Jamming is Fun!

[rparker]

The first jame in my new set-up happend, finally!

My Bass playing friend and I got together again last night. We had a few weeks of cancellations due to various reasons from both of us. Even last night had to be weaved into schedules at the last minute. Tough time of year.

He went through my little bass amp and I went through the 11R. Our first song was Head East’s, “Never Been Any Reason”. It’s a 70’s gem of a one hit wonder. The guitar part is driven tone, but not overly loud. It’s a key board song, if anything. Fun little song.

About three lines into it he stops and says, “You got yourself some tone!”, and then asks me what I installed on my guitar. He thought I had installed some onboard boost or something. Nope. Just me running a Marshall amp model through my new orange bundle of joy. The Eleven Rack comes through again.

We went on to do a few more new to us songs that I’m far less ready for than I thought I was. I butchered “Gallow’s Pole”, “The Ocean” and “Good Times, Bad Times” by Led Zep. We then went on to Grand Funk’s, “I’m Your Captain”, which I did much better.

I think I was suffering from some sort of performance anxiety thing. Kind of like when I hit the record button and I forget how to play. Of the lot, "I'm Your Captain" and "Gallows Pole" were my best efforts. I even did the fast chord changes dead on spot.

We ended doing a few of our stand bys. “Rocking in the Free World”, “Breathe” and “Time” before showing him a song I've been working on a bit, “Refugee”, and we did that as the final song.

In the end, using these monitors and running a multi-effects unit let me play some really jumped up tones, and did so just fine with someone else in the room on a bass amp. It was rocking, but I was able to handle it ear-wise (and with a little help from an ear plug.) It had the same effect as running an attenuator on a real amp. All the tone without all the volume. I think I've got only a thing or two to test out in a "live" setting, but the new home project/practice studio setup is working as well as I had hoped.

[cnev]

Sounds great Roy, how do you have the 11 R set up? It's not going through a PA?

I know what you mean about the performance anxiety thing it happens to me too sometimes, actually happened the other night that and my finger isn't 100% so that didn't help. I know a fair amount of songs but don't play most of them so if I end up jamming with people and they decide to play a song which haven't played I usually tense up already anticipating I'm gonna forget some parts which just makes it worse.

Good to hear you get the tone without the volume that's part of what I have been searching for. First I have to get the tone consistently though.

[rparker]

Sounds great Roy, how do you have the 11 R set up? It's not going through a PA?

The 11R is running out to 8" studio monitors. Sometimes the signal goes into Pro Tools and back before going on to the monitors. I use Pro Tools whenever I want to record or play against a backing track.

It's overkill to use PT as the backing track playback, but it works really well going out through the monitors with my guitar and came "free" with 11R at the time. Sometimes I feel like I'm using a dump truck to pick up the groceries.

[s1120]

SOunds like fun, and a great test of the new setup!!!

I hear you about the "stage fright".. Ill play something great 10-15 times in a row, hit the "rec" button, and mess it all up!!!!!!!

[TRGuitar]

Sounds like that setup is working out nicely Roy!

[jwmartin]

Sounds like a good time and I definitely understand the performance anxiety. I've been jamming with some new guys for about a month doing basic covers (867-5309, Glory Days, Little Sister, The One I Love, etc.) and I'll play the song perfectly at home. As soon as we start off at practice, my mind is like "what is this song? I've never heard this song"

[rparker]

It dawned on me the next day that we decided right after we started doing these sessions to warm up with a song or two that were both easy and commonly did together. There's a lot of things happening during that first song or bit when you're playing with someone. Volume levels, timing, tuning tweeks, getting settled in, etc, etc. Add a song you don't play together well yet and it just makes it worse. It's fair to say that we started backwards.

Now as far as that cursed recording button, I just got done recording about 20 bars worth of a two-bar riff pattern. I had been practicing it for 15 minutes and had it nailed. I flicked the recording button on, waited for my cue and proceeded to lay down the worst racket you've ever heard. I even repeated the process a few more times before getting it right.

[TRGuitar]

I had been practicing it for 15 minutes and had it nailed. I flicked the recording button on, waited for my cue and proceeded to lay down the worst racket you've ever heard. I even repeated the process a few more times before getting it right.

Well naturally, that's how it works. You guys have yet to hear me and my son play "well". We will be just jamming along sounding incredible and decide to video something and there is always a mess up. We only pass the not so bad ones on to you guys. Or ... we play good and the video or sound quality is bad. Thats the fun!

As for the tweaking on the first couple songs, yes we do that to. My son is constantly twiddling knobs on his bass and amp. For me it's more of a retune thing. It takes a song or two for the neck to warm up and the strings to settle so minor adjustments are required.

[jwmartin]

That's what we have been doing at the new jam I've been going to. We start off with Cocaine since it's pretty simple and comfortable.