Funky Dunky

An oft-cited bible for those beginning slap bass is Alexis Sklarevski's The Slap Bass Program. Boring as all hell but undoubtedly helpful. As others have said, Scott Devine and Scott Whitley's youtube videos have been extremely beneficial (to me, certainly) but I would recommend a Dvd called Slap Fundamentals by Ed Friedland (it's available online for less than the price of a bad haircut). Ed teaches how to slap from novice up to advanced, explains it all in simple terms, and the dvd covers a multitude of stuff including how best to position your bass to make slap easier and more omfortable, avoiding fatigue, which pickups and amps are best for a 'good' slap sound and tons more. Helped me a great deal, and my slap bass playing really moved up a few notches within a few weeks.

I like the two USA ones best, but all sound great. The MIM sounds a little bit like the tone is all the way off, even when it's not. But another great video and more great playing. Would love to see a video like this for Stingray basses - ie MM, Sterling, Sub, Sub Ray etc.

This is fantastic, I really loved your video on Jazz basses and I can't wait to see this one. Will watch it tonight and let you know my fave ;-)

I can bark and play but I can't properly sing, as in melodically, with correct breathing and the usual warmth in my voice. I tense up with fear. All of this just further enforces that Les Claypool is a freak of nature.

I love this band!! First song I ever heard was 'Nothing Is The Same' and it was by sheer luck - I grabbed a set of headphones on a listening post in Tower Records in Glasgow about 15 years ago and it was the first track on a compilation CD. I was hooked instantly. I immediately ordered the GFR album the track was from so I could hear it, and more of their music. The bass riff on 'Aimless Lady' is a corker. Hugely underrated band IMO. Homer Simpson knows his stuff :-p

I adjusted the truss rod and all is well. Many thanks for the info and advice.

Jeez!! That's a bit too weighty for my liking. It wouldn't take long to wreck my back....coupla gigs should do it!

Just watched some vids of the TC Electronic BH500 on YouTube - very impressive. I would have one of those in a minute.

Which of the Genz Benz models do you think I could find in or around my budget? As for the Fender Rumble, I will certainly be giving it a look, and the Ibanez has my attention now too.

I'm watching a Hartke VX3500 combo on evilbay at the mo, seems like a lot of amp for the money (around £300 used). A Genz Benz? Really? I may have just wet myself!!

Hi, I'm looking to get out gigging in the next few months and at present only have a 75watt amp. I'm on a limited budget, so £400 is the top end, although I'm expecting I will have to buy second hand for that kind of money. My needs: Enough output to play in a function band, so you can imagine the typical size of venue. Clarity and versatility of tone A good thick bottom end Good tone shaping/EQ The more portable the better. I'm open to anything, so will research any recommendations whether they be combo, head and cab, ancient or cheap. As long as they're good they will be considered :-) Thanks guys.

I'm going to need a decent amp for gigging (Wedding/Function band) and I'll be on a modest budget to begin with. There's one of these on eBay for just over £300 and it seems like very decent bang for the buck in terms of features and output. Wondered if anyone owns or has any experience of these amps? Any good? Pros/Cons would be appreciated. ta :-)

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1411410726' post='2559298'] Don't even start me on some of the snobbery that gets thrown around, I find it pretty disgusting to be honest. An instrument is either good or it isn't, according to the person playing it and no-one else and it doesn't matter a jot where it was made or who made it. [/quote] This. This ends the debate for me. Well said mate.

The Clash - London Calling Rancid - Maxwell Murder NOFX - Jaw Knee Music Anti Flag - Post War Breakout and this is stretching it trying to call this punk, but it's kinda sorta maybe slightly a wee bit punky: Anthrax - Got The Time No? Well it was worth a shot. I love that bassline though, simple though it is. Not a punk fan really, but those stick out among the little I've heard. Some great tone among the punk guys, too.

This is reassuring. I will be gigging a cheap bass (Squier VMPJ) in the near future, purely as I currently lack the cheddar to acquire a quality bass. Going by what I'm reading, maybe I should hang on to the Squier and pour the money into a good amp instead.

I also have massive Stingray GAS, hankering for one so badly. But then, I also have Warwick GAS, Spector GAS, Fender Jazz GAS....

As an aside, I changed one bass up a gauge with the same strings and there were no problems whatsoever, but the bass with the problems I changed but to the same gauge. Why would the first bass accommodate a gauge higher quite happily and the second bass wouldn't accept the same gauge? One a Squier VMPJ and Two, the problem bass, a Jim Deacon P copy (don't mock me, it was a freebie!)

Wow, thanks for the tips. I had no idea.

Different manufacturer and nickel as opposed to stainless steel. What do I do?

Changed strings on both my basses today. First set went grand. Second set went horrendously awry. I replaced the strings with a set of identical gauge, and when I brought them up to tension, the strings remained flat against the fretboard and sound dead and buzzy rather than a musical note. All I did was change the strings. I didn't touch the bridge, nut or truss rod. Any ideas what has happened, and how I fix it? It played fine, I changed the strings and now it's jiggered. Quite bizarre.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1410888881' post='2554392'] I think you have to work a Stingray, I like that about them and think it has helped me become a more versatile player as the preamp can only get you so far, anyone expecting to play in the same position with the same technique as you can to some extent with a Jazz bass to cover many genres will be disappointed, I suspect P bass players would have a similar feeling as a fellow single pup bass players, but with a different outcome obviously. Ive heard folk, jazz, funk, blues, rock and country all sound brilliant on a Ray. [/quote] Fair points all. And to be honest, I've never owned one so I can't write them off, and wouldn't anyway. I have also heard session players absolutely own it in multiple styles on a 'Ray. Go easy on me though, I'm just a beginner and so at the moment I like to just plug in and there's my sound :-)

For all I love the Stingray tone, I fully understand your point here - it doesn't please my ears 100% of the time either, especially for fingerstyle. I don't find it to be the most versatile, multi-dimensional bass, but what it does, it does brilliantly imo.

The tone from the basses is just so mean-sounding, it's possibly been said and done to death, but I just dig it so much for slap. It would also be nice if I could play like this, the little 'frrrrripples' sound bad-ass. http://youtu.be/rsamHcVc6Rk

I dig this guy's sound: http://youtu.be/VQJxkfwkbn8

[quote name='MikanHannille' timestamp='1410856188' post='2553802'] I should've gone for a Sterling on my first Musicman purchase. I never really got on with my Stingray sadly. [/quote] Was it to do with neck radius? I was surprised at just how thick the necks are, definitely not the most playable of beasts.