Count Bassy

I've just heard from this singer moaning about his band plying sharp all the time.

Not really a paradox is it as it seems to have been adequately understood and explained. Now travelling back in time and killing one of your antecedents, or your younger self - now there's a paradox for you!

To me it's down down up up, quite clearly, but others obviously differ. But surely whatever 'flat response' equipment you listen to it on your ears are far from a flat response and will vary with age and the amount of abuse they've had etc. On top of that is how you listen to things. As bass players perhaps we tend to listen to the lower harmonics rather than the higher ones. I'v always thought that part of the reason some people like a particular piece of music and others don't is that, internally, they are hearing different things.

[quote name='TonyBones' timestamp='1340568052' post='1706418'] So like i said fret behind the twelfth [/quote] My apologies, I didn't quite see what you were saying in your original post.

What's the clearance over the pick up? Is the B string actually hitting the Pickup pole when yo're playing it?

[quote name='TonyBones' timestamp='1340562964' post='1706301'] I was always told to fret the string behind the twelfth fret as the harmonic doesn't take into account the distance the string moves when pressed down resulting in the note going sharp. Just my twopence worth, just done mine with peterson isostrobe App and the fretted, open and harmonic are all spot on. [/quote] Surely that's the whole point of an adjustable bridge, so you can compensate for the fact that you are also effectively bending the note by the string to fret clearance when you fret it. The harmonic is not affected and gives you the true octave of the open string, fretting at the twelfth will give you a sharp note, so you wind the saddle back to bring that note to the same as the harmonic. It's only ever an approximation however You can get the open string and the twelfth fret spot on, but other frets will be out by a small amount.

[quote name='highwayone' timestamp='1340559652' post='1706237'] The bass is brand new from Rattle and Drum in Derby so the strings are also new. I checked the intonation and the fretted 12th was very flat compared to the harmonic and after adjusting quite a bit it was hardly any better. I'm a newbie to bass so wasn't sure how much i could adjust the saddles before I bugger them up as the spring over the screw is starting to bend quite a bit already!! I have one bass that's spot on but my fender precision won't get quite perfect either. Will I damage the spring if i keep adjusting the saddle?? Thanks for the info guys. [/quote] Erm, if the fretted note is flat you should be moving the saddle forward!!!, which on most bridges means letting the spring expand more!. If the spring is bending because you're compressing it then it sounds like you're moving it the wrong way!!

The expression 'If you've never made mistake you've never made anything' springs to mind

I'm a bit upset with this. With the title saying 'Know your basses' I thought I'd be in with a chance, but the pictures are actually all of other people's basses.

[quote name='rushbo' timestamp='1339968528' post='1697105'] Burlesque (there's nowhere near enough love for John Wetton round these parts) [/quote] Very nearly put him in my top 10 in a recent thread. Didn't in the end cos I'm a real Family/Streetwalkers/Chapman fan and I thought I might be biased because of that. (didn't stop me putting Gary Twigg in said list though)! Edited to add or Jerome Rimson, or Boz Burrel

I think he's been perfectly straight and honest about what it is, so I can't see a problem - except what seems a high starting price.

[quote name='51m0n' timestamp='1339771551' post='1694119'] Absolutely agree. 192KHz 24bit through a banging monitor system (B&W Nautilus, PMC MB-2s, whatever, driven with appropriate amps and cabling blah blah blah) in a great room sounds fantastic, I'd never be able to tell it was 'digital' in a double blind test against a 1/2" analogue master tape of the same music at the exact same volume. Not a chance, and I would love to see any digital naysayer in the world do this with anything beyond statistical average accuracy. In fact I wouldnt be able to tell them apart at all if the volumes were the same. [/quote] Except the analogue in any realistic system, would have more hiss, crackle and pop.

No particular order: John Entwhisle Mick Karn Andy Fraser Jerome Rimson Martin Turner Gary Twigg Boz Burrell Malcolm Hoskins Duck Dunn Leyland Sklar But it could be different tomorrow!

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1339058518' post='1682902'] Which is ideal world conditions so I think you've missed my point entirely. In the real world you turn up having been told you're playing in a marquee only to find a small gazeebo with water running underneath the sides and forming puddles in the grass. The drummer plugs his fan into an extension lead that he has mended with insulation tape after the rabbit has chewed through all the insulation. The keyboard player is having to play with his foot on the mains lead of his keyboard to keep the flex from pulling out of the plug. The singer is complaininig of getting shocks from the PA because someone extended the mains lead using a 2 pin lawn mower plug and socket that they had lying around. But no-one has to worry becuause you're using an RCD. Granted if you play in a regular band with the same guys using the same kit week in week out you can be pretty sure your kit is good but quite a few of us don't. Those were only a few of the situations I've been in. Not including the two extension leads mentioned earlier. None of it IP68 rated and not even a plastic bag wrapped around where they're joined. Add the red mist that descends on someone who has spent a lot of time and money organising the gig and insists you set up a quickly as possible and people will do the most stupid things. [/quote] In which case, walk away.

[quote name='Musky' timestamp='1339330445' post='1686870'] I just bought myself the 32Gb memory stick. [/quote] Can I I advise that you check it. I bought one (not from that site, but on Ebay) and it turned out to be a 4 gig one doctored to say that it was 32Gig. Best check it before you commit anything precious to it ( I didn't!). Free utilities are available to check it out thoroughly.

[quote name='amnesia' timestamp='1338845519' post='1680057'] Next to last song a couple of weeks ago and I start to loose notes intermittently. I have had a slight issue with my amp at this venue before so I assumed I was looking at a big bil and a broken amplifierl. By the time I realised I had a problem the sound was gone, my concentration was gone so I left the band on stage to play the last track without me. Not cool. After the set I tried my other bass and it worked fine. Went back to my Tbird and the notes were gone again. Worked out that open strings were fine but fretted notes were rubbish. Then spotted the bridge pickup touching the E string. Thanks Gibson. Thanks a lot. Needless to say I'm back to the Warwicks for a bit - my confidence needs shoring up! [/quote] To be fair you can't really blame Gibson for that. Edited to say - I presume that the t.bird has adjustable pickup height.

[quote name='bremen' timestamp='1339348762' post='1687228'] Thinner sticks? [/quote] No Sticks !!

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1339025516' post='1682739'] ... but it's all the same techniques as playing guitar not specifically bass guitar. [/quote] Exactly! Just call it a wide range guitar!

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1338755314' post='1678971'] Extension leads go faulty really quickly when you pour water on them. [/quote] Well if you let your mains connections get wet then that counts as something 'faulty' in my book. Like your brain!

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1338737361' post='1678638'] The big problem is you can't play on grass, you'll get electrocuted. If you've got flooring down it's risky but better. [/quote] Only if something is faulty in the first place

[quote name='ThomBassmonkey' timestamp='1337547480' post='1661884'] Yeah, I've had a few goes at them but they're just odd and I'm not a big fan of the sound so I've never gone all in with one. There are a few players (Jim being one) that make them sound great though. [/quote] For a 1 row like that think of it as a harmonica -tunings exactly the same.

[quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1337385707' post='1659329'] Oh, I thought this was going to be a thread about Stevie Ray Vaughns greatest song [/quote] Me too

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1336902050' post='1652421'] At the other end of the scale our drummer packs his gear away wearing cotton gloves. The acidity of the sweat on your fingers attacks the cymbals. Apparently. [/quote] I auditioned for a band where the drummer did this! Not the Travelling Riverside Blues Band is it?

Best way I've found in these situations, (in a practice at least), is to stop the song and just say "we're slowing down", without pointing the finger at anyone in particular.

[quote name='KiOgon' timestamp='1337014169' post='1654028'] I wouldn't believe any of that - if they say "use a plastic container" to hold acetone I don't think so I'm sure there are some that will BUT! [/quote] Beat me to it! Any site that says to put acetone in an unspecified plastic bowl should be taken with a big pinch of salt! (Acetone is used as a glue for perspex - works by dissolving it!)