What are /r/Bass' favorite Products & Services?

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You could get one of those little packs of bass tools, pliers, string winder, feeler gauges, hex key, little screwdriver, tuner and whatnot.

Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Cruz-Tools-CRU-GTBAS1-GrooveTech-Bass/dp/B00134T67K

Costs $57.95

Edit: fixed link

The bass I want to get next is the prettiest I have seen. Its not super pricey but still awsome.

Schecter Stiletto Custom-5 Electric Bass (5 String, Natural Satin) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002E1I8W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_IPBBCb285X0KR

I really love my Vox amplug but my only gripe with this little thing is the level of white noise it produces while playing. Not sure if it's because of something on my end or my bass but it's very noticeable.

For an off the shelf ear plug, I've used Etymotic Research ER-20's for a long time. I keep a pair in my gig bag/case.

If you have the money, invest in a set of custom molded ear plugs. The sound difference is significant.

Rubbing alcohol might not be a bad idea? It's used to clean electronics, but make sure it's unplugged and has time to dry.

Idk if it will work well on an amp, but this has gotten piss smells out of almost anything my cat has peed on:

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B072C98592/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_fabc_V91AVC7SD5HWZEMY9KH7?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Get Ed Friedland's Book, Building Walking Basslines and start doing the exercises ASAP.

If you do it for an hour a day, you should be able to stumble through a few standards in a month. Practice by walking over changes using the iRealPro App.

Adam Neely's Vid has all the info you need (in 60 seconds), but Friedland's book will hold your hand and let you build your skill. A month should be plenty of time if you're serious about practicing the exercises in Ed's book.

NOTE: this is just about learning walking basslines. Learning how to solo? Takes a bit longer than a week. (a lifetime).

I got a Westone guitar from my uncle that was actually pretty decent.

As for storage, I have a few wall mounts, but I have this guitar rack (https://www.amazon.com/Kuyal-Multi-Guitar-Display-Folding-Acoustic/dp/B076DG3J6Q/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa?adgrpid=55209441519&hvadid=274873908224&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9015620&hvnetw=g&hvpos=1t1&hvqmt=e&hvrand=1611297537069199908...) thing that holds 5. I also have a few floor stands.

I use a Trello board for tracking my practice repertoire. I've split the board into 4 columns:

• Backlog - I keep a separate card for each song I would like to learn at some point
• Learning - Any material that i'm still actively learning the parts for
• Improve - Is for any songs that I've learnt all the parts but haven't yet achieved consistency at performance tempo
• Maintenance - Songs that i'm confidently playing at their performance tempo

I add coloured labels to the cards too. For example a green label indicates songs that include slapping and red labels are those i'm trying to transcribe by ear.

Typically I will run through arpeggios,scales and technique exercises before I work on songs. Either picking a random key and doing a more in depth play though or isolating a smaller exercise that I play through the circle of 5ths.

Recently I've been trying to approach my playing in a manner that's influenced by strength training. For example, I may be working on a song and reached the point of comfortably playing a section of it at 80% of the performance tempo. I'll then do this on my next practice:

• 2x at 50%
• 2x at 60%
• 2x at 70%
• 2x at 80%
• 4x at 90%

If I can make it through the new speed 4 times without issues then that's my new comfortable speed. If not then i'll either try again next time of decrease the speed by 10% and build it back up next time.

The important thing is that I move on to something else immediately after those sets. This has really helped me curb my tendency to work on the same song for an entire evening.

Try the D’Addario ETB92 nylon wrapped flatwounds. They are a fantastic string with a nice mid range, normal gauge and lower tension then most flats. I have a 5 string set on my fretless gwb-35 they are wonderful. These strings are my sound!

D’Addario ETB92

Even something as simple as finger drumming along with the radio while counting time can be helpful.

This exercise (Wooten time internalization) can be immensely useful too and can also be done without just finger drumming:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg1Qca0XYmo

EDIT:

Also, download an ear training app (I like this one on Android https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.myrapps.eartraining&hl=en) and practice recognizing intervals when you're on the go. It's surprising how quickly you can learn to recognize simple intervals with 15 minutes a day while commuting.

Start with arpeggios: first the major and minor triads, then the most common 7th chords (Maj7, min7, dom7, m7b5 [a.k.a. 1/2 diminished 7]). Learn those shapes solid. They give you an outline of the safe notes on any chord.

Learn your major and natural minor scale, not just up and down, but as a series of interlocking patterns (sometimes called the CAGED system) up and down the neck.

Learn how to harmonize the major scale, so that you understand which triads fit diatonically over each chord in the scale. Learn to do this first with triads, then learn how to do it with 7th chords.

When you come up with little runs and fills that you like, tab those out so you can practice them.

Make transcription and improvisation part of your practice. Transcription so you can learn how great bassists approach a line, and improvisation so you can learn how to invent ideas on the fly, which will make you far more musical than someone who is only playing what he memorized. Both will develop your ear. For transcription, there's good software out there to slow things down (on the Mac, Capo is the best I've found: http://supermegaultragroovy.com/products/capo/). For improvisation, get a looper pedal. The TC Electronic Ditto is an affordable option.

Schedule depends upon you, your goals, and how much time you have. If you only have 30 minutes, work on triads and scales. If you have an hour, add some improvisation to the mix. If you have two hours, add some transcription.

Though it is long overdue for an update, I explain a lot of this and more in Wheat's BassBook, which is free and online: http://wheatsbassbook.com/

I went through dozens of sets of failed headphones my first twenty years.
Bought these Sony MD7506 in 2000 and they've never let me down.
I had to replace the foam, cheaply, about ten years ago.

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-MDR7506-Professional-Diaphragm-Headphone/dp/B000AJIF4E/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=sony+headphones&qid=1573133248&sr=8-6

TuxGuitar is good and very feature rich. It's quite similar to the popular desktop app GuitarPro and can import tabs in guitarpro format which is really handy as there are lots of online tabs that use it.

Musescore is great too of course.

Direct link without the signup page:

https://berkleecampus.zoom.us/w/94575937261?tk=WQGXpQnwPQQVUFun5eNaXr3TtJopmWAgZBxMyDGooGE.DQEAAAAWBSpG7RZDRFR6RXB3TVNXU1VlNzZYSEJFeS1BAA&uuid=WN_DJWF6CbFTdWbJlxBg5z2pQ

In-browser player without their spyware installer:

https://zoom.us/wc/join/94575937261?tk=WQGXpQnwPQQVUFun5eNaXr3TtJopmWAgZBxMyDGooGE.DQEAAAAWBSpG7RZDRFR6RXB3TVNXU1VlNzZYSEJFeS1BAA&wpk=wcpk6dbf3ddb80c945d3969e1836125465f7

A spamhole account:

[email protected] / .ics(#&zZx2K.))

That's not true.

• android low latency audio has a way to go. This Google I/O presentation talks about it (from google engineers themselves): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3kfEeMZ65c
• here's some libpd data for reference: http://puredata.info/docs/AndroidLatency
  

It's improved a lot over the years, but it's not iOS level yet.

The good news is that Google seems to be working on a lot of audio-related improvements for Android recently (Patchfield etc), which may have low latency in mind.

For $11 from Amazon, you can get a roll of adhesive copper tape and find out yourself.

Just be careful when handling the tape. The edges are super sharp and can cut you if you're not careful.

If it works, you could do the job yourself more "correctly" or pay a pro to do a fancy fancy job of it.

Ferroday Silicone Rubber Grolsch Gaskets Washers for Ez Cap Swing Flip Top Bottle Home Brew Beer Soda Bottle Seal 30pcs (30 Rubber Gaskets)

These work. You can buy a six-pack of Grolsch beer in bottles and pry them out of the tops if you prefer. You can also get them anywhere that has bottling supplies.

How to:

1. Put your strap on.

2. Work the gasket over the strap thingy.

3. Sling your bass around with confidence.

Ariane Cap's book "Music Theory for the Bass Player" is probably a good place to start.

Some of the book is very rudimentary, but it's as good a place as any to start. Buy it on Amazon.

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/guitar-101-what-is-the-difference-between-overdrive-distortion-and-fuzz#:~:text=Distortion%20refers%20to%20the%20overall,sustain%20than%20a%20clean%20signal.&text=Fuzz%20is%20a%20special%20type,overtones%20....

Try tape wound if you don't want any metallic noise or sliding, they are a serious game changer.. feels like cheating. Like these

Touring non-male bassist here. It looks like you've got a lot of advice to sift through regarding gear choices, so I thought I'd add a quick couple ideas about the mission of learning bass:

Arpeggios are an excellent starting point for the purposes of music theory, fretboard mobility and they will later evolve into the building blocks of just about anything you play or write whether it's walking jazz lines or heavy hardcore riffage. Learn to Play Bass Guitar by Phil Capone has an arpeggio/scale guide in the back of the book, and is otherwise an excellent intro to a wide range of genres on bass.

Posture matters - warm up your forearms/wrists and hands with some stretches before playing and be aware of the weight of the bass on your body. Avoid slouching your shoulders as this builds tension in your neck and traps. I've personally been prone to putting my weight mostly on one leg when I stand to play, which has resulted in hip issues. Try not to get locked into place while playing, essentially! I don't mean to be alarmist but I'm only 26 and already having to work with PTs and physios to undo some of this badness in my body from about 10 years of professional playing.

Have fun, would love to see what you end up with!

If we're going down the corporate abuse of music tangent ...

I'll see your YMCI and raise you "Philips was my first love" to "Music" by John Miles.

> Philips was my first love

> And it will be my last

> Philips is my future,

> And it will ever last

> To live without my Philips

> Would be impossible to do

> Making all things better

> My Philips pulls me through

There's even the mp3 on there to torture yourself some more.

That is partially correct- the tune that was sampled was actually a COVER of Red Clay by Jack Wilkins. Source.

I used to try to play along with Ultimate Guitar backing tracks (Pro feature I believe) but a short while back I made the decision to purchase Guitar Pro and even though a bit pricey (not expensive, just a lot of money in an age where subscriptions and ad/data collecting sponsored software is almost the norm), and it's one of the best decision I've made.

The vast amount of available GP files, the quality of the instruments, the controls in terms of tempo, looping selection, metronome, tuner and whatnot. And that's just on top of the tabbing/sheet music functionality that I had so far only practiced on Flat.io. Gives me access to the drums/other score parts, and allows me to adjust the volumes to hear the bass stand out without having to settle with weird MIDI sound approximations.

Or lets put it like this; Since I purchased Guitar Pro, the amount of Internet usage during my practice with a computer has become almost zero because before I had to jump between browser windows to have song tabs, the track, etc with all the distraction that having an open browser window can lead to.

Now I just spend the entire session in GP, making it essentially distraction free. Even to switch to another song, or experiment with a lick/riff, is done within the program. I might need to look something up/download a GP file occasionally, but it has lowered distractions and enabled a much more efficient offline practice.

Also I try to take down notes as I go along with any question marks that pop up so I can google them later, which is also a bit of a change from how I did it originally where I essentially looked up answers on the fly, never really getting into a flow.

PS. I'm fortunate but I understand not everyone can spend €70 on a software like Guitar Pro. There are some free options, the most notable one being MuseScore, but I don't have any experience with it although it can probably do more or less the same things as GP.

For ~$24, get the Hal Leonard Bass Method book. Spend dedicated practice time each session working through the book. At times, you may feel like 'Gee, ma, do I have to?', but the aim of a course is to provide structure and to sequence lessons so they build on each other.

Alternatives, if this seems too basic:

• Joel DiBartolo: Serious Electric Bass
• Chuck Sher: Bass Improvisor's Method

Both of these are great books, but they are more demanding than the Hal Leonard series.

One free learning tool. Use Audacity to slow down songs when you are learning them. You can do this without changing pitch and while the vocals will be a little weird sounding, it lets you play at a pace where you can follow a song rather than get frustrated.

They were just marketed as guitar knobs! The measurements are in the listing so it's absolutely on me for not checking though haha

Edit: I also recognize that the size is in the name of the listing but as an American who very rarely uses the metric system 44mm really means nothing to me without actually thinking about it.

Justin Beck (guitarist/composer) recorded it, check out his comments about how important the bass was to him: https://www.npr.org/sections/allsongs/2017/12/01/567256661/glassjaw-guides-us-through-the-apocalyptic-material-control

Blackbird, and Norwegian Wood are probably two great songs to start with and not that hard.

http://www.songsterr.com/a/wsa/beatles-blackbird-tab-s57t0

http://www.songsterr.com/a/wsa/beatles-norwegian-wood-tab-s70t0

All the best. Hope you get laid.

Download MuseScore (or any free music notating app) put the rhythms in a template and then you can have it play them back to you and it will follow the notes as it plays. Very helpful tool.

I suggest reading a jazz theory book. I think that if you got through this Mark Levine book it wouldn’t be nearly as big of a mystery: https://www.amazon.com/Jazz-Theory-Book-Mark-Levine/dp/1883217040/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=jazz+theory+book&qid=1610722853&sr=8-1

This isn’t tied specifically to bass but it has a load of good info. Then if you want to get a Real Book (bass clef version), you can start really playing and improving jazz lines in bass easily.

Paul McCartney and Carol Kaye were both notable and prolific early pick users for bass.

James Jamerson is famous for using one finger to pluck all his Motown basslines. (The Hook)

I don't know if you could draw any strong division of pick vs finger by genre, necessarily. Even some speed metal bassists use their fingers, and some laid back folkies may use pick. It's simply a matter of personal preference.

Nashville bassist here - Michael Rhodes is pretty much the undisputed king of country bassists IMO. He's one of the most recorded musicians in history, and has been so dominant in the genre, for so long, that if you listen to country radio for even 15 minutes you've probably heard him play more than once.

As country is very much oriented towards session players on recordings (kind of a natural outgrowth of country music's tendency to favor solo artists rather than bands), I generally consider the session players to be the tastemakers for the genre. Although Rhodes is still probably the most "famous" bassist in town, there's a lot of other great players too - Mike Brignardello, Willie Weeks, Jimmie Lee Sloas, Craig Young, Lee Hendricks, Mark Hill, Tully Kennedy, Tony Lucido, and Lee Sklar are just some that spring to mind that would be worth checking out. Again if you've listened to much country at all, you've probably heard all those dudes already.

Thumb and hand position will help a bit (1), your thumb should be in the middle of the neck and your palm shouldn't touch down. That might help the buzz on the E string too; if it doesn't the bass is probably not set up very well (used?), adjust the E bridge saddle up a little(2). You need a hex key, and you need to tune after. It's hard to break anything, but just adjust up a little and check for buzz.

1. http://www.studybass.com/lessons/bass-technique/fretting/
2. http://www.ehow.com/video_4396346_adjust-bridge-saddle-bass-guitar.html

I hear you, friend. I have pretty much only had the energy to work and sleep lately. Though my problem is SAD. I haven't touched my bass since about the beginning of November.

I hope you get to feeling better.

Here ya go!. Me and my dad made this back when I was in high-school (he's a sculptor and carpenter). Sadly, it has some "1.0" issues, like being extremely neck-heavy, and we didn't have a chance to do a second take. Still, my snake-bass is beautiful and sounds growly and deep as hell.

edit: make sure to right-arrow to the second photo.

One useful trick is knowing in general how triads and 7 chords are constructed. For example, all min7 chords use a 1-3b-5-7b construction.

That being said, I have a few arpeggio and mode charts on my scribd page

https://www.scribd.com/funkmetalbass

Nope I didn't know there was a session player doc on netflix!

Read about it in the 2011 songfacts interview http://www.songfacts.com/blog/interviews/carol_kaye/

Heres the quote:

Did you ever come out of a session and you didn't think much of it, and then one of the songs from that session became a big hit?

"Oh yeah. A few times. Most of the time I could predict which take was going to be the hit. You just felt it. It just kind of came together. But there was one time when I overplayed on bass to try to wake up a drummer. The drummer was in on tour and he was sleeping. You could tell that. And it was a big band. He was slowing down in the parts and the part that I was playing was slow according to the tune. The tune required just a few notes on my part. So somebody in the band said, "Do something, Carol." And so I played a lot of notes and it woke up the drummer. And I walked in the booth after the take, and I said, "Now we can do a take." And they looked at me and laughed and said, "That was the take." I said, "Oh, no, that's a bass solo. All the way through that'll never be a hit." But it was the biggest hit that Mel Tormé ever had. It was a #1 hit. The bass part that I invented is a test now at schools around the world. It's funny, the name of the record was "Games People Play." And he's just going, "La di da" and here's all this bass and stuff coming in. I thought, That'll never be a hit. And it was a big smash hit for him. So yeah, a lot of times you're wrong."

Here's a tab for the Final Fantasy one. It's a crazy finger exercise and it's pretty fast, just check this part out.

Bassmasta was a great resource for tablature, but just before shutting down I believe they sold most, if not all of their resources to songsterr, so that'd be the place to look. I personally dislike sites like ultimate-guitar because it seems like -- in my experience, at least -- that nine out of ten bass tabs are hugely inaccurate or outright wrong. Now, you can say that about every tab site, but I tend to find that somewhat less with songsterr, but that's just my two cents.

Is it a playing along with the song-type of issue? Is it "not hitting the right rhythm" problem? Maybe try playing along with Songsterr; that site will play the tune with you along with showing you the tabs.

If its dexterity, I'm interpreting that as your fingers get tired or not moving across the fretboard as fast. Also does this pertain to the playing hand, or the strumming hand? Things like just takes time and practice. Try some hand stretches.

http://everynoise.com/ is a fantastic way to find genres with spotify playlists tailored towards really well curated music. I absolutely love the type of music you're looking for - Vulfpeck, Pomplamoose, Scary Pockets (basically joe dart or Sam Wilkes on bass is my shit). There are multiple genres on this site that will scratch that itch - you can venture out from there in any direction your ear takes you. It's seriously awesome. I'm not affiliated in any way at all but it's become my by far favorite way to find new music.

Victor Wooten's book is fucking nuts.

Try this one out: Virtual DJ. It's free. There's a bit of a learning curve, but I'll give you a crash course to do what you've asked about.

Drag an MP3 onto the deck from the explorer menu at the bottom and hit play on that deck.

To isolate the bass end: drop the Highs & Mids, raise the Lows. (These knobs are on the center console, assuming "Mixer" is selected at the top of that center console.)

To slow down the track: Raise the speed slider (just to the right of the spinning virtual-record.) Make sure to select "Pitchlock" (a lock icon just to the left of that slider) so that the program compensates pitch for the adjusted record speed. The farther up you push the slider, the slower the track's speed.

My version of the program is a little older, but those instructions should get you going with what you asked about. The program will also list the key and bpm for each track, if that's any interest to you.

Absolutely get Audacity. It's a free recording and editing software that has pretty basic features, but is perfect for getting out a demo quick. Make sure to mic up your amp properly, and before recording with the track get a good tone down. Then add your track and record along with it. Good Luck!

There's a free jazz improv course starting next week on coursera: https://www.coursera.org/course/improvisation

I took it last year and it was great. You may not play jazz, but I think it may be worth your time to check it out. It's free so if you don't like you can always drop out.

You’re going to get some odd side effects, like getting the right mix, and the music playback sounding odd on account of just the left or right channel.

I’ve never used this one, but it’s pretty affordable

Donner Bass Guitar Headphone Amp Basement Pocket FX WAH Rechargeable Mini Practice Amplifier https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079G6Y5Y5/

Ed Frieldland's Book "Building Walking Basslines" is solid gold.

Do the exercises (yes, actually write them out), and you will be walking in under 6 weeks.

My suggestion is that you get the iRig. It's a tiny little thing that mounts on your strap, and you plug your bass into one side, and your headphones into the other side.

Now you can hear the "real" sound of your bass, just like if you had an amp, but the neighbors won't mind. :-)

The cool thing is, the iRig can then plug into your phone. And it has apps that allow you to try out different model amps, cabinets, and effects.

So NOW, what is coming through your headphones, is the full sound of an amplified bass... but the people across the room can't hear it!

So you can practice and not annoy anybody.

So you can try out different amps and cabinets, figure out which ones you like, so you can then buy one of those amps later, when you want to start playing music with other people.

AND... if that isn't enough... you can also play music from your phone, AND hear your bass, so you can play along with any song you want to try and learn!

FINALLY... the sounds from the iRig can be recorded in various apps on your phone, like GarageBand. So now you not only have every amplifier and effect to play with, you can also play along with your favorite music, and record yourself playing.

I can't imagine a better $40 purchase for any new bass player.

Im not so sure. I have one and I rarely use it. When u do it's not very loud and gets out of tune very quick. It might just be a me specific experience but I digress. this might be a solution to your problem

Probably not the answer you're looking for, but Alex Webster's book, "Extreme Metal Bass", has helped me more than you could imagine. It's not really metal stuff (even though the scales and intervals are common in extreme metal), but the exercises in the book are absolutely amazing at building speed and precision. Not even exagerating, but in only two months of practicing just tje first few exercises, I am able to play songs that I thought I would not ever be able to play.

It goes over fingering patterns, crazy scales, stretching exercises, tapping exercises, string skipping, and many combinations of those. If you don't mind the fact that it is a an metal-based book, I would absolutely recommend this book. 15$ on amazon and extremely high quality, and comes with an access code to hear the exercises online.

edit: link

https://www.amazon.com/Extreme-Metal-Bass-Techniques-Applications/dp/1423497155

For someone that tiny I'd look at a ukulele basses. They're the smallest basses that sound decent. He'd be able to play quietly without an amp and also plug in to be louder.

Something like this, which also has a built in tuner would be good.
https://www.amazon.com/Hadean-Acoustic-UKB-23-NM-Left/dp/B01KAXFYRA

Copy/paste of a previous answer of mine to similar questions:

Website with tons of free articles and videos, both technique and theory: www.studybass.com

My fav YouTube teacher: TalkingBass. He’s also got a good site with structured courses @ www.talkingbass.net

Theory book that helped me a bunch: Edly’s Music Theory for Practical People. https://www.amazon.com/Edlys-Music-Theory-Practical-People/dp/0966161661

I began my bass adventure maybe 4 months ago and followed Hal Leonard Bass Method by Ed Friedland. It has a section about tabs maybe half way through but the rest is standard notation. Very helpful in learning bass clef.

As most people said, it is a good idea to go section by section.I use an app called Riff Studio to create loops and slow down the tempo, if needed. Also, if the bass isn't proeminent enough in the mix, I plug the phone in my bass amp to emphasize the low end.

There is one called PerfectEar, it has thousands of exercises you can try for rhythm, chords, intervals and single note identification.

Edit: Link to the app on Google play store https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.evilduck.musiciankit

Donner Looper Pedal- $45 as simple and basic as it can get. It plays back in Normal, 1/2 speed and reverse. It also saves up to 10 minutes of recording and can be downloaded to p.c via USB. Donner Tiny Looper Guitar Effect Pedal 10 minutes of Looping 3 Modes https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XK7WQK3/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_n9pKCbM9TWPY0

On Android I use the gStrings app. Very flexible and I find it very accurate. The paid version is only $3.99 and there is a free version to try. I've found for bass, some older phones were not that great - maybe the mics did not do well with lower frequencies?

i think something you can discover searching in mixcloud like "nu funk" "nu disco"... mixcloud

I personal like to listen French house where basslines are awesome but not only slapped. my favourite

Learn the basics of Piano, and go from there. That is how I started, and it relates across all spectrums.

While I have years of music theory under my belt, courses like this still help.

https://www.coursera.org/course/musictheory

It is free. Also, search other free courses there. Jazz improv, guitar lessons, many great tools!

Alex Webster's Book -- Extreme Metal Bass has been consided the metal bass bible since it came out.. maybe also pick that up.

Scott's Bass Lessons creates a high quality product, so it's as good as any online lesson resource, but I think face-to-face lessons can be (more) valuable IF you can find the right teacher.

The only drawback to online lessons is that nobody is forcing you to practice, so you can let it slide. If you're paying for in-person lessons, you're more likely to prepare for practice each week and stick with a program.

But if you're self-disciplined enough to practice regularly, online lessons can be very cost effective.

I bought a book off amazon called Bass Aerobics by Jon Liebman a little while back and I really like it. It has 52 workouts (one a week over a year) divided into 5 chapters. Each chapter has a different focus (Chromatics, Scales & Arpeggios, String Crossing, Slapping and Popping, and Advanced Bass). I'd highly recommend it. Even if you don't follow the intended lesson plan, you'll still have a ton of material to practice with.

There's a Guitar Aerobics book too by the same publisher that is really good too. It has a similar format but instead of one workout a week it's one lick a day.

The Ampeg BA112 is about the same price and a solid alternative. Amazon suggests there's a $50 rebate available at the moment. Link

I second the Vox Amplug (Bass Version)- One of the absolute best things I've bought! The fact that it has that aux port allows you to plug your phone in and use ANY JAM TRACK on the web, i.e. youtube. And if you're not able to plug in for some reason, it has a few built-in beats to play to (and you change the tempo!)

You can even plug it into effects pedals at the end, as long as you have a long enough headphone cord! It's literally just a small pocket-sized amp that feeds headphones!

Here's an amazon link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NAUKJTY/ref=sxts_bia_sr_1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=3182441022&pd_rd_wg=pKSfj&pf_rd_r=S30ENEJ72YT9AVEYW0W1&pf_rd_s=desktop-sx-top-slot&pf_rd_t=301&pd_rd_i=B00NAUKJTY&pd_rd_w=TJkkI&pf...

Seriously, buy one now. You will NOT regret it.

A few months back I bought a six-set of Thomastik flat wounds for my Schecter Studio-6. It was only when I was about to put them on that I realized the ones I purchased from Amazon were "Long Scale - 34 Inches." My bass has a 35" scale. So, I returned them and got a refund. I was counting on being able to find the same strings just in "Extra Long - 36 Inches." The packaging says they make them in that scale, but I haven't been able to find them anywhere online. My questions are:

• Can I just re-buy and use the 34" strings on my bass, or would that be a problem with tension?

• Does anyone know where I can buy the Thomastik 36" flat wound six-set?

• Is there another six-set of flat wound strings I could buy instead?

There's no reason it wouldn't work, most amps have a variable input gain and switchable/defeatable crossovers and can drive loads down to 2ohms with adequate cooling. The big issue is that you need a beefy 12V power supply to handle the electrical demands of power amp. In a car, the battery acts as a high capacity reservoir to supply large amounts of electricity on demand, and is continuously charged by the alternator between peak discharge cycles (like starting your engine). The amplifier has plenty of power on reserve to produce heavy bass. When that amplifier is not connected to a battery, you need a power supply that can supply those large currents without a battery to assist it.

Let's say you want 300W amp RMS output. You have to account for some enffenciency. Class D will be 90% (ish) efficient, meaning at Max volume you need a continuous 335 watt. That's 27amps at 12volts. Luckily the price of these power supplies have gone way down. I found this on Amazon, and it should work for a 300 watt amp. Depending on how familiar nyou are with car audio you can have it all hooked up in a matter of minutes, but it won't be all that portable unless you building a custom enclosure. I'm pretty familiar with bastardizing car audio for other things so ask questions if you have any.

I use these bad boys. Don’t let the price fool you. These things are awesome.

AKG Pro Audio K240 STUDIO Over-Ear, Semi-Open, Professional Studio Headphones

https://www.amazon.com/AKG-K240STUDIO-Semi-Open-Professional-Headphones/dp/B0001ARCFA/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=K240+STUDIO&qid=1596741108&sr=8-3

I like Music Tutor, it's simple enough but helps a lot.

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jsplash.musictutor&hl=en

iOS: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/music-tutor-sight-reading/id514363426?mt=8

Reminds me of one of my favorite quotes. For your situation, replace 'machine' with 'bass'. “The test of the machine is the satisfaction it gives you. There isn't any other test. If the machine produces tranquility it's right. If it disturbs you it's wrong until either the machine or your mind is changed.

Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values

That's the MSRP list price -- the actual retail price is around $650-700 if you plan to buy new, or less if you look into the used market. I'd personally recommended looking used anyway, as you can usually score some incredible deals if you're patient. TalkBass Classifieds is a great place to start in that regard.

Best of luck!

The Game Changer system is digitally controlled analog connection, still an all analog signal.

On the laser, that already exists.

This morning I was talking to my kid; this is what I told him: "You can play beats with groups of Two (8th notes) threes (triplets), fours (Sixteenths) very easily, just like most other drummers. It's like having only three wrenches in a toolkit. You can only use those wrenches on the most standard things in music. These exercises are like the 'other wrenches in the kit'."

So shine up those wrenches... I'm going to create a series of grooves with these flows for you guys.

All of this stuff is coming out of a project I'm doing, a prog-like album with a friend of mine. This stuff has been written for about 20 years and is just begging for "real" musicians to play it. Here's a sample, and Yet another. We're recording the album right now and I'm beginning to create a book from the experience of learning these things; breaking down the rhythms is the first part and then fitting them into the spaces given is yet another.

Mike has all the tracks in Midi so it's great because we can print charts, tempo maps, speed up/slow down the parts and for the rhythm section this is all too important. It will be a bit "paint by numbers" but overall it's going to be a real gas.

Audacity is a free audio editor (not quite a DAW, but works fine for home stuff). Whether you get an interface or just plug in to your sound card, Audacity allows you to record and manipulate your tracks. I recommend it for recording on-da cheap.

An interface is nice, but not essential. I use a Yamaha Audiogram 6 that I found used in a pawn shop. I use free VSTs for effects-n-stuff. Watch some YouTube tutorials on Audacity/ recording for how-to info.

https://soundcloud.com/conradcannonade I would love to hear anyone else on r/bass, just link me. Oh and if anyone is interested you should visit /r/makinghiphop, we try to cultivate everyones work not just gag on the best stuff around.

Songs don't have progressions of notes, they have progressions of chords so you have to understand what those are and how they sound.

For your ii-V-I progression, thats Gm7, C7, Fmaj7.

You should be able to distinguish between Gmin (the ii) and Dmin (the vi). Compare the ii-V-I to the I-vi-IV-V.

Have a look at this: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-identify-the-root-of-a-chord#what-is-a-root-note

Challenge accepted although I am a beginner too, so it may take a while. Meanwhile, I think the Hey Jude is in F Major. If so, only the notes below should be used.

G-------------------------------2--3--5--7--9--10-12-14-15-17-19-21-22 D-------------------0--2--3--5---------------------------------------- A----------0--1--3---------------------------------------------------- E--0--1--3------------------------------------------------------------

I'd love a Pog II just for the presets... there are about 4 different settings I tend to gravitate to on the micro Pog, it'd be cool to be able to toggle them at the tap of a button.

I've got an academic jazz background, but my primary musical outlet right now is a space rock band. We just recorded a new soundtrack to the original Night of the Living Dead and are currently crowd-funding the DVD replication. I also play with an ambient/improv band that includes myself, violin, hammer dulcimer, and an acoustic guitarist... that's where my Boomerang and Bass Murf get the most use.

I've been in love with BestPractice for years now. It will let you slow down audio without lowering the pitch, adjust pitch up or down... IMHO it's a necessity for transcribing or even just shedding tunes.

http://www.softpedia.com/get/Multimedia/Audio/Other-AUDIO-Tools/BestPractice.shtml

It's worth it. Even if you don't go all out now, you can change out pieces individually later on, which make for great gift ideas from friends and family. Get the insides right from the start, and it's easy to upgrade hardware piece by piece when you have the money. A bridge upgrade here, tuners a few months later. As far as the feeling though, it's ridiculously more personal than buying new. It's like your child, you gave birth to it. I just finished mine on Friday, and now she's in the shop for post-natal care (full setup and a few routing spots for electronic upgrades I didn't have the tools for) http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=1dzdp2&amp;s=6 This is the most recent pic I have at the moment, but she has since gotten an aftermarket fender black bridge, black beauty strings, and a black tusq nut <3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow4s9wU1K0I&amp;feature=youtu.be

Debut : http://www.nchsoftware.com/capture/

Quick snippet from a recording I did just to demonstrate the results. This was done at home so I don't have my 504 or any signal coloring, just a little usb mixer.

I used Debut by NCH software, it's actually not a free software - but you get a free trial. I don't remember if I paid for it, or googled a registration key for it (because they are widely available). I've been using this setup now for a couple of years for simple videos. I can run a line into my mixer for a backing track and it gets recorded along side the bass.

On a side note, I apologize any peaking, I had the mixer adjusted for my new RBX250 and it's a little bit quieter than my modded Bronco.

Odds are whatever finger speed you train outside won't really translate that well, you'll mostly be faster at what you trained. (Point in case; I type about 90 wpm, and it sure doesn't hurt my fretting and walking technique but it really doesn't translate to it either, I've still needed to train those essentially from scratch. One would think pushing keys and pushing frets would be the same thing.)

In other words, you get good at what you practice. So just try to push yourself/your speed while playing the bass, doing scales and metronome exercises specifically to push speed for instance.

Away from the bass my personal belief is that time is better spent on ear training or other supporting skills to the playing.

To try out speed with a metronome I recreated two tabs a while back, one of a Billy Sheehan exercise and one of an exercise video posted by /u/bassiclessons, although I think I might have fudged something at the end, don't remember but shouldn't affect the goal.

(Ignore the finger numbering from the video that is written in the Sheehan tab.)

find more music theory to explain it.

usually there are just four kinds of notes : root, chord-tone, scale, leading-tone. find the relationship between the notes and the chords, then you can solve it. Chordify is a very useful tool, you can see which part of the sheet is being played. imo some Chic songs are the real blackmagicfuckery.

https://chordify.net/chords/god-is-1979-rev-james-cleveland-jayem86 go to the overview tab

you dont need to play any licks, just play the root of every chord listed in that link. will it mess with the flow? just try and play along with the song yourself, you can even experiment and add improvisation yourself. All you have to do is practice along with the song

That tab doesn't look right. Try this one, it has the rhythms marked on and if you hit play you get a horrific but useful midi version of the song with the bass line showing you what you are meant to be playing.

love playing that song, I learnt it using this: http://www.songsterr.com/a/wsa/pleasure-glide-bass-tab-s78252t0 though there were one or two some mistakes I had to work out. The main thing that I think was wrong was that it says in the main riff you have to slide from F to G or 1st to 3rd fret on the E string but it sounds better if you hammer onto the G. Also the last portion of the verse riff is a bit off. This guy knows what's up and I watched him for all the stuff I wasn't sure about: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRJz2RfHWq8&amp;feature=player_embedded#!

Bass lines I recognized from sampling in other songs:

1. Bring down the birds by Herbie Hancock - from &quot;Groove is the heart by Deee-Lite&quot;.
2. Express yourself by Charles Wright - from NWA's Express yourself.

There are books that will help, like Ariane Cap's Music Theory for Bass Players, but finding a local teacher is probably a better idea.

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1) Having a teacher forces you to practice stuff you usually wouldn't and forces you to be honest about your practice schedule.

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2) The right teacher can see what you're doing wrong and fix it, and can also see when you're ready for the next piece of information.

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The HARD part is finding a good teacher. There are plenty of amazing players who are not good teachers. Ask around locally, or ask on Talkbass.com for a good teacher in your area. Try to watch vids or see them play BEFORE you ask them for lessons, to make sure you like the choices they make.

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Once you find a teacher, ask them if they have a lesson plan or syllabus or something like that: a linear progression of stuff they plan on teaching you.

There's a free, open-source app called Hydrogen which is pretty good if memory serves (I've not booted the thing up for years, so it's probably even better now).

edit: /u/invertedearth already said this...

John Ferrara - Consider the Source

Consider the Source "God Only Knows" Beach Boys cover https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=w08Dk9EGUDc

Consider the Source - "So Say We All" - Wild Woods 2015 https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=ww2WQ0FAuMk

Check out Audacity.
It's free and it supports VSTs.

It's pretty intuitive when it comes to learning how to use it, and there's scads of YouTube tutorials to help you out as well.

Don't bother trying to teach yourself "music theory". It's not a first concern when you're picking up an instrument. "Music Theory" refers to the entire spectrum of study- rhythm, harmony, melody, structure, form, and texture. So the idea of learning music theory in the context of getting a bass is kind of like deciding to buy a calculator and then trying to decide whether you should learn math.

Unless you know how to teach music theory, it's a lousy idea to try to teach it to yourself. Obviously there are enough books on theory and pedagogy that you could spend your entire life finishing them all, but most books on these subjects are descriptive rather than proscriptive; in other words they don't give you a study routine that will result in you having a working knowledge of the subject.

If you're interested, take a course online. Coursera has one and it costs nothing.

https://www.coursera.org/course/musictheory

The same applies for lessons, you can't teach something you don't know. If you want bass learning, find bass teaching. The free stuff is a good resource, but you don't get any feedback on what you're doing, which makes it impossible to know whether you're doing things right. Sort of the point of studying, right?

My advice is not to make the same mistake that a billion other young bass enthusiasts make. They spend all their time and money thinking about getting a bass, getting an amp, and then once they have them, they worry out loud about how they're going to learn to play the thing. If they spent as much time and money pursuing instruction as they did procuring instruments, they'd be much happier.

It is cool to have a bass in your room, to look at it and admire it and fuck around with it learning songs, but in the end it will be a lot more satisfying if you have a plan for what you are going to do with once you've gotten it.

Other recommendations are all good. You might also want to see if there is a local Facebook group. Also open mic nights.

The Sony MDR 7506 headphones are great for practicing and home studio use... they're also used a lot in professional studios from what I understand... I like them because they sound great and have a long coiled cable so no issues standing with the bass and moving around a bit...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-MDR-7506-Professional-Headphone-Black/dp/B000AJIF4E/ref=asc_df_B000AJIF4E/?tag=googshopuk-21&amp;linkCode=df0&amp;hvadid=404379811189&amp;hvpos=&amp;hvnetw=g&amp;hvrand=5487300610223649865&amp;hvpone=&amp;hvptwo=&amp;...

I would pay good money for a professionally transcribed book of 90s and 00s hip hop bass lines: Dre, Snoop, Tribe Called Quest, 2Pac, Biggie, Outkast, etc. I bought this book which has some good elements, but not the actual transcriptions. There's a lot of community transcriptions that are out there, but my experience is they're hit or miss.

I am not an expert. I just started recently myself but these two books I am using:

Hall Leonard Bass Method - Great for fretboard and music theory in a slow pace with plenty of exercises.

Bass For Dummies - Seems straight forward... a book for bass dummies. But I find it great for supplementing my learning. It is written to be able to jump around to sections that you want to learn. So if you feel like learning scales or even creating your own groove.

>Have you considered having your audio source and bass signal come out of the same set of headphones?

If "practicing acoustically" means playing an electric bass unplugged, I'd HIGHLY recommend a headphone amp. Whether you get a cheap or a nice one, being able to hear your amplified signal is important. Playing electric instruments acoustically can lead to practicing bad technique---we tend to pluck harder so we can hear it. Practicing is just building habits and you wanna build the right ones.

I can ABSOLUTELY vouch for the Phil Jones. I have the HA-2 and I use it every day. I can plug in my phone + bass and walk around with a metronome/track playing, but I use it around the house too. It sounds so good with nice headphones that I play that way more than I play out loud lately.

Highly recommend this app

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.evilduck.musiciankit

I've used it for years and own all the expansions and it's worth every cent and I love that I have it on the go.

Learning most techniques properly requires amplification. With fingers, we tend to dig in harder than necessary so we can hear when it's unplugged. With slap, there's just no way to teach yourself without hearing the amplified sound.

If it were me, I'd look into a cheap headphone amp (or a nice one) and some decent headphones to practice with. You don't bother anyone else, you can move wherever you want while practicing, and you can hear yourself (and a metronome/backing track/song) play.

I use these as well. Took a few sessions to get them to sit just right in order to not block to much, but once I figured that out, they've been perfect for me.

Amazon link

You said your apartment has shoddy wiring. What have you done to confirm the grounds are good? I've seen 3 prong plugs without any ground wire attached at all. Visually it looks good. If you haven't checked it borrow a meter or get one of these. (It's returnable) You should have 110V (US) between the smaller slot and the bottom ground slot. As well as between the slots.

Joel DiBartolo was the bass player for Johnny Carson's Tonight Show (before Jay Leno)

Maybe it's his book, Serious Electric Bass?