| Author | Message | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7383 Registered: 5-2002 |
After numerous takes, I finally recorded a half decent version of one of the things I've been working on. Recorded on a Zoom H4 as a wave; uploaded as an mp3 I've only played this back on my laptop, which runs through my home stereo. The overall sound seems balanced through the frequency range to me on my system. Please let me know your reactions to the sound, balance, etc as it sounds on your systems. This take is up temporarily. If I can get a good enough take recorded, I'll see if I can set something up on Bandcamp at some point. (Message edited by davehouck on July 19, 2009) | ||
| grateful
Advanced Member Username: grateful Post Number: 293 Registered: 12-2004 |
Nice, though I've only listened on my computer. It's not all bass is it Dave? Surely that's a Strat there as well. | ||
| eflat
Junior Username: eflat Post Number: 29 Registered: 11-2006 |
Very nice work Dave! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7388 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks guys! Mark; it's a single take on an Alembic six string bass. | ||
| grateful
Advanced Member Username: grateful Post Number: 294 Registered: 12-2004 |
Wow Dave, I'm even more impressed: great playing. I'm amazed a bass (even an Alembic) can sound like that, but then I am a hi-sixer (guitarist). | ||
| spose
Advanced Member Username: spose Post Number: 239 Registered: 5-2002 |
nice work..very melodic solo playing you stand naked and Dave you do a super job!! keep em coming! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7391 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks!! | ||
| bassfingers
Intermediate Member Username: bassfingers Post Number: 158 Registered: 11-2005 |
 Such a gorgeous tone,I don't hear any sloppiness,just honest,lyrical playing . Beautiful Dave,would love to hear more. | ||
| olieoliver
Senior Member Username: olieoliver Post Number: 1994 Registered: 2-2006 |
VERY nice Dave. Single take too?! Made me think a little of SRV's or Hendrix' softer side. Did you use a click(?), your time is very good on this. OO | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7396 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks again guys. It was a single take in that there are no overdubs and that it's one take start to finish; but it took numerous failed attempts before I finally got this one good take. No, I didn't use a click; trying to keep good time was one of the things I was focusing on, and is one of the things that this whole exercise has shown needs practice. | ||
| 811952
Senior Member Username: 811952 Post Number: 1602 Registered: 10-2003 |
Nice. Elegantly understated. Very fluid! John | ||
| tbrannon
Senior Member Username: tbrannon Post Number: 968 Registered: 11-2004 |
Really nice Dave- I couldn't pull that off with 4 takes, much less 1. I'm thoroughly impressed. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7407 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks! | ||
| georgie_boy
Senior Member Username: georgie_boy Post Number: 645 Registered: 8-2005 |
VERY nice David!!! The new sixer sounds wonderful!! G | ||
| artswork99
Senior Member Username: artswork99 Post Number: 548 Registered: 7-2007 |
David, I'm glad to hear Karma giving you the pleasure of making music. The recording flows very nicely while leaving room for others to join you in this new project. I'm just around the corner if you want another low end to accompany you (anytime Dave). I look forward to hearing you express yourself again. Wishing you all the best with this new adventure. Art | ||
| jacko
Senior Member Username: jacko Post Number: 2078 Registered: 10-2002 |
Sweet. Graeme | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7416 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks guys! | ||
| kenbass4
Advanced Member Username: kenbass4 Post Number: 319 Registered: 10-2003 |
I really liked this! Very tasteful and understated. Ken (TEO) | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 3495 Registered: 7-2004 |
Lead, melodic bass???? Jeeeeezzz, Dave, where do you get these ideas? lol! Seriously, very very sweet. Great tone and execution. I hope we get to jam together, someday. Bill, tgo | ||
| lembic76450
Intermediate Member Username: lembic76450 Post Number: 146 Registered: 5-2002 |
Dave, Very nice, what fx/eq are you using? I keep waiting for the harmonic after the last note, you know, the one that bends up right out of sight, lol. Love the melodic stuff. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7426 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks again guys! Kenn; for effects there is a good bit of reverb, a little chorus, a touch of delay and some vibrato. If I recall correctly, on this song the neck pickup filter is completely closed with no Q, and the bridge filter is completely open with full Q, and there is a good bit more bridge pickup than neck. On the F-2B, the neck pickup is something like Bass 4.75, Mid 4.25, Treble 4.5 (but with the neck filter closed down, the EQ on the neck channel of the F-2B isn't doing much), while the bridge pickup is approximately Bass 4.25, Mid 5.5, Treble 5.25. On the SF-2 the low pass filter has a gain of 3, frequency around 120Hz, and damping ratio of 3; the high pass filter has a gain of 6, frequency of about 680Hz, and damping ratio of about 4.25; and the non-filter direct gain is at 6. The speaker cab is an Acme Low B-2. | ||
| mica
Moderator Username: mica Post Number: 5811 Registered: 6-2000 |
Love it! | ||
| 2400wattman
Senior Member Username: 2400wattman Post Number: 665 Registered: 11-2005 |
Good stuff Dave! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7436 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks! | ||
| chalie_holmes
Junior Username: chalie_holmes Post Number: 43 Registered: 3-2009 |
Hey Dave, That was a beautiful tune. What type of strings are you using? I think I'll try them on my 4 string because I want to tune it CGDA.That Zoom records very well. Well done indeed! Chalie Holmes | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7965 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Chalie! I use TI Jazz Rounds. | ||
| charles_holmes
Junior Username: charles_holmes Post Number: 21 Registered: 3-2009 |
yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You spelled my name right!!!!! You must be a bass player....you have an eye for details! Who makes TI Jazz Rounds?...I guess TI huh? | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7967 Registered: 5-2002 |
Hee hee !! Thomastik-Infeld | ||
| chalie_holmes
Junior Username: chalie_holmes Post Number: 44 Registered: 3-2009 |
Merci!!! | ||
| chrisalembic
Junior Username: chrisalembic Post Number: 20 Registered: 3-2009 |
Very nice playing and sound, Dave. Out of curiosity, what is the string spacing (mm) on your custom six string? | ||
| kimberly
Advanced Member Username: kimberly Post Number: 309 Registered: 1-2007 |
Hi David,  Very nice! Great tone (of course) and great feel! Best Regards, Kimberly | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7992 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Kimberly!!! Chris; I have the classic neck taper, which is 2" at the nut, and 3.125" at the 24th fret. In millimeters that's 50.8 and 79.375. As for string to string spacing, where do you want me to measure it (nut, bridge), and do you want center to center or inside to inside. | ||
| chrisalembic
Junior Username: chrisalembic Post Number: 21 Registered: 3-2009 |
Hi Dave, I guess what I am interested in, is what the string spacing from string center to center is at the bridge (with the classic neck taper)..narrow string spacing on a sixer is what I would probably choose too (aah one day).... you got a good handle on that sixer and it sounds so alive!! | ||
| chrisalembic
Junior Username: chrisalembic Post Number: 22 Registered: 3-2009 |
I just noticed, you had (or still have) an essence six string with the wide spacing... how do you like the different spacings in comparrison? | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 7995 Registered: 5-2002 |
I much prefer the classic taper over the comfort taper, given my playing style, for six string. On four string however, I apparently like both. approximately B to E - 17 E to A - 16.5 A to D - 16 D to G - 15.5 G to C - 15 | ||
| rklisme
Advanced Member Username: rklisme Post Number: 351 Registered: 5-2004 |
Dave Bravo! Rory | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8127 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Rory!! | ||
| serialnumber12
Senior Member Username: serialnumber12 Post Number: 426 Registered: 12-2004 |
Dave get yourself a ticket to the chicago meeting and let us see this good bassplayin up close as well as sign some alembics! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8129 Registered: 5-2002 |
Keavin; I just made my decision and booked a room. I don't know that I can provide any good bassplayin', but it will certainly be a pleasure to meet you! | ||
| serialnumber12
Senior Member Username: serialnumber12 Post Number: 429 Registered: 12-2004 |
Come on down ......the price is rite! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8393 Registered: 5-2002 |
Well, I've been looking for a guitar player to collaborate with, but nothing's come up on Craiglist; so I'm wanting to put another ad up. But before I do, I want a little more than the one tune I had up, so people can listen to what I'm doing and get an idea of whether it's worth it to them to respond to my listing. So today I turned on the amp, turned on the Zoom H4, and just played for a while. I made a ton of mistakes, crashed and burned on several songs, and just made stuff up from time to time. I didn't go back and try to get any of the songs "right". I was hoping to just get enough usable samples of my playing to give interested guitar players an idea of my playing. When I turned the amp off, I didn't really think any of it was salvageable. But when I played it back, yes it was sloppy and yes there were mistakes, and yes some crash and burns; but a lot of it did seem useful for a Craigslist demo. So I cut out the crash and burn tunes, and did a few fade outs; and what's left is in the order I played it. There are some fairly complete versions of some of my tunes, and a few pieces of tunes, and some improvised stuff. I originally recorded in MP3 format, which I'm now wishing I had recorded in wave format. Before uploading, I had to convert to wave, and Bandcamp then converts it back to MP3; so there is some loss of fidelity that is quite noticeable. But still, I think these recordings give a fairly good idea of what my bass and rig sound like at the moment. I still can't play these tunes consistently enough to make "finished" recordings or to take them out in public to a coffee shop. But that's ok, I like practicing. So, for those of you that might like to hear them, my Sunday afternoon playing session is here. | ||
| jacko
Senior Member Username: jacko Post Number: 2338 Registered: 10-2002 |
Beautiful playing Dave!. I love the tone. (listening on my computer through decent headphones. Does this mean Montford Park are no more? Graeme | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8394 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Graeme! I feel like I've made some progress with my tone over the last few weeks. And yes, the drummer moved to Atlanta to study recording, and the guitar player is involved with several jazz projects in town; so the band dissolved over a year ago, which is fine since that's when I got the six string and I've really needed to spend my time woodshedding. | ||
| olieoliver
Senior Member Username: olieoliver Post Number: 2631 Registered: 2-2006 |
Dave, this is some nice music. I love the sound of your bass. Very pleasing to listen too. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8396 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Olie! | ||
| jalevinemd
Senior Member Username: jalevinemd Post Number: 803 Registered: 12-2003 |
Dave...I gotta be honest. I wasn't even sure what instrument you were playing. I thought it was an amplified nylon string guitar at times. I admit that I'm not very familiar with bass outside of a rock setting. The tone simply was amazing! I had no idea a bass could sound like that. I would buy that CD in a second. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8397 Registered: 5-2002 |
Jonathan; I greatly appreciate your comments! I've been trying to get a tone that would stand alone as a solo instrument, and your comments suggest that it passes that test. And in my quite subjective and limited view, my guess is that not just any bass can sound like that; it is after all an Alembic. Oh, and the strings, they've been on the bass for about seven months now, so they're a bit dead. The site does have an option to allow higher quality downloads; but I need to set up a paypal account for that purpose. And I'm not sure whether these tunes are worth doing that; but I'll look into it. | ||
| sonicus
Intermediate Member Username: sonicus Post Number: 200 Registered: 5-2009 |
CONGRATULATIONS Dave It sounds to me that you have found your voice as a Artist ._______ I can hear the majesty and soul of the very tress that your Alembic was made from. A very pleasing pleasing holistic sound that to my ears emanates an earthly resonance. I would buy that CD . | ||
| pauldo
Intermediate Member Username: pauldo Post Number: 198 Registered: 6-2006 |
yyyyyeeeeeaaaaahhhhh! :-) Those are some rightous tunes, lifting melodies that could easily drift one through a Sunday afternoon.... Dave - how about another bassist instead of a guitarist??? | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8401 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks guys! | ||
| kimberly
Advanced Member Username: kimberly Post Number: 330 Registered: 1-2007 |
David Houck! Dude, your music is really, really good and is just absolutely cool! No, make that *Waaaay Cool*! Kudos! Ummm....would you mind if I use some for 'inspirational purposes'? Seriously. Best Wishes and Best Regards! Kimberly PS. Another bassist would be an interesting direction for you to try. I've only played live with another bassist a couple of times. One time sucked, the other time worked beautifully. It's all a matter of mutual understanding/agreement of what it is you're trying to say, making/leaving space and staying out of the same octave. ;D | ||
| keith_h
Senior Member Username: keith_h Post Number: 1332 Registered: 2-2005 |
Kimberly glad you showed up. With what I have heard I've suggested to Dave he try the solo bassist thing. Being one yourself maybe you can give him a little nudge. ;-) Keith | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8404 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Kimberly! It's hard to wrap my mind around the concept of a second bassist; but I'll try to keep an open mind about it. Keith; I still can't seem to make it all the way through most of the songs. But I'll try to keep an open mind about that too. | ||
| dadabass2001
Senior Member Username: dadabass2001 Post Number: 1217 Registered: 6-2002 |
I really enjoyed your demos, Dave. I heard a little "Pink Floyd" flavor on demo 9. the effects were nicely done and the playing is sweet throughout! Keep it up. Mike | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8408 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Mike! One of the covers I'm working on is Pink Floyd's "Breathe"; it doesn't sound like them, but it's a nice progression. And yes, on number 9 I kinda fell into that Pink Floyd thing. | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 4009 Registered: 7-2004 |
Dave: effing AWESOME!!!! What a tone! I would have guessed a baritone guitar rather than a bass. You really have an original and expressive voice. I don't even know if adding a guitar would improve it any - it sounds great solo - maybe just a tasty drummer and piano, perhaps. It really is bass as lead instrument! Love it. Bill, tgo | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8409 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Bill! Everyone has given me a lot to think about. I did put an ad up on Craigslist Monday morning for a guitar player, so I'll see what happens with that. | ||
| kimberly
Advanced Member Username: kimberly Post Number: 332 Registered: 1-2007 |
Hey David, Just to insure there's no misunderstanding. Your music is perfectly capable of standing on it's own. You *don't need anybody or anything else*. My reference to another bassist was to open the door to the option. Not that there's anything wrong with guitarists mind you, ;) it's two different directions. One more 'conventional' than the other, but when you talking solo bass, you've already broken the 'norm' when it comes to convention. Speaking of breaking convention, think SMV. ;) Best Regards, Kimberly | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8411 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Kimberly! | ||
| olieoliver
Senior Member Username: olieoliver Post Number: 2639 Registered: 2-2006 |
Agreed Kimberly, I'm looking forward to the "Dave Houck Project" world = tour. (Ok maybe the US tour). :-) | ||
| artswork99
Senior Member Username: artswork99 Post Number: 760 Registered: 7-2007 |
I had the opportunity and pleasure of having an impromptu session with Dave again last night. I really enjoy making music with him as he carries the improvisational skills way out on the limb that I cannot obtain. He even sounds better live than on the recordings. Great playing with you again Dave! Art | ||
| olieoliver
Senior Member Username: olieoliver Post Number: 2640 Registered: 2-2006 |
I bet it would be cool to jam with Dave. Get together & turn it up so = loud it makes your TEETH rattle.  You up for that Dave? OO (A little inside humor there) ;) (Message edited by olieoliver on July 21, 2009) | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8413 Registered: 5-2002 |
Olie; I'm NUMB to your teeth rattling suggestions! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 8414 Registered: 5-2002 |
Art; we must have played for five hours last night! It was indeed a lot of fun! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9363 Registered: 5-2002 |
Last night I was outside a bar (where apparently Art was trying to sneak us in to see Jeff Sipe and Ike Stubblefield), and one of the patrons hanging around outside recognized me from Montford Park. He told me he had shot a video of one of the tunes we played at our last gig two years ago, and that he had put it up on youtube. So this morning I checked it out; it's a nice video with some great shots of, and great playing from, Jon. Jon's got some great tone here, and the bass sounds good on the video as well. The tune is our take on Jeff Beck's take on the Beatles' "She's A Woman". | ||
| artswork99
Moderator Username: artswork99 Post Number: 1158 Registered: 7-2007 |
Hey! I walked in and nobody stopped me... when I waved you in they stopped you. Ha! Nice video BTW. | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 4453 Registered: 7-2004 |
Dave: Very nice!!!! An inspired take on one of my favorites from the early Beatles. Looks like you guys had some cute groupies at the beginning, or at least two out of three. There's always a critic! lol Bill, tgo | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9366 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Bill! Yeah, I didn't notice that until you mentioned it; walked right up to the edge of the stage with fingers planted in both ears! Art; I guess you looked nice and friendly, and I must have looked like trouble. | ||
| otis
Advanced Member Username: otis Post Number: 210 Registered: 10-2008 |
Dave, The tune sounds great! Great tone on that Alembic. Is that a SC Signature, or a Series I or II? Peace;) Frank | ||
| crobbins
Senior Member Username: crobbins Post Number: 631 Registered: 6-2004 |
Dave, sounds great. But the youtube link says you guys are playing Freeway Jam??? | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9367 Registered: 5-2002 |
Frank; thanks, it's a Series I. Craig; yeah, he misidentified it. I'm glad it wasn't Freeway Jam; I usually crashed and burned on that tune. Thanks! | ||
| sonicus
Senior Member Username: sonicus Post Number: 1032 Registered: 5-2009 |
I like it Dave , Both, your own material and working in an ensemble . | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9368 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Wolf! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9664 Registered: 5-2002 |
After having discussed with a dear friend the disquieting effects that recording can have on the mind, I took my laptop downstairs, aimed the webcam at my bass rig, and turned it on. I think the little webcam did I decent job; the overall quality of the picture seems pretty good. I hooked my Zoom H4 to the laptop as well, and used it as a mic. Next I tried to two different editors to trim the beginning and end of the recording. The first one trimmed ok, and let me add a picture at the beginning, and very basic fade in and fade out. But it crashed when I tried to save. So I downloaded another editor but the sound and picture would not sync on that editor. So I went back to the first editor, and it recovered the work I had done when it crashed, and then it let me continue the save process. Not many options there, but it did save something. The next task was uploading, which took a while. Then it took about five hours before the video was available. But it's there now; and the conversion worked, and the video and audio are still synced. The playing is still rough. It turns out that learning this style of playing is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be when I got the bass in June two years ago. I still need a lot more practice. Fortunately, I enjoy practicing. So, I still have some work to do before the quality of my playing will be good enough to record a CD. However, I did want to share this with you guys here and maybe a few other friends. So, for those of you who want to check it out, the video can be found here. I did not want to make it available to the public; so the way it is supposed to work is that you'll need a password. The password is alembic. So, if anyone tries it, let me know if the password thing works; and let me know what you think of the video and audio quality. In other words, in the future if I want to try to get a gig at a coffee shop, would this type of video be a good demo. Oh, and there's a really pretty bass in the video! | ||
| adriaan
Moderator Username: adriaan Post Number: 2607 Registered: 6-2002 |
Dave - the password thing is working OK. Need to use Firefox rather than IE, but that's how things are with IE right now. Can't listen to the video right now, will certainly do so later. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9665 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Adriaan. Is the IE problem related to the password, or with Vimeo in general? | ||
| adriaan
Moderator Username: adriaan Post Number: 2608 Registered: 6-2002 |
More to IE in general - certainly in tabbed mode, it can't seem to remember you've already logged in somewhere. For Vimeo it's a little extreme. At least that's what's happening for me - YMMV - can't wait to see how bad IE 9 will be in this respect ... | ||
| sonicus
Senior Member Username: sonicus Post Number: 1317 Registered: 5-2009 |
HI Dave, The password worked for me . Both the video and audio were functional. I really like the concepts that you are working on . I like your right hand technique . All in all the piece sounds enlightened and soothing . Music to my ears _______ Thanks for sharing that with us . | ||
| cozmik_cowboy
Senior Member Username: cozmik_cowboy Post Number: 785 Registered: 10-2006 |
Very tasty playing, Dave. And while I seriously doubt my computer speakers gave me the full effect of your rig, great tone as well. thank you for sharing. Peter | ||
| hammer
Junior Username: hammer Post Number: 34 Registered: 9-2009 |
Just took a gander at your video/audio and unless that bass is playing itself you are far too modest in your assessment of your mastery of this style of playing. I loved it! Played it through the new system I just set up in my study - Onkyo Integrated amp and Arx A3 towers - and the sound was wonderful. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9666 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks for the kind words; they are much appreciated. | ||
| groovelines
Senior Member Username: groovelines Post Number: 619 Registered: 4-2003 |
Very nice, Dave. On other forums this style of playing will eventually illicit the "Why don't you just play guitar?" commentary. Personally, I think the bass (esp your bass) sounds superb in this sonic range. Am I mistaken, or do I hear a little Steve Howe at about 1 min and then a few more times? Mike | ||
| mica
Moderator Username: mica Post Number: 6990 Registered: 6-2000 |
I love it and I'm pretty sure that my son is your biggest fan! "good song! good song!" | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9667 Registered: 5-2002 |
I hadn't noticed that before, but now that you mention it, the progression that begins at the one minute mark does sound similar to something Steve Howe might do. And yes, I think this instrument has a beautiful voice for this type of music. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9668 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Mica and Erik! | ||
| artswork99
Moderator Username: artswork99 Post Number: 1292 Registered: 7-2007 |
I like the swinging foot for meter ;) Nice as always. Worked fine in IE here for me. I miss our Tuesday sessions. Thanks for sharing! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9669 Registered: 5-2002 |
Hah! | ||
| adriaan
Moderator Username: adriaan Post Number: 2609 Registered: 6-2002 |
Love the flowing rhythm and the continuing melody. Sure I can hear the small slip-ups, but the music stands! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9670 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Adriaan! | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 4591 Registered: 7-2004 |
Dave: Classical bass!!!! Very tasty. Big thumb's up! Bill, tgo | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9671 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Bill! | ||
| hieronymous
Senior Member Username: hieronymous Post Number: 846 Registered: 1-2005 |
Yay! That was awesome. My favorite part is the couple of times when you hit the lower strings (A & E?). The high end was a little mp3-ish, if that makes sense, but that's a compromise with video. Looking forward to future recordings!!! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9672 Registered: 5-2002 |
Hah! Yes, I did manage to get in a couple of bass notes on my bass! As for the mp3-ish, maybe I had my Q rolled back a little too much on the bridge pickup. This evening I noticed that it needed to be opened up some more when I was practicing. | ||
| dadabass2001
Senior Member Username: dadabass2001 Post Number: 1496 Registered: 6-2002 |
Good job Dave! Your playing was smooth and quite tasty, and the rig sounds great. The tone is sweet throughout. Mike | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9674 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Mike! | ||
| 811952
Senior Member Username: 811952 Post Number: 1844 Registered: 10-2003 |
Very nice! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9688 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks John! | ||
| hb3
Senior Member Username: hb3 Post Number: 549 Registered: 2-2005 |
Sounds good, Dave. As far as you not being ready for a coffee shop gig, well, the hell you're not, man. You'd stand way out in such environs. | ||
| sonicus
Senior Member Username: sonicus Post Number: 1331 Registered: 5-2009 |
From Coffee shop gig to high end restaurant dinner venue for the next gig as the gig offers start to pile up ! It will happen _____. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9704 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks guys! I do appreciate it. From my perspective it seems pretty rough; but all of you guys here in the club are musicians, and your perspectives are much valued and appreciated. Thanks. | ||
| chrisalembic
Intermediate Member Username: chrisalembic Post Number: 139 Registered: 3-2009 |
Dave, thats some great music and a unique interpretation of playing the bass guitar. Looking forward to hearing more. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9706 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Chris! | ||
| jacko
Senior Member Username: jacko Post Number: 2754 Registered: 10-2002 |
Very nice Dave.Sorrry it's taken so long to watch this; I can only view things like this at home and I've been pretty busy of late. Your fingerstyle is excellent. In fact, there's a little run down that you play a few times (there's one at 3'19) that is very reminiscent of Steve Howe's 'Clap' and as that's one of my favourite guitar peices you can take that as a compliment ;-) Graeme | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9744 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Graeme! I didn't realize I was borrowing from Steve Howe, that section was an exercise that developed over time; but I'm sure the Howe piece was lodged somewhere in memory as The Yes Album was a favorite. | ||
| slawie
Advanced Member Username: slawie Post Number: 269 Registered: 8-2002 |
Winner Dave!! That was a really beautiful piece. Congratulations on a fine composition and your playing was a benefit to the music. I really like the sound you are getting. Can you expand on a description of your rig/effects. I could easily see that as a sound track to a great movie. The kind of stuff wonderful memories are made of. Keep 'em coming slawie | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9763 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Slawie! I'm glad you like the song, and the sound track comment is encouraging in that I'm hoping the songs tell a story, and are not heard as just fingering exercises. Of course I still need to do the fingering exercises! To answer your request for a description of the rig, here is the signal path as it stands at the moment, always subject to slight adjustments. On the SII, the volume on the bridge pickup is a good bit higher than the neck pickup; maybe 8 and 6 respectively. The filter on the bridge pickup is generally somewhere between 10 (fully open) and 8, and the Q also between 10 and 8; generally. The neck filter is generally rolled back to somewhere around 3, and the Q at 0; generally. Recently, I've rolled back my master volume to about 8 so that I'm not overdriving my gain structure (more on that below). From the SII stereo out to the DS-5R. From the DS-5R stereo out to the F-2B. The neck pickup's signal goes to channel 1 and the bridge pickup to channel 2; each pickup's signal gets further shaping to arrive at the desired overall curve. Neither pickup gets soloed, so the tone of either pickup by itself is not a consideration. The neck pickup channel's settings are bright switch off, volume 4, bass 4, mid 6, treble 5.5. The treble pickup channel's settings are currently bright switch on, volume 4, bass 5.5, mid 8, treble 6. Mono out to the SF-2. The SF-2 is setup as a three channel mixer, one channel being a low pass filter, one being a high pass filter, and the third being an unfiltered signal. The gain on the low pass filter is around 2, the frequency is set at around 110Hz, and the Q at around 1.8. The gain on the high pass filter is around 6.5, the filter around 600Hz(? hard to tell), and the Q around 5. The gain on the unfiltered channel is about 9. SF-2 mono out to the Sans Amp Tech 21 Preamp. It's kinda difficult to describe the settings since, unless you have one, the descriptions would be fairly meaningless. There are essentially five different types of gain structures which are combined to produce the desired overdrive tone. I have three settings that I have worked up which introduce a somewhat subtle amount of overdrive at this stage, and a couple which add a bit more overdrive for one or two of the tunes; one or the other of these overdriven settings is always on. These settings are midi selected with footswitches on the pedal board. From the effects loop out on the Tech 21 to the T.C. Electronic M-One XL. (There's also a Lexicon MPX1 right before the T.C., but it's currently not being used and may soon be removed from the rig.) Here the signal is split into stereo. All of the effects are settings I worked up over time. The first effect is tremolo, which is always on but very subtle. There is a midi switch on the pedal board to cut this on and off, and one to change the mix of wet and dry signals in the effect from subtle to noticeable. Next is chorus, and this too is always on, but also has an on/off footswitch if ever needed. The mix of wet and dry signals in the chorus effect is controlled by an expression pedal. This effect is very subtle on some songs, a bit more noticeable on others, and very noticeable on a few. Next is reverb, again always on, on/off footswitch, with the effect level controlled by an expression pedal. The effect is generally quite noticeable. Next is delay, and again always on, on/off switch, with the effect level controlled by an expression pedal. This effect too is generally quite noticeable. Next in the path is volume, controlled by an expression pedal. From the T.C. Electronic stereo out to the BBE Sonic Maximizer 422A. Both channels are setup the same with the Lo-Contour set to +1, and the Definition currently set to +2. From the BBE stereo out to the effects return of the Tech 21. Here there are direct outs for each channel if needed. From the Tech 21 stereo out to the QSC PLX 2402, setup in stereo mode. The overall frequency curve is setup to work well when the volume levels on the PLX are set at 3. When the volume levels are set to 1 or 2, adjustments to the settings on the SII and switching Tech 21 settings usually works adequately. Each channel of the PLX drives a Bag End D10BX-D. The rig is really a bit big for just going down to a coffee shop for a solo gig. But it's where I'm at for the moment. Of course at the heart of the whole thing is the Alembic. There are times at 2:00 in the morning when I'm practicing where it just sounds amazingly beautiful, despite my inability to put my fingers where they're supposed to be. The tone it creates and the frequency range that it provides are, again, just amazingly beautiful. | ||
| artswork99
Moderator Username: artswork99 Post Number: 1307 Registered: 7-2007 |
More than I could handle... a great sounding rig with lots of available variations. Nice explanation! | ||
| slawie
Advanced Member Username: slawie Post Number: 271 Registered: 8-2002 |
Thanks for the rig set up Dave amazing. The tune had me walking around the Redwoods in Santa Cruz and a little North. The mood was set wonderfully as if you were sitting on that porch (in your profile) playing the tune. Actually your next vid may be set looking into that spot with yourself seated, Alembic and a cable running off to the side. Please don't take this as a criticism. I sensed in your playing a little disconnect between the rhythmic "centre" your foot and your hands. I think that your concentration particularly of your fingers seems a little tight kind of choking the interaction of rhythm and movement. Let the rhythm, that drives your foot, up through your body piece by piece (like filling up a container) when you get to where you are full of the motion/rhythm up to your hands let go of the theory/exercises and be consumed by the whole body experience. Please don't think i am an ass just an observation. Let me know when the next "Davideo" comes out. BTW Kids don't smoke dope and go on the internet! slawie | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9772 Registered: 5-2002 |
Slawie; this is quite helpful, and it's actually something that I do 'practice' with. It's helpful to know that you see it, as it's something I 'see' and 'practice' with as well. | ||
| oddmetersam
Intermediate Member Username: oddmetersam Post Number: 110 Registered: 7-2008 |
Dave, I'm struck by the delicate, crystal quality of your sound. It makes me lean forward as though I'll miss something if I'm not careful. Your vid plays perfectly on my Mac running snow leopard, btw. Your fingerpicking technique has motivated me to learn more about that style and to incorporate more sophisticated chords with my left hand. And this is not meant as a criticism, just an observation as far as a demo goes: While the wider camera angle does effectively show your very cool rack and Bag Ends, what about a much tighter shot that focuses on you and your bass in more detail? Both the beauty of your "hand work" and the beauty of Alembic's handiwork would be even more obvious and compelling. But I'm just rambling. You sound Great! -Sam | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9806 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Sam! The video software didn't allow for any zooming in and out as an edit option; that would have been a nice feature. But if I remember to, I'll try a tighter shot on the next attempt. | ||
| pas
Advanced Member Username: pas Post Number: 245 Registered: 3-2003 |
I just checked out your video...very nice. Music that's food for thought & can make you tap your toes simultaneously...not an easy feat...well done sir! | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9825 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks Paul! | ||
| pas
Advanced Member Username: pas Post Number: 246 Registered: 3-2003 |
What can I say...as a big Jorma Kaukonen fan, I LOVE fingerpicking & counterpoint. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9829 Registered: 5-2002 |
Water Song has always been one of my favorites; loved it the first time I heard it. | ||
| sonicus
Senior Member Username: sonicus Post Number: 1436 Registered: 5-2009 |
Hello Dave, I was wondering if you have experimented with an E A D G C F tuning on six string Bass? I have considered getting a 6 string Alembic Bass and tuning it such . Any thoughts ? Wolf | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 9899 Registered: 5-2002 |
Back when I got my six string Essence, I did at some point go to an E - F tuning. But as I wasn't really playing the six string much then, I don't really remember much about it other than it worked. I don't have any desire to do that with my current bass as I'm happy with the C being the high string. One thing I have just started playing with though is a Spider capo. I just got it on Friday, and it gives me more options for low open bass strings. For instance instead of an open low B, I now leave that string as an open D; and in that same capo position I have the option of changing the open E to an open G and changing the open A to an open C. Of course it takes me a lot of time to get used to changes like that, so it'll be a while before I'm comfortable with it; but I'm pretty excited about it. | ||
| sonicus
Senior Member Username: sonicus Post Number: 1438 Registered: 5-2009 |
Dave , Thanks for your response . New ideas and concepts and the like are always exciting for me too . I am sure that your new Spider Capo will be fun as well . Wolf |
