Marc S

[quote name='Noisyjon' timestamp='1387302616' post='2310507']
Another wannabe Wal owner here!
I'm hankering after a fretted Mk.1 real bad
[/quote]

It's getting a bit like an AA meeting here!
Not that I've ever been to one, you understand....

I know what you mean
Sometimes you just want a bass so badly......
It'll probably niggle at you for a while
but maybe you need to play one for a while?

Do you know anyone who's got one, and will let you have a play for a bit?
It could lead to a realisation that maybe you don't need one as much as you think

It could of course make you want one even more
But if the only way you could get one was to sell that lovely blue DB of yours.....
.... no contest! The DB is far better than any bass guitar!

The guitarist I'm playing with these days isn't particularly loud
either when playing or singing
It really doesn't take too much background noise level to interfere with the Snark

Funny enough, he's got the very same tuner
and says exactly the same thing!

Some useful hints and suggestions here folks
Personally, I find as a relative newbie to the wonderful world of DB playing,
my left arm aches quite a lot, after playing a while

This has lessened a bit as I'm playing more DB than bass guitar lately
I's probably just playing, and doing some bass exercises will help me here

Let us know what works for you timbo

I've got a Snark tuner too,
It's really good, and well priced,
It works superbly at home

but I do find it picks up other sounds, and isn't quite so easy to tune a DB
in a pub environment, where guitars and vocals are going on in the background
This is with it switched to the vibration setting too...
This may be partly due to my pickup system having a mic of course.....

EDIT: At my last gig on saturday,
I took along another tuner, and connected it to the Tuner output of my Markbass amp
This suffered from other noises going on too
Again, must be down to having a mic as part of the pickup
In future gigs, I'm going to try tuning with the output from the mic turned down to zero

[quote name='ubassman' timestamp='1387286732' post='2310220']
Bingo - maybe thats the real issue here !

Increasing volume can be down to a singer not really being that confident in their abilities. Its much more comfortable playing louder and distorted in a wall of sound than playing quiet where everyone is more critical because they can hear every note. Are rehearsals equally loud?

Could you and your brother join forces and suggest that "to make sure that the set is really polished" , that you do an acoustic unamplified rehearsal? If the singer hears the songs and they sound great unplugged he may well go that way live or at least turn down. If the singing is shockingly bad ...well theres your reason why the volume gets cranked up!
[/quote]

Another possibility spotted by Ubassman!

[quote name='ubassman' timestamp='1387281059' post='2310110']
When i have been in this situation before I turned my bass way way way down and left the band stranded having no option but to also turn down to hear the bass. Lower volumes in small venue always works so much better anyway ...you never know they might learn something here!
[/quote]

Great idea!

[quote name='artisan' timestamp='1387286133' post='2310208']
yes indeed he is,his wife comes to most gigs & seems to have appointed herself as musical director.
Naturally all she wants to hear is hubby.
[/quote]

Hmmm. I'm sure this is part of the problem...

Some guitarists do seem to want to hear themselves more than anyone else (not all of them though)
and if their partner is convincing him he needs to be louder too.....

To my mind, quitting the band is perhaps a tad too much
You will probably find another band quickly
but there remains the possibility that you may not - and you have to weigh that up
I was recently looking for a band for a long time - far longer than I thought I'd have to
after a band I was in folded....

Maybe you could look around to see how many other bands are around your area
playing the sort of stuff you want to do,
and let the other band members know you're thinking about looking at these other bands
because you're not completely happy with the sound....

Let them know why, and tell them that landlady's thoughts to support your view

Either way, let us know what you decide, or how you get on with convincing the other members
I'm sure they'll know a double bass player is a rarer breed than a guitarist

Cheers and good luck

I've got exactly the same rig,
and it's awesome!
So anyone thinking of going for it,
I'd recommend it highly

Have a free bump TRBboy,
but I think you'd find it hard to better this rig at that sort of price

I bought a Double Bass Pickup system from Etienne
and I just thought I'd say my bit here...

He was just a great guy to deal with!
I got the pickup really quickly - he must have posted it immediately
it was all wrapped up and parceled well for safe delivery

And he has kept in touch and helpfully answered any questions since

Cheers Etienne
Best
Marc

[quote name='fatback' timestamp='1385994355' post='2294383']
Neoprene gloves like anglers use are amazing. You can cut off the fingers. It's almost like they generate heat.
[/quote]

Useful tip from fatback there....
Hope you don't have to give up

I get so much pleasure from playing, I'd really miss it
Nothing better on a cold winters eve, than play about on a bass..

Good luck anyhow, and if you do try those gloves
let us know how you get on

Roll on spring anyway

[quote name='gary mac' timestamp='1386829159' post='2305020']
Last time I encountered the same thing (if I have understood your description correctly), it was due to the pick up being too close to the E & A strings. Like booboo suggested, lowering it a little sorted the problem.
[/quote]

This was my first thought, when I read your post too....
I had a hint of this problem, years back, on a Precision...

Try lowering the pickups

Let us know how you get on
Good luck with sorting it

Shame you're selling it Mike,
but EUB's and DB's are rather different beasts from bass guitars

Personally, I'm finding I prefer to keep my basslines more simple than on a bass guitar
Maybe it's just something about the resonance of DB?
Even on the EUB, I find I like to leave some notes ring for longer...

Anyhow, good luck selling it - someone's going to have a good deal

Cheers again

Good stuff
Don't forget to let us know what you get
and post some piccies too

Good luck with your search
Cheers

Marc (one very happy DB convert)

[quote name='bassace' timestamp='1386331861' post='2298831']
...... The thing about a DB is that you need a 'fast' speaker to articulate the complex string dynamics and much of the time you're looking to project strong mids rather than a thumping bass. Only my opinion.
[/quote]

A well thought one though, thanks for sharing

Will do, cheers for that Clarky

Some good food for thought there Maude

Only just seen this thread, so I'm a bit late to add my thoughts,

Yes, it's all very rock & roll, to smash up your gear on stage
but as others have said, it's now rather passe & old hat

I'm not quite with you on the instruments having a "soul"
but I wouldn't want to criticise you over this point
I'd absolutely hate to see my instruments smashed up
particularly the older ones and my DB - shock, horror!

And it does seem a rather petulant gesture on the part of musicians who smash gear up now that it has been done to death

I did once hear a theory, that such an act is also a way of getting out of playing more encores....
..... bit extreme way though....

[quote name='Clarky' timestamp='1386280002' post='2298327']
Hi Marc, the big trend on DB is to use small speakers.......
[/quote]

Hi Clarky,
Hmmm, just wondering why this is?
Wish I had the dosh to get one now
These little amps are just so portable & neat....

I'd like to try my DB through one, but no-one sells Markbass around here at the moment...
Shame..... still, she'd no doubt tell me I don't need another amp

Can't see why it wouldn't work
Especially if you add a fingerboard pickup

Let us know how you get on, cos I bought a cheap pickup
to try out on my EUB......
Just haven't got round to fitting it yet!

Don't think it's cheeky at all Clarky
It's not an amp I'd consider for putting DB through

I've got a Markbass 102P and a 15" extension cab,
and I'm just starting to play about with the sounds using my DB with different combinations / pickups / etc
I was surprised how the 102 sounded warmer, and generally better than just using an amp head with the 15"

I would have thought DB sounded better through the larger speaker...
Now you've given me something else to think about

Cheers
Marc

Yep, I was pleased this worked out for you too AndyBass

Have a play around with it, and maybe do a couple of songs with it at a gig.....
The Stagg got me hooked on DB, and I've not looked back
The beauty of the Stagg is not just that it folds down to a compact size,
but as you say, you can play it quietly while the little one's asleep

The MP3 player socket is useful here too

[quote name='Dr.Dave' timestamp='1386060863' post='2295052']
Ah - Floyd !

Simply roll your own P F classic by getting the bass and drums to do something over simple and too slow while the guitar player wails some masturbatory irelevance over the top for 20 mins. 30 mins , in fact. For extra realism - write the lyrics the day after your dog dies.
[/quote]

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1386077178' post='2295347']
[attachment=149702:Spoo_Clam.jpg]

So named, I should think, as being of the same form as cotton spools (...and can be home-made using said spools..!).
[/quote]
[quote name='DaveFry' timestamp='1386084969' post='2295506']
Just thought I'd drop this new video in here for anyone now or future seeking info on hide glue

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stpmQfLrQPo[/media]
[/quote]
[quote name='Maude' timestamp='1386111240' post='2296079']
I used the Titebond liquid hide glue to glue the fingerboard back on my bass, really easy to use straight from the bottle and was only about a tenner for 2 16oz bottles on Amazon.
[/quote]

All very useful info, for future reference
Thanks for posting guys

[quote name='sarah thomas' timestamp='1386106204' post='2295952']
She couldn't have gone to anyone better, Marc. I'm glad she's being played and loved. But I have one question - how often do you play your Stagg?
[/quote]

I'm glad you realise that the lovely DB you sold me is being loved & played
I don't play the Stagg too regularly, but I give it a whirl occasionally
and I take it round to a pals house for a jam....

I put some nylon wrap strings on it, and it's quite a different feel, and quite nice to play

It's far easier to lug around in the car than my DB
... plus, as I've mentioned, I'll take it along to gigs, as spare
Got a gig with a guitarist pal in Newport on the 14th
so it'll come along as spare to that.....
I know, "belt & braces" - that's me

There was a horror story on here, where a DB player had his bridge collapse
in an accident, mid-gig!
To my mind, the Stagg is a good, cheap insurance policy

I know others may think it could be money wasted,
but if you buy one second-hand, then you'll pretty much get what you paid for it.....

When searching for a DB, I found they never come up for sale anywhere near me,
and I'd have wasted far more money, travelling around to try out a DB,
and not really knowing what I was really looking for,
or what would be a good, bad, or indifferent one....

Playing the Stagg EUB at least gave me some basic ability & knowledge
and an idea of what I was after, and some appreciation of DB playing
I'd argue that I'd have spent as much on petrol, trying out just a handful of basses
and could have spent far more still, buying a bass which wasn't up to scratch

To my mind the cost of the Stagg (a little over 200 quid) was one of the best investments I made
It convinced me to buy a DB, and I know I can get the 200 quid back

Not sure I'll ever get used to lugging a DB around
Not with my ageing joints etc

.... but it is worth it

[quote name='henry norton' timestamp='1385935677' post='2293919']


.....Other than that, just find, borrow or make a few spool clamps (much lighter than sash clamps) and have a go. The chances are the back's come off because it's shrunk, so it will happen again if you just glue it but if you're careful you shouldn't do any damage having a go. PM me if you want.
[/quote]

Some useful info on here folks
I was just wondering what "spool clamps" are though Henry?
and why they would be better....

Cheers

Marc