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Double Bass Using Technology in the Shed (DB forum Thread)

#41
Several years ago I spent a buncha bread on a nice Korg M50 keyboard. Now all it does is collect dust. :hmm:

All my practicing is done through the iPhone - even recording. The audio it gets is bad but good in that it reveals all my bad intonation - the nice warmth and vibration just simply gets lost in the low quality. It's go Capo (or similar) so I can slow down memorizing track. The rest I do on my laptop - composition, arranging and transcription. Everything else is handled through apps.

No fancy speakers, nada. Just a psuedo-luddite approach.
 
#44
Lately, I've been using my Ipad quite a bit for going over tunes. There's something like 1,300 to 1,500 tunes to choose from. You can change BPM's and how many choruses you want to play. It's a no muss, no fuss way to go. If I want to record something for reference or practice, I've been using a Mac. It has some nice programs. Although I would like to get a good mic.
 
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#45
I use the iRealBook or whatever, write out of the crappy speakers. I wish that the Aebersold people would make a handy dandy app that would play, slowdown, what have you, and sell the tracks a la carte from within the app.

I use this ear trainer thing on the train.

I should record myself, but I don't have the patience to listen back.

I understand the value of hearing myself recorded, but I have to say that I am like that other guy... I get enough feedback from hearing myself live to keep busy. Plus I hear stuff my teacher told me running through my head constantly. I think when my playing becomes more accomplished and I start enjoying myself a lot more, it will be time to employ greater objectivity so I don't get a big head and relax.
 
#47
iRealb on my Android phone. For those not familiar, it's basically a BIAB "lite" combined with chord-only realbook charts. Actually I think, like a lot of us judging by other threads, this damn phone is working it's way more and more into my practice sessions. Besides iRealb, I use Cleartune for drones, a metronome app, ASC pro for tune-learning (or sometimes the stock mp3 player) and as a recorder it does pretty well to get rehearsals on tape. I listen to myself fairly accurately while rehearsing, I like to think, but there is sometimes a different mix on the recording and it's good to hear things and make judgements are the fact.
As a nice bonus, the thing actually makes phone calls too! ;)
 
#52
My iPad is one f the best purchases I've ever made. A lot of music tools. Anyone that has one should check out Stuart Clayton's books. He has iPad versions that are awesome. I'm going through his sight reading series, and its cool because the listening examples are right at my finger tips without having to fiddle with a secondary device. Get one of those recharging speaker stands and you're set.
 
#53
A lot of my students are using the Amazing Slow Downer for iPad, so I got it and just used it for grading a bunch of transcriptions. This app is great, and the interface is about perfect. A lot of students were also using it to practice playing along with the tunes they transcribed but can't play up to speed yet, and it worked great for that. i may try to load some cello suite performances in and play along to see what that feels like. Really useful app!
 
#54
Chris Fitzgerald said:
A lot of my student are using the Amazing Slow Downer for iPad, so I got it and just used it for grading a bunch of transcriptions. This app is great, and the interface is about perfect. A lot of students were also using it to practice playing along with the tunes they transcribed but can't play up to speed yet, and it worked great for that. i may try to load some cello suite performances in and play along to see what that feels like. Really useful app!
Click to expand...
Chris, give, Transcibe! from Seventh String Software a try. I've used it for many years for transcribing and find it does everything I need plus much more. $50, so you know the developer isn't in it for the money.
 
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#55
I use a little 5 channel mixer into a Tascam DR40 recorder.

I put my iphone/cd player into 2 channels and the bass into another, pan them for separation and I'm done.

I recorded myself playing along to Rush's Limelight and Red Barchetta and Marvin Gaye's What's Going On (who are we kidding, it's James Jamerson's song).

I played it to my ex keys player, he kept aslking if that was really me playing the bass hehe, I must admit I impressed myself, half a year ago I couldn't get halfway through a Rush song before cramping up
 
#56
Tom Lane said:
Chris, give, Transcibe! from Seventh String Software a try. I've used it for many years for transcribing and find it does everything I need plus much more. $50, so you know the developer isn't in it for the money.
Click to expand...

I used to use this and liked it a lot. But now with the iPad, there are a lot of possibilities that I don't even know about. When I got a load of the ASD app from watching a student use it, I just downloaded it on the spot. I'd love to hear about other great musically useful apps for IOS as well. Right now I'm mostly using Metronomics, Drumgenius, and now the ASD app, but I'm sure there are a ton of other useful ones. I'd be interested to learn more about recording/mixing on the iPad and other ways to use it.
 
#58
Chris Fitzgerald said:
Lately I've been using my home recording gear to help me practice, and I'm really enjoying the process a lot more than practicing alone. It doesn't take a whole lot of gear to add a lot of flexibility and options to the old practice routine, and I'm finding myself getting more inspired by the variety I can get by just what's in my music room.
Click to expand...

My dirty little (not so) secret is that I've never liked to practice and therefore rarely touch my bass except when being paid to do so (Yeah, I know.....)

However, after my 25 year hiatus and getting back into playing in a pretty big way (2-3 nights a week) I have made an early New Years Resolution: I am going to learn how to practice and I AM GOING TO DO IT THIS YEAR. At age 63 I am REALLY hoping that you can teach old dogs new tricks.

Anyway, what I really want to work on is my soloing. I just set up Band In A Box on my laptop, running into a little TASCAM recorder in one channel. I then run my upright into my Headway EDB-2 and from there into the other channel of the recorder and listen in on headphones.

For soloing practice it works really well to just mute the melody and I can solo away to my hearts content, all the while staying perfectly in-time and 'almost' perfectly in tune

Practice Rig 2.jpg
Practice Rig and Bass.jpg
 
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#59
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As the technology keeps getting better, so does the experience of using it to practice. Now running Logic Pro X and Final Cut Pro X, both of which are absolutely wonderful. When I get in a zone working on something new - a tune, something from the video series, etc. - the technology helps me do things more efficiently and forces me to assess things about my playing I might have otherwise missed.

I also can't say enough good things about the Drumgenius app, which is an absolute joy to work with.
 
#60
Newer revisions to iRealB have been impressive in the playalong dept. I've been using it more and more for reviewing tunes and playing them in different styles and wide ranging tempos.

Drumgenius is just amazing. I'm not so much using it for jazz loops but for other styles (Baiao, Reggae, Straight 8ths). So good to be able to work effectively on staying in the pocket.

Also, I kinda stopped taking lessons and am able to get so much material to practice through MikesMasterClasses, MyMusicMasterclass, Jazz Heaven, and Youtube. Soooo much material!
 
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