A tuning question.

[iiipopes]

[quote name='artisan' timestamp='1343904004' post='1757015']
hi Chris,nice Bandit,have you bought a new toy to replace it ?
yes that's my new baby only had it 5 weeks & love it to bits.


i've had too many bikes to count over the years & nearly all of them mental fast sport bikes,i did have a nice XJR1300 that i spent a fortune on, JMC underbraced swing arm etc.
i finally got sick of trying to kill myself though & switched to Harley,much prefer it too i actually enjoy riding the bike now instead of just the adrenalin rush i used to get.
[/quote]
Ah, reminds me of when I got my "Hugger" (factory chopped Sportster) in the early '90's and actually passed my motorcycle qualification test on it.

[artisan]

cheers iiipopes i just love sporty's,they're so easy/fun to ride.

[invicta59]

Did the new strings arrive, and have they survived this time?

[ChrisF]

New string set from Thomann arrived the other day,,BUT...today I got a package........

Its a set of Innovation Psycho Slaps from zero9, on this site.....hopefully gonna put them on tonight and give them a go.......

If I like them then the ones from Thomann can go on ebay or something..as THIS TIME they have actually sent quite an expensive set.


I will let you know what I think...although took the E out of the bag..and it looks very,very short ....but maybe Im wrong.....

[ChrisF]

ok..so Ive put the D string on just to see what it sounds like. I havent filed the bridge or nut yet (the Psychos are quite thick strings) ..but the sound is amazing

Its got that deep thumping bass sound which is exactly what Im after.....will put rest on later and let you know what they are like.

oh..as for them being short...they arent..they just dont have yards of extra string on them...which is good.

[ChrisF]

all strings on....and bridge depths adjusted.

Im tuning them up..very..very slowly ....after recent events Im scared

[bremen]

[quote name='ChrisF' timestamp='1344286156' post='1762357']
all strings on....and bridge depths adjusted.

Im tuning them up..very..very slowly ....after recent events Im scared
[/quote]

...as a db newby I'm following this with baited breath! hope it goes ok...

[ChrisF]

[quote name='bremen' timestamp='1344286979' post='1762370']
...as a db newby I'm following this with baited breath! hope it goes ok...
[/quote]

Cheers......Im having a break at the moment...

so how long have you had yours ???

[ChrisF]

Missus has been away for a few days.....got back today, so she asked me to show my father in law (he had brought back from London) my bass.

I got it out and played a bit on it (baring in mind I still havent tuned it properly ) and she said that it sounded much, much better..and how a bass should sound....so thats a good start

Im going to tune it properly..have a bit of a practice..and take it to band practice on Friday for the first time ...at least thats the plan.

[invicta59]

Hope the strings hold out... then, for the practise, I hope your fingers hold out

What songs do you have in mind for your practise?

[ChrisF]

[quote name='invicta59' timestamp='1344366021' post='1763536']

What songs do you have in mind for your practise?
[/quote]

Hmmm..that is a bit of a bone of contention at the moment.....one of the guitarists..who owns the practice room and the equipment we use in it...wants to do what amounts to 50s covers.

But the other guitarist is from a punk background (he actually released a few albums back in the 80s/90s ) ..and although Im very much a rockabilly, I also love rock music eg: AC/DC, Iron Maiden etc etc ..and I loooove The Clash ( the best band this country will ever produce..nope..dont bother to argue....whatever band you are gonna say, your wrong )..........

So we are bringing all that and more to the mix..and we are leaning towards a neo-psycho-punka-billy sound..but the other guitarist is proving difficult to persuade...... he is coming round slowly..but he sings like bob dylan..and has a flowery shirt.....

anyway Im gonna try out some of our current set...I find them quite easy on the bass guitar, but I think the DB is different matter.....nothing exciting....mostly standard rock n roll stuff..to be honest we need to lose 90% of our set..unless we want to be a 50s cover band

This Friday is crunch time....we are gonna put our thoughts and ideas to him..and I reckon if he still resists we will become a trio..which will be sad.

[ChrisF]

Blimey..songs that I find fairly easy on the bass guitar are a different story on the DB

I can get through a passable version of "Lights out" .. but just about everything sounds awful

I definately need some lessons..my technique is rubbish

[invicta59]

There are tons of fun to be had playing songs out of context. Try Paranoid in a Johnny Cash style.. it works.. Should I Stay or Should I Go works as a rockabilly song... not sure a flowery shirt will work though

What sounds awful? The tone? intonation? or is it simply holding the tempo together?

[ChrisF]

[quote name='invicta59' timestamp='1344379134' post='1763811']
There are tons of fun to be had playing songs out of context. Try Paranoid in a Johnny Cash style.. it works.. Should I Stay or Should I Go works as a rockabilly song... not sure a flowery shirt will work though
[/quote]

cheers...thats the kind of covers I like

[ChrisF]

[quote name='invicta59' timestamp='1344379134' post='1763811']
What sounds awful? The tone? intonation? or is it simply holding the tempo together?
[/quote]

erm...all of the above

[artisan]

are you playing the bass lines on DB just as you play them on bass guitar ?
if so it doesn't work too well,maybe you are trying to play too many notes,i found with DB you just don't need a big flurry of notes to fill the rhythm out as the notes are so much more ...................

[invicta59]

You could, if you haven't already, try putting some masking tape position markers down the side of the fingerboard to help while you get used to the scalelength. That may help with intonation for the short term

If Lights out, which is a reasonably quick song if its the Jerry Byrne song I'm thinking of, sounds ok, what songs aren't quite working for you?

Are you playing the songs plucking, or slapping?

[artisan]

[quote name='invicta59' timestamp='1344419154' post='1764067']
You could, if you haven't already, try putting some masking tape position markers down the side of the fingerboard to help while you get used to the scalelength. That may help with intonation for the short term
[/quote]

this is a good idea,i bought some self adhesive dots from my local post office for less than £1.00
they are a massive help & confidence booster.

[thisnameistaken]

[quote name='ChrisF' timestamp='1344374689' post='1763751']I definately need some lessons..my technique is rubbish [/quote]

I keep meaning to arrange more lessons, they are very worthwhile. I was struggling with confidence about getting my intonation right as I got further up the bass, but having received a few pointers that I could consider something of a 'system' - as well as some exercises to practise to drill it in - it got much easier. Don't fumble around on your own for too long, your practise time will be better spent after a couple of lessons and you'll learn much faster.

[ChrisF]

cheers for the replies....had a quick read and will answer later.... off back to London to meet up with some very old/good friends for a curry...so Im on the run at the moment.

didnt want you all to think I wasnt grateful..because I am

[merlin]

Hi following this with great interest,had my DB a few weeks now,and after 35years plus,on electric bass its like starting again,defo less is more,
will be doing my first DB gig next month,getting quite worried,been playing classic rock for ages now will be playing rock n roll,very different.
thanks....



Merlin

[oggiesnr]

Double bass is definately like starting again and great fun it is too. I found/find that the hardest part is learning to listen rather than just relying on the frets. I find that I really have to listen all the time and not let my fingers go into autopilot or gravity takes over hand I go progressively sharper!

My best training aid is the gstring tuner app on my mobile phone which I set to autotune and make a point of checking as I go along. My bass teacher has also got me doing lots of exercises with big jumps in them (B on the A string to D# on the G is one) to build both pitch and muscle memory, great fun.

Steve

[ChrisF]

[quote name='artisan' timestamp='1344415412' post='1763993']
are you playing the bass lines on DB just as you play them on bass guitar ?
if so it doesn't work too well,maybe you are trying to play too many notes,i found with DB you just don't need a big flurry of notes to fill the rhythm out as the notes are so much more ...................
[/quote]

Yes..I was playing..or trying to...exactly the same as I do on the guitar. Ive been listening to some stuff today, but really concentrating on the bass. Trying to hear what it actually is doing rather than what I think its doing. I think I get what you mean........maybe

[quote name='invicta59' timestamp='1344419154' post='1764067']
You could, if you haven't already, try putting some masking tape position markers down the side of the fingerboard to help while you get used to the scalelength. That may help with intonation for the short term

If Lights out, which is a reasonably quick song if its the Jerry Byrne song I'm thinking of, sounds ok, what songs aren't quite working for you?

Are you playing the songs plucking, or slapping?
[/quote]

yeah..I started to mark the neck with a china white pencil..but then the D string went BOING!!! ..and I rubbed them all off because the other strings kept needing to be retuned..so all the notes seemed to move about ..but Im going to mark it up again.

Yeah its the Jerry Byrne song.....maybe it sounds ok because I love it..and cant really stand most of the others. I also tried some stuff by Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins...neither of who I particularly like..and neither of who are rockabilly in my opinion...but they sounded awful.

I know I need to start getting lessons...... Daf Lewis only lives a couple of miles from me..and he has offered to give me a few lessons when he isnt busy..and also to have a look at my bass and set it up if it needs it....damn fine chap

I hadnt really been playing the bass guitar for all that long...and now as Steve says..it is just like starting all over again

[invicta59]

Sounds like you've got a bargain if you've got chance of some lessons and setup on your doorstep.

Maybe we have different ideas on what rockabilly is. Carl Perkins is most definitely rockabilly IMHO, and the rockabilly style of playing is the Boom-Chicka-Boom style of slap, as found on just about every early Johnny Cash or Elvis track. Not everything is root/fifth though and any note sequence can be played with any variety of slaps.

I think that upright bass is a completey different animal to e-bass. For a start, left hand technique also incorporates holding the upright. errr.. upright (beware tiled floors!) and stopping the darned thing spinning round when whacking it hard. Right hand technique is totally different due to the string orientation, but if slapping, incorporates rhythm and syncopation.

I'm interested to know - have you seen a particular double bass player, band, or method you wish to emulate?

Edited August 9, 2012 by invicta59

[ChrisF]

[quote name='invicta59' timestamp='1344543313' post='1766325']
I'm interested to know - have you seen a particular double bass player, band, or method you wish to emulate?
[/quote]

yup....loads .... seriously..I want a deep thudding bass: think...Restless (one for the older members there ) or Charlie Hightone or Mystery Gang