Let's spread some musical misinformation

[Hues]

Truss rods are installed in bass guitars to keep the neck straight during shipping and should be removed immediately upon getting them home from the store or after they've been shipped by freight.
Very easy to do.....just take the neck off your bass guitar and hammer out the truss rod with a really skinny screwdriver.

Once the truss rod is sticking out of the neck, use ViceGrips and just keep working it until it comes free.

If it still won't come, try heating it up with a blow-torch ....
You may also need to give the other end of the neck a few really good sharp bangs with a hammer.

Spraying Penetrating Oil down the truss rod hole helps a lot if done the night before.

Before you start the above , take the neck and give it a few good whacks horizontally on a hard surface , being careful that the metal fret inserts don't fall out.

That hurt my brian reeding it.....Brain?.....Yes,...Hert it,you.

 

[zontar]

That hurt my brian reeding it.....Brain?.....Yes,...Hert it,you.

You can't hurt a bass player's brain.

 

[Hues]

You can't hurt a bass player's brain.

I must admit I'm not just a bass player.....I play Kazoo and the Vibraslap as well.

So I have that goin for me,which is nice.

 

[shadowtippy]

Truss rods are installed in bass guitars to keep the neck straight during shipping and should be removed immediately upon getting them home from the store or after they've been shipped by freight.
Very easy to do.....just take the neck off your bass guitar and hammer out the truss rod with a really skinny screwdriver.

Once the truss rod is sticking out of the neck, use ViceGrips and just keep working it until it comes free.

If it still won't come, try heating it up with a blow-torch ....
You may also need to give the other end of the neck a few really good sharp bangs with a hammer.

Spraying Penetrating Oil down the truss rod hole helps a lot if done the night before.

Before you start the above , take the neck and give it a few good whacks horizontally on a hard surface , being careful that the metal fret inserts don't fall out.

Thanks for this post. I had been loosening the truss rod all the way but was getting "rattle" in the neck. Now I know the proper way to do this simple, effective procedure.

 

[ZenG]

...and let's not forget "seasoning"...

While you have your bass apart, take the body and bake it in the oven @ 245 degrees for approximately 5 hours.
This is a major factor in producing "warm" sound.

At the same time , take all the strings that came with it except the E string and throw them away.

What you want is E strings across the board.

Order three more E strings. Restring the bass with these and the one you kept. You want the fattest sound possible and this is the ticket to getting it. (if you play a 5 or 6 string, same story.......E strings all the way).

Of course there'll be a necessary string-height adjustment.

Forget what you've been told on the forums..you want the strings as high as possible. You should be able to slide a one-inch block of wood under all of the strings at the 12th fret if set up properly.

Install spacers under the pickups so that you can raise the pickup magnets to within 1/64th.inch of the strings.

Gives you growl and distortion like you wouldn't believe......no need for expensive pedals and boxes.

Forget about intonation. No two people hear a note exactly the same way anyway so why would you bother?

This may all seem like an inordinate amount of work......but we're talking pro Bass here and if you want to reach the top of the foodchain you just can't get by with an out-of-the-box store-bought bass.

 

[Deleted member 264575]

...and let's not forget "seasoning"...

While you have your bass apart, take the body and bake it in the oven @ 245 degrees for approximately 5 hours.
This is a major factor in producing "warm" sound.

At the same time , take all the strings that came with it except the E string and throw them away.

What you want is E strings across the board.

Order three more E strings. Restring the bass with these and the one you kept. You want the fattest sound possible and this is the ticket to getting it. (if you play a 5 or 6 string, same story.......E strings all the way).

Of course there'll be a necessary string-height adjustment.

Forget what you've been told on the forums..you want the strings as high as possible. You should be able to slide a one-inch block of wood under all of the strings at the 12th fret if set up properly.

Install spacers under the pickups so that you can raise the pickup magnets to within 1/64th.inch of the strings.

Gives you growl and distortion like you wouldn't believe......no need for expensive pedals and boxes.

Forget about intonation. No two people hear a note exactly the same way anyway so why would you bother?

This may all seem like an inordinate amount of work......but we're talking pro Bass here and if you want to reach the top of the foodchain you just can't get by with an out-of-the-box store-bought bass.

He's right. I just had my 5 string strung with all E strings. I'm rewiring my Moog bass pedals, so each pedal plays an E, as well. The double neck I'm having built is all E's, on both necks. Yeah, both necks will sound identical, but it will LOOK awesome!!!! Gotta impress the fans, that's really what good bass playing is about!

 

[Hues]

I remember sanity....Or do I?

E....E,E,E,...E.

 

[ZenG]

For those of you new to the game and just coming up:-

The One-Note/One Finger system is the best playing technique there is.

It may surprise you that there is absolutely no need for more than one note per measure.

Less is more.

One sustained note per measure with one finger (Index) and you're golden.

On rare occasions, two notes per measure might be required.......but that's usually in the domain of Jazz and not your cup of tea so-to-speak.

One note , handled effectively, will put you in the realm of "legend".

To get an idea of how effective this style can be, go to YouTube and watch how B.B. King plays his guitar. No fancy mish-mosh of chords or redundant arpeggios or anything else that people are sick and tired of hearing.......just one note played sweetly and with hubris, inserted at the point of greatest need.

But of course, you are the bass player and deemed "keeper of the rhythm" (drummer not withstanding.......but nobody in a band cares what the drummer is doing....he's off in his own little world), so it's up to you to set the bar.

To get everybody except the drummer on the same page, you need to keep the bass rhythm line simple.........throw too many notes at them and they quickly get confused.

One sustained whole-note per measure will do it. One finger, one fret.

Record sales have plummeted in the last few years due to the slap-style of bass currently enjoying a lengthy popularity. Buyers are staying away in droves thanks to this never-ending 'slap" nonsense.

See your future, be your future...........and bring bass playing back to the hallowed level it once enjoyed.......

 

[Deleted member 264575]

For those of you new to the game and just coming up:-
The One-Note/One Finger system is the best playing technique there is.

Sound advice also echoed by none other than Big Ticket "Num Nums' Jefferson in 1761. Have a listen to the original recording of " Jus' Gimme Mamma's Chitlin's". One note, One love, man.

 

[ZenG]

Ever wonder what the real reason is that 85% of all STAGE rockbands never make it and end up going their separate ways?

You'd better sit down.....the answer will have you reeling in stunned disbelief....

The answer is:-



No CONDUCTOR.

There .....the cat's out of the bag now......

Imagine the real heights the Ramones would have achieved if they'd had a conductor on stage, for example.

Ditto for all the other bands that have disappeared into the anals of history.

Sometimes we have to "take the long way home" before we accidentally bump into our true calling in life.....

I know...I know....you've played every instrument, failed at them all because they "just didn't feel right".

Congratulations.........you have arrived. You are ready to be a Conductor.

Being a good Conductor is not easy, however....don't take it lightly. The rockbands of the world need good Conductors.

A good onstage rockband Conductor should really have a grasp of how to navigate while wearing inline rollerskates.

Rock players have a tendency to move around the stage quickly and you want to make sure you're seen but not getting in their way.

If you become a session Conductor you won't need the skates........but be prepared to stop in the middle of songs when interrupted by the producer (happens frequently).

You cannot make the crossover from bus Conductor to musical Conductor.........two entirely different jobs.

 

[ZenG]

Most older bass players sometimes feel embarrassment on stage because they feel they aren't connecting with the younger generation.
They think that young people see them as "hasbeens".

The single thing that can instantly cure you of this is pictured below:-

 

[ZenG]

Sometimes as an older bass player you need a gimmick to give you an edge on stage....

The Tin Man costume works every time.....

 

[ZenG]

KISS actually used a Conductor at one concert in the early 80's.....

This picture captured him goodnaturedly saying "I know what you did right there" to Gene Simmons....

 

[the harp unstrung]

The difference between an mule and a Symphony Orchestra?
The mule has an Azzhole in the back...

 

[ZenG]

Another band that used a Conductor for a concert once was YES.

This picture of the Conductor was taken at the concert during one of Rick Wakeman's solos..........

 

[Neon Blues]

The more strings your bass has, the better you sound.

 

[zontar]

Conductors are people who lead the music on a train.

 

[Tom Bomb]

The humble note, A, is the world's number one, greatest, smartest, most successful note, indicated clearly by its rank. It follows therefore, and this is well worth remembering, that songs written in A have the greatest proclivity to become number 1 hits.

 

[pklima]

songs written in A have the greatest proclivity to become number 1 hits.

If we're talking about number 1 on the Beatport charts, I'm sure this is not misinformation but completely true. Though it needs to be A minor, not A major.

 

[Tom Bomb]

If we're talking about number 1 on the Beat Poet charts, … Though it needs to be A minor, not A major.

Fixed that.

And, you're dead right - thanks for pointing this out - but, in this matter, some caution must be exercised; with most hits, in most regions, A minor must always be accompanied by A adult.

And, although it's not guaranteed, surprisingly enough, A major can easily produce huge hits but you must never get on the wrong side of him, or her, as you'll soon find your A diminished, good and proper . This, sure as you're born, will produce an entirely different kind of hit, most likely getting into the realms of hard bop.