Painy

Last one I saw was a Guns 'n' Roses tribute. 'Duff' was about 6'8", built like a brick sh*t house and was bald with a bushy beard but tried to look the part by wearing a very cheap looking blonde wig in a Jennifer Anniston style cut which was pretty hilarious (clearly tongue in cheek mind you). The singer was pretty good for most of the first half but then started to lose his voice so that by the end he sounded like a chipmunk with a sore throat. Did have a bloody good laugh though even if it didn't sound that great.

Don't think you can really quantify which instrument is easier as such.what you can often say though is that one piece of music may be easier to play than another. As a bass player that has been playing for 19 years with over 1000 gigs under my belt but also just messes around on guitar a bit, I would say that playing Wonderwall on guitar is quite easy but Metropolis by Dream Theatre is pretty tricky on bass. On the other hand, I could probably play Running with the Devil with one hand whilst simultaneously making a sandwich with the other and yet if I tried to play He Man Woman Hater by Extreme on guitar it would sound like I'd just dropped the guitar down the stairs! I'd say choosing an instrument because it appears easier is probably not the best way to choose 'your' instrument (otherwise we'd live in a world full of gazoo players). Having said that, I originaly took up bass at a friend's suggestion because it had less strings and you don't need to learn chords and by happy accident out turned out to be the right instrument for me. Turns out though that a knowledge of chords is actually pretty essential for constructing bass lines in the right key so ended up having to learn them anyway and I now play a 6 string bass. Go figure! In a nut shell, his reasons for wanting to play bass may be flawed but once he has a go he might fall in love with bass and become the next Jaco and even if he doesn't then a working knowledge of the other instruments you play alongside in your band is never a bad thing anyway.

If I compare my Cort A6 to the 5 string Warwick Steamer Stage 1 it replaced I'd say the Warwick was maybe 20% better overall (across tone, looks playability and build quality). The tone I can easily compensate for by tweaking the eq on my amp. Looks are very subjective anyway and I can quite frankly live with a little less flaming in the maple. Playability is the area hardest to get around but fortunately in the this case also the area with the smallest difference between the basses. Build quality may not be quite up to Warwick's standard but I by no means get the impression that the Cort is ever likely to fall apart on me. Given a 20% difference in quality but that the Cort is just 20% of the cost (around £800 or less for the Cort or well over £4000 for the Warwick) I'm far less inclined to worry about high end bases these days and concentrate on providing the low end. Having said all that I really really want a Ken Smith!

When it has piccolo strings on it?

[quote name='winterfire666' timestamp='1399115056' post='2441152'] some really cool stuff, that orange rig is so ott, its gotta be an acoustic nightmare though [/quote] I suspect those are mostly dummy cabs. Any one of those 8x10 cabs should move enough air to set your trousers flapping on its own. Still, as the OP said, purely on aesthetics, I kinda like it!

Let me see.... Another Ampeg 1x15 classic cab. Warwick pro series 6 string corvette. Bass Mods K6 in white, maple board, black block inlays, black hardware and pick guard. Complete new set of hardware in black and a pro set up for my 5 string corvette. Some purple Dunlop tortex jazz pics - the only thing on my list I can actually afford right now!

Cheers guys. I'll check these out.

Picked up my Warwick at a gig the other week only to find that the volume pot is broken. It rotates but the volume doesn't turn up. Checked the obvious to see if the grub screw on the knob was loose but it seems the pot itself is broken so now need to replace it. After searching online I can only find replacement knobs and as this is a push pull pot to switch the active electronics, I can't just put a generic replacement in so easily. Any suggestions on where I can get a replacement part or will I have to resort to contacting Warwick direct?

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1391947696' post='2362829'] This is an active bass but it's a neck-through and Corts do get a lot of love from those who aren't label snobs http://www.cortguitars.com/en/product/a4-1 [/quote] I have the six string version of this bass and it is a hell of a lot of bass for the money. Can't recommend it highly enough!

Played a 5 string one of these in translucent honey in a music shop about 15 years ago. Was about 5 or 6 hundred quid at the time new if I remember rightly. Do remember thinking at the time it felt like a more expensive bass than that. Never tried it through an amp though so can't really comment on the sound.

Back when I was a teenager and my band was doing really well on the local pub scene we noticed that another local band made up of lads who'd been in the year below us at school and came to see us play regularly, were playing almost the same set as us. Didn't work too well for them though as they played the same places as us and the punters soon noticed and started joking that they were just a tribute to our band. Ironically though, years later, their drummer joined our band and played with its for about 3 years.

I remember the guy who produced one of my band's CDs talking about the production on Marilyn Manson's albums and how the guitars were kept very crunchy and bass light to create separation from the bass and kick drum which actually made the music sound heavier! I think a lot of the time the lack of bass in the mix on recordings is laziness. The producer assumes the listener will be less interrested in the bass than the guitars and so doesn't bother with it so much (unless its some stupid point being made by the rest of the band like ....And Justice For All of course)!

Why get rid of the Warwick? If you only want to use the Aria then fair enough but maybe just keep the Warwick in its case under the bed. Out of sight out of mind but there if you ever need it.

After selling my Streamer Stage1 5 string to raise some cash I decided to make the move up to a 6 string and used a 3rd of the proceeds to buy my Cort A6 Artisan. Now it may be pretty much Cort's top of the range bass but I'd still class Cort as a budget brand and its certainly more of a budget bass than the Warwick. I have to admit that the workmanship on the Cort is a bit less refined than the Warwick but I've actually found that I now prefer it. I love the piano like tones from the Barts, feels really comfortable to play and it's a decent looking instrument too!

I'd say that's over simplifying it a bit to be honest. Wal basses for example have a pretty distinctive and individual sound and I'm sure we could all name others too. As far as the list goes though, and just my opinion of course, if I had to describe the Ibanez sound in one word then the word I'd probably use would be generic! Thats not a criticism of Ibanez by the way, there's nothing wrong with versatility. Have to say too that the suggestion that Warwick should replace Ibanez in the list only works as far as you use Fender rather than Ps and Js. There's at least as much difference tonally between a Streamer and a Thumb as there is between a P and a J! Personnally, if I wanted to simplify things this much I'd actually go a step further and say there are just 3 main ones indicated by the pup type - P, J and Humbucker. After that you can often find as much difference between individual basses of the same make/model as you can between brands! As it is though I'd just rather not simplify it that much

As a 15 year old turned up at Kings Lynn working men's club to play my 3rd ever gig to be greeted with a sign on the door saying 'Due to the increase in drug taking and violence, patrons are required to leave the premises by 11.15PM'! Then spent the whole gig being heckled by a bloke who had, for reasons known only to himself, attached a condom to his forehead! It wasn't all bad though. Half way through the second set our lead guitarist started running around the stage like a loony which inspired the rest of us to show a bit more enthusiasm and in turn managed to get the crowd a bit more engaged. Learnt an important lesson about showmanship that night. Years later mind you our lead player confessed he'd actually forgotten how to play the song and was just running across the stage to get a look at the rhythm player's chord sheet! Played a pub in Ipswich once to a total crowd of two blokes.... They had a fight! To be honest I quite like a bit of 'spit and sawdust' in a venue!

Personally I like the bright sound of new strings but have freakishly acidic sweat (new strings will sound dead by the time I've finished a 2 hour gig!). I just boil my strings in a saucepan of water for 20 minutes then wipe them down thoroughly with a cloth before every gig and they sound like new - at least until the next gig. Disclaimer:- it is advisable to have a special saucepan reserved for this purpose as using one of the good pans to boil dead skin cells and grease out of your strings may result in the missus smacking you over the head with aforementioned pan!

I used to play with a band called the Floating Greyhounds who drew their name out of a hat. Apparently the other two names in the hat were Squeeky Pidgeon and Salty Badger. One of my greatest regrets is never having had the opportunity to play in a band called Salty Badger!

How about the first note with the 1st finger then the 2nd & 3rd played with an up and down stroke of the middle finger kinda like Geddy Lee? Not tried it or anything - just a thought!

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1375954346' post='2167765'] It could be argued that because you are "trading" in completely different "products" there is no chance of confusing the two and you'll be OK. [/quote] Wouldn't bank on this. WWF (wrestling) were forced to change their name to WWE by the WWF (World Wildlife Fund). Can't see too many similarities between the somewhat homo-erotic entertainment provided by steroid fueled, over muscled, baby oil smothered men in budgie smugglers play fighting on a giant four poster bed and the conservation of endangered species!

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1375647204' post='2163901'] Are you sure you want her to have a musical future ? Why not try and steer her more towards the law or medicine ? Do you really want your precious daughter to end up as another burnt- out X Factor contestant with shattered dreams and who has no choice but to flaunt themselves for customers in a seedy lap dancing club to make a living , much like Discreet and myself are forced to do nowadays to make ends meet . If my Dad hadn't bought me a Squier Jazz Bass all those years ago things might have been very different . [/quote] Hmmm..... You could have a point. Perhaps I should just make her my new roadie instead. To be fair my Ampeg B500 combo alone without the extension cab weighs 96lbs to her 7lb 10 so she might struggle. Maybe spend the money on a sack barrow for her instead of a bass

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1375646211' post='2163882'] Congratulations. Is this your first? If so, welcome to the world of NO SLEEP. [/quote] She's my second but her big sister is starting high school in September so its been a while!

Hmmm..... daisy Rock could work. As much as I'd like to treat myself to a commemorative dream bass, that would probably involve a trip to Mr Shuker and parting with a rather substantial sum of money and with all available funds currently earmarked for a new more practical car (goodbye beloved Alfa) I think the missus may object. A small investment in her musical future however I can probably get away with!

I am very happy to announce that my little girl Willow-Rose was born on Monday! Now, bearing in mind that she weighed 7lb 10oz, can anyone recommend a suitable bass to get her started?