pietruszka

Don't over look hartke gear. Great sounding stuff at really affordable prices. Your budget will get you a new hartke rig to, but you'd get more in the for sale section. GK are great for the money, not my taste but still good for the cost. Dan

It's a tricky one, there doesn't seem to be aright or wrong way of doing it, what ever works and is most effective. People tend to get paid at the end of the month so doing an EP launch then is probably a good idea. However, if you're struggling to sell 40 tickets then it might be an idea to hold onto the EP for a little while and build up a fan base a little more first. Get a 'single' sent to all the local and regional radio stations and see where it goes, get in touch with the local press and any magazines to do a band/track review. Ultimately, it's where you want to go with it all. In my band, we'd like to get a record contract and a tour at some point. If you think the EP is too far off, tell them all. But do it constructively, something like "The EP is great, however, it's not quite up to standard of selling. Lets perhaps look at giving this one away as a free download to increase our fanbase and work towards getting a profesional EP to sell." By giving it away you lower your immediate outgoings. Our first EP cost us £900 for four tracks just in studio time, you then have the duplication and of course the printing of the sleeves/cases, so it adds up very quickly. And we sell them at £3 a copy. Don't forget, there are many ways of doing this, this is just one. It sounds like you're not doing too badly anyway with these good slots the band is getting. Keep going with it, and you never know! I'd love to hear what other people have to say, as my band are looking for ways to push forward, especially management. Dan

I've had get lucky on repeat this afternoon, Bm-D-F#m-E if anyone's interested! I cannot wait, and haven't been this excited for an album release in a very long time. The bass sounds perfect, the guitar playing is stunning as you'd expect from Nile. A club in Newcastle had the track on apparently and everyone went nuts. Dan

Hartke cabs are great, I had a transporter 410 and loved it. Go for it, as others have said, they're no frills cabs and sound great! Dan

Focus' are great! As many here have said, they're surprisingly spacious. I've had 2 rcf 310's with stands, a 24 channel mixing desk, mark bass 210, Aguilar head, cables, lights, bass and a drum kit! I love mine, though when I get the money saved up I might get a 1.6 diesel version. Has any one here got one? What are the engines like for reliability and efficiency? Dan

[quote name='waynepunkdude' timestamp='1363685095' post='2015630'] Not bass but just caring about every little bloody detail, I have a nice bass, if I can't make it sound good that's my problem, not the action, pick ups, wood, neck radius, whether it it has an over priced piece of foam under the amp. It's all down to me and if I'm enjoying playing then I couldn't give a crap about all that stuff. If you sound crap then it's probably your fault and TBH I'm enjoying too much too care. [/quote] Yes!!! I hate all this extra stuff that some players have. It seems some players have themselves convinced that they [u]need[/u] all these extra outboard EQs, extra pre amps, compressors (even though you're going through an in house PA where it will be compressed), various filters and worst of all the need for a minimum wattage before you will consider gigging! I played to 8,000 people with 250 watts on stage and heard myself fine. As Wooten said in a master class, work on playing notes and make that one note sound nice. Just Wilko it and have fun! ie bass-amp-cab. Less is more and it is all in the fingers. Dan

Hi every one, I'm holding a fund raiser in memory of my dad (also a bass player) at Carliol Square in Newcastle just off Pilgrim Street. My band Chloe and The High Tides and grunge band Calf are playing to help raise money for a good cause. Here is the event; https://www.facebook.com/events/453466408057969/?fref=ts A measily £4 in with every penny going to the BHF Dan

[quote name='Jacqueslemac' timestamp='1362567757' post='2001346'] That's a kind of compliment, I suppose, given that Bill Wyman apparently said that you should only notice the bass when it isn't there. [/quote] I have to agree with that. In a band I got booted out of, I was chatting to the drummer about how the new lad was settling in and the first thing he said was "nothing sounds right". That's because I played a lot of 3rds and arpeggios, they had no idea I was doing that until it wasn't there. It's the same for actually playing notes. It's what I teach my students, what you're playing might not sound like much, but people will notice when it's not there, and notes don't always have to be played. Dan

[quote name='fumps' timestamp='1362563128' post='2001237'] Ooo a timely thread. I'm jamming with a few fellas at the moment & last night they told me I was driving them through the songs & making them all sound 100% better than they was before. All the way through last nights session they were beaming from ear to ear. A great lift for me [/quote] Satisfying isn't it! Makes you feel so much more appreciated, and valued as a musician. Dan

I've been told by my current singer that I'm "the best bass player" she's worked with. Now I really don't like to blow my own trumpet, but I do find that somewhat difficult to believe! However it is nice to hear that you're valued, and it's amazing what LISTENING does for your standing in the band! Dan

To some extent yes, but James Brown's bassist played a Music Man SUB bass, that's a £500 bass! Don't forget, good gear can sound cheap to, and some gear works for some and not for others. I can't get a listenable sound out of Ampeg heads but the cabs sound great with my playing through them. Dan

Good man!!!! The mesa's great and all, but the aggy AG heads have recently shot up in demand since being discontinued. Dan

Aguilar for me. They're cheaper and sound amazing! Can't go wrong with Mesa though. Dan

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1361136384' post='1981762'] ..and the winner is.... The AG500. [/quote] Welcome to the club! Dan

This is going to side very selfish! But I'm happy to use someone else's amp, but I don't share mine. The reason being is that I like to think I'm professional enough to get a listenable sound out of anything, you work with what is there. Yes not everyone has an amazing amp for you to play through but it's not the end of the world. I don't share for the same reason as everyone else, however I have a different view on those that can't use the gain properly, or the EQ. Yes it's a pain in the hole when they can't use it, but it's merely down to them not having learnt that knowledge yet. I had no idea how to use the gain/input dials on an amp in my first few years of playing as my combo didn't have it! Could it not also be that a lot of young bassists have stepped over from guitar, and have the guitarist approach of whack it up to 11? After all, turning the gain up on a guitar amp sounds great! The last time someone else plugged his bass in and wanted the amp louder he turned the gain up and the head clipped to high heaven. I walked over after a track finished and instructed him to "turn the gain down, and the master up". Now I only share with touring bands I know have a standing reputation. These have included Soul Jazz Orchestra, Elliot Brood, largely as they are from Canada. They were always very grateful and knew how to work the gear. No problems. Otherwise I don't share. At All. I play the insurance card, "I don't mean to be awkward, but my equipment is only insured for my use". We all had to learn at some stage! But ultimately, ask as MANNERS COST NOTHING! Dan

I've used my Sandberg basic for everything, pop, rock, funk, soul, motown, ska, country, blues. And it works with all of them, and I barely tweak the EQ, it just sounds great. There is a video review of some bass tested by Paul Turner, he said he liked it that much during testing that he played it in the Jamiroquai set that night. To me that says that the bass' sound is irrelevant (I am putting my shields up for the bombardment!). If it sounds good it will work, it didn't matter if Turner used a jazz, or a sting ray, or a warwick no one is really going to notice that much are they? Go for it, after all the bass won't be played on its own in a band will it? Dan

I have a fretless sandberg basic with 3 band active eq. I'm in Newcastle and you're welcome to come and try it. They sound great and I've used mine for nearly all genres and works brilliantly! Dan

As jaydentaku says. There is a fiddle player in one of my bands, and he teaches to, I can certainly ask him for you. Dan

That looks lovely, it really does. But we have a 'For Sale' section where you'll need to post it. Dan

What you need is a Dingwall bass or a vintage Fender and a barefaced cab, just to rule out other possibilities. If not you'll need to get your bass to a luthier and have it re-shielded. Dan

A quick search shows GuitarGuitar have a couple left in stock, but they are a whopping £799. Dan

Just my thoughts on this as I own one. Firstly, it was great to meet you Michael at the bass bash (ear blood letting event!). We briefly spoke about the head there during packing up. I love my AG500 SC, I didn't go for the dual channel for the same reason Molan states. It's a dreadful distortion sound, and besides I have a great distortion pedal. I use my 500SC for every bit of music I play, everything from pop, rock, funk and soul to dance, disco, ska and country. I only tweak the EQ when the room sounds 'boomy'. Other wise, when DI'd, it's never touched and it sounds great. Sound engineers love the signal from it, I recently had a sound man ask me to use it rather than the onstage rig! I use it with the MarkBass 102P (8ohms) and it has always been more than loud enough, I've used it at the Think Tank, The Cluny and Cluny 2 and never had any issues with regards to hearing myself. I run it with the 1x8 ohm cab so the head is running at 250watts. To some up, it's the best head I've ever owned, it sounds great live and recorded. You've heard the recordings Chloe & The High Tides have done and that was with this head. I can't see myself using another head, and I hope not as they're discontinued. And as we've all seen, discontinued Aguilar heads quickly gain demand. I managed to get the proper padded bag for it off here, though you may struggle but they can always be rack mounted. If you want, give me a shout and I can pop over to yours, or you're welcome to mine to play around with the head. Hope this helps. Dan

I use finale notepad, also free and you can play what you write back to your self (which I'm sure you can on all programs). The only downside is that you can't save it as a pdf to up load on to here say, or change the key signature or time signature in the middle of a transcription. I'll check out Tuxguitar. Dan

Hi all, My band Chloe & The High Tides are playing the Think Tank on the 26th January. We've had an amazing first year and after 9 months of being on the scene we've been sought after by a PR company for a record label with the possibility of a contract. We'd love the support and it would be great to see some bass chatters there. Tickets are £5 and there are 5 bands playing. They can be bought from the shop at www.chloeandthehightides.co.uk Have a little listen here; https://soundcloud.com/chloeandthehightides Hope to see some people there! Dan