Al Heeley

Sometimes we bring other people's gear

Not too hot on the theory and nomenclature side, I understand a major chord is basically the 1st, 3rd and 5th note in a scale, and that a minor chord is the same but with the 3rd note flattened. A seventh is presumably notes 1,3,5 + 7 added in to form a chord. However when you get to 9ths and add 11's, how does that work considering a scale has only 8 notes in it? Also, cn someone explain the meaning of suspended when in the contect of Asus4 chord for example?

The pre-history of musical instruments goes back to hitting various objects to give different tones. this led to drums, xylophone type things, then later the evolution of instruments such as pan pipes - tubes with holes in them you blow down and create the first MELODY. None of this explains the C scale question though it is an interesting thread.

Please bear in mind the musical scale was around in one form or another long before the piano was invented. This brings up the question - whiat was the first instrument? Maybe it followed on from a string or wind instrument where C was seen as the normal start point, and the piano keys fell in later? Also, why is it that all the brass sections have to muck about in Bb tuning while the piano is easiest in C? What was the reason for this? Makes all life harder when piano and brass (or woodwind) play together, also for guitar, Bb is a foul key to play in unless you're having to accompany a wind section. Wonder what the cause of this disparity goes back to??

i'd be happy to start a SOUNDSLIVE - THUMBS DOWN thread for all the hassles I've had - if I'd paid a little more 11 months ago it would have saved me a whole shed of frustration adn blood pressure.

Latest count: 4 separate failures of crossover cards on either MB4210 or MBC115 cab in the 11 months since I bought them. I kicked up a fuss and Marshall agreed I could return them for a refund, only the internet store where I purchased them kicked up a bigger fuss about accepting them back for repair/replacement since they are now reparied and functioning. I had to point out very firmly it was refund I wanted. I have lost confidence in them after 4 failures during gigs, sodering of crossover card components was the culprit each time, rendering the amp unfit for use (it doesn't like vibrations much). With the help of Marshall, the retail outlet finally agreed to credit me, so I'm just getting then packed up for return. Sad, they are a lot of power for the money, and some good tones can be had, but reliabilty has been a big issue for me.

ActuallyI agree with every post on this thread. At low vols you won't harm a decent Peavey guitar amp but the freq response will not be great. If you can afford it a dedicated bass practice amp will sound tons better. For low level practices with my bad round one of our houses I use a tiny marshall MB10 guitar practice amp and it's urvived 7 or 8 yeras of this treatment fine, sounds totally passable for practicing though some may say this is cruel behaviour.

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='678350' date='Dec 8 2009, 07:36 PM']I could get hit by a bus tomorrow so I don't know. I'd like to come if I can though.[/quote] +1 for a positive outlook on life

1. Born 2B Mild 2. yorks5stringer 3. Al Heeley

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='675691' date='Dec 6 2009, 01:58 PM']My piezo Stingray has the variable height polepieces..[/quote] I have a piezo stingray bought from a forum member but I never new the pickup poles were independantly adjustable - looks like a standard MM humbucker to me. How do you adjust them? Do you have to take the pickguard and pups off to access ?

No, you need a MM humbucker fitted in the bridge position, the P-bass pups as standard then a jazz bass pickup in the neck. Now you're talking!

Established gigging band in Huddersfield area seeks bassist. Pubs, clubs, functions stuff, middle of the road light rock, pop, some blues, funk, also some own original material. Band are mid 40's age, wanting someone with own gear and transport able to commit to schedule of rehersals and gigs in the forthcoming year. If you fit the bill and are interested, drop me a pm and I'll pass on your details to the chaps.

I fitted my zebrawood thru-neck bass (JB pup config) with this option on a mini switch but it sounds so much better I never use the original option now.

its also easy to work, medium density/weight and relatively abundant!

why not start by googling bass lessons online - loads of helpful free videos for beginners to get you started

Just to throw another option in - for similar money they have the Ampeg BA300: 2x10 300w combo, a bit less power, a bit less air-moving but worth considering as an alternative to the separate head + 4x10 cab option?

Any opinions on the hartke VX410 cabs vs the 410XL or the AK410? These models span about £120 price difference

[quote name='RussFM' post='674188' date='Dec 4 2009, 02:15 PM']Out of those two, the Hartke. That GK head is from their budget range, you'd be much better off with one of the RB heads if you were going for GK (which I'd highly recommend!). The LH500 gets good reviews around here, and I've been happy with the 3500 when I've used that in the past.[/quote] Thx, I think the RB heads are out of my price range, I've got about £500 - £550 ceiling. The Hartke LH500 looks a good price for the power but not a great array of controls (that i might not use anyway) Is this the head with the slightly non-intuitive tone control re mid boost/cut?

I can't make use of second hand gear ! - if i could I'd snap up some of the stuff here like that Ededn Nemesis 4x10cab on offer. The store will NOT refund me, they have agreed credit only, and only after a hard battle. They state the units are too old now and they are both working fine! Despite the fact they have suffered 4 separate breakdowns in 11 months, I cannot guarantee they will fail again soon, so they are not due for return/replacement according to the store! Now they have the gall to charge me £40 for the honour of returning them. I am not happy. However, a compromise is to take the credit and buy what they have in store. Which really limits me to the GK or Hartke stuff within my budget. Please don't ask me to buy second hand or ebay! I'd love to but I can't!

I've posted a few threads over the months about my disappointing Marshall MB4210 & MB115 reliability issues. I've had enough now after 4 separate crossover card failures and they've agreed with the internet retail outlet to take the units back and credit me. So now I have to spend the equivalent back at SoundsLive which somewhat limts my options according to the range they cover. I want a separate 300 - 400W head and a 4 x 10 cab. Within the workable proce range theres the hartke LH500 head (or HA3500 at a pinch) and VK or 410XL cab or the GK 600 head and 410 cab. I can't really afford much extra cost in moving upmarket on either cab or amp head. Maybe a [i]little[/i] extra. I would be grateful for comments / feedback on the above in terms of sound, quality, performance, bearing in mind they are both not exactly entry-level gear but low to middle tier. I'm playing mostly MM bass or Jazz bass in 2 bands - one is a functions covers band, think Stones, Abba, blues, blondie, light funk, the other is a rock/punk band doing pistols, green day, foo fighters, so quite a wide spread of tones & styles needed.

Not sure about all this furniture polish spray phobia - I've cleaned off guitar bodies loada times in the past with pledge-type products. My lacquer-finished guitars are PU or acrylic and they are entirely impervious to furniture polish. The silicone-phobia thing is all about getting traces into pores which can then affect the surface tension and adhesion of any subsequent layers. thats all fair enough but we're not talking rspray of steel or wood here, we're talking about cleaning a bass. I don't think Pledge-type sprays are anywhere near aggressive enough to get under a coating blemish and cause delamination of a cured 2-part acrylic or PU lacquer. If the thread was entitled "How do I best clean my guitar ready for respraying" then i could understand everyone saying "No Silicone!"

Its not just the B, its all of them, only the G feels more like my 34" basses. The strings are long scale so no taper before the nut slots. I find they are slacker as notes can be bent on this bass a lot easier than my 34" 4-string basses, I thought it might be scale length but you're right it should work the other way round (like a strat vs a les paul - shorter scale = less taut strings). I play quite percussively but the gecko has a lot more slap on it than the other basses due to the more flaccid strings, and I really don't want to raise the action, maybe I need to try a set of DR Low's. Am I likely to get a tighter set if i go for slightly thicker gauge?

Tell me more about these lowriders? what is it about them that may help my predicament? All you 5-stringers - is it all 35" scale stuff?

A satin finish is just a gloss one that hasn't been fully polished yet! All you're doing is un-polishing it. Sort of...

My 35" scale Gecko 5-string is fitted with a set of D'addario long scale strings, from memory 40/60/80/100/130 but they are very floppy - I get a fair bit of slap when I play hard. I'd prefer a set of strings that give similar tension to my MM or JB 34" scale (standard 4-string). Can anyone recommend a different set of strings I could try that would give me a bit of a tighter feel?