Useful software for bass players

[Delberthot]

If you practice, change strings or setup your bass in front of the computer and your tuner is either downstairs or stored in the band's van/lockup then I find this very useful:

[url="http://www.gieson.com/Library/projects/utilities/tuner/"]http://www.gieson.com/Library/projects/utilities/tuner/[/url]

[Happy Jack]

Some nice toys on that Gieson site.

[bluesparky]

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='1044812' date='Dec 2 2010, 10:58 AM']Some nice toys on that Gieson site.[/quote]
Yeah, i've just spent a while on it too.
Thanks.

[bluesparky]

I also use Finale Notepad to scribble down any notation / transcriptions i do.
It used to be free but it's still quite cheap.
It's not the most powerful or versatile piece of software, but it does the job nice and simply.
[url="http://www.finalemusic.com/NotePad/Default.aspx"]http://www.finalemusic.com/NotePad/Default.aspx[/url]

[Mcgiver69]

Well here is my list:

For Windows:

- Express Scribe (free software that helps you to slow down, learn and play along to any song)
- Reaper (For all the reasons said before)
- Mixcraft 5 (a ton of features for $75, even more features than Reaper) and dead easy to learn.
- Audacity (enough said)
- Hydrogen (Drum machine for free with tons of features)

For Linux:

- Hydrogen
- Audacity
- Ardour
For Linux I like the Ubuntu Studio package or the AV-Linux which is the one I have installed at the moment.

[urb]

I'm a big fan of Logic for writing and arranging stuff but I've seen a full Pro Tools rig in action a few times and for tracking a band I think it's hard to beat - it's so fast for editing stuff it's awesome - the latest Logic does a lot of that and has an amazing amount of cool things like all the plugins it comes with and it's great for editing MIDI.

I also rate Garageband as possibly the best 'free' DAW... and I have seen Cubase rocking too, it just drove me nuts! And I'm still getting my head around the vast number of possibilities with Ableton and the fact I keep getting latency when I use it... even though I've worked through ways of getting rid of it - any tips gratefully received.

I just discovered this bit of 'slow down' / transcriptiomn software that works with iTunes:

[url="http://supermegaultragroovy.com/products/Capo/"]http://supermegaultragroovy.com/products/Capo/[/url]

It's meant to be the best one out there - I've used the Amazing Slow Downer and it's OK but I didn't the way the audio gets glitchy when it's going really slow..

M

[Rosh]

[quote name='urb' post='1045321' date='Dec 2 2010, 04:45 PM']I'm a big fan of Logic for writing and arranging stuff but I've seen a full Pro Tools rig in action a few times and for tracking a band I think it's hard to beat - it's so fast for editing stuff it's awesome[/quote]

+10000 tbf.

It's pretty much the industry standard for a reason!

I use the LE package at home, but I regularly use the HD package with CONTROL24 and love it!

[tarcher]

On my iphone
1.
TheiReal book+ the jazz pack.This plays the chords for you in whatever style and tempo you want eg Bossa Nova 100bpm Latin or whatever you want.
You get a backing of piano bass and drumsand you can adjust the levels of each to however you want it plus transposing if you wish.
If you go to the Realbook forum(just a touch on the bottom rh corner of the screen) you can easily access hundreds more tunes and playlists that contributor have put there for your delictation.These are all free by the way.

2.The Amazing Slow Downer App
Does what it says on the tin plus loops etc.

These apps are bloody amazing and they cost peanuts,well,a few quid actually but not very much.

[theosd]

For my android phone I've downloaded the 'gstrings' and 'mobile metronome' apps. Both excellent, but especially the former. Any other android apps people can recommend?

[Low End Bee]

[quote name='RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE' post='1044268' date='Dec 1 2010, 08:20 PM']Well,I've been a lazy sod when the band was goin'. I've been a bit apprehensive as well with the bits I have.
I have Logic(a keyboard friend of mine recommended it to me big time).
I also have pod farm and Ableton live/riffworks. which came with my Line 6 UX1
I still have Gearbox which came with my Toneport GX.
And Garageband on my Mac.

The reason (which looks good) I am apprehensive about Logic is the graph type stuff.
When I used to use cassette recorders peak meters were easy to understand.
It seems like you get an awful lot for your dosh.But with so much stuff, it makes stuff more complicated than need be imho.
I was wondering if it's worth going on a one day course for Logic.I have books ,but keep putting them off.

Now that I am bandless, I need to do something with this stuff.

Nice thread by the way [/quote]


I use Garageband all the time as it's so easy. I'd love to learn how to use Logic too as it seems to do so much more. It's a bit overwhelming though and I need a physical, real person to teach me.

[Dood]

Just gotten Guitar Pro 6. A HUGE improvement over Guitar Pro 5. I highly recommend upgrading. You can download a demo of 6 to see it in action. [url="http://www.guitar-pro.com/en/index.php"]http://www.guitar-pro.com/en/index.php[/url]

[RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE]

[quote name='Low End Bee' post='1059752' date='Dec 15 2010, 05:16 PM']I use Garageband all the time as it's so easy. I'd love to learn how to use Logic too as it seems to do so much more. It's a bit overwhelming though and I need a physical, real person to teach me.[/quote]

I should use Garageband ,and now that I'm bandless I'll get my finger out. As for Logic,
I did see some one day courses advertised . One was in some guys house in Slough.

[BigBeatNut]

[quote name='Delberthot' post='1043867' date='Dec 1 2010, 02:53 PM']I use Best Practice for this. Its free and appears to do everything your one does except from removing the low frequencies - you can change the pitch, tuning if what you are listening to isn;t quite to pitch without having to retune the bass to compensate, change the speed and loop. You just adjust any parameter you need to and it does it almost right away[/quote]

Suprised no-one has mentioned 'Vox' (used to be 'Toolplayer') for the mac. It appears to be in the same ballpark as Best Practice and it's my go to rehearsal tool ... pitch changes (now calibrated in 10ths of a semitone ... good enough) tempo changes (plus a bunch of bizarre stuff you most likely wont need, but it's hidden and doesn't get in the way.

If you have MP3s that are miss-tagged, or you need to tag your recordings, MP3Tag (win only) and MusicBrainz Picard (mac/win) are a god-send.

Besides that, the ubiquitous cross-platform Audacity, also Cubase LE (mac and windows, free with Alesis audio interface ) and the software associated with my Bass Pod (which I used to gig, but it seems to now be home (rehearsal/recording) use only.

I'd really like to know of some drum software that accepts midi-in and has a good selection of built in patterns and kits. Preferably free of course. Tried Hydrogen, but the mac version was so flakey I gave up on it. (Mac is my main rehearsal recording tool)

Andy

[Mugz.wood]

i use reason for midi sequencing.
cubase is faffy but good for recording and midi sequencing
pro tools is excellent for recording not so great for midi sequencing
logic is very good at alot and hardly any faff, and u can export tracks in seconds as apposed to pro tools and maybe cubase that makes u wait the entire duration of the track.
thats my take on the recording software that ive used so far

on another note i used the ear master 5 free trial the other day i only spent about an hour on it and i have actually noticed an improvement, £30

[vsmith1]

On my iPhone I have:

Guitar Toolkit - mentioned previously
TabToolkit - can take Guitar Pro files and play back on the iPhone
PolyTune - neat - but the low B can confuse it
Pedersen Strobe Tuner - neat

Bass Rig models:
Amplitube - there are some bass amps and FX
Ampkit - a bass amp and some FX
PocketGK - GK amps and two cabs; can play backing tracks directly from the iPod app

I use the Peavey Ampkit Link as my interface into the iPhone.

I also use on my Mac:
GarageBand
iTunes
Guitar Pro
Neutrino - this can do key changes or tempo changes; uses the iTunes library
Line 6 PodFarm - some very neat Bass amps, and FX
Amplitube - I have a single Ampeg model which sounds great
Ableton Live - not used much recently

Interfaces:
Line 6 UX2
Presonus Firebox

[paul_5]

I'm a huge fan of ProTools, it's dead easy to get great results when recording. I also write a lot in Sibelius, which is nowhere near the cheapest software, but it mans that when I've finished writing a guitar line I can TAB it (I Know!) for the guitarists in the band, and print it out, so that they can lose it. It'll also convert scores to MIDI files, which means that they can be imported into your DAW of choice (with all the tempo, time signature and key(s)) to form a fairly detailed guide track for recording later on.

Not really bass specific though...

[neepheid]

Chord progression app for Android/iPhone: [url="http://chordbot.com/"]http://chordbot.com/[/url]

There's a free and paid version. I think the paid one has more comping styles and the automatic "random" generator.

[Michael Currie]

I bought Mixcraft 5 last month, love it! Great feature for slowing down tracks, without adjusting the pitch. If you've used Garageband, Logic etc, it's pretty similar, easy to get used to! Full feature 30-day free trial too!

[Mornats]

[quote name='BigBeatNut' post='1177315' date='Mar 26 2011, 04:12 PM']I'd really like to know of some drum software that accepts midi-in and has a good selection of built in patterns and kits. Preferably free of course. Tried Hydrogen, but the mac version was so flakey I gave up on it.[/quote]

Andy, I use EZdrummer which is around £80 and is usually packaged as a bundle with an extra drum kit (check dv247.com). It comes with pop/rock drums (the default, sounds pretty decent) and a cocktail kit (not all that great). I got the one with the two funk drumkits. You get a good selection of midi loops with it and it can accept any other midi drum tracks. I got some from Groove Monkee for $20 - $30 a pack (but Google for some vouchers or sign up for their newsletter for discount codes, I think june20 is their latest, giving 20% off). They do a sample pack of free loops from all their ranges too: [url="http://www.groovemonkee.com/en/free-midi"]http://www.groovemonkee.com/en/free-midi[/url].

The drums on my track here were done in EZdrummer: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=134193"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=134193[/url].

I use it on a Mac within GarageBand and haven't had any problems. Just shout if you want to know more about it...

Here's a link to it on DV247. They have the funkmasters one plus Drumkit From Hell which is more suited to rock/metal: [url="http://www.dv247.com/search/0/0/ProductQuantity/Descending/ezdrummer/1/"]http://www.dv247.com/search/0/0/ProductQua...ng/ezdrummer/1/[/url]

Paul

[Old_Ben]

I've been using reaper, Riff works (amazing for arranging song structures) but most recently downloaded a few apps for my andriod phone:
The guitar pro tabs app, which is about £1.99 and they have an upgrade to read guitar pro tabs for $4.99, dunno what that is in £s
and for recording on the fly; Four Track Pro, litterally lets you record up to 4 tracks on the go when you may be in a rehesal room or at a mates house jamming and dont have anything else spare. This is free if you upgrade it has limited editing options and a metronome.
Jam Box- is pretty much a scale and chord library. in the free version it has guitar positions but if you upgrade it has 5&4 string bass positions. (not sure about 6).

[paul_5]

Another bump for Reaper. I'm having a few issues regarding installing PT on my new mac, so I'm back on Reaper for now. I can usde my Pro Tools Hardware, so the AD conversion is still great, and does everything I need it to.

I don't have anything on my phone, as it's old and wretched. For everything else I use 'Basschat'.

[Old_Ben]

After coming and looking here i found an andriod app called audio speed changer, does what it says on the tin, for audio files fom your phone loaded and adjusted in seconds!

[JapanAxe]

[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1304020885' post='1214187']
I also write a lot in Sibelius, which is nowhere near the cheapest software, but it mans that when I've finished writing a guitar line I can TAB it (I Know!) for the guitarists in the band, and print it out, so that they can lose it.
[/quote]
I use Sibelius First. The cheapest way to get the genuine full version of First is to buy it bundled with M-Audio Keystation 32, then sell the titchy keyboard on eBay! You can print to pdf and email the results to your band mates. They will still play it wrong though...

[tom1946]

I bought this to play along with Christian stuff that I can only find on youtube:

http://www.pitch-switch.com/

I can adjust the pitch in semitones to what we play the song in. Does tempo too.
I'm a software numpty so I'm sure there's better and for nothing.

[Thunderbird]

Hi mates now I am kinda not good at music software but is there anything that will let me play along to my music but drop the bass out so I can play bass along to the song? Cheers