BigRedX

According to the documentation, Reaper comes with "ReaSynth : basic synthesizer", so start by getting to grips with that (I assume there will be some details about how it works in the manual) and then start looking at others once you've worked out the limitations and what extra features you need.

@dave_bass5 It seems strange that you are so keen to change something that has finally been made typographically correct back to the old way when it was wrong. Consider this: I'm mildly dyslexic (you can probably spot from my posts) and proper typography helps me, as I've learnt to recognise patterns of letters, symbols and punctuation from professionally produced books that recognise all the rules of typography. As soon as those rules start to be broken, it makes reading for me much more difficult. There are several people on my Basschat ignore list, not because I don't agree with what they say, but simply because they type it in such a way that makes my brain hurt trying to read and make sense of it. Admittedly I can live either way with the instance that appears to be causing you such a problem (for me it's a very mild aberration), but others, like the insertion of a space before a punctuation symbol (something I think comes from posting from a phone), make reading what has been posted for me much, much harder. I always look at these posts and think "have these people never seen a properly printed book or newspaper before? Surely it is obvious that they are wrong?"...

As @Stub Mandrel has said the tuning of the fretted notes on all instruments is something of a compromise. So long as the intonation is set correctly so that the note at the 12th fret is exactly the same as the harmonic at that position, then that is the best you are going to get. You will have to accept that all the other fretted notes will be slightly flat or sharp by a few cents. It's the nature of trying to set the positions of the frets by mathematics alone. And that's before you consider the inaccuracies of trying the cut fret slots and fret-dressing itself. Just consider all the various methods that try to cure all these problems on fretted instruments from the Buzz Feiten tuning system to Just Intonation frets. Unfortunately all of them are still compromises, just different ones. Besides you don't want every not to be perfectly in tune, it's the slight discrepancies that make the music interesting. If you ever want to go seriously down the rabbit hole of tuning check a professionally tuned piano, with an accurate electronic tuner. You'll be horrified at how far some of the notes are out according to the tuner.

Looks exactly like a Ripper copy to me. What is different to the Gibson version?

IME trying to work out the exact amount payable in VAT and duties on something you've imported from another country is a fool's errand. It's far simpler to take the price of the item, the cost of shipping add them together and then put another 25% of that total on top. This should adequately cover you from the complexities of trying to find the correct commodity code and then working out if duty is payable on top of VAT or VAT on top of duty and finally the addition of the courier's clearance fees. TBH if you need to work out the price to the exact £, you probably shouldn't be importing it in the first place. My advice has always been that only items which are impossible to get without having to import yourself them from their country of origin are worth the hassle. Trying to save a few pounds on a new Fender or similar mass produced instrument that already has an official UK importer/distributor will generally end in tears and/or disappointment. As for trying to sneak an instrument through customs at the airport - don't even think about it. While everyone has success stories to tell, you won't be so pleased when customs seize your newly bought bass and hit you with a fine as well as the import taxes before you can get it back.

I also play Bass VI (this the way I describe a short-scale 6 string bass tuned E-E to differentiate it from long-scale 6-string basses either tuned B-C or F#-G). It's used in a post-punk/goth influenced band - Hurtsfall - where the only other instruments are synths (and of-course vocals). It allows both myself and the synth player to swap between bass and melody parts as required by the arrangement of the song. I currently own three bass VIs - a Squier Bass VI, Burns Barracuda, and the Eastwood copy of the Shergold Marathon 6-string bass. For my needs the Eastwood is by far the most suitable and the Squier the least (and will consequently soon be up for sale) most due to it's very narrow neck. I don't find any of these instruments suitable for playing chords of more than 2 notes, unless it was in the extreme upper register, and TBH if I was playing a lot of parts that required that I'd use a guitar instead.

I've been a Gus user for over 20 years now and a big fan of theirs since I first saw photographs of the prototypes in one of the musical instrument magazines in the mid-80s. I currently own two G3-5 basses and a G1 guitar (I did also have a G3-4 fretless bass which now belongs to Happy Jack). Everything apart from the machine heads and strap buttons are either made by Simon Farmer himself or specially commissioned for the instruments (AFAIK the pickups are made by Aaron Armstrong and the bass pre-amp by John East and both are unique to the Gus). Like most carbon-fibre instruments they are made in a mould, but there is added complexity as they have a wooden core to the body and neck and the carbon fibre is a "skin" around that. All the metal-work is made in-house although I believe the chroming is outsourced. Somewhere in the "Gear Porn" section is a thread about the refinishing/refurbishing of my Red G3-5 Active which shows some of the final processes in the making of a Gus bass. There is also a workshop tour on the Gus website although this is now quite old and many of the processes have been updated. Regarding cost, I had Simon price me up a custom Bass VI a couple of years ago, using his G3 Baritone 30" as a starting point and we were looking at something around £6.5k although that includes a lot fair amount of extra and custom options. I believe it may still be possible to order a standard 4-string passive bass for under £5k. However I was told that there is currently a 12-18 month waiting time for new orders. When I had my G1 guitar made at the end of 1999 it took about 3 months from placing the order to receiving the finished instrument. The Prince connection (Prince used the purple and gold G1 guitar at his last ever gig) has significantly increased the profile of Gus Guitars and consequently Simon's work-load, which is good for the future of the instruments. HTH.

What DAW are you using? Most of the major DAWs come with at least one synth plug-in which should get you started and let you work out what features you need.

Like a lot of instruments they make a lot more sense when they are actually being played rather than being viewed in isolation... That me BTW for those of you who are relatively new to Basschat...

They're great!

And I find myself wondering when someone posts a photo of a Fender P or J bass (or copy of one whether it be high or low end) which attracts lots of admiring replies, what exactly makes this particular instrument any different, and worthy of special attention, from any of the other hundreds of P or J basses that get posted (or indeed any different to the hundreds of P and J basses hung on the walls of shops waiting to be sold). I'm sure if it's your P or J bass then it is special to you, but that AFAICS is it.

That's because they are Burns Tri-Sonic pickups (hence the name of the bass). IIRC the guitar and bass versions are exactly the same electronically, just the covers for the guitar version have 6 indentations on the top and bass version have 4.

A very battered second-hand example of that was my very first bass guitar, and chosen in preference to a new Grant or Columbus P or J copy partly because it was about £15 cheaper but more importantly because ti me it had something a bit more interesting about it.

Piano, can be loud (the clue is in the instrument's full name) and have a considerable bass content which will need proper sound proofing to keep it in check, particularly if the properties share any walls etc.

I have honestly never been into the idea that for a certain sound a certain bass is required. I've just wanted something that sounds like a "bass guitar" and besides IME most of the sound comes from how you play it and how you treat the electronic signal it produces rather than the actual instrument itself. Also I've been told that most of the "P-Bass sound" comes from the type and position of the pickup, so anything with the appropriate pickup in the right pace should get you close enough in the band mix.

I think it very much depends on how important music (whatever else it is that "changed your life") is to you. Music has very much been the driving force in my life and many of the things that I got involved with in other parts of my life have come directly from my musical activities. I would have been unlikely to end up the job that I do now if it hadn't been for the fact that I learnt to design and print in order to produce posters, t-shirts, packaging for records/cassettes in order to further my musical activities. I really do have an "album that changed my life". It's not very well known or even particularly well played or recorded, but the fact that it exists and that I owned a copy completely influenced everything I did in the 80s and since then.

Not me. When I bought my first bass (A Burns Sonic) in 1981, I did try a couple of the Grant and Columbus P and J copies, but they were harder to play, more expensive, and probably most important of all they looked boring.

It's this actual one from Gus Guitars which I had refinished in Candy Apple Red.

First gig since December 2019, and a last minute addition to the HRH Goth line-up for Sunday's Leeds gig. Two mega 6-hour rehearsals to get up to speed after having not played as a band for 18 months. Nice big stage, great sound and a decent-sized audience considering that we were on at two in the afternoon and main attraction for the weekend (Fields Of The Nephilim) were on the previous night. Here's a few photos...

For my take on the ugly bass just imagine that I have posted photos of every single bass that Fender have ever made. Not only are they ugly but they are also boring.

I've just ordered four 5-string sets from Thomann 2x Warwick 40301M Black Label and 2x Warwick 40300 ML Black Label and the whole lot comes to just over £100 with shipping. When I consider that my previous string of choice (LaBella Steels) were over £40 a set, I'm perfectly happy to pay the shipping costs.

Is the problem that he just needs different sounds for each song, or is it that he is aways making adjustments because a change of venue means the guitar sounds different due the room acoustics? If it's the first a good programmable multi-effects unit should sort out the problem, although if he also relies on his amp as part of his sound, he'll need something that supports 4-cable wiring which may rule out some of the more affordable offerings. If it's the second then unfortunately there is nothing he can do, other than to stop being quite so precious about his sound.

Scrap all that. We've been offered and have accepted a last minute slot at HRH Goth in Leeds on Sunday (yes in 3 days time). Mega rehearsal tonight for us all to get back up to speed, followed by another mega rehearsal next week for the "acoustic" gig (supporting Mark Burgess of The Chameleons).

You prefer the sound of one bass over another superficially similar one.

Having barely played during the pandemic except for writing and recording a song with the other band, it turns out that In Isolation's first gig since the end of 2019 is to be an "acoustic" set, with the following week a normal gig. So not only have I got to remember how to play all the songs again, but I've also got to learn and remember completely different versions for the acoustic gig. Wish me luck.