Ambient/Post-Rock/Textural bass playing thread

[steubig]

the sound of one brain crashing

 

[JES]

I just spent a bunch of cash on a frustration-machine

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I’ve been doing modular since 2014. Ask me anything.

Also, if you don’t know Muffwiggler, it’s up there with Talkbass in terms of being informative, especially with old threads. Of course, there’s still tons of noise there, as there is here. Your wallet will hate you, though. And I hate the name.

 

[monsterthompson]

I’ve been doing modular since 2014. Ask me anything.

Also, if you don’t know Muffwiggler, it’s up there with Talkbass in terms of being informative, especially with old threads. Of course, there’s still tons of noise there, as there is here. Your wallet will hate you, though. And I hate the name.

Mostly just trying to figure out the modules and how they’re labeled and how they function. My main head scratcher right now is that the Wavetable and VCO modules track pitches at different rates. If I tune them to the same C3, they will drift apart when I play E3. I think there’s a calibration function/process I need to do. I’ll compare them each against a soft synth and see which one is the problem.

 

[JES]

There’s two possibilities: one is calibration. But it’s also true that some Euro modules expect different voltages. It would be weird in a coherent system, though.

 

[cosmicevan]

I was checking out the youtube and your partner alluded to your taking the plunge into modular.

Braver man than I.

 

[HotelX]

Mostly just trying to figure out the modules and how they’re labeled and how they function. My main head scratcher right now is that the Wavetable and VCO modules track pitches at different rates. If I tune them to the same C3, they will drift apart when I play E3. I think there’s a calibration function/process I need to do. I’ll compare them each against a soft synth and see which one is the problem.

FAQs on the Erica site make me suspect the wavetable is the problem.

 

[monsterthompson]

FAQs on the Erica site make me suspect the wavetable is the problem.

Found it!
It's the analog VCO which for some odd reason needs to be calibrated via two little trim pots. What a silly thing

I got the Wavetable running and cycling based on the Octasource module. I'm getting sounds that I'd actually use!

 

[Spectrum]

Found it!
It's the analog VCO which for some odd reason needs to be calibrated via two little trim pots. What a silly thing

I got the Wavetable running and cycling based on the Octasource module. I'm getting sounds that I'd actually use!

I'm still dying to hear what that secret sauce idea was you dropped on us a few posts back.

 

[monsterthompson]

I'm still dying to hear what that secret sauce idea was you dropped on us a few posts back.

It’s a bit of an inspiration from Peter Steele and EVH. In my rig for the stream on Saturday, I had been using a Pocket Operator to trigger drum sounds that the mic on my Zoom would pick up, but the sound was too present and poked out more than I wanted. As I was contemplating that, along with things I could do with my bass to make noises other than fretted notes, it dawned on me that I could probably play the PO speaker close enough to the pickups that the signal would get picked up. Turned out it worked and the sounds were “less identifiable” than when played close to the zoom, particularly with delay and reverb.

I had actually been staring at the bass pickup and thinking about how I had seen Peter Steele yelling into his pickup at a show, and how it seemed to make sound come out of the amp. I knew I couldn’t yell in my setting, so the PO was nearby and I thought that it might work instead. I remembered EVH doing that whirring drill trick (I think that was on Poundcake), and thinking the PO speaker probably wasn’t unlike a vibrating string.

It’s not a totally original or unique concept, but I haven’t seen any other bassists playing drum machines through their pickups, so I’m calling it creative.

 

[lordradish]

Count me in as another person having some great breakthroughs, tonight.
Great night in the studio, I have been itching to rework my space so it works better for me, and finally found some amazing Quiklok DJ table that did the trick, as I was balancing some things precariously on some too-tall keyboard stands.

I bought a room correction mic a while ago, as the sound in this room really sucks, almost shaped like an A-frame. I used it with the ARC correction software, and that helped, but it was still too bassy, so I dialed back the sub, a bit.
After I rearranged tonight, I remeasured the room, corrected, and what a huge difference with both the sub turned down a bit and the space open in front of me now where the table is (I previously had the keys to the right in the center, which certainly affected the sound). Room sounds so much better tonight, and everything is in reach and comfy.

Subsequent 37, Wavestate, Iridium, TR-8S, pedals (EQD Avalanche Run, Boss Space Echo) Virus TI2 and MPC Live. That's my rig.

 

[Spectrum]

It’s a bit of an inspiration from Peter Steele and EVH. In my rig for the stream on Saturday, I had been using a Pocket Operator to trigger drum sounds that the mic on my Zoom would pick up, but the sound was too present and poked out more than I wanted. As I was contemplating that, along with things I could do with my bass to make noises other than fretted notes, it dawned on me that I could probably play the PO speaker close enough to the pickups that the signal would get picked up. Turned out it worked and the sounds were “less identifiable” than when played close to the zoom, particularly with delay and reverb.

I had actually been staring at the bass pickup and thinking about how I had seen Peter Steele yelling into his pickup at a show, and how it seemed to make sound come out of the amp. I knew I couldn’t yell in my setting, so the PO was nearby and I thought that it might work instead. I remembered EVH doing that whirring drill trick (I think that was on Poundcake), and thinking the PO speaker probably wasn’t unlike a vibrating string.

It’s not a totally original or unique concept, but I haven’t seen any other bassists playing drum machines through their pickups, so I’m calling it creative.

I still have an old metronome/tuner/pocketwatch/stopwatch thing I got back in the 80s when I started out. Back then clip-on tuners weren't a thing yet, so what this device does is makes an electronic tone at the note you want, and you tune your instrument to it by ear. I found out early on that if I held it close to my pickup I could hear the tone through my amp. Later when I went to tech school and found out how all this electronic stuff worked it all made sense to me. If you have a small portable radio you can hold that up to a guitar pickup and that'll get heard through the amp as well. The pickup circuit is also a sort of bandpass filter, which makes it sound midrange like an old radio. This guy does it at 1:30 of this vid:

EHX Effectology Pink Floyd's "On The Run" LIVE with guitar and effect pedals! - YouTube

 

[Bob_Ross]

I found out early on that if I held it close to my pickup I could hear the tone through my amp. ...[snip]... If you have a small portable radio you can hold that up to a guitar pickup and that'll get heard through the amp as well.

I used to gig with a small assortment of handheld electronic noisemakers for precisely that purpose. My favorites were:
- a self-contained telephone keypad that was used to enter touch-tone key sequences on old rotary phones
- another telephone accessory, this one an outboard "alternative ringtone" speaker for folks who didn't like the sound of their landline. Had an RJ45 input and a tiny speaker, but you could also manually trigger one of the pre-recorded series of short jingles or animal calls (my favorite being the mooing cow)
- the remote from the Beavis & Butthead "This Sucks, Change It!" board game, which looked like a TV remote control but triggered a bunch of pre-recorded quotes from the cartoon series (my favorite being Beavis' primal "AAAAHHHHHHHHRRGRGRGR!" scream)

I think on Debris' 1997 album errata I was even credited with "bass, loops, Beavis, cow"

 

[Spectrum]

I used to gig with a small assortment of handheld electronic noisemakers for precisely that purpose. My favorites were:
- a self-contained telephone keypad that was used to enter touch-tone key sequences on old rotary phones
- another telephone accessory, this one an outboard "alternative ringtone" speaker for folks who didn't like the sound of their landline. Had an RJ45 input and a tiny speaker, but you could also manually trigger one of the pre-recorded series of short jingles or animal calls (my favorite being the mooing cow)
- the remote from the Beavis & Butthead "This Sucks, Change It!" board game, which looked like a TV remote control but triggered a bunch of pre-recorded quotes from the cartoon series (my favorite being Beavis' primal "AAAAHHHHHHHHRRGRGRGR!" scream)

I think on Debris' 1997 album errata I was even credited with "bass, loops, Beavis, cow"

Analog telephone tech is fascinating stuff. AT&T's Tech Channel youtube channel has a lot of historical films on telephone tech as well as other old school electronics, stuff from Bell Laboratories and so on. If you scroll down to the "Archives" part of the page it's a good place to start down the rabbit hole.

AT&T Tech Channel - YouTube

 

[cosmicevan]

It’s a bit of an inspiration from Peter Steele and EVH. In my rig for the stream on Saturday, I had been using a Pocket Operator to trigger drum sounds that the mic on my Zoom would pick up, but the sound was too present and poked out more than I wanted. As I was contemplating that, along with things I could do with my bass to make noises other than fretted notes, it dawned on me that I could probably play the PO speaker close enough to the pickups that the signal would get picked up. Turned out it worked and the sounds were “less identifiable” than when played close to the zoom, particularly with delay and reverb.

I had actually been staring at the bass pickup and thinking about how I had seen Peter Steele yelling into his pickup at a show, and how it seemed to make sound come out of the amp. I knew I couldn’t yell in my setting, so the PO was nearby and I thought that it might work instead. I remembered EVH doing that whirring drill trick (I think that was on Poundcake), and thinking the PO speaker probably wasn’t unlike a vibrating string.

It’s not a totally original or unique concept, but I haven’t seen any other bassists playing drum machines through their pickups, so I’m calling it creative.

There was a part toward the beginning where I think the other guy opened a beer into a mic and then proceeded to loop the opening of the beer and pouring it and then mangle the loop a bit. I thought that was a really cool idea and played out really well in the jam.

Count me in as another person having some great breakthroughs, tonight.
Great night in the studio, I have been itching to rework my space so it works better for me, and finally found some amazing Quiklok DJ table that did the trick, as I was balancing some things precariously on some too-tall keyboard stands.

If you don't mind me asking...which table? I, too, have a PT Pro that I balance on a keyboard stand that I'm not wild about. It doesn't get me the right height I want and it is less than the stability I'm seeking.

I had been considering the
On-Stage Stands KS7150 Platform Style Keyboard Stand
(On-Stage Stands KS7150 Platform Style Keyboard Stand)
but a bit hard to tell if it will work or not since there is a ton of wiring under the board that I don't want to get caught or crushed.

 

[monsterthompson]

There was a part toward the beginning where I think the other guy opened a beer into a mic and then proceeded to loop the opening of the beer and pouring it and then mangle the loop a bit. I thought that was a really cool idea and played out really well in the jam.

That’s Trevor. He does that from time to time

 

[monsterthompson]

There is probably nothing less ambient that a compressor, yet this is the new pride and joy of my collection. If you get it, you’ll get it.

 

[lordradish]

If you don't mind me asking...which table?

Quik Lok DJ Table and Mixer Stand Equipment (DJ233)
Sweetwater doesn't have it, Amazon and a few others do.

It's not super heavy duty but it's foldable, and it's adjustable. In that pic, you can see the Iridium mounted on VESA clamp on stand. I basically attached a piece of 5/4 lumber to one end of the table with some c-clamps, and that gave the vesa mount something to clamp to. It's a bit top heavy, but it's not getting moved or knocked into.

 

[Spectrum]

I really hate trying to use one of those school gym type folding tables that they always have at electronic gigs. They provide plenty of table space but they sit too low if you're performing while standing, and I always stand.

I built my own console table setup using 1x2" lumber for framing and pegboard for a surface. This lets me tie gear down to the surface so I can move the entire setup without taking it completely apart, similar to a pedalboard. Makes it quicker for setup and breakdown. I set it on top of a keyboard stand set so I can comfortably reach everything without bending over. Easier on my body and doesn't look as stupid, plus I can hang a guitar or bass on my shoulder at the same time. It's not perfect; especially as I add or change gear the limitations really show, but it works for now.

But getting back to the folding tables mentioned in my first paragraph: I saw a guy in Philadelphia make them taller by using lengths of PVC pipe as leg extenders. He has room for all his crazy synth gear and he's comfortable. Sometimes simple ideas are best.

 

[lordradish]

Picked a dumb year to try to stop spending money. Got an Eventide Blackhole coming for the Iridium (got 25 percent off at Prymaxe, which is still having the sale). Had to get a stereo bypass looper, too, as apparently, those Roland Space Echo pedals are a bit noisy when off. I'm not as impressed as I thought I'd be with that pedal, but I still have to learn it, better. Still like the El Capistan way better, but that's not leaving my main board.

 

[monsterthompson]

Picked a dumb year to try to stop spending money.