Search results for query: *

Do you mean rake from the higher string to the lower?

Looking at the three triplets at the start of this Berklee jazz bass exercise, would you use strictly alternating right-hand fingers (1,2,1,2, etc., which can make for awkward finger crossings), or 1,2,1, 1,2,1, etc., which seems slower to execute, or 1,2,2, 1,2,2, 1,2,2 (finger-sliding the 2d...

Well, I was still getting black on fingers of both hands, so I went back to the alcohol wipe for two days in a row, and now, finally, I can play without black fingers! So I guess the answer is to repeat the cleaning process over several days until the alcohol-soaked cloth comes clean.

As a fairly new bassist, when reading exercises or transcriptions I try to work out the fingering first. But I'm stumped if I should use two different fingers when playing on adjacent strings at the same position (is that "legit"?), or "bar" one finger across the two strings. I assume it may...

"Lighter fluid"?

Slightly, but much much less than before I started all this! I'm hoping that in time the Watco will dry out even more and seal better. With two coats of the stuff on, now, there's not much else I can do.

Well, I followed the advice of wiping the strings with 0000 steel wool, and it indeed seems to have helped. It seems to have restored the high end that was suddenly missing after my Watco treatment of the fingerboard and reduced or eliminated the thuddiness. Hardly a scientific experiment, but...

So for just the strings, I only need to run the 0000 steel wool up and down the loosened string. Worth a try!

I just added that they are Spirocore Weich strings. I already tried removing any oil via wiping them up and down with a tightly wound alcohol-soaked cloth, but it didn't seem to do anything.

So I put Watco rejuvenating oil on my fingerboard in an effort to stop the darkening of my fingertips from the black polish the maker seems to have put on in the factory. While the oil did indeed seem to work--or at least reduce the black fingers--I now swear that the strings sound duller...

This makes sense, but wouldn't it depend on the phrasing you wanted (as well as tempo)? After all, a shift can never connect the notes as smoothly as two fingers on the same string, and a cross can never be as smooth with one finger as two.

OK, I ordered the Simandl! I already own a few jazz bass methods, but this will help with the fingerings.

I used alcohol and paper towels for a few days, but the black kept coming off (though eventually lighter). So last night I put on a coat of Watco finishing oil, then wiped it off. It's a penetrating sealer; hopefully it will do the trick!

I'm a new player (but guitarist for 60 years) and can find my way around the bass OK but have questions about fingering. Is there a "right" way to go from this note to that note? Should I shift positions here...or there? What if there are two notes on adjacent strings, same position? Also, do...

Good idea, but how? I can't find the link to do that.

Will rubbing down the fingerboard with alcohol damage it or is there some other recommended way to seal the finish?

Just found this related thread: Fingerboard Staining Hand Black?

Hmmm....I just tried wiping down the strings with ethyl alcohol (all I have at home) and then noticed that the fingerboard itself was yielding a lot of black onto my alcohol-soaked tissue! I'm thinking Eastman must have slathered some black stuff on the ebony fingerboard to make it look darker...

I recently installed a brand-new set of Pirastros and after practicing for 15 minutes my right hand and left-hand fingers are completely smudged! Will this stop or is there some way of cleaning new strings to stop this? Thanks!

Thanks! Very helpful and encouraging with my new Eastman bass.

You would if you were half color-blind, like me!

Ahhh! Good idea. Thanks!

Thanks! Very helpful.

Oh, very possible! My new ones are 3/4, for my 3/4 bass. I did notice there was an awful lot of extra windings when I took the factory-installed set off.

Thanks! That's just what I needed to know. But what's odd is that the set I removed (red/red) are definitely of a lighter gauge than the new ones I just put on (when I line them up side-by-side). Yet the new ones are definitely Weich, since I took them out of the official packaging.

Was there a change in tone or volume, though? For example, more bass? Louder?

I bought a bass that was supposed to come with some cheap strings on it. So I ordered a set of Spirocore light gauge strings and immediately installed them on the bass the same day I received it. Later that day the seller emailed me to say that since I had to wait so long to get the bass (9...

Whew! That's nice to hear. I hope it applies to my bass, too. I'll let ya know in a week.

Geez, we actually just bought a 3D printer....

I just took delivery of a new Eastman VB95, and put a new set of Spirocore weich strings on it. (I'm a guitarist learning the double bass.) Is there a "break-in period" where the bass improves with playing? I know that guitars certainly do that, and they even sell a contraption that attaches to...

Oops...these are the light (weich) strings. Sorry!

Thanks. I already copied it to over there, but can't see how to erase the original over here!

I just received my set of Spirocore Weich (medium) 3885 strings for my 3/4 Eastman bass. Amazon.com is selling the set for $228, Sweetwater.com for $275, but I bought them from Thomann.de, and they were $141 + shipping! Shipping to the US was $30, so I came out way ahead. Just a heads-up.

Looks like those shops specialize in guitars. I didn't see any upright basses, though.

I live in Mexico and plan to drive across the border to try out and buy an upright bass (probably a hybrid). Can anyone recommend a store or workshop that sells good-quality basses, new and/or used, within a couple hours drive of the border (Laredo would be ideal)? Thanks!

Hmmm...yeah, I was afraid of that. Thanks for the confirmation!

Hi: What do you folks think of this bass? Worth a look or not? I live in Central Mexico, and the bass is also in Mexico, though around 3 hours away. I'm a guitarist looking to buy a bass with a good sound, for recording purposes. Styles: jazz, folk, pop. From the listing: Double bass: Munich...