CEILING FANS!

Today will be about something other than music. I've had a fascination with fans since as young as I could remember, around the age of 3 or 4. They way they move sort of excites my senses, spinning around slowly and even quickly. In recent years I've started collecting them and even finding new homes for some of them. I installed my first ceiling fan back in 2009 in my own room. It was a Hampton Bay 42" hugger ceiling fan, not the most powerful ceiling fan but it was cheap and it got the job done.

I would occasionally go to people's houses and perform maintenance on on their ceilings fans, particularly Hunter Original ceiling fans. Most people don't realize that these ceiling fans do need to be maintained annually. Oil levels must be checked once a year in the oil cup of these fans, because if there is no oil in the cup the fan will eventually stop working. Replacing a Hunter Original is not a cheap task, the fan alone can cost between $350-500 brand new. Finding an older used one is very difficult as well as they sell quickly due to their reputation and overall quality. So if you have a Hunter Original or any cast iron ceiling fan for that matter, make sure to check the oil levels once a year so that you do not have to end up replacing the fan.

Speaking of Hunter Originals, I have recently acquired 1992 USA Hunter Original myself and is now hanging in my bedroom. I managed to get it off Craigslist for $25, but it had only 3 blades and 1 usable blade iron. So I went to the Habitat for Humanity Restore in Lafayette, LA and found 6 Casablanca Zephyr blades and a large globe for $15. The light kit that came with the fan was bad, so I bought a pull chain switch and a light socket for about $7 to fix the light kit. I also bought a pull chain set for $3 at the same store. The canopy and blade irons were missing most of it's screws so I had to buy replacement screws for about $5. Finally, the oil, which is Zoom Spout Oil I purchased from Grainger Supply for $5. The total price to purchase, repair, and make this fan operational was about $60. That price is a steal considering to buy a new one would cost you at least $350 and those aren't even made in the USA.

People often dismiss the importance that a ceiling has on your air conditioning. With a quality ceiling fan, you could raise your A/C thermostat by 8 degrees, which means you will save a lot of money on your electric bill annually. BUT REMEMBER!, your ceiling fan must be powerful for this to even be effective. If the ceiling fan doesn't move at least 6000 CFM of air or produce a wind speed of at least 5 MPH, you will be wasting your money. There are many quality brands out there including Emerson, Casablanca, Hunter, Fanimation, Craftmade, and many more. For the ones I listed I will show you, in my opinion, their best fans. None of these will exceed $400 and will produce at least 6000 CFM or a wind speed of at least 5 MPH.


Emerson: Designer Series 52"

This fan moves around 6400 CFM of air and the wind speed is nearly 5 MPH for only around $210 in the format seen here. This fan uses a powerful stacked motor that will last a long time.

Casablanca: Panama 4 Speed 50"

This fan moves around 6200 CFM of air with a wind speed of a little over 5 MPH for only around $300 in the format seen here. This fan has a stacked motor that is both long lasting and very powerful.

Hunter: The Original 52"

This fan moves nearly 7000 CFM of air with a wind speed well over 5 MPH for only $350 in the format seen here. This fan has an oil bathe motor which will last more than a lifetime and is extremely powerful. It can be configured to have 4 or 5 blades. Make sure to keep it oiled!

Fanimation: EdgeWood 52"

This fan moves nearly 6900 CFM of air with a wind speed of well over 5 MPH for only $220 in the format seen here. This fan uses a powerful stacked motor that will last a long time.

Craftmade: CXL Series 52"

This fan moves around 6500 CFM of air and has a wind speed of 5 MPH for only $158 in the format seen here. This fan uses a very powerful direct drive motor that will last a long time.

Whichever fan you happen to buy, please make sure it is a powerful one. A fan that cannot move enough air is only wasting electricity. 

Analog vs Digital

I know what you're thinking, "this debate again?". Well it's been around since the dawn of digital recording back in the early 1980s. Is analog better than digital or vice versa? Well to simplify things, for the price you pay for a digital recording, paying the same price for an analog recording may not get you better results. On the other hand the quality threshold for analog is much higher than digital. The more money you pump into an analog recording the better it will sound, digital does not have this luxury. Same goes for vinyl equipment vs CD equipment. Vinyl equipment will sound better than CD equipment at their maximum spending thresholds.

So what's the big deal about analog? Simple it captures everything perfectly. When you record digitally, it only captures frames of the waveform, but not the entire waveform. Many will say FLAC can compare to a Vinyl, but the truth is FLAC can only compare to CD which doesn't even begin to compare to Vinyl. The only things that make digital better than analog are this:

1. It's easier to record digitally, analog makes it a long tedious process if you make mistakes frequently.
2. Digital recordings do not degrade over time, analog tape reels and vinyl records wear away over the years and playback degrades them further.
3. Digital recordings weigh nothing, analog recordings weigh in the lbs.

These three things give digital it's own inviting quality, but no matter what, analog will always sound better than digital. There is no contest.

How do they get that sound? Question Answered!

As many of us bassists know, the grinding edged tone that have come from many greats such as Geddy Lee, Chris Squire, John Entwistle, John Wetton, and even Greg Lake have touch our ears in many ways that most people couldn't understand. Even I had fallen for this awesome tone when I first began playing bass, Geddy Lee was my main driving force when I first began playing bass. The real deal here though is that many people try to replicate this sound with no luck. I will now reveal to you the secret of unlocking the famous Prog Bass Tone that has paved the way for many bassists like myself. 

First lets address the type of instrument needed to get that sound. Many Geddy/Chris fans going for their sound usually grab a Rickenbacker 4001/4003, but it can also be done on a Fender Jazz Bass or a similar bass with two single coil pickups. Stainless steel strings set with very low action to the point of slight fret buzz on the lower frets is essential to get this sound, it creates the grind.

Once that has been established, next is the effects chain. I usually have a BOSS Bass Chorus pedal then a Bass Overdrive pedal in front of my amp. The chorus adds richness to the upper harmonics in tone giving it almost a piano-like quality. My knobs on it are set as followed: E.Level - Max, Low Filter - 100% Cut, Rate - 10:00, Depth - 10:00. The Low Filter is awesome because you can keep your fundamental frequencies unaffected by the chorus and only your upper harmonics are affected. 

Next is the overdrive, it gives you the extra edge you need to create this sound. Controls are setup as followed: Level - 12:00, EQ - (Bass - 1:00, Treble - 12:00), Balance - 100% OD, Gain - 9:00. The overdrive pedal sounds amazing, but I always add a little bass on it's EQ to compensate for the natural compression of the signal during the clipping process. 

Next up, the amp and speakers! Now this is where it gets tricky, because this will ultimately be the hit or miss of this tone. In order to get this sound, you will need a tube amp or a Tech21 Sansamp in front of your solid state rig. Whichever setup you use, always try to keep the gain clean; your grind and edge will be switchable this way with the overdrive pedal. Keep your EQ set flat, but I would completely roll off the presence as it makes the tone to brittle and thin. If you have a graphic EQ on your amp, completely roll off any frequency above 3.5 kHz and boost around 2 kHz range at least 6 dB. Anything higher than 3.5 kHz will make the tone sound brittle and fizzy and 2 kHz brings out the brightness of the tone. Add as much bass to suit your needs. 

The speakers! Well, I get my sound from 1 - 18" Carvin Bass Subwoofer. It has an frequency range of 30Hz - 2kHz. I prefer this range because I usually don't like anything higher than 2 kHz, but up to 3.5 kHz will still be good. Just remember to EQ your amp properly otherwise you may end up with a fizz factory or a giant mud puddle. 

Here's my setup chain for this tone:

SX Jazz Bass/Cort Action V Bass > BOSS Bass Chorus > BOSS Bass Overdrive > Carvin BX500 > Carvin 1x18 Subwoofer.

My Prog Bass Tone setup. First without the pedals, then with the pedals.