Chris2112

It's a shame that ESP have made loads of interesting guitars and basses that were never sold outside of Japan for whatever reason, so that makes the Horizon there quite a rare find!

Don't let it hold you back. Look up Steve Bailey, he does some massive stretches on those 6 string basses of his, made even more difficult with them being fretless and he has very small hands.

[quote name='pantherairsoft' post='1339786' date='Aug 14 2011, 05:18 PM']Beauty is that a 6 still has the same 4 strings as a 4 wether I use them or not![/quote] They do, but for whatever reason I just never found playing 4 on a 6 to be as comfortable as playing 4 on a 4...if that makes sense!

I wish they would make the Slapper bass again!

[quote name='Magnolia' post='1338626' date='Aug 13 2011, 12:03 PM']Every time I ever play a rick in a shop I always do a rendition of Tom Sawyer/Freewill/Limelight. They are my benchmark songs to check that it sounds as it should![/quote] I always do a bit of 'The Camera Eye'!

I remember getting some Spector strings and they felt very soft and pliant, very easy going on the hands! They were great strings, but I never used them again because I had to order them from the states at the time.

[quote name='essexbasscat' post='1339078' date='Aug 13 2011, 08:28 PM']That's what I did last night. The keyboard player mimicked my bassline in Alright Now. So I stole his keyboard line in the instrumental section of Whiter Shade of Pale. Got some strange looks, but it sure made the point.[/quote] I suppose this is the benefit of transcribing parts for all instruments to bass, not just transcribing other basslines. That means you can play them live, in situations like this, where necessary.

Definitely time to apologise to the audience and break out a nice bass solo with the drummer backing you up!

[quote name='Chris Horton' post='1339055' date='Aug 13 2011, 08:08 PM']Just wanted to share some pictures of my latest bass guitar. It's a Yamaha TRB fretless mk 1 [/quote] Has that been defretted? If so, looks like a good job, perhaps a luthier has been over it?

[quote name='waynepunkdude' post='1339209' date='Aug 13 2011, 11:22 PM'][/quote] This is probably a good choice. With Industrial being as 'old hat' as it is, you'll need to try and look ironic and self-deprecating to save face, and a bright yellow Daisy Rock is just the way to say "this is all a joke, actually".

I think I would have enjoyed that more if I could speak Spanish! If you're a Vega fan, check this out...cool bass too! [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDne1Q-AYbE&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDne1Q-AYbE...feature=related[/url]

Very nice! I particularly liked the double thumbed bits.

I don't think there is anything wrong with playing 6'ers in most contexts, though if you're just a pub band doing pub covers then you'll probably not 'need' the extended range and the other benefits of having a 6. If you're in a functions band or other highly rehearsed professional covers band then they can be quite useful. I'd quite like to get back into playing 6 strings, I might give that a punt next year. I used to have a Status Stealth 6 string that was a great bass...

[quote name='essexbasscat' post='1338483' date='Aug 13 2011, 09:57 AM']I've known guitarists to jump on the bassline too. When asked why, I was told "Well, there's nothing else for me to do". Strewth[/quote] This sort of attitude winds me up. I don't like musicians who think every moment of every song must have something to contribute from them. It's usually the players who leave space who sound better, as they better frame their musical ideas and tend to be much more memorable for it. I love busy playing, but busy playing from everyone in a band all the time throughout every song would be a nightmare!

I've just picked up fretless bass again after a good few months off, and I'm just getting my ear back in. It's a little different for every fretless bass, that feeling of getting back to grips with it again. Great work as ever from Mike!

Who made that fretless bass again?

I'm not that bothered about neck profiles, though there are a few necks I don't like, such as the baseball bat efforts of some post 2000 Warwicks and anything that feels slow and clubby like a P bass or a Gibson. I've found the asymmetrical neck of my ACG Harlot S Type is a real joy. That's something special. And I love my Status Series II neck, quite slim abd aided by the effortlessly low action of the bass.

Typically you'll be wanting to avoid the post Millenium Warwicks, as that's when then they started using a fatter D shaped neck as opposed to the slimmer C profile.

Might as well just start playing like Victor Wooten...no keyboard player could copy that!

I wonder if Jonas Hellborg still has his old double neck. And I wonder if his back could stand playing it! He used to have a few Wal basses back in the day. I wonder how many he has now.

Time to get those old Rush records on and get shedding!

Excellent bass for cruise ship gigs! If the boat ever sinks you can use the neck as an oar to row your lifeboat to safety! Enjoy the new bass!

It's just a shame they don't make their 'Slapper' bass anymore, it was headless with a carbon fibre neck and Bartolini pickups IIRC. A very special bass indeed!

Ibanez SR basses popped straight to mind for their slim necks, small bodies and light weight. They're not a million miles away from what you're already enjoying.