SteveXFR

After selling all my gear last year, all my gear has been bought this year. 

The worst is easy, a Fender Mexican standard Precision. I think it was just a bad one, I've had a few before but this one just sucked. I couldn't get a decent setup on it and it always sounded weak so its gone now.

Best purchase is either my Spector Euro 4 LX which sounds incredible and is really nice to play and was a great price or my Yamaha BB1100S which I picked up for £450 and is the nicest playing bass I've owned and sounds great.

2 hours ago, Muzz said:

I still love a BB, although these days the weight has taken them away from me... 🙁

Mine is my lightweight bass! Its definitely lighter than my Spector and doesn't neck dive.

I took my BB1100S to band practice for the first time. We're playing something between stoner metal and grunge so pretty noisy and nasty. The BB actually sounded better than my Spector. Played through an Ashdown ABM600 and Gallien Kreuger CX212 & CX115 cabs, it had a nice growl to it and loads of bottom end with a nice midrange punch. I had it set to active with mids boosted and both pickups plus a bit of drive on the amp.

10 hours ago, Bolo said:

Went to see GNOME last Friday. That. Was. Awesome.

Im going to see them in April. What could be better than simple riffs and pointy hats? 

8 hours ago, Jackroadkill said:

Red Fang tune in standard, I believe (and maybe Green Lung as well).

I know some Red Fang is tuned really low, possibly A# and Green Lung mostly use C

He can play slap but chooses not to and for that reason alone, he's alright. 

Just now, Supernaut said:

Pretty sure Fu Manchu use D standard. 

Thanks. I like a bit of Fu Manchu. Id just assumed they'd be in C

In the past Ive always tuned down to C or lower for anything heavy. I know where im going when its low but the guitarist im playing with now doesn't want to tune more than a semitone below standard. 

Its a new challenge for me so ill give it a bash but I need some inspiration. Classic 70's and 80's stuff doesn't really do anything for me (Sabbath being the exception) and were not going to be playing thrash, death or black metal. 

Has anyone got any recommendations for doom and stoner metal in standard tunings? All I can find is Clutch

24 minutes ago, Richard R said:

 

Another talented band.👍

Maybe the future of music won't be so bad after all?

I think one of their strengths is a broad range of influences. The one influence they all share is Muse but between them, theres everything from classical to Napalm Death. That and all of them absolutely love playing music. 

They're working hard, hopefully they'll get somewhere with it but for now, they're loving what they're doing. 

50 million year trip - Kyuss

My daughters band, Butane Skies have just released their second single. It may have been written, first performed and released at Christmas but it is absolutely, definitely NOT a Christmas song. 

Third single coming very soon

The cover art is by the singer/guitarist and all done by an actual human, not AI

Kids - Julie Christmas 

Ukuleles just sound like those toy guitars your annoying sister in law would buy your young child for Christmas. I guess thats because they are just toy guitars for kids.

There's a ukulele orchestra at my kids school. It sounds even worse than their string quartet made up of three violins and two cellos (quartet means four doesn't it?) all with terrible intonation. 

Possibly not irrational but if I see a ukulele about to be played, Im getting out of audible range as quickly as possible. Nothing good has ever involved a ukulele whether its school concerts, buskers or huge bands like Train or Mumford & Sons. All completely unacceptable. 

On 28/11/2025 at 07:55, Kirky said:

 

 

And the kids' album is released today.  Shameless proud dad post!

I like that, they've got a great sound. It sounds nicely recorded and mixed as well.

I shall have a proper listen. 

Is this an algebra question?

This really annoys me. Ive heard people say bands they don't like are rubbish and 90% of thevtime, they just mean "this band doesn't fit my taste". If they've made it to the radio/tv/big festival then its highly unlikely they are rubbish. 

Personally I don't like Taylor Swift but I appreciate she is excellent at what she does. I really can't stand classic rock but those bands probably influenced the bands who influenced my favourite bands.

Simply Red however, are just rubbish. 

Bertie - Meryl Streek

Id quite like an Al Cisneros signature Rickenbacker. Id also like some of his skills.

44 minutes ago, fretmeister said:

I like the little Mooer blue chorus - it's a perfect clone of the Boss CE-2 but has a very useful level control.

Sounds just like my real CE-2 I've had since 1989.

 

I think it sounds great on bass. Well - if I was still in the mid-eighties or in a Type O Negative covers band!  

I'd love to play in a Type-O-Negative tribute. I'm not sure I've got the looks to pretend to be Peter Steele and at only 6'1" I'm far too short. I love playing their songs though.

12 minutes ago, Bleat said:

 I would reccommend the EHX Bass Clone for whatever shoegaze is? (I guess it's some sort of Indie or grunge style music?) 

Thanks

Shoegaze is a heavy rock subgenre kind of related to grunge but more distortion, more volume and slower. Like early Smashing Pumpkins, The Verve, Lush and Slow Dive.

3 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

 

Are they though? Ian isn't on the spector featured artists lists (I notice that guy pratt is, and I have only seen him once play a spector, its normally his pink fender). Scott has a signature overwater. Also both of them are already working for his company and it is quite clear they are working for that.

Ian did a series of videos promoting Spectors and then did a few videos about Spector players for SBL and spent quite a bit of time talking about how amazing the Spector tone is.

Scott regularly talks about how amazing Fenders are, especially precision basses.

5 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

 

Someone who does an advert without saying they are doing an advert.

You mean like every to Scott Devine picks up a Fender or his mate, Ian with a Spector?

Freak on a leash - Korn

Terrible song with slap bass that sounds like a filing cabinet falling down a stair case.

I want to buy my daughter a chorus pedal for Christmas and not sure what to go for, its not an effect id use. She plays in a shoegaze band so lots of fuzz on the guitars to cut through so i think she'll need a chorus that keeps plenty of bottom end. 

Obvious choices seem to be Boss CEB-3 or MXR Deluxe Chorus or maybe Electroharmonix Bass Clone.

Are any of those particularly good or any other suggestions?