- Oct 22, 2015
- 21,167
- 257,038
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- I am an affiliate for Ari Cap.
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Get off my LAWN! "Grumpy Old Farts"
- Thread starter B-string
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Yes, but I might be able to play the fretless. The UB? Nope.
Not a fair comparison. You can see all of the Pit Bull, but only about half of the (unknown maker) upright bass.
I have a fretted German Höfner 500/1. Playing jazz such as traditional walking lines or swung 1/8th note solos is very different for me in light of the the 14mm string spacing. If I've been playing my other basses a lot (all 19mm), it takes almost a day to get comfortable playing jazz lines on the Höfner
Jazz notes can be considered as being in the ears of the beholder, so I have been told
.
I have 4 basses(one 5er). I've no idea what the string spacing is[or what mm's are], but I can do jazz solos equally badly on all of them.
There are no bad notes in Jazz, just those that are improvised.
That's true, it is different with the very narrow neck. I find that in some cases it's like learning a different instrument. With a Rickenbacker 12 string, I need to use different fingerings because the neck is so narrow. My fingers simply don't fit together in some cases like I can with a different neck.
At the same time, I can play some faster songs on the 500/1 that I can't play on other instruments because of it's narrow neck.
We all say stuff like that, but back when I used to gig with my jazz-fanatic dad, people who didn't have their poopie together never got invited back...
There's intentional, creatively-applied dissonance, and then there's "I clearly don't know what the #@$! I'm doing"...
I'm kinda, somewhat, maybe, possibly sure that 19mm spacing is a Fender standard on 4 string Jazz basses. The 14mm spacing on the Höfner is not a problem for my fretting hand. 14mm becomes a problem for my right hand since I never look at it. 19mm is burned deeply into my muscle memory.
Bingo!!!!
I am clearly in the latter category...
- Oct 22, 2015
- 21,167
- 257,038
- Disclosures
- I am an affiliate for Ari Cap.
Were I a slapster, My Ray would be the only instrument I'd play because of both the string spacing and the Hundred Acre Wood between the pickup and neck. What I am is too old to be bothered with a full scale bass unless there's a specific need 
Fairly recently picked up Jeff Berlin's Walking Bass course. There's a lot of meat on these bones. The consensus among those who complete the course is you (hypothetical, general you) will be able to do the job competently. I (non-hypothetical, specific I) did the course material daily in the time between the conclusion of the 2020 MTftBP cohort and the start of the 2021 cohort. Did not complete it as I took a lot of time with each lesson, same as if I were doing a MTftBP course unit. With Ari's book expected to ship in a couple weeks, I'll have plenty of time to get back to Jeff's material
Fairly recently picked up Jeff Berlin's Walking Bass course. There's a lot of meat on these bones. The consensus among those who complete the course is you (hypothetical, general you) will be able to do the job competently. I (non-hypothetical, specific I) did the course material daily in the time between the conclusion of the 2020 MTftBP cohort and the start of the 2021 cohort. Did not complete it as I took a lot of time with each lesson, same as if I were doing a MTftBP course unit. With Ari's book expected to ship in a couple weeks, I'll have plenty of time to get back to Jeff's material
No sweat, just do what I did: take advantage of nepotism, and the bandleader will forgive you just about anything!
Well, hmm. I have 2 Gibsons(4 and 5 string), 1 Epiphone EB-0, and 1 Ibanez. All pretty close spacing. Where can I buy some those mm's you keep mentioning?
and are they like M&Ms
Well, hmm. I have 2 Gibsons(4 and 5 string), 1 Epiphone EB-0, and 1 Ibanez. All pretty close spacing. Where can I buy some those mm's you keep mentioning?
I love m&m's - peanut ones. I haven't measured them, but I suspect the peanut m&m's are close to 23-24mm at their widest. You can pick them up at any store that carries candy.
BTW, if those have too many mm's, you could opt for Tic Tacs!
- Oct 22, 2015
- 21,167
- 257,038
- Disclosures
- I am an affiliate for Ari Cap.
There's always cotton candy from M&M Enterprises in Catch-22.
I buy chocolate covered almonds in bulk at the grocery. Almonds are good for you. A spoon full of sugar on top helps the medicine go down.
Some things you just have to memorize, 19mm is ¾". 14mm is .55" (1+4=5 helps you to remember). I use my body to measure distances. Fingers, hand spans, etc. With two hands fingers spread I can easily measure my pant waist size in a store.
Tips for Estimating Measurements When You Don't Have a Ruler
Like all things, there's an app for that today. My phone measures distances.
Some things you just have to memorize, 19mm is ¾". 14mm is .55" (1+4=5 helps you to remember). I use my body to measure distances. Fingers, hand spans, etc. With two hands fingers spread I can easily measure my pant waist size in a store.
Tips for Estimating Measurements When You Don't Have a Ruler
Like all things, there's an app for that today. My phone measures distances.
- Oct 22, 2015
- 21,167
- 257,038
- Disclosures
- I am an affiliate for Ari Cap.
The ruler I made a rule to carry was a flexible see-through combination E-gauge and line gauge the width of a broadsheet newspaper page. I think I scored it as a freebie from either Compugraphic or Linotype-Hell/Heidelberg.
And as I get dressed today to see the regular doctor in an hour and a half, I recall for some reason how I took my first newspaper job in ... 1974? Really? That's where I saw plate making in action — a photographic process that burns the mirror image* of the pages on metal plates. Ain't no way they're going to let an 18 year old near that ... its serious work for serious mens ...
Once the page goes to camera, I'm done.
Which is what I still think about so how about that retirement payout? Oh yeah well there's basses and amps and all like whut there. Low Tension Flats are the ticket for the Chowny CHB-1 semi-hollowbody. This is what I've learned in almost three! years of daily play.
Ray should be back from from the luthier soon-ish. That stopped being under my control the moment I dropped it off. Also not under my control is when the Acinonyx arrives so hanging out here thinking about ... what I'm thinking about is my commitment to the MTftBP due Friday and doing some cool pewp with tritones.
* reading type backwards and upside down is absolutely normal in this world
And as I get dressed today to see the regular doctor in an hour and a half, I recall for some reason how I took my first newspaper job in ... 1974? Really? That's where I saw plate making in action — a photographic process that burns the mirror image* of the pages on metal plates. Ain't no way they're going to let an 18 year old near that ... its serious work for serious mens ...
Once the page goes to camera, I'm done.
Which is what I still think about so how about that retirement payout? Oh yeah well there's basses and amps and all like whut there. Low Tension Flats are the ticket for the Chowny CHB-1 semi-hollowbody. This is what I've learned in almost three! years of daily play.
Ray should be back from from the luthier soon-ish. That stopped being under my control the moment I dropped it off. Also not under my control is when the Acinonyx arrives so hanging out here thinking about ... what I'm thinking about is my commitment to the MTftBP due Friday and doing some cool pewp with tritones.
* reading type backwards and upside down is absolutely normal in this world
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