Boodang

Custom paint and led colours.

For a long while it was reverb, especially as I played mostly fretless. Then, i came across a blog by Gwizdala where he was talking about why he uses delay rather than reverb. Got a tc electronic flashback and experimented, and now my reverb pedals are in storage. Delay, all the way!

You mention what effect’s pedals you’re using, but out of interest what amp / cab setup do you have? And for that matter, what bass are you using?

Going back to basics and ditching multi fx's for a while is good advice. But as well as experimenting with eq, I would definitely throw compression in the mix. Our new bass player (I play drums in this band) has just bought one of the new Steinberger's, it's got a very mid heavy sound. I've added a bit more mid boost at 800, and some presence at 3.6k, a tad reduction in the bass around 80hz, and really sits well in the mix. To help this I added a tc electronic Spectracomp with the 3 band toneprint and it really adds some punch and drives the band. I highly recommend the Spectracomp, cheap and has some great toneprints so all the hard work is done for you. So good I'm thinking of buying one of the new steinbergers for myself.

Always a difficult one. EQ is probably everything here, and not just yours. When you record, a sound engineer will be looking at the frequency spectrum of every instrument and try to give them space.... so the left hand of the keyboard isn't obscuring the bass, or the rhythm and lead guitars have separation etc. This also applies live and something the whole band needs to be conscious of. As for your sound, very simply, a scooped mid eq can sound nice in isolation but lost in context, whereas a mid heavy tone will stand out but can sound very nasal. Hmm, a dichotomy I hear you say! But, some things to take into account; bass cabs, unless you have double 18 bass bins, are not very efficient at 41hz (typical specs would be -10db at 80hz which basically means your cab doesn't really work very well below that), so boosting that low can end up in an unfocused sound. 80hz will work better but can be boomy. Differentiat between low, mid and high, mid frequencies. Rather than treat mids as a general l block, try cutting at 400 and boosting at 800. Focus in on specific mid frequencies between 200 and 1k to see what affects that makes... both in cut and boost. Passive pickups? If so there's not a lot going on above 4k. 2.5 - 3.6k has a nice presence lift, but boosting above that will just increase background noise. Basically you're going to have to get quite surgical with your eq.

I play drums as well as bass so I use my Roc 'n Soc throne with a backrest. The backrest is essential for me otherwise I suffer badly. The throne is not cheap but I figured I would be using it for hours everyday so I'd get my moneys worth plus it is supremely comfortable. I also use it when I'm recording as it's the right height when I'm at the mixing desk. There might be cheaper alternatives but I certainly don't regret getting it and it seems like it'll outlast me.

The last time I used this skateboard I fell off it while trying to get a beer from the fridge. On the basis my skateboarding days are long gone (by several decades) I've decided to turn it into a pedalboard instead. Doorstops on the bottom give enough clearance to fix a psu underneath and I love the flamingo art work. Not the flatest board in world and the pedals are a bit wonky as a result, but I quite like the idea of skate/pedalboard. My fav 5 pedals of the moment, the surprise being the grape phaser which is almost on permanently.

I was in a band where I used to play this on DB. They wanted it to be the first song of the gig but it had to be the last as I had nothing left after all the extended solos they would put in!

Stratus - Billy Cobham Once you start playing the groove you just don't want to stop!

Ron Carter Ray Brown Stanley Clarke Eberhard Weber Charlie Haden Janek Gwizdala Percy Jones Brian Bromberg Jonas Hellborg Christian McBride All have been on albums and/or created music that has influenced me profoundly.

Streaming has transformed my listening experience. I've discovered so much new music and artists, something that's just not possible the traditional way of having a collection. Having said that I still enjoy putting on vinyl and listening to an album but it's not an either/or situation, so I do both.

I put Babicz bridges on my jazz basses. Perfect fit and easy to install. In terms of setup, a way better engineered product than the original.

It gets worse! I've always worked on the equation that the result has to be worth the birth pains. Hopefully you get to play with musicians you like and the result is great but at least one of those has to be worth it. You probably need to decide if any of it stacks up anymore.

We've just taken on a second guitarist with some very irritating habits. He treats rehearsal time as 'time to start learning the songs', although after a friendly word that has hopefully changed. But most bizarrely, and a first for me, he reads the charts from an ipad which he props up on top of an amp in the rehearsal room against a wall, then faces the wall with his back to the band! Quite comically, our keys player waves at him with futile gestures to try and direct the nuisances of the song whilst the guitarist carries on in ignorance reading his chart. I've loaned him a music stand which seems like a revelation to him.

Now you've moved to Warwick do you get free bass guitars?

Try the TC Electronic Spectradrive. Has comp, 4 band eq and drive but with the added advantage of toneprints so you can try many types of overdrive and comps.

My 3 fretless basses; 1. The Sei has ebony 2. The Squier has ebonol 3. Custom Viccars has rosewood The rosewood has softer tones. The ebony has a harder tone, if you crank the treble you can slap with it. The ebonol is great for those glissandos. My favourite is the ebonol. Glassy smooth.

https://www.andyviccarscustom.co.uk/index.php Andy Viccars. He's based in Milton Keynes which is my local town. He's semi retired but using up his remaing stock of which he has some cool stuff. My bass is made from 'gun stock' walnut. Really hand made!

From my local luthier. Less than a standard fender or bongo.

At that price I'd get my local luthier to make me a neck..... and that's what I've done recently. Custom 61 spec jazz neck with carbon stringers. Very specific and not something a generic manufacturer could produce.

Well, who's a silly boy then! Lots of good suggestions on the thread but have you considered a custom build to get exactly what you want? I had my local luthier make me a 24 fret jazz recently, to say I couldn't be happier is an understatement and cost wise was way cheaper than a bongo.

Change the preamp on the Bongo maybe?!

https://www.innovationstrings.com/#/ Check out Innovation strings. They have a string for most styles and preferences.. braided or solid synthetic core, steel or nylon wrapped and different tensions including a low tension set for slap, plus sets orientated towards arc or pizz. Mostly what you want will depend on what you play. I like the honey jazz set, a solid core mostly for pizz. An alternative to the innovation honey jazz are the Obligato strings, again synthetic core but a good all rounder that also has a good response with the bow (they have enough metal in the wrap to work with magnetic pickups).

Ric and Jazz pups are located in different positions on the body.... you could have a Ric with jazz pups added, or a jazz with ric, and you'd have the best of both worlds.

"Good condition... for year" = old and knackered!