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In a coffee shop at university, and this comes on the radio: Radiohead's [i]Let Down[/i] (from [i]OK Computer[/i]), given the [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiodread"]Radiodread[/url] treatment by Toots and the Maytals. Righteous Natty, Mon!

Don't discount the [i]90125[/i] era, either - I think I've mentioned before how important that album was to me when I was starting the bass. I have a soft spot for [i]Big Generator[/i], too, despite the impression that the band went genuinely bonkers during the production process. Chris is playing a 5-string Tobias, but still sounds like Chris, just with less Clank. Now, to figure out what the [i]Rhythm of Love[/i] video is about...

[quote name='birdy' post='290673' date='Sep 24 2008, 11:06 AM']For me its anything by level 42. Great playing but I have never 'got' the songs. Steve[/quote] For me it's a subset of Level 42: anything with heavy Slapping on it. Mark's bloody good at it, but I couldn't fail to notice that my fave L42 songs have little or no audible slapping e.g. [i]Physical Presence[/i], [i]Children Say[/i], [i]The Sleepwalkers[/i], [i]A Kinder Eye[/i]. I've been a huge fan of OMD for years, and much as I love many of their songs, the bass does get short shrift on most. While Andy McCluskey might lack in muso cred, he more than evens the score with enthusiasm and commitment.

[quote name='stylonpilson' post='290279' date='Sep 23 2008, 08:02 PM']SC4 and Hard Limiter are working beautifully for me.[/quote] Yay! If you were using Audacity on Linux, you could install a raft of free [url="http://www.ladspa.org/"]LADSPA[/url] plugins - far more than you could ever make use of, though they're generally not as polished as VSTs.

I have a liking for the Tune TWB shape - obviously - and as much as I like Steinberger L-types (I have two Hohner copies), I have to admit they look a bit too small on me, and I thought the same of the Warwick Thumb. (I'm 5'11½" in my socks; not as tall as Mike Rutherford, but certainly wider.) Regarding Fender shapes... never liked the headstock shape, too neck-heavy for me. However, I can understand why they're stuck in the past for commercial reasons. They can't change radically, any more than MacDonalds could change their cheeseburger. The spectre of [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Coke"]New Coke[/url] still haunts US industry... On the question of what I would like to see from a manufacturer... I don't know, exactly, but I want to see Design (with a capital D) that relates to the wider Design world of today. Not just in shape, but in use of materials and [i]appropriate[/i] technology. Fenders epitomised the design style of the late 50s, particularly the Stratocaster, and (strange as this may sound) I was impressed by the fact that the Steinberger L-type didn't just appeal to bassists, but also won Industrial Design awards. Carbon Graphite is not new any more, but I like that Status Graphite are still trying new things such as the Streamline.

[quote name='clauster' post='289436' date='Sep 22 2008, 07:41 PM']Damn, won;t ship overseas[/quote] Oh. Sorry - should have checked that before mentioning it. Bummer.

Does your Audacity installation include a plugin called [b]SC4[/b]? This is a more flexible compressor with an attack time that goes down to 1.5ms.

[quote name='wombatboter' post='289201' date='Sep 22 2008, 02:48 PM']Could be any bass-player in the back..his musical personality certainly doesn't count.[/quote] I can think of worse gigs for a bassist. The Rolling Stones, for example. If I was going to do world tours with a bunch of old fogeys, I would want a bit more out of it than a paycheck...

[url="http://cgi.ebay.com/Roland-GR-77b-Bass-Synthesizer-Vintage_W0QQitemZ260290177271QQcmdZViewItem"]link[/url] Someone in the USA has one of these sets for sale: GR-77B bass synth, plus the G-77 controller, which can be used as a normal bass too. $99 at the moment, but reserve not met. Any Sigue Sigue Sputnik fans out there?

I'm partial to Rush instrumentals, except when there are fiddly fills involved. Which basically rules out YYZ, then, but I find their more recent instrumentals more tasteful, anyway. Previous faves are [i]Where's My Thing?[/i] and [i]Leave That Thing Alone![/i], but these days I'm very into [i]The Main Monkey Business[/i].

Well, as I mentioned earlier, there are other instruments in the Stick family that would better suit players like me, who want a more bass-like setup. With 10 or 12 strings, totally changing the setup would not be trivial, though some have done it. This guy, for example, has moved the bass to the bottom, but it's still in 5ths, according his Stick [url="http://www.tapguitar-stickmusic.de/Projects/Stickmusic/stick_main_e.htm"]page[/url].

Bryan normally plays a Mike Lull jazz-type 5-string, but in the comments on the video he says that this P-bass used to belong to his friend [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wes_Wehmiller"]Wes Wehmiller[/url] - so it's something of a tribute to Wes.

What a way to wake up on a Sunday morning. This is going to be on the new album, [i]Thanks In Advance[/i] - track previews [url="http://www.bryanbeller.com/tiapresale.html"]here[/url].

[quote name='Oscar South' post='287942' date='Sep 20 2008, 12:32 PM']I'd just buy individual Rotosounds or something, I wouldn't go too overboard for a trial run.[/quote] Same, thing really - you order individual strings, and they're not expensive. I just called it "custom" because last time I did that they packed them with an ego-boosting "custom set" label, that made it look as if I knew what I was doing.

NS Design has a [url="http://www.nedsteinberger.com/instruments/basscello.php"]Bass Cello[/url] that can be tuned CGDAE. The website doesn't give the gauges for the string sets they sell for it... but at $190 a set, I don't think I'm interested. If I try it, I'll get a custom [url="http://status-graphite.com/"]Status Graphite[/url] set - they even do them in double ball, which would suit my old Hohner.

[quote name='Prosebass' post='287893' date='Sep 20 2008, 11:07 AM']Just string it back to front so your octave pattern stays the same ! Mr Schmidt manages...[/quote] If you can deal with bass in Fifths, in reverse order, you should be playing a Chapman Stick. That's the part that tripped me up...

I've thought about this too, but I was thinking of going direct to an octave below Cello: CGDA, +E on the 5-string. The low C would be a semitone above Low B, so a standard string would work, but the E would be 4-semitones above a High C, so I would need something like 0.020" for that. The strings would look something like: 0.020" 0.045" 0.070" 0.100" 0.130"

Midge Ure: [i]Answers to Nothing[/i]. Not all the album is as good as the title track, but a lot of it is, and where else do I get to hear one of my favourite drummers (Mark Brzezicki) jamming with Midge and Mark King?

Basically, if you break the signal chain down in to blocks: as soon as the signal goes through a buffer to lower its impedance, it's an "active signal". Whether that buffer is inside the pickup, part of an active tone control, or a dedicated unit: if it's inside the bass, then that's what they sell as an "active bass". It is quite normal to put the signal from an active pickup through passive controls: if you buy an EMG pickup, that's what the standard wiring diagram shows, which is enough to get you going - and it sounds pretty good, I must say.

[quote name='Jase' post='286219' date='Sep 17 2008, 08:43 PM']I'll narrow it down for you....Fender [/quote] This question is a bit like asking "what car should I get?", and that answer is like saying "... Ford". For a first bass, I'd definitely second the idea of forming a relationship with a local music shop, because they can give you advice on strings & accessories, and (if it's a good shop) help with setup. It doesn't have to be expensive - these days, all but the cheapest basses are generally decent - but a poorly set-up bass can be a real enthusiasm-killer, like trying to learn to drive in a Beetle with a dodgy clutch.

I'm thinking in the same direction as JimBob: sounds like induced him in the strings getting in to the signal through the earthed bridge, which you don't need.

[url="http://www.crystalair.com/content.php?id=1B200809008"]Link[/url] [quote]"If you don't include the second guitar, who's going to go out and buy it just to play bass?" asked Tony Levin of the progressive rock band King Crimson. "Hell, I remember back in the '80s I had a bloody time getting Robert [Fripp] to shell out for my actual bass. But I finally convinced him that Larks' Tongues in Aspic (Part III) would make no musical sense without one. "We were such pretentious assholes," he added.[/quote] Oh dear...

On top of all that Freaked Out animation, the sight of Adrian Belew in a [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_Army_Corps"]WAC[/url] uniform - complete with skirt and stockings - is another memorable moment... :wub:

Good news for the Gilbert-heads: he's touring Europe in November: details [url="http://www.paulgilbert.com/Tour2008.html"]here[/url]. I can't see who's in his band for this tour, but he's recently toured and recorded with Mike Szuter on bass. A new name to me... because also a guitarist (and singer), with a band called Magna-Fi. PS: PG seems to actually like bassists, and has a quiz about them on his website, [url="http://www.paulgilbert.com/Bassists.html"]here[/url]. Pretty easy, except for the 80s hair metal, where I'm a bit under-educated.