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Finding others turns out to be the hardest part. No goddamit, this city does not need another indie or blues covers band.
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May 22, 2016 21:36
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| # ? May 15, 2024 19:10 |
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Usually you can find some decent "jam night" places on facebook. Some of them just have guys playing their songs on an acoustic guitar, but there are usually ones where a bass player can come up and play some cover tunes. Granted, my only experience is with Toronto, but it doesn't hurt to look.
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May 24, 2016 01:07
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Sure it sounds boring but learning scales and music theory gears you up for the long haul of being a bassist. And playing bass on your own even with some record on isn't exactly amazing fun when you're a beginner anyway, so it's a good idea to learn that stuff early on. If you want to play with a band (to some degree) and jam along with other musicians at some point, you should know this (in some order of importance that is totally up for discussion, this may not be instantly gratifying, results may vary): - the notes on your neck, starting on the E string. - understand the concept of a root note and understand that some other notes may play well with it - where to find the octave and the fifth based on a root note - the 'shape' of the major scale (shape meaning what fingers you use to create a Do-Re-Mi-Fa-Sol-La-Si-Do sounding scale) - shape of the minor scale - shape of major/minor pentatonic scales and that's a good starting point on theory I think. On technique, you need to build strength in your fretting fingers so you should probably look into spider exercices, look them up and practice in front of the TV as much as you can. You need to build accuracy with your picking hand also, most players use two fingers alternating to play the strings, you could also learn how to play with a pick. Learn how to skip strings (going from the 4th to the 2nd, the 1st to the 3rd and so on). Learn how to mute notes. What else would you guys consider as a solid starting fondation re: technique / theory?
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May 24, 2016 10:44
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I think you covered all the harmony stuff. The other side of the coin is RHYTHM. Playing to a metronome is great for your timing, but super dull. You need to practice to drums as well, to develop a sense of when to play (and when not to). Search YouTube for "drum loop" - there are thousands. Or use a sequencer (e.g. http://www.drumbot.com/projects/sequence/) and make your own practice beats. Here's some useful exercises for testing your internal metronome: https://soundcloud.com/joachim-mahoudeaux/sets/internal-timing-exercises
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May 24, 2016 14:03
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Has anyone ever used an online teacher, either with Google Hangouts or Skype or something similar? I had an amazing live teacher in Toronto, but then he got a real job. I've been trying to do lessons alone, but it's tough to make myself do the foundation work when I really like writing and playing.
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May 24, 2016 14:38
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Christabel posted:Has anyone ever used an online teacher, either with Google Hangouts or Skype or something similar? I had an amazing live teacher in Toronto, but then he got a real job. I've been trying to do lessons alone, but it's tough to make myself do the foundation work when I really like writing and playing. I took skype lessons with Jeff Berlin and that was really helpful, but pricey. I live in Scarborough so if you can't find a teacher then give me a shout.
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May 24, 2016 16:21
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The band I'm in now does a lot of stuff that's tuned down a half step, Drop D a half step down, tuned down a whole step, and drop D down a whole step. That last tuning (C G C F [A D]) they like to call "Open C." Currently, I play most of the low stuff on my 5-string, and a lot of the other on my 4-string. And there's a lot of retuning. I've got them mostly convinced that we should just pick a tuning and go with it--since we're doing covers, arranging sets around changing instruments and frequent tuning is just nuts. To that end, we're going to start doing everything in the down one step tuning, dropping the bottom string to C for the drop-tuned songs. That means I'll be able to use my 4-string more of the time, which I like because it's a Precision Bass Special and has nice, hot pickups. But, it means my current strings aren't up to the task. I got out the ol' digital caliper, and my strings are 45 - 100's. Now... I'm looking for something that'll be less floppy in D (and drop C), but something that I can tune up to standard if my fancy is tickled a certain way. I've seen sets of 115's, but the DR DDT Heavier set... I don't know. Everywhere I look, people talk about how they break a lot more often than other strings, and that's no good. But also, 115's will require some setup work, guaranteed. I can do it, but I don't like messing with it. Does anyone have experience using 110's on a bass that's tuned down a whole step? I figure that should tighten things up nicely, but also be OK for drop-C. I don't want to go nuts with a 125 or something, because that means I can't use my 4-string for standard tuning.
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May 24, 2016 23:11
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I used a D'Addario .110 for a low D and low C for a while, and it worked fine in both tunings, but I'd say it's a bit too heavy to tune to E. I never use drop tunings though, so YMMV.
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May 25, 2016 02:41
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Well if it was OK with a low C, then that's good, because low C is the lowest we'd be going. I just know I'd have to file the nut slot if I went with 115's, and I could only find a couple of sets that go that big--the DR DDT's that even the people giving it 4 star reviews say tend to break, and the GHS Boomers which I know will only last for about seven days before they sound dead. (Seriously. Boomers have as much life as Super Slinky's, except they cost twice as much.) Hell, I might have to widen the slot a bit to squeeze the 110 in there. But that's not a big deal.
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May 25, 2016 03:21
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May I suggest using a five string instead?
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May 25, 2016 03:24
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If you REALLY need to be matched with your guitar players, try tuning your 5 string to drop C (CGCFBb) with medium-light gauge strings and tune your 4 to D standard or something. Or do what I do, and do everything in standard and laugh as guitar players fumble with capos and constant retuning. Depends on your genre I suppose, but I've done enough pit orchestra tunes and sightread enough gigs arranged by center-of-attention vocalists to gobble up any key bullshit that's come my way. E: or use a low B from a standard gauge for the C and use a heavy tenor set for the other strings. Then the C is a semitone up from normal and the other 4 are down a full step from what they were designed for. That should help with playability and string life. The Science Goy fucked around with this message at 03:55 on May 25, 2016 |
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May 25, 2016 03:51
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Spanish Manlove posted:May I suggest using a five string instead? I do, sometimes. But I'd have to tune the entire thing up three half steps to match their tuning, sometimes dropping the B string all the way "down" to C. Why match their tuning at all? I'll get to that in just a second. CaseFace McGee posted:Or do what I do, and do everything in standard and laugh as guitar players fumble with capos and constant retuning. Depends on your genre I suppose, but I've done enough pit orchestra tunes and sightread enough gigs arranged by center-of-attention vocalists to gobble up any key bullshit that's come my way. I'd do everything in standard tuning if so many of the songs we play weren't very much geared toward using a drop tuning. Songs written for drop D tuning can often be easy to play at tempo in that tuning, and hard (or impossible) to do smoothly on a standard 5. For a good example of this, try ripping through Tool's Forty Six & 2 on your trusty 5-string in instead of a 4-string in DADA. Or, if you're an old fart like me, pull out Soundgarden's Badmotorfinger and listen to Outshined and Jesus Christ Pose. Both are in drop D. One can be played on a 5-string easily. One can't be played on a standard-tuned 5 at all. Now, the reason I don't want to slap a 5th string in the 4th string spot is, well, that's a huge commitment. You must file the nut slot for that to work, and that's permanent. You're saying to your bass, "this is what you are now, this hybrid creature!" If you want to ever play that bass in standard tuning, you're going to have to restring it. Since I only have one other 4-string, and it's fretless, that's a problem.
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May 25, 2016 04:35
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tarlibone posted:Does anyone have experience using 110's on a bass that's tuned down a whole step? I figure that should tighten things up nicely, but also be OK for drop-C. I don't want to go nuts with a 125 or something, because that means I can't use my 4-string for standard tuning. If you want to occasionally go up to standard, maybe try something like these, which have a bigger core for supposed extra "heaviness" compared to other strings the same gauge: http://www.bassstringsonline.com/Dunlop-Heavy-Core-Bass-Strings--4-String-Set_p_1502.html
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May 26, 2016 00:50
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I don't know about you guys, but I keep extended ranges solely for the purpose of being able to play with bands that require any drop tunings without having to actually leave standard. I mean, there's a degree of transposition involved, but it never becomes so difficult as to necessitate actually changing tuning. Oh, hang on, time to play with a half-step band. Crap.
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May 26, 2016 02:10
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Special delivery today!  Full bridge pup and ~80% neck pup gives some crazy fretless Mwaah tone, goddamn.
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May 26, 2016 02:21
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DrChu posted:110s should work fine a whole step down. Also, you may want to look for strings with a hex core as those will feel less floppy than round ones. I've got some 110's on order. If I'm not happy with them, I'll give those Dunlop ones a try. Has anyone ever used these? I didn't get them initially because I couldn't find much info about them.
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May 26, 2016 03:17
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CaseFace McGee posted:Special delivery today! That's sexy af you should record something!
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May 26, 2016 04:24
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My capo juuuust about fits on my 5 for C standard
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May 26, 2016 17:30
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I grew up playing upright in bluegrass, country acts. 20 years ago sold all the acoustics, switched to a Spector. About 10 years ago I bought a Sterling. I like the neck better but it doesn't feel as solid. I really miss a beater, if that makes sense. Been wanting a fretless again. Also been looking at laklands after playing one from an opener. Saw a fretless skyline 4401 on reverb for what I thought was a good price. So 2 birds, one stone. Any one have one? My local market, I can't get my hands on one to try similar out. Never actually seen one before.
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May 31, 2016 05:09
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Anyone tried DR Pure Blues? I think I'm gonna give them a shot on my Dingwall.
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Jun 2, 2016 23:03
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Juaguocio posted:Anyone tried DR Pure Blues? I think I'm gonna give them a shot on my Dingwall. I'd be interested in hearing how you like them. I love the Nickel Lo-Riders, and usually stick to hex-core strings for the increased tension. But from the description they seem pretty great.
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Jun 6, 2016 00:11
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DR strings in general are pretty great.
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Jun 6, 2016 18:28
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I was gonna try the Sunbeams, but L&M didn't have the gauge I wanted in stock. I gotta get a new nut made to accommodate the different gauge, but I'll definitely post some impressions of the Pure Blues once all that's done.
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Jun 6, 2016 21:01
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Seventh Arrow posted:DR strings in general are pretty great. They're my favorite. Stainless Hi-Beam .40-.120's on all my five-strings, Legend flatwounds on my P-bass, Tite-fit 10's on my electric guitars, Phosphor Bronze on my acoustic guitar. I put that poo poo on everything. (And bassstringsonline.com is awesome for buying strings, btw.)
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Jun 7, 2016 00:51
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Yeah, the only bright-sounding roundwounds that I find can compete with DR's are Dunlops, but I'm not sure that the Dunlop strings last as long as DR's. I don't play live much anymore though, so I haven't been able to do much rigorous comparison testing. R Cocco strings are kind of nice too but unfortunately the ones I tried were this mega-lite gauge and they were just way too floppy. I'll have to try a different set someday.
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Jun 7, 2016 01:08
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Is it common for each string to sound really different from each other or did I set my bass up wrong and the string height is all over the place? Also I know the pickups on the bass are pretty bad so I'm hoping it's them because that's an easy fix.
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Jun 17, 2016 00:46
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Spanish Manlove posted:Is it common for each string to sound really different from each other or did I set my bass up wrong and the string height is all over the place? Also I know the pickups on the bass are pretty bad so I'm hoping it's them because that's an easy fix. Mine all sound pretty similar on both my basses. The higher steings always sound a little bit brighter to me, but not super noticebly. Something sounded "off" on my p-bass A string when I got it and adjusting the bridge height fixed it up, but my process was "it looks higher than the others, I'll lower it a bit and see what happens" which I admit isn't super helpful.
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Jun 17, 2016 01:33
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Their height is supposed to follow the radius of the fretboard so you measure them based on that, however I just eyeball poo poo when I don't care enough to do a good job and now it's bothering me so I'm starting to care enough now. Also this is way more noticeable when playing with a pick so maybe it's just that I'm hitting certain strings harder due to where I'm holding my hand. Edit: I also just switched from Hi-Beams to Fat Beams and it could just be that I liked Hi-Beams better. Spanish Manlove fucked around with this message at 01:47 on Jun 17, 2016 |
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Jun 17, 2016 01:38
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If you play the same note on each string they should have a slightly different quality - because each one is physically different they'll have a different 'voice', and you might favour one over another for a particular sound depending on what and how you're playing a thing But it shouldn't be different in a weird or awkward way. They should be balanced and equally responsive, and you shouldn't want to avoid a certain string (although there'll be some places, like high up the neck, where you might go ehhh sounds better on a higher string). There could be a few reasons why a string sounds strange or feels dead, might just need a setup or new strings
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Jun 17, 2016 02:44
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Thing is that they're brand new strings, but the change in voicing from the B to E is a huge and noticeable difference but from E to A it's not that bad. I checked the string height and apparently I eyeballed it right somehow so that makes me think it's the pickups because it's a squire classic vibe and these basses aren't known for having great electronics.
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Jun 17, 2016 02:49
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Well I don't know much about 5-strings but I sure hear people complain about the B a lot! Like it's something where you're happy to get a bass or string that does it right Could be the pickup height though. Does it sound and feel OK unplugged?
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Jun 17, 2016 03:07
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Yeah, that's not uncommon with a B string. On a standard scale bass it will either need to be at a lower tension relative to the other strings or a much thicker gauge which can cause all sorts of weirdness.
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Jun 17, 2016 03:14
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Low Bs rarely ever sound in line with the rest of the strings. Same with 7 string guitars. It's just kind of a thing you deal with. Multi scale helps but that requires another purchase. Try adding a little gain to your sound. It will compress things and sometimes you'll find the ideal balance where the low B tightens up and sounds better.
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Jun 17, 2016 03:17
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Well here's a recording of it on a work in progress song*, luckily I accidentally mixed the bass too high so it's perfect for a demo. The second fast riff does a lot on the E string and the riff right after does a lot on the low B, with the riff right after that using the B, E, and A strings. https://soundcloud.com/lfranco321/office-space-needs-better-drums/s-DV9fX It feels fine but compared to an old recording it just doesn't sound right to me and the only thing I changed were the strings so tomorrow I'm going out and getting some HI-Beams and seeing what that does. *The drums from about 3min onwards are just my template drums I use to write and I want to rerecord the entire bass part. Edit: at about 6:15 the bass gets in on the arpeggios and uses all the strings, and the top strings don't sound too far off but from the B to E there's a huge difference. Second Edit: huh ok I did some massaging on the settings in amplitube (read: went back to an old song and used those settings) and now it sounds good to me. Weird. https://soundcloud.com/lfranco321/office-space-needs-better-drums-but-bass-is-fixed Spanish Manlove fucked around with this message at 04:21 on Jun 17, 2016 |
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Jun 17, 2016 03:31
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Compress a bit before it hits amplitube and then after (or in the rack). Perhaps a tube-style comp that colours the sound a bit at the front of the chain will make it more cohesive before it hits the amp sim. Its Reaper you use innit? Are you doing parallel amps, IE one for clean thats low passed and one for grit that has a bit of low cut out? I generally find that this then summed into one cab can work nicely.
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Jun 17, 2016 13:31
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NonzeroCircle posted:Compress a bit before it hits amplitube and then after (or in the rack). Perhaps a tube-style comp that colours the sound a bit at the front of the chain will make it more cohesive before it hits the amp sim. Its Reaper you use innit? Yeah amplitube in reaper. I'm using a tube compressor in the rack but I'll test one out front. poo poo I forget you can do stuff like that, that will help a lot. Edit: So I was just using a SVT-Pro and just now added a 59 Bassman in parallel to it and yeah that's a serious pair of cojones on that bass sound now. I also turned down the treble a bit on everything so the bass is still audible but not as "hey look at me I'm a pile of midrange right in your ears." Spanish Manlove fucked around with this message at 16:31 on Jun 17, 2016 |
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Jun 17, 2016 16:05
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I'll always run my 5 through parallel, the low B is always much bumblier than the rest even on a brand new set of strings. If you've upgraded to Amplitube 4 then try out some different speakers in the cab too, sometimes that can make a hell of a difference.
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Jun 17, 2016 16:54
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Well poo poo. My 800RB blew last night. It just popped and set off the smoke detector. This is the third time in its lifetime (bought used in 1994). Got my mileage, but think I am done with it. While I try and catch up to modern times and research a new head, I want to buy a practice amp. I am looking for recommendations. Wishes and fishes I'd like a cheapo built-in tuner, aux input, compressor and eliminate the externals. I'd like something that could double as a tilt-back monitor, but I've got enough spare cabs where that isn't make or break. It will probably just be for headphone/line-out stuff, so I don't really care about power and speaker. Coworker works nights at a Guitar Center so anything common I can probably get for 20% off if I buy new. He's suggesting the Fender Bronco ($200 out the door) but I'm not sure if those bells and whistles are worth the extra $100 I could get from a Craigslist buy. Any suggestions? I'm in no hurry, just irritated.
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Jun 17, 2016 19:27
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I really liked the Peavey Max 112 I had for a bit. I got rid of it because the DI was kind of crackly & noisy, and it didn't work for the kind-of-delicate-folk-pop thing I was using it for at the time.
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Jun 17, 2016 19:40
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I had a trio/ 9 piece jazz gig yesterday, with my upright. As we were setting up, someone came up and asked if I was going to be playing my cello for the first song. Then a good portion of the crowd was clapping on 1 and 3  Gig paid well, and we played well, but the 1/3 clappers drive me nuts. I can put up with the cello thing, but come on... American popular music has had a beat driven by 2 and 4 for basically forever.
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Jun 19, 2016 14:54
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