petebassist

Anyone got tips about getting a decent sound when playing along to songs? I put my double bass & electric bass clips on my Instagram channel, but I record video on my iPhone with the song playing through a speaker and my bass playing through an amp, so I pick up extra fretboard and string noise (I know this is less than perfect technique causing extra noise). I've got an iMac and GarageBand, but I don't know how to get a clean digital sound through that to mix with the backing song and the video footage. Would I have to use iMovie to put the three things together? Thanks

I guess it depends on your studio costs and what your budget is. If you're good with technology you can do the publishing yourself for free.

I really rate CDBaby to easily & cheaply get music out onto multiple streaming sites, the website's great. I use this for promotion, not for an income stream - I'm not a commercial artist. Not tried Distrokid but I imagine these services are all pretty similar, and the more you pay the less you have to do yourself. Do you put a lot of music out?

Didn't see it all first time - started watching it in a pub in Ambleside in Cumbria, then hitched back to Co Durham and caught the end at home. Those were the days... Watched bits of the replay at the weekend. Musically, I enjoyed Simple Minds, Sting, and Dire Straits with Sting on BVs - brilliant. Queen obviously. Funny to see the mic-lead minders who had to crouch at the front of the stage to stop people tripping - at one stage a bloke ran on stage and had to loop one right over Adam Clayton's head, though I don't suppose anyone now wd've minded if Bono tripped - what a palaver over giving someone in the crowd a kiss. I might give that a try at my gigs this weekend 😉

Mojo to die for - stunner !!

I don't think you could go wrong with this bass, as long as you don't plan to jump up and down on it mid-song like Lee Rocker. These are fully carved I think, so if you want to use it for jazz & other non-slap styles as well as rockabilly, you'd have the tone you need with the right mic or pickup. I used to have a Stentor 1950, ply back n sides, which was small bodied and light, perfect for tight gigs.

That's useful to know - when I tried one it was on a tripod and yes when I used arm weight to stop the strings the bass did spring back a little bit. I've seen on the US talkbass site that some users play seated with the tripod set low so they can rest the top of the neck on their shoulder to stop the neck springing back, but I wouldn't like to sit all night. I don't think the end pin stand helps either.

I think you're right mate about not being intended to be replacements, but I'd probably only play one as a rehearsal replacement for my acoustic upright, or if I wanted a double bass sound but couldn't or wouldn't take a big bass to a gig. I hear that a lot of country/roots/bluegrass players in the US even get away with using NS Designs when they tour.

Agreed about the DB technique. For instruments so expensive, NS Design aren't much good at providing quality video content to show the different sounds and tones you can get. I did try an NXT a few years back at the London bass show, but the action was set way too low to dig in like on a DB.

This cropped up on my instagram stream. It's not often that you hear one of these played by someone who knows how to play an acoustic upright bass - to my ears this is a really usable tone if you wanted an amplified acoustic tone for a gig, and Marcus reckons there's no extra tone-shaping going on here. Maybe it's the amp. Whaddaya reckon?

Look what you've started mate! now listening to hours of Roxy Music and considering a new fretless.... Agree, the bass is sublime on this. Another thing about RM, they often had incredible intros, you just had to continue listening... Case in point, Avalon. Cheers,

It would be for this 80's sound definitely - I play mainly folk rock, and I switch between my upright bass and the Ibanez, so the woodier faster decay on the notes fits better with the higher action and keeps it in line with the upright tones.

Thanks for this recommendation - just listening to the album, amazing. I have an Ibanez SRH-500F fretless, which has slightly raised action to tame the mwah, and it's a bit woody, so might look at getting a pedal to get near this tone.

I think JG played on Love is the Drug, absolutely epic bass groove.

It's a beautiful looking instrument, I hope someone puts it back together, like the six-million dollar man. Best of luck...