Archive for 2013 - Page 95

Q: Is there any benefit in mastering two (or more) types of basses? I have a 5-string fretted that is my primary instrument, and that’s the one I take out of the “shed.” After finding a great deal on a fretless 4-string at a pawnshop, my thought was this bass would be perfect for playing jazz, and I started studying...

Sometimes some really great musical moments can come out of just jamming along to a backing track. Here’s Johan Hansén-Larson having some fun with an Aebersold recording of the classic Clifford Brown tune “Joy Spring.”

Orange Amplification has released the DIVO VT1000 Valve Tester, an automatic tube tester that performs a host of diagnostics on both preamp and power amp tubes. The unit has one octal and two nine pin valve sockets to fit different types of tubes. Once inserted, the user presses the start button and the tests are run. The Orange DIVO VT1000...

Bassist Olivier Babaz has released his first trio album entitled Midnight Cafeine. Featuring pianist Sylvain Ransy and drummer Mark Nelson, the 10-track effort includes lots of creative interplay between the musicians. Babaz, who composed all the songs on Midnight Cafeine, utilizes both upright and electric basses throughout the album to create unique textures in the soundscape. “[My] electric bass playing...

Ampeg has expanded their Portaflex Series with the PF-800. At 800-watts the bass head is the strongest in the line while only weighing 11.8 pounds. Similar to the rest of the line, its compact design allows it to be stowed inside the Portaflex PF flip-top cabinets. Features on the new amp include classic hi/lo boosts, a 3-band EQ with a...

When playing the bass, flexibility is far more important than strength. In fact, if body mechanics and gravity are used intelligently it takes surprisingly little strength to play our instrument. Flexibility, however, is paramount to many of the things we must do well. In the left hand (or fingering hand for the lefties!) it is especially important. Lack of flexibility...

Tower of Power rocked the 2013 NAMM Show with an incredible performance on Thursday, January 24th. It was so good to see Rocco Prestia moving and grooving with the band, which was tight, tight, tight.

No surprise, our weekly top 10 was dominated by gear coverage from the 2013 NAMM Show. A few other things made it into the mix too, with a couple of popular videos and Damian Erskine’s weekly column. Here are the top 10 most viewed articles and videos on No Treble for the week of January 20 – 26, 2013. As...

James LoMenzo teamed up with drummer Mike Portnoy during the Bonzo Bash NAMM Jam, which celebrates the life and work of the late John Bonham. The duo jammed out “How Many More Times” from Led Zeppelin’s self-titled album, locking in perfectly to the groove.

String Harmonies has released their latest effort, Trinity. The string trio, which consists of Vik Momjian on six-string bass, Antranik Kzirian on Oud and Yervand Kalajian on violin, weave a beautiful mix of modern and traditional Armenian music that soothes and excites. Momjian’s bass serves as a solid foundation with a fat, gorgeous tone. Throwing in chordal work from time...

Aguilar has introduced the Super Singles and the DCB pickups, two new pickup series for bass. Both types of pickups are wound in the company’s New York City factory and will be available in a variety of 4-, 5-, and 6-string standard soapbar sizes. The Super Singles offer a single coil sound in a soapbar size, Aguilar says, going on...

Schecter and Nikki Sixx have teamed up to release the “Schecter Sixx” Bass, a 4-string signature model for the Motley Crue bassist. Sixx, who also is an accomplished author and radio show host, collaborated with the company to create the instrument. “It was an exciting and creative process to work with Schecter on the new Schecter Sixx Signature Series Bass,”...