bass_dinger

I knew that the Dual 505 was a highly-rated turntable back in the early 80s. In fact, it was the only budget option at the time (with the Rega Planars 2 and 3 being the more expensive options). However, I had not realised that the 505 is still a contender. The idea of an cartridge upgrade feels too complex right now - but maybe later. For now, I have ordered the stylus from Audio Affair, and will be shopping for belts from Thakker: (my Dual 505, my sister's Pioneer PL Z94, and my Yamaha KX580 cassette deck). I was grateful for the advice, to avoid cheaper copies of the stylus and risk damaging the record collection.

Putting it that way, £200 is expensive to me. However, both of my current basses are more expensive than that, because they are special, or rare, or hard to get hold of in the UK. So, I paid more for them, because I knew that that was the going rate for such instruments.

@Hellzero and @Dan Dare are my HiFi butlers - very helpful and practical advice on what I need to do next. Thanks After 40-plus years, my then-£109 turntable is probably due some maintenance. So, my next project will be the turntable. As opposed to my next turntable being a ProJect https://www.project-audio.com/en/turntables/#primary-line

Could you instead look at older machines, built when cassettes were a viable option for music? I have an excellent Yamaha KX580, which are still available on eBay etc. Dolby B C and S, plus MPX.

I was wondering what to do with this 5 metre long Midi cable, used to join a midi footswitch to an effects unit. Mrs Dinger suggested that I should offer on basschat, for free. So, I have!

A wise man once didn't bother to say "An expensive bass is one that is bought, but never played."

Over 40 years ago, I bought a Dual CS505 turntable, which I have used, off and on, over that time. Mrs Dinger rediscovered her record collection, and we played a few discs. Unfortunately, the needle in the cartridge (or the stylus?) is now misaligned - instead of facing downwards, it rotated by 45 degrees to the right, and the sound is distorted. Not sure how it happened (it worked when we started playing our vinyl), but it now clearly needs adjusting or replacing. Can anyone recommend a solution? The stylus reads "Ortofon", "DUAL" and "DN165E" , here: I have found a few possible replacements, each for £20: https://www.recordstylus.co.uk/shop/Record-Stylus-Needle-for-Dual-505-CS505-DN165E-DN166E-DN167-OM5-p610017647 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303287394628?_skw=505&itmmeta=01KCYT9ENV70KJKZ5E0X8J919Q&hash=item469d566144:g:ZaMAAOxyx-BSb~bt Oddly, https://www.dualfred.de/ sells everything for Dual turntables, apart from styli Before I invest, can Basschatters advise? Do I just need the stylus, or a cartridge, or a new turntable? Might I need new belts? Do the bearings need maintenance?

...rather than stepping up, with a plate. What a dreadful accident, @zbd1960. So sorry to hear your news.

I opened up the back of my fretless bass, to change the battery, and was reminded that the preamp includes some kind of midrange boost-cut device. The diagram: The fretless settings (1 2 and 3 off): The fretted settings (1 2 and 3 on): It appears that nothing is boosted on the fretless. Perhaps that accounts for the thinner sound, compared to my fretted bass (which has the same system, but different switch settings). However, before I start randomly flipping the switches, can anyone tell me how (say) a 270hz 10db boost, or everything on, might sound? Robert

I watched a video of her once, and got increasingly annoyed with the camera angles - not once did they show the brilliant and sensitive Double Bass player. About five minutes in, I realised that the bassist was her left foot... Truly awesome playing. The Cat. Seems to be something of a standard, and often covered by YouTubers.

Before I made my final decision, I wanted to try the Casio pianos. The website did not have a ĺist of dealers, so I called Casio. They explained that the dealer list page had been taken down, as it needed constant updates during Covid. They also told me that when they sell their pianos to a company, Casio don't know what shops hold specific stock. It was suggested that I call round nearby music shops, and ask what Casio pianos they have in stock. I will therefore be buying the Roland FP-30X. I am reminded of the advert for Yellow Pages: "Hello. Do you have a copy of The Casio Piano, by J R Hartley? No? Okay, thank you..."

"If that buffoon @bass_dinger can do it, then surely i can, too!" If you elect to put yourself through the small Hell that is the face-to-face exam, then the timetable is April and October/November. So, Grade 2 by the end of 2026 is entirely achievable. And the really good news is that you can spend the price of a nice bass amplifier on lessons and exams, yet not exclude yourself from the 2026 Gear Abstinence Challenge! However, if it is focus, purpose and a direction that your want, then the ABRSM grades and lessons will give you that. From reading your musical biography, we both had the same background - playing chords, but nothing much of the fancy stuff (so, just like an acoustic guitarist, then....). You may find that you can teach yourself a lot of the stuff - with fingering annotations for the scales, it's just a case of working through them, and having a lesson every other week to help you play the pieces. Well done for taking the leap! Robert

You are right - a good reminder. I think that I wanted to have the complete story, not just for me, but for others who find this thread in the future. However, in gathering the details together, I had forgotten that my goal was to get a piano which worked for me, both now and in the future.

So....let's see if the Kawai ES60 would work for me: • I want to be able to listen to myself play, along with a YouTube track. • I want to be able to listen to myself play, alongside a midi track, and to record additional midi tracks, into Musescore. • I want to use the keyboard to send midi to my EMU Classic Keys Module (which has Midi In, Midi Out and Midi Thru. I have a Behringer UMC1820 interface with midi in and midi out (and 8 channels of line-in), plus a Kurzweil SP76 with "traditional" midi (two 5-pin DIN). Currently, the Behringer UMC1820 is doing everything that I require, and which I listed above.

It is fitting that those who have remained Abstinent for 50 weeks, should now find themselves battling at Boss Level. For those of us who were defeated in Round 1 by Mario's banana skin, I give you @Bass Direct, the Bowser of Bass Temptation...

So, will you be keeping the ES-60, or would this be a deal-breaker for you? Is it working as a home piano, for you and your family?

I have developed a new habit since I retired 18 months ago. I say yes. Someone invites me for a walk? Come to a concert? Visit a friend? Go shopping in Asda with Mrs Dinger? Go to a meal with 30 people that i don't know? Yes. At most, it is 2 hours out of my life, and it makes people happy. And often, it makes me happy too! As Steve Cropper reminded us, Time is Tight.

So, I played my own bassline to the song, and the band leader was content. On reflection, a tune in 4/4 which has a chord change on every beat of the bar, can't then shoehorn another 4 notes and rests into those beats, and expect it to be both lucid and funky. We ended up with one note per bar, and a few ghost and staccato notes. That's plenty funky enough for me. Thanks, all, for the advice.

So, in less than three months, you have progressed from absolute beginner, to performance. That is impressive, not just for you, but also for the brass band. They clearly have a training and teaching route for new musicians.

Not at all! This is a thread for everyone learning the piano, by whatever method. I simply started the thread. If I (and others) can share their learning journey, then those who follow us can more easily find out what works for them. I wouldn't have known about Fake Books were it not for my 78 year old teacher. I wouldn't have known that ABRSM exams are not always the best way of learning, unless others had shared their experiences. I wouldn't have known about what piano to buy were it not for the thread on stage pianos. Basschat.co.uk - the home of the hijacked thread and off-topic comment. And it is all the better for it!

That was a Dad joke . . . .

A very different lesson this week. My teacher happen to have a copy of The Real Christmas Book on the piano when I arrived. In spite of the name, it was a Fake Book - one of those books beloved of jazz performers. Melody line, chords, bar lines, time signature, and nothing else. He suggested that I have a try (he knows that I know the chords, so, it wasn't totally cruel of him!) I spent a happy hour picking out the melody with my right hand, and working out how to play C^7 , D-b5#9, Ab-11 etc. And it sounded wonderful! I am now looking for the full Book- and other Fake Books too.

You are right - fundamentally, the bassline is not a bassline, but a series of riffs and fills. I did actually try to play Bar 11 and needed to work out a different fingering to accommodate all the notes - by my reckoning, that's a 2 octave range, in a bar made up of 8th and 16th notes, with double-stops. I like your implied advice about basslines needing to have rhythmic or melodic repetition. I can work with that.

1) What's the tempo? - 78 BPM (according to the Tap Tempo on my metronome) 2) Is there some pattern that repeats itself over the parts? Good question - you are making me think. So, no repetitions that I can see or hear. Bars 5, 24, 43 and 62 cover the start of each verse, four bars over the chords D, Bm, Em and A. 2a) I am not able to see anything like that, yet, but most likely I should play it through first. 3) Done by a machine (see the first notes in bar 15)? Oh yes! So, a D and an E - two note a tone apart, that sound pretty muddy in that register - and it is hard to play. 3a) How does it sound straight from the computer? It works as a bassline - it is technically correct. However, it seems unnecessarily busy and noodley. As if a bedroom-player learnt some Jaco licks, and is trying to fit them all in. No real feel for how the line supports the band, but instead, a bass solo. 4) What kind of band is playing? Bass plus Drummer, Keys, guitar, vox, cello, flute. 4a) Is it even possible to go up high if there are keys close by? Soundwise it may be feasible to stay in the half and first position. Instinctively, I don't want to be ranging from the low B to a high E om the G string. So, I will stay low. 5) I think (this is my very biased opinion) that bass should be rhythmic instrument in modern music. Yes. Very biased, but very correct! I can't play the written line - if I could, I wouldn't be in a scratch church band playing carols! So, I think that I need to include a few riffs and pentatonic noodles, a couple of octave jumps, and waggle my head a bit. Instant funky, when you've ordered your bass player from Temu . . .

This bassline was created by software, to go over the chords to "Oh little town of Bethlehem". The Musical Director selected "funky R&B" (or somesuch) as the option for the bass style. Is this difficult to play for a competent reader (which I am not)? Is it unnecessarily complicated? I am struggling with it, and will probably simplify it. Does anyone have any hints or tips, to help me to create a funky yet playable line.