Lunch Report Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Lunch today: I'll probably skip lunch because of our gig in downtown Rockville. (see yesterday's LR). We play from 12 until 1:30 and we won't take a break.

My take on 6 string basses is this: They are a lot of fun to play but as a bassist you can easily overplay for a situation. I actually put an Ibanez 6 string bass on layaway at a local store because I want to try one out.

The big challenge in bass playing is keeping the unplayed strings quiet. More strings equals more noise and one hallmark of a good bassist is how quiet and clean is their sound.

Chording on bass: Rule one- You don't play any interval closer than a fifth below C on the G string. The tones are just too fat to blend together. If you break this rule you get rewarded with mud. LOL

Update on Tribute L-2K set up:
As I was adjusting the intonation I discovered that the bass has no saddle-lock set screw. I didn't think to check on that when I bought the bass.

What size are the set screws on Tribute basses?

Are all G&L saddle lock bridges now the same (USA and Tribute)?

Today's food for thought-

Have you ever bought something and subsequently found out that part of it is missing or defective?
Tell us about your experience.

Do you have any preference for the type of bass amp used in your band?

I am about to play outside with a 2-10 bass cabinet and a 300 watt MarkBass head.
Its a lot less to carry than a pair of 2x15 cabinets!

Have a great day,

bassman

Update on Tribute L-2K set up:
As I was adjusting the intonation I discovered that the bass has no saddle-lock set screw. I didn't think to check on that when I bought the bass.

What size are the set screws on Tribute basses?

Don't recall, but you could just take it to your friendly neighborhood Ace Hardware and get a generic metric setscrew that fits. If you also need the little nylon goodie that goes into the hole first, you may be limited to the G&L Online Store unless you can come up with something that works.

Are all G&L saddle lock bridges now the same (USA and Tribute)?

I do believe they are.

Do you have any preference for the type of bass amp used in your band?

Amp? No. I like my BMax/Stewart rig pretty much anywhere.

I am about to play outside with a 2-10 bass cabinet and a 300 watt MarkBass head.
Its a lot less to carry than a pair of 2x15 cabinets!

While you have vastly more experience than I do, I might want to move a bit more air outdoors - or at least have the ability and headroom to do so. Unless it's a relatively small area that needs filling, then the 2X10 would probably be just fine. But that's just me. You know your bandmates, and their volume is a determining factor.

Ken...

Don't recall, but you could just take it to your friendly neighborhood Ace Hardware and get a generic metric setscrew that fits. If you also need the little nylon goodie that goes into the hole first, you may be limited to the G&L Online Store unless you can come up with something that works.

I actually have a half dozen set screws and nylon thingies that I bought from the on-line store about 4 years age. I don't want to risk the screw threads so the Ace hardware is a good tip.

While you have vastly more experience than I do, I might want to move a bit more air outdoors - or at least have the ability and headroom to do so. Unless it's a relatively small area that needs filling, then the 2X10 would probably be just fine. But that's just me. You know your bandmates, and their volume is a determining factor.

Good observations Ken. I would normally be suspect of the capability of a 2x10 cabinet but this MarkBass rig has always been impressive and this is the third year that I have done this job. It works very well is spite of its small size and a lot of it is the fact that I play in a band that knows how to turn down and not overwhelm our Bose L1 PA system.
Thanks for responding. Everyone must be busy these days.

Are all G&L saddle lock bridges now the same (USA and Tribute)?

No, the Tribute Saddle-Lock bridge has nickel plated die-cast saddles and the USA Saddle-Lock bridges have chrome-plated brass saddles.

Hope this helps.

... Unless it's a relatively small area that needs filling, then the 2X10 would probably be just fine.

I just looked at this again and came to the grim realization that the short little bitty sentence above is one of my more twisted efforts with the English language. Damn! How something so short can be so convoluted is amazing to me. This old timer's disease is a bitch.

Good observations Ken. I would normally be suspect of the capability of a 2x10 cabinet but this MarkBass rig has always been impressive and this is the third year that I have done this job. It works very well is spite of its small size and a lot of it is the fact that I play in a band that knows how to turn down and not overwhelm our Bose L1 PA system.

At least you were able to make sense of it. Jeeze.

Ken...

Maybe we have the same old age disease( LOL) because I understood you perfectly.

I want to spend more time on your site, bassesbyleo, and really learn how to use the L2K mods you have documented so well. The tribute L2k bass may be my test bed, but I have a lot to learn before diving in.

No, the Tribute Saddle-Lock bridge has nickel plated die-cast saddles and the USA Saddle-Lock bridges have chrome-plated brass saddles.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, Craig. But my Tribute L-2000 looks like it has chrome plated saddles just like the upgraded ones I bought from the online store for my 1996 USA L2K. Maybe the previous owner changed them just like he changed the machine heads?

I'll take another look.