Active Basses

[madmikebass]

I'm finding this whole thread very interesting.
One thing is mising though. The average amature bass player doesn't mess with their pickups. They buy the bass that they want and live with it.
I have a 1963 Vox bass that is 100% original. I also have an Ibanez Soundgear 4 string and a Schecter 5 string. All of them are 100% stock. Each has a unique sound that is vastly different from the other two. The Schecter came with active pickups, and it's my primary instrument. So, I use active pickups.
It's realy, for me any way, a matter of what instrument "feels" and plays best when I'm shopping. Then I narrow it down further based on the sound. My take on it is that I don't enjoy playing a bass strictly for the sound of it. If it doesn't feel good, no matter how good it sounds, I don't enjoy playing it!
I like the actives because it feels like I have more control at my fingertips when I'm playing live. When recording though, the eq never gets touched.

[brandondrury]

The average amature bass player doesn't mess with their pickups.

While I agree with your utopian theories, you are obviously from another planet than I'm on. In Southeast Missouri , USA, Earth EVERYBODY plays with all their knobs. The less the knowledge of the knobs, the more they are employed.

Bass players, as a stereotyped whole, are the worst "Hey! What's this button do?" (15 minutes later 40 Nukes land in Moscow) or your house burns down. This has been my overall experience.

Brandon

[Baron]

Originally Posted by brandondrury

In Southeast Missouri, USA, Earth EVERYBODY plays with all their knobs.

They will go blind

Bass players, as a stereotyped whole, are the worst

Funny, but down under in the land of Oz, I find that guitarists and keyboard players are more likely to be incessant knob twiddlers. Especially key players with these new analogue, retro style, keyboards.

"I have to get my sound" is a favoured phrase as it means more moolah for little old me! (I charge by the hour)

Baron

[madmikebass]

Sorry. I guess I wasn't too clear. I didn't mean to say they don't twiddle thier knobs.
What I meant was that they just live with the pick ups that come on the bass when they buy it.

[brandondrury]

What I meant was that they just live with the pick ups that come on the bass when they buy it.

I agree that they should....and quit playing with their knobs .... (I forget this is more of a British joke, than an American thing).

[Baron]

Originally Posted by brandondrury

I agree that they should....and quit playing with their knobs .... (I forget this is more of a British joke, than an American thing).

It's funny how some British stuff is used in Oz but not so much in the USA while other British stuff is used in the USA but not so much in Oz

Baron

[brandondrury]

I like watching The Office. It's the only tv show I watch now that the Sopranos screwed me. Just for fun, I tried watching the British version of the Office. I couldn't even understand what they hell they were saying! While I could understand it better than German or something....BARELY!

Even though the story ended up being almost indentical, I didn't get ANY of the jokes. I wanted to like it. I felt like a dumbass when the episode ended.

I wonder if British / Oz dudes would laugh at the American version.

Brandon

[Baron]

Originally Posted by brandondrury

I wonder if British / Oz dudes would laugh at the American version.
Brandon

We get both the British and the US versions of the office (which is bloody confusing!)

Well, I used to think that we (Oz dudes) were more British than US but, after a trip to Britain and the US, I realised that we were more like another state of the US. Apart from a few local shows, most of our television is US content. Our music charts are also dominated by US acts. We have Mickey D's, Starbucks and Krispy Kreme and prefer Vipers and Mustangs over Jags and Rovers.

I'm looking at the program for one of our TV stations and tonight we have "Medium" followed by "The Bionic Woman" (the new one) then "Heroes" and "Stargate Atlantis".
Another channel has the "Simpsons" and "Futurama" then a "CSI (insert favorite holiday destination here)" episode. The commercial channels seem to be 90% US content. The local ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) generally has more British and local content.

I suppose, as we don't have a huge amount of local content (most of our good film and production crews all seem to work in the USA), we have been exposed to a lot more British and US stuff so that helps to get past the accent and concentrate on the actual jokes.
Our media is actually so US biased that the kids in large city schools are starting to develop some weird US/Oz accent. Kind of "Valley Girl" meets "The Croc Hunter"

This has all been going on for years to the point where I can't hear the accent on the American actors anymore!

Baron

[brandondrury]

I'm looking at the program for one of our TV stations and tonight we have "Medium" followed by "The Bionic Woman" (the new one) then "Heroes" and "Stargate Atlantis".

Those might as well be German to me! I've not heard of any of them. (This isn't because of country issues, this is because I seldom turn on the TV).

most of our good film and production crews all seem to work in the USA

That's odd because I keep hearing about more and more big budget films being shot in Australia.

Kind of "Valley Girl" meets "The Croc Hunter"

AAHHHHH!

[Baron]

Originally Posted by brandondrury

That's odd because I keep hearing about more and more big budget films being shot in Australia.

That was the case a few years ago but it has slowed.

There does not appear to be any boundaries with crews. Even when they do shoot a film here, most of the crew are from overseas. I worked on one a few years ago and the crew were from all over the world. They all seem to have a lot of history and work all over the planet.

Hey....you go where the gigs are if you want to stay in the industry (this is why I gave it away).

Baron