DiMarco

Pictures or it didn't happen Paul H! On topic: There are dozens of techniques you can learn on a bass, some are very hard to master and some are hardly useful in an average band (like tapping strings or sweep picking on a bass). When someone starts doublethumbing on a jamsession it does turn some heads but really mostly all of the flash stuff to me feels gimmicky. I can hold my own pretty well but when at a jam session or playing songs within a band I usually hold back, reinforcing the kickdrum and letting the snaredrum breathe with what I do. I am very concious about making the drums work well with whatever it is I am doing on the bass. No flashy stuff, just breathing air into the music. At home, in my home studio attic while practising on my own I do try to master new techniques all the time just to see if it will be something I can work with. Nobody will ever notice I do these things. Currently I'm playing along to Yes tracks to see if I can get my pick playing to the same level as Chris Squire was. It is both intriguing and inspiring to fail bigtime and having to up my game. Some songs are going really well, others are a b1tch to master. These are the ones I focus on. Then when I return to my usual fingerstyle playing I can't help but feel good about myself and thinking "hey I really do this very well!" Always remember:[list=1] [*]Music is not a contest. [*]You don't play bass to win jamsessions or youtube. [*]Never stop learning. [/list] Keep enjoying what you do.

How about some context to place that part of a question in?

This could replace 4 other pedals on my board. Awesome! If its overdrive sounds good I'm sold.

I will sell any instrument if it is needed to fund a new one... Except for the 1961 (SG introduction year) Gibson SG Special guit. That belonged to my dad and is more then just a piece of wood with strings on.

Because why not? The drive, feel, musicality, tone, attack is very different from playing finger style and I love both.

[list=1] [*]The BT2 is light, has casters, grips on sides and top, sounds awesome and goes loud as f***. [*]I have been playing live since 1991, owned a large amount of different cabs (Trace Elliot, SWR, Eden to name but a few) and never heard any cab that sounds better across the stage then my current; a Bigtwin II Gen3. Everyone now hears what I am doing even when I am not being overly loud. THAT is the difference. [/list] Other options if you consider a Bigtwin:[list] [*]Begantino 2x12 (they have several) [*]VanderKley 212MNT [/list] P.S. I think the BF haters on here either clearly have a hidden agenda and will most likely be somehow allied with another cab company or shop OR should simply be considered internet trolls. Nothing they have come up with has been based on real life experience with any current Barefaced cabs, it is all copied hearsay nonsense and should be regarded as such.

Why not simply play a fretless?

While very nice and probably very good sounding the idea of a lightweight 410 eludes me. The bulky shape of a 410 making it a drag to drag around. I mean the BT2 is slimmer, higher, has casters and a top handle. You can wheel it around using one hand and carrying it up the stairs is easy since the cab is slim. Not interested in any 10" cabs ever again tbh.

Over time there have been a lot of way different japanese jazz necks. I do not like all of them as much but then one can get used to just about any neck if playing it is a buzz. I had a Nate Mendel sig Mexican P. It has a slimmed down P neck, badass bridge and quarterpound P pickup. This might be something you will like.

[quote name='Pukie' timestamp='1460983072' post='3030348'] Just curious, perhaps you guys (or anyone else who cares to post their signal chain) can elaborate... as to what each element of the chain bring to the party? I mean a compressor compresses Ok, but the Tech21 shapes the tone, but doesn't the amp do that as well? . Or again, the darkglass adds tube tone but the Mesa has those anyway? [/quote] The compressor brings extra beef and punch, and raises the output level for the Darkglass to use. On the Darkglass I shape most of my tone, it has a D.I. out that sends my now pleasant tone to FOH if there is one. Then finally the EQ on the amp is set up to work well with on stage or room acoustics. This way I am very flexible and can adjust both stage and FOH tone separately.

I have been playing since 1990. Whenever I seem to have found my tone, the week after it seems to sound WAY different with the same settings. I think my ears just respond differently depending on the local air pressure. Since switching to a 2x12 (Barefaced) cab fron 2x15 things seem to have improved though. Signal chain: bass -> Aguilar TLC comp -> Darkglass B7K Ultra -> Mesa Bass Prodigy amp -> Barefaced BT2 gen.3.

[quote name='Callumjord' timestamp='1460889909' post='3029515'] Has anybody placed an eq pedal between the amp and cab to remove any boomy/boxy frequencys? [/quote] Read my earlier post, near the top of this thread.

Back when I was poor I never bothered about the luxury of aesthetically pleasing gear. I just wanted stuff that works. Now that I am bored and old I started caring a bit more, but I chose my gear on weight aspects rather then looks. I did spend the extra few pennies on a silver grille cloth for my Barefaced cab as I think the black metal grille looks butt ugly.

I believe the differences are caused mainly by the different types of wood used. Streamer stage 1's being either all maple or maple with a Wengé neck sound different from one another already. The LX has a more throaty upper midrange growl. I used my LX with nickels while I usually prefer stainless, hexacore .045 strings on any of my basses.

Quoting myself from the Warwick forum hoping there's something in there that helps: Why do I post this: Grumpy ol' me was getting annoyed with all the threads being opened with questions like 'what strings are good for my bass?', 'which strings do you use', 'what strings go on a fretless' etc. etc. At first I was starting to take it out on the persons asking these questions but this morning I figured good information on bass strings for those starting out is missing on the forum and quite frankly on other resources too. So here is my go at explaining what to look for and how to pick your first sets of bass strings. Keep in mind that the lovely people at Warwick are not stupid and ship their instruments with strings that are really good for the instrument you bought. However they can't fulfill any specific needs you might have in advance so what they supply you with might not suit you in the end. I will discuss these string specific parameters: - String Lengths - String Gauges - String Windings - String Cores - String Coatings So here goes nothing... [B]String Lengths[/B] A few odd people (like Samuel and Jester 8:) play medium scale 32" basses but really, 34" is the most common scale used. 35" is not uncommon for five and six string basses. 30" (short)scale basses are a rarity. These are the string lengths as usually indicated on the package: 30" = Short Scale 32" = Medium Scale 34" = Long Scale (most common) 35" = Extra/Super Long Scale * Rule of thumb: If you're not sure, get long scale strings. You can always cut off a few inches for better fit. Better safe then sorry eh? [B]String gauges[/B] String gauge is the thickness of the string. Widely used gauges are 0.040, 0.045 and 0.050 sets of strings. These values indicate the thickness of the G string in inches. Most widely used are 0.045 sets (the E string usually being 0.105). Lots of manufacturers think up names for their various gauge strings but keep in mind there is no standard to the naming scheme. Extra light, Extra heavy or whatever can mean different gauges with different manufacturers. Bare in mind that lighter strings generally means lower string tension and lighter playing. Thicker strings will bring out more low end and higher string tension but you will need more stamina to play them. If you plan to tune down your bass (drop D for instance) do not go for light strings. When buying new strings of a different gauge then your old ones, accordingly adjusting the trussrod in your neck might also be required as the tension on the neck will be different from your old strings. If you never adjusted a trussrod before please do get someone involved who knows how this is done. [B]String windings[/B] The windings of your string come in different shapes and materials. The winding on the string has the biggest influence on its sound. These are the types of windings and their characteristics: Roundwound - Most widely used, modern sounding. Read on below about different types. Flatwound - Oldskool, reminiscent of upright double bass sound. Think motown tone. Halfwound - Partially ground down roundwounds. Feels like flats, tonally between flats & rounds. Tapewound - Used with piezo pickups and acoustics. Much like flats but darker/warmer tone. As stated, roundwound strings are the most widely used for electric bass. Generally there's two types of roundwound strings; nickel wound and stainless steel wound. Stainless steel will usually give you a more aggressive sound, more finger noise and rougher feeling strings then nickels will. Not all stainless roundwounds will feel equally rough on the fingers though, some actually feel a lot like playing nickels but still give you the nice aggressive tone. * So why are you not telling us about taperwound Marco? -> They are roundwounds. Taperwound just means the ends of the strings are tapered thus might sit better on the tuning peg and bridge saddles. Switching from normal to taperwound strings will require adjusting the height of your bridge(saddle). [B]String cores[/B] There are two widely used types of string cores: hexacore and roundcore. Hexacore strings are generally stiffer feeling strings with a higher string tension while roundcore strings feel less stiff. If you like to play hard and slap/tap a lot with low action try hexacores. Roundcores will be smoother sounding and give you more sustain. [B]String coating[/B] Many manufacturers sell "coated strings" nowadays. The coating is applied to extend the lifespan of your strings. When you play your bass, dirt and sweat will work its way into your strings. The coating is there to keep the stainless steel/nickel from deteriorating too quick. Coated strings cost little more then non-coated ones and last a lot longer. Downside of coating strings is they will feel different to your fingers and the big question is whether or not you will like this. [B]Thoughts[/B] First and foremost, as a beginning bassist you will need strings that make you feel comfortable while learning to play the instrument. As the experience, strength and stamina in your fingers increases you can probably pick strings on sound characteristics alone. Choosing the right string for you and your instrument depends on quite a lot. The words I typed above only tell you specifics about the strings themselves and that alone gives you a lot of options with all the parameters (gauge, winding, material, core shape, coating) having their impact on the sound, feel and tension. The instrument you own will have its own characteristic sound. A Streamer LX and Thumb Bass for instance are much more aggressive sounding then a Streamer Stage 1 or Dolphin Pro 1. Would you string an aggressive sounding bass with even more aggressive sounding strings? Your mileage may vary depending on what sound you are looking for. Often shortcomings in a certain instrument can be more or less fixed (and strengths emphasised) by choosing different strings.

I used an MXR ten band EQ to boost 62.5hz a few dB but cut 31.25hz to the max when I was using 15" speakers. This way I kept stuff from resonating to any sub lows in the pub I was playing. Cutting mids seems nice solo but makes your tone drown in the total mix.

They get raving reviews in bass mags everywhere yet here on the mighty basschat some haters keep popping up now and then, which causes nothing but giggles really.

If any will become more valuable it will be only the eighties models, like the early streamers with the old headstock and bridge, or the earliest thumbs... But I would not bet on it. Besides that, current Warwicks are way superior to those old ones in just about every aspect.

Am also back as a Warwick owner. Bought through BC, really nice instrument! [attachment=216462:doublebuck1.jpg] [attachment=216463:doublebuck2.jpg] [attachment=216464:doublebuck3.jpg] [attachment=216465:doublebuck4.jpg]

Do buy some different model picks and see which one you prefer. Ultex is good material as Nylon lacks attack and treble response on bass strings. I sometimes use .73mm Dunlop Tortex but use the side corners rather then the sharp end. Lately been making a switch to these though: The Jazz III 2.0 Ultex gives me even more attack and treble response then the yellow Tortex picks do. For modern bass tone this is really nice. Playing bass with a pick can be really cool in some songs, but still I mainly play fingerstyle myself. Being able to do both is awesome.

I bought a 5 string Warwick Corvette $$ SE 2010 from Ferenc. Communication was done through facebook chat, always fun to talk with fellow gearhead bassists. Ferenc waited a week for me to come up with the money (payday). Everything went smooth and quick. Instrument is in top condition and plays like a dream. Very happy to have dealt with this guy. Highly recommended!