Ambient/Post-Rock/Textural bass playing thread

[Starthief]

Nice!
Honestly, the old, but it feels too rich for me. Clones are a bit cheaper, and I don't feel bad about them now that Buchla USA is issuing takedown orders to Reverb etc (not sure they're enforceable but Reverb and others don't want to deal with the lawsuit). It's more about the interface than the sound--bananas, sensible layout, space for the hands, etc. I really like my Implexus but sometimes I want it to do more, mix LFOs, etc.

The sounds are totally achievable in other formats, though. I've been listening to Easel records for a few years now and like the tone of that, but it can get a bit samey by itself. Though I suppose that's like saying bass records can get samey.

Probably I should just commit to "big" Eurorack modules and I'll be happy. the Tiptop Buchlas, Manhattan Analog, early Mutable, Synthtech, Verbos, etc. Basically nothing with tiny trimmers. Frap Tools is brilliant but I wish I didn't need tweezers to operate my Fumana.

I will never not want an Easel. Nevermind that the Minibrute 2S is a more powerful and much cheaper synth that can pull off some similar sounds and a lot more, or that I can do a lot of the same with my Euro gear, or the pretty good emulation that Arturia has, or the more modern take on it that is Madrona Aalto which is my favorite software synth ever. I will still always want that real Easel.

The SynthTech stuff varies. Big knob caps but sometimes the spacing is too tight -- on the E352 I had to replace the knobs with Davies clones for it to feel comfortable to work with. Also, the E352/E370 have a lot of menu stuff going on (especially the 370). Not so much as menu diving as menu relay racing -- shallow menus but a lot of back-and-forth navigation.

The Verbos Harmonic Oscillator I had felt good to use, but it was really messy in terms of sound and functionality. It lives on both sides of the border of "charmingly eccentric" and "f***ing annoying."

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

You said "special bag" uhhhhuhuhuh.

 

[steubig]

Though bananas are cool.

In other thread relevant news, I read in bed last night that there was a Hydrasynth 2.0 update. Lots of interesting-sounding new features.

In mom news I talked with her last night and she was quite lucid. She's been hallucinating because of the pain killers, but nobody has explained hallucinations to her properly, so I tried coaching her a little.

can’t imagine having to switch between bananas and 1/8. too many cables already and i’d want to try to patch between things.

the new hs firmware is very cool. the added bit reduction and per voice modulation functions are great. already messed with them in my limited way and came up with some things i liked.

glad your mom is getting better. i think there’s a syndrome for older people hospitals where they get agitated at certain times (my mom had a bit of that). dunno if that also plays into some of the non-lucidity.

hope things go well. hang in.

 

[JES]

can’t imagine having to switch between bananas and 1/8. too many cables already and i’d want to try to patch between things.

True. I tried a Buchla 100 last spring and found it a bit confusing at first. I suppose Serge or something solves that problem but that's a whole other thing.

 

[monsterthompson]

but nobody has explained hallucinations to her properly, so I tried coaching her a little.

 

[JES]

She lived through the 60s (in St Louis and then Baltimore) but somehow missed that aspect of them.

 

[steubig]

She lived through the 60s (in St Louis and then Baltimore) but somehow missed that aspect of them.

not knowing people’s ages, i was thinking along those lines. those areas were a little more conservative than where i grew up (l.a.), where we were well versed in those things.

 

[Starthief]

She lived through the 60s (in St Louis and then Baltimore) but somehow missed that aspect of them.

The 60s probably didn't make it to St. Louis until the 70s.

 

[Bob_Ross]

Every amp head is tiny and fits in a “special bag”.

Makes me want to ditch my 100lbs racked SVT 4 pro…….
Almost

i’m just starting the process of figuring out what to downsize as we begin the exodus out of New York City, and one of the things I realize I’m going to have to come to terms with is that my gigantic lead sled, rackmount amp only ever gets used for rehearsals and recordings these days, never gigs. and I have two perfectly fine gig heads that are indeed tiny and fit in a little bag. I can probably get some good coin for selling the Alembic preamp and super filter. The Crown amp is a boat anchor anyway. and who needs to lug 50+ pounds of hardware up and down a flight of stairs?

ugh, decisions…

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

27319459[/URL], member: 234523"]i’m just starting the process of figuring out what to downsize as we begin the exodus out of New York City, and one of the things I realize I’m going to have to come to terms with is that my gigantic lead sled, rackmount amp only ever gets used for rehearsals and recordings these days, never gigs. and I have two perfectly fine gig heads that are indeed tiny and fit in a little bag. I can probably get some good coin for selling the Alembic preamp and super filter. The Crown amp is a boat anchor anyway. and who needs to lug 50+ pounds of hardware up and down a flight of stairs?

ugh, decisions…

Anything really powerful in those new heads that weigh 5 lbs??
I need headroom at 8ohms.
For me personally, overkill is a good thing when it comes to amps.

But damn I would like a quiet low volume gig once in a while, jeez I’m getting old.

 

[steubig]

Anything really powerful in those new heads that weigh 5 lbs??
I need headroom at 8ohms.
For me personally, overkill is a good thing when it comes to amps.

But damn I would like a quiet low volume gig once in a while, jeez I’m getting old.

your long-term hearing would thank you.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

your long-term hearing would thank you.

the old cassette walkman did the most damage to my hearing.
I had that thing on 24/7 at blasting volume levels.
Young idiot + no regulations on volume levels …..you do the math

 

[Spectrum]

the old cassette walkman did the most damage to my hearing.
I had that thing on 24/7 at blasting volume levels.
Young idiot + no regulations on volume levels …..you do the math

For me it was jet engines...and also walkman blasting. I think my hearing is doing okay though, considering what it's been through.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

For me it was jet engines...and also walkman blasting. I think my hearing is doing okay though, considering what it's been through.

Ok I have to ask, why jet engines??

 

[steubig]

for me: about two years of my left ear about 12-18 inches away from an inverted china cymbal. loud.

strangely, i think that ear is better than my right ear (loud drummer on that side too)

 

[Spectrum]

Ok I have to ask, why jet engines??

Previous job maintaining airplanes.

 

[JES]

those areas were a little more conservative

Oddly my parents weren’t conservative at all. But they had zero connection to counterculture. I think they were just a bit too old and involved in their careers and raising my brother for it to be interesting.

Anything really powerful in those new heads that weigh 5 lbs??

An old Terror Bass 1000 is head ripping a 4 or 8 ohms. Don’t expect a precision eq though.

I will never not want an Easel. Nevermind that the Minibrute 2S is a more powerful and much cheaper synth that can pull off some similar sounds and a lot more, or that I can do a lot of the same with my Euro gear, or the pretty good emulation that Arturia has, or the more modern take on it that is Madrona Aalto which is my favorite software synth ever. I will still always want that real Easel.

The SynthTech stuff varies. Big knob caps but sometimes the spacing is too tight -- on the E352 I had to replace the knobs with Davies clones for it to feel comfortable to work with. Also, the E352/E370 have a lot of menu stuff going on (especially the 370). Not so much as menu diving as menu relay racing -- shallow menus but a lot of back-and-forth navigation.

The Verbos Harmonic Oscillator I had felt good to use, but it was really messy in terms of sound and functionality. It lives on both sides of the border of "charmingly eccentric" and "f***ing annoying."

I’m thinking about a proper hardware control setup for Aalto, which I agree is the best software synth ever.

And yeah, big caps is no guarantee of good spacing or build quality. I had a synth tech e520 that sounded great but wouldn’t take over 3.3v on its input which was a weird design decision.

But I have really noticed the difference between how much I enjoy the interfaces of my fixed architecture synths vs the crowded space of my modular. And I like what I can do in the modular, so that’s where my eyes start wandering to other formats.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

27320604[/URL], member: 17475"]for me: about two years of my left ear about 12-18 inches away from an inverted china cymbal. loud.

strangely, i think that ear is better than my right ear (loud drummer on that side too)

I can still hear my friends powerful rimshot in my right ear 15 years later.
I was about 6 inches away from the snare adjusting the mic. I lifted about 4 feet in the air even if I was on my knees.

He would have eaten a punch in the face if it wasn’t for the fact that I was completely disoriented .

 

[steubig]

I can still hear my friends powerful rimshot in my right ear 15 years later.
I was about 6 inches away from the snare adjusting the mic. I lifted about 4 feet in the air even if I was on my knees.

He would have eaten a punch in the face if it wasn’t for the fact that I was completely disoriented .

btw, that was really inconsiderate of said drummer.

 

[steubig]

ruh oh