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Stoner/Doom Bassists Thread, Part 90: Maxed Out
- Thread starter Korladis
- Start date
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I would argue that I’m not a very good Las Vegas person either as I’m kind of a cheapskate when I go…
I don’t gamble much myself (it’s just too stressful when money doesn’t come very easily for me)…
I think the highlight of my gambling “career “ was the day I won $140 or $160 off of The Simpsons slot machine (won $50 at another casino playing the same game with my sister on a different trip )…
Lol-I think I was more interested in the actual animation I think than the game itself…Winning that much made me feel like I hit the lottery or something (cashed out immediately and went and bought a pair of running shoes with my winnings). Beyond dropping maybe $100 on slots occasionally that’s about all I gamble…
Drinking there is dirt cheap if you plan…
We were at Planet Hollywood one year and I made the mistake of ordering a martini or two off of the hotel bar in the casino…I wanna say it was something ridiculous like $50 for 2 drinks (for some reason I wanna say it was $30 for one double vodka martini, but even all these years later I feel like that may be a bit too high)…
Needless to say every time I’ve gone since then (I think that was circa 2014?) I always make it a point to buy my booze from CVS or Walgreens bc you can usually get pretty cheap beer and relatively cheap hard liquor and since there’s no open container law it doesn’t matter where you acquire your booze from…
And BOY do I LOVE going now that it’s legal…
That particular product is WAY overpriced there compared to where I live, but it just makes it that much more fun…
Also-I completely concur about the food comment…
What’s odd is that I tend to eat relatively healthy when I go and there’s tons of cheap good food if you know where to look…Also-With all that walking it’s also nice to go on vacation and either not gain or lose weight…
Admittedly I did like it when you saw things like $2.99 prime rib in downtown in the 90s and early 00s…
Granted, I’m not advocating for the mob to run things again, but I feel like you could do Vegas on the cheap s lot easier before they built City Center…
It’s also just a fun place to gawk at other people…
Some good eye candy and inevitably you see some really bizarre things on occasion…
All of my tattoos were acquired in that town so um…Yeah, that city has taken a decent chunk of my salary especially the last half decade or so, but I still love going even as many times as I’ve gone…
I am also a pretty lame party person-I usually end up getting blasted and sleeping a whole lot while I’m there so I’m pretty sure that qualifies me as “lame” for that town, but I don’t care bc I always have a blast when I go…
Thanks! \m/
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(*bump*)
Has anyone else used the SH77 flats for strings???
My P should be coming in two days or so and this comment has me kinda worried they are gonna put too much stress on the neck if I tune to E based on this comment…
Granted I did read some reviews where they complained they had to adjust the truss rod to make them more playable, but reading that quote stressed me out…
I mean I suppose I can always look for another set of flats, but hopefully I didn’t screw up picking those strings (I like heavy gauge strings and I’m already play .110s even though they are rounds)…
I do plan on taking my new Bass to a luthier for a setup and a restring in the not too distant future, so hopefully they can help me out there…
In the meantime I’d be curious to know if anyone else here has played .110 flats tuned to E and found that setup unplayable/difficult…My hands are pretty large and moderately strong so it’s not something I had really considered as a potential problem…
Thanks! \m/
The first flats I put on my MiM were the RS77LD. I think (!) they are similiar to Steve's set. They are lighter but still have a somewhat high tension/stiffness.
The thing is that my MiM' just couldn't take it. Don't get me wrong, it didn't turn into a crazy bow, but I found it Impossible to do a setup according to Sender's specs. I straightened the neck sooo many times and the following day it was as before. As I said, not crazy off, but uncomfortable for me to play.
So I did some research on flats concerning tension and sound and finally got the Chromes. And voilá, i can setup my Bass perfectly now and the neck stays that was.
Things to consider for you: Not all necks are created equal and my bass has a maple neck, which your's doesn't. I have heard that some MiM basses have truss rod issues and I have learned the most annoying way, that mine doesn't like a certain string tension.
Just keep in mind that you don't have to use the manliest thickest Harris-approved strings because your new bass might not like them. Chromes are fine.
The thing is that my MiM' just couldn't take it. Don't get me wrong, it didn't turn into a crazy bow, but I found it Impossible to do a setup according to Sender's specs. I straightened the neck sooo many times and the following day it was as before. As I said, not crazy off, but uncomfortable for me to play.
So I did some research on flats concerning tension and sound and finally got the Chromes. And voilá, i can setup my Bass perfectly now and the neck stays that was.
Things to consider for you: Not all necks are created equal and my bass has a maple neck, which your's doesn't. I have heard that some MiM basses have truss rod issues and I have learned the most annoying way, that mine doesn't like a certain string tension.
Just keep in mind that you don't have to use the manliest thickest Harris-approved strings because your new bass might not like them. Chromes are fine.
Never used em myself, but yeah they are real high tension from what I've heard. Now they could just be stiff as hell (flats typically are more stiff at same tension as an equally thick round wound) and that people are calling them higher tension, but I don't know.
Does Steve tune to E? Do you have reservations of tuning to Eb or D standard? For whatever reason, Eb is a ton of fun. It gains a lot of the heft that drop tunings have, loosens tension a little without going floppy, and doesn't throw your head off too much with the fretboard. D does the same for me, but having that open Eb is awesome IMO.
I did that for a short bit, and although it was great, obscure blues and classic rock, the hang was great and expectations were low. In fact I got to try a lot of stuff as long as I kept it from being too crazy. I actually learned a lot and got better on the fretboard because of the repetitiveness allowing exploration.
Between that stuff and hired gun gigs, I feel like I almost get better from learning that stuff. At the least I always seem to learn something new.
On a side note, not sure if I posted this before, but I'm a believer for RCO pedals. The guy's legit. Recently took a chance on the Black Ash clone (Carbon), and he delivered in spades. With my eyes closed and stomping both it and my original at the same time to switch back and forth, I couldn't even tell which was which. Furthermore, the slight voicing difference I could sometimes, sometimes hear, would never be noticeable by anyone in a mix. I sure as hell wouldn't notice. Feel and everything else was identical. The best comparison would be how close the waza HM-2 and original sound in the comparison videos. Anyway, for $75 compared to $350, it's a no brainer. So much so, that my Ash is already gone...
The other, MT-X, an Ibanez 10 series mostortion clone is damn good too. The build quality is great, so glad I took a chance with Ryan's work, totally worth it. He's quick to respond and he's offered putting together custom requests too. Can't recommend enough to anyone looking for something on the budget or rare.
Totally serious. Hands up in the open claw position sideways shuffle, and the Three Stoogian "Woop woop woop".
Can't help you because I wouldn't even try that. I like lower tension and I think I have a softer than average touch with my plucking hand (though I don't know of any way to objectively determine that). A .110 E string, particularly with flats, is not something I'd be likely to go anywhere near. Even on my Mikro the E string is a .105 round. That said, vive la difference! You've got very little to lose by giving it a try.
First practice for my band in what seems like a month of Sundays. It felt better than I anticipated to play through my full rig with my band. Even though we'd be on the fringes of stoner/doom or metal, at best (to be honest, we're heavy rock with just a touch of doom) I felt fulfilled.
I've confirmed that my singer has just decided to give me his run-over pedals for me to fix and keep. Heck, the lead guitarist gave me a point-to-point wired trem in a plain silver box that someone made that he didn't like tonight. I also brought home the singer's Earthquaker Avalanche Run, because he was having issues with it. So I get a lot of fun for free. Damn, I'm going to buy my singer a replacement Earthquaker Levitation.
It's been a game of phone tag to buy that pedal steel I want (basically need at this point, he knows how to play hard to get). I'll make another stab at calling him tomorrow.
I've confirmed that my singer has just decided to give me his run-over pedals for me to fix and keep. Heck, the lead guitarist gave me a point-to-point wired trem in a plain silver box that someone made that he didn't like tonight. I also brought home the singer's Earthquaker Avalanche Run, because he was having issues with it. So I get a lot of fun for free. Damn, I'm going to buy my singer a replacement Earthquaker Levitation.
It's been a game of phone tag to buy that pedal steel I want (basically need at this point, he knows how to play hard to get). I'll make another stab at calling him tomorrow.
I loved them for about a week.
I prefer super stiff strings so that wasn't a problem.
They were clanky and gnarly and awesome, sound just like Iron Maiden.
Then they died and lost ALL overtones and sounded like some thumpy garbage.
Apparently Steve Harris puts a fresh set on before every show, and I believe it.
Chromes got me in the same ballpark, but last much much longer. Just get a heavier gauge if you really want the stiffness.
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Thanks for your response…
No, I’m not opposed to tuning to Eb or D (Hell the whole point of playing the bass IMO is to “get low”)…
And Yes-I do currently tune to E standard especially since I’m still pretty new to bass, but a lot of music I like is down tuned…
I’m just sorta surprised that they are gonna be that stiff in E, but suppose that is good information to know in advance…
I mean…Hey-They are stings, I can always replace them for a few dollars more if I don’t like them…
I also didn’t know that flats were stiffer than rounds (although that would possibly explain why I didn’t see a lot .110 gauge flats when I was shopping if that’s the case)…
Will keep what was said here in mind about Chromes as they seem to get a lot of love…
I also kicked around a set of DR DDTs…
After playing the DR Black Beauties the last year I’m guessing a lot of things are gonna feel like an adjustment so I can always try other strings if need be…
I have also read that flats are a bit more comfortable to play than rounds (pretty sure I asked something along those lines in this thread a few pages back)…Every now and then I wish that my strings didn’t feel quite so “pointy” (for lack of a better word)…
I feel like I have decent callouses under my finger tips at this point so it’s something I seldom think about, but sometimes I feel like I miss a note if I don’t fret the string at the correct angle…
Granted, I’m not expecting that much of a difference by switching to flats, I’m just saying my accuracy could be a bit better on rounds sometimes…
I actually like the DR Black Beauties a lot, but sometimes the coated strings feel a bit weird so I’m ready to try something new…Whether that’s the Harris strings or something else I wasn’t really planning on putting another set of Black Beauties on my new bass since my other two basses have them…
Meanwhile I’m hoping my new toy is arriving tomorrow or Thursday…
Random Funny story-Sweetwater was sold out of a P case so I ordered one thru GC…
I spent about 20 mins thinking they had shipped me a case that somehow locked in transit with no key…Tore the f-ing box apart looking for a key
Called customer support and got a hold of someone who clearly did not use English as a first language…They tried to convince me I needed to buy a key so they could ship it to me…
Was about to march into my local GC and demand Satisfaction, but thank God I Googled that question and found this video (hey the Internet CAN be useful sometimes):
Turns out the key was in fact inside the case once I figured out how to work the spring latch (that’s kind of a weird design IMO, but whatever…A 3” piece of paper accompanying the case that tells you to slide the spring latch would’ve been nice…
Felt a bit foolish after that, but it beat wasting an hour of my life driving over to the store and back over something so minor…(Admittedly I did feel better when I considered that my spouse couldn’t figure out how to work the latch either and she’s a LOT smarter than myself)…
So the lesson here is-When in doubt ask for help…
Also, thanks Google-Sure, you spy on me and probably almost every other person on the planet 24/7 and you’re probably going to become sentient like SkyNet at some point, but I did appreciate the assist on that one…
Hopefully that case won’t be empty much longer…
Thanks! \m/
First time I encountered a case like that me AND the drummer spent the better part of 30 minutes trying to figure out how to open it before the guitar player showed up and proceeded to laugh his ass off at us.
I used to get really bent out of shape over little things like that, but I've learned in my old age that I'm not as smart as I like to think and there's usually a reason why things are the way they are. More than once I've showed up at a store, slammed something on the counter, and huffed and puffed about how something doesn't work right, then this guy walks over and makes me feel like an idiot. Google and Youtube have saved me a ton of embarrassment in the last 15 years or so.
Hehehe, yeah. Flats are more comfy than rounds, by a long shot. I'm not sure why they wrap the larger strings with larger wire. I'm sure there's a very good physical reason they do so, but I'm not sure why it is.
Hehehe, I'm fed and clothed by tech. Those bastards at Google sometimes feed and clothe me when I forget something. I still look at them side-eyed and give them as little information as I can in return.
Oh, and I'm sure that this is probably not the most useful information in the world, but I figure the Fender latch design was due to the same design being very popular on luggage in the 50s-60s in the Estados Unidos.
I don't know where I saw that sort of latch, but I recognized it as one that slides. Maybe my parents' old luggage growing up? I don't know. It's odd, but hey, whatever works.
This week I'm on break from work. I actually get to play some bass! Been nice. Wish I could do this more regularly. Gonna try and learn some stuff while I can, and maybe try and exercise.
This week I'm on break from work. I actually get to play some bass! Been nice. Wish I could do this more regularly. Gonna try and learn some stuff while I can, and maybe try and exercise.
