Conan

[quote name='Twigman' post='973929' date='Oct 1 2010, 01:26 PM']Many venues ,say 20 years ago, would happily put on an originals band but these days insist on covers only.....if these covers bands didn't exist and the venue wanted live music they'd still be putting on originals.[/quote] Or maybe that venue would no longer exist? Many venues have realised that there is money to be made from putting on live music - especially on night that would otherwise be quieter. OK, they have to pay the band a few quid, but if they get 100 punters in who all drink 5 pints, they have made a tidy profit on something like a tuesday night. Whether that band is playing covers, originals or a mixture is largely immaterial. If they have a following and can prove that to the venue they will usually get bookings. Edit. Damn, I should have read JTUK's post before saying that!!

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='973902' date='Oct 1 2010, 01:14 PM']To be fair, this one is a slightly different angle. it's more like: 'I TRAVEL THE WORLD AND GET LOADS OF MONEY FOR PLAYING ORIGINAL MATERIAL. THE REST OF YOU ARE LOSERS.' [/quote] That's certainly how I interpreted the OP's comments. Twigman (or should I call you "Ian"?) I've just been listening to some of your band's material on Amazon. It's OK. Rather eighties-retro, but I like that kind of stuff! What does surprise me slightly though, is that the band have been going since 1981 - and you appear to have only joined last year (according to the website). So what were you doing when the band were "building an audience" back in the eighties and nineties? I ask just out of interest... Like most of us on here (I suspect) I have done my time in originals bands. Some of them were actually quite good and had a decent local following. One or two actually got to that fabled "let's all give up our day-jobs and move down to London coz we've got major-label interest" stage of bollocks. So I know what you mean about the differences between playing covers and playing originals. Having said that, sometimes to fill out a setlist those originals bands would.... wait for it.... slip a few covers in!!!! Did this dilute our gene pool? Did this cost us our musical integrity? Of course it bloody didn't! In the intervening years (I'm 44 now with a house and three kids) I have played in several other bands - some were plain covers bands, some were covers bands that slip the odd original in, some were OBs (sorry, got sick of typing "originals bands" - damn, just done it again!) that play some covers.... At the end of the day, music genuinely CAN be all things to all people. I don't understand why you come across as so snobby and arrogant when many of us will be getting as much enjoyment out of our misical experiences as you so clearly do from yours. And so will our audiences! Surely that's all that counts??

As we are a new band, we are still putting the setlist together, but the two hot favourites for opening numbers are Van Halen's Runnin' with the Devil (not inspired by the movie Little Nicky at all!) and Steve Stevens' (What were his parents thinking about?) Atomic Playboys. Sadly, we lack the hair.

[quote name='iconic' post='972948' date='Sep 30 2010, 05:20 PM']Yamaha always for me, but I do know Ibenez make great basses too...but my bike is Yamaha, my Hi-Fi is Yamaha...never had a bad Yamaha anything, that's about as scientific as I get![/quote] They also make outboard motors, so maybe you should get yourself a wee boat?!

[quote name='Mikeg' post='972776' date='Sep 30 2010, 03:07 PM']Ok so would a 250 watt trace head with a 4x10 cab be load enough for a reasonably sized gig, say 250 people? Any reasons why theyre loade than other makes?[/quote] Depends on the cab. If it's a TE cab then it will probably be 8ohm, which means that the amp will be putting out (IIRC) 175 watts. If it's a decent cab then you might be OK. Also, "250 people" is not really an indication of how "big" the gig or venue is. If its 250 people in an outdoor marquee then I would think you might struggle. Will you have PA support or play purely on backline? If it's a room with decent acoustics and you have PA support then you are only really using the cab as an onstage monitor, so it will be plenty loud enough... There are a lot of variables to consider! Why are they loud? Quality of components? Slightly under-estimating their actual output? Well-designed speaker cabinets? Could be lots of reasons, but it would need someone more technically-minded than myself to be able to explain it!

Difficult to equate loudness to power output, but I always found TE amps to be conservatively rated. My AH250 through two 8 ohm cabs was hugely loud, and was never pushed for volume at any gig...

[quote name='dave_bass5' post='972659' date='Sep 30 2010, 01:38 PM']Im not going to discuss why i haven't left though, but i will say the main reason it hasn't happened yet is circumstances.[/quote] Oooh! You tease!

[quote name='dave_bass5' post='972637' date='Sep 30 2010, 01:20 PM']With my main band (both bands playing covers) my drummer is so slack (well, the whorl band is really) and in a world of his own i got so bad recently i almost gave up playing. He doesn't really get the lock in together bit, has no stamina so tempos are all over the place and while i try and lock in with his bass drum the rhythm can change mid verse so i dont really stand a chance. The other band i play in are very together and the drummer is so tight not only is it a pleasure to play with them but i always come away having learnt something.[/quote] So why do you play with the "main" band?!

[quote name='51m0n' post='972520' date='Sep 30 2010, 11:40 AM']I dont understand the aversion to compression at all....[/quote] I think that, as you mentioned earlier, most of us have only experienced poor-quality ones and that may have coloured our judgement.

Think you posted the wrong link there Gareth...

[quote name='thunderbird13' post='972479' date='Sep 30 2010, 11:02 AM']Turning up dressed a as a wizard[/quote] Yep. That's the one that above all others defines what makes a "bad bass player".

[quote name='bubinga5' post='972239' date='Sep 29 2010, 11:46 PM']this is a great example of a musical slap groove from ole MM...wonderful playing...[/quote] And another one... this is my personal favourite of MM's work - beautifully tight with the kick/snare: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG5jYC7hh98&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG5jYC7hh98...feature=related[/url]

Great track! This is from the "Winelight" album isn't it? I haven't listened to that for years.... lovely bass playing (although I didn't care much for the solo...)

[quote name='D-COOPER' post='971511' date='Sep 29 2010, 11:07 AM']Thanks for the replies.I changed from DR peacock blues which i loved but i wanted to try flats so i bought the Steve Harris rotosound set.They are 50's but i have altered the setup to suit.I can obviously just up the volume on my amp but i was just wondering if this was an inherent trait of flats? I will give them some more time before forming my opinion on them.[/quote] If you raised the action you might find that the strings are now further from the pickups. That will reduce volume significantly.... Just a thought.

[quote name='TimR' post='972325' date='Sep 30 2010, 08:25 AM']Not the AC argument again.....[/quote] Let's not forget that not every member of this forum has been a member since the start. There are many of us who have never partaken of "the AC argument", so to stifle their input seems rather rude and unfair. Again, I'm not a massive U2 fan (I used to be, back in the eighties though). I like the simplicity but solidity. I like his tone and how selective he is. If fans leave a gig or switch off your CD and they are singing the bass line - I guess you could say that you are not a "bad bass player". A lot of this is motivated by jealousy I guess The "I could be doing that job" mentality...

[quote name='benh' post='971854' date='Sep 29 2010, 04:54 PM']So I wonder, what IS a [b]BAD[/b] bass player?[/quote]

[quote name='benh' post='971854' date='Sep 29 2010, 04:54 PM']Are there really any players in "famous" bands that are no good?[/quote] Sid Viscious wasn't really very good...

Someone who is a "bad" bass player in one band might actually be "good" in another band! Assuming they can actually play the instrument, the rest is all about context I would say. A bad bass player does not listen to the drummer (and may not listen to anyone else!) - that's a no brainer!

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='971434' date='Sep 29 2010, 09:37 AM']Completely off-topic here... you're not a physics teacher are you, Geoff? As a physics student, I got into the habit of referring to mass instead of weight, but all the non-physics types found it really odd.[/quote] Well technically I'm a science teacher with a biology specialism, but I do have to teach physics for my sins...

And yes, at the end of the day it's down to your ears. Cabs are expensive (or at least they can be) so you buy what sounds pleasing to your ears. Nobody sane would disagree with that - however, it does get a bit wearing when people start trying to TELL you what sounds "best" and that you can't get this sound from that cab/speaker. etc, especially when you KNOW it to be inaccurate! I liked the sound of the Compact but found it a bit small and near to the ground. I will reserve judgement on the Vintage until I have used/heard it in comparison to decent 10s and cheap 10s... If I like the Vintage I will attempt to buy one as I find the low mass very appealing after years of carting around TE, Ampeg and Ashdown boxes. End of.

[quote name='Merton' post='970844' date='Sep 28 2010, 04:31 PM']WTF is a slow moving sound? [/quote] Sound that travels at less than 330 m/s. Obviously

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='970800' date='Sep 28 2010, 03:46 PM']This is the problem.[/quote] Well, it's certainly [b]a[/b] problem...

"Slap" is not necessarily a style or a sound in itself - just a technique (or more to the point, a range of techniques). There is a huge range of different ways to do it, and the end result will differ as a result. Some love it, some hate it - but done tastefully, it can be a real weapon in your armoury (so to speak!). If Claypool can slap on a six string fretless and make it sound good, then anything else should work! Effects wise, I actually don't like comp as it irons out the dynamics too much - but you have to have a fairly even hand to make slap work well anyway IMO. I do like a bit of chorus or delay though...