Roger2611

Not being massively up on Bernard's bass style but did he play anything with that kind of sound to it? The Chic songs I know all had a very different tone to them, I thought Bernard played this kind of line with thumb playing the low strings and finger picking the higher strings hence why there is only one you tube cover of Everybody Dance where the guy gets close to that Bernard tone and that is by playing that way. My friend is a huge Bernard Edwards fan and has spent years trying to emulate his style, I have to admit when he played me the cover alongside the original is was the only one that came close I think it was JT playing the line it just fits with all the other Duran Duran song IMO

Excellent read, thanks for posting this

It's amazing how many of the above posts mention weight as a reason for gear having been disposed of! I had a late 60's precision played through a Trace Elliott Twin Valve head and a Mesa Boogie 1516E cab, really regret selling the Precision that was a stupid move, my back certainly doesn't regret the sale of the amp and cab

You have to name and shame the venue just so we all know to avoid it like the plague!

We are all just jealous, he clearly has total belief in himself as some kind of saviour of unloved guitars and basses, he does have 100% feedback, maybe they do play as well as he suggests...... just imagine the GnR comeback gig...Slash walks on stage with his MDP special and lets rip the intro to Sweet Child of Mine, they would soon be in demand then, wouldn't they?........No I am not willing to shell out a couple of hundred quid to find out Please note....tongue firmly in cheek for much of the above

I have way too many.... 13 basses at present, I was doing about 30 gigs a year and pretty much only used my Precision's, this year will see a lot less gigs and the usual new years resolution of culling the herd of the ungigged basses....bet that doesn't happen

[quote name='Si600' timestamp='1452085994' post='2946209'] Quick question, can I use either of the XLR/jack inputs to take a feed from the monitor out port on my mixing desk to record a session? [/quote] If you have worded you question correctly then no, you can't use an input to take a signal out.....if you want to take a line out from the monitor send then yes that will work provided it is not a powered mixer and you are sending a powered signal out

Ahh those were the days when we could make merry at this "luthiers" workmanship...nice to see he is alive and well and continuing to "save" these unloved gems I picture him as the mad scientist from The Human Centipede!

the other side of this is auditioning for the wrong band, I applied to join an originals rock band, I learnt all the songs they sent me, turned up to the audition...they were impressed with both my bass and amps, were impressed with how quickly I had picked up basslines to the songs....at the end of the audition we were packing up and chatting, they asked what music I liked and I asked what they liked.....they liked Guns and Roses only, I said they were alright but not my favourite band...so I headed off home I got a phone call the following evening telling me how impressed they were with my audition but unfortunately I didn't get the gig because I didn't like Guns and Roses enough.....I wouldn't have minded but they didn't sound like GnR in the slightest...and if they had I wouldn't have bothered auditioning for them. The shame was I quite liked their songs I got a call from the singer a couple of weeks later to see if I would be prepared to stand in for some weekend gigs as they guy they went with worked 3 out of 4 weekends a month!

I have been lucky enough to work with some fantastic drummers, my biggest regret is the guy I used to play alongside some years back, he had a massive heart attack aged only 32 a couple of years back, it was the day after a gig...he survived, thankfully, they identified exactly why it happened, he is now fully fixed now but has been too scared to go back to the kit as i know he feels the exertion of playing scares him it could happen again....I totally understand but would love to lay down a groove with him again

I failed dismally, i found myself as a level 8 a'hole as there were at least two tracks I had never heard of

[quote name='Lord Sausage' timestamp='1451891636' post='2944261'] It's gonna end up like Trigger's sweeping brush! [/quote] It's got about as much tone to it!

[quote name='Dan Dare' timestamp='1451831219' post='2943756'] For a quality instrument like that, get it resprayed professionally. Stripping to bare wood can be difficult. The tough finishes some makers use resists all chemicals and has to be removed with a blow lamp (I know. I've done it. Takes for ever). [/quote] +1000 Getting a really good finish is very very difficult, I have been doing it for years, I can get adequate results on budget instruments but on a quality bass like yours it has to be a professional job all day long, it's not so much in the painting itself but the preparation is everything, once you have stripped the finish off you bass it will no longer be totally flat as you will have sanded harder in some places than others and without proper preparation aerosol paints will just look awful. You don't need to send it to a guitar specialist to get a great finish, a local car body shop should be able to get you the results you want for a lot less than I have seen quoted by luthiers. As long as you are not looking for a Nitrocellulose finish as I don't know of any car body repairers anywhere that are still allowed to spray Nitro

I think I have been lucky in recent years, the old covers band always played at a sensible volume, I was more likely to be telling the guitarist to turn up a bit! Yodaclub are very good, we are all a bit older so are hopefully a little more sensible, vocal harmonies are a key ingredient of our sound so the singers have to be able to hear themselves through what are, on a lot of occasions, monitors that are not of the same class as our amps, so we have to be controlled on stage. I do have earplugs but don't like them and am glad I don't have to use them, I am frustrated that I did damage my hearing when I was younger playing in an eight piece band and being stuck next to a dirty great ride cymbal night after night....I do have noticeable Tinnitus but seem to be lucky in that I can zone it out 99% of the time but I know the damage is done.....I can sleep next to a phone charger and not hear it whereas Mrs2611 can hear it from her side of the bed!

[quote name='Coilte' timestamp='1451846828' post='2943989'] Also make sure you are not fretting or plucking too hard. The atmosphere at a gig could have you doing this without realising it. [/quote] Quite likely to be this, I think it unlikely your technique is wrong with both hands so to be getting cramp in both hands when playing would suggest it is a stress thing (I am assuming you don't get cramps during everyday actions?) relax when you play, trust yourself that you know what you are playing...if you are gripping the neck that hard that you are getting cramp you are probably strangling all of the tone and feeling out of what you play.....once relaxed you will feel better, play better and sound better

[quote name='Behlmene' timestamp='1451782644' post='2943459'] My experience has been that if a guitar or bass sounds dead there is little pickup or hardware swapping can do to revive it. The wood is just not resonant and that can't be fixed beyond replacing the body or neck or both. [/quote] It wouldn't be too bad an idea to replace either neck or body if it wasn't a Nitro finished Candy Apple Red bass with matching headstock with original decals as well!

I know we have had many threads on here about songs people love playing, songs that turn people away form covers bands etc I don't think we have had one on songs that were massive hits and really should be covered but are too complex for bands to do...I have a few suggestions. Airport.....The Motors.....lots of keyboards and vocally hugely difficult for your average covers band to handle the harmonies Dancing Queen.....Abba or anything be Abba really....again vocally so hard to get right I am sure there are loads but really I am thinking about big hits that would be well received by your average covers band pub audience that never find their way onto set lists So, what you got for me?

It really is just a case of practice, eventually it will stick, listening to the song over and over will help and after a while you should be able to visualise yourself playing the bassline which is a great way to practice without even having to pick up the bass. To quote the age old saying "amateurs practice until they get it right, professionals practice it until they can't get it wrong" it really is all in the practice

[quote name='lurksalot' timestamp='1451684930' post='2942529'] My brother has one in the dark wood finish, I seem to recall it being quite heavy though [/quote] There were two MC924's talked about in someones collection (possibly a Guitar and Bass mag article) the other year, the "lightweight" fretted one weighed in at 15lbs the fretless was slightly heavier at.....yes 22lbs....you could probably get a piano round your neck that would weigh less! I have always liked the look of the MC bass but you probably can't get one that weighs under 10lbs

[quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1451657610' post='2942145'] Maybe a fault with the pots or caps? Sounds to me like maybe the pickups are are half volume or half power or something and the controls might be restricting the full range of tone? In my opinion, the effect of the wood that a bass is made of has little to do with the end tone. The strings and electrics have more to do with it. If the strings are new, than maybe the electrics are shagged? [/quote] sadly no, the original 3 pot plate sounded just as lifeless hence why I swapped the pickups and the controls over, so all wiring is new......maybe the problem is actually the cheapy doesn't really sound like a Jazz and I don't actually like the sound of a Jazz...either way round it's out the door, I have far too many basses to hold onto one I don't enjoy playing. Strings wise I have always loved Elite's and have used them exclusively since the Trace Elliot strings disappeared. As ever, cheers for the input chaps

Only 8 for me

I try to rotate gigging my basses as much as possible, I have quite a few and now don't gig that often so yes it is a constant surprise to pick up a bass I haven't played for a few months and remember exactly why I brought it.....which then triggers the guilt trip of having really good gigging basses sitting around not doing what they were intended to do but, I don't want to sell them because, to me, they are the basses I wanted...if that makes sense

"Sounds better than expected", I would hope so for five times the retail price....I would want to sit out front and watch Kylie play it for that money...then it would also look better than expected

I have been watching the Die Hard films over Christmas, they just seen to be a terrorism ideas forum!