusic.com/SongWriter/Sound.aspx"]http://www.finalemusic.com/SongWriter/Sound.aspx[/url] Always check out a software demo before buying, if you can!

I just checked that out and the playback sounds very impressive! At the moment I use guitar pro for everything, but now I'm considering getting this (I'll probably use them together then)

[quote name='tauzero' post='98090' date='Dec 3 2007, 01:14 PM']the fact I can play it like a regular bass means it's not actually an ERB. [/quote] Better still, it's a regular bass AND an ERB

[quote name='colda' post='97938' date='Dec 3 2007, 09:14 AM']aaarrrggghhh - you got it! I saw it, went for it, missed it I love FAL stuff so if you find yourself not using it then I'll take it off your hands [/quote] Here's another! [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FAL-super-100-PA-amplifier-100-watts_W0QQitemZ220179015739QQihZ012QQcategoryZ47094QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FAL-super-100-PA-amp...1QQcmdZViewItem[/url]

[quote name='cheddatom' post='98010' date='Dec 3 2007, 11:26 AM']It's not just ERBs you're talking about though, it's technical w*nkery on any instrument. There are loads more idiots playing stuff too fast to hear on guitars than there are on 4 strings, or ERBs!![/quote] I just typed in "fastest guitarist" on youtube EDIT: but unfortunately the video doesn't seem to be coming up... so go and search for it yourselves if you want to see a massive selection of videos which far exceed the w***ery of youtube's ERBs...

[quote name='guitarnbass' post='97844' date='Dec 2 2007, 10:54 PM']What music genre does this taptar shred stuff fit into anyway?[/quote] Plenty of genres??! It's not a genre in itself - just a technique...

[quote name='guitarnbass' post='97711' date='Dec 2 2007, 06:26 PM']A metronome improves timing, what else do you need to know?[/quote] How does a metronome improve timing..? Surely it just teaches you to play along with a metronome? However, I will admit that it's useful for getting the hang of playing pentuplets etc to a 4:4 (or any time signature, really) backing - but for learning actual songs and stuff, I'd hate to use a metronome... [quote name='ARGH' post='97802' date='Dec 2 2007, 09:31 PM']Given I 'need' to practice 'time' I'd rather play with a drummer,but you dont often get good drummers about,and they (good musicians) dont always want or have the time to play with bad musicians,so I say play with records.[/quote] Right on...

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='97719' date='Dec 2 2007, 06:40 PM']that's exactly what i think as well. But if i have a good amp already then why not get a good bass to go with it? [/quote] Well, in my case I prefer quantity over quality Well, variety anyway... and I'm always after bargains, so I've only bought a couple of basses new Probably not the best way of doing things Anyway, I asked my friend and it seems he did pay £800 for it, so it seems it's probably a good deal

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='96804' date='Nov 30 2007, 04:43 PM']I know what you mean. But i want to start getting more expensive stuff otherwise i'll end up with loads of cheap basses. Seems that suits you tho [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Bill-Dickens-Signature-Model-7-String-Bass-Conklin_W0QQitemZ150189392170QQihZ005QQcategoryZ4713QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"]<a href="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Bill-Dickens-Signatu...1QQcmdZViewItem" target="_blank">http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Bill-Dickens-Signatu...1QQcmdZViewItem[/url]</a> Besides depends what you define as a "ridiculous amount." It might be £800 but if it looks, feels and sounds like an £800 bass or better then it's not a ridiculous price.[/quote] Cheap doesn't necessarily mean rubbish though - they all have a use, apart from one 5-string which was my first decent bass and I've lent it to a friend until I can find someone who wants to give me £100 for it... if I had one less bass, what would I do if I wanted to play a 4-string, or a 5-string, or a 6-string, or a 7-string, or and 8-string, or a fretless, or a semi-fretless, or an acoustic? It'll be a long time before I want to spend more than £500 on a bass - I'd always be asking myself why I didn't spend it on amplification, coz for the money, that's what's gonna give you a better sound... I'd rather have a cheap bass and a good amp than the other way around! Anyway, it's up to you, of course - if you think you'll get good value for money, go for it, but the important think is to think of what else you could be spending the money on and decide what you'd rather have! Effects, amplification, accessories, more basses and of course non-bass-related stuff - in other words, before you spend a large amount of money, think of all the important factors! Sorry if that all sounds immensely patronising - I'm just justifying my logic!

Little bit of Tom Arya some of the time, sometimes a bit of Jack Bruce (very very rarely in the same context...), but I never think consciously about playing in someone else's style, unless it's the bassist from Necrophagist Most of the time I try to specifically do my own thing

This thread should be titled "alternative uses for rabbits", really... it doesn't look like anyone's going to take James as a conventional pet

[quote name='bass_ferret' post='96413' date='Nov 29 2007, 10:58 PM']I am sure if I could be bothered I could turn up clips that say look at x playing his y string bit I cant.[/quote] I'm sure I could find a lot more instances of people saying that a 4-string bass LOOKS nice, regardless of how well it plays or what's being played on it - people ARE actually interested in aesthetics, or music videos would be a little bit pointless... so yeah, people are inclined to comment on the unusual technical features of the bass (such as how many strings it has), just as they might do so about anything else not directly pertinent to the excellence of the musical sound However, that's not what ERBs are about from my point of view - they're just tools to do a little bit more than a standard 4-string can do and whilst I mainly play 5-string, I wouldn't consider it any sort of a compromise to have extra strings added to all of my basses - I wrote something earlier which uses the lowest D and the highest C on my 5-string fretless, but I'd very much like to be able to play it on 7-string with a low F# and a high C, coz then I could transpose it down a perfect fourth and it'd also be easier (for me, probably not for a 4-string player)... unfortunately I only have a 5-string fretless, so I'm limited by my lack of strings! It may not be "real music" and you may not enjoy it, but I intend to play it in front of a crowd some time and I hope they'll like it I'll be playing it on my 5-string fretless, coz that's the best tool available for the job - the intended role of the ERB here is for me to play exactly the music I want, as smoothly and easy as possible! What I'm saying is that just because I prefer to play my stuff on basses with extra strings, that doesn't I'm not a bassist any more! Okaeey, so Jean Baudin and ARGH both call themselves all-round musicians rather than just being tied down to the label of "bassist", but I think I'm still just a bassist, playing bass lines, just as I'd wanna play them on a 4-string, but using extra strings to do so - it doesn't create any technical problems for me; it does the opposite - I don't have particularly large hands and I don't rely on tapping to play everything - it's just another string to my bow (seriously, that pun was unintended!) So I've gone on for more than a little bit without using a single full stop - to summarise: I like playing bass lines on a 7-string and I like the music I make in this way

[quote name='bass_ferret' post='96341' date='Nov 29 2007, 09:05 PM']But stuff does get posted just cos of all the strings.[/quote] Well, quite a few people on this thread have said they'd like to hear an example of good music played on ERBs... it's a given that what's played is going to be good Anyway, if not for ERBs, then everything posted on basschat would be coz of 4-strings!

You could just play on a fretless?

Personally I'd advocate the Dunlop Crybaby bass, but when it comes to wah, perhaps it's wisest to try everything out before buying it?

[quote name='Mrs Tinman' post='95742' date='Nov 28 2007, 06:13 PM']Rabbits are a girl's best friend [/quote] Logically, we SHOULD have a taker...

[quote name='David Nimrod' post='95805' date='Nov 28 2007, 09:09 PM']I would broadly speaking agree... A lot of YouTube fodder is really dull... To me bass guitar is an ensemble instrument, barring the odd (short) solo. ERB's are a seperate issue, being a real solo instrument in certain contexts. But frantic tapping/slapping/shredding just doesn't sound interesting to me. Give me Norman Watt Roy over Mark King anyday ;-) (awaits flames...)[/quote] +0.5 ERBs don't have much more range than 4-strings; even a 9-string only has about 150% the range of a 4-string - I don't really try to play my 7-string as a solo instrument any moreso than I do with 4 or 5 strings I do agree with you otherwise, though - I didn't become a bassist so I could play solos... I love a groovy bass run and occasionally a short solo (but not without other instruments on one or both ends and not as a way of saying "check out my bass skillzzz, n00b") In short, if it doesn't groove, get rid of it

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='95735' date='Nov 28 2007, 05:58 PM']yeah i think the site is a bit of a rip-off to be honest, they're selling a USA peavey milenium for €2090. I think you can get conklins on ebay for like £5-600 or something like that. I did see one once but i don't remember the price. but it's sooo bitchin'!!! Besides i do play quite high and i've got a 5 string.[/quote] Hahaha! Alright then, but seriously, you can get a 7-string for much much less than that - I'd recommend one like my own, although I actually have a low F# which is presumably not what you're after, but you can probably get something vaguely similar without paying ridiculous amounts - better still, get the 8-string version!

[quote name='gypsymoth' post='94598' date='Nov 26 2007, 03:50 PM']there may not be much consensus in solo stuff, but there is a great deal of compromise - starting with the initial decision (see all the my bandmates a flake threads). whether you are playing a single instrument solo, or looping and layering it with effects, or doing multiple instruments, the whole concept and process is a struggle of limitations and compromise.[/quote] Anything less than infinity strings is a compromise!

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='94564' date='Nov 26 2007, 02:33 PM']Often there's a logrithmic curve of effort in relation to how close to perfection you can get. Its up to an individual to decide how much effort they want to and how far they will get for that effort. A bit like increases in horsepower vs improved acceleration times in cars for example, the price of basses in relation to increases in quality as they get more expensive. There's also a difference between consensus and complete satisfaction. Consensus is best used within the context of a team where no single individual can achieve an objective without the help of others. Usually a team is needed and each person in that team has a clearly defined role and area of expertise. It often happens that there are conflicts between one area of expertise and another. Consensus is the process by which an [i]acceptable[/i] balance can be achieved between two opposing constraints. Consensus does produce things that are often imperfect but this is often the reality of working in an imperfect world. It surely depends on your terms of reference too? If you are just making something for yourself then you can make it as perfect as you like and be happy because you are setting the standards by which success is judged. You can even come back to it and change it if your feeling of what perfection is changes. A few things need to be in place for consensus to work properly: 1) A direction, or agreed idea of what you want to achieve which everyone has signed up to. (Objectives/benefits) 2) An agreement on how you will judge when what you are doing has been successful. (Quality) 3) How much effort you are all prepared to put in, to achieve the success you want. (cost) 4) By which time you expect to see results achieved (time - helps monitor progress) Often compromise happens because 2) hasn't been defined properly. Someone needs to be responsible for making sure that second best isn't being settled for when there's no good reason to accept it. It can also take an extraordinarily long time for the process to have a positive effect if the process is particularly complicated. It may require (like any negotiation process) both parties to burrow down into levels of detail not anticipated before discussions in order to resolve where conflicts lie and where progress towards reaching agreement can be made. A poor 'facilitator' can forget to emphasise 1) at key decision making points in the process which results in 'scope creep' or a change in the goals. For a solo recording artist, it may not be necessary to reach consensus on anything, up until they get to the delivery stage which is where aspirations meet real world limitations (for example, its too expensive to produce that surround sound DVD audio recording, or the technology isn't easily available.) Thats why I suggested it depends on context.[/quote] Absolutely true, but the context in question is that of a discussion about ERBs - our objectives are simply to enhance our music (I think?), quality is completely subjective and CAN'T be defined properly, cost is virtually nothing, as we are all willing to keep contributing to the discussion and just need to get past any unnecessary aggro, and time is pretty much infinite (I hope there's no time limit for basschat anyway!) - whilst this may not be the most wonderful example of discussion on this overall rather brilliant website, I see no reason it should end, whilst people still have opinions to express... unfortunately, it seems that we've fallen into a trap of discussing the discussion itself, which is pretty much pointless... with that in mind, I probably won't say anything more about it

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='94538' date='Nov 26 2007, 01:50 PM']In my experience consensus isn't compromise and doesn't necessarily represent the middle ground. Or else all bands would be playing sh*t music by the same definition and the public (to take the definition one step further) would also be happy listening to sh*t music. Consensus represents an area where opinions and values converge, it only represents compromise when the [i]process of achieving [/i]consensus is compromised.[/quote] Buttt even after reaching a consensus, that doesn't mean you've achieved perfection... consensus doesn't usually refer to universal consensus; there'll always be someone who's not 100% happy with your result and there'll always be a way of improving what you've done - so never settle for anything, even if it's a consensus Admittedly, this isn't practical - I've taken this approach with a couple of projects and as a result, songs have taken years to approach completion and in fact will never truly be ready... however, some things should never be finished, such as legislative policy, personal faith, education and of course the development of the bass guitar! All of these things have a beginning but ideally they'll continue forever