chris_b

Work out songs in sections, intro, verse, chorus, bridge etc. Start with the chords, then add the details.

My 2p. . . . . . I'd get a Jazz to compliment your P bass. IMO as the owner of 2 PJ's I find the P pickup dominates the tone to the point where the J doesn't add much. Nothing more than a good EQ section on the amp would do. Both my basses sound better with the J pickup switched off. I have a couple of cracking J basses I can use when that sound is required.

Your thumb should be the only part of you making contact with the back of the neck and you should release that when you move your hand to place your fingers over the next note. So playing a bass line should consist of a series of separate thumb placements and glossy/drag/sticky shouldn't come into it.

I've seen this twice, this year. Doesn't cause any trouble as I'm running Norton and it jumps in.

Just bought a lead from Lozz. A true gent. He even put the decaf tea away and got the real stuff out for me.

I haven't owned a bad amp in the dozen or so I've had in the last 10 years, but my go-to amp since it came out has been the Aguilar TH500. Having said that, the [i]best[/i] amp would have to be either of my Thunderfunks, the 550 and then the 750.

I played with a keyboard player who use a Bose L1 with 2 bass units. He sounded very good. . . [i]but[/i] there was one problem. . . . in rooms with a low ceiling, where he couldn't put up both parts to the pole, he had to pack it away and go through the PA because running with fewer speakers put the impedance out and caused problems to the amp. There was no way around it. IMO a bit of a design flaw.

I was buying an amp and I had just confirmed the time I was calling around. . . . when he suddenly "remembered" he'd already promised to sell the amp to someone else! wtf!!

. . . . or when I say "I'll have it" and they say "OK" and then an hour later they go and sell to someone else!

[quote name='ForestPoetry' timestamp='1496585095' post='3312455']I love Jazz Basses, [/quote] There are some wonderful Jazz basses out there: Sadowsky, Lull, Lakland etc, but if you want a Fender (and there are some very good ones around) I'd look for an American Standard jazz, from 2009 to the present day. Find one that feels good to play and then if you need to, upgrade the pickups and electrics.

Of all the strings I've used over the years, the sets that sounded the best for the longest time were DR's, either Lo-Riders or Hi-Beams.

With caveats and IMO. . . . Playing in almost any band is night and day better than playing at home. Playing regularly should make you a better player and keep you match fit. Playing regularly should be good for your networking and reputation with local musicians. As long as you're playing songs well, playing in almost any band is a rewarding experience. As long as you're playing regularly you should be making enough to at least cover your expenses and hopefully more.

A 210 could well be pokier and punchier than a 112 with more emphasis on the mids. I use a One10 at home, which sounds better to me in a front room context than 1 of the 2 Super Compacts I use on a gig. On the other hand there's no rule that says you can't prefer cab a to cab b or cab c.

[quote name='Jumanji' timestamp='1496586503' post='3312471'] So I used my TC 210 last night in a fairly large (200 capacity I think) dinning room, hotel dance hall. It's running at 400W from the 450 head and it didn't quite manage it. At anything past about 12 o'clock on the volume knob it sounds wooly and undefined... unsatisfying to me anyway. [/quote] I know my TH500, gain at noon and master on about 10 o'clock, and 1 Super Compact would have that gig covered.

I don't think you can damage the D800 by running the wrong cabs. The built in protection seems to be pretty extensive. If a serious error occurs (as long as it's not to do with the internal components in the amp) it just goes into protection mode, which lets you turn it off and back on. As far as I recall, if you run the 2 ohm switch on with 4 ohms worth of cabs you'll get a potential 600 watts instead of the full 800. This was covered by a senior Mesa D800 designer on Talkbass, but I don't fancy trawling through the 1000's of posts on the D800. Drop am email to Mesa and they'll give you the definitive answer.

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1496565003' post='3312270'] Thrash metal or country dancing? What you're playing [i][b]MUST[/b][/i] make a difference? [/quote] +1000 A good bass sound isn't enough, we need a great bass sound. Do whatever you need to do to sound better than the next guy.

Some nice 5 string bass action. . . as there is on All Saints' Never Ever.

[quote name='paulbass' timestamp='1496496063' post='3311910'] This was just on the radio and I haven't heard it for a while...ok its not exactly pop but its still a cool bassline [/quote] Some info for you - the bass on Black Velvet is a [b]sample[/b] of a fretless bass. It was played by the producer Dave Tyson. Probably on an Akai S900 Sampler.

Just off to the Gallery to pickup mine.

A "standard" 112 might be enough, but it depends on how loud you're playing, what tone you want, what rooms you're playing in and how often do you get FOH. A better 112 will be clearer, more defined and sound better whilst being able to go louder maintaining a better tone and are more likely to carry the room on it's own. 2 "standard" 112's will sound much better than 1 and 2 "good" 112's will cover any playing situation and sound fantastic in the process. The only cons I know is that 2 112's will cost more than a 212. I'd keep an eye on the classifieds until something you want comes up. The same comments apply to 210 cabs, except 1 210 would go a little louder than a 112. IMO a good 112 would sound better than an OK 210. 2 210's would still sound better than 1 cab. If you want to look at 115's, that's another area, but again the good ones will sound better and go louder. A good 112, 210 or any 115 would probably be a 1 cab solution for most people. Buy 8 ohm cabs and you can add another if you decide you need the extra oompf. A good cab will make a good amp sound fantastic. IMO it's worth the extra to buy "good" gear. Go and see some bands playing locally. Talk to the bass player and ask him about his gear.

[quote name='Jumanji' timestamp='1496443639' post='3311566'] What cabs and amp are you using?[/quote] These days I favour my Aguilar TH500 and 2 Barefaced Super Compacts. Before that I used the TH500 with a Berg CN212. I prefer the separates because they are lighter (I have a bad back) and I can use 1 if that's all I need.

I know a drummer who uses the BC2 and drum seat. As the others have said, I'd prefer to shift more air by adding another cab.