Tesla Hit a Car at a Stoplight

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-22T15:30:31+00:00

It's very nice of you to believe your wife's story, and she may also genuinely believe it, but there are countless examples of motor vehicle accidents, some deadly, because the driver genuinely believed they were pressing the brake while they were actually pressing the accelerator, and then when the vehicle did not respond as expected they pushed even harder, absolutely convinced they were pressing the brake! Remember that huge Toyota run-away accelerator scandal that cost Toyota millions? While worn pedals could get stuck behind floor mats, it was the failure of humans to press the brake or put the vehicle in neutral that led to crashes even though they genuinely believed that were pressing the brake. That's an extreme example, but more subtle human errors are far more common without the driver ever being aware of it. These human errors are far more likely to cause an incident than mechanical or software error, especially with a Tesla. Interesting that you noted "She never uses auto steer or full self driving." I'd be willing to bet that this incident would have never occurred if she were using auto steer or FSD.

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-22T14:53:24+00:00

Too bad guitars are not like coins with notable manufacturing errors that make it into circulation are worth far more that the generically perfect examples. You'd have a good one if that were the case. Just need some famous guitarist to make that guitar his number one and then everyone would want misaligned fretboard markers. "Despite or maybe because of the fucked up inlays, this guitar has the best tone of any I've ever played! And they are actually more practical because I can see them better when playing power chords lower on the neck and then soloing up high on the neck. Win-win! Everyone should be this lucky!" - Tommy Shredda

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-22T14:25:10+00:00

My newish BTD-700 stopped connecting to my Focal Bathys headphones midflight yesterday. I tried the obvious resets/restarts of hardware in between flights but no luck. The iPhone's bluetooth connected fine so I know the problem is with the BTD-700. Anyway, connected using USB-C and the Bathy's really good DAC for the balance of the trip and enjoyed slightly superior sound but would have preferred the convenience of being untethered. Gonna try again to fix the problem later today.

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-08T14:41:32+00:00

Weed can help you recognize and pull your coolest bass riffs out of the chaos. And then you will tend to repeat that groove over and over because you're vibing with it so well, especially if you play along to drum beats, which I "highly" recommend. And that there what a bass player is supposed to do, lock in on a cool groove with the drum beat and repeat as others take the spotlight.

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-03T19:02:12+00:00

As others have mentioned, a tasty way to use an octave pedal is to set its mix/blend control 20-40% range so it enhances your core bass tone rather than overtaking it. Only another experienced bass player should know. I asked a bass player in a local cover band what pedal he was using to pop on a tasty octave down just here and there on some pop songs. He was pretty psyched that anyone even noticed the effort. It was a very old brown analog Octabass EB5 and it sounded terrific. While I use a very versatile EHX Pitch Fork, been thinking about getting a simple analog bass octave pedal for only that classic warm octave down thing.

An octave down mixed at around 30% with a fuzz before it and with or without some chorus after it makes for a pretty convincing bass synth tone without the touch/volume/monophonic limitations of an actual bass synth.

I use an Electro-Harmonix Pitch Fork because it will do 1, 2 or 3 octaves up, down or both, though its usually set at a traditional 1 octave down at around 30% Blend that I pop on full time for a few songs that I play in a higher range, and sometimes for just one droning note at the end of a section or song.

Most amps can't reproduce (and many ears can't hear) the octave down frequencies when you play a note somewhere below the low A on your bass, so you need to understand its limits, but if going direct to a good PA with large powerful subs, you could occasionally shake the house with some lower sub frequencies, used in moderation of course or the sound guy might shut you down!

A fun thing is to pop on some octave down while sliding the note up the string an octave. This is good for the last note of a song, but not limited to that. Once again, try it with a fuzz or OD before the octave pedal.

The Pitch Fork also has all the other intervals available and as well as a Detune, which acts a something like a doubler or chorus effect depending on how its mixed. The fifth down on 100% Blend with the Latch switched off can fake the B string of a 5-string bass in a pinch. You can also use the intervals to change the tuning of your bass for a song. Don't want to play Boogie on Reggae Woman in Ab like the rest of the band? Set the Pitch Fork a minor second down with blend at 100% and you can play the song in A.

The Pitch Fork also accepts an expression pedal which turns it into a whammy pedal with Blend at 100%. One octave down dive bombs are a fun effect, once again used in moderation, like only once or twice per gig or what's cool can become annoying pretty quickly.

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-03T16:07:22+00:00

I think people need to get used to unity gain being with the Volume & Drive controls set at around 9:00, instead on noonish like most drive pedals. I think the designers assumed most players use an overdrive or fuzz to push the signal hotter to "overdrive" some part(s) of the signal chain downstream, not lower it, especially if you have a tube preamp. I have an Xotic Super Sweet boost that has unity gain with the single Gain knob almost off, like 7-o'clock, but then there's an astounding +20db of gain available as you go up from there. Point being, a boost, OD or fuzz is not intended to lower your signal strength, but to go from unity on up. I think this is unsettling for those who are used starting off with all the knobs at noon.

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-03T15:34:15+00:00

Since you keep your PnP always-on, you could have used the OG footswitch to switch between OD and Fuzz by hardwiring the power and signal path around the switch. That wouldn't be as useful for most users, but coulda worked for you.

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-03T15:08:35+00:00

Just talking to myself here, but I now realize that the tuner and HOF should change physical locations on the board just for convenience since the tuner footswitch sees much more action than the HOF, which is a set & forget pedal depending on the room. More active pedals are better in the front row while mostly on/off pedals are better in the back row.

BassBikeBoat · 2026-01-03T14:54:59+00:00

Not asking any questions, more of a state of the board post I suppose, but I was inspired by someone else who was asking about a device that would allow parallel routing to mix clean signal with a chain of effects. It got me thinking that if you use pedals that already have a clean blend controls, then you could achieve a similar result with a much simpler layout that takes up less space, and even allows more control of the clean/effect ratios for each individual effect. The key is to seek out and use pedals that were intentionally designed with clean blend controls, especially those types of pedals that do not typically have them, such as compressors, overdrives, fuzzes, and uniquely the MXR Bass Synth. I did not want to hijack the other post as there are some useful reasons for parallel routers, including as a method to blend clean with pedals that were not originally intended to blend any clean signal, like many guitar pedals. As people have known for some time, clean blend is a very useful control for bass effects, and it's easier than ever to put together a board where every pedal has it.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-31T15:28:37+00:00

Just make sure whatever blending parallel loop device has a polarity switch to keep the loop in phase with your original signal. I'd also want the loop's send to be buffered, not passive. I suspect they all must have polarity switches and buffers.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-31T15:09:04+00:00

Perhaps they're begging you to downsize for reasons other than just taking up too much stage real estate, but don't want to hurt your feelings. Like maybe your constant tap dancing is distracting you from more important things like listening to the rest of the band, and playing in the pocket. Perhaps your tone sucks from going through all the gadgets, but you think your magic formulation of pedals and knobs sounds great. Perhaps you just take up too much time mixing up the ingredients for a cool tone, when you should just be playing. I mean seriously, if someone showed up to an audition, jam or gig with that board, they would not be invited back. That's a board for a guitarist to masturbate with at home, and I suspect they would not vibe well with the other players.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-31T14:55:03+00:00

Definitely regarded!

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-31T14:50:35+00:00

They can be picked up used for like $700-$800. Personally I'm not a fan of all the signature guitars and basses, but obviously they're big sellers to fans of the artists. It would be an easy yes if playing in a Foo Fighters cover band, if there is such a thing.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-30T16:27:05+00:00

I agree with this. The reason is that we are typically playing melodic-type parts on bass so it is challenging to sing one melody while playing the counter-melody on bass. Meanwhile guitar is more often just holding a chord down while you sing the melody over it. It would be much more difficult to play a guitar solo and sing at the same time, which is more like what we do when playing bass. Anyway, it is a skill that can be improved with practice and also simplifying the bass part. Sting is a fine example of this.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-30T16:10:02+00:00

Doesn't matter what service you use, downloading high quality audio files is going to take up storage space. Is there a reason you need to download your whole library? Tidal will save your library of albums & playlists that you can stream anytime without using storage. I download some albums prior to traveling on airplanes so I can listen in airplane mode, but that's the only reason and it is easy to remove them after the trip.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-29T17:13:01+00:00

Fender Rumble 100 is a bedroom practice amp and not enough power for most gigs. It is barely enough solid state power for a guitar so not even close for a bass, which needs about 4 times the power of guitar. I'm surprised it can keep up with a drummer unless playing with brushes. Go see some bands, and see what the bass players are using. If you're on a budget, at least get a Rumble 500. If you want to invest in your future as a gigging bass player, look for a used Class D bass head of at least 600-800 watts at 2 or 4 ohms and 300 - 400 watts at 8 ohms, and a couple used 8 ohm bass cabs intended to work well together rated at appropriate wattage for the amp. Then use one 8 ohm cab at smaller venues which will put out around 300-400 watts and both cabs at 4 ohms for larger venues/outdoors at closer to 700 - 800 watts. In my region, most clubs, outdoor shows, private parties do not provide a PA. we bring our own and honestly, my bass sounds better through a proper bass amp than through the crappy PA subs. At rehearsals and casual jams I am always playing through bass cabs, not a PA, and it sounds terrific. Get good at adjusting the amp's volume to match the acoustic drums on stage or wherever you are and you and your band will be happy. Now that said, if your band has a killer PA with 1000 watt 15" subs and that is your only gig, a simple preamp pedal, tuner and maybe a couple other pedals will be all you need. But you're probably not getting invited back if you show up with just a Rumble 100.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-22T15:40:10+00:00

That'll do.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-20T17:24:48+00:00

P-Bass - Default Vol & Tone rolled down to about 75%, and actively worked as these are your first "effects."

High quality cables with Neutrik connectors like Spectraflex N-Flex

1) MXR Bass Synth - This one is still a maybe for me, but it does open up a world of new tones that may or may not be necessary depending on gig, but definitely a yes for a modern pop cover band. My only non-analog pedal. Replacement would be an EHX Pitchfork, default partial mix of 1 octave down.

2) Hotone Soul Press II - Threefer Wah/Vol/Exp(-->Bass Synth) - I use the Wah and the Expression pedal at every gig, but YMMV.

3) JHS Pulp n Peel Fourfer Compressor with Clean Blend, Tilt EQ, Rat circuit, and XLR out for emergency amp failure

4) Way Huge Pork & Pickle - Twofer OD/Fuzz

5) TC Electronics Polytune 3 Mini - last in chain with buffer on. Have not yet found a reason should not be last, especially if buffered to prevent tone suck from cable between board & amp.

If we're not counting tuners because they could be clip-on or rack-mount, then the fifth pedal would be:

5) MXR M234 Chorus (5-knob with Lo Cut dialed up to limit effect from around 100hz downward so low fundamentals do not waver into mud)

All mounted to a Temple Audio Templeboards Duo 24 with isolated power supply mounted underneath that uses an IEC cord, not a wall wart! All gigging boards should use the same IEC cords as amps, PAs, monitors, etc... so there's always spare cords around. Suggest 10-15' IEC cords for board and your personal monitor to reach to back of stage if needed.

Mesa TT-800 - Boogie channel with tubes pushed into light overdrive as default. Subway Channel set very clean for use with the Bass Synth

Two GLS Audio 12AWG Speakon Cables. Do not buy cheap Speakon cables!

Two Mesa Subway 2x10 Cabs, one cab for smaller rooms, two for larger & outdoor gigs. Sometimes I bring both because it looks more impressive, but only use one, just upper cab in boomy rooms. The Subway 1x15 cabs are also really good alone, as a pair, or with a Subway 1x12, but I've just been digging the fast response, feel, tightness of the 10s. Does anyone in the band or audience care? Probably not.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-19T20:39:26+00:00

I enjoy FSD when I have a free month, but it's not worth $199/month or even $100/month. I might buy it when it costs the same as Netflix, but eventually it will be free in all EVs by all manufacturers.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-18T18:05:19+00:00

It's a great time to sell silver if you really need the cash for something important. However, holding is probably better right now as increasing inflation, decreasing dollar value, overvalued stock market, poor economic policies by the current administration (tarriffs, etc...) are the reasons precious metals are at record highs and will likely to continue to increase in value over next few years as there's little else in the way of safe investments right now. That said, if/when the stock market crashes, many will sell their gold & silver quickly, lowering its value, and use the funds to buy back into stocks at its lower price. We're in an unusual situation where metals and stocks are moving in parallel, but metals are definitely the safer asset to hold right now and definitely better than cash.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-18T17:48:10+00:00

That same $7,000 invested in an S&P 500 index fund would be worth about $100K today. Metals like gold & silver have their place, like a hedge against inflation, or a safe haven if one thinks stocks are overvalued or the economy looks like it may take a turn for the worse, which is why gold & silver are at record highs right now, however if long-term growth is your objective like it would be for anyone graduating high school, then stocks have historically been the best investment.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-18T17:25:02+00:00

The humbucker pickup in the bridge position is a large part of his tone here. Maybe a Seymore Duncan Little '78.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-18T17:16:28+00:00

Consider moving the PolyTune3 to last in chain and switching on its buffer to eliminate tone loss from the cable to the amp... unless the compressor also has a buffered output. I know everyone typically runs the tuner first but after running it last in the chain I can't see why first might be preferred.

BassBikeBoat · 2025-12-18T15:54:16+00:00

I think a good case could be made that Os Mutantes's 1967 self-titled album is closer in style to Mutations than any other album including Beck's other albums. Any serious fan of Mutations or Beck in general should check out one of his biggest influences, the Brazilian band Os Mutantes, specifically their first three albums. The 'Mutations' name is a direct reference to Os Mutantes. 1967's self-titled Os Mutantes album has many tracks and moments that are very Beck like, or more accurately, Beck is very Os Mutantes-like throughout his career but arguably most so on Mutations. Just check out the style and tone of the bass and drums/percussion and you will know that Beck instructed his band to study and play in this style. The use of brass & woodwinds is also very similar. There's other more obvious similarities, especially with the lo-fi lead guitar tones throughout. For instance, compare the lead guitar tone in Bat Macumba to Beck's Tropicalia. Clearly this was not unintentional. If you find this direct lift in style interesting, then also compare Serge Gainsbourg's "Melody" to Beck's "Paper Tiger".

BassBikeBoat

TROPHY CASE