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I had periods where playing gave me the adrenaline rush of playing to a crowd and getting approval, validation and praise, along with a decent financial reward. Then for a short while I did it predominantly to money and wanted to be suitably rewarded for my time to leave the house and play. I had fun and played in a good band, but it had to be financially viable. A few years back, I took about 2 years off from playing as I found it stressful and I had a young family who I would rather spend time with. I got asked to help out a friends band which the. morphed into a new band with some lovely people and good players, and before I knew it I was gigging a dozen times a year. What keeps me going is the social aspect and my mental health. I work a lot from home and noticed how isolating it can be, so practice and gigs gives me night or two away from the house and family to jus have a laugh and enjoy some music and forget about life for a few hours. Don’t get me wrong, a few ££ in my pocket is nice and I love a crowd that dances and claps an that feeling, but it’s just really helped my sanity for the most part.

Exactly! The loop on the HX stomp was the clincher, but there are other ways - like a pedal switcher with a couple of patchbay lines on the back of the board (I used to run a switched on my huge board), hell, you could dedicate 2 external send/return lines for extension boards to isolate them. Advantage is, the send / return is going to have good level, and on the stomp I get to put a limiter / compressor / reverb / whatever on the other side of the board. Currently I have to run the creative board (the freeze / slicer / looper) after the filter board, but it works...

I remember that one being up for sale for a very long time and the price was reasonable. I was slightly tempted. It's a USA built NS5, not much else to add as it was from a time before Spector started pumping out so many different models and styles.

W-o-W!!!! How's that XS100? I've been looking at that and wondering about it

Mine squeaked too..... Quite a bit

It does mention Mento a few times, and the playlist has a couple of tunes like this: I think Mento is mostly skipped over to focus on when the music and culture had switched to 'Bass Culture'.

Point of order, there aren't any half decent outlets with any choice in Bristol!

The good news is that Spector basses are very consistent, even if many different variants exist. I “lost” an NS5-XL (natural, oiled finish, stunning thing) years ago and then when I found it, it had been completely refinished (clear gloss) and just wasn’t what I had loved. I then went on to find another one that I love just as much. There might be one out there for you, keep looking. But make sure you play one standing up on a strap.

I don't disagree, but it's extremely popular for reasons that are a complete mystery to me

Oh. Yeah. That pickuard is gross but I’m not worried about tue looks really

I have always assumed the noise is coming from strain around the plastic hoop between the main strap and the bit that attaches to the guitar (just above the Lekato plectrum pocket on your picture). I admit I don't use straplocks, just the original button with rubber rings around the outside, a-la Grolsch bottle top seals. I have had this on one of my fairly average weight basses, and not just the Sire boat anchor. Maybe I just got a bad one.

My big hobby is now part of my work. It does take the shine off it.

Don't underestimate how fast and accurate a good handsaw is, just a disposable hardpoint will do. Also, a batten clamped in place will guide a cheaper rotary saw or even a router accurately.

Looks fine to me, except for that PG, which isn't to my personal tastes, but I'd much rather that than 3TS and tort. If it works for you and does the job, then it seems like it's perfect to me. I had an OLP MM5 years ago (Bass VI style, Musicman Silhouette clone) that was fine sounding, stable and consistent, but I sold it off as I wasn't really using it. Then I bought the Ibanez SRC6 that's in my avatar. I really like the Ibby, but knowing what I do now, I'm not sure it was worth 3x the money. And the painted finish on the MM5 is much better than the Ibanez brown.

I've checked the S/N. It ties up. My worry was the neck could be legit but the body could be an affinity for all I know 😂

Ahh, so I'll probably never find one like it again. Oh well, thanks for the info.

Totally a Spector! I wanted to love Warwicks, but every one I tried I thought nah, not for me.

I did think about putting up a wanted ad. Still might. I used to have a Mark Bass smallish amp and separate GR Bass cabinet - they sounded great but I found it a nuisance carrying two things. My little Orange practice combo is great because there's just one handle. So the Elf combo would suit (or an Elf fitted to a modified BassChat 8" cabinet). But the Elf in the combo is different, so I couldn't whip it out and try it with a different cabinet.

It’s because we’re spoonfed lies by people who seem to know no better.

Not as if he has a vested interest in treat in it or anything… AI has huge potential but the payoffs have yet to come.

Some time back I put a post up in the wanted section asking for an eighteen inch cab. Almost immediately a kind member contacted me about a TE 1818 and we made a deal. The courier gave me an icy look after he'd hauled it out of his wagon. I wouldn't like to gig it without a roadie but as a home fixture it works. It is now an extension cab to my Ashdown Toneman 300 combo (15 in driver). It's impractical, perhaps even overkill, but it makes me smile a LOT. I wonder how an Elf would sound driving it? Just a thought.