Amp Videos online

[dmccombe7]

1 hour ago, tonyquipment said:

If I was to do a demo of an amp I would use a looper. Play a phrase and let that go round and round with the camera pointed at the controls of the amp. Fiddle with all the buttons and knobs. Then go around the amp and get up and close to the outputs and inputs etc. I don’t care for what the bass player is doing. I don’t need to see that. I need to see the amp. I’d mic it up and do a DI comparison etc but that’s a lot of work and a good enough reason not to make YouTube video demos. 

Yep that's a good idea. Liking that altho it could prove to be a little boring but it would mean the review could be shorter and straight to the main item.

Yep i'd like to see that even just out of curiosity.

Dave

[Dood]

I will certainly respond to a few points here, but I would like to ask one question:

Do folk prefer a laid-back detailed video or a quick run through that is less than 10 minutes? Is ten too long for attention? Five? What do you all think?

[la bam]

Personally, long 10 minutes ones for me.

[Cato]

1 hour ago, Dood said:

Do folk prefer a laid-back detailed video or a quick run through that is less than 10 minutes? Is ten too long for attention? Five? What do you all think?

I think both can work.

If your researching a particular product it's definitely more constructive to watch several shortish reviews and demos than a couple of long ones.

At the other scale there's the hugely popular Andertons TV reviews which can often be 40 minutes +, although I tend to think of Andertons as the 'Top Gear' of guitars in that I watch it more for general entertainment than because I'm actually interested in whatever products they are showcasing.

[dmccombe7]

I'd go with approx 10-15 mins. Should be long enough to get the demo across.

Short bass run done as fingerstyle, pick, chords and slap with the main features of the amp being shown.

For me personally i would be happy just to hear fingerstyle and pick as those styles are what majority of us use most of the time.

Chords and slap are usually styles that we add to embelish the song and show off a little but most of us have a basic style of finger or pick 

There will always be the exception to the rule.

Dave

 

Edited December 13, 2018 by dmccombe7

[Mykesbass]

5 hours ago, tonyquipment said:

If I was to do a demo of an amp I would use a looper. Play a phrase and let that go round and round with the camera pointed at the controls of the amp. Fiddle with all the buttons and knobs. Then go around the amp and get up and close to the outputs and inputs etc. I don’t care for what the bass player is doing. I don’t need to see that. I need to see the amp. I’d mic it up and do a DI comparison etc but that’s a lot of work and a good enough reason not to make YouTube video demos. 

Serious question, would a looped signal (basically a recording) interact with the amp in exactly the same way as the live signal?

[Cato]

42 minutes ago, Mykesbass said:

Serious question, would a looped signal (basically a recording) interact with the amp in exactly the same way as the live signal?

I reckon as long as you put the looper through the effects loop (assuming the amp has one) rather than in front of the input then it should reproduce the tone/colour of the amp more or less perfectly rather than adding any colour of it's own.

Edited December 13, 2018 by Cato

[dmccombe7]

53 minutes ago, Mykesbass said:

Serious question, would a looped signal (basically a recording) interact with the amp in exactly the same way as the live signal?

Would think a good quality looper would be fine. Many pros use them on their demos. Guys like Fredrico Malaman use them to give a backing track to solo over. No idea what type he uses. Michael Manring too. When you hear the original riff against the looped riff it sounds pretty much same to me with headphones on.

Dave

[Bluewine]

I still say the only true amp demo is live with your band in the venues you play. Not a YouTube clip in an ideal environment.

Blue

[Dood]

1 hour ago, Cato said:

I reckon as long as you put the looper through the effects loop (assuming the amp has one) rather than in front of the input then it should reproduce the tone/colour of the amp more or less perfectly rather than adding any colour of it's own.

Placing a looper in the effects loop of an amp you are demoing, for the most part, would be pointless as the effects loop on most amplifiers actually is after the preamp (EQ, drive. pre-shape controls etc). Only some amps out there have the loop before this section. 

Edited December 13, 2018 by Dood

[Dood]

2 hours ago, Mykesbass said:

Serious question, would a looped signal (basically a recording) interact with the amp in exactly the same way as the live signal?

It depends on the bass. I'd say with an active bass there would be practically no difference because of the way the active electronics buffers the signal in the same way that the pedal would. Even with a passive, after the signal has been processed by in-house editing then compressed to **** because it has been rendered for a magazine, then sent to YouTube, you'd be hard pushed to be able to tell the difference - especially if you are also listening on earbuds or laptop speakers!

[Dood]

On 05/12/2018 at 21:10, AndyTravis said:

If you were watching amp demonstrations online, what would you want to see?

I’m in the market for smaller powerful combos, and there’s not huge amounts out there other than spec sheets.

Just thinking about online demos generally...they seem to be slap fest look at me videos on the main.

There is a guy who I think was referred to as the bass whisperer and he does great demos in America, but self filmed demos and YouTube content is so hit and miss.

I would want the same bass line over and over again with fingers, pick and a bit of thumb while the settings were clearly shown...

 

”the mid control has this sweep...” etc.

 

Any examples of videos you’ve seen and liked?

just about to boil my head looking at gear reviews and wanted a break 

 

On 06/12/2018 at 08:41, scalpy said:

Something logical and brief. It doesn’t take a long time to establish what a bass tone is, and there are clear benchmarks, P, J maybe Stingray and ‘coffee table’ bass sound. DI and cab sound separately would be useful, and concise demo of the eq. Pick and fingers is obviously important.  I thought the recent WD800 vid by mesa was decent, and proves it can be done in less than 5 minutes. Seeing as the vast majority of viewers are going to be listening on ear buds grandiose extracts aren’t going to provide information like what it genuinely feels like in the room anyway. And most importantly, if it must feature slap leave it to the end to save me skipping through to find out when it’s over!

 

On 06/12/2018 at 09:32, dmccombe7 said:

Yep something that's more about the amp than the technical ability of the bass player. 

As you said with fingerstyle, pick, slap with some chord work thrown in. 

Each control should be demonstrated fully. Takes a bit of digging to find the good ones tho.

Sometimes just a repetative bass line being played thru the demo is the way to go.

Dave

 

On 06/12/2018 at 12:00, la bam said:

Dood's videos are great. Very informative, well thought through and no sales push. They really are top notch.

The other things i would want to see on others reviews are:

1. Same bassline played over in fingerstyle and pick, but with a computer added video overlap showing the dial settings.

2. Give a variety, not only of tones, but basslines - some fast, some medium, some slow - instead of just fast tech stuff. How about Dock of o bay, or My Girl - something where we get the sustain and richness of the notes shining through, that cant be hidden in a fast fest.

3. MUST at some point in the demo be played alongside drums or at very least a drum machine, to see how certain settings cut though, again with the video overlap showing the settings.

4. probably a 3 minute song at the end to show it in a full band mix.

5

 

On 06/12/2018 at 12:04, dmccombe7 said:

Also use a standard bass to demo an amp. Something that most of us can relate to and will know the tone. And tell us what the bass settings are too.

If a Jazz bass where are the pick up controls set and where is the tone set. Likewise a P bass or probably just need to know the tone setting on a P bass.

Dave

3

 

On 07/12/2018 at 19:27, Bluewine said:

I can't say I've ever seen a demo clip where volume was demoed.

Blue

The problem with this is usually down to the way that kit is recorded in a  studio environment. Winding the volume up causes all sorts of problems for say, as an example, the vocal mic. 

On 07/12/2018 at 20:23, ahpook said:

In an ideal world the sound of the bass DIed would be good to hear- a bit like when you get to hear the bypassed tone before an effect review.

 

 

On 10/12/2018 at 11:53, WHUFC BASS said:

You have to ask yourself how much of an idea of an amp sound are you going to get from a video on a laptop with tiny speakers. Totally agree with showing all the features and what-not but the actual sound? I don't think there's any substitute for trying the amp out yourself. I'd prefer in-depth description of the features and the downsides too. Also, a good comparison to other amps in the same class as most people watching would be in the market for a new amp anyway.
I'd also throw impartiality out the window too. If an amp is crap, say it's crap. It's rare you'll see a reviewer say anything really bad about an amp but sometimes things need to be said.

Yes you are so right about the sound when the video is watched. In nearly all of my videos I tell the listener to make sure they are at least listening on decent speakers or cans. I've seen plenty of comments where folk just don't understand why things sound dreadful on such tiny speakers. They actually complain that the sound is "tinny" on their laptop. It makes you so pleased that the recordings were made on thousands of pounds worth of high end studio gear!! 

 

Ok, so, It appears that I'm not too far off with what people generally want. I've highlighted the very things we try to do in my own reviews - of course we can't do everything, every time but certainly I do focus on, "No Shred, No Ego, Just Bass". Most bass lines through reviews are Major, Minor or Pentatonic and I try not to cloud judgement with overly busy playing.  - and I like to take the time to actually play whilst I demonstrate each control. Yes, we always have a camera on the knobs (not just the one with the bass ha ha)

Hopefully my playing technique is consistent enough that it renders a looper in this case not needed.

Playing with an accompaniment up until recently has been a problem, but thanks to a studio upgrade, that could be a possibility, however constraints in time and costs, I don't know if I'll be offering it this year!

 

Finally, thank you so, so much for the comments of support. Having a bit of a hard time maself, so this has lifted me. Merry Christmas one and all x

[tonyquipment]

15 hours ago, Mykesbass said:

Serious question, would a looped signal (basically a recording) interact with the amp in exactly the same way as the live signal?

A quality looper should just play the loop as you played it. I’m sure it might add some colour to it but it should be 1for1 imo otherwise it’s not a very good looper lol

[dmccombe7]

12 hours ago, Dood said:

 

 

 

 

 

The problem with this is usually down to the way that kit is recorded in a  studio environment. Winding the volume up causes all sorts of problems for say, as an example, the vocal mic. 

 

Yes you are so right about the sound when the video is watched. In nearly all of my videos I tell the listener to make sure they are at least listening on decent speakers or cans. I've seen plenty of comments where folk just don't understand why things sound dreadful on such tiny speakers. They actually complain that the sound is "tinny" on their laptop. It makes you so pleased that the recordings were made on thousands of pounds worth of high end studio gear!! 

 

Ok, so, It appears that I'm not too far off with what people generally want. I've highlighted the very things we try to do in my own reviews - of course we can't do everything, every time but certainly I do focus on, "No Shred, No Ego, Just Bass". Most bass lines through reviews are Major, Minor or Pentatonic and I try not to cloud judgement with overly busy playing.  - and I like to take the time to actually play whilst I demonstrate each control. Yes, we always have a camera on the knobs (not just the one with the bass ha ha)

Hopefully my playing technique is consistent enough that it renders a looper in this case not needed.

Playing with an accompaniment up until recently has been a problem, but thanks to a studio upgrade, that could be a possibility, however constraints in time and costs, I don't know if I'll be offering it this year!

 

Finally, thank you so, so much for the comments of support. Having a bit of a hard time maself, so this has lifted me. Merry Christmas one and all x

Only issue with backing tracks is i've found that the track is sometimes far too loud and drowns out the bass itself. Pretty sure you will master that no probs tho. Altho the bass playing isn't really important on an amp or even a bass review i quite like the clips where the intro is the bass player showing some nice moves on the bass and then goes into the review. I find that gives me an idea of the guys ability and provides me with the confidence that he knows his way around gear and hopefully knows what he's talking about.

Sometimes its good to ask your audience what they like. Looks like you got some very positive feedback and i certainly appreciate what you do for us.

Hope all is well soon and you get to enjoy Xmas without worry.

All the best

Dave

[NHM]

the bit that is always missing is 'what strings is the bass fitted with?'. Unless you know this, you've no idea how to compare the amp in your mind. Product videos - inc. Andertons and Mr Whisperer - never mention the strings, so how can you assess the sound of a guitar / pedal / amp / speaker without this critical bit of info?

[Dood]

1 hour ago, NHM said:

the bit that is always missing is 'what strings is the bass fitted with?'. Unless you know this, you've no idea how to compare the amp in your mind. Product videos - inc. Andertons and Mr Whisperer - never mention the strings, so how can you assess the sound of a guitar / pedal / amp / speaker without this critical bit of info?

9/10 the instruments are sent from the distributor and, unless they specifically say "fitted with D'Addario strings", there's actually no way of knowing. If the strings are flat wounds or tapes or similar then for sure I mention it every time. To be honest though, by the time the sound has gone via a players fingers through a particular amp and microphone combination, in to the recording suite, tweaked for online media then uploaded to a lossy format such as YouTube, you'd be hard pushed to tell the difference between brands of the same type of string. Maybe we should issue the Pepsi challenge  

 

[Dood]

4 hours ago, dmccombe7 said:

Only issue with backing tracks is i've found that the track is sometimes far too loud and drowns out the bass itself. Pretty sure you will master that no probs tho. Altho the bass playing isn't really important on an amp or even a bass review i quite like the clips where the intro is the bass player showing some nice moves on the bass and then goes into the review. I find that gives me an idea of the guys ability and provides me with the confidence that he knows his way around gear and hopefully knows what he's talking about.

Sometimes its good to ask your audience what they like. Looks like you got some very positive feedback and i certainly appreciate what you do for us.

Hope all is well soon and you get to enjoy Xmas without worry.

All the best

Dave

Some great points! And thank you. I have to admit I was just a little bit apprehensive to ask, but I figured if I just jumped in with two feet and asked the question, then at least I can do what I can to endeavour to make the reviews better. I can only apologise to @AndyTravis for taking over a bit! Sorry! 

[Dan Dare]

I find amp demos fun to watch occasionally, but I wouldn't use them for serious research about what to buy. A bass amp is a bass amp is a bass amp, after all. The only worthwhile way to find whether something will suit you is to head for shop or two and try for yourself. 

Edited December 14, 2018 by Dan Dare

[paul_c2]

6 minutes ago, Dan Dare said:

I find amp demos fun to watch occasionally, but I wouldn't use them for serious research about what to buy. A bass amp is a bass amp is a bass amp, after all. The only worthwhile way to find whether something will suit you is to head for shop or two and try for yourself. 

I've read the thread and I can relate to buying amps, having bought many recently - 50% by trying out and 50% 'blind'. A bass amp is basically impossible to fully demonstrate on a YouTube video. Its like many other physical things, there's no real substitute to its, ummm, physicality. Reviews are still useful but only to the point of mentioning specs, opinions of others, etc so you might be able to eliminate one from your shortlist without needing to seek out a real demo which might involve a trip of many miles to a different-than-local shop, etc etc

I'll also add (somewhat negatively....sorry!) that you can't really demo an amp in a shop either. Well, at least not in my experience. As others have said above, there is no substitute for actually using it with other instruments playing, in a live situation. I suppose one thing which is semi-useful is you can A-B two different amps and get an idea of what its like compared to another though.

[dmccombe7]

Shops don't have a great selection of gear up here. I was looking to trial the new Mesa Subway range but no-one had the full rigs unless i paid a hefty deposit to get them in. Shops in Glasgow are very limited in amp depts.

I tend to listen to many YT vids or reviews and also write up reviews and ask people what they think. I've had a lot of advice and help from fellow BCers.

Its a bit more difficult with a bass as they are more a personal thing than an amp.

For me i very rarely get to try gear before buying.

Dave

[dlloyd]

On 05/12/2018 at 21:15, Dood said:

Have you not met me??? he he he he!

After watching a few videos, I'd want you in my band (if I wasn't playing bass)