peteb

You would think that someone who perhaps hasn’t had the opportunity to gain the experience that others had, would listen to those who have been around the block or who obviously have knowledge in this area and think that perhaps it might be worthwhile to at least try a compressor at a few gigs and try and see if they have a point. Instead, we get ‘it’s the emperor’s new clothes’, ‘Willie Dixon didn’t use a pedal compressor so are you saying he was cr*p’ and can everybody post iPhone videos to demonstrate some thing that is obviously difficult to capture on a phone. Of course, when someone does manage to do just that they then ask for another twenty people to post videos so they can pick on the worst one as evidence that compression doesn’t work. It is bizarre and it does amaze me is how some people are so keen to embrace mediocrity (on this and other issues). The thing with sites like BC is that it should be a great resource for kids starting out to get advice. However, so much of the advice given is just nonsense then how is a kid supposed to know who to believe? At least when I started out, I knew if the person giving advice had any credibility, even if there was far less opportunity to access advice in the first place.

I don't think that pedal compressors were a big thing in Jaco's day! My suggestion would be to leave as little to chance and to give the sound engineer as good a signal as possible. This is even more important when you are playing pubs and have no FOH engineer. I play on a circuit where there are a lot of decent bands, know a lot of pros and work stagecrew on a big festival (as well as know guys who work for PA companies who do big events). I can tell you that not every bass player who does these gigs uses a compressor pedal. However, those who don't are definitely the exception rather than the rule...

As a footnote, I have just been talking to a drummer mate of mine who plays in heavy bands who detune quite a lot. Some of his bands have been quite successful in those genres (got a bit of a following, played at Bloodstock, toured northern Europe, etc). FWIW, the bass players in his bands are using Dingwall basses...

I tend to think of a compressor as an utility pedal, rather than an effect. I think that a lot of people have a problem with paying £150 for a pedal that you only notice when you turn it off! I never use a comp when I'm playing at home, but have it running all the time whenever there's a drummer in the room. The whole point of it (for the way I use it) is to use sparingly, be as transparent as possible, tighten up your sound and make you sound a bit more 'professional' (for want of a better word).

For me the whole point is to help the bass cut through the mix, which I think your clip demonstrates extremely well. I have the compressor running all the time, but I will be the first to admit that I find it difficult to set it up. I ended up asking a studio engineer (who is also a gigging bass player) who uses the same compressor as me live (MXR) and he just got me to take a photo of his settings on my phone. I've never had a problem since.

Yes he did. I believe that he had a black P bass for the first tour and then used a 58 P for the second (Pulse) tour in 94 (currently up for sale for £13.5k).

But is it that different?? Once you get above pub level, there is nearly always a band leader (or sometimes two, like Metallica) and they set the direction of the band. They are going to expect whoever plays with them to turn up with what they consider to be the right tools for the job i.e. what they want the band to sound / look like.

When Guy Pratt was offered the Pink Floyd gig, he said that there was an understanding that Gilmore wanted him to use a P bass, rather than what he was playing at the time. He didn't turn the gig down.

Most gigs I do are tuned down a half step, with a D tuner to drop the E string to C#. I assume that you are using a 110 or 115 on the E, if you play the whole set with the bottom string dropped? My basses that are tuned down a half step are set up differently to those in concert pitch. Personally, by the time you're tuning down a whole step (let alone any lower), I would want a 35" scale.

I'm afraid that I have to row back a bit on what I've said - I thought that he was tuning down to A flat (i.e. three half steps). Tuning down a half step on a 34" will certainly work. Absolutely - that's what I thought you needed to do. I know people who do this and their basses are completely different beasts to mine. However, if you are only tuning down a half step then most of what I said above doesn't really apply. If you think that the band is worth it, I would still suggest the best bass you can afford that works with that type of music. But you don't have to look at anything drastic if you're only tuning down to Bb / A#.

No, it won't...! It's all about how much you are prepared to commit to the project and what your ambitions for it are (as well as what you can afford). Of course if the rest of the band are using top quality gear then there is a risk that any deficiencies in yours may be more apparent. Personally, I would look for the best suitable bass I could afford, but look to the secondhand market so I wouldn't lose too much if I needed to sell it on.

But that's the point, if you are going to commit to playing this type of music then you need a dedicated bass that can handle it. You might think think that a standard 34" Jazz bass would handle most gigs, but not this one. I joined a band that recorded an album then told me that they were going to tune down a whole step to play live . As good as the bass that I used on the album sounded, it wasn't going to work live with this tuning, so I went and bought a s/h 35" scale five string. I won't use this new bass for any other gigs that I do, so when that band finishes then I will sell it on.

I think that you have to work out how committed you are to this band and more to the point, how committed you are to this genre of music? If you are going to commit to tuning down to Ab, then you have to say that a multi-scale bass (or at least a bass with a 35” scale) isn’t a bad idea. Whether it has to be a £2k Dingwall is another matter, but if they are all using quality gear and you have noticed that your bass isn’t cutting it, then you can bet that they have as well, even if they haven’t said anything before.

I've not been there for about 15 years. I imagine that even then, it was somewhat different to when my Dad's pal had it...!

My dad's mate used to run it...!

Yep - that's also in the TB thread. Demeter actually designed the preamp in the first Eden head. https://www.talkbass.com/threads/history-lesson-thunderfunk-swr-eden-etc.157829/

Thanks Kev. Vince recorded a couple of albums with Bob and was in his live solo band for several years during Magnum's hiatus. Irvin (the keys player) was also involved with BC for a while.

There seems to be some dispute of his exact role, but he was involved - whether it as just him or he worked with Steve Rabe is unclear. Looking at a Talkbass thread, I have just found out something that I didn't know. Apparently there is no "David Eden". Its the David SERIES of products, by Eden. Its a play on words, "David" vs. SWR's "Goliath".

I think it was in the mid 80s with companies like SWR and Trace Elliot. Of course, before that there was the classic Ampeg 810 fridge.

I looked up Notts County and saw that they were relegated from the League 2 a couple of years ago! Far right - with the beard and lockdown hair...!

Sorry mate, that was about a year ago. But keep your eye out on Bass Direct and the BC classifieds, etc - they do come up from time to time. (edit: just found it - see below. Also, for comparison, I bought a 5 string version at about the same time for £1.4k) I would definitely recommend the Xotic.

IME the Skylines are nowhere near as good as the US Laklands, but the Sadowsky Metros are great (never actually played a US one). I have two US/Jap Xotics (4 & 5 string) that are brilliant, similar quality to the Japanese made Sadowskys, but I've never played the cheaper PRO version. I assume that the the NYC Sadowskys are excellent, but personally I don't see how much better they could possibly be than the Metros, or certainly the top of the range Xotics or Laklands, given that a jazz bass is a relatively simple design.

That is the cheaper, lower spec model. However, I have seen full fat Xotics (4 strings) going secondhand for about the same money.