Rock Steady!

Guitar Bass Gig

OK, so you've learnt how to play bass and you're now playing for a gigging band. This series of articles will help you get over some of the problems all bass players encounter when they play live. Gig tips 5 looks at spares and what you should take on a gig.

The question of spares is an interesting one. What spare(s) should you take to a gig? And how many of each?

Here's a list of what I keep in my gig spares bag (which is tucked away in a compartment in the car - bad place to keep it! I must remember to actually take it into gigs with me!).

Spare No 1) A set of strings.

Spare No 2) Two 9 volt batteries.

Spare No 3) Six AA batteries (for my Line 6 Variax bass)

Spare No 4) A microphone quality jack to jack lead (also for my Variax bass)

Spare No 5) Spare picks (even though my pick playing is a bit sucky!)

Spare No 6) Spare 'kettle' lead (as we call them in the UK. Technically they're a euro power lead. If you're from across the pond just think of this as a power lead). They only cost a few pounds and you never know when a fuse is going to blow. It's quicker and easier to change the power lead than change the fuse.

Spare No 7) Spare bass! (I never used to, but I'm still paranoid about something going wrong with the Variax, though so far it's been great).

If the gig is my own band - which these days is about 99.5% of the time - then I often try and make sure I've got a couple of spare black shirts too in case other band members forget theirs, or don't iron them, or spill something on them.

I know some players who take a spare amp with them. I never do - if your amp goes down you can always plug directly into the PA. I've got the same 150 Watt Combo Amp that I've had since the late eighties and though it's seen better days, it still soldiers on.

If you want more bass related info, head over to my how to play bass website where you'll find video lessons, articles, reviews and much more. There's also a weekly ezine you can sign up for - in return for signing up you'll get a PDF file with 5 cool bass lines in - and each week's ezine features a bass line in music notation and bass tab. http://www.how-to-play-bass.com

This gig tip was originally published in my free weekly ezine.

Any recommendations on a Bass Guitar?

I'm looking for something for intermediate play pro playing guitar. I'm fairly new at bass but looking for something under the $400 range that will be good enough to play gigs on. Something that have a sharp look too. Thanks for any advice.

It all depends on the type of music you want to play. Fender Squier is inexpensive and has a more rock commercial sound.

Then you have 4-string and 5-string Schecter Stiletto bass which has lots of punch, and is very versatile. This bass will purr, roar, growl, or even scream! It's perfect for any kind of heavy rock, and is actually better for softer music than you'd think. Good bass for rock and metal.

Ibanez BTB200 4-String Electric Bass Guitar . It has a good tone and a very fast neck and actually, a long neck. So if you have short arms, not the bass for you LOL.

Good Luck.

Shadow of Your Smile (jazz guitar/bass duo)

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Luthier Wood

Your guitar won't play in tune because of faulty intonation. You have tried sacrificing your favorite effects pedal to the guitar gods and donating gig money to orphanages, but nothing seems to help. You were ready to take up the Theremin until you found articles like this one that describe practical ways to fix intonation. Part One of this article explained how to fix certain factors that corrupt the intonation of guitars and basses, such as faulty nut slots or excessive neck relief. Part Two will discuss how to fix a few more issues that cause flawed intonation. For a review on how to properly set intonation, refer to the Xylem article Guitar and Bass Repair - Beyond Basic Tuning - Intonation, What is it and How Does it Work?

High Nut

(Please follow the link at the bottom of the article to view the associated figures)

If the first several frets of your instrument play sharp, regardless of intonation settings and tuning, the nut may be too high. The taller the nut the more the strings stretch when fretted. The more the strings stretch, the sharper the pitch. To check if your nut is too high, tune your instrument to pitch and make sure the neck relief is set properly (refer to the Xylem Truss Rod Articles parts 1-3 for a review of setting neck relief). Next, fret the lowest string at the third fret. If you can fit more than one business card between the bottom of the string and the top of the first fret, the nut is too high.

A high nut must be removed and the extra height sanded away. To remove the nut, place a wood block against the side facing the fretboard (Figure 1). Gently tap the opposite end of the block of wood with a hammer to knock the nut free. Most instruments should have only a small amount of glue holding the nut on so it may be removed this way without causing any damage. If the nut does not come off after a few gentle taps, consider asking a luthier or repair tech to remove the nut.

Once the nut is free, mark it to indicate how much material should be removed, keeping in mind that removing 1/8" is a lot. While sanding, make sure the bottom of the nut remains flat and square to the side that touches the fretboard by checking it with a square frequently. Sanding the nut with a jig like the one depicted in Figure 2 will help it stay flat and square (make sure your jig forms a perfect right angle). Start with a coarse grit sandpaper between 100 and 150. The final sanding should be done with a grit between 320 and 600. Sand away material in small increments and check the height of the nut occasionally with the third fret method described above. If you sand away too much material you may have to replace the nut.

Once the nut is the proper height, clean up any excess glue where the nut was seated on the neck with a chisel, file or sandpaper wrapped around a small square block (if you don't have much experience with a chisel, stick with the file or sandpaper). Make sure the nut's seat stays square and flat. Place a small drop of hide glue or white glue on the nut's seat. Place the nut in its seat and tune the instrument to pitch (the strings will act as a clamp). Make sure that the nut does not wander while tensioning the strings. Wipe away excess glue with a moist paper towel and allow it to dry for about 12 hours before playing the instrument. You've just improved both the intonation and the action at the lower frets!

Maxed-Out Compensation and Instruments with Fixed Saddles

Some instruments' saddles may be adjusted all the way back or forward but they still do not intonate correctly. Other instruments with incorrect intonation have fixed saddles so their compensation cannot be adjusted easily. The intonation of these instruments may be improved or corrected in one of the following ways, depending on action, relief and string tension.

In general, a guitar or bass with high action, excessive relief or lower-tension strings will require more compensation, as all these conditions require the strings to stretch further when fretted. Instruments with the saddles adjusted all the way back (or a fixed saddle) and sharp intonation may have their action lowered, relief reduced or higher-tension strings installed in an effort to correct their intonation. Conversely, instruments with saddles adjusted all the way forward (or a fixed saddle) and flat intonation may have their action raised, relief increased or lower-tension strings installed to improve or correct their intonation. If you are not familiar with adjusting action or relief on your own, consider taking your instrument to a luthier for these adjustments.

As always, thanks for reading. See you in a month!

Copyright © Anthony Olinger, Xylem Handmade Basses and Guitars 2009.

Follow this link to view the figures for this article.

If you have any questions or comments about this article please visit the Xylem Handmade Basses and Guitars website and follow the "Contact" link on the navigation menu on the left.

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Builder, repairer, sales, teacher, instrumentalist, composer, arranger, interior decorator, comedian (Henny Youngman), juggler ...

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Neck Position

My patients usually ask me -"What is the best way to sleep?" to which I always answer: "Well, what position do you sleep in?" The reason for this reply is that just be modifying a couple of things here and there, you can get a restful and comfortable night's rest no matter what position you actually sleep in.

Back Sleepers

Yes, this is actually the preferred position to sleep because it places the least amount of stress to your spine-IF you:

Place a cervical roll or rolled-up towel under your neck. Make sure that your head is in a neutral position (that you are neither looking up or down). If you find that you cannot be "in neutral" then you need a smaller roll.

Place a pillow under your knees-This takes stress off

of your lower back. You could buy a special pillow for this, but a

regular pillow works just fine.

Side Sleepers

-If you sleep on your side, then follow these tips to minimize the

amount of stress to your spine.

Use a cervical pillow-Ideally, the pillow should take into account how wide your shoulders are-the wider your shoulders, the taller the pillow should be. This is because you want to keep your neck in a neutral position.Place a pillow between your knees. Not only will this feel more comfortable, if you have hip joint pain-this definitely helps.Try not to sleep on your side with your arm up over your head-this causes stress on the nerves that come out of the neck and into the arms and cause tingling or numbness down the arms.

Sleep on your Belly-

This position places the most stress on your neck.

In this position you have your head turned to one side or the other for hours at a time. This is quite stressful to your neck muscles and joints.

Your body will try to shift your position to compensate. This is why people who toss and turn the most are belly sleepers.

To sleep more comfortably(belly sleepers):

Place a pillow under your waist, and do not use a pillow for your head.

Remember that there are other variables that will affect the quality of your sleep, like the condition and firmness of your mattress. If your mattress is too old it will sag and not provide enough support.

Avoid super-soft mattresses-they may feel comfortable at the

beginning, but in the mornings, the lack of support will make you feel sore. Your mattress should be firm, but not hard to provide the adequate support.

As with anything, if any of these recommendations cause you increased pain, consult your chiropractor-there may be other factors present that should be checked by a professional.

Sweet Dreams!

Dr. Dan DeReuter is a chiropractor practicing in Georgia. He operates various websites with the goal of educating people on the benefits of natural methods of better heath. His websites are: http://www.healthfultips.com, http://www.deepdownwellness.com, and [http://www.deepdownnutrition.com]

What position should I sit in at the computer so my neck doesnt ache?

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vertically, also relax your shoulders, pull them down if ya have to...

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Electric Guitar Amp

The electric guitar was invented by a very talented man who went by the name of Adolph Rickenbacker. The first complete setup was back in the 1930's, which was only a mere 70 years ago. On the other hand, the Classical guitar and the Acoustic Guitar have been around for many centuries. There is evidence that dates back to 1800 B.C., that shows the presents of guitars, or similar instruments. There is really no comparison between todays electric guitars and the past. The evolution of electric guitars has been nothing short of amazing. This article will give you a brief history of the electric guitar.

Adolph Rickenbacker manufactured his fist electric guitar in the early 1930's, and equipped it with tungsten pickups. These pickups would sense the vibrations from the strings and convert them into electrical currents. The currents are relayed into the amp and produces sound.

• Semi-hollow body are what the older guitars were know as. They were called this because they had sound holes in the body of the guitar. This style of guitar is still very popular today.

As the Big Band era approached in the 30's and 40's, the use of electric guitars became more popular. Plugging the guitar into an amplifier would give the much needed sound levels to be heard over the loud surroundings of the bands.

A guy by the name of Les Paul is an excellent musician, but if for some reason you don't know this name, he is the inventor of the solid body electric guitar. Les Paul invented the fist solid body in 1941.

This type of guitar is made of one piece of wood and has no sound holes. You are able to simply plug into an amplifier and start thrashing. Paul's first original guitar he made was nothing to brag about. It consisted of nothing more than a rectangular body attached to the neck and six steel strings. However, a modern day Les Paul is simply a thing of beauty.

It was in the 50's that Gibson hooked up with Les Paul and presented the Gibson Les Paul to the world. From that day there was no turning back. The Gibson Les Paul has been a major success for over 50 years, and is considered the most popular selling electric guitar on the market. One guy very partial to the Gibson is Slash from Guns n' Roses.

Leo Fender soon became the next big thing in solid-body guitars. Leo invented the Fender Broadcaster in the late 40's. The Broadcaster was introduced to the public in 1954, but instead of Broadcaster, it was named the Fender Stratocaster or Fender "Strat". The Fender Strat guitar was very different from the Gibson in the fact the the Strat had a different body shape, used different hardware, and was much lighter. Despite these differences, the Fender has become the second favorite guitar among musicians. Musicians such as Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and many others play the Fender Stratocaster.

Today, there are many other guitar manufactures that produce solid-body guitars. Here are a few:

1. Washburn
2. Ibanez
3. ESP
4. Jackson
5. Paul Reed Smith
6. Kramer
7. Dean
8. Epiphone
9. Peavy
10. Schecter

Josh Scalf is an experienced guitarist that offers information and resources for aspiring musicians. Check out more quality articles at http://www.guitaradvice4u.com

Can I use a Line 6 Spider III electric guitar amp with a bass guitar?

I noticed a Line 6 bass amp in a Musician's Friend magazine that was identical to my Spider III, with the exception of the name. I am planning on purchasing an ESP 104 or a Yamaha bass, and was wondering if I could simply use the amp I had for decent sound, and simply for practice purposes. Can I do so, or do I need to buy a new bass amp?

Yes, you can do that, but you won't get a great bass sound. They are just built differently, and a guitar amp won't give you that deep boom sound like a bass amp would.

But if you just want it to practice on a get a feel for it, then I guess you will be fine.

Vox AD50VT Electric Guitar Amp (2 of 2)

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