Bottle

Oooohhh, just picked up on this thread - excellent idea!! I'm definitely interested in popping along (once venue/date are set) - I'll have to check my playing rota, but I'm free most Saturdays now until April. Most of London is no real hassle from Cambridge (would obviously prefer a venue N/NE/E London, somewhere at the bottom of the M11/A10/A1M, but really anywhere within the M25 is do-able) Enjoyed myself immensely at the SE Bash last October - be good to catch up with the regulars again . And maybe see if a few peeps from my neck of the woods are up for a mini east-Anglian bash sometime!

[quote name='pete.young' post='695681' date='Dec 29 2009, 04:09 PM']Jakesbass is right , the melody is mostly based around the E harmonic minor scale. Those were bass notes by the way, not chords - the D# - F# notes are over a B chord.[/quote] Aha!! Now that makes a lot more sense - I've also been reading the thread about chord names and what makes a 'first inversion' and 'second inversion' [quote]If you want to improve your ability to pick up songs by ear, I'd say the most important thing to work on is recognising intervals.[/quote] Thanks for the tip - I'm still learning to pick stuff by ear. I mostly start with a search on t'interweb for tabs or guitar chords and work from there. [quote name='Doddy' post='695735' date='Dec 29 2009, 05:11 PM']Just as a quick aside-I get really annoyed when I'm busking a tune that i know and I'm told that its in say,E ,and so start playing in that key,only to find that it's not,but that E is the first chord. For example,if you are playing something simple like 'Autumn Leaves', and the guitarist calls it in C minor. So you play the first chord -F minor-,only to find that C minor was the first chord and not the key signature. It's actually in G minor. Sorry to slightly derail the thread slightly.[/quote] I feel your pain - had a new piece a few months back which we hadn't rehearsed, and I'd only listened to a couple of times - it's in the key of A, but the first chord is C#!!! Cue lots of head-scratching. Thanks to everyone whose vaulted knowledge I've just plumbed You guys are great Ta, Ian

Hi folks Figured I'd post this here since I'm taking a greater interest in learning songs by ear and increasing my general knowledge of theory and technique. I posted [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=71627"]this[/url] in the off topic thread, and thanks to Pete Young for working out the chords - ta muchly. I now have a follow-up question regarding key signatures - how do you guys go about working out a key signature for piece you maybe only know from playing by ear? I was wondering because in the course of working on the song 'Helicopter' by The Feeling, and from the chords that Pete worked out for me, I was struggling to fit the song into a particular key. The best I can figure out is that it is in E-major with a minor 3rd (G) or that it's in E-minor with a major 7th (D#) - how does that stack up? Thanks Ian

Very happy with the wide range of tones I can get out of my Squier Precision Special - most of it's down to RH technique and playing over the bridge or neck pup. And well worth a punt - mine was bought for under 200 notes.

I've used both 4- and 5-stringers - haven't really got a preference, although I'm loving my Squier 4 string P-Special a lot at the moment! Had a 5-string Ibby for six months or so this year - moved that on to a deserving home. Struggled a bit with it TBH, mainly with the string spacing, perhaps wasn't ready for the transition to a five. Occasionally miss the lower notes, particularly the low C/Db/D/Eb. I've detuned my Squier to D Standard, and like that configuration a lot, for the music I play in church it's ideal . Maybe I'll go back to a five when I'm a more mature player, but I'm thinking about buying another 4-string and tuning it BEAD - I believe this is the best of both worlds for where I am at the moment as a musician. Anyway, this is all my own opinion, and your mileage may vary. Give it a go and see what you think. Patience is the key, and I don't think I kept the 5-er long enough to get used to it. Plus it was a big, heavy bugger, and the Squier is [i]soooo[/i] much lighter! Take care, and let us know how it turns out Ian

Yep, I'm suitably impressed with my GK (see siggie) - have been gigging with it for the last few months, and it's even been into the recording studio in September. Safe to say the recording engineers were mighty impressed with it. Got some positive comments at the SE Bass Bash in October as well (which was nice ) Out again with it Sunday morning and evening at my local church (yep, I'm lugging my 4x10 [i]and[/i] my PA gear there ) Very happy with the service I got at Bass Merchant when I went to audition some heads (went up against a Shuttle 3.0 and an LM3) Micro heads are the way forward! Ta, Ian

[quote name='hillbilly deluxe' post='680109' date='Dec 10 2009, 12:07 PM']My Marshall DBS 200w has 2 speaker outputs on the back,i have a 2x10+1x15 @ 4 ohms cab,and a 1x15 @ 8 ohms cab.T Excuse my numptyness,but what affect will this have on the amps output ? On the rear of the amp it states,minimum 4 ohms.[/quote] Nothing good - the combined impedance of the 2x10/1x15 will be 2.6666 Ohms (which is less than the 4 Ohms minimum impedance your amp is capable of driving) so, DON'T DO IT!!! Here's the science bit: Impedances in parallel are not simply additive, in fact the formula is 1/R1 + 1/R2 + ... 1/Rx = 1/Rt (being the total) Therefore your set-up is 1/8 + 1/4 = 3/8, making your Rt 8/3, or 2.66666 Ohms Hope this explains things. Ian

I'm tempted to ease my post-Christmas GAS with a trip to Bass Merchant in January - date TBC, but likely to be Saturday 16th (my birthday) or possibly the 30th. If anyone is going to be around and wants to meet me there for an informal BC get-together, then feel free to PM me. Ta, Ian

Just thought I'd share some thoughts on the Neutrik Silent plugs. Works fine with both of my current passive basses, but I've used a couple of active basses, including an Ibanez ATK305, which was temperamental with the R/A version of the plug, because of the reasons outlined above. I also found that the sleeve didn't always disengage when removed from the bass, resulting in a nasty squealing sound from the amp (urghhh, 'orrible ). Apparently, Neutrik have redesigned the jack so that the sleeve is better now, but YMMV with active basses. I've kinda put my Silent cable out to pasture, I'm using a regular Neutrik R/A plug and rely on my tuner for muting. HTH Ian

[quote name='crez5150' post='652611' date='Nov 12 2009, 01:23 PM']try the GK MB2..... outstanding![/quote] +1 for the GK MB2 - had mine for a few months now. Very happy with it, and I can push the full 500w into my EBS 4x10 cab (which is nice ). Add a slight amount of grit courtesy of the SansAmp, and you've got a killer combination. Very easy to dial in a tone, EQ is pretty good, contour filter is a nice touch. Anyway, there's lot to choose from at that price point (I paid a smidge over 500 notes for the GK) - LM3, Shuttle 6.0, the new Orange Bass Terror 500, TC RH450, plus I'm sure if you try first, you can pick up a bargain second-hand (lots of LM2s come up for sale). Give Darren at Bass Merchant a call. Anyway, hope this helps Ian

[quote name='dirtystatic' post='674053' date='Dec 4 2009, 11:51 AM']Thanks for all the info guys, I think I'm gonna have a crack at building one (what I mean is - I'm going to force my mate to do it for me). I was wondering about the active/passive issue as my main bass of choice is active... ...so if i build the pedal and it doesn't agree with my ATK300 I could this might be a possible fix?[/quote] It certainly didn't agree with my old ATK305 - found that my current passive basses are much easier to tame. Still, YMMV Best of luck with the build. Feel free to PM me for the diagrams/stripboard layout that I used Ian

I've built the WM clone (see my siggie) - not a bad little project. Reckon it probably cost me about 25 quid in parts, including the box. It's a fairly straightforward circuit, just two transistors and dozen passives. Downside, didn't like my old active bass too much, seemed to be much better with the Ibanez and Squier. Bags of gain (which is not always a bad thing). Worth a punt tho' HTH, Ian

[quote name='mcgraham' post='662418' date='Nov 23 2009, 09:54 AM']PA was a mess yesterday at church (we rent a room, and is therefore not a static setup). The PA team did their best but a slow start and lots of 'gremlins' in the equipment meant sorting some half decent monitoring for myself was a no-go. Something to work on anyway! Mark[/quote] Know the feeling! Our biggest 'gremlin' at the moment is the multi-core (24 sends, 4 returns) - out of 28 cores, we've gradually lost the use of six, including two desk returns for the main amp rack feed. I've got it with me today so I can take a look on my workbench at lunchtime - cue much soldering and stripping methinks. We also have no static set-up, which has taken it's toll on the multi - we're always having to unroll it at the beginning, and roll it back up at the end. Anyway, had a good morning (only on set-up, so had a breather this week!) Hope it goes OK for you. All the best, Ian

[quote name='GreeneKing' post='652327' date='Nov 12 2009, 09:53 AM']I'm travelling 31 miles each way over Shap Can be a challenge in the Winter.[/quote] No kidding! Luckily I live just outside Cambridge, so it's pretty flat round here. Rehearsals are generally in Cambridge, so I can drive to them after work - maybe 10 or 15 mins tops across town, but it's then a 30 minute drive home (usually late into the night, on back roads, not nice this time of year). Most of the worship team members live in Cambridge, so there's no point in asking for a venue outside of town Anyway, I used to live in Ely which was a damn-sight further away - so glad I'm not doing that round-trip now.

Cool! Glad to be of service, and good luck with the wiring

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='649915' date='Nov 9 2009, 06:18 PM']Thanks for that Ian! Which of those connections are north-start, north-finish, south-start, south-finish? [i]Bridge HB toggle[/i] 5 = south-finish 2 = north-start earthed = south start and north finish? [i]Neck HB toggle[/i] 5 = south-start 2 = north-finish earthed = south finish and north start?[/quote] Hey Kiwi I'd use the Bridge HB wiring for both pickups TBH - the diagram you've posted at the top seems to be the easiest wiring to follow: [i]Bridge HB toggle[/i] [b]2[/b] = south-finish [b]5[/b] = north-start earthed = south start and north finish That should work and avoid any messed up wiring / phase issues when running both the Bridge and Neck p'ups through a VVT or VBT stack. Let us know how that works out Cheers, Ian

OK CK. I've worked out how to do it with a pair of on/on/on toggles (one per humbucker) - I'm just transferring it to paper/pdf. Watch this space! HTH. Ian EDIT: Here you go!! Try this - watch out for the phase on each coil. [attachment=36035:CK_Humbuckers.pdf] PM or post if you need a diagram for series/single/parallel wiring per humbucker (again using on/on/on toggles)

[quote name='mcgraham' post='640132' date='Oct 29 2009, 03:30 PM']Do let me/us know how you get on with using IEM. I'm definitely sold on at least the personal monitoring side - if I can get it to work with the PA team then even better![/quote] Just thought I'd add some comments regarding the IEMs, now that I've had a couple of weeks using them. Firstly, you've got to have a great working relationship with your PA guy - he can make all the difference between hearing (and playing) well, and a complete dog's dinner - luckily we have some super guys. OK, first weekend I used IEMs properly was last Sunday (1st Nov) - TBH wasn't feeling my best, and had a real difficult soundcheck, but IEMs worked fine. Need some better noise-isolation in-ear buds, 'cos I was standing right next to the drummer (right-handed, floor tom side). Had to keep pushing my cab volume up, which is a problem for the on-stage level. Monday & Tuesday (2nd & 3rd) our worship band were invited to lead worship at the Partners in Harvest conference in Hemel Hempstead (HHCC) - got to play a slot on Tuesday to give our regular bassist a break - used hard-wired IEMs, much better isolation as our drummer (bless her!) was behind a drum screen. Played yesterday morning (8th) - different PA engineer, but he got the FoH & monitor mix pretty good - everybody was up and dancing, and I could really get into the worship - helped to feed off each other. Drummer and I locked in much better, really enjoyed playing. So, I think having a good mix can make [i]all[/i] the difference! Well, I've got a break from playing for the next few weeks - we're encouraging other musicians at the moment, plus we've got a a new worship CD in the works - due to be released in December, so I'm going to be putting on my PA hat for a while. Anyway, hope this helps Ian

[quote name='Musicman20' post='647638' date='Nov 6 2009, 08:41 PM']See my sig....Im after a Shuttle 9.0 next.[/quote] +1 (although I've only just got my GK, so won't be GASing for another head for a while )

[quote name='mcgraham' post='640132' date='Oct 29 2009, 03:30 PM']Do let me/us know how you get on with using IEM. I'm definitely sold on at least the personal monitoring side - if I can get it to work with the PA team then even better![/quote] Will do [quote]Incidentally, I used to sound and light at school and also at previous churches, and I'd love to do PA here, but every church I've been in have found more use for me on bass or guitar. You're right in that we're ultimately there to serve the congregation and worship time by following the worship leader; everything else is peripheral. With regards to the worship team/band and sound team relationship, I find that it is (objectively speaking) an interesting dynamic: the musicians are there to play, the PA team are there to sort the sound of the team - without the musicians the PA guys have nothing to do, without the PA team the musicians will not be able to play. As such, you just need to do your job and trust your PA team to do theirs. Its just unfortunate that the PA team at present is quite unco-operative to do things out of the norm. Mark[/quote] We've had our ups-and-downs, as does every other group I've worked with, but we've made a lot of progress, and we're much more 'together' - most of the PA team also serve on the worship team, so there's less 'them 'n' us' to it now. We all have the same heart, just different ways of achieving it and we all trust each other implicitly. I think making the PA team feel like they're included goes a long way - when I started going to my present church it was quite an adjustment to what I'd experienced before, and it was sometime before I felt I was accepted by the worship team, even working alongside them for almost a year. But I got inspired to pick up the bass again after a hiatus, and I think that went a long way to breaking the ice. Have a good one, and I'll let you know how it works out with the IEMs Ian

[quote name='mcgraham' post='639944' date='Oct 29 2009, 12:21 PM']Bottle, thanks for sharing, always interesting to hear how other worship bassists deal with such things I was considering closed back headphones as your money goes further sound quality wise for headphones rather than earbuds. However I love earbuds and prefer the discrete look. I may buy a set anyway for personal listening but that's another matter.[/quote] If this weekend goes well, may consider it. We have more than one drummer, and I'm the second of two bassists, so the rota changes each week (as does the monitor mix and the EQ!) [quote]Unfortunately, the sound team skill level is quite inexperienced and, for a number of reasons, they are generally unwilling to try new things. As such, all the stuff I've been trying I've been having to do totally by myself, but I've primarily been doing to address the PA team's complaints about bass amplification/monitoring. Yes, this is frustrating for me, but I'm hoping we can start to try new stuff soon.[/quote] I've got my foot in both camps - I double up on the PA side of things when required (actually I've been doing the PA longer than I've been playing bass). We have three guys including myself who are experienced enough to set up from scratch, plus another three or four people who can drive the desk competently. Now I have the SansAmp DI box I can go straight into the desk - previously used the DI out from the GK. Still have to make two trips from the car to get everything in (thinking 'lightweight cabs' next ) All our gear is set up and struck down for each service, because we rent the venue (they do allow us a cupboard for storage), which means a rapid turn-around, so IEMs help get everyone a monitor mix quickly. At the end of the day we're there to worship and to serve the worship leader, so the PA should be transparent and as unobtrusive as possible (not that it always works out that way!). The venue acoustic is good, but still presents challenges as I've outlined in the previous post - drum-kit is top of the list. But the acoustic kit beats the Roland V-Drums set we used before hands down! Don't get me started on the PA multi-core snake (we're in the market for a new one - the current one is on it's way out ) Anyway, it's been great to get another perspective on Sunday morning worship Take care Ian

Wow! Seriously impressed with that effort - how'd you do it??

[quote name='mcgraham' post='627707' date='Oct 16 2009, 10:39 AM']When playing in a worship team, an overall mix of the band and ambience is vital. Worship sets are not 'jam' sessions by any means, but there is a lot more spur-of-the-moment variation and changes depending on where the leader feels things are going - very dynamic, but it means you need to be able to hear what's going on clearly and adjust your playing accordingly and with taste.[/quote] +1 I play regularly with a worship team in Cambridge - in fact I'm on for the next two Sundays. I usually don't bother with an IEM mix, but may change this week. We normally run 4 separate IEM mixes from the FoH desk plus a wedge mix (the venue is too small to justify having a split FoH/Monitor mix setup). The setup usually goes like this: IEM mix #1 for the worship leader (usually keys or acoustic gtr) plus wedge mix (drummer gets the same mix). IEM #2 for the BV, IEM #3 for alt keys/brass/woodwind/2nd acoustic, IEM #4 for bass/electric guitar. I've found over the last couple of months that the drummer's volume and dynamics have been increasing, so find it more difficult to dial in a volume level on my amp that doesn't drown out everyone else. Due to the amount of time we have to set up in the morning, we don't tend to bother with a drum shield (we don't mic the drum kit). Inevitably, the on-stage volume keeps creeping up. I'm thinking about now using IEMs for isolation as well as a monitor mix. Downside is that I just don't get on with the in-ear buds - they irritate my ear canal. Thinking about using my closed-back headphones instead. Anyway, thought I'd just add my thoughts to the mix HTH, Ian

[quote name='Ray' post='639206' date='Oct 28 2009, 04:29 PM']Is this the usual way to connect a bass to an amp in a different room? i.e. Bass > jack-XLR cable > wallbox > wallbox > XLR-jack cable > amp Are there other/better ways to do it?[/quote] Sure! If you've got a cable trap, or just a hole-in-the-wall, then your regular instrument cable should suffice, provided it's long enough. Patching using a XLR is just another way of doing it. At the end of the day, it's still unbalanced, so try to keep the runs short. Using the DI boxes in that back-to-back configuration brings in all sorts of problems - impedance mismatches, ground loops, ground lifts etc. [quote name='Ray' post='639206' date='Oct 28 2009, 04:29 PM']Well equipped, yes. But if the engineers don't know how to use the gear properly what good is it? It's actually a college where they do training courses for studio engineering, Cubase, Logic, Ableton Live etc.[/quote] Sounds typical - all the gear but no idea Oh, well. Chalk it up to experience. And your amp sounds like it's fine - go bother the 'engineer' about his comments Have a good one, Ian

Umm, not sure you can get away with that, unless the DI boxes are passive types - even then I've not heard of this being done. Just to clarify, does your signal chain looks like this? Bass > DI box out > wallbox > DI box in reverse > jack out into amp In that case, probably the ground was lifted at one end or the other, or attenuation in line. For this to work, the destination DI need to be the passive type, with no active electronics in the way, because you're effectively using it 'in reverse' to normal operations. The source DI can be active or passive, but an active type would have to be battery-powered, because you have no way of injecting phantom power. Depending on distance, I would have thought that using a matching jack-to-XLR cable for both ends would work better, and avoids the hassle of DI'ing the bass, and ground loops, impedance mis-matches etc. Anyway, HTH Ian PS and this is a 'well-equipped' studio?