Stratovarius Community

miditek wrote:Q. I have a question for bassists on the forum that I hope you may find to be of interest. Do you use a bass as your primary instrument to compose on, or do you use other instruments as well?

Well, I feel I don't know enough to start composing songs.(Ok, it obviously comes from the soul but if your fingers aren't connected with it it's difficult) I think it would be easier to sing what I want to one of my guitarist friends. That's easier.
I have a harmonized distortion pedal so that will come in handy, later...

I believe knowing some few things on keyboard can't be replaced by anything else when it comes to composing.

miditek wrote:Q. I have a question for bassists on the forum that I hope you may find to be of interest. Do you use a bass as your primary instrument to compose on, or do you use other instruments as well?

I mostly use sequencing software. Sometimes I'm messing about on bass and get an idea. Sometimes I'll be asleep, and start hearing a riff or melody in my head. I'll get up, play it on my bass, scribble down the notes, then go back to sleep. In the morning I'll put it into midi, and try to work with it.

So, I get basic ideas on my bass, and build around them with midi. As you can probably tell, most Winter's Verge songs were primarily composed on keyboards. The vocalist and keyboardist write most of the stuff, with me and the guitarist giving ideas riffs and melodies, in one case I wrote the basic 'skeleton' of a song and they expanded on it and filled it out (and no, it wasn't For I Have Sinned )

NeonVomit wrote:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4SzpNcoCII

Yeah here's a live video, where I'm using my new bass through my Gallien-Krueger head and Ashdown ABM cabinet. I have an Aphex Punch Factory compressor and Boss Limiter/Enhancer in the loop too, which helps give it a really crisp but warm sound.

What you guys think of the tone?

Very nice tone, and it sounds like what a bass guitar should sound like. (I can't handle muddy bass sounds, personally).

Also, a cool tapping intro there, Eddie Van Vomit!

miditek wrote:

NeonVomit wrote:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4SzpNcoCII

Yeah here's a live video, where I'm using my new bass through my Gallien-Krueger head and Ashdown ABM cabinet. I have an Aphex Punch Factory compressor and Boss Limiter/Enhancer in the loop too, which helps give it a really crisp but warm sound.

What you guys think of the tone?

Very nice tone, and it sounds like what a bass guitar should sound like. (I can't handle muddy bass sounds, personally).

Also, a cool tapping intro there, Eddie Van Vomit!

Blame this guy for making me want to play like that

NeonVomit wrote:

miditek wrote:

NeonVomit wrote:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4SzpNcoCII

Yeah here's a live video, where I'm using my new bass through my Gallien-Krueger head and Ashdown ABM cabinet. I have an Aphex Punch Factory compressor and Boss Limiter/Enhancer in the loop too, which helps give it a really crisp but warm sound.

What you guys think of the tone?

Very nice tone, and it sounds like what a bass guitar should sound like. (I can't handle muddy bass sounds, personally).

Also, a cool tapping intro there, Eddie Van Vomit!

Blame this guy for making me want to play like that

That rocked~! Think he might have listened to a wee bit of o' Billy Sheehan while growing up?

Note: I saw the Vai/Sheehan team live in action of Roth's "Eat 'Em and Smile Tour" a long time ago. They were incredible!

stratobabius wrote:

miditek wrote:Q. I have a question for bassists on the forum that I hope you may find to be of interest. Do you use a bass as your primary instrument to compose on, or do you use other instruments as well?

Well, I feel I don't know enough to start composing songs.(Ok, it obviously comes from the soul but if your fingers aren't connected with it it's difficult) I think it would be easier to sing what I want to one of my guitarist friends. That's easier.
I have a harmonized distortion pedal so that will come in handy, later...

I believe knowing some few things on keyboard can't be replaced by anything else when it comes to composing.

Wow a harmonizer/distortion pedal. Never have seen one of those, but I'll bet it gets some cool sounds.

I used to use an octave pedal to simulate an 8-string bass sound.

miditek wrote:

NeonVomit wrote:

miditek wrote:

NeonVomit wrote:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4SzpNcoCII

Yeah here's a live video, where I'm using my new bass through my Gallien-Krueger head and Ashdown ABM cabinet. I have an Aphex Punch Factory compressor and Boss Limiter/Enhancer in the loop too, which helps give it a really crisp but warm sound.

What you guys think of the tone?

Very nice tone, and it sounds like what a bass guitar should sound like. (I can't handle muddy bass sounds, personally).

Also, a cool tapping intro there, Eddie Van Vomit!

Blame this guy for making me want to play like that

That rocked~! Think he might have listened to a wee bit of o' Billy Sheehan while growing up?

Note: I saw the Vai/Sheehan team live in action of Roth's "Eat 'Em and Smile Tour" a long time ago. They were incredible!

Yeah, he's quoted Billy Sheehan as one of his major influences. A big one of mine, too. Caught Vai on tour in 2005 with Billy, that was something special.

I was playing a section from another classical piece before that video started, taken from one of Liszt's Etudes D'Execution Trancendante (specifically, the main theme from Mazeppa) and I was quite annoyed the video didn't catch that, I was pleased with that part! Instead it got the Fuge in D Minor that everyone plays and the intro from For I Have Sinned. I try to take as many influences directly from classical music as I can (this does come relatively naturally to me, I play double bass in an orchestra and study primarily classical music in university) and I generally try to make sure that comes across in what I play.

miditek wrote:Q. I have a question for bassists on the forum that I hope you may find to be of interest. Do you use a bass as your primary instrument to compose on, or do you use other instruments as well?

NeonVomit wrote:I mostly use sequencing software. Sometimes I'm messing about on bass and get an idea. Sometimes I'll be asleep, and start hearing a riff or melody in my head. I'll get up, play it on my bass, scribble down the notes, then go back to sleep. In the morning I'll put it into midi, and try to work with it.

Sequencing software works the best for me as well, and I'm sure that you find it to be very useful. Do you also use notational software (such as Encore) for school as well? I've used sequencers, since, well, Cakewalk 1.0 for MS-DOS!

*Jens, lurking in the thread, sighs to himself, and said, "I've got to talk to that guy about getting himself an Atari!*

NeonVomit wrote:So, I get basic ideas on my bass, and build around them with midi. As you can probably tell, most Winter's Verge songs were primarily composed on keyboards. The vocalist and keyboardist write most of the stuff, with me and the guitarist giving ideas riffs and melodies, in one case I wrote the basic 'skeleton' of a song and they expanded on it and filled it out (and no, it wasn't For I Have Sinned )

I see no problem at all with music being primarily composed on keys, but it is good to see that you and your guitarist do contribute to the process as well.
BTW- how long have you guys been together as a group?

miditek wrote: Sequencing software works the best for me as well, and I'm sure that you find it to be very useful. Do you also use notational software (such as Encore) for school as well? I've used sequencers, since, well, Cakewalk 1.0 for MS-DOS!

Yeah I use Sibelius for scoring things out and for orchestrating stuff. Good program!

I see no problem at all with music being primarily composed on keys, but it is good to see that you and your guitarist do contribute to the process as well.
BTW- how long have you guys been together as a group?

Yeah.. the guitarist isn't too fussed but he'll contribute riffs and structures. Drummer comes up with all his own beats and patterns, so he's creative in his own way. Winter's Verge formed in 2004, and I joined in April 2005 after their previous bassist quit.

miditek wrote: Sequencing software works the best for me as well, and I'm sure that you find it to be very useful. Do you also use notational software (such as Encore) for school as well? I've used sequencers, since, well, Cakewalk 1.0 for MS-DOS!

Cakewalk is good!!!

Yeah I use Sibelius for scoring things out and for orchestrating stuff. Good program!

Have anyone tried Guitar Pro? Is Sibelius better than GP ?

Btw, does anyone know what cool (and not so expensive) PC interface I could use, to record music (including bass guitars) on my computer ?
I know I can use the direct line-in of my soundcard, but I wouldn't like to destroy the computer because of my bass (I already destroyed a Dolby 4.1 hifi system, worth 900$... a good lesson!).

I think Guitar Pro is nice, but... I dunno. I think it's not as confortable and polyvalent as a Cakewalk.

There is nothing better than those old Atari / Amiga MOD/module software to write music!

cliff wrote:Btw, does anyone know what cool (and not so expensive) PC interface I could use, to record music (including bass guitars) on my computer ?

You might want to take a look at a card from Creative Labs called the SoundBlaster X-Fi Xtreme Music, which has an optional I/O box as an add-on. It's called the X-Fi I/O Console upgrade kit. It has the 1/4" TRS analog inputs that will work for a guitar or a bass.
It has mic ins, S/PDIF, and other inputs, although there are no AES/EBU ports though.

The stuff from Creative is usually not terribly expensive. I think that the card mentioned above has some of those cool E-mu sound fonts as well, for some basic sampling, in addition to MIDI ports as well.

Thanks Miditek!

But I forgot to mention, that I need smt to plug on a laptop (my mistake!). Something like USB, or Cardbus, or even Firewire...

cliff wrote:Thanks Miditek!

But I forgot to mention, that I need smt to plug on a laptop (my mistake!). Something like USB, or Cardbus, or even Firewire...

You're welcome, Cliff. Hmmm, Creative Labs does have some solutions for laptops.

Let's take a look- the SoundBlaster Audigy 2X USB may be a better fit for your laptop. It also has line ins and mic ins as well. If the line in is the 1/8" type of jack, you could still use a 1/8" -> 1/4" adapter

Another cool product that I just came across is the IK Multimedia StealthPlug product. It almost looks like a cousin (or stepchild) of the Roland Gk2/A pickup, but it is different. At $99.00 USD it looks like an interesting system- designed specifically for guitar and bass-

sweetwater.com/store/detail/StealthPlug/

miditek wrote:

cliff wrote:Thanks Miditek!

But I forgot to mention, that I need smt to plug on a laptop (my mistake!). Something like USB, or Cardbus, or even Firewire...

You're welcome, Cliff. Hmmm, Creative Labs does have some solutions for laptops.

Let's take a look- the SoundBlaster Audigy 2X USB may be a better fit for your laptop. It also has line ins and mic ins as well. If the line in is the 1/8" type of jack, you could still use a 1/8" -> 1/4" adapter

Another cool product that I just came across is the IK Multimedia StealthPlug product. It almost looks like a cousin (or stepchild) of the Roland Gk2/A pickup, but it is different. At $99.00 USD it looks like an interesting system- designed specifically for guitar and bass-

sweetwater.com/store/detail/StealthPlug/

Looks like the guys at IK are going nuts with this modeling and plug-in stuff- take a look at this Ampeg (!) plugin system-

sweetwater.com/store/detail/AmpegSVX/

BTW- not sure if you guys have ever heard of Sweetwater Sound in Ft. Wayne, IN, but they really really know their stuff. All the sales guys are pro or semi-pro musicians and recording engineer types.

I think that they probably know more about the Kurzweil K-2000 (and successor products) sound creation than the manufacturer's reps do!

Thanks midtek, those products seems really interesting (especially that Ampeg SVX plug-in!)

The StealthPlug seems a really good choice, but I'm afraid it's the kind of device that only works with few specific softwares (I read somewhere that it's doesn't work as a soundcard, it's just an interface between the guitars and the software). Perhaps a device that acts like a soundcard (for ex, the USB Creative soundcard you mentioned) is a better choice, for ex which can record vocals as well ? I have a Korg Pandora's Box for my bass, so the pre-amp isn't really a pbm.

Anyone knows the Boss ME50B pedal effect?

cliff wrote:Thanks midtek, those products seems really interesting (especially that Ampeg SVX plug-in!)

The StealthPlug seems a really good choice, but I'm afraid it's the kind of device that only works with few specific softwares (I read somewhere that it's doesn't work as a soundcard, it's just an interface between the guitars and the software). Perhaps a device that acts like a soundcard (for ex, the USB Creative soundcard you mentioned) is a better choice, for ex which can record vocals as well ? I have a Korg Pandora's Box for my bass, so the pre-amp isn't really a pbm.

Anyone knows the Boss ME50B pedal effect?

Why don't you try using a simple USB-audio interface? Plenty of good models on the market.

Boss ME50B is a good solid product you'd expect from Boss, but I personally think multieffects are a tad unecessary for bass. Again, that's just me.

Q. Who is funkier on the bass?

a) Les Claypool (Primus)
b) Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
c) Bootsy Collins (solo)

d) Rick James :banana1:

Carcass wrote:d) Rick James :banana1:

Hehe...been watching Chappelle's show again?

I do have to admit that he was pretty funky, and the irony of a guy named Rick playing a Rick 4001 or 4003 isn't lost on me either.

There is only one.

I bring you, The Master of Blaster, The Ayatollah of Rock 'n' Rolla, The Dude with the Groove, The Bhudda of the Bass, The Supreme Dance-ifier, The Funktastic, The one-and-only...

NeonVomit wrote:There is only one.

I bring you, The Master of Blaster, The Ayatollah of Rock 'n' Rolla, The Dude with the Groove, The Bhudda of the Bass, The Supreme Dance-ifier, The Funktastic, The one-and-only...

Holy crap! That guy is phe-nom-en-al! I don't think that I'm familiar with him, but I certainly am impressed. Is he from the States?

Here's another bassist that I'm impressed with- Randy Hope-Taylor, who tours with Jeff Beck, as well as the always incredible drummer, Vinnie Colaiuta. Beck does not look nor sound like a 62 year old, -imo.

youtube.com/watch?v=BCzdKdajEIc

(CTRL+C n' CTRL+V this one )

miditek wrote:

NeonVomit wrote:There is only one.

I bring you, The Master of Blaster, The Ayatollah of Rock 'n' Rolla, The Dude with the Groove, The Bhudda of the Bass, The Supreme Dance-ifier, The Funktastic, The one-and-only...

Holy crap! That guy is phe-nom-en-al! I don't think that I'm familiar with him, but I certainly am impressed. Is he from the States?

Yup. Everyone should know this guy, he's worked with any great musician you could care to mention. As in, Victor Wooten looks up to him. I have one of his instructional DVDs, his musicality and knowledge is incredibly deep. He mostly plays fusion-type stuff, but breaks out funk every now and then. Hell, he's a master of any style you could care to mention!

Check him out here http://www.billthebuddhadickens.com/page.php?8

Is he the same guy that can be seen on http://www.ampegsvx.com/prod-AM.php, link "See a video presentation of Ampeg SVX" (link before "System Requirement") ?

Seems and sounds AMAZING......

miditek wrote: Hehe...been watching Chappelle's show again?

How did you guess?

Carcass wrote:

miditek wrote: Hehe...been watching Chappelle's show again?

How did you guess?

I think it was one of those episodes where Dave (Chappelle) was playing Rick James, you know, the episode where he walks up to Charlie Murphy (Eddie's brother), and proclaims, "I'm Rick James, bitch!", and then proceeds to slap Charlie upside the head.

(I can still hear the bassline to "Super Freak" in my head whenever I see that episode. Too funny. )

cliff wrote:Is he the same guy that can be seen on http://www.ampegsvx.com/prod-AM.php, link "See a video presentation of Ampeg SVX" (link before "System Requirement") ? Seems and sounds AMAZING......

I think that is him, although I think @NV could confirm this. This guy is amazing, and I'm also seriously considering this plug-in in the near future (after tax time).

By the way, has anyone of you seen/played or owned an Aria pro II zzb? I'm looking for one, but my search seems to be despearate, because I've found only one from Finland and it's pretty expensive, so does any of you know where to find one with a reasonable price? And yes, I'm wanting to join the Ariaplayers because it seems to be good, well priced and reliable. So if anyone sees one anywhere meaing in a place where I could order it and it could be sended to Finland without huge shipments then please but some adds here.

The Aria II Pro's I've played have been good instruments. They're a safe bet.

NeonVomit wrote:The Aria II Pro's I've played have been good instruments. They're a safe bet.

The Aria Pro II are usually really good instruments (I own a cheap Mad Axe model). However, stay away from the Aria (not "Pro II") products (that's the new name of "Aria Pro II". Actually, Aria changed their name to "Pro II" for a while to tell "we also make basses for professional players. not just first-prices") I bought that Integra 50 which has caused me only problems : neck broken after a couple of days, and now I have problems with the electronic. I had a look at the wire connectors, they seems to have been soldered by 5 years old kid!
Plus, the customer service of Aria is near of zero, I've tried to find a new neck everywhere (including Germany, Finland, France, Sweden, Norway, Belgium) : impossible. And now, i really regret that purchase.

@StratoFactor : I think it is almost impossible to find those old Aria Pro II nowadays, except some second hand ones.

I'm saying it again, stay away from Aria! Take an Ibanez or Warwick instead.

Btw, Neonvomit and Miditek, I have finally found the perfect product that I needed to record the bass on my computer , the EDIROL UA4FX : http://www.thomann.de/fr/edirol_ua4fx.htm