pietruszka

I've played this when Dom had it. It's one ofthe nicest basses I've ever played. Dom does know how to pick them! We particularly like the warning the bass has with regards to its eq! Enjoy! Dan

I don't see any reason why not, claypool uses one in primus and plays slap on it. As for playing them, I'd played fretted for about 10 years before so I had the muscle memory and so it didn't take a huge amount of time to get used to. Otherwise it's practice practice practice. They're great fun and I havent looked back after getting one. If you're in the north east (no boat needed now) you're welcome to try mine. Dan

I have to admit I can't get a good sound out of the heads, but the cabs I love. I have a 410 and a 210, both sound great from my Aguilar AG 500 SC and I use a stingray to. Try using a different head through it if you can and hear what it sounds like. As others have suggested, try playing with the filter dials. Markbass do seem to have a Marmite crowd. Good job I love Marmite then! Dan

I have rcf art310-a's with a behringer xenyx x2442 USB. They're loud enough for a four piece band so they'll certainly do for your mate. The mackie you mentioned aren't to bad but I havent a lot of experience with them so don't take my word! The rcf's are excellent though, really clear. As for desks, the behringer I chose is great, each channel has its own compression and it has built in fx. Can't really go wrong. Dan

I admit I have played one, and the build was appalling. The frets on the edge of the neck almost cut the skin on my fingers, the sound was dreadful and it felt cheap. Im not surprised people change the pickups in them. For a bass that is supposed to be QC'd by flea and each and every one checked over, I struggle to believe they tried to charge £449 I think it was when they were released. Bottom line is, there is much better for the same money. I'm sure some one will mention the Sue Ryder bass fairly soon! Dan

[quote name='indiegrungesound' timestamp='1340899287' post='1711285'] Cheers Dan! Hope all's well in The North East! [/quote] Hope all's well? It's like the apocalypse here, rain, thunder and lightening. It got so dark the street lights came on! Still, we have brown ale and greggs. Dan

[quote name='Doctor J' timestamp='1340889666' post='1711094'] Still £154 too much [/quote] Pretty much my thoughts. Excellent idea, how many people here started playing bass because of Flea? I certainly did. But these basses are fairly dire. QC seems non existent at best. Dan

Good idea. You've each gotten a like off me. We're Chloe And The High Tides, EP out on iTunes and Amazon this Saturday. We're sort of a new take on soft country rock. http://www.reverbnation.com/chloeandthehightides Dan

I'd personally go for the straight out with it approach, in a non aggressive manner just mention "you were a little sharp there (in places), can you hear your self ok?". As some one said earlier, the singer would be quick to tell the band if they played something wrong. Just tell him, but be relaxed and constructive about then you shouldn't get thrown through the wall. Dan

Yeah I had noticed the cost of the rereleases, unnecessarily expensive. Even if they charged the usual £9.99 a cd I can't see the Zappa family struggling. I'm a pretty big Zappa fan, but come on. Dan

Hi, I'm wanting to start teaching and I'm after some 'guinea pigs' to build some confidence. Based in North Shields and can travel. PM for details. Dan

[quote name='Gunsfreddy2003' timestamp='1340698652' post='1708131'] I am fairly certain that the New Moon policy insures the gear wherever it is, left at rehearsal room, in the car or at a venue. That is what attracted me to it. [/quote] This is whats swaying me, I'm currently with MusicGuard and the cover is excellent but my renewal is £110 for £4k worth of stuff, on NewMoon it's £60. Can any one tell me if the NewMoon PLI covers the other musicians who are on the stage with you? As Thats what MG's PLI includes. Dan

Mistakes happen though surely? Have you never played a mistake? Everyone does them, the Bowie 'one back' mistake springs to mind. Dan

[quote name='Ben Jamin' timestamp='1340499586' post='1705425'] I think it was Miles Davis who said something along the lines of: "If you play a wrong note, play it again twice as loud and people will think you meant it". [/quote] My dad told me this! "Play it next time round, people will think its part of the song!". I make stacks of mistakes, it doesn't matter, it's how you mask them, that's the trick. When I was 18 my dad put me in a session band for a friends birthday do, and these were working London players who were annoyed that they had to turn up for a rehearsal the morning of the gig. The guitarist spoke to me afterwards as he new it was my first real world gig, I told him I made a couple of mistakes and he said a wonderful thing, "It doesn't matter if you make a mistake, it's only your own grave your digging". People make mistakes, it's part of being human! Dan

Ask the Vicar, has he had the same experience? Are you able to try the head through a different cab to see if it makes any difference? I know from experience, just based on sound alone and not volume, I couldn't get anything decent out of any Ampeg heads, yet Aguilar were completely different. Back to volume, my AG500 SC seems louder than the pro series heads Ampeg do. Different strokes and that. Dan.

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1340440028' post='1704398'] No love for the Marbass cabs then..?? [/quote] Hahaha!! Im using them now, the only reason I don't use Hartke now is because I can afford better (to my ears anyway). To any bassist on a budget I always recommend Hartke. Dan

As the others have said, there's plenty of thomann thread on here. I've used them with no complaints. Dan

The wider strap idea is a good one, it made the world of difference on my stingray. Yoga is also a good idea, my back occasionally feels tight and delicate near the base, a good stretch mades it feel so much better. Do you do any exercise which requires a good warm up and stretch? I may have said it once or twice but I climb regularly, it's a sport which NEEDS a warm up and stretch otherwise you risk nasty injuries. It also reduced my chiropractic visits from once every 2 months to once a year. I find supporting most of your weight when playing over your heels makes things easier, relax your shoulders and learn to use your back muscles to use your arms. That sound odd I know but it helps and allows you to play longer with out getting tired. This was all from a technique/posture article in BGM. Dan

Aaron Comess, he's a drumming machine! Sorry I'm not helping much. Dan

My first amp was a B90 combo, loved it, and still have to. The one that followed was a HA2500 head and a Transporter 410 cab, that was great and I loved the sound of it to bits. I really rate Hartke, for what they cost they are outstanding value for money. I have to spend almost 5 times what the HA2500 cost to get something that sounded better to me. The cabs aren't the lightest but they are still manageable and I lived in an upstairs flat at the time. Try 'em! I don't think you'll be disappointed. Dan

It's good of Sheldon to chip in and clarify things. I happen to agree with a few people here, it's a solution to a problem that doesn't exist [u]for me[/u]. I also may have heaved a couple of people off on this subject on a previous thread by calling it a fad. Sorry grand wazoo! I can understand the idea for it, it all makes perfect sense, but I dont see it benefitting me. I'd love to try one though! Dan

[quote name='AsterL' timestamp='1339702202' post='1693099'] I am really thinking about it! But I'm not likely to drop 700ish quid on a bass i've never heard before. [/quote] Do it! Haha! My guess would be it sounds like a thumpier, warmer stingray will that gritty growl dialed back. Dan

[quote name='spinynorman' timestamp='1339849289' post='1695348'] That was something else I wondered about. The drummer and I have PLI on our instrument insurance, I don't think the guitarist has insurance at all and I'm sure the singer doesn't. So if someone collapses a lighting or speaker stand, all of which the band owns co-operatively and several people have hand in setting up, whose insurance pays? [/quote] As I said in my post, my band is covered as long as I'm on stage with them. And thats part of my PLI on my instrument insurance. Go through the small print and see if the other 2 are covered. Usually it's who ever you are on stage with is covered under your PLI as part of your instrument cover. If anything happens though, you'll have to make the claim through your PLI. Dan

If you work in music, it's a necessity. As BigAlonBass says, if someone trips over your gear, or knocks something over you'll need to claim. One thing that got my band through our agency was that the band needs it, but my instrument insurance covers all the musicians that I'm currently on stage with. Bonus! I do tell them not to do anything stupid! Dan

I've come across a few Sandberg basses that fit this bill, ie one offs or custom jobs that don't appear on their website and only on the occasional retailer's site. Strange looking thing that! Thomann do a striped fretless made by Sandberg I'd like that isn't on Sandbergs' site. Buy it! And let us know what it's like! Dan