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Ive bene using the new-ish Xvive A58's recently and love them. Got fed up with the size of my Lekato's, and they dont seem to be screen very well (at all even). The A58 also have a user replaceable battery in them, so should last quite a long time.

I wanted to play drums when I was 12 or 13. Mum said no, so a guitar playing friend of mine suggested bass. I saved my pocket money and did some jobs for neighbours for a few quid; I went to my local small guitar shop (Sam's Guitars in Bangor, North Wales ) and bought a black Charvette bass (budget charvel). I was gifted an old 50w combo by a family friend. My guitarist friend (a year or so ahead of me in learning) taught me the basics, then I was largely self taught until lessons for a year or so later in school. From then on I was obsessed. My life was almost entirely music. Then at age 20 I got my first drum kit, and was obsessed with that for several years. I came back to playing bass (casually) 3-4 years ago. We moved house and drums were not practical.

I started in 1980 at 15 I think. I was learning guitar, but then I heard the Stranglers and everything changed. I just wanted to be the guy that made that bass sound. I was into heavy rock at the time, the NWOBHM was in full swing, but after I’d heard the Stranglers I started to diversify, and soon after heard Tina Weymouth on Once In A Lifetime…. and I was hooked. My musical tastes have always been diverse since then, and playing bass has opened up many doors with regards to that. I basically love pretty much all genres….. but rock is still primary in terms of playing live. I’ve had every bass…… like ALL of them over the last 40yrs! So it I guess my taste in basses has also been pretty diverse, and I never get attached to them, they’re tools to me, nothing more really, although, I do love my Thunderbirds these days. First bass was a Columbus Jazz and this morning an old, tired and very dirty Yamaha RBX A2 5 string arrived via crack converters as my next project. I absolutely love “doing up” old basses.

I wanted to be a guitarist when I was 13/14 after watching my Uncle's (he's a drummer) cover band play, my Dad managed to put me onto bass knowing that with hands like mine (large) and reduced dexterity in my right hand the chances of me being able to play more than a few open chords was very slim. So Christmas came and there was Peavey Milestone III waiting for me, not long after that I was unable to walk for 6 weeks following surgery, so what else was there to do than learn to play. Since then music has been my life and my life line where other things and people have come and gone and many a dark moment has come my way, I made the decision to play every style possible that was available to me - I've gigged everything from music for amateur panto, music hall on an EUB, right through to classic heavy metal and everything in between. My favourite bass has always been a P (I have 4) but with the current collection standing at 10, the latest being a Rick 4001V63 I'm very fortunate to have such a variety of sounds available. The one thing I have never gotten on with is a fretted jazz bass, fretless jazz bass I love to play but a fretted just sounds wrong when I play it, oh and there was the one time I (unknowingly) said that Musicman basses are too aggressive sounding for me, in front of the UK Rep sponsoring a competition in which I'd gotten down to the final five...

One of the limited edition 15, or one of the vanilla ones?

News of the World - The Jam

First memory of bass is hearing it in Seasons in The Sun by Terry Jacks - though I didn’t know it was bass at that time, just knew I liked the sound so from then on kept an ear open for it. Fast forward to punk and all the coolest looking members in the bands, such as Vicious, Simenon & Burnell played bass, so now I both liked it visually and audibly. I also liked that the bassist often seemed “mysterious”. Also, bass in the late 70s & early 80s was quite prominent in the mix, which increased my love of it. Still love bass, still love punk (currently in 2 punk bands tho am giving them up due to back issues). First bass was a Kay EB-0 copy, bought in 1980 at the age of 15, not great but I learned to play on it so it did its job. The bass I always loved & wanted was a Fender Precision, pretty much still the case though weight means I can’t play them in a band setting much now. Last bass I bought was a Sandberg Superlight TT, and have a Sandberg Superlight Lionel on order.

Thanks, I've been looking them up, lovely guitars. I think I read that Vigier changed tack due to feedback too right, blending their graphite necks with wood? Cheers, I'm really looking forward to an update on that then. I'd be really interested in a rod-less one. Also, apologies if this is a stupid question, but does that mean the fingerboard is structural in a graphite neck?

I started out as a guitarist, in my teens. Played in a school Glenn Miller tribute band but wanted to be the next Hendrix. Went to university and met up with another guitarist, a drummer, and a keyboard/guitar/vocalist. When it became evident that I was the worst guitarist in the band (demonstrating an uncharacteristic self-awareness), and we didn't have a bassist, I decided to change roles. The Fender Soundhouse just down the road had had a fire, and Hayman had gone out of business, and the combination of the two things meant that bits of Hayman were being sold relatively cheaply. So I put together a Hayman 40/40 and went from there. I still love playing, 50 years on. My taste in music has remained with rock - melodic, prog, and glam, although not everything in those genres. And when I was young I aspired to a Fender, which I eventually bought, then I played a Warwick and the P went in part-exchange for it. Then, twenty years later, I moved over to 5 strings - the Warwick is still here though. Most recent couple of basses were a Barcus 6-string fretless and an OLP Tony Levin.