daflewis

Bump!

Thanks Owen, let me know how you get on... Daf

Hi Owen, Right; the half size are different, as you suspected - in order to get the tension right they have to be heavier which means more metal wraps on the string, which in turn means that they are a slightly thicker gauge. They're currently looking into new materials in order to try and bring down the diameter. Hope that helps.... Ah! Billy Thompson.... That vid is about 10 years old - and I haven't seen him in all that time - please say hi for me next time you see him. Cheers, Daf

Hi Owen, Thanks for the question; I was going to post an answer, but then realised there would be a certain amount of guess work on my part about the actual makeup of the half size set, so I'll email Tony and get a definitive answer for you.... Cheers, Daf

[quote]The lesson here is, if you tell your customers to f**k off... they f**k off![/quote] So much has been said on the subject of the bass cellar, but I think that sums it up perfectly! You know, I even brought an earlier thread about the appalling service there to the attention of the owners thinking that they might learn from it, but their reaction was so arrogant and blinkered that it was only ever a matter of time... Shame really...

[quote name='Mr Bassman' post='1362963' date='Sep 5 2011, 03:34 PM']Does my trial survey count or will I have to re-do it?[/quote] Hi Keith, I've got your responses from when you helped me test it so no need to re-do.. and thanks again for that! Cheers, Daf

Thanks guys, hopefully the changes and additions will all be steps in the right direction!

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' post='1362658' date='Sep 5 2011, 10:23 AM']Another one completed. Cheers, Martin[/quote] Great! thanks Martin - and thanks to everyone else who's completed it so far! I'll put up a summary of the best bits when I've got a bit more info if everyone's interested.... Cheers, Daf

Another thing a lot of guys do (including me) is to buy a solo set (which are normally tuned a tone higher) and tune them to concert pitch, this gives a nice low tension. The down side is that they're not as loud, but if it's on a stick that doesn't matter anyway...

[quote name='geoffbassist' post='1362330' date='Sep 4 2011, 10:15 PM']Done. Very comprehensive form. Cheers Geoff[/quote] Thanks Geoff, But not too long or complicated I hope? I tried to keep it simple... Cheers, Daf

Right... Think it's sorted now, thanks for that guys - not a great start! I wrote it on a Mac, but it's web based (google docs) so should be fine for everyone now...

Ah, bugger! I'll take a look...Ta.

Well, The survey is finally ready! It's taken a fair bit longer that i thought, but i think it will be worthwhile! I'd really appreciate your opinions. The questions are about what setup(s) you currently use and what you like/would like from a string, and there's a chance to add any comments at the end... dangerous.... If there's anything that's not clear, please let me know. I've also been allocated 5 sets of Innovation strings to give away as a thank you for filling in the survey (the type of your choice) so I'll do five draws over the following months. Thankyou so much in advance! Cheers, Daf [url="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dGxUbzNOWXR6QWxwb21RempXSmRIYlE6MQ"]Daf's Double Bass String Survey[/url] By the way, if you have any (other!) problems or you think anything isn't clear or something is missing, please let me know. Ta.

[quote]Bass Gallery in Camden, avoid Denmark Street.[/quote] +1 By the way, not sure if it's been mentioned before, but i was in Denmark Street last week and i noticed that the Bass Cellar has closed.... just surprised it took so long to be honest!

[quote name='TPJ' post='1356467' date='Aug 30 2011, 04:18 PM']Really nice playing there, from you and the group. The sound guy did indeed do a very good job, balance, tone etc... all lovely. That looks like a fun gig...small group with a big sound. Good stuff.[/quote] Hi Tom, Yes, it was really nice - very low stress. We did about a dozen of them off the back of an album, but it seems to have gone a bit quiet for him this year. He was runner up in the "any dream will do" search for a Joseph tv show a few years ago and I guess he's just been off the box for too long - great voice though, and a lovely guy. Cheers, Daf

[quote name='Thurbs' post='1356400' date='Aug 30 2011, 03:23 PM']Thanks for that. I think I might purchase the golden trinity pick-up. I already use honey's & fishman pro plat, I cant afford a new bass![/quote] Where are you based? I'm happy to get together if you want to try it (and some of my other "toys") out I'm in ampthill (j12/13 on the M1) Cheers, Daf

[quote name='Thurbs' post='1356227' date='Aug 30 2011, 01:13 PM']Really good, I liked it a lot and your sound is what I am trying to aspire to! Do you mind if I ask what set-up you are using (other than the amp)? Bass? Strings? Pickup? EQ?[/quote] Hi Thurbs, Thanks! The bass is an old scottish bass from 1869 - unusual in that the wood is about twice as thick as it "should" be... this means that it isn't a particularly loud instrument but it appears to amplify really well as it doesn't feed back as readily as some. (it also weighs a ton!!) The strings were Obligato solos tuned to concert pitch - I like the lower tension this gives. Pickup-wise i used a K&K bassmax mixed with a golden bullet mic through their mixer (the whole thing is called a golden trinity) - works really well on this bass, but I've tried it on my 1890 german flatback and it sounded horrible! (But i use a realist on that and it sounds really good and i'm not sure it would on the scottish - horses for courses i guess) I had all that going through a fishman pro with just a tiny bit of mids scooped and then into the briefcase with a v shape on the eq. The sound guys did say that they didn't really need to do anything else to it... More recently, I've used the same bass and pickup/mic but with Innovation honeys going through a raven labs PMB instead of the K&K mixer, and the sound guys there said they'd never heard such a good sound direct. Hope that's of some help, though i think a lot of it is just finding what works with what bass.... Cheers, Daf

Thanks for the kind words guys; yeh, i don't think I've ever heard my bass so clearly before - yet even though it's quite prominent in the mix it doesn't get in the way; everything seems to have it's own place frequency-wise.... the sign of a good engineer.... Hi Ollie, Yes, good guys all of them - the guitarist is on my show, the drummer was doing "grease" until recently and the pianist has md'd many west end shows including les mis and phantom - so good pedigree i guess. But it's nice to get away from the "day job" and stretch out on something else!! How are you enjoying the fretless thumb? can't beat them in my humble opinion!

Thanks Tickbite, nice of you to say so. Rob; they are three guys i play with a lot in various places and there are no egos getting in the way - which is nice for a change... but, also, I am so rarely happy with what sound guys do with my sound, I felt I needed to mention them here! Daf

Thanks Balcro!

I've put this up in the recordings section but thought I'd put it here too as it's double bass related - I just found these recordings on youtube and am so impressed with what the sound guys have done in a live situation i just wanted to share it.... (though, of course, the recording was taken from the desk) It's my old scottish double bass (1869) with a bassmax and golden bullet mic with the DI taken straight out of the back of my Phil jones briefcase. I think it was recorded at the Leicester Square Theatre so respect to the sound guys there! could possibly do with a fraction more top end but that's being picky! Please listen with headphones on! [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMELQUHkLYA&feature=related"]Everything[/url] [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIsf41MY0Eo&feature=related"]Annie's song[/url]

I just came across these two youtube vids of a gig i did with daniel boys a year or so ago - didn't even know they existed! But i think the sound guys have done a great job with my double bass sound (please wear headphones!) [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMELQUHkLYA&feature=related"]Everything[/url] [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIsf41MY0Eo&feature=related"]Annie's song[/url]