alexclaber

[quote name='bottomfeed' post='66705' date='Sep 28 2007, 02:12 AM']hey... the guy knows what he's doing when it comes to drumming.... it's a thing about micing an acoustic sound in venues with sh*t acoustics....[/quote] It's all part of the same thing. I know more about bass playing than I did five years ago but that doesn't mean five years ago I couldn't play bass. I can guarantee that a truly great drummer wouldn't be having this problem. There's always more to learn. Alex

Another tip - if he can't hear the kick drum he should hit the rest of the kit less hard so the volume balances. Most drummers are too heavy with their hands and too light with their foot. The kick really shouldn't need gating - what about your drummer's pedal technique? He can control the length of the note by leaving the beater on the skin for varying lengths of time. Internal mics usually work very well but are relatively complicated and expensive. What kind of kick drum is this? If he's going for the big Bonham sound is it big enough to take a high tension tuning without losing all its bottom? More and more it seems to me that the most effective solution for tonal problems is practice - not at EQing but at listening and reacting in changing how you play. Alex

[quote name='RIM Basses' post='66546' date='Sep 27 2007, 06:17 PM']get yourself a comfort strap from mike at iceni zoot.[/quote] Comfort Strap? That doesn't sound very rock and roll! Alex

How's the balance feeling now? Alex

Looking good! The switch is on its way from Dingwall - have you got some top quality 500k audio & linear taper pots for the rest of the electronics? I know you mentioned getting some from West Labs. I'll post you that 40-55-75-100-130 set of Ken Smiths for stringing it up. Guess I need to order a new strap from somewhere - any suggestions for a nice rough backed leather one? Alex

It's an acoustic instrument and it will interact with the room acoustics. He needs to be prepared to use damping to solve problems in specific rooms even to the point of considering having a hole in the resonant skin to add or remove internal damping. I don't see 250Hz as a key area for a good kick drum sound, it tends to end up very boomy. If he's miking the kit experiment with positioning to get more of the good frequencies and less of the bad ones. Also he should consider his distance to the back and side walls - if he's not careful he could end up sitting in a null where the sound from the kick is cancelled out by its own reflection off the wall - this is a very common problem. Alex

[quote name='cheddatom' post='66446' date='Sep 27 2007, 03:07 PM']So, while I do get kicks from gigging, I can totally understand people who are tired of it.[/quote] Indeed. As an originals band there is a whole lot more to getting good gigs than simply writing good songs and playing well, just as with a covers band there's a lot more to it too. The upside with the covers band is that it makes money and an audience is usually guaranteed! Alex

[quote name='The Funk' post='65228' date='Sep 25 2007, 10:57 AM']I wonder if the technology that Oxblood talked about above could be applied to making miniature valve heads of a comparable size and power output.[/quote] The forthcoming Peavey VB-3 uses an SMPS to get the weight of a 300W valve head down to about 30lbs. Alex

Pickguards can hide a multitude of sins! Alex

It was indeed, particularly the grill! Give me six months and there may be an Omni 15TB build thread popping up here, no doubt filled with numerous disasters and bodges as I relearn how to wield a circular saw... Alex

What a strange thing to do - I've never known a thread stay entirely on topic, it's not human nature! It's always bugged me how you can delete threads you've started yourself on talkbass - you can have one long informative discussion that many manhours have been spent on and then it's just gone, with nary a warning, because the thread starter has had a moment of eccentricity... Alex

Looking very nice! The aluminium dots stand out well don't they? Alex P.S. Keep those preamps away from the Q-Tuners or Erno will have a fit!

See topic title! I am confused... Alex

Wow, sounds quite remarkable! Whose Class D module will you be using? SMPS? Alex

[quote name='bass_in_ya_face' post='65424' date='Sep 25 2007, 04:33 PM']What exactly happens at these jam nights then?..i'm interested[/quote] If you dare try some jazz there's a very good and accessible workshop in Brighton on Tuesday evenings. Before I started my originals band I learnt quite a bit there. Alex

£40?! Go here: [url="http://www.stringthis.com/drbassstrings1.html"]http://www.stringthis.com/drbassstrings1.html[/url] I've been using Bootzillas for a few years which are basically coated Lo-Riders - I much prefer the extra stiffness compared to Hi-Beams. I've kept each set on for over a year, I don't have the lightest touch and all my playing time is on that one bass, and I've never broken a string. Another good choice if you like tighter strings are LaBella's Deep Talkin' Bass roundwounds, in 44-110 balanced gauges. I used them for a few years with great success. The heavier E really stands up to some abuse without fret rattle! The Bootzillas have a bit more growl and a bit less thickness and are less balanced in feel but more balanced in tone. I wish all E strings felt like the LaBella's! Alex

[quote name='The Funk' post='65384' date='Sep 25 2007, 03:26 PM']It seems like you're going to end up with the most uncoloured set-up in history.[/quote] I think Anthony Jackson probably beats me! Alex

This is definitely one of my favourites: [url="http://www.thehumanzoo.com/alex/Demo%20EP%20Session%20Cuts/01%20Funeral%20Song%20Pt.1.m4a"]http://www.thehumanzoo.com/alex/Demo%20EP%...Song%20Pt.1.m4a[/url] (Note, this is a pre-release mix, ignore the rough edges and lack of mastering!) Alex

That other thread got me thinking about this. Don't just give us the name of the song, we need to hear it - post a recording! Alex

[quote name='lowdown' post='65305' date='Sep 25 2007, 01:28 PM']Very clean sound , so just the the REAL sound of your Bass , no colouring at all....[/quote] I love how the sound is so clean that, with my bass at least, when you want serious grunt and growl you just dig in and get all nasty on the bass and it comes through loud and clear. Whoever said clean and flat equals sterile hasn't played a good bass through something like this, or doesn't know how to play! Alex

A select half dozen: Give Up The Funk - Parliament (Bootsy Collins) Hair - Graham Central Station (Larry Graham) Everything Is Everything - Donny Hathaway (Willie Weeks) What's Goin' On - Marvin Gaye (James Jamerson) Havona - Weather Report (Jaco Pastorius) Exodus - Bob Marley & The Wailers (Family Man Barrett) Alex

How many strings do you need to play your basslines? Can you not do without one of them until the song finishes? Alex

[quote name='bass_ferret' post='65279' date='Sep 25 2007, 12:39 PM']If you get a good band with no ego's and politics there is nothing better. You dont have to be sh*t hot to gig and you will always find someone at your level. Even just going to auditions or jams can teach you much more about playing with other musicians than playing in your bedroom ever will, and bass is usually an ensemble instrument.[/quote] I think sums it up pretty well! Avoiding egos and politics is quite a challenge, especially with the more prima donna band members - step forward singers and lead guitarists (not a term I like to use but the kind of guitarist that calls themself a lead guitarist is very different to others and rarely in a good way!) - but I think it gets easier with age (says this twenty something!) Alex

[quote name='bass_in_ya_face' post='65261' date='Sep 25 2007, 12:12 PM']Thanks for the musicians web sites though. Sometime in the future I may well stop the lessons and track down some other duffers to play with.[/quote] Bass players are always in demand and I've found that having some kind of focused project makes it all the more rewarding, be it recording bass on someone's demo, writing new material for an originals band, learning covers for gigs, etc. Alex

It's quite hard to say a lot about! It just does what it does very well. Alex