MegaSack DRAW - 6pm Christmas Eve - LIVE on our YouTube Channel
I thought I’d have a crack at the Dave Simpson course too. Here’s me having a go at it - not right yet in many ways but hey ho it’ll get better with practice.
Niice! I really like Dave's stuff. I got closer to Little Wing after his tutorial video than after all the other guides to it. Probably because he isn't try to teach me to just copy Hendrix.
We should all try and follow his lesson and post the results 🙂
I need to record his backing track and try playing along with it
Indeed.
A quick lesson from Keith on open G and five strings. (And as ever I’m reminded of the ‘only Keith and cockroaches will survive the nuclear apocalypse’ quote.)
I can sit and watch Keith forever. An absolute hero to me
I was keen to get some lessons to get me out of a bit of a playing rut but following a lesson from one of my guitar heroes I don't think Skype lessons are for me.
As an alternative I've signed up for a True Fire All Access account which seems to have a load of video lessons over multiple genres. Just need to set some time aside to do it now.
I don’t think Skype lessons are for me.
I'm not enjoying my Zoom bass lessons much either. I think the Fender play course is proving more useful at the moment. I want to support the bass teacher though, so I'll stick with it for now.
If anyone wants the Dave Simpson blues backing to record over I have downloaded it and increased the volume a tad. Message me your email anD I’ll pop a copy over. If I’m just playing along I tend to leave YouTube going so Dave gets the clicks.
He really needs to make these tracks available to purchase.
Good idea. I made a loop in Audacity which has been pretty useful but good thought about giving Dave the clicks in YouTube.
You can get a loop extension in the YouTube browser that I’ve lost somehow, must reinstall it.
You can get a loop extension in the YouTube browser that I’ve lost somehow, must reinstall it.
Ooh I’ll search for that,
What’s the view on starting a Daves’ Blues Lesson thread to allow lots of sharing of attempts etc without cluttering this thread up with a lot of questionable video and sound clips ? If it’s is a yes I’ll open one unless someone gets there first ?
Not seen his YouTube channel before, I think I'll have a go with that over the next few days.....
He’s a pretty decent bloke.
Check out the Andertons interview with him.
I’ve had a go at the Dave Simpson blues piece for the first time today, it’s a bit of a hard one for me tbh. Can anyone give advice on string bending, as I’m struggling with that especially. Oh, and Eddiebaby, I’ve pm’ed you for a copy of the backing track. Ta.
Can anyone give advice on string bending
if you are using medium gauge strings, maybe swap them out for light gauge.
You'll lose a bit of volume and 'punch' on the bass end though, it's a trade off.
Dave Simpson seems to be a guitar playing Guy Kesteven... 🙂
@watty, as everyone's already said - which bit of string bending. Physically? Or getting to exactly the right pitch? Or how far/which direction to bend?
I took a look at a couple of Dave Simpson videos this weekend. Really sorted something for me: his Little Wing run through said, basically, find your own voice with it - no point trying to sound like Jimi - you really won't. The other excellent piece of advice I've had recently is Justin saying "record yourself". Boy, that comes as a bit of a shocker, doesn't it?
I'm on my way to getting a lot more out of my playing now. I've got a cheap but lovely guitar with P90s (Harley Benton). OK, it's never going to sound like a Strat, it'll hum like buggery unless I keep it in the middle position, but it sounds great that way. That's my sound from now on.
@chipps, @Tom-B, @mattyfez - t’was a technique issue, thankfully improved by a couple of YouTube suggestions from eddiebaby, for which I’m very grateful. A weekend of concentrated practice and its come on no end. Cheers.
Edit: oh, and I loved that interview with Dave Simpson by the Andertons’ chap. I couldn’t believe it kept me entertained for the whole 90 mins.
I tried buying an Ibanez SR300 bass at the weekend, it would appear no one has stock. Loads in Germany, in the past I would have just ordered from Germany.
I've been toying with the idea of putting a pedal board together. No idea which pedals I want / need at the moment so Chipps is lending me a few to have a play with 🙂
I might do some carpentry for the first time since school woodwork class and copy one of Dave Simpson's boards...
Some of my guys at work have a serious pedalboard building habit. One of them even made himself a holiday pedalboard for the Xmas break. And also made his gf a pedalboard for her birthday.
I on the other hand have a rectangular offcut of unpainted plywood!
My pedals litter the floor and I prefer ones with batteries which means one less cable to trip up. If I walk too far they just follow me around in a train.
I on the other hand have a rectangular offcut of unpainted plywood!
Plywood?
Luxury! I use a length of trailer lighting board with Velcro on it. The width don’t matter as I’m not exactly on a stage...
@Plumber - that is nice. I like the pink.
@Bazzer - GuitarGuitar are showing stock of the red or white.
https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/product/151218291650002--ibanez-sr300eb-candy-apple-red
Oh and Amazon do some great 2in wide velcro style tape at stupid low prices.
@oldtennisshoes Thanks for that, it should be here on Wednesday 🙂
I have been using the Rickenbacker synthbass from Native Instruments on my recordings. It sounds pretty bass like, but I find it hard to play on a keyboard in a way a real bass is played. That said I have never owned a bass, so might be a laugh to start 🙂
Edited to add, I actually wanted the red one 😀
I treated myself to a proper pedalboard over Christmas after struggling through with a plank/chain of loose pedals forever. It's SO much nicer to be able to turn it on, have all the pedals work, no batteries or crackly cables to replace. I use the effects loads more now. The power supply replaces one of the slats on the board, so it's lovely and out of the way.
So, in summary, pedalboards are ace.....but I do seem to want to fill any excess space up with eBay impulse buys though.
I think I'm on pedalboard number three (or four...) now. And that's concurrent, not just one after the other 🙂
Two are for one amp - a Boost, mild OD, wireless and tuner sit on a board before the amp, then delay, chorus (actually a TC Dimension) and a master volume limiter sit in the effects loop.
Another one does the same, but it's a bigger board with everything on it. And the third is my wibbly/wobbly noise board, with two delays, vibrato, three overdrives and so on... That was my proper lockdown project and it's got neatly tied cables and cable ports and stuff... But they're all mostly finished, which makes me wonder what's next to play with...
Velcro tip - get the 'strong' Velcro as the regular stuff is a bit weak for actually sticking down to surfaces. And you don't need that much! Just a couple of 15mm strips on a pedal is usually enough. I've tried some of that 3M Dual Lock too - you REALLY need to go light on that or you won't move pedals ever! Just four little triangles on a pedal will be enough. I ended up having to use tyre levers and trim remover tools just to move pedals around... 🙂
Bass Combo amps again. I didn't like the tone of the Ashdown amp I bought second hand so I've moved it on. I now need a second amp so that I can play with my daughter. I already have a Fender Rumble LT25 that I really like, but I'm going to donate that to junior.
As another one for me I'm looking at the Fender Rumble Studio 40 (£340 ish) which is another modelling amp with wifi etc.
Alternatives include
1. Orange Crush 50 Combo;
2. Blackstar Unity Bass 60 Combo; or
3. Something else
It sounds strange given my first choice and existing amp, but I like a clean sound, and I'm not too fussed about the different effects that the rumble series provides, but I do like the online tuner, the usb out and the option of wifi on the 40.
Top of the budget would be £400 but something cheaper would be nice.
Any thoughts / recommendations? BU
I just got my second ever pedal. So now I need to build a board right? It's only a tuner to go with my Fender 3 in 1 bass thing. I can still get student discount on Fender stuff so I fancy the 'Trapper' which is the new bass fuzz pedal. Then I'd have something cooking.
Alternatives include
1. Orange Crush 50 Combo;
That's what I've got but it's my first ever bass amp. I think it sounds mint, not sure what I could possibly dislike about it. The bonus is my girlfriend likes having it in the living room because it matches her lamps. Worth every penny.
I used to have a pedal board, then I bought a Flyrig 5.
Does pretty much everything my old pedal set up does, bar a looper, which I don't need anymore anyway.
Velcro tip – get the ‘strong’ Velcro as the regular stuff is a bit weak for actually sticking down to surfaces. And you don’t need that much! Just a couple of 15mm strips on a pedal is usually enough. I’ve tried some of that 3M Dual Lock too – you REALLY need to go light on that or you won’t move pedals ever! Just four little triangles on a pedal will be enough. I ended up having to use tyre levers and trim remover tools just to move pedals around… 🙂
I’ll sort out a link to the stuff I use. With 3M Dual Lock the trick is to use dual lock on one surface and Velcro on the other. A pretty ideal combination. To get the pedals off normal Velcro to move them just slide an everyday table knife in there and it separates the bits apart nicely.
I’ve tried some of that 3M Dual Lock too – you REALLY need to go light on that or you won’t move pedals ever!
I found this out recently, keep a pallet knife in my guitar crap draw now to assist removal.
Here’s the tape I use. Strong with a powerful glue.
I've been playing with pedals over the new lockdown. It's rapidly getting out of hand!
I've had to upgrade to a proper isolated power supply as the mix of digital and analogue pedals was getting pretty noisy.
I'm now in the process of building a couple of DIY kit pedals which is pretty fun, like grown up Lego!
I have a power supply and some patch leads now so just need some pedals 🙂
No pedals eh? Enjoy the lack of noise and tone suck. It’s all downhill from there... 😁
Lockdown 3 is kicking in...
I've just been browsing 8 string, multi-scale/fan fret guitars.
What could possibly go wrong 😁
@markwsf currently working on a fuzz face clone from FuzzDog. I'm looking at building a Klon and an Engineer's Thumb compressor after that.
Just looking at whether it's better/cheaper to source my own parts and just get the PCB from FuzzDog or just get the complete kits from him.
It's certainly cheaper, just not sure how much and you run the risk of wrong/missing parts rolling your own.
What could possibly go wrong 😁
You could get one?
You could get one?
True 😆 I'm no metaller!
Also looking at Thomann, so would be braving post-Brexit, EU order fun!
Ben at Crimson Guitars currently has two Multiscale guitars under c0nstruction at the moment.
First one is from the new kit, the second is full custom.
I’ve just been browsing 8 string, multi-scale/fan fret guitars
"Top of the budget would be £400 but something cheaper would be nice."
If you're heading into that realm then you're not far from the best small bass cab you can buy, plus a little head. I may be biased of course! 😉
https://barefacedaudio.com/products/one_10
If you’re heading into that realm then you’re not far from the best small bass cab you can buy, plus a little head
Do you have any preference on bass heads? Are any of them particularly good, or crap, or is it purely personal preference?
There's millions of the things available and it would cost a small fortune to find your favourite if you had to go through a few models.
Luckily I'm a way off needing one but I'd love a Barefaced cab eventually.
Mark Bass are very good - both bass players I was doing stuff with last year use them.
People may remember the guitar I built last year:
Here's a couple of demos that I used it on.
We recorded them last September, with the plan of re-recording vox and other parts later on, but lockdown!
So I've been fiddling with them, and added a few guitar lines, and our bassist has done a few bits virtually too.
https://soundcloud.com/tom-harrison-322574521/lights/s-BD13E1QW0Oy
https://soundcloud.com/tom-harrison-322574521/gastropub/s-j2T8zyzlfYO
"Do you have any preference on bass heads? Are any of them particularly good, or crap, or is it purely personal preference?"
There are more good ones than bad ones nowadays (like MTBs!) But I'm good at advising for specific needs - it really depends on the player, strings, bass, cab and required loudness and tone. It's something I've tried to solve with handy flow charts or questionnaires but it's too complex, too much fuzz logic. A few questions back and forth and I don't often get it wrong!
It's very much like bikes to be honest - what you love and what you hate are decent guides to what you need. But without fairly solid reference points it takes a lot more narrowing down...
@ajantom Demos are sounding good mate.
Obviously the guitar sounds rubbish. Send it to me and I'll burn it (honest) to save you the effort. 😀
I'll have to go and dig the thread out.
@simondbarnes - Pedals went in the post yesterday. Should be with you tomorrow! 🙂
Meanwhile, I've made two disparate lockdown/sold my car/had saved enough for my tax bill purchases...
An (NS) electric upright bass... and a Victory Kraken mental/metal amp head... (and no, I've not tried one in to the other...)
It’s a secondhand NS WAV four string. I’d been watching it slowly come down in price on basschat.co.uk and after a year, it was close to impulse buy levels, so I did. Luckily my closest riding buddy is a double bass player and teacher, so I’m hoping to cash in those bike favours for lessons.... First off, is Lovecats by The Cure... 😊
How about Roni Size: Brown paper bag, then Portishead: Sour Times.... You probably already have a list??
I just blew my monthly toy budget on one of these.
It was this or a Fender Trapper but the Fur Coat sounds immense in all the YouTube demos. Gonna stop mincing around and learn some metal riffs.
There's also a mini Pedaltrain for sale very close to home so I might grab that at the weekend.
Those ns basses are lovely @chipps! Upright is hard!! One good tip I saw was to clip a clip-on tuner by the fretboard so you can see when your intonation is correct!
I've enjoyed playing some bits and bobs this week. Have been fairly downbeat about it all of late with no idea when I'll be gigging again etc. Even had a browse on Ebay for a Strat Plus....think I'm going to treat myself later in the year.
@simondbarnes I've got a hefty flightcased pedalboard going spare if you want. Not been used in a while as the flight case just takes up too much room in the car, the board itself isn't too big though. It's yours if you can collect from Congleton.
How big is it @Tom-B ? Congleton is just down the road although not an essential journey so would have to wait for a bit!
Put it this way, that little collection above wont really fill it 😂
I'll measure it tomorrow and let you know. I can't find a link online to it now....I think that it's been discontinued.
No worries, cheers 🙂
The little ditto looper is cool and I like the chorus. Hopefully I'll have some time at the weekend for a proper play.
This may be of interest to Yamaha THR owners.
A guide to the amps therein and what they are 'based' on.
Not seen it collated in one place before.
It explains why the Variax Acoustics sound better through flat than acoustic as it already has the mike modelling included in the modelling process.
What's the best way of jamming with a mate, remotely? A riding buddy asked me this today; he's in the UK (excellent broadband) and his mate is in Portugal. They've tried it on Zoom but the lag is making it horrible.
I'd just send files to and fro over a backing track.
I can't get low latency round here.
I think I posted on here before, but jamtaba/ninjam can be good for online jamming. You don't need a low latency connection as you're essentially playing against a track that's delayed by a number of bars. I'm not doing a good job of explaining it, but it works pretty well.
Anyone have, or have thoughts about a Fender Mustang GTX100 modelling amp?
OTS junior is looking for one for his birthday. It would be an upgrade from a Mustang GT40.
I played double bass at school for years. Some of us had bluetac dots for fingering positions when learning.
In anticipation of the arrival of my 8 string guitar (oops!) I'm thinking some finger exercises might be in order.
My left little finger especially always seems very weak in comparison to my other fingers when playing runs and scales.
Any good links to exercises for strength and/or speed?
Stop it @ajantom. I'm bored, but I do not need an 8string guitar. (Please post pics) 😉. I know it sounds funny, but playing a bass helps with reach and finger strength. Maybe you don't have one... Perhaps consider getting one? (See what I did there?) 😀🤙
I do have a bass (2 actually), but haven't played it for a while, so that's a good idea.
I've been watching Djent videos in preparation 😂
I might just have to start a progressive metal band.
If I need to build up hand strength I just play my 12 string acoustic. Barre chords involve a g-clamp...
In anticipation of the arrival of my 8 string guitar
How many strings before it stops being a guitar and becomes a harp? 🤪😅
I’m currently fighting GAS for a Les Paul special in TV yellow (probably started off by this thread a month or two back...) 🤷🏼♀️
I do have a bass (2 actually), but haven’t played it for a while, so that’s a good idea.
I’ve been watching Djent videos in preparation 😂
I might just have to start a progressive metal band.
Over the years I have played more bass than guitar as never enjoyed the higher register twiddly stuff on guitar. I have now found my perfect place with a guitar tuned to C sharp standard and playing black/death metal which is rhythmic in line with bass but on guitar and faster.
I still don't want more than 6 strings though and was same on bass where I didn't want more than 4 for some reason.
@ajantom, can't find the link but a good one I tried was: Assuming your 1st finger is your strongest so skip that one. Ascend the strings, say on frets 2 & 3 using fingers 2 and 3 then descend at frets 4 & 3 with the same fingers. keep going till you get as far up the neck as you can keeping a consistent tempo. Repeat using fingers 2 & 4 at frets 2 & 4 going up and 5 & 3 going down, etc. then use fingers 3 & 4 (the real killer). I feel I'm quite strong with my pinky but this has me on my knees.
Vid
My pinky was pretty spent after a few attempts at getting this right so just using it is the best way to get it stronger though
