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1983... A Merman I Should Turn To Be - JMH

I was at Forever Now yesterday in Milton Keynes and can't have been the only Basschat member? I saw Kraftwerk, Death Cult, Billy Idol, Jesus and Mary Chain, the Damned, PIL, Johnny Marr, Psychedelic Furs, Chameleons, She Wants Revenge and Berlin. A promising rebrand of the US Cruel World festival that had a few teething problems but on balance, showed promise.

I would write a short, clear returns policy, and when you sell a bass, give a printed copy to the buyer and briefly talk them through it. That way everyone knows where they stand.

For the specs you probably need either an intermediate or occupational (standard in the middle with a "boost" at the bottom of the lens) prescription for on stage, and as far as the look goes if it's good enough for Elvis, Ozzy and Slash it's good enough for you. If you don't play rock then Bootsy, George Clinton and Nile Rodgers all wear glasses on stage and no-one's gonna accuse any of them of not looking the part. Short scales can save your back, a lot of them come in well under 3.5kg / 7lbs (my stock SG was 2.8kg!), but a wide padded strap can go a long way to mitigating the weight of a full scale - I got a 5" wide Maruszczyk PES50 off here a while ago, it's super comfortable and I can happily wear a 4kg+ full scale for over an hour without my fully herniated L5/S1 complaining. I find offsets cause more trouble than heavier guitars these days, think it's more about the diagonal distribution of the weight than the weight itself.

Definitely looks like the creaminess of olympic white. Arctic white is not creamy at all. It's more of a brilliant snowblind white.

Bought a lovely sadowsky from Daryl. The bass was very well set up and in excellent condition. Very well packaged for delivery Good friendly approach to doing the deal, good comms, well recommended

I tried that for a while, before the other eye also worsened. These days monocles only appear to be made in certain set diameters and gallery depths rather than made to fit the wearer; if those standard sizes are right for your eye then you should be fine. Otherwise, it is likely to fall out frequently and be uncomfortable to hold in pace.

Welcome Phil.

Harsh and selfish? The op was just looking for helpful suggestions not character assassination.

I've travelled on the train with musical instruments loads of times and like others it has never occurred to me to check if there was a maximum allowed luggage size. Besides I've seen people with enormous suitcases that take up far more room than any bass ever could. One thing to note - last time I did this was on the EMT Nottingham to London and my bass in its Mono M80 case was too bulky to go in the overhead racks.

If you need a lightweight bass there seems to be some nice options out there these days. If I had the need and money I would speak to Shuker and get him to make something nice and light. I have crap eyesight due to various things and wear glasses when gigging. It`s a bit of a rubbish look in a rock band but as I can`t wear contact lenses, glasses it is. In fact the one time I played without glasses, I couldn`t see the set list and a few comments were made that I was getting vain in my old age In other words, do what can to make the gig easy. Good luck!

I’ve done a few train trips with a bass in a soft case, no big issues. As long as it’s not packed trains at rush hour, most staff don’t care. I usually just stash it upright near the luggage area or in the door space if it's clear. Technically over 1m, yes, but no one’s pulled out a tape measure yet. You should be fine.

Totally get it. I went with a lighter jazz-style bass and a wide strap; big help for longer sets. For the eyesight stuff, maybe try a Zoom B3n or something with a bigger screen. If you want to stay sleek, an iPad flat on the board with dimmed screen could work. Adapting without killing the vibe is key. Still playing shows is what matters.

Hey everyone, Just wanted to share a little lutherie moment from home. This is the build of my third instrument; a Chick Yellow Stingray, assembled from a kit I got from The Guitar Fabrik (once again). I went for their Music Man Bass Kits, and like with my previous builds, everything arrived clean, well-packed, and ready to bring to life. The wood was beautiful. Everything fit the way it should. The neck dropped in without hassle, which is always a good sign. Even after two builds, I still get that same feeling when I sand, shape, wire, and suddenly realize there's a real instrument coming together under my hands. And the result? I’m genuinely happy with it. The natural finish keeps things simple and classic; it lets the wood speak for itself. The active pickups bring out clarity and punch, with just enough growl when you dig in. Great for tight grooves, smooth walking lines, or anything in between. What really surprised me is how balanced the tone feels across all the strings, even with the stock electronics. It’s fun to play, and even more fun knowing I built it myself. If you’ve been thinking about doing a DIY bass build, I can only encourage you to go for it. It’s a hands-on, creative process; and in the end, you walk away with an instrument that feels truly yours. The Guitar Fabrik has been a solid starting point for all my builds; their kits are reliable, well thought out, and just plain enjoyable to work on. Here’s what I used for this one: - https://guitarkitfabric.co.uk/products/bass-guitar-kit-mm-in-solid-mahogany.html - https://guitarkitfabric.co.uk/products/paint-set-nitro-spray-1-color-opaque.html If you have any questions about the build, finish, wiring, or setup, feel free to ask. I’m happy to share tips if you’re thinking about starting your own. Musically,

1.5A would be enough at 12V if we use the 18W power requirement.

Hey guys, I'm just wondering if anyone has notated or figured out the Victory Dance bassline by Ezra Collective, would love to learn it but i'm not good enough to figure it out myself lol. Cheers

Same here in the UK. There's a gap between pubs and theatres.

I couldn't work out what was wrong with it. I'm looking over the body thinking its fine. I looked at the headstock and thought that looked fine. I read the description and thought that's the normal bollocks that eBay puts on. Standard boilerplate. I couldn't see what the issue was at all. I never looked at the neck at all. I need more coffee, a lot more. I do like the comments as well Rob

I have one and I love it, but I agree. I had to raise it a little bit so that my Cioks SOL could fit perfectly without touching the floor.

If you are happy without it then leave it bypassed, the Uni Pre is pretty transparent (think there's a jumper on the board which can change it to a pre shape so check this first) so it should be a very similar sound without cutting/boosting. With it engaged you can just do all your EQing on the bass itself which is my preference, the Uni Pre does have extra internal jog wheels so you can set the individual pickup gains, upper and lower bass frequencies and how high the treble frequency goes. Basically you can boost bass without adding boominess and boost treble without it sounding too thin. Once you have those set it's a very comprehensive preamp and offers some incredible sounds so definitely worth spending some time getting used to it.

This one makes me think of a micro pub near me that’s in an old workshop. The cobbles are so uneven that a regular who comes on his mobility scooter shouts his order from the doorway and they bring his ale out to him. It’s a pain when the buffet gets served during the set. No only do you lose people’s attention there’s a chance they’ll be no grub left. That’s apart from the drool running down on the bass.

Watched The Lightning Seeds at Isle of Wight on Sky Arts last night, was pretty good, vocals wavering a bit at times but overall enjoyable.

I have never known that, they seem to go down when unused for me Its not an economy I understand - I get a box of 10 batteries off ebay and if I ever measure anything less than 9V I throw the battery out (recycle obvs) and put a new one in, maybe environmentally not as good, but I would never put a known dying battery in a bass for a practice or any other reason, I do have a list of when I last changed them though, there are a few batteries that are several years old. I have a hohner with a red LED for power on.. however, it has no power or circuit board!