Let's spread some musical misinformation

[Geekydad]

Strings are often referred to as cat-gut. Most people assume this is because they used to literally be made from cat intestines. This is not true- the term is far more recent and refers to the strings on early electric guitars, which were first made by twisting wires stripped out of surplus CAT-5 cable around standard acoustic strings to allow the pickups to record the sound. Since they were made from the "guts" of the cables, they were referred to as "CAT5 guts strings", which was mis-written as "cats-guts strings", which was changed to "cat-gut strings" because it's easier to say.

Though some argue otherwise, there is still no better use for CAT5 cable in the music industry.

 

[GBassNorth]

Strings are often referred to as cat-gut....
Though some argue otherwise, there is still no better use for CAT5 cable in the music industry.

Believe it or not, there is another TB thread out there exclaiming the virtues of using Cat5 cable as 120 volt wiring for stage lights. I kid you not! I think we talked TBer Robroy out of using the lights before he killed someone or at least I hope we did.

Now back to the misinformation theme...
Motown music was a favorite of one of the Three Stooges.

 

[Geekydad]

Believe it or not, there is another TB thread out there exclaiming the virtues of using Cat5 cable as 120 volt wiring for stage lights. I kid you not! I think we talked TBer Robroy out of using the lights before he killed someone or at least I hope we did.

Now back to the misinformation theme...
Motown music was a favorite of one of the Three Stooges.

I know. I was referring to that thread specifically. (Probably should have linked to it...)

Anyway, high quality piezoelectric pickups too expensive for you? Simply fold one of those "singing" cards into a square tube and reverse the polarity of the battery. As a bonus, if you put rubber bands across the opening, you won't even need a bass either.

 

[zontar]

In a pinch, silly string will double if you need to change one on your bass.

 

[GBassNorth]

The higher the frequency the more it Hz.

 

[zontar]

Gibson once made a prototype of a Silly Putty guitar with piezo pickups.

 

[GBassNorth]

Guitards frequently play their instruments too loud. Audience members struggled for years trying to come up with a standard volume measurement system so they could describe the insane volume levels. Finally in the mid 1960's a loudness scale was developed and adopted world wide. The db or "douschebag" measure is now commonly used to indicate the volume level of Guitards.

So, for instance, a 100 db volume level would be equal to 100 douschebag guitarists wanking away on their guitars 10 feet from your ear. Obviously lower db levels are better.

Conversely, bass players volume levels are measured in SPLs or "Smooth Pleasing and Low". The more SPLs the better.

 

[GBassNorth]

Gibson once made a prototype of a Silly Putty guitar with piezo pickups.

IIRC that one had a very flexible preamp! I never got a chance to play one but I heard that it could pretty much copy just about any bass tone with its special "press and imprint feature". Sound shaping was nearly unlimited. Really a neat design but never caught on due to the massive neck dive or "droop" as some called it.

The best recording of one that I'm aware of was on the song "Rubber Band Man". Here's a YouTube clip with the bass in action with the "press and imprint" feature set on Fender P bass.

 

[zontar]

And it worked better than the bass with Yo-Yo strings.

 

[GBassNorth]

And it worked better than the bass with Yo-Yo strings.

Exactly!
Dick Smothers (from the hit TV variety show - The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour) played an upright bass with strings on it that Tommy would give him after using them on his yo-yo routines. Look closely and you can see the yo yo strings on the bass. They even wrote a song about it called Yo-yo Man.

 

[zontar]

Yoyo Ma took his name from this trick.

 

[Jay2U]

Yodeling was invented by a prehistoric bass player, whose breaking string hit his private parts like a whip. Immediately thereafter, laughing was invented by his bandmates.

 

[Stick_Player]

I played with a guitarist from South Central L.A. - long ago...

He insisted on calling his MXR Phase 90 a "Puh-Hazer".

I just couldn't correct him... it was too good!

 

[zontar]

I played with a guitarist from South Central L.A. - long ago...

He insisted on calling his MXR Phase 90 a "Puh-Hazer".

I just couldn't correct him... it was too good!

Well it was used by Jimi Hendrix to get the cool sounds in Purple Haze--of which Puh-hazer is a contraction of sorts.

 

[BazzTard]

Ringo was the better drummer in The Beatles

 

[zontar]

Ringo was the better drummer in The Beatles

 

[BazzTard]

everytime you use a remote control it sends millions of 'remotes' to change channel or whatever, BUT it only takes one remote to make the change.
What are the rest of the remotes doing? Waiting for their chance to pounce!

 

[BazzTard]

OK i may as well reveal the truth behind Dazed and Confused...........

 

[zontar]

The first flat wound strings were made from a Slinky,
the first roundwounds from a Super Slinky,
and the first Groundwounds from a Slinky Dog.

 

[Pandastylebass]

Fact: The amount of iron in blood will effect your tone.
Fact: An active bass with a nitro finish will beat a passive bass with a poly finish in any track and field event.
Fact: The 80's game show "Double Dare" was originally called "Double Bass" and the object was to fill your bass with as much whipped cream and hot fudge as possible then play hot jazz until pastries came shooting out the F holes. The FCC banned the show after it's unsuccessful pilot episode and decided to just have kids running around a junk food themed obstacle course to win a Casio Keyboard instead.