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Double Bass The Alsatian Queen Rises from the Dead

#23
Unk, do you know if thats the same bass Steve played on the Jim Hall sides? If it is, I think I have VHS video of them playing in a workshop type setting. Just Jim and Steve. It's in storage right now....I'll go dig around for it and try to copy it for you.
I remember he had a mic wrapped in a towel under the bridge and it sounded just beautful.
 
#28
Paul Warburton said:
Unk, do you know if thats the same bass Steve played on the Jim Hall sides? If it is, I think I have VHS video of them playing in a workshop type setting. Just Jim and Steve. It's in storage right now....I'll go dig around for it and try to copy it for you.
I remember he had a mic wrapped in a towel under the bridge and it sounded just beautful.
Click to expand...
Steve said he got the bass just before he went in to do "These Rooms" released in 1988. He used it as his main bass through 2002 or 2003 when he sold it. I would love to see that tape.
 
#30
Uncletoad said:
I was afraid of the changes before they were made. I didn’t want to lose the bass I had come to love; that character that made me want it in the first place. The good news is that all the old stuff is still there plus more. It’s just a better bass overall. It’s still easy to amplify, and now it’s much easier to play and significantly more sturdy.
Click to expand...

Hey Phil, that's a great ad line for Nnick right there! :D Glad you got your baby back.
 
#31
I had similar experience with work done to my "Schroetter" by Arnold Schnitzer.

The bass was always loud and projected but it felt kind of choked, didn't go that deep and the strings often felt too tense.

The bass went in for crack repairs, and even before Arnold had the top off he saw that the bass was way overbuilt. The seams were way to thick inside, as was the top and the bass bar was far too big. So, aside from fixing the cracks he offered to thin the top as well as put in a lighter bass bar.

The result was similar to yours. The bass is goes deeper and is more resonant. The string tension isn't as high. It's also more responsive. Where I used to hamfist the thing unamplified to make it bark out quarters over a drumset, it now takes a certain finesse in coaxing a deep, rich sound out of it. It still projects well, but is not quite as loud as it used to be. The tonal improvement was immediate and favorable.
 
#32
Paul Warburton said:
Unk, do you know if thats the same bass Steve played on the Jim Hall sides? If it is, I think I have VHS video of them playing in a workshop type setting. Just Jim and Steve. It's in storage right now....I'll go dig around for it and try to copy it for you.
I remember he had a mic wrapped in a towel under the bridge and it sounded just beautful.
Click to expand...

Yup, Steve talks a little bit about that in the liner notes to THESE ROOMS. I got to hear this bass a lot - Sweet Basil's, a concert at the New School, some Spanish joint on 6th Ave between 9th and 10th Streets - and got to thump on it a little when Steve was playing at the last place with Helen Merrill. It was Jim's rhythm section - Gil Goldstein, Steve and Terry Clarke.
 
#38
Records are cool. With the right table they kick the crap out of digi junk.

There are around 7,000 sides on that wall. Weighs like 1.5 tons. Thankfully it's sitting on a concrete floor over a dug foundation. Used to be a porch. Not anymore. Its My music room. Everybody stay the **** out.

...oh and there are 3000 more sides at the shop. My wife thinks I'm nuts. My employees love it.
 

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