OliverBlackman

This isnt gear, but when you see print outs of ultimate guitar tabs lying around. Gear wise, if the guitarist has a dean or jackson and the bassist has a matching shape, i know its not for me

[quote name='daflewis' post='939218' date='Aug 29 2010, 09:46 AM']Hi Ollie, Did they say why they wouldn't work on the bass?[/quote] Hi daf, yh, soundpost said they don't really deal with double basses anymore, which i dont understand because lots of people have recommended them. And M & J Healey said they don't work on basses that have been bought off the internet. Although im sure if it was older and not a cheap bass im sure they would because they came highly recommended as well.

A good way to get a similar sound to thriller without using pedals is plucking next to the bridge, behind the MM pickup. It gives a very thin and sharp tone. I play it like this with my EQ flat. I dont know what is used but id imagine its some sort of envelope filter.

It could have just been kept in a case for most of the time. I know my dad is mad keen on keeping all of his guitars in mint condition although none of his are that old. If you are seriously interested i would take an expert to see the bass and let him take it apart and find out whats happened. You can usually tell a refinish by the neck pocket. Or you could ask the guy to meet you in london and get a free valuation from a shop there. £2000 is still a lot of money so i would want to know exactly what is happening. Also i would want it to sound nice, i played a 63 p bass and it was awful

Iv recently been teaching myself and i think the easiest way to make scales fun is by challenging them to play it around the cycle of fourths or fifths or playing them over chord progressions. Then once they have a small grip on what makes a scale (intervals) i went through songs that they like to show them how the bassline was constructed using intervals from the chords/ scales and how it all fits into theory. This will really help them to improvise as they will be able to take ideas form songs and put their own spin on it. I think this is a much easier process if you know everything yourself although my dad didnt know any theory and picked it up through books ect, just to help his teaching so it can be done.

Just to make things harder for you, you should definately look into a classic 70's reissue. The latest ones are perfect for funk and jazz and cost a lot less than all them above. Theres some in the FS section but you can get them new for £550

Nope and i never will. The reason is when i havnt played on one of my basses for a while i will go back to it for a certain sound or gig and think wow why am i not using this all the time!? So if i rotate them i get that same thrill of when you try one in a shop and you think youve got to have it. Also there is the characteristics. My fretless is never going to sound like my 'ray and vice versa. Also i cant slap on flatwounds so thats my p bass out for slap. But my fretless has 5 strings so il use that when i need the low B. I think you can spend 1000's on a custom bass that has a john east pre amp or whatever but it will never feel special as there is no character. Its like having a robot for a wife. Itl do everything you want it to but in the most boring and unsatisfying way.

[quote name='ardi100' post='937858' date='Aug 27 2010, 10:03 AM']I used Laurence Dixon around clapham somewhere. I don't have his details to hand but I'll dig them out later. He set up my zeller bass nicely, was reasonably priced and a lovely bloke.[/quote] Sounds great, let me know if you find his number. cheers, ollie

Iv recently bought a chinese Stentor off ebay, but the G string is buzzing against the fingerboard and its not at all the right set up for using a bow. I have tried M&J Healeys, and soundpost but neither would deal with this bass. Does anyone know of anywhere else that would help and not rip me off in the process? cheers, ollie

[quote name='neepheid' post='937189' date='Aug 26 2010, 02:42 PM']Buy online, problem solved. Both Stringbusters and Strings Direct usually get strings to you next day. Order soon today and you should have them in time for the weekend [/quote] Just bought some bass boomers off strings direct. Great service and a pretty good price. GHS Bass boomers are my strings, 100-45's. Cant stand rotosound though

Warwick...........The sound of wood

Something lots people have missed, his action was really high. Couple this with flats (i use elites which are budget la bella's) and your p bass shouldnt be far off if you play up the neck and really groove. I dont think the mutes are that necessary tbh

What bass is it that your upgrading from? and also why a jazz bass in particular? The trouble is these two jazz basses are quite different, i think one way of looking at it is. There is hell loads of better basses than the american deluxe that are similar and a similar price, the super jazz market is huge and still growing. I think the only basses better for being a passive JB for that money arereal vintage, custom shop or the american vintage. The new standard americans are great. Overall, you really need to go into lots of shops, hold as many basses as possible and you will soon know whats right for you and whats not.

The OC3 is ok, it just feels a bit lacking in natural warmth. If you think of the kind of effects you get for recordin softwares its like that. But because of that it has the options to nail quite a lot of stuff and mixes well in a live situation. But i feel cheating in using it and if i was to buy one i would either go for the OC2 or the aguilar which has lots of thickness and warmth to it which suits msot basses much better. Trouble is both of these are rather pricey

[quote name='nottswarwick' post='930774' date='Aug 20 2010, 11:51 AM']cool thanks Which trace models should we be looking at then please?[/quote] If you find a 751 combo second hand that might be between £2-300 and their really decent bass amps. Also Ashdown are probably a bit better quality than trace elliot, but avoid the MAG series. ABM's are much better. +1 on the no to behringers, awful peice of kit. There are many manufacturers for sale on here, Hartke are my personel favourite and the XL series cabs go cheep as chips. If 100 watts is enough i highly recomend the roland bass cube although this is more based on practice than gigs. Avoid anything fender too.

I played on quite a few different basses to choose, in the end i really liked lindy fralin. They transformed my mexican and gave the tone from a great 60's motown vibe to a punchy 70's vibe. I wouldn't choose any other pickups for a passive p bass. For an active i would use delano, they sound really thick and warm on the sandbergs

On true vintages i played a 67 all origional p bass, probably my favourite bass to date. BIG +1 on the sandberg's if you want an active bass. Im just waiting for the money so i can order a JJ5 I played on the PM5 i think it is, its incredibly punchy if you want it to be but you can also get some beautiful lows and mids, kind of like a more versatile stingray.

[quote]I wonder if my 60th anniversary MIM standard has a different pickup in it? It's always seemed quite punchy.[/quote] In the brochure fender put it down as an american standard pickup, but someone posted an email on another forum from fender saying it was actually a MIM. Either way i changed mine to a set of lindy fralin pups and its completely enhanced the bass and i now wouldnt swap it for anything

the mike lull PJ bass is really impressive, great passive sounds and a really well made feel too it. The action was low and everything seemed to work effortlessly. If i was buying a P bass i would seriously look into them.

[quote name='Lysdexia' post='929089' date='Aug 18 2010, 09:19 PM']I was 'sacked' from a band years ago because the singer and I never really got along. In reality I shagged is girlfriend and he found out. Anyway, the point is that band member rapport is the single most important ingredient in any band's chance of sticking together.[/quote] That just reads "MISSION COMPLETE" to me

I managed to get out of an awful band today, all i had to do was tell them cant stand playing music for 13 year old boys in black hoodies. Anyway the drummer is a good freind of mine, hence why i joined and he rang me to say the guitarist was saying that im not right and how they need to look for a new bass player. When the drummer told me i had a grin from ear to ear! Now i just need to help get the drummer out and we can let terrible punk/powerpop die out Its a shame because we all started out because we were in the same lessons and we got on really well, but sometimes the conflict in taste can be too much.

I wouldnt buy a fender as the ones i have experienced dont have the best attention to detail in the quality. On mine there was a gap in the neck joint, the input socket would never stay on and on my housemates his saddles occasionaly collapse. These were both american deluxe models which are supposed to be top of the range so u would expect decent quality control. I would suggest a ray 5 or a warwick Shuker's should be amazing too

[quote name='dood' post='927927' date='Aug 17 2010, 07:44 PM']I actually quite fancy trying one, having found myself smitten with my HyDrive big rig![/quote] I loved the 410 alot but it was far too big for what iv been doing so i compact cab is perfect. I think im going to have to just trust hartke with making a very good cab but if you manage to try it before its released, please let me know of your thoughts on it ollie

[quote name='bubinga5' post='928231' date='Aug 18 2010, 12:09 AM']yeah for sure its natural to emulate your fav bassists...but i think its much more important to do your own thing...ive learnt loads of stuff and ideas from various bassists,songs etc....alot of stuff ive learnt also comes from listening to singers, horn players etc.. i have favorite bass players,but i dont want to sound like anyone but me...[/quote] I think theres been so much that has already done it would be near impossible to not sound a little bit like someone else. Even if its a musician you've never heard of or listened to they may have got similar ideas or had similar influences to you. So im sure you might say you have an individual sound but someone listening to you might think you sound like someone they know. But if you have managed to get your own sound and musicianship across after 50 years of electric bass, then im sure you can make lots of money.