Alembic Guitars Club
Connecting => Miscellaneous => Topic started by: hieronymous on April 03, 2012, 10:52:12 AM
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I like the Alembic Activators in my Telembic Bass (http://alembic.com/club/messages/393/53032.html target=_blank) so much, when I got a new Fender Japan Precision Bass last year, in the back of my mind I had plans to do the same. Through the club I located a set, but they were P-J so I had to get it routed (by SF Guitarworks (http://sfguitarworks.com/ target=_blank)). Just got it back yesterday!
(http://alembic.com/club/messages/393/127867.jpg)
I've only tried it out through my Cafe Walter headphone amp - I was freaking out at first, I thought there was something wrong with the controls - couldn't get zero volume! Couldn't figure out which was volume and which was blend. Finally realized - this is an older set when they still did volume/volume/filter. Whew! I'm pretty psyched actually - I don't really like blend controls, I prefer the separate volumes for each pickup. Gonna have to get used to only one filter control though!
Anyway, it sounds great now that I know what I'm doing. I'll try to do some recording at some point. And I plan on bringing it to the upcoming SF Bay Area Gathering!
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hieronymous..beat you to it by about 17 years, P bass with Baddass II, P/J with twin vol, bass & treble controls(now discontinued electronics package)
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/127882.jpg)
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Nice! I went digging for Activator threads and you talking about what must have been this bass - nice to see a picture!
I actually have a Badass II lying around, I'm kind of regretting not having it installed when they did the other work. But I like the way the standard bridge works too.
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Harry ,
Very nice ! If you decide to change the bridge perhaps you might consider A Schaller roller bridge http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bridges,_tailpieces/Bass_bridges/Schaller_4-String_Roller_Bass_Bridge.html (http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bridges%2C_tailpieces/Bass_bridges/Schaller_4-String_Roller_Bass_Bridge.html)
I have one on two instruments and it is my favorite non Alembic bridge.
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Thanks Wolf! Here's another pic:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/127895.jpg)
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hieronymous, the Baddass should screw into the original holes, just measure the saddle distance on the fender bridge and copy over to the Baddass(which I did) and the intonation should be fine.
It is an easy installation.
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Last year I redid a Fender of Japan Jazz as a player's bass with an Audere JZ3 pre, brass nut and put on a Hipshot bridge - it screws directly into the Fender mounting holes, is easy to adjust, locks down and is vastly more solid and sustain-y than the flimsy Fender bridge. It's a hell of a bass, though it ain't my Signature Standard.
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Sounds interesting - can we see some pics? It would be cool if there was an Activator section in the Showcase...
I actually like the stock bridge - for the longest time I had Badasses on both my Fenders, but put on an old Fender Japan bridge from one of my earliest basses, and it worked great (this is on the Telembic). The main reason I would put a Badass on this one is a) to complete the classic '70s look and b) because I have one lying around. For a while there they went out of production - thought about selling it, but I think I'll hang onto it for now.
Here's a full-body shot - I'm thinking (witch)hat knobs - what do y'all think?
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/127963.jpg)
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What a great looking tuxedo bass. I have developed an opinion, over the last 6 or 7 years, that if I had to identify one single aspect of Alembic instruments that really distinguishes them in my mind/ear/aesthetic, it's the electronics, (pickups and preamps/filters). There are at least a few luthiers I have encountered, who can do sublime things with wood. They usually end up putting in third party electronics, maybe very nice stuff, but nothing that stands out like the Alembic sound. Even a guy like Jens Ritter, who I believe makes his own pups and pre's, creates a nice clean, pungent sound, but it could just as easily be Nortstrand, Duncan, Delano, or Bartolini. That's why I'm a huge fan of putting Alembic activators in other instruments.
So, I'm on vacation this week and I have the house to myself for a few days. This morning, I went to fetch my big rig that had been exiled from the home recently, set it up, and just before I came online to visit the club, a rang out my rig with this...........
(http://[url=http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll349/jbybj/bass%20collection/DSCF4984.jpg]http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll349/jbybj/bass%20collection/DSCF4984.jpg[/url])
It is a 1987 Japanese Fender, that John Carruthers put EMG's in, 25 years ago. I got it as a Birthday gift from my wife last year. Now it sports an Alembic P/J set with VVF. It's a great setup indeed.
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That's simply the best combination for a Fender bass. That P-pickup fatness with as much articulation faded in from the J just gives you such a huge pallet to work from, and to do it with Activators is just the best. That P-Activator will pull satellites out of Low Earth Orbit, and as long as you DON'T put that J against the bridge (!), it's great, especially as it's stacked and quiet.
And, oh yes, the Japanese Fenders are my-t-fine !
http://www.fenderjapan.co.jp/products.html (http://www.fenderjapan.co.jp/products.html)
J o e y
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jbybj, are those the Activators in the picture? Did the logos rub off or did you remove them? I didn't think I would like them on my white bass (gold lettering vs. chrome hardware) but it looks much better than I expected.
I see you're in SoCal - you should come up to the SF Bay Area on the 22nd for the Gathering!
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J o e y - that is a great description of the P-J setup! I kind of can't believe that in my almost thirty years of bass playing this is my first bass with that combination!
Some of my best early basses were Fender Japan - I was living in Tokyo at the time as a teenager, the yen rate was good, I had a part time job - you could get some nice stuff for not too much money. I'm going to try and get a shot of all my current ones one of these days!
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jbybj, are those the Activators in the picture?
No, those are the EMG's that were in it when it was given to me. I haven't photographed the bass since I put in the Alembic activators. Whenever I grab it I just wanna play it...... :-)
A gathering sounds fun, but on the 22nd I will be at some hippy gathering in the desert, just me, 100 bands, and 90,000 friends. I tried to spark an L.A. gathering a couple of years ago, but it never happened. Tomorrow though, I am having a mini gathering. Rusty is in town and will be coming to visit my basses, I mean me. It's a rare Saturday in that my wife and daughter are out of town, so the house is MINE, ALL MINE!
The timing is good too, because the Europa has been out of rotation for too long. Out of it's case and on to a stand.
(Message edited by jbybj on April 06, 2012)
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Got to play this bass a bit during the recent Alembic Northern California Gathering (http://club.alembic.com/index.php?topic=9797). It was an honor to get to watch and listen to some amazing players put this baby through its paces (Victor, Nate & Kimberly you know who you are!). It was nice to play it through a sweet rig too!
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/129561.jpg)
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James, I just came across this post tonight mentioning my visit, so I thought I would take the time to thank you again for your hospitality & allowing me to not only see your incredible collection of basses, but also play many of them! I will also mention that you made a sale for the Mothership, today I ordered a SF-2!
On a side note, Shane found a condo in the Palms across from Sony, so y'all will be neighbors in a couple of weeks! Thanks for your help & suggestions with the apartment search! Alembic owners are the finest people on the planet!
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Hey Rusty, speaking of your visit. That evening I went across the street to my friends house for dinner gathering. My buddy Bruce told me that his 18 year old son had commented on how I had been playing some awesome riffs earlier in the day. Really cool stuff he said........... Then I had to tell Bruce that it wasn't me, but my visiting Alembic cohort. His son hears me playing all the time. It was the first time he ever commented about my playing.. :-)
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Hey James, that is too funny! Tell him I appreciate the compliments! :-)
Harry, sorry about hijacking your thread! Your AlFembic is awesome! I'm thinking about getting some activators for my 62 reissue Jazz Bass.
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No problem Rusty! I was wondering if you posted in the right thread...
Anyway, it gives me the chance to post another picture, this time Nate playing the bass - look at him thwacking that thing!
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/129632.jpg)
By the way, I think it was Victor & Mica that came up with the AlFemBic name for this one - what an honor!
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That's a cool name! I replied to James' posting here because he mentioned my visit to his house. Sorry for the sidetrack! :-)
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At last - video of Nate thwacking this bass (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_T2h00DR5Q target=_blank)!!! (video is unlisted, only this link will take you there)
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While I'm at it, the amp/speaker combo was Nate's GK MB800 (http://www.gallien-krueger.com/preview2011.html target=_blank) through a AudioKinesis Thunderchild 112 (http://www.audiokinesis.com/product_ak_thunderchild112.html target=_blank) - you can see it in the picture of me on the left - tiny package with amazing punch and sound!
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OK I'm in. Here is my 77 Jazz AlFemBic
slawie
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/129839.jpg)
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Nice! Do you still use it? I bet it sounds awesome!
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I am currently playing in a 70's cover band.
I use the Jazz bass as a backup only.
I use my Alembic as the main bass everyone
Loves the fretless' tone that I cannot match
With the Jazz bass.
slawie
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Just a heads-up everyone, it looks like the white basses in this series (Classic) are no longer being made in Japan, they have switched over to Mexico. I had noticed on the Sweetwater website that the white one wasn't available, then they were again, but I noticed the serial number looked different. Sweetwater has a nice feature where they often have pictures of the actual instrument in stock, and saw that the serial number was no longer at the base of the neck where they usually are on MIJ stuff - instead, it's on the back of the headstock now.
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This is my Lefty fretless warmoth with 2 P activators, two filters and two vol pots.
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Wow - mono or stereo output?
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Mono summed. It started with Bartolinis, then EMGs and then I got the P Activators for it. The Barts sounded terrible, and the EMGs didn't work well either, I think I had the pickup routes an inch too far away from the bridge for those to work well - they sounded overly bassy. The Activators have the clarity to counter that and they work well.
Here is my Fly bass based on the Parker guitar shape rather than the bass shape. Self made. 2 activator Js, one filter. Neutrik socket. (Yes you can do a mod to the circuit to use these). Not a Fender I know but it sounds better than two Fender Js I have (one with EMGs and one with Willi Stitch pickups). The mini switch controls the LEDs in the neck side dots. Stainless steel washer under the Neutrik was due to some wood damage from a gig. Very light and not proper J spacing but I like it.
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/131364.jpg)
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Don't know what happened to the pic of my warmoth so here it is again(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/131462.jpg)
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Just spent a little bit of time with my Alfembic - I recently picked up a GK MB-112-II (http://www.gallien-krueger.com/products/combos/ target=_blank) as a practice amp, and was using the headphone output. Sounded nice! One thing I noticed was that when I was pulling on the E string really hard with my finger, I was getting some distortion. I started to get bummed out, but then I started experimenting, and it definitely only happens with the volume knob on the bass maxed. Gotta remember, active electronics, I don't have to max out the volume, I can keep it closer to the middle. Want to compare the output to some of my other (passive) basses and figure out where to set it to match them. The other bass I've been playing a lot is my '71 Guild M-85 II fretless with the Guild humbuckers - those seem to have very high output, though again I haven't gone about figuring out where they stand in relation to some of my other basses.
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These are too cool ! They are making me consider Activators for some of my other basses.
Interesting: a buddy of mine had a good friend who bought an Alembic I think in the late 70's/early 80's. He also had a Rickenbacker. So this guy's father got so angry that he spent so much on an Alembic that he pulled a Townshend on it and destroyed it ! The poor kid ended up gutting the bass and putting the parts into the remaining Rickenbacker. They were probably full sized soaps back then so routing had to be done.
Turned out to be one of the most amazing sounding basses EVER.
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Gee, can I get J-Activators in white?
I like this enough I'd be willing to play 4-string once in a while. I just LOVE Squiers.
J o e y
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Here's my "Fembic", 1991 Fender Prodigy:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/139305.jpg)
More recent picture:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/139306.jpg)
Vol, pan, filter + Q switch setup.
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My AlFemBic has a cousin:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/145075.jpg)
This is one of the Donald Duck Dunn signatures made only in 1998 - a limited edition of 200 or so. This one is going to stay stock - it seems to have survived in extremely good shape this past 14-15 years, so I'm going to keep it that way - strung with GHS flats, it's the perfect complement to the AlFemBic! (for which I still haven't picked up witch hat knobs)
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Finally pulled a recording of the AlFemBic!
http://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/aka-afb (http://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/aka-afb target=_blank)
P-pickup only, with the filter set pretty low. No science involved, just ended up there - I knew it was going to be set to a lower frequency because of the song, but it was set on the fly. Hard to believe it's round wounds! But that is part of the magic of the Activators. Maybe not what immediately jumps to mind as the typical Alembic sound (http://alembic.com/club/messages/393/149019.html?1359902972 target=_blank) but definitely one side of what Alembic electronics can do. I also put it through the F-2B after the fact - live I was just playing through my trusty CAJ tube compressor, and at one point I turn on the MXR M288 Bass Octave Deluxe (also turned on some distortion but didn't like how it sounded direct so filtered it out).
Compare to this version of the song (http://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/aka-pdh target=_blank) recorded with the Duck Dunn bass pictured above and also put through the F-2B with similar settings. This rehearsal is only the fourth time we've played together and already the sound is evolving as we figure things out and get used to each other.
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Quick (and crappy!) still from some video I shot of our last rehearsal when AKA AFB (http://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/aka-afb target=_blank) was recorded:
(http://alembic.com/club/messages/393/150160.jpg)
Considering picking up the Q switch for Activators (http://alembic.stores.yahoo.net/qforac.html target=_blank) - would really like the 0 dB boost option for the low end. Also still need to get some witchhat knobs so I can have a better visual of where my volumes and filter are set!
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It's been a few months, but I finally got witch hat knobs and the 3-position Q-switch, and even had them installed!
(http://alembic.com/club/messages/393/163529.jpg)
There's a (kind-of) funny story about the knobs - took it to someone I know to do the work and the knobs were jammed on there so hard he couldn't get them off! The shaft pulled out of the pot! It was like they were glued in there or something. One of the pots was damaged but it was a relatively cheap repair - I think about $8 for the pot - it looks like this is a pretty old set, since Mica said they haven't used these pots for a while.
Haven't had a chance to take it for a spin yet, but am looking forward to experimenting with the Q-switch - I want to see if I can get a sound close to my Duck Dunn strung with flats (the AlFemBic has rounds), while also being able to get this kind of sound too (filter wide open):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4aA6kerOA8 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4aA6kerOA8 target=_blank)
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hieronymous...when I installed my PJ set back in the 90's, the pot shafts were bigger then the P control knob I fitted which necessitated me drilling the knobs to a larger diameter so the set screw could pinch on shaft. Now I don't want to dis any guitar techs but were the original knobs forced onto the shafts of the Activator set up?
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Yep! The culprits didn't even have set-screws! I don't know what the guy was thinking. Oh well, it's fixed now!
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The knobs were actually GLUED on, Harry. Your tech was stunned as was I. I think the previous repair person had some push-on knobs and decided to enlist adhesive when he discovered the pots were smooth and not knurled.
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I've been on the fence about sticking Alembic electronics in a Fender Jazz.
What is the tonal experience one achieves from this exercise? Is it more like a Fender on steroids or does it lean much more towards an Alembic tone?
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hieronymous--the bloody idiot!!!! Jeeze, these people get paid good money and he screws up a really simple fix. No wonder I don't trust anyone with my guitars and do all the maintenance myself and have done for years
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Brian - I'm pretty amazed with the Activators - I feel like you can get a Fender sound, but also so much more! I'm going to repost the links to show the possible sounds:
P-J with filter way down low:
https://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/aka-afb (https://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/aka-afb target=_blank)
P-J with filter almost all the way open:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4aA6kerOA8 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4aA6kerOA8 target=_blank)
Precision with filter all the way open and flats (different bass):
https://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/8b4x4 (https://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/8b4x4 target=_blank)
The first one is the most amazing to me - just pure fatness, sounds like flats to me but it's rounds. But in the second example you can get the nice Alembic high-end.
Terry - in the guy's defense, he was trying to help, but he kind of caused more harm than good. Actually, the good thing is, the new pot feels better - it isn't as loose as the old one!
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Here's another recent recording - again, with a darker sound, Q set to 0, filter set somewhere in the middle, not sure if it was just the P pickup or P & J set about even:
https://soundcloud.com/stanleylighthead/sol-jamming (https://soundcloud.com/stanleylighthead/sol-jamming target=_blank)
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I used mine yesterday at an Allstars gig (members from different bands, performing some populair rock and metal songs)
First time onstage with the Fembic in +/- 7 years, sounded awesome! :-)
Rig was an Ampeg SVT 3 pro (amp I used for years before the full Mesa rig) and an Ampeg 1540 cab (4x10 + 1x15)
Used it on Smells like teen spirit (Nirvana) and Paranoid (Black Sabbath)
I only brought it for the Nirvana song, but broke a string on my '83 Spoiler during Ace of spades (Motorhead) The Fembic proved to be a worthy backup :-)
Also did backup/lead vocals only on two ('tallica) songs, first time ever without guitar/bass onstage for me... :-)
I think there will be some vids shortly, will post here if topic is still active.
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Onstage with "Ozzy"
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/168850.jpg)
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/168851.jpg)
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Awesome! Glad the Fembic made an appearance. Ozzy looks spot on in that first pic!
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Here's a shot of the AlFemBic in action - I'm playing double stops on Ease Back by the Meters:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/169481.jpg)
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The AlFemBic has been my main bass recently - I like this pic because it has my mindfulness beads (nenju) and also you can see the Alembic logo on the strap!
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/393/173410.jpg)
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Here's another shot:
(http://alembic.com/club/messages/393/173414.jpg)
This picture was taken during my solo bass segment, hieronymous meets rev harry - I can tell because it's the only time during the show that I used a pick. Here's some so-so audio of the performance:
https://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/hieronymous-meets-rev-harry (https://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/hieronymous-meets-rev-harry target=_blank)
Activators sound good through distortion!
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Posted some more audio from the same show as the above two shots:
https://soundcloud.com/stanleylighthead/cinnamon-slice (https://soundcloud.com/stanleylighthead/cinnamon-slice target=_blank)
And here's video of the same slice:
https://soundcloud.com/stanleylighthead/cinnamon-slice (https://soundcloud.com/stanleylighthead/cinnamon-slice target=_blank)
On this tune I had the P & J pickups balanced for the most part, with the filter frequency set pretty high, Q switch most likely on +6.
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Pulled out the AlFeMbic recently - been making "bass cover" videos and usually using my Stanley Clarke Signature Squared (https://club.alembic.com/index.php?topic=8658.0). But this time I was playing along with an old recording of my own band, where I used a Fender Japan Jazz Bass, so the AlFeMbic was a no-brainer!
I've been getting braver mixing in more of the bridge pickup on all my Alembics/Alembicized instruments - here too.
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That one populated in my YouTube channel feed yesterday evening. You did a great job here. I forwarded to another of our followers to make sure he didn't miss it. 8)
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Awesome! :)
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Really nice Harry. And your covid cut is certainly growing out!
hehehehe
Bill, tgo
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Thanks everyone - this was a fun one - working on a couple of others, one will have the 5-string SCSS.
This is the longest my hair has been in 20 years, thanks for noticing Bill ;D
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Got the AlFeMbic out to change the strings - disappointed with the Dunlop & D'Addario strings I tried, so DR Sunbeams went on and I love them! Played along with a track from the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album and finally recorded it - I think I need to bring the pickup down under the G string, otherwise I like it!
There is still a dead spot (at the 6th fret on the G string - that's better than the 7th fret dead spot on my Donald Duck Dunn P!)
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Love the energy at the end! 😎
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Great playing and sound there Harry.
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I like it! Love the tone. And I always thought RHCP sounds better with clothes!
Bill, tgo
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Love the energy at the end! 😎
If I did that throughout then I would have had the headphone fail much earlier!
Great playing and sound there Harry.
Thank you - forgot to mention, I was using the new Tech21 Geddy Lee MP40 SansAmp - it's kind of a "bi-amp in a box"
I like it! Love the tone. And I always thought RHCP sounds better with clothes!
Bill, tgo
HAHAHA - that's great! I am in agreement!
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VERY nice playing, sir!
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VERY nice playing, sir!
Thank you!
I put up another one - this time a Rush tune that I've been working on - Red Barchetta, with the MP40 SansAmp:
I actually learned this way back in 9th grade around 1985 - it came back really quick when I started digging into this stuff again recently, but not easy to pull off, as you can see by my continued flubs!
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😎. Great execution!
The lyrics of that song paint such vivid imagery.
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The lyrics of that song paint such vivid imagery.
Absolutely! In high school I listened to music on my Walkman a LOT - in addition to imagining I was playing (usually bass but sometimes guitar or drums), I would also imagine videos - this song was definitely one of those.
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Another nice one Harry. I was a junior in HS when this came out, and my band at the time added this immediately. We were about half Rush, half Zep, and a few odds and ends from Thin Lizzy and Pat Travers mixed in. :D
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Another nice one Harry. I was a junior in HS when this came out, and my band at the time added this immediately. We were about half Rush, half Zep, and a few odds and ends from Thin Lizzy and Pat Travers mixed in. :D
That's awesome! In high school I didn't have a Neil Peart-style drummer to play with, so the only Rush song I got to cover was Distant Early Warning. College I fell in with a band where we messed around with some Rush stuff but it didn't last longer than a year - no clear memory of what happened (hey, it was over 30 years ago!)
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I was VERY fortunate to have gotten hooked up with a drumming prodigy, along with a singer who could nail the stuff, and a great guitarist. The drummer and guitarist in particular instilled in me a work ethic that I may not have acquired otherwise (Well, I probably would have eventually realized the importance of practicing over partying).
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I was VERY fortunate to have gotten hooked up with a drumming prodigy, along with a singer who could nail the stuff, and a great guitarist. The drummer and guitarist in particular instilled in me a work ethic that I may not have acquired otherwise (Well, I probably would have eventually realized the importance of practicing over partying).
That's great - I actually didn't party at all in high school, but spent way more time just listening to music and fantasizing about playing that actually practicing and playing. Oh well...
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The AlFeMbic made an appearance - I've been doing bass covers of The Black Crowes's 2nd album, Southern Harmony & Musical Companion:
First, a snippet:
Then an entire track:
Both are going through my CAE/CAJ V-Comp tube compressor and Tech21 Geddy Lee MP40 SansAmp. I think I'm just using a regular Dunlop pick for both. I also have some other ones with my Les Paul Triumph up, and have a new episode of A Bassist's Journey about Johnny Colt, bassist for The Black Crowes, in the works.
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😎
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Since I made the bass covers posted above, I discovered an app called "Moises" which uses AI to separate the various instruments into discrete tracks which you can then remove. It makes doing these videos more fun - for me anyway. Here's my most recent:
I'm using just the P pickup - I'm still pretty amazed about how "Precision Bass-y" the Activators sound! Oh yeah, still using the Tech21 Geddy Lee MP40 SansAmp.
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😎
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Sounds very cool! :)
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Where can i buy the pbass Alembic pickups? I notice its not on the Alembic site to order. How is the tone?
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Any Alembic dealer can order you a set.
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The pickups are listed on the main site, under "The Products" > "Pickups". You need to contact Alembic if you want to purchase direct from them. No on-line ordering. I have dropped the Alembic P-Bass pickups in a couple of basses I built. They sounded great! I added a 3-way Q switch to the volume and filter, a relatively easy and inexpensive mod that I would strongly suggest to add versatility.
Bill, tgo
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Where can i buy the pbass Alembic pickups? I notice its not on the Alembic site to order. How is the tone?
I bought both of mine used. As for the tone, I think they are incredible - they manage to sound like a P-Bass, and yet also offer so many tonal variations with the filter. I hope the sound in my videos speaks for itself - here's another one:
And as Bill mentions, the 3-way Q-switch is a great addition - essential for me, I usually have 0 Q-boost, whereas without it there is a baked-in boost that was too much for me.
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Delicious. 😎
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One more Foo Fighters bass cover - I kind of like that the bass is a little louder on this one. Plus, it's just a poignant song given what Dave Grohl's gone thru this past year, losing his drummer and then his mother.
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I also like the bass louder. 😀
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Here you go - http://alembic.com/prod/prices.html#ACTIVATORS (http://alembic.com/prod/prices.html#ACTIVATORS)
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I will be using the AlFeMbic at a gig this weekend! Will be playing with koto & shakuhachi, in drop-D tuning.
Realized I need to warm up! Get in shape so the ideas can flow - we will be improvising within a very general structure, D minor (the key the shakuhachi works best in), hence tuned down for the low D! I plan to get a D-tuner soon - when I was playing regularly with Jiggle the Handle in the '90s I had one on my Jazz Bass and used it fairly often.
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Sounds fantastic! 😊
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Very enjoyable Harry. Thanks.
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Thank you both! Here's an excerpt from another take:
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Yep... meant to 'like' it it on you YT channel. (I subscribe, so it gives a little heads-up whenever you post a new one...) The D-tuner notion just messes with my head so much. I down-tune my upright for a couple things in a set, and I've done it enough that it doesn't bother me anymore, but I'd never be able to play anything unrehearsed with the E a full step down.
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Yep... meant to 'like' it it on you YT channel. (I subscribe, so it gives a little heads-up whenever you post a new one...) The D-tuner notion just messes with my head so much. I down-tune my upright for a couple things in a set, and I've done it enough that it doesn't bother me anymore, but I'd never be able to play anything unrehearsed with the E a full step down.
With my band in the '90s, I used it on parts of songs, just to grab the low D, or as part of a section, or maybe to jam in D minor something! But I wouldn't want to have to do it on the fly - I have enough trouble knowing the actual names of the notes in regular tuning! Actually, that's the beauty of a D-tuner - you can switch back and forth quickly and easily if it's set up properly.
And now that I think of it, there is a live Miles Davis track from around 1975 with Michael Henderson on the bass, and at one point you can hear him retuning the low string down (to Eb?), as they are improvising into the next tune!
(It's at about 21.24)
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Got a Moses graphite neck for the AlFeMbic - now it's the AlFeMBoses? Gave it a workout with my red-knob F-2B on a classic Gong track:
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Sounds great, Harry! I have a Fender American Standard Tele loaded with Alembic PUs, filter, and 3-way Q on which I am considering swapping out the neck for a Moses Tele neck I have. You may have inspired me to take the plunge.
Bill,tgo
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Thanks Bill! I went for it because the original neck (the maple with black blocks) had a bad dead spot around the G string 5th fret. The Moses is much more even all around. I think it pairs nicely with the Activators!
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Sounds really nice 😊
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Sounds really nice. I’m a huge fan of graphite. Makes thinking about adjusting instruments a non issue.
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Harry, what prompted the neck change?
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(deleted due to font madness upon editing!)
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Harry, what prompted the neck change?
There was a really bad, dead spot on the G string, and the G string was just kind of thin sounding in general. It was really frustrating, and I started wondering if a graphite neck might not solve that issue. I still have a little bit of experimenting to do, but so far it seems to have helped! Sounds great for slapping too:
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Cool.
Lighter as well?
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Not really - I think the Moses necks are known for being on the heavier side. Weight's not such a big issue for me - this bass wasn't too heavy to begin with, and I'm generally not playing for more than an hour at a time, if that.
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Regarding weight, the Moses design differs from the Modulus necks in that the Moses necks are solid while the Modulus are hollow. I have both and prefer the Modulus partly because of the weight difference. But the Moses necks are nice, too. Since Moses stopped making necks a few years ago, there have been none on the market until a company called Klos recently started making a 3x3 guitar neck as well as a Fender Strat neck. I know nothing about their design or quality.
Bill, tgo
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I will let you know when I receive my Apollo pro 5 string bass. The plus of the design is the neck detaches and you can carry it on a plane in their special gig bag. A guy I do sound for has an endorsement with them for their acoustic graphite guitars. It sounds fine via direct box through the pa. Bassboss speakers which are super clean and accurate.
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Another video with the AlFeMBoses (plus F-2B preamp)
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.😎
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AlFeMBoses thru JHS Punchline compressor/overdrive/speaker sim/EQ-preamp:
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Picked up a 3Leaf Proton envelope filter - always wanted one, he has switched to fairly small runs (333 from now on?), managed to grab one! I need to keep experimenting, but here's a sample with a George Porter Jr. bass part (and the Meters with George Lowell are the band!)
I think I'm hitting it too hard - want to bring it down to greasier territory...
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Watched (and liked👍) that one one on your YouTube channel earlier this morning. That was a great track. I was like... Robert Palmer, really?! Yeah, just before my time a little.
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Sounds cool! 😎🎶🎶🎶
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It is percussive yet still very greasy. 8)
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Watched (and liked👍) that one one on your YouTube channel earlier this morning. That was a great track. I was like... Robert Palmer, really?! Yeah, just before my time a little.
Yup, having been born in 1970 myself, I knew Robert Palmer through Addicted to Love, Power Station, etc. Little did I know! I actually listened to Sailin' Shoes because my band covered it, but I should have kept listening! Check it out, it's a 3-part funk suite, with the Meters & George Lowell on tracks 1 & 3:
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That’s a fun album; wasn’t Little Feat the backing band for that album?
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Picked up a 3Leaf Proton envelope filter - always wanted one, he has switched to fairly small runs (333 from now on?), managed to grab one! I need to keep experimenting, but here's a sample with a George Porter Jr. bass part (and the Meters with George Lowell are the band!)
I think I'm hitting it too hard - want to bring it down to greasier territory...
Nice old school funky sound there Harry. 👍🏾
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That’s a fun album; wasn’t Little Feat the backing band for that album?
Lowell George of Little Feat is on a few tracks with the Meters, and I believe that the Stuff rhyth section (aka the New York Rhythm Section? Cornell Dupree on guitar, Bernard Purdie on drums, etc.) it’s kind of confusing, the old cd I picked up has no info and the Wikipedia article isn’t very good. But the music speaks for itself!
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Thanks for listening everyone! I'm really liking this bass with the graphite neck. Also playing with the Proton - the controls are really interactive, so combine that with the Alembic electronics and it can get pretty subtle. I'm figuring out getting the envelope trigger set where I like it, so it won't shoot way up.
Next is compressor in front of Proton - after that, maybe distortion?
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Today marks 5 years since Neil Peart's tragic passing. Been meaning to do a bass cover of Rush's Distant Early Warning - this seemed like good incentive. The AlFeMbic with Moses graphite neck seems like an appropriate instrument to use - Geddy Lee may have recorded it with his Rickenbacker 4001 but I always thought it was his Steinberger, in which case the graphite of the AlFeMbic (AlFeMBoses?) should fit!
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Nice playing Harry, and it seems like you are quite rightly concentrating hard as those Geddy Lee bass lines are intricate and interesting.
My only experience of Rush is their Moving Pictures album, I guess I should look deeper into their back catalogue.
Great tribute.
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Nice playing Harry, and it seems like you are quite rightly concentrating hard as those Geddy Lee bass lines are intricate and interesting.
My only experience of Rush is their Moving Pictures album, I guess I should look deeper into their back catalogue.
Great tribute.
Thanks! This song is burned into my brain, I listened to it a lot in high school - my headphones were glued to my head! (We were allowed to use Walkmans during our off times)
If I were to recommend one Rush album to someone, it would be Moving Pictures. Permanent Waves & Signals are two more good ones from around the same time, and the bass sound on the live album Exit... Stage Left is one of my favorites!
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Found them on Apple Music so will listen to them in my office tomorrow. :-)
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Very nice. I also had this song on repeat back in the day. Powerful song. Great bass playing.
But most of all, the headstock slow sweep into view at the end. 8)
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Very nice. I also had this song on repeat back in the day. Powerful song. Great bass playing.
But most of all, the headstock slow sweep into view at the end. 8)
Thanks for watching til the end! It seemed appropriate with the weird synth (?) sound...
To me, this isn't peak Rush - it's more like them evolving with technology, becoming more textural, but simultaneously synths taking over more and more. The packaging and lyrics (and soundscape?) are darker and more brooding. But still some great stuff!
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Here's one with a different take - filter freq way down (and +3!) to get that old school sound, despite pick, round wounds and graphite neck:
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I did a little tuner upgrade! It came with 3 Schallers and 1 "off brand replacement" - I was already planning in my head to put on a Hipshot Xtender and was hoping the extra tuner was on the E, but nope, it was on the G:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54305936688_daef0e3890_z.jpg)
Ordered an Xtender and installed it, putting the replaced Schaller on the G:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54304812202_b82d3b74ff_z.jpg)
Haven't had a chance to play it yet, but it works and I'm happy! I love these things, never had any tuning issues with a regular wooden neck, with the graphite should have no problem either.
Btw, here's the "off brand" - Google search didn't turn anything up. He sent me all 4!
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54305938813_d4f9051b51_z.jpg)
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That's a nice sounding envelope filter Harry. Seems to have plenty of low end.
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That's a nice sounding envelope filter Harry. Seems to have plenty of low end.
Yeah, it's pretty cool! Almost *too much* low end when it sweeps down at the tail end?!! I hear a bump that I'm not thrilled with, but oh well - better for short staccato notes maybe? I need to try it with some different basses too, kinda moved on to the next thing right now, which was my 4001, but with the new tuning machines, should put on a fresh set of strings on the - AlFeMBoseX?!!
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Tackling an Iron Maiden song for the first time in decades!
I bought this album back around 1983, so pretty soon after it came out. I wasn't playing bass yet, the Steve Harris gallop is pretty tough on the fast songs like Run to the Hills or The Trooper, but this one is fun! I need to listen to the original more and might try and do a full-length cover. Also, some of the artifacts of his clank is still there - I figured out how to remove it with Moises but not on this take.
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I have named this bass the "AlFeXteMBoses" (Alembicized Moses-graphite-necked Fender Japan PJ Bass w/Hipshot Xtender) and it is still my main bass. I've been playing with a couple of friends - I guess could call it a "dad band" (even though I'm just a cat dad!) - this song was suggested so I had fun with it.
This is with the CAE/CAJ V-Comp tube compressor and Tech21 Gedy Lee MP40 SansAmp set pretty clean - I like how it sounds, especially towards the end.
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I really enjoyed this one... you did a great job. 8)
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Nice work as usual Harry! I've played that one a bazzillion times in cover bands. Really enjoy it, and it's a nice change of pace from the usual Walk this Way. ;D
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Nicely done, Harry!
Bill, tgo
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:D
Love the ending. Actually all of it.
Inspires me to bust out my Live! Bootleg vinyl and play along.
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Thanks for listening everyone! It's a fun song, Tom Hamilton is a great bassist, huh? Since I recorded it I realized some things I can do differently, like play the opening riff with my middle finger on the 12th fret A instead of switching back and forth between index & middle - I watched a video of Tom Hamilton playing it and that's how he does it. Though switching back and forth came more naturally for me...
Definitely great stuff to play along to! And being able to remove the original part just makes it that much more fun. In fact, I just looked up the song with "minus bass" and found one - I usually use moises.ai but got lazy this time.
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Been subbing with an improv band - the drummer records everything multitrack, finally got some video to sync it to! The AlFeXteMBoses (forgot the X part!) is going through Tech21 Geddy Lee MP40 SansAmp, direct into the board.
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Very nice. :)
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Finally some good quality audio of the improv group I've been subbing for - this is from the last time I played with them a week or so ago - their regular bassist is coming back but I'm hoping to keep playing with them.
Activators work so well with effects! I'm compressing first, then putting it through tuner/octave/envelope filter/distortion/flanger - the combinations make it even more interesting!
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More video of the improv band I was subbing with (past tense at this point, though they want to play more):
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Just reviewed all 3.
I think the Jam Band could have 2 basses and still sound slick… just sayin’. ;)
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Just reviewed all 3.
I think the Jam Band could have 2 basses and still sound slick… just sayin’. ;)
Not unprecedented; James Taylor's 1971 BBC concert (which we just watched on YT a few days ago; excellent!) had, of course, Leland Sklar, but Charles Larkey of Jo Mama sat in on several numbers (simultaneously with Mr. Sklar); from '78 to '82 Willie Nelson augmented Bee Speers with Chris Etheridge (one of them - Chris, IIRC - played an Alembic); and "Take A Walk On The Wild Side" had both electric & doghouse. And all of them worked really well, so I second the motion.
Peter (who is sorry that, in the legendary Fillmore East Dead/Mac/ABB/Love jam, Phil wanted to listen & dance, and so stepped off when Berry stepped on......)
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The ultimate in multi-bass!
Bill, tgo
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If you haven't already, subscribe to Hieronymous' YouTube channel... he puts up some pretty cool content every week or so. I enjoy getting the notification. Often wait until I go for a walk to give them a proper listen.
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Just reviewed all 3.
I think the Jam Band could have 2 basses and still sound slick… just sayin’. ;)
I actually suggested something along those lines - it's currently 2 guitars, bass (that I was subbing for), and drums. So why not make it a double trio?!! 2 guitars, 2 bassists, 2 drummers!!! cozmik_cowboy and Bill TGO gave two examples of multi-bass, and Magma is a third - they would have earth bass and air bass!