RhysP

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1452162816' post='2947066'] I assumed it wasn't about trying to get the same sound with both methods, but equalising the volume between fingers and pick so that one isn't louder than the other in the mix? Or have I missed something again? [/quote] That's what I thought too, but I got a snotty reply when I suggested something that I thought might help.

[quote name='FuNkShUi' timestamp='1452161881' post='2947055'] Isnt the point in changing from pick to fingers that you actually want a different sound? [/quote] Not necessarily - somebody might only be able to play a certain thing with a pick if their fingerstyle technique isn't up to the job.

There's a lot more to the Alembic sound than just the pickups.

[quote name='Che' timestamp='1452108527' post='2946554'] Im surprised that no one mentioned the Joyo Sweet Baby (Fender clone) which is also being sold rebranded as FAME at Music Store for only 169 Euros https://www.musicstore.de/de_DE/EUR/Fame-JTA-05-Sweet-Baby-Combo/art-GIT0032351-000 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVfPhBIPBGg [/quote] It's probably just not been mentioned because people haven't heard of it in the UK.

What if you don't manage to sell many tickets? You could end up having to let the bass go for a lot less than you want to.

Try a felt pick? Not as toppy as a plastic one.

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1452113326' post='2946675'] Black Sabbath didn't turn up one day and say "Hey, everyone, this is something we've created at home and we're calling it Heavy Metal." [/quote] Nobody said they did.

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1452110112' post='2946586'] The idea that no one called this heavy metal until the 80s is ludicrous. [/quote] Indeed. The fact that in the late 70s there was "The New Wave of British Heavy Metal" would tend to indicate that there was older British Heavy Metal before it.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1452112492' post='2946647'] Yes, and I lived with Bonnie Langford. [/quote] She watched me play squash once.

[quote name='kusee pee' timestamp='1452107169' post='2946539'] Just received Unorthodox Behaviour in the post. Great stuff. Phil Collins is a pretty amazing drummer too [/quote] Collins is a superb drummer, one of the best. Unfortunately he'll be remembered by the majority for his largely mediocre solo records.

If you have the confidence to buy secondhand your money will go a lot further.

[quote name='DorsetBlue' timestamp='1452073332' post='2946027'] She chose the Blackstar (which has a USB interface for configuration and recording). [/quote] All the Mustangs have USB interface too. The Blackstar amps are very good, but they're much too Hi Gain, Heavy Metal for my taste. The thing I loved about the Mustangs is they do old school lo gain sounds very well. I play totally clean with a lot of reverb & tremolo, which I realise a lot of people are not going to do.

[quote name='Machines' timestamp='1452084883' post='2946194'] I tried out a 2012 Gibson Grabber in PMT last week. It was without doubt the worst sounding bass i've ever played. 3 x single coils, of which they can only be set on a 3 way as bridge + middle / all 3 and neck / middle pickups. [/quote] That's the same as the wiring on a three pickup Les Paul. Very odd way to do it.

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1452084762' post='2946191'] I wonder if this is a fact based on evidence, or an opinion based on your personal experiences? [/quote] This is Basschat - opinion IS fact on here!

When I was gigging I only had two basses, and I only ever took one of those with me.

[quote name='jazzyvee' timestamp='1452052207' post='2945929'] I sometimes wonder why some pro musicians aren't able to separate their music activities into those which are to earn a living and those for enjoyment or a hobby that does not necessarily need to make money. [/quote] The few long term pro musicians I know are all so jaded by the whole thing that they no longer play any music for enjoyment or as a hobby. If they've got any time off the last thing they want to do is play.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1452031004' post='2945796'] And the fact that every Hadrien Feraud recording I've heard sounds like an out-take from a 1974 Greenslade album... [/quote]

[quote name='TomRandles97' timestamp='1452029878' post='2945775'] But to answer what you said about new names, the ones sticking in my mind are Rick Barrio Dill, Robin Eberhart, Mike League, Alissia, Hadrien Feraud, Mark Michel, Nick Oliveri/Michael Shuman. Then of course you have a lot of players coming to light through Youtube channels such as Scott Devine. [/quote] That's more like it - people I've not heard of! (Except Hadrien Feraud & Nick Oliveri who have been around for quite a while so they don't count).

The only drummer I know who can write out a part in drum notation is also the only drummer I know that isn't a professional musician. Don't get me wrong, an excellent drummer, but not one of the ones that are in multiple bands, touring & playing every night of the week. Also don't get me wrong - I'm not one of those "music theory destroys creativity" people, I think that's garbage. When I was younger and really into my playing I'd have loved to have had some decent theoretical grounding. These days music & playing is so far down my list of priorities that I simply don't care anymore.

[quote name='3below' timestamp='1451939093' post='2944861'] ...it reminds me why Mid Wales is not a good place to live at times..... [/quote] You mean that there are times when Mid Wales is a good place to live?

[quote name='sunburstjazz1967' timestamp='1452025221' post='2945706'] It isn't cobblers at all you just know that it's not cobblers, you haven't invented a new unique musical system, you just don't know why some things sound good and other things don't. [/quote] What are you on about? Who said anything about inventing a new musical system? The post I replied to said you couldn't play without a knowledge of certain things, which I disagree with. If for some reason I unknowingly use one of those things I still don't have any knowledge of it, do I?

[quote name='Naetharu' timestamp='1452019810' post='2945631'] Like it or not, you are part of the western musical tradition, and as such in order to learn to play your instrument you have had to build up a body of knowledge so that you are familiar with things such as the major scale(s), the minor scales, chord patters, different tensions etc.There is no way around it - if you play you are using theory. [/quote] Sorry but this is cobblers - I've been playing for 36 years & I still could not play you a single scale, and I have no idea what a chord pattern or a tension is. This hasn't stopped me being in lots of bands & even doing paid session work because some people just like the way I play.

[quote name='TomRandles97' timestamp='1452015682' post='2945571'] As a young musician myself (18) I see no less attraction to 'band' music than people two or three times my age do. I have a wide range or influences from the 50's to the present day, in the way of Charles Mingus, John Paul Jones, Chris Squire, Jaco and Geddy through to modern players such as Michael League, Janek Gwizdala, Justin Chancellor, Amos Williams and Stuart Zender etc. Although as times have progressed there has been a mass saturation of modern music, there is still a lot of great music to be found, and influence with it. There seems to be a preconceived notion that young musicians can't be influenced by music that is not of their time, which is undoubtedly misinformed. [/quote] Maybe I misunderstood the original question, but I thought it was about who the new players coming through are, not if young people are influenced by the same old farts that we were. While it's good to see you listening to a wide range of music it would be nice to see some new names being mentioned in your list.

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1452007711' post='2945431'] A "gentle introduction"? I got to all the various meters and my brain said "that's enough" and shut down like a slug in a salt cellar. [/quote] That's put me right off salt, that has.

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1452015589' post='2945568'] Then sticks it on ebay and ask a mind boggling £257 for it. [/quote] Crazy price - why not just round it up to £260?