Black Coffee

He should have made it clearer about the new strings . . . I nearly missed that point. Hilarious.

There's more distractions now than ever before so less time to focus on creative stuff like music. Playstation, Nintendo, Xbox, sky TV with 250 channels, Skype, Internet, mobile phones with more gimmicks and gizmos than fifty gremlins films. That's just the stuff thats obvious. Facebook, Twitter, emails, txt messages, whatsapp. By the time you do the rounds of all your accounts each day you are ready for bed, not for bass playing.

Should say that even almost twelve years on I still get that twang of "want" when I smell a new lit cigarette. It's a deep seated addiction, as I remember reading that nicotine is more addictive than crack cocaine and the amount needed to get you addicted is tiny. When you realise the amount of nicotine in a whole pack of cigarettes is milligrams it puts it in perspective..... Like I said , one of the stupidest things I've ever done, right up there with marrying my first wife who wearied my bones as much as cigarettes wreaked havoc in my lungs and chest.

[quote name='Graham' timestamp='1410802482' post='2553359'] Blimey, that's an age gap! [/quote] 13yrs of a gap. Comical all the time, the young one wins every exchange.

I started my older son at the age of 7 Bought him a Westfield junior bass and let him get on with it. He took a week to play the riff of smoke on the water. This august past he was playing double bass in a huge orchestra at the Menin gate in Belgium for the world war 1 centenary and is at college studying it now too. Who'd want to play guitar or keys with lots of strings when you can shake the earth just fine with four, or five as he is now on to. Other son is drums mad and he is only three....

Smoking. One of the stupidest and most selfish things that I can do. Why . . . .? The cost in money when we aren't rolling in it is mad. £8.00 for a decent pack of 20 x 30 days a month is £240 - bonkers. The health costs for me when I'm coughing up bits of. ...... Er stuff. The costs to my family when I'm fit for nothing other than smoking more fags instead of playing footie with my young sons and footsie and other related sports with mrs bassman. The cost to my family when I die young or become so ill I'm useless at everything. Better not to start.

"The Labour Party policies on money lending and mortgage approvals for the skint masses." This is about an ideal that led a European country into total financial chaos and a housing market crash that is still falling six years on. I think the author was some slippy bloke called Tony Blair. He's now an after dinner speaker at £15,000 an hour for his version of selling the lie to so many people then jumping ship before it hit the rocks in a spectacular collision with reality.

Peavey are awesome. Peavey grind basses, mahogany version are the most underrated of instruments. I owned one of these for years and years and sold my USA P because it wasn't getting a look in.

Does it not all depend on what you like/need/want etc. I personally prefer to play a passive bass because I find the active sound too clean. It doesn't make me wrong or any body else wrong for that matter. I had two spectors and they were both active, it rendered my tech 21 sansamp deluxe toothless because too much juice was running into it. Both being active I had to crank the tonepump down lower to open up the possibilities for the pedal. Plug in my MIM p bass and it was sweeter than honey. I just prefer passive, my new ACG J custom bass was passive planned until I settled for an east p-retro with passive only option. It arrived yesterday and the active is loud and clear and might be perfect for someone else, the passive is perfect for me.

[quote name='Wooks79' timestamp='1409998779' post='2545242'] From absolutely out of nowhere, I suddenly decided I like the look and idea of fanned frets, and thought wouldn't it be lovely to have a bass pretty much the same as my '79 Precision that I love, but with fanned frets... A quick google later, I found a bass that I really just lust over so much, as I really love my Precision, but love teh Black block inlays on my Jazz. It's a dingwall, but if you imagine the bass in the pic but with just Precision pickups, and only 4 strings... oh my god I want it! Damn you GAS, I will never afford it [/quote] See bass direct for extremely dangerous amounts of dingwall trouble and GAS. Been there got the tshirt and credit card bill.

Just remember that gifts can become weapons. That would have a nice arc and trajectory for throwing two handed, or being swung like an axe towards you. Also the bass strings are excellent impromptu garrotting wires. Four of them....! It's like the look you get when you're out and you have a joke at her expense in front of friends ; the "just wait til I get you home" through gritted teeth crocodile smile and stare expression. Mrs bassman doesn't do this as she is a supporter of my hobby, but I've witnessed other less fortunate musician friends with a pint of Guinness adorning and drenching and dripping over a new ampeg 8x10 that was bought with the money supposed to be for a weekend away with her.

New ACG uber custom J bass today after almost 6 months of agony in waiting. What a beautiful piece of kit. I had one of Alan's basic basses before and it was excellent, but this is on another plane altogether. Feels so solid and the B is fantastic. Only got to play it for about 20 mins then I had to go out so tomorrow will be a bass day........ Other photos to follow tomorrow if it's sunny.

Mix it up more. Does the same j or p sound the same in different players hands? If geddy handed you his bass would you sound the same as him playing it ? If Steve Harris did the same would your gallop be the same?

[quote name='Bigwan' timestamp='1408209989' post='2528125'] Has ANYONE seen a black one yet? Conflicting info whether it will be gloss or matt finish... [/quote] Best not to look too much more or the credit card will get a hit . . . . . No dingwall for me until retirement, then a Z3

[quote name='Iain' timestamp='1408111411' post='2527257'] It's this that is one of the big draws to be honest - I'm a geek and I just love the smart application of technology to get the length on the B. Coupled with great looks and pretty aggressive sound it's all good. [/quote] I tried three different Dingwalls and they were all excellent. Nothing negative to report except maybe lighter than I was used to, but that's not a bad point it's just different. Go for it, buy three and keep the one you like best.

Dingwall is all good. Don't be afraid of the fan frets, if you chord a lot above the 12th it can get a little crowded for big fingers but apart from that they are all good. I've owned three and they were all sublime. I'd love a Z3 but currently out of reach financially.

Can't slap at all, really and I'm not that bothered. Can't tap that great either. But with one thumb and four fingers available to pluck, thumb and whatever else on what is never more than five strings I don't think Ive really needed to use a pick as I just dig in harder with the fingers or pluck in different places on the strings or slap them against the board with my fingers (Harris-esque) for a different sound. Can't get used to picking really, I like to fingerpick while chording a lot and just can't get it fast enough with a pick. I could practice more I suppose but it sounds great as it is and it's like second nature with fingers and thumb.