[Bass Amp]

There're many great amps, but I either go Ampeg or MarkBass.

I believe the cheapest MarkBass fits that budget, great amps, they sound great as soon as you turn them on!

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/amplifiers-effects/markbass-micromark-801-50w-1x8-bass-combo-amp

http://www.pablodellabella.com

http://www.youtube.com/user/pablodellabella/videos

[Bass...?]

The bass is a drumset with actual pitches.

http://www.youtube.com/user/pablodellabella/videos

http://www.pablodellabella.com

[Repairers/luthiers]

I live in Boston and this guy Peter in the Back Bay is the wizard, he is honest and very skilled, he worked for the rolling stones and bob dylan to name a few...

617-262-0220 is the store's number

Cheers!

http://www.youtube.com/user/pablodellabella/videos

http://www.pablodellabella.com

[Ear Training]

I have been playing Bass about 5-6 months approx. and i almost practice 1 hour a day, without a miss

what i usually do when i hear the song is that i try to catch up with the bass line of that song. But in 90% of cases i'd have picked wrong notes.

And it's quite disappointing and frustrating. And i desperately want to improve !!

any suggestions for the ear training?

Even if your speakers have no bass, you should be able to hear the bass. how?

lets make a difference between bass roots and bass lines:

• Bass Roots are present whether there's a bass or not, they are the anchor that holds harmony together. Even a single melody note can outline a very clear bass root.
  
• Basslines are built based on the bass roots
  

As a teacher I would advice you to get familiar with the bass roots first, that's the most important ear training you have to do right now. Once this becomes instinctive you can move on and identify types of chords, progressions and more complex structures. If you're really looking for a software "Earope" does the trick and its easy to use!

Best of luck!

http://www.youtube.com/user/pablodellabella/videos

http://www.pablodellabella.com

[Favorite Bass Solo?]

Michael Manring - Selene

This song soudns so full of life. One bass guitar, genius mid song tuning? Amazing melody? Amazing mood?

Possibly one of the greatest bass guitarists of all time in my humble opinion... Maybe some wouldn't class this as a solo because it's not... "shredding", but damn, it's one guy and it's one bass, doesnt' get any more solo than that!

He's fantastic! I didn't know that stuff was possible! truly beautiful

Man, Tal is phenomenal, great stuff!

my favorite bass solo has to be at 3:20

http://www.youtube.com/user/pablodellabella/videos

http://www.pablodellabella.com

[Fastest Bassist]

http://en.wikipedia....iki/Jayen_Varma

the Indian guy is pretty bad I think, I like his 4 finger technique tho!

Bill Dickens anyone ? the human blender ?

http://www.youtube.com/user/pablodellabella/videos

http://www.pablodellabella.com

[Which Bass Do You Consider Your "baby" Or Prize Bass?]

I always liked Tobias basses, they're expensive and not as versatile as I'd like them to be

I think there's noooothing like Fender basses, Roscoebeck, Jazz Bass, or Precision

http://www.youtube.com/user/pablodellabella/videos

http://www.pablodellabella.com

[How Many Strings Does Your Bass Have?]

Hey guys!

It's also cool to mention what the pros and cons are in terms of strings...

in my opinion, 4 and 5 string basses are in the same category, they can be easily confused in terms of the sound they produce...

• 4 string basses easier to slap, the 5th string gets in the way sometimes, now, depending on the style you play they may be all you need.
  

• 5 string basses are more versatile, (versatility is what i go for cause I play so many different styles with my band) when you play newer stuff the 5th string becomes handy. Not to mention the same pitch -or note- sounds very different on the E, D, or A string, having the 5th string allows you to add a lot of weight on lines that are playable without the 5th string...(I hope I'm making myself clear , for example a C on A string fret 3, the same C on the E string fret 8, and the king of phat C on the B string 13th fret are the same pitch yet the sound is a lot different), some choose to add a high C instead of the low B, I personally would never make that choice.
  

• 6 string basses are easily recognizable, having a specific brightness (that I personally don't like for my sound), but some players are great with it (J. Patitucci, A. Jackson, G. Carillo) when I say brightness I don't mean "the extra C string makes the range higher and that's why its brigther". Even when playing the low end stuff on the B string you can hear that crisp factor. Some may say 6 strings are better for improvising and jazz stuff by having a higher register, I would say much better for chords (on 5 and 4 strings, bass chords can get muddy) but there's no advantage when it comes to soloing on a 4, 5 or 6 string.
  

I wont get into 7, 8, 9 or 12 string basses cause its not my area of expertise.

Anyway, that's my whole view on the whole strings thing.

I personally play a Fender 5 string Jazz Bass, and a 4 string fretless Jazz Bass.

Cheers!

www.pablodellabella.com

http://www.youtube.com/user/pablodellabella/videos