chris_b

Have a listen to Doug Rauch, the forgotten genius of slap bass. Not so much a solo, more like some other instruments added to a bass line. Here's one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8lERdhuqPc

One bass, one sound. I developed a sound I liked a long time ago and I'm still using it. Must be doing something right because I have never been asked to change or sound like someone else.

Alex, I think you already have the building blocks for a Behemoth 412 rig if you double up either 2 Super Twins or 2 Big Twin 2's. All you need is to create a box that contains your crossover and sit it between the amp and one of the cabs, and if using 2 BT2's turn off one of the compression drivers. All the player needs is a 2 ohm amp, an amp with 2 power amps or 2 daisy chained 4 ohm amps.

Here's one. . . . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSU5NoqnK1E

For some of the best of Roscoe listen to the 4 or 5 Robben Ford and the Blue Line CD's. IMO required listening for serious bass players. Last I saw Roscoe Beck was MD to Leonard Cohen. There are several YouTube vids of Roscoe Beck playing at NAMM shows. Usually with with Greg Koch. I like the line up with Malford Milligan on vocals.

I'll be playing Billie Jean tonight, and it will go down a storm. The notes are unimportant. You're focus should be to make that song sit on a groove for 6-7 mins without wandering, flagging or sagging. There are other songs where you can play "interesting" and "significant" bass lines but that's not your job in this song.

I'm not sure what your employment status is. I've played at lots of festivals here and I've never been employed, in the legal sense, by the organiser. Being hired to play is not the same thing. Do you have a visa that allows you to work or are you on a tourist visa? Insurance companies might not cover you if you're not legal.

No, it's fine as it is. Also if you split the sales ads up by price what do you do when the price is reduced and that drops the gear into a different section?

I don't hate any numbers. The numbers I like best are the ones that audiences like and, secondly, that the band plays well. I shuddered when they decided to put Tainted Love in the cover band set, until I saw the audience reaction from nearly every gig. I understand that guys doing this for a hobby can view things differently but there really are no bad songs out there.

China Girl, Under Pressure, All The Young Dudes and Heroes are in our repertoire. They all go down really well. Very sensibly, Bowie wasn't locked into being a tribute band of his early self so I'd go for the later arrangements and Gail Ann Dorsey's take on his numbers. She left MM basses behind a long time ago and uses MTD basses these days.

[quote name='peteb' timestamp='1429887672' post='2756049'] I know his old bass player, Baz Pethers, [/quote] Barry's now running a pub in rural Hampshire.

http://paulrobinsondrummeronline.com/ I've played with Paul is a Blues Rock band but he's comfortable playing from that to The Lion King through Nina Simone and Trevor Horn.

IMO there's no point in trying to fill out the sound. It won't work anyway. You'll just sound muddled. You are guitar, bass and drums now so you should sound like that, and not try to sound like your old band. Enjoy the spaces. As long as you can keep the groove no one will notice there are 2 guitars missing. . . . . IMO you had 2 too many in the first place!

EA did a vertical 310. But not for long. I guess it didn't sell? I have very little interest in big, and modular is the only way forward for me. I'd like a 210 with a 110 that would sit on the top, but I think Alex might explain that 2 Compacts already have that covered. How about a Retro 110 to sit on a Retro 210? I'm not sure concentrating on loud and low is the only way to go. A big low end just has to be EQ'ed out in many of the gigs I do, so mid and low mid focused cabs are where my interest would be. If I want to go louder I'll add another cab. How about a Retro 212 and a Retro 112 to sit on top?

You've just described Mustang Sally.

The best Markbass rig I heard was an LM2 with 2 STD102HF cabs.

I don't mind turning down. I've been playing long enough to balance my sound on the fly. I'd actually prefer to start quieter in the first pace, but I'm playing with 2 stone deaf guitarists at the moment who don't seem to understand the word balance.

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1429304566' post='2750359'] Another 4:24 gone from my life. It felt longer, though. [/quote] Noooooo. . . . . I saw JB at the East Ham Odeon at about that time. Must have been that tour because I don't think Bootsy was with them for long. JB came on at about 2 am, second show of the day, and tore the place apart. Drivig back to West London at about 5 am and we were buzzing. That was a high point of my musical life.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1429482441' post='2751900'] It was only when I played a few basses with angled headstocks I realised what a crappy design a non-angled headstock really is, [/quote] Tell that to the many Gibson owners who have suffered broken headstocks over the years.

[quote name='dmccombe7' timestamp='1429471941' post='2751730'] There's a lot to be said for playing straight and simple bass lines. You get to enjoy the atmosphere better cause you don't need to focus and concentrate as much. [/quote] I disagree with this. . . a lot! If you want to do it properly every bass line needs maximum focus and concentration.

Deal breakers? In no particular order; sound, weight, manufacturer, string spacing, colour and price.

DR stings always kept their tone longest for me, but I wouldn't say they sounded like new for months. IMO Dunlop Super Bright steel strings would be the ones you want to try.

Network, Network, Network. Reading helps in certain circumstances, double on upright, know your instrument inside out and be proficient in all styles and techniques, be better at busking than the next guy and be available. Put yourself in the position of always being able to say yes, no matter what is offered. But network, be good, be what people want and and make them want to play with you. Nathan East said at a bass clinic last year: getting the first gig isn't difficult. Getting called back is the hard part. Good luck.

[quote name='Beedster' timestamp='1429256104' post='2749641'] this theory was rejected by clearly quite knowledgable individuals So if this is the case, why is it that all other things being equal, maple boards always sound brighter to my ears [/quote] Maybe they are not as knowledgeable as you or they think. This is one of those questions that would never occur to me. I prefer rosewood for looks, but I just listen to the sound of the whole bass.

I think the Martians were right. Country and Western takes some beating.