BottomEndian

[quote name='Uncle Balsamic' post='532498' date='Jul 4 2009, 04:18 PM']I'm going to Newcastle soon and was wondering if there are any decent music shops for bass stuff.[/quote] I haven't been over to the Toon in opening hours for what feels like an age, so some of this info might be duff. There's nothing bass-specific these days, but you've got [url="http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB%3a%6ffficial&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=sounds+live+newcastle&fb=1&split=1&gl=uk&cid=0,0,6769513436418076538&ei=AHdPSo_oB-WfjAebw-zJBQ&sa=X&oi=local_result&ct=image&resnum=1"]Sounds Live[/url] and Air Guitars (where Sound Control used to be) within spitting distance of each other. Then there's [url="http://guitarguitar.co.uk/newcastle_shop.asp"]GuitarGuitar[/url], which has moved recently, and [url="http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB%3a%6ffficial&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=jg+windows+newcastle&fb=1&split=1&gl=uk&cid=0,0,16094910386831182199&ei=zXdPSu_2ENqgjAfG_cW-BQ&sa=X&oi=local_result&ct=image&resnum=1"]JG Windows[/url]. I can't guarantee that any will have anything of interest, but chances are there might be a little gem tucked away. And someone will hopefully come along soon and chip in with something more useful.

Oh, and Foxen... Vintage = Doom.

OK, I'm going to waffle on for a bit now, but here's the TLDR version: [b]I've never sounded this good before[/b]. Or, in the words of guitarist Tim, the Vintage is [b]"f***ing immense"[/b]. Now, the phrase "I've never sounded this good before" comes with a small caveat: I've not used that much decent gear before, but I've played through plenty of Peavey, bits of Hartke, a smattering of Marshall, some Ampeg and a dabble with Trace Elliot and Fender. So although I don't necessarily know my onions, I'm at least acquainted with a few shallots. Here's last night's setup: MusicMan SUB or Ibanez BTB775PB > Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor > a handful of dirt pedals in switchable loops (more later) > Hartke VXL Bass Attack preamp pedal > Tapco Juice J800 power amp (bridged @ 800W into 4 ohms) > Barefaced Vintage Everything was set with flat EQ (basses and preamp) for the majority of the evening, so we could hear exactly what was going on. In all honesty, I can't really add anything that hasn't already been said about the Compact (although I'm sure Merton will fill us in on the differences). All the standard Barefaced adjectives apply: deep, full, but very clear, articulate and above all... PRESENT. The Vintage has a sort of almost "vocal" quality, like there's a little peak around 1kHz like an SM58. I'm sure this would help you "cut through" the mix if that's what you were after. To me, it allows me to reach the holy grail of being able to blend properly with the guitars. The noise we make is kind of a massive, down-tuned, chunky, riffy, stonery, doomy wall of fuzz. Tim's guitars occupy much of the lows and low-mids, along with a smattering of high-end fizz. Previously, my Peavey rig (410 TVX, 115 BVX) has never been able to muster the high-mids I've been looking for in order to sit properly in the mix. I've just ended up with a rumble of ultra-lows and loads of high pick clank, which fits around the guitar, but leaves an aching void in the middle. Well, the Vintage changes all that. Just naturally, with everything flat, it's got the mid to high-mid voice I need. Perfect. Playing with Tim's guitar, it fitted in beautifully. And the lows... oh lord, the lows. Smooth, fat, rounded whump. Even from the SUB, which has that typically Stingray mid-heavy "crack". In fact, speaking of the lows, when I got the BTB on the case, there was [i]too much bottom[/i]. I've never had that before. Never in my life. I think we both wept uncontrollably before haemorrhaging internally. Thankfully, it was tameable using the BTB's onboard preamp -- I think I had to knock about 10 or 12 dB off the bass control! I should mention here that the BTB has the highest output I've ever come across, the electronics are naturally a bit dark, and it's strung with flats, so it doesn't entirely surprise me that there was too much bass. Still, when I was playing the low B, I took off my shoe and stuck my sweaty, stinky foot in front of the ports. Instant cooling airflow! So yeah, too much bottom for rock, but easily EQable, and it sounded smooth and sweet playing a few (terrible) jazzy walking lines. I'll point out here that I've had a PM from Alex stating that (and I quote): "don't forget that it'll get a bit fatter and deeper sounding as the cone suspensions loosen up". I can't believe that's physically possible. I'm sure I'll report back when it happens, unless the building I'm playing in collapses due to bass-induced structural failure. Talking of how much air was moving, yes that was impressive, but what was even more impressive was how the speakers didn't even seem to be breaking a sweat at 800W. I don't doubt that the Vintage could cope with 1000... 1500... maybe 2kW without distortion from the cones. And yes, while we're on volume, this thing is [b]LOUD[/b]. [u]Dirt[/u] I've had trouble in the past with the top end on some of my dirt pedals. They can get too fizzy, and even the bass-specific ones have seemed to lose a bit of low-end punch through the old Peaveys. Enter the Vintage. The Bass Big Muff was absolutely pant-flapping, especially in "Bass Boost" mode. Smooth, creamy lows and mids, with enough top to add definition but not so much that your ears die. Beautiful. The Wren & Cuff Pickle Pie B has been a bit of a mixed bag in the past: loads of low-end fuzz, but a real harsh brashness through the mids and highs. Now sorted. The Vintage eased it all off, especially when combined with a bit of the tube-simulation grind from the Hartke preamp pedal. Smooth but biting. Lovely. And the Hjärt-Müller gave a sweet, thick, grindy, old-school drive. For dirt-lovers, I'd give the Vintage a big thumbs-up. I think I actually did last night. [u]Guitar[/u] This might be sacrilege to some, but in the interests of completeness, we decided to run Tim's guitar setup into the Vintage. Now, Tim's a registered lurker on here (he tends to use a fair bit of bass-end gear in his rig), so he may pass better comment than I can. I would say his sound is somewhere between Smashing Pumpkins and Sunn O))), so plenty of scooped fuzz. He usually runs Les Paul > Big Muff > old Carlsbro bass head > Eminence Tonker-equipped 4x12. Last night we tried running from the Muff into the Hartke bass preamp pedal + Tapco power amp out to the Vintage, and we also tried just swapping the 4x12 for the Vintage (running from the Carlsbro). Either way, it had [i]awesome[/i] punch and bottom end. Obviously, it's not voiced for guitar, so we had to pull out [i]a lot[/i] of mids, but once we had, it was incredible. Tim is a very, very jealous fella. In summary, there were two very smiley faces in a Newcastle rehearsal room last night. A lot of awed silences. A lot of grins. A lot of thumbs up. To quote Tim again, the Barefaced Vintage is "the balls". The only downside I've found is that (being a short guy) the side handles are at the exact distance from the top that causes me to whack my larynx on the top edge when I pick it up. But hey, [b]I can pick it up[/b]. I've never had that from a bass cab before. I would heartily recommend the Vintage to anyone with a need for severe volume, unbelievable bottom end or a huge collection of dirt pedals. I'd love to hear it with a valve head. Probably not one for the slappers or the Michael Manrings of this world -- not enough top-end sparkle. But I didn't start playing bass to sparkle. I started playing bass to make people's clothes fall off, to make people's skin stretch back past their faces like they're in a centrifuge. The Vintage is the answer. EDIT: Note that this is all first impressions. I reserve the right to get even more enthusiastic when I actually gig this baby.

So... anyone interested in how it sounded?

[quote name='Stan_da_man' post='531772' date='Jul 3 2009, 03:20 PM']Pretty sure it's Stagg.[/quote] Ah yes. Another quick Google for [url="http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=%22g2+by+stagg%22"]"g2 by stagg" brings up plenty of mentions[/url]. Could it be Stagg's [i]budget[/i] line?

A quick Google only brings up [url="http://www.languedocguitars.com/guitars/g2.php"]Languedoc Guitars and their model called the G2[/url]. I doubt it's what you saw, and there ain't no basses. Could just be a re-badged instrument from a Far-East factory. Sorry I can't be any specific help.

[quote name='Beedster' post='531388' date='Jul 3 2009, 08:59 AM']Isn't it usually about here that one of the BC physicists posts that it actually makes no difference what height a string is set at [/quote] I make no claim to be a physicist any more, but it's clear to me that there [i]will[/i] be a difference between the sounds of low action and medium action. Even if you're not aware of any fret buzz with a low action, the limited space between the vibrating string and the fret/fingerboard prevents the string from vibrating with an amplitude beyond a certain limit. As you raise the action, you increase the space available to the string, and the amplitude of vibration can increase, giving it more "room to breathe", as WoT says. It'll sound different. Full stop. Also, with a low action, even if you can't [i]hear[/i] any fret buzz, there might be minuscule amounts of contact between the string and, say, the next fret up from the one you're stopping. That'll damp the sound slightly or maybe introduce some different harmonic content. Maybe. I dunno. [quote name='Beedster' post='531388' date='Jul 3 2009, 08:59 AM']Anyone found that raising string height affects intonation? I only ask as, technically, if you raise the height, you're also increasing the distance between nut and saddle (or at least you could be depending on how much relief you have in your neck)?[/quote] Yes. It absolutely does. It slightly alters the length of the string, which in turn alters the tension the string has to be at to reach pitch. Not only that, but it also alters the distance you have to press the string down to fret a note, so the ratios of string-stopping lengths shift, and you have to adjust the saddles to compensate for all of these factors. As I muse over this in my mind, it strikes me that if you had a [b]really extreme[/b] action, you'd need to have your frets moved to intonate properly. I might be able to knock up a few diagrams later when I'm not supposed to be working.

[quote name='Eight' post='531021' date='Jul 2 2009, 08:14 PM']Everyone round Tyne's house for a beer and Barefaced tasting session.[/quote] I've said it before in the Vintage thread: I'm happy to try to sort out meetups for people in the Newcastle area to test my mighty Vintage. I'd especially like to hear it with a halfway decent head on top. My Hartke preamp pedal + Tapco power amp solution leaves a bit to be desired. Having said that, I've yet to crank the Vintage to 11. Seriously, NEers, PM me and we'll sort stuff out.

Well, it works. I've quickly tested at low levels (read "semi-detached with 2-year-old child sleeping directly above and disapproving looks from Mrs BE" levels) and it sounds sweet as a nut. It feels like a very open, transparent sound. Compared to my Peavey cabs at similar volumes, it's like a duvet has been lifted. It feels so counterintuitive to me to get that sort of mid and high-mid response from 15"s, and it was great to hear it. Can't comment as yet on the bottom end (not enough volume to really tell), and obviously tomorrow night will be the acid test of volume and power, but it felt (and I'm going to go all "zen" on you here) strangely like there was no amp rig at all. I forgot all about it. I had a direct connection between what I was playing and what I was hearing, to an extent that I've never experienced before through any amp setup. If it can do all that at volume and deliver bottom end in spades... well... happy, happy times. Roll on the noise. P.S. I'll be trying out all manner of drives and fuzzes through it tomorrow. Can't wait.

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='530728' date='Jul 2 2009, 03:35 PM']*drums fingers*[/quote] Yeah, you and me both. Still 90 minutes till hometime...

Right. You know the black monolith from [i]2001: A Space Odyssey[/i]? That's the Vintage. And yes, my god, it's full of stars. I checked. It arrived without me realising what it was, because the FedEx guy literally [i]sauntered[/i] into my shop with it. I thought it was probably just another box full of bibs or highchairs. Then I saw the senders address, and I was amazed by just how light it was. The lass who works for us helped me open the box just before her shift finished. Now, she used to work in a recording studio as a full-time session singer, so she's no fool when it comes to music gear. Her first three comments when we got it open were: [list=1] [*]Wow, that's the biggest one I've ever seen. [*]It's beautiful! [*]How much did that set you back? A couple of grand by the look of it. [/list]The first two are standard comments in a day in the life of BottomEndian, but they made me grin extra-wide today. And the third... well, it says it all. It really is beautiful to behold. The pictures we've seen so far from Alex really don't do it justice. The finish is [b]black[/b]. None more black. And the cloth's just... cool. No other word will do. It's cool. Really reminds me of my parents' old hi-fi speakers. I can't stress how light this thing is, at least in comparison to its size. I'm used to things like my Peavey 410 TVX, which is 102.5 lb, and I can't lift it on my own. The Vintage is actually an [b]easy[/b] lift. I suspect it might even be lighter than my Peavey head. Seriously. The side handles seem to be perfectly positioned and balanced for lifting, and the tilt-back handle-and-wheels combination seems to work nicely. Note that although the box itself is 38" tall, it actually stands just over an inch taller than that, because of the feet. It's really quite imposing, in a good way. Hopefully I'll get a chance to at least test it this evening, but I won't be able to really crank it until tomorrow night, when I'm meeting my guitarist for a jam. It'll be going up against a brutal onslaught of Les Paul > Big Muff > 150W Carlsbro bass head > one or two 4x12s. My Peavey rig (700W into a 410 and 115) has always struggled a touch to keep up with the guitar. Let battle commence...

IT'S HERE! More in a few minutes...

[quote name='alexclaber' post='530323' date='Jul 2 2009, 10:14 AM']I've noticed the Barefaced Big One being referred to as the Bigone. That doesn't scan too well, is it a Big one or a Bi gone? So I think henceforth it should be written like this: Barefaced BigOne[/quote] That won't stick. Camel case never does. How many people (apart from me and probably you, Alex, you anal fella you) actually go to the effort of writing eBay or PayPal? It makes me wince every time I see Ipod or Imac too. Mind you, don't get me started on people writing MAC when they mean Mac.

[quote name='Rich' post='528059' date='Jun 29 2009, 08:05 PM']And thankfully, none of the reviews contained the phrase "dialling in"..! [/quote] I'm pretty sure the Marleaux review talked about the ability to "dial in an articulate and precise tone". Still, one instance per issue isn't bad. [quote name='BigBeefChief' post='529666' date='Jul 1 2009, 03:35 PM']How many people work on/for BGM?[/quote] I counted through the credits in the front this morning on the pooper, and I reached 21, including Accounts, Subs and Advertising. I may have counted someone twice, although I tried to avoid it. Interesting? Relevant?

[quote name='High score' post='529912' date='Jul 1 2009, 08:12 PM']Cruising through it I have been revisiting King Crimsons RED, STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK and to be honest I was blown away all over again. I had completely forgotten how ferking awesome this stuff was with bass playing to die for!![/quote] +1 for Red. Incredible stuff. They never really got back to that height of brilliance IMO. [quote name='High score' post='529912' date='Jul 1 2009, 08:12 PM']Anyone else rediscovered hot stuff that has been hidden away for too long?[/quote] Just the other day I dug out [i]Laughing Stock[/i] by Talk Talk. Sat back and... wow. I'd forgotten how completely mesmerising it is. If you haven't heard it, cast aside all notions of their early-80s synth pop and [url="http://www.last.fm/music/Talk+Talk/Laughing+Stock"]get on last.fm[/url].

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='529366' date='Jul 1 2009, 09:39 AM']For me - top of the fret to the bottom of the string.[/quote] Which fret? If you measure at the last fret, you can't compare between basses with different numbers of frets. And as for fretlesses...

Just bought Ben's Gotoh 201 bridge. Paid him yesterday, and it's in the post within a few hours! Arrived this morning, packaged to perfection. Couldn't be happier. Ben's one top fella.

[quote name='alexclaber' post='528784' date='Jun 30 2009, 04:26 PM']I don't think you have a hope of getting a Nissan Micra into the back of a Yaris.[/quote] That's what [b]you[/b] think. I didn't study theoretical physics for four years for nothing. I have the secrets to folding time and space...

[quote name='alexclaber' post='528758' date='Jun 30 2009, 04:05 PM']I should add that that was with the seats still up. Alex[/quote] This bodes well for my 3 basses + Pedaltrain + power amp + Vintage + Nissan Micra load-in plan.

[quote name='Stylon Pilson' post='528746' date='Jun 30 2009, 03:57 PM'][b]WoT:[/b] Wow [b]BottomEndian:[/b] Wow [b]WoT:[/b] It's... [b]BottomEndian:[/b] ...I know... [b]WoT:[/b] ...so... [b]BottomEndian:[/b] ...I can plug it in, if you like. [b]WoT:[/b] Maybe later. S.P.[/quote] Yeah, I don't think I could ever plug in something that's achieved such... mythical status. I'll have to get a second one to actually use. EDIT: And as I said a couple of months back, I'm happy to meet up with people so they can try it out. As long as I get to try out their 1971 Precisions...

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='528684' date='Jun 30 2009, 03:12 PM']Alex, was it mentioned that one of these coming up my neck of the woods, or did I imagine it?[/quote] To me. Hopefully soon. Money has changed hands. The deal has been done. Awaiting the FedEx man. With short sentences.

[quote name='bumnote' post='528392' date='Jun 30 2009, 10:06 AM']Wouldnt a metal car body expand and contract more that wood?[/quote] By and large, no, but it might depend on the wood. Check out [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coefficient_of_thermal_expansion#Thermal_expansion_coefficients_for_some_common_materials"]Wikipedia's table of thermal expansion coefficients[/url]. Essentially, the bigger the number, the more expandy it is as heat increases. Steel has coefficients around a third to a fifth of the wood coefficients, but they're oak and pine. If you've got a more dense wood involved, like bubinga or ebony, it might well have less propensity to expand in increasing heat, making its properties a bit more in the range of metal. Pure speculation there, by the way. So it looks like the lesson from that table is that for ultra-stable bass necks in changing weather, we should be using quartz or diamond. One for Ritter, perhaps?

Working my way through the new one in little chunks when I have time. Three things have hit me so far: [list=1] [*][b]Overwater giveaway![/b] [*]In the article about Janek, it mentions influences from Debussy and "Foray". I can only assume it means Gabriel [b]Fauré[/b], and not, for example, the French economist Dominique Foray. Just a tiny bit of musical background knowledge required on the part of the writer... Enforced GCSE Music for all BGM writers? [*]In the article about Christian McBride, there's a box titled "Duffy's Gear". Why? There's no mention that I can find of the name Duffy in the rest of the article, so it doesn't seem to be a nickname for McBride. Has he played for Duffy, everyone's least favourite cat-wailing Welsh songstress? Doesn't get mentioned. Copy & paste error? [/list] Anyhoo, nit-picking aside, I think it's pretty good so far. The interview with Janek's really interesting. Only thing is, I've had a quick glance ahead to the reviews, and yet again it's basses way out of my price-league. Aspirational, maybe; relevant to most, no. At least one sub-£500 bass per issue would be great. Like Rich says, keep it up.

[quote name='skankdelvar' post='527860' date='Jun 29 2009, 04:16 PM']...a 7 string baritone? The work of The Devil. I've decided - I want a Bass V re-issue. Even though they haven't done one yet... (waits for other shoe to drop).[/quote] ...CLUNK! Not a reissue, but there's [url="http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260437676663"]another Bass V[/url] on eBay now. Half the price of the last one too. Very probably a refin, as the description says. After all, the neck plate's got buckle rash [i]in extremis[/i], but the body finish is pretty much spotless.