Fender Standard P-Bass Review

Sitting right in the mid-range of Fenders 'bass line', the P-Bass is probably about the best bang-for-buck you're gonna' get. And some bang it is. 

I've been playing a 2008 model for the past week, trying to acquaint myself with these dopey cable-car cables that bassists call 'strings'. But what a bass to have this experience with.

The body material is alder which, if we're getting 'tone-woodey', should give it a sharp and crisp tone (it does have a sharp and crisp tone... should I reevaluate my stance on tone wood? No). I would prefer a more premium wood but I do appreciate that alder is a little bit lighter than swamp ash, this makes the bass very comfortable to play for extended periods of time. The body is finished with polyester in 'Lake Placid Blue' which, despite it being poly, is really gorgeous. 

The neck and fretboard are all maple (apart from the skunk stripe covering the truss rod which I believe is rosewood), it's a mapley affair. The fretboard is really lovely to play, it's got nice medium-jumbo frets and a 34" scale length. It's got a synthetic bone nut and the finish on the neck is a pretty slick satin urethane. Not slowing down my playing like the Schecter I reviewed.

Considering I am a sub-par bassist AT BEST, this thing made me feel like Bootsy Collins (Parliament era, obviously!). I was slappin' and poppin', bustin' out fills like it was goin' out of fashion. Then I recorded my playing and realised my 'amazing' bass line was pretty sh*t, but what a great time I had recording it! This bass is fun to play. 

The sound is fantastic and saying it's 'versatile' doesn't do the bass justice. The range of tones I was able to pull out of this went from funk to death-metal, it does the lot and it does it well. I had this coupled with an ashdown and they really compliment each other well.

The 'look' of the bass is a classic, and it's a classic for a reason (Leo Fender himself did the original design). This bass just suits everyone, from hair metal bands to ambient indie groups. The styling is sublime, simple and functional. The 'lake placid blue' with the white pickguard is really gorgeous and the photo does it no justice. For a bass that is over 6 years old the finish has held up well, with only one major crack in the finish that I could find.

Should you buy it?

• Are you a beginner looking for a versatile and great-playing bass? Yes, you should buy it.
• Are you an intermediate bass player looking for a step up from your starter instrument? Yes, you should buy it.
• Are you an advanced bassist looking to add to the stable? You've probably already got one. No? Buy it!
• Do you hate having fun and/or big thick strings? No, don't buy it.

I can only recommend this instrument, it's just so balanced. The aesthetic is perfect, so many of the greats have played them so its pretty easy to play pretend (I was flea, Sting, Steve Harris and Mark Hoppus all in one afternoon). It's fundamentally enjoyable to play and has great tonal range, it's just a great bass. 

Final rating: 9/10

Big thanks to Cryptid Clothing for providing the bass for the review. Please check them out for some awesome paranormal clothing! Their website is: www.cryptidclothing.co.uk. 

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5 Steps To Better Tone

I don't think i've ever met a guitarist that was fully satisfied with their tone, I don't think I ever will. 

There are, however, some simple tips to help you get the best tone. Read on for some quick fixes and more in depth ideas for improving your tone.

When it comes to tone there is no such thing as right or wrong. It really depends on what you're going for with it, the genre and style etc.

Step 1: Identify the weakest link in your rig.

Is it the amp? The Guitar? I hate to say it but... you? It's important to identify the weak link so that you can improve that first. Improving the weakest aspect of your tone will make the biggest difference.

Step 2: Change Your Strings

Not changed your strings (ya know, this kind of string) in about a decade? We've all been guilty of it, at one point or another. Change them. You'll notice a vast improvement in both tone and feel. Nice, easy and cheap.

Step 3: The Amp

The amp is hugely important for your tone, arguably the most important link in the chain in terms of pure sound output. Are you still using a supermarket amp that you found in a scrapyard? Upgrade. Amp buying can be a difficult process (i'll have a buyers guide on here soon!) and it can end up costing you an arm, a leg and all of your life savings if you're not careful. It's important to remember the law of diminishing returns, which kinda goes like this:

The more you spend initially the better the quality, however the improvements per price paid get smaller and smaller the more you spend after this. For example the difference between your typical non-brand starter amp and a £500/$600 marshall is enormous. The difference between a 2 grand and a 4 grand amp is significantly smaller. 

 It's also important to remember to pick an amp based on your tastes and needs.

Step 4: The Guitar and Pickups

Now i'm going to assume (for the purpose of the guide) that the materials of the guitar make no difference to the tone. However the guitar is important, it's the interface between you and the sound you want. A poorly made guitar with a bad setup will make you seem like a worse player than you are (I know we shouldn't blame the tools but sometimes the tools just suck) and if you're not properly able to use the interface then you aren't getting the tone you could be.

Now for the pickups. If your guitar is amazing, your amp is boutique and you've changed your strings but the tone still lacks then it might be the pickups. A PRS with a fridge magnet wrapped up with some rusty copper wire for a pickup is gonna' sound like turd (yes, even a PRS can sound like turd). A good brand for pickups that have a diverse range and reasonable prices are Seymour Duncan. Pick pickups (that's hard to say repeatedly) based on your style and preferred genre.

Step 5: You

Now i'm not saying that you're rubbish (I bet you're about 15 times better than me!) but if, for example, you're trying to emulate the tone of your favorite guitarist and you have all the same gear then you need to look at your style of play. Does the guitarist you like only fingerpick? Then lose the plectrum.

I would argue that the player is at least equally responsible for tone as any other component in the signal chain. So if you think your tone is rubbish then maybe you need to spend a bit of time improving the precision of your playing skills.

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A Review Of The Holy Grail!

Well this little stomp-box (pedal? Foot switch? I think I prefer stomp-box, I stomps em' anyway...) is absolutely fantastic. I was honestly gobsmacked by pretty much every aspect of this little unit. 

And a unit it is, the little f****r could probably get through a nuclear blast unscathed. The Electro-Harmonix Nano Holy Grail is a reverb unit that really packs a hell of a punch. Featuring three reverb settings: Spring (much like on older reverb amps, really great for vintage tones), Hall (literally simulating the reverb of a hall, and its a hell of a hall too) and the aptly titled 'flerb' a combination of flange and reverb which is a really fantastic effect. It's also got a little knob to adjust the intensity of the effect. It's a nice small unit too, won't be taking up too much pedal-board real estate (i've honestly seen significantly larger tuners!). 

It sounds fantastic too, the spring reverb is just a dream if you're shootin' for some vintage tones. The 'hall' setting had me skeptical when I read this "how did they fit Notre Dame into such a small package?" on the product page. It genuinely delivers though, big time, the hall reverb is HUGE. The flerb is also an incredible sound, if a little bit too adventurous for me to ever really utilise (as i've previously stated, i'm a boring fart). I've used a lot of pro grade reverb units on recording software that don't compare to this, they do have a wider range of sounds though. This doesn't have a million and one options but what this little box does, it does well.

I'm not usually an advocate of reverb units to be frank. I don't really use them as I prefer natural reverberation, or in a pinch amp reverb. This wee box has changed my perspectives massively, to have this kind of sound on tap and at this price range is phenomenal and for it to take up so little space is a huge plus (especially since you'll probably be slapping this right at the end of a signal chain).

You can get one here. If you were in any way interested in getting a reverb unit, you will not regret it,

9/10

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Key Tips For Beginners

So you've decided to fight the good fight, you've picked up a bass or a guitar, you're on the road to becoming the next Steve Vai. But you don't know where to begin, well i've got you covered.

For a beginner I would highly recommend that you find yourself a local teacher who can show you the ropes, face to face. This isn't feasible for everyone, I know, and for whatever reason not everyone will be able to utilise a local teacher. But do not despair as there are a great many online resources for learning to play, my personal favorite is Justin Guitar because it's incredibly comprehensive and, most importantly, free. 

The way you learn isn't the be all and end all of developing your guitar skills, ultimately your ability to become an amazing guitarist or bass player is entirely down to your drive and determination. I remember when I first started playing I felt pretty down on myself, people that started when I started quickly became better than me and I thought that I lacked the 'talent'. 

Talent is obviously important, not many of the worlds most famous instrumentalists are lacking talent. What you've gotta' remember though is the most important aspect to developing your skills is pure, bloody-minded determination. What I started to realise was that my peers, regardless of how talented they were, were putting in the hours. They were playing every minute of free time they had, I was lazy.

When you first start playing you'll find that you're playing all the time anyway, if you genuinely want to continue to improve then you need to carry that on indefinitely. I obviously can't deny that some people learn quicker than others, don't let that demoralise you. Guitar and bass playing are skills that you can acquire, not something that you have to be born with.

And remember, if your fingers are in agony you're probably doing something right (I'm sorry to say that i'm not even kidding). Talent can be acquired if you're determined enough. You want to be able to shred? Be determined, put in the hours and you will be rewarded. 

If you are thinking of learning to play, you can't go wrong with a Squier Bullet Stratocaster and a Marshall MG10 10 watt combo.

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News Of The Week

Each Sunday i'll post snippets of the week in guitar and bass news.

• So it looks like Guitar Hero will be back on the shelves of video game stores again at some point in the near future. (I spoke about that here)
• Gene Simmons reckons Rock n' Roll is dead, The Telegraph disagrees suggesting 5 British bands that might revive the genre.
•  A craigslist listing for a guitar sale has done the rounds online for being genuinely hilarious, you can see that here.
• A lizard plays a leaf like a guitar... article here complete with bad puns.
• A cool little feature piece on the journey of the electric guitar over here. 

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Girl, 15, Smashes Eruption

So i've just seen this video of a 15 year old girl (she's literally younger than my first guitar) absolutely destroy Eruption from Van Halen. She goes by 'Tina S' and is incredibly technically gifted, it's good to see younger generations not only picking up the guitar but also being awesome at it. I can't deny my jealousy though, totally unfair that she's better than i'll ever be already. At least she ain't playing the damned 'bleep-bloop' music, like the rest of her peers.

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How To: Set Up Your Guitar For Drop Tunings

If you're anything like me then you've probably experimented with drop tunings, only to realise you're not quite cool enough to pull off being in a metalcore band. 

Since you're all probably significantly cooler people than me, i'm gonna' impart some wisdom regarding drop tunings. We've all been there, trying out that new hip song (maybe just out of morbid curiosity?) and realising you've got to drop your tunings to like... 'drop y' or something. So you put on a brave face, whip out your chromatic tuner (I like the Korg CA-1 as it's about the best bang for your buck), then grimace as your poor 09 guage slinkies rattle the fretboard and sound like wet mud. Well get ready for wisdom as over the next 3 steps i'll show you how to achieve that 'thicker than thick' drop C or even B used by so many modern metal bands. 

Step 1)

The first and possibly most important step is to select the right strings for a drop tuning. If your going to drop C then it's important to have thicker gauge strings such as these 12 gauge 'Not Even Slinky' strings from Ernie Ball, these are my personal favorites for this gauge. Thicker strings do not need to be as high tension as regular gauge strings, so they allow you to hit those lower tunings without sacrificing the tightness of the string. If you're really wanting to straddle the border between a guitar and a bass with a drop B then you should look at getting some baritone strings like these baritone slinkies from Ernie Ball or maybe an even lower gauge (hell, why not just slap on some bass strings and show those metalcore kids some real thud). Some people like to mix and match on strings, preferring lighter gauge strings for the 6th, 5th and 4th strings so it's easier to bend notes. 

Step 2)

After fitting a heavier gauge of strings you'll probably find that you need to adjust your bridge height to accommodate them. As the strings are thicker now you may find you need to raise your string action (blasphemy, I know) just a little to avoid fret buzz. If you have a tune-o-matic or 'gibson style' bridge there is a great tutorial for bridge adjustment here. For 'Fender style' bridges you'll need to adjust the individual saddles using a small 0.05 'hex key' (We calls em' allen keys here in the UK). For floyd rose style bridges use the guide here. 

Step 3) 

You may find you'll need to adjust the neck itself via the truss rod as your guitar is now under different tension due to thicker strings. If you're in any way unsure regarding adjusting neck action via the truss rod then please, please, for the love of Hendrix, take it to someone who does. However if you're feeling brave then follow this guide. As i've said you should only adjust the neck if you're absolutely confident that you can do it, too many guitars have met their ends via over or under-tightening of the truss rod (it will literally snap the neck if you're not careful).

So there you have it, your axe is sharpened and ready to hit those brutal low notes and you can blast out powerful palm muted power chords in those relentless rhythms. Now go, chug those insane breakdowns to your hearts content, brave women and men of modern metal. 


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1000 Followers Competition!

So now that the twitter profile has reached 1000 followers i'll be running a little competition. The winner of the competition will get their mits on this goodie-bag worth £60/ $90:

To enter the competition you will simply need to follow the account and retweet the following tweet:

Competition to win a £60/ $90 guitar goodie-bag! Retweet and follow to enter! Details here: http://t.co/oMYKjJ3V6R

— Guitar & Bass (@PluckStrumPick) February 26, 2015

I'll draw a winner at random from those who have retweeted and followed the account. I will draw the winner on March 15th 2015. I will only be able to draw a winner from Europe or North America. So if you're not either in Europe or North America you can NOT enter the contest, sorry for the inconvenience. Once i've drawn a winner at random I will follow and DM that person for postage details. You only need to retweet one of the tweets to enter. Thanks for following and good luck!


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Guitar Hero To Make A Comeback?

So it looks like Guitar Hero is making it's return. I can certainly reminisce on many an evening challenging friends as well as slobbing it up in boxer shorts trying to beat my high-score. Full report from The Guardian here. 

"Gaming news site Kotaku reports that Activision could announce a new title at the giant E3 games convention in Los Angeles in June. 

Launched in 2005 and originally developed by music specialist Harmonix, the Guitar Hero series became a major entertainment phenomenon, selling more than 25m copies and kickstarting a huge industry trend for audio gaming."

I'm not sure it can ever recapture former glory, there is probably a good reason sales declined. I'm still fairly certain i'll be buying a copy though, because being good at plastic guitar is super easy compared to being a legitimately good guitarist. So i'm fairly certain  I'll be bedroom rockin' once again when this is released. 

You can buy Guitar Hero 6: Warriors Of Rock here.


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Fender P-Bass Review Coming Soon!

I'll be doing a review of the Fender Standard P-Bass soon! I really can't wait to play it, classic design and absolutely gorgeous in 'Lake Placid Blue'. It's a shame my bass playing skills won't do it justice! Let me know on here or on Twitter about other stuff you'd like me to try and review and I'll see what I can do. I'm also going to be running a competition on Twitter when the account hits 1000 followers and I'm open to suggestions of prizes, I was thinking of having a goodie-bag of guitar accessories as the prize. If you've got any other suggestions then please let me know!  

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Domire One Handed Use Capo

I've had a Domire Quick Change capo for a while now, before this I had a hand tightened capo that used a screw and I was loath to use it at times because of the inconvenience. The Quick Change capo is great to use as it's a spring loaded mechanism that you can apply to your guitar's fretboard using only one hand if you wanted, snazzy. It's super easy to use and applies even pressure across each string, an issue i've had with previous budget capos. Uneven pressure can cause the tuning to sound a little bit off. It comes in a great range of colours but i'm a boring fart and plumped for black. The only issue I really have with the capo is that the paint job is a little bit sketchy, i've not got any chips yet but it does seem like a few drops on hard flooring would scuff the paint. However for the price its hard to complain, it's a sturdy little capo and it's so convenient that I wonder why I even bothered with those screw in capos. 

Click here if you'd like to buy one.

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Wood: Does It Matter?

A hot topic for many of us, but does the substance that we stick strings and pickups on really matter? 

I'm going to avoid controversy and say yes... and no. The materials we use to build guitars with are obviously important, you're unlikely to see a functioning guitar made from mashed potatoes (although I would definitely like to see you try and make one).  A guitar needs to be made from reasonably rigid materials, too much flex and your tunings will be weird and I don't think a bent fretboard is ideal. But is the difference between mahogany and maple really that noticeable? Lets 'av a look.

Assume we're talking about an electric instrument that is amplified, a purist might argue that the type of wood is one part of the long ingredients list for the recipe for 'tone' and that it is a key aspect. They're right in that it will affect the tone of the instrument but the amount it can affect tone is in question. In a blind test of a maple bodied guitar of the same construction as a mahogany bodied guitar I would defy anyone to consistently pick which guitar is which. The differences in tone would be almost negligible, in my opinion. Where this logic gets contentious is when it comes to acoustic instruments (more on these later).  

Where I feel the type of wood matters is the bearing it has on the weight and aesthetic of a guitar. There are very few things as visually pleasing as a book-matched, flamed or quilted maple top on an electric guitar. There are also few things as annoying as a guitar that would be better suited to a weightlifter because it's constructed entirely with dense woods,. whilst a guitar that is too light could have a negative impact on the feeling of quality. 

Acoustic instruments have a more solid argument for the 'tone' that can be imbued by wood. An acoustic guitar amplifies itself using a hollow chamber under the strings, this means the vibrations of sound have to reverberate through this chamber. The character of the wood, especially the density of the wood, will have an impact on the reverberant quality of the chamber. A denser wood like maple will allow the reverberations to 'bounce' of the walls of the chamber more easily and would probably create a 'brighter' tone than a less dense open grained wood. In the case of acoustic guitars the wood has a direct impact on the type of sound produced.

What the f**k do I know anyway?! I'm still gonna' get that mahogany bodied LP and brag to literally all of my mates about how the tone is that much beefier because of it.

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Lemon Oil: It's Good Stuff

Lemon oil is a favorite product of mine because it solves what is probably one of the most annoying problems with guitars and bass. That problem being dry fretboards. One good application of lemon oil with a lint free rag on the fretboard, making sure to really push the oil into the grain. Then left to dry for a few hours and I guarantee that your fretboard will feel as good or possibly even better than new.

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Schecter C-1 Hellraiser Special Review

So I had a chance to play a friends Schecter C-1 Hellraiser Special. Prepare to be bombarded with my subjective thoughts. 

This guitar is probably what I'd call an upper mid-range guitar, without being aware of the price at the time of playing it. I played the version which does not feature a floyd rose floating trem. It features a mahogany body, a three piece mahogany neck, a rosewood fretboard and the black cherry version that I played featured a very sexy quilted maple top (very reminiscent of a PRS if not quite as masterfully finished, gives it a very high-end look). The pickups are a pair of active EMG's an 81 and an 85 in the neck and bridge positions respectively. 

    
It must be said that my friend has had this guitar for a number of years and he's not the type to really cherish things so its had a rough life. However the guitar has stood up to his lifestyle remarkably well, the finish looks great despite many bumps and bangs. If all of these guitars are this durable then I would definitely recommend it for a touring band or someone who might be a little clumsy.

     
As you can probably tell from the aesthetic and the choice of pickups this guitar is geared heavily (that's a pun, get it?) towards metal and hard rock. I played this through a Blackstar Series One 45 Watt combo. The heavier and metal tones that can be achieved with this guitar, in tandem with a high quality high-gain amp like the Series One, are mind-blowing. It really chugs the lows (great if you're into all that 'Djent' business) and the guitar can really squeal but still maintains good clarity when playing fast runs. Despite the fact that this guitar is clearly leveraged towards high output, face-melting and head-smashing metal it fares well when you want to take the pedal away from the metal (another pun... or is it word play?). When I opted for a cleaner tone the guitar performs well, the clarity that the pickups give make for nice and clear chords that have a little bit of an acoustic character. Though it can play the cleaner tones, I wouldn't recommend this guitar if your style mostly utilizes clean tones, It just doesn't compare to a strat or a tele in this regard. 

     
The playability of this guitar was fantastic, my friend hasn't had it professionally set up so it's still factory set (which vindicates Schecters decision to manufacture their low and mid-range guitars in south korea and then have them set up in a USA factory). The action is nice and low for those that like to play quick, the neck has a reasonably small circumference (it's no wizard neck, but it can compete) and the fret board is nice and flat for quicker runs. The only downside i'd suggest is that the neck is finished with the same lacquer as the body so it occasionally slowed down my playing speed, as its a set neck I can see why it is this way but a better lacquer would have improved things. The guitar is a little on the heavy side due to the mahogany, it's not 60's Les Paul heavy but it still put pressure on my shoulder after an hour or two. All in all though its still a very pleasant playing experience. 

     
Should you buy one? Yes, if it fulfils your needs. If you're after anything that isn't metal, then it's probably best to look elsewhere. The guitar sets out its stall pretty quickly in what it's trying to achieve, you know the second you look at it. If you're after a guitar that can fulfil just about any metal tone then it's a fantastic choice, it plays quick and has a beefy low-end and the high-end will literally scream if you want it to. It's clearly very durable too, so i'd be happy to suggest this as a gigging guitar. 

All in all I'd give this guitar 7.5 out of 10. 

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3D Printing and The Future Of The Humble Guitar

This is an amazing 3D printed guitar doing something with it's design that I really doubt is achievable with the typical hand carved or even CNC machined guitars. I really feel that 3D printing will absolutely revolutionize instrument making and manufacturing in general. Eventually. As far as I know only plastics and metals can be used in current 3D printers, which is obviously a big sticking point for guitar and bass enthusiasts like you and I. Without getting into the age old 'tone wood' debate i'd say its fair to assume most players have an attachment to wood bodied guitars (how many metal or plastic body/necked guitars even exist? let alone how well they've sold?). However some engineers and scientists are predicting that 3D printers will be able to print almost any type of material within a decade or three, whilst also becoming significantly more able to print much more accurately (even to an atomic scale apparently). So the question is: What does the future hold for our beloved instrument manufacturers? 

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Guitar & Bass: First Blog

This is a blog to accompany my twitter account for those occasions when 140 characters don't really meet the cut! On here I will post news, info and fun things relating to our favorite instruments. I will also give recommendations of instruments, gear, equipment and other things relating to guitars and bass. I'll also hopefully be running competitions and giveaways via twitter, so keep an eye out for those! I really hope you enjoy the content of this blog.

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