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Well, you've probably already seen it, but my preparations for next year are done - cleared out all bass and music related gear from my FB Marketplace and ebay watch/save lists, and got one final hit before going cold turkey... https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/520914-nbd-ibanez-atk200 Right, ready to sign up when the 2026 thread goes live! No basses living rent free in my head, feel good, feel confident that 2026 will be a year of great success (and improved prosperity)...

I`m sure I`ll be able to hear that from here!!!

Funded by us, apparently.............

Honestly, mate, I don't know and I've never really taken the time to find out. Actual 'Rays never appealed to me. If I've ever played one, it'll have been briefly at a bass bash or something. People just call this the "Stingray killer", probably because the Internet is built from beef. Always beef about something, trying to get a rise out of some group or other. I have no idea how true it is, the whole "Stingray killer" thing, and I don't really care. I can tell you this sounds like it'll be tasty live, plenty mid poke, even when the EQ is set flat. I might be modding the switch though - the two pairs of coils together in parallel is pretty scooped sounding and easily my least favourite sound of the three. Might mod the switch to be north pair/both in series/south pair in the future. It is on the chonky side of things - 4.7kg/10.34lubs according to the bathroom scales. Personally, I consider this to be a middleweight, but I know many have other ideas (and unfortunately for some, it's not a simple preference, but a physical requirement for their basses to be lightweight).

Bass slapper...literally 😂

I bought a hefty weight bit of kit from Ash and it arrived all well and with packaging the kids appreciated near Christmas!

Wages, rents, wages, energy costs, wages, commodity costs, wages did I mention wages? Anyone seen the price of RAM these days? A small prediction that in the near term the price of base metals, precious metals and timber is going nowhere but up. Musicman prices I think just reflect a wider trend. Many Mexican made Fenders now break the £1200 barrier. I don’t think this is simply down to profiteering.

Eve Of Destruction - Barry McGuire

I was given a plexi bass from an old forum friend in California , and about 3/4 of the way in I found a Batwing Harmony I could not pass. I had been looking for one for years. No plans to purchase anything more , I think I’m more than satisfied with what I have , I should sell several amps and some basses so I’m definitely going to sign up in the New Year. I’ve managed to stop buying things simply because the deal was too good to pass up. At least I’m hoping that will be the case next year.

Is that the famous BBC Tele?

yep. they were great.

Sorry, but somehow missed this. No, I don't have a 5-string but from what I've read numerous times elsewhere, they can definitely handle that extra string.

Currently enduring a massive bout of ‘Ray GAS, £3k for a US example new and that’s not the most expensive, that’s in Fender Custom Shop money, territory.

Is that "The Hamsters" with 'Snails Pace Slim' who used to spray his fretboard with WD40? Superb band, I saw maybe early 90's in at the General Wolf in Coventry and Lichfield Arts doing a Hendrix tribute.

When I finally ‘jumped ship’ to the low end, I very nearly went for one of these. I can’t remember what it sounded like (are they really ‘Ray-alikes?) but I do recall some weight. One of Joe Bonamassa’s early bassists, Eric Czar, used ATKs.

Yes, exactly my point. I could go on forever with examples...so why not! In 1984 (such a great year for bass, not least of all because the Bass Centre at Wapping opened its doors and a generation of British bass players emptied their pockets) a new pre-EB Stingray was £525. That's £1725 in today's money. That's half of what a Pino Signature Stingray will cost you now. High-end bass prices have gone up in real terms when most other luxury goods have become more attainable, generally speaking. The reasons for that are probably very complicated, but to a certain extent I think the reason is that manufacturers of luxury products have discovered that a big part of what gives whatever they are selling value in the eyes of the public is a high price tag. The price confirms that what you are buying is superior quality. Warwick can probably make a Thumb Bass more economically now than in the 1980's and their profit margin on each unit will be greater, but by pricing a proper German-made Warwick bass at £7775 they are making a statement about where they consider their basses to be in terms of marketplace position. They are saying we are up there with Fodera, Wal, F Bass et al. Some people might even believe them.

Mine should arrive just after Christmas!! Just need LFYS to start building a 212 cab 4ohm rated 1000w and I’m set !

Maple board on a SR4 neck - any thoughts? What does everyone think? It's going to be available for sale once finished.

I guess it depends on circumstances. I saw The Hamsters play numerous times in pubs throughout the country. I suspect they made a reasonable living and a 3K instrument would be worthwhile. I know a photographer that used a camera and lenses costing way more than 3K to photograph plenty of bands - many playing in pubs.

Another LHZ installation yesterday. This time my first LHZ-04 (it’s a smaller version of the LHZ-03) into a Korean-made NS2000/4. The passive EMGs came out (up for sale here) and some actives went in. This is my very first solderless installation. It came with the pre-wired jack and the EMGs just clip on and away you go. It had a full fret level, and dress yesterday too with a fall off from the 15th fret, new strings and a fingerboard glow-up. It plays and sounds fantastic now. Ideally it should be refretted bt I think I just managed to squeeze one more out of it before having to get the serious gear out.

I think ending up with the double 4 is the best possible outcome. They are great amps - knowing your music Rob, going beyond bass if you do have or acquire a pickup or mic system you can move across all your wonderful guitars the double 4 will reproduce all the tones perfectly. I use mine as stage amplification for my woodwind instrument.

I think the point here - for me anyway - is why would I spend £3k on a bass if I'm just doing pub gigs?

Here’s the modern equivalent of that stylus: https://www.audioaffair.co.uk/ortofon-dn-165e-replacement-stylus/ (EDIT: I now see @Hellzero got there before me with that…:-)) I suspect you could also use any of Ortofon’s OM range of styluses (https://ortofon.com/collections/om-hifi-concorde-series-1), which all fit on the same cartridge and run from £40 up to spendy - the OM10 used to be a fairly standard fitment on decent mid-price turntables, and the OM20 is a nice step up, albeit three times the price. Or, as @Matt P suggests, change the cartridge - the Audio Technica ones he suggests are very good and open up a whole range of different stylus options. It can feel a bit daunting, but I’d say if you can do basic setup on a bass you’ll probably manage fitting and aligning a new cartridge. I’d also agree with @Dan Dare that if you’ve never replaced the belt in 40 years it’s probably a good idea to do so. Thakker in Germany is a good source (https://www.thakker.eu/en/belts/turntables/), but I’m sure there will be UK-based suppliers too. Whether you need any other maintenance is really down to your judgement about whether everything is running and moving smoothly - if the platter isn’t making any unpleasant noises, and the arm raises, lowers and tracks across the record smoothly you’re probably good to go. You can also download apps that use the motion sensor in your phone to check whether the rotation speed is right (a worn belt can certainly affect that). Finally, you might just check you’ve got your tracking weight (the downward force on the stylus) right - that might be a cause of the original bending. Plenty of guides online for that. HTH