The Funk

Only have crappy laptop speakers at work so I can't hear what the problem is. Strings above the one you're slapping, left hand fingers; strings below the one you're slapping, right hand palm.

[quote name='Greene-Mann' post='462186' date='Apr 14 2009, 03:04 PM']Make you right...look at lemmy, hes using a 100watt 1992 re-issue...and motorhead aren't exactly quiet :-D......if i plug it up to some good speakers i don't think i'll really have a problem...Lem uses a 4x15 cab and 4x12 cabs, so if i try and go for say, a 2x15 and a 2x12 or 2x10, would that be sufficient?[/quote] I'd be tempted to get two good 1x15s. [quote name='skankdelvar' post='462198' date='Apr 14 2009, 03:14 PM']The other option is the old Eddie Van Halen trick. Run a marshall into a dummy load, with a line-out to a couple of huge tranny power amps. Marshall tone at 1000+ watts. [/quote] Not a bad idea, actually.

The old Marshalls will sound different to the old Fenders, the Oranges, Hiwatts, Ampegs etc. The good thing is that you can try out the Orange amps in shops to see if they give you the sound you're after. I don't think the Oranges go far above 200W anyway so the old Marshalls might still be a good option.

[quote name='martthebass' post='462062' date='Apr 14 2009, 01:01 PM'] Have any of you guys got to the point where you think your bass gear is better than you are (or even worse - could be)?[/quote] I used to think that way but it's pointless. My playing sounds better / is better when playing on my bass gear. It's a waste of time/money when your playing [i]isn't[/i] any better on higher end gear. I still happily gig with my first bass from time to time though (a $200 Mexican Fender Jazz).

[quote name='martthebass' post='462062' date='Apr 14 2009, 01:01 PM']Don't get me wrong I love to play on a really nice bass but when you go to the odd jam night and someone plays the hell out of a £100 bass does it make you feel like leaving your £1000 baby in the gig bag and hacking about on the 'house bass'?[/quote] At one jam I don't even bother taking a bass. I play the rubbish house bass.

Realistically, not without very sensitive cabs.

Well done!

There are ALWAYS vintage Marshalls on ebay so you don't need to rush. Valve amps do sound a bit louder than SS amps generally but 100W is still quite low, unless coupled with sensitive speakers. Having said that, one of the guys called John on here (whose board name I can't remember) runs a 100W Marshall through a pair of Acme Low B2s (great cabs but very low sensitivity) - and he's very happy with that rig.

I think you need to start taking your amp to rehearsals with you so that you can see how well your bedroom sound works with the rest of the band. You can fine tune it there to sit well - and when you gig you can fine tune that to adjust for the room/stage.

Do you get a sound you're happy with at home or in rehearsal?

If you like one of the old Marshalls, pick one up on ebay. They work out cheaper than a new Orange. As they're only about 100 Watts or so, try putting them together with a pair of very sensitive 15s. I have a '70s Fender 400 PS which I sometimes use with a Barefaced Compact. A pair of those would do the job! Basschat's very own alexclaber makes them. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Marshall-1992N-mark-2-super-base-100-watt-1969_W0QQitemZ370186037886QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_MusicalInstr_Amplifiers_RL?hash=item370186037886&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1688|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Marshall-1992N-mark-...%3A1|240%3A1318[/url] [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Marshall-Super-Bass-1977-100-Watt-Guitar-Bass-Head_W0QQitemZ130299554999QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_MusicalInstr_Amplifiers_RL?hash=item130299554999&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1688|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Marshall-Super-Bass-...%3A1|240%3A1318[/url]

Could you describe the sound you're after? I'm very happy with my sound but it took a long time to get here.

[quote name='Legion' post='414602' date='Feb 19 2009, 07:53 PM']Just after posting I looked into the EBS microbass and realised it was a perfect fit - at a very high price![/quote] I love mine! I often lend it to my keyboard player as he has a Nord Electro and a Nord Lead 2X.

[quote name='BeLow' post='434364' date='Mar 14 2009, 08:59 AM']As an aside I found the label of mine recently and read it properly for the first time, with the comfort strap and just realised the two holes are not for adjustment but are supposed to be folded over to give two thicknesses of leather on the strap button - Dooooh![/quote] Double doh!

[quote name='silddx' post='460946' date='Apr 13 2009, 01:51 AM'][b]What [/b]made you the bassist you are today?[/quote] Listening to late '80s/early '90s hard rock/metal and hip-hop as a kid, delving back into the great funk/rock/soul/blues/jazz music of the '60s and '70s when I hit puberty, then going further back to its roots all the way back to gospel and delta blues, then coming forward again to the great music of the '60s and '70s as an adult. An important part was thinking about what I like about music, what I hate about music, and what I want from music as a listener. Impressed and inspired by two guitarists as a kid who put me off guitar but made me want to play music, especially with them, my current guitarist Ryan and my cousin, Miran, who I've played with in various bands over the years. From before I even owned a bass, I used to jam with musicians who were much better than me - and that carried on for my formative 3 or 4 years. I also picked up as much basic theory as possible from the people I played with. I used to mess around on the bass as much as possible - but I never really tried to learn tunes I listened to (hence my crap ear). [quote name='silddx' post='460946' date='Apr 13 2009, 01:51 AM'][b]Who [/b]do you think had the biggest influences on how you play now?[/quote] Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, Jeff Beck, Cream, Hendrix and Marvin Gaye (as artists), Jack Bruce, Paul Jackson and Louis Johnson (as bassists), as well as my guitarist friend growing up and figuring things out together, Jan Ozveren, my bass mentor whose six lessons I am still trying to digest now ten years on, David Hadley, and my old bandleader, sax/keys jazzman virtuoso/nutjob Adam Davy. [quote name='silddx' post='460946' date='Apr 13 2009, 01:51 AM'][b]Where [/b]do you think you want to go from here?[/quote] Double bass: jazz and country - but never leaving the funk (or the blues) behind. [quote name='silddx' post='460946' date='Apr 13 2009, 01:51 AM'][b]Why [/b]do you think you want to go there?[/quote] Jazz, because I need to start understanding all the clever sh*t my keyboard player and drummer keep pulling out, so that I can (i) keep their respect as bandleader, (ii) understand their side when we disagree musically. Country - have you [i]seen[/i] Southern girls in America or psychobilly girls here? [quote name='silddx' post='460946' date='Apr 13 2009, 01:51 AM'][b]Do you believe[/b] you have a "personality" on the bass?[/quote] Yes. It's all in my phrasing. Take that away and I don't have anything. [quote name='silddx' post='460946' date='Apr 13 2009, 01:51 AM'][b]Specialist question:[/b] [i][b]What [/b]is it you love about that 1971 P-Bass?[/i] [/quote] Errr... the look, more than anything, seeing as I've never played or coveted one.

[quote name='velvetkevorkian' post='460903' date='Apr 13 2009, 12:04 AM']Try to move your fingers across the strings so the string goes from side to side parallel to the frets, rather than pushing the string down towards the frets.[/quote] I've quoted this already but I'll quote it again as it really does solve the whole problem. Your fingers should be moving up, as in the opposite direction from the ground, not pushing the strings into the body of the bass.

[quote name='Buzz' post='460886' date='Apr 12 2009, 11:43 PM']Play nearer the bridge or just simply learn to play with a lighter touch.[/quote] [quote name='odub' post='460892' date='Apr 12 2009, 11:49 PM']turn your amp up[/quote] [quote name='velvetkevorkian' post='460903' date='Apr 13 2009, 12:04 AM']Try to move your fingers across the strings so the string goes from side to side parallel to the frets, rather than pushing the string down towards the frets.[/quote] [quote name='51m0n' post='460916' date='Apr 13 2009, 12:35 AM']hitting that hard will knacker you hands in the long run too[/quote] [quote name='molan' post='460919' date='Apr 13 2009, 12:38 AM']Play fast sixteenths for half an hour. By the end of that the pressure you're applying should be just about right [/quote] Yes to all of the above.

I'm a fan of valves, not of Ampegs. The EQ range/settings on some old valve amps don't really suit some modern basses. I've found that with my Fender 400PS, whereas my Aguilar DB580 and Warwick Quadruplet sound great with any bass.

Well, if he's reharmonising the tune at random keeping the only constant as one note - and you're supposed to somehow accompany him - I don't see what notes you can play apart from that one note. As a solo improvisational device, I get how it can be beneficial. Just not sure how it can be applied elsewhere, unless it's merely used as a compositional tool as sliddx suggested. If that's the case, then you'll know where all the changes are and you can play accordingly.

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='459561' date='Apr 10 2009, 07:47 PM']It looks very metal, not something I'd expect to see Stuart Zender playing.[/quote] I think it looks very Prince.

Sounds clear and pretty tight. The dancing man is seriously off-putting though.

Thanks for the explanation and the vid. I don't see how a bassist in an ensemble could afford to risk playing anything other than the root note.

[quote name='Hamster' post='459442' date='Apr 10 2009, 05:10 PM']Sounds Like a Markbass LMII would be worth a try out?[/quote] Definitely. They're tiny but meaty sounding.

[quote name='jakesbass' post='459397' date='Apr 10 2009, 04:02 PM']it should be tiny movements and when the finger is not in use it should hover milimetres above it's station (based on a one finger per fret principle) Aspire to minimal movement when fretting and when you take your finger off the notes leave them very very close to where they would naturally sit ready to play the next note, it's the control of having your hand in that position and at the same time realxed that takes a bit of mastering.[/quote] Agree with Jake, except that I would not advocate the use of one finger per fret below the fifth fret. There, I would recommend index, middle, and ring/little combined.

[quote name='skarate' post='459404' date='Apr 10 2009, 04:21 PM']Transport is a fumn point too, although I've got a car, which is great for out of town stuff, mostly end up carting stuff about on the tube to various parts of London. So weight/lugability is a slight problem, but not one that I'd want to comprimise with sound really.[/quote] If you're taking it on the tube, you'd want to keep it at under 15lbs I think. Forget the Ampeg. Either one of the new micro heads from Genz Benz, Eden or Gallien-Krueger, or a normal sized but lightweight head. The Eden would be completely wrong for you tonewise but the GB or GK might work out for you. They should both sound quite beefy.