OutToPlayJazz

Yes, John needs to come and close this one down, too. Perhaps we ought to have a Victor Wooten Appreciation Thread pinned, only for people who actually appreciate him? And for the record, the baby Jesus story is a myth designed to control the weak & anyone fancy some rabbit & puppy pie?

Squier Classic Vibe 50's & 60's Precisions, or course!

As others have said, you can get good and bad of all the Fender ranges, be they Mexican, American, or otherwise. I've been lucky with my three Americans (one S1 jazz & an 08 Am.Std Precision & Jazz) but my original Mex Std 5 went rusty all over the place within a month & the neck on my Japanese Geddy Lee was horrendous. It would last a week between needing to be adjusted again! Although, some of the best jazz basses I've played have been off the shelf Mexicans. As with all mass-produced stuff, you need to keep digging through the pile to find a really good one. Thankfully now I have a really good 09 Am.Std Jazz which I adore. Keep going, you're bound to get a good one eventually

For the most part, I agree with the original poster. It's all too easy to criticise what we can't do ourselves, but at the end of the day, everyone's perfectly entitled to their own opinions as well. For me, Victor Wooten is the absolute pinnacle of bass playing & the kind of player I (and no doubt many others) aspire to be. Not only is his very individual slap technique amazing, but his musicality on accompanying parts is astonishing. He's a great jazz fingerstyle solist & his two-handed-tapping arrangements are astounding as well. Stanley Clarke summed it up in an interview with one of the bass magazines during the promo tour for SMV. He said, "Victor is just a marvel; he has the greatest facility I’ve ever seen on the electric bass. He’s a natural player and musician who has done a lot of studying, too." Praise indeed. I've met Mr.Wooten, and not only is he a great musician, but a really nice guy. He sort of exudes peace and calm all around him. Bass God? Maybe!

I was quite enjoying the slanging match this morning - From a spectator's point of view it was more entertaining than TV. But then again, there's never anything worth watching on the TV!

I really liked the £250 Ibanez JetKing I played the other week. Huge sounding bass and really good to play as well.

Alembic - Ultimate craftsmanship like a Rolls-Royce. Fodera - Seriously overpriced - Will it be ready before you're ready for the box? Fender - Keep digging through the pile & you'll eventually find a good one. Sadowsky - Like a new MINI. A seriously refined version of the original. ACG - Seriously crafted and innovative - Like a Lotus. Squier - As Skoda is to VW - Now seriously good and stealing a lot of sales from their masters. Ibanez - White goods. Does the job just like your fridge or washing machine. Enfield - The Bristol Blenheim of the bass world. Status - High-tech hifi with no nonsense. Think Audi. Modulus - Tell him to put his bloody shirt on! The Dodge Viper of the bass world. Yamaha - Engineering, engineering, engineering. Toyota? Warwick - Feels like the tree it was made out of. Like travelling in a Rover without the wilton carpets. Shuker - British cottage industry specialist - If TVR made basses...

I really like the Marcus Miller signature DR Fatbeams 40-100 set I have on my Jazz at the moment. They seem a very soft string compared with the usual Rotosounds/Elites. Lovely thick sound as well. I was at Mewsie's house the other evening & she had some nice titanium strings on her Sterling. Similar guage at 40-95, but again a very soft string. The brand name eludes me for the moment, though.

[quote name='dannybuoy' post='486036' date='May 12 2009, 03:28 PM']A different topic maybe, but I've always wondered why vintage / vintage-style basses have the thumbrest in that position? Surely it would make more sense to have it on the other side of the strings where your thumb goes?![/quote] It's because Leo Fender originally envisaged the newly designed electric version of the double bass being played with the right hand thumb. The block below the strings was designed as a 'finger rest.'

Yes, I am - And a cellist too. On the classical instruments you have to do the north-south method, as the fingerboards aren't curved like an electric. There're usually two lightly bevelled edges, making the board more angular (on three planes) than curved. I usually tell pupils to group fingers - The index finger is pretty stong, but can be supported a little by the second finger. The second finger can pretty much stand alone. The third finger works better when combined with the second for stability & the little finger again, works well combined with the third. The thumb should always be kept in contact with the neck as well. I try to get people to think of vibrato as a "cyclic" movement - Almost moving to the feel of groups of eight semiquavers (think "wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa.") This gives the vibrato a more rhythmic feel, although the speed can be varied according to the speed and feel of the music. I also try to get people to start the note first (gaining stability in the note), then adding in vibrato & making sure it carries on until the end of the note. This also gives the note more of a shape and some extra variation in texture. Vibrato can also start before the note - This gives a more urgent and musically passionate feel to the note. There's so much you can do with it! Rich.

No problem, after all, even though I do earn my living from music, I've found over the years that a bit of goodwill in the music world goes a long way.

[quote name='mcgraham' post='485620' date='May 12 2009, 09:24 AM']From my understanding, there are multiple ways of doing vibrato. On electric instruments you have a number of different options: 1) Sideways motion - ala minute bends upwards and downwards at a particular rate. This seems to be the preferred method of vibrato amongst guitarists. It can be used to achieve very extreme vibrato in both rate and depth of the vibrato. However, a LOT of guitarists who use this technique do not control it well, they just randomly waggle their fingers and get massively inconsistent vibrato. There are many variations within this. Some guitarists like Joe Satriani keep a concrete hand position and pivot from the wrist (thumb over the neck/near top of the neck). In contrast, some guitarists like Michael Angelo Batio have their thumbs well behind the neck and bend using a pushing motion from their fingers. Guthrie Govan uses both. 2) Lengthways motion - ala pushing and pulling the string towards and away from the headstock. This is more traditional vibrato like on fretless bowed instruments. It can be less pronounced on fretted instruments but it's easier to control rate and depth, and you can get multiple strings moving at once. You also have the option of using your finger, your hand or your elbow to control this vibrato. Classical guitarists often use this, violinists, cellists etc. This is my favourite type of vibrato. With practice it can become quite extreme for such a subtle movement. 3) 'Compression' motion - ala gripping and releasing the string into the fretboard to increase tension. I can see this working on scalloped guitar fretboards, or high up on a violin fretboard, but unless you have massive frets on bass, this may not be the best option. Certainly not my favourite option. There's probably others but those are the ones I'm acquainted with. Different people will find different vibrato types easier than others, and you will have your own preference regarding how to use vibrato (i.e. depth, rate, variation in the two, etc) and the tones each type gets. Experiment, find what works mechanically, identify what you like sonically, and work on achieving your favourite sound using these techniques. RE: vibrato being noticeable in a band situation - it is totally noticeable provided you use the right type of vibrato for the right situation. Vibrato and bends can be noticeable in even very noisy conditions, you just need to experiment and find what works mechanically for you together with what works in the context. Mark[/quote] Excellent post, Mark... I just wanted to add that with all vibrato techniques, the one thing that's going to cause the biggest problems is incorrect left hand technique. For instance, if you hold the neck directly in the palm of your hand, the tendons in the wrist will lock & you'll have no lateral movement at all. Best thing is to keep the thumb behind the neck (not peeking over the edge of the neck) & make sure there's plenty of clearance between the neck & hand. Play on fingertips as opposed to on flat fingers. This will ensure you'll have more pressure on the string. Classical vibrato is the hardest (lengthways), but with practice you can get some lovely sounds coming through. Rich.

I'm feeling charitable today, so anytime you're around Leeds/Doncaster area or further Eastwards, drop in I live about 2 miles from the Humber Bridge.

Another vote for Status-Graphite - Been playing them for 20 years. Peerless build quality, with every bass passing through the hands of the same man before it's deemed to be fit for public consumption. Sound? Everything from thick db like tones to super-bright hifi. Graphite necks are a slick joy to play on & nothing has the stability or speed of a phelonic fingerboard. Balance is perfect on the headless models as well. I'm also currently loving the quality of my new Fender Jazz - They've improved so much recently & combined with the Sadowsky preamp, it's proving to be an excellent combination.

I played one of these Classic Vibe Jazzes the other week. It was simply stunning to play & sounded awesome, even through the cheap Peavey combo in the shop. Still very tempted to go back and get it! The basswood body seems to have just the right amount of resonance, too. Lovely things.

Depends on how hefty or slight the player is, I suppose. Heaviest thing I ever played was my CIJ Marcus Miller Jazz. Damn, that was heavy - Even moreso than my recently departed Yamaha TRB-6.

I was going to say Yamaha BB714BS, which does the Precision's 'nasal' honk really well with just the split coil operational & has biblical levels of bass frequency with the subwoofer pickup switched on as well.

John travelled out to meet me the other day & picked up a lovely Yamaha TRB-6 II. Nice easy guy to deal with & a straightforward sale. Thoroughly recommended. Rich.

I have another of the 08/09 American Standards like Andy's above & mine's the 3TS/maple version. Principal difference is the rosewood boards give a woodier, warmer tone at the top end of the frequency, but the maples are much brighter and more percussive.

I have the Sadowsky preamp/di pedal which is very good - The plus side being you can keep your jazz original. If you want 3-band have a look at the Aguilar Tone Hammer.

I don't think it's the shape that makes for the most stylish aeshthetic - It's the material. The coolest looking ones are the transparent persprex ones. They make a bass look seriously cool.