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philw

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Posts posted by philw

    Why do double bass microphones feed back?

    in EUB and Double Bass

    Posted

    Just happened on this thread and while I don't want to be accused of nannying, can I just post a health warning about the dangers of "Heath Robinson" in-ear monitoring? Professional IEM systems incorporate limiters and fail-safe devices that ensure that if something goes wrong in the PA/backline, users aren't rendered immediately and perhaps permanently deaf by a blast of feedback injected directly into their ears. An IEM system created simply by driving a pair of headphones from a monitor mix output has no such safety net and if you use one you're potentially playing Russian roulette with your hearing.

    P

    You don't see many of these...

    in Bass Guitars

    Posted · Edited by philw

    [quote name='noelk27' timestamp='1344793135' post='1769204']
    There were a few versions of the body shape also. The version which you have (also the same as mine) with the scroll cutaway came first, and then there was the version with the horn cutaway (and two pickups). My problem always is I can't recall which shape came in which colours. The scroll version I remember seeing in the blue, amber (orange) and jade bursts and (yellow) natural, and the later horn cutaway version in solid black, (yellow) natural, magenta burst and antique sunburst.
    [/quote]

    Hmm, so many colours, so little time....

    Think I'll stop at blue and orange, although I did just do a quick Gumtree and eBay check. Nothing at the moment.

    Perhaps a BEX4 porn thread is in order? I'll takes some pics of my "matching" pair when the blue one comes back from a setup by Mr. Aguilera (the two basses actually had a neck swap. The neck on the blue bass had a seized truss rod so was the best candidate for fingerboard removal).

    P

    You don't see many of these...

    in Bass Guitars

    Posted · Edited by philw

    [quote name='noelk27' timestamp='1344785710' post='1769088']
    I see a blue one every day. Just wish Yamaha had made these in a few other colours.
    [/quote]

    My other one is blue. It's fine but doesn't really have the pizazz of the orange so I thought that was a much better candidate for the fretless ebony treatment (I can swap the necks if I ever feel like a change).

    I think there was a tobacco burst version, but they're a bit hen's teeth.

    P

    You don't see many of these...

    in Bass Guitars

    Posted

    [quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1344785489' post='1769085']
    Nice!

    They always seemed much better than the price suggested they should be!
    [/quote]

    They are, much better. I always liked the look, so eventually bought an eBay cheepie (£250 I think) on a whim. I was blown away by the tone. Very P-bass like from the mag pickup combined with a lovely acoustic vibe honk from the piezo. Build quality is nothing hugely special, but a long, long way from shabby. So, when a second one came up on Gumtree (even cheaper than the eBay) it was a perfect candidate for a fretless conversion. Et voila!

    P

    You don't see many of these...

    in Bass Guitars

    Posted · Edited by philw

    I've been meaning for a long time to have one of my two cheap as chips Yamaha BEX4s converted to fretless, and at last it's done. Rather than just have the frets removed and slots filled, I asked Brighton luthier Paul Aguilera to fit a new ebony fingerboard and a two-way truss rod to the bass. The result looks pretty cool to my (completely unbiased) eyes.

    Even better, I used the bass at a gig last night and really enjoyed it. Didn't miss the usual fretless Wal for a moment.

    Phil

    [attachment=115465:Bex 4 1.jpg][attachment=115466:Bex 4 2.jpg][attachment=115467:BEX 4 3.jpg]

    Ribbecke Halfling Bobby Vega model € 4000

    in Basses For Sale

    Posted

    Thank god it's not fretless or I'd be in deep trouble here. I played a fretless Ribbecke BV at the NAMM show a couple of years back and the experience was close to orgasmic. My credit card, despite the $7000 price tag and all the duty and VAT to get the thing back home, was genuinely twitching. A truly awesome bass.

    PS. Boby Vega's such a great player too. For those who've not heard him, he's worth checking out on YouTube.

    AER Basscube 2...

    in EUB and Double Bass

    Posted · Edited by philw

    OK, post gig (with NS EUB and Wal) thoughts about the Basscube 2.

    First, if you're after something compact and light the Basscube is bigger than I imagined and bloody heavy. Where my Amp One is tiny and built like a brick-outhouse, the Basscube is built like an entire Victorian toilet block. The Basscube 2 just fits in the back of my Mini Clubman with one back seat down, but there's no way I'd be able to get the double bass in as well, as I can with the Amp One.

    Once you've heaved it out of the car, plugged it in and stood it on something, the Basscube sounds, well it sounds exactly as it should depending on the instrument you're playing. AER stuff seems to me to have an uncanny transparency with very little of its own character. The Wal sounds just as it should and the NS also. If you want an amp that's full of character and that imprints its own sound on everything you do, then the Basscube probably doesn't have your name on it. If you want something however that just sits there and does the job, and leaves the sound entirely up to you, then it's much more likely to be your thing. Needless to say the Basscube goes very loud without any sign on strain or getting dirty.

    Being AER the Basscube has a few idiosyncrasies. First its mains cable is terminated in a Speakon plug rather than an IEC. The advantage of Speakon is that its a locking socket/plug arrangement so its never going to fall out. The disadvantage is however that if you ever forget the mains cable you're stuffed. Having two completely independent channels and having a vast number of control options for each means the Basscube is not a simple plug-in and play amp. There's an awful lot of parameters that you'll probably want to work with to optimise your setup, and you probably will have to read the manual (not least because AER's input/control panel labelling is not as clear as it might be). There's also a comprehensive range of signal routing and output options.

    The Basscube input options mean that all basses are well covered (Ha! A pun!). There's even 48V phantom power available if you're using a condensor mic on your double bass. A high Z piezo input means you can plug-in a double bass pickup without an external preamp, however there's no phase reverse switch and in my experience that's one of the most worthwhile anti-feedback options when you're playing a DB. Rather frustratingly, if I were to have a Basscube, I'd still have to take my Fishman preamp just for the phase reverse switch.

    Seems to me with amps you pretty much get what you pay for. The Basscube isn't inexpensive, but there's no question that you can't see where the money was spent. If you can afford it, can accept the idiosyncrasies, don't mind the weight and you want an amp that's transparent rather than "colourful", then I wouldn't hesitate in getting one.

    P

    AER Basscube 2...

    in EUB and Double Bass

    Posted

    Now that's a coincidence. My AER Amp One appears to have developed a problem and the nice people at Westside Distribution are lending me a Basscube 2 while the Amp One is fixed. The Basscube should be with me on Thursday and I have a gig that evening. I'll report back.

    Phil

    Sandberg Seventy Two?

    in Bass Guitars

    Posted · Edited by philw

    Presumably it's an exclusive "special" that Sandberg have done for Thomman. Sandberg wouldn't be the first "consumer goods" manufacturer to make a product specifically for one of its most important dealers. Happens all the time in white goods and consumer audio/video.

    P

    PS. NIce looking bass. If it were in Lake Placid Blue and plain fretless I'd be smitten.

    Letts fretless 5

    in Build Diaries

    Posted

    [quote name='Kiwi' timestamp='1339414374' post='1688011']
    Mahogany/wenge would be a seriously interesting wood combo - am really interested in knowing what it sounds like
    [/quote]

    My '83 fretless Wal is mahogany body with wenge top and back. Pete Stevens advised strongly against the combination at the time I ordered it. He thought the tone would be far too pushy in the mid-range (Pete favoured walnut facings on fretless). But hey, I was young and knew best back then, so went ahead anyway. I just loved the look of wenge (still do) and a Wal that's "too pushy in the mid-range" just didn't make sense for me - surely that's (partly) what the Wal tone is all about, especially on a fretless. Anyway, I never regretted the choice. Mine is about the most Wal sounding Wal I've ever heard. Even Pete I think came around to liking my bass.

    When I took the Wal up to Paul Herman for its 25 year service a couple of years ago he thought it must have been converted from fretted 'cause, "Pete would never have built a wenge/mahogany fretless".

    Phil

    Gig in Canterbury?

    in Gigs

    Posted

    All,

    For one reason or another (partly to "impress" a local promoter and partly 'cause we like doing gigs in towns we've not played before) my "alt-folk" band , The Galleons would like to do a gig in Canterbury (the one in Kent).

    Ideally, something a step or two above a dodgy pub gig where there's a decent house PS and a more than half decent chance of sounding good. Canterbury's equivalent of The Bedford in Balham or The Brunswick in Hove would be ideal. So can anybody suggest some venues that we can approach?

    Thanks
    Phil

    PS. You can hear The Galleons here: http://soundcloud.com/the-galleons

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