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Yep, more comments here

Peart retired after the R40 tour (which I recall he only did on sufferance), several years before he became unwell. Clockwork Angels was their final album and as far as anyone - band or fans - were concerned it was over. And that was a shame but their choice - so fine. Lee & Lifeson said they'd maybe work together again at some point but it wouldn't be 'Rush'. The assumption was it'd be new music in some form. The Taylor Hawkins reunion thing was quite unexpected, and I do remember reading that afterwards they said the phone "hadn't stopped ringing". They were highly dismissive of the idea of going out as Rush with a different drummer. Lifeson went off to do his Envy Of None thing, and Lee's written three books - it sort of looked like they'd found new outlets. Personally, as I said, I hoped they might get the bug to make some new music together, but instead they've done the very thing they seemed pretty adamant they weren't going to do. For musicians who I always admired for making their own decisions & not succumbing to commercial pressure, or doing anything the easy way, this feels pretty sad.

I always wear a fleece. I use it to get sleeve muting. Who needs sponge?

So I bit the bullet today and stuck £180 into a new bridge from Ernie Ball. It pained me to do it but after traipsing round metal finishers in the local area to be told, “no”, “I don’t think so” or “that will cost you more than 200 quid”, then trialling vinyl wrapping with black vinyl I gave up and admitted defeat. I’m not sure how the return of the old bridge will happen (maybe they might forget!) but will cross that bridge when I come to it. So it will have black hardware and will look cool when complete. i have no idea how long the bridge will take to come from EB in the US… but I have a couple of weeks wait for the tuners anyway so no hurry no worry as they say in Fiji. will update when items arrive!

Waller, but without the "ler" at the end. From Ian Waller, co-founder of the company.

If people are willing to pay £9 grand for a vintage Wal then good luck to them, and well done to whoever is managing to sell them at that price. I would love to buy a Wal but I don't want an old one and all the associated problems for that kind of money. I'd much rather have a new one made by Paul Herman, but last I heard it was a six year wait. When you get to a certain age six years is a maybe rather than a when. I'll just have to make do with something else.

@woolf thank you, Graeme for a great buy and such an easy transaction. Great to meet you and hopefully see you at a Bash in the not to distant future. Another BassChat win all round. 😀

Yes, rather negatively I fear.

Then a professional setup would change the bass entirely.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/oct/06/rush-reform-for-first-time-since-drummer-neil-peart-death-annika-nilles I've never heard of the new drummer, Anika Nilles, but I think it's safe to assume she's a world class talent and I'm looking forward to hearing her play. I love Geddy but having been a bit obsessed with Rush in my teens I went off them a bit after seeing them live on the 30th anniversary tour. Anyway, I hope she doesn't have to put up with too much nonsense from those with an axe to grind.

Proper investors have an abundance of cash but the everyday player with an interest is having to make adjustments to pay the bills. There seems to be more stock than ever but the crème de La crème still sell fast!

To answer my own query…I found a German Takamine sight which gives more information: The DB10 Pro Series bass is entirely handcrafted, leveraging the wealth of experience we've accumulated over five decades. This unique hybrid bass guitar retains the familiar 34" scale length, but the neck radius corresponds to that of a double bass—you can even use a bow to play it. It includes a retractable endpin specifically for this alternative use. This fretless instrument (without frets) produces a rich and powerful bass sound with harmonics familiar from a double bass. Its Palathetic™ pickup from Takamine is considered by experts to be one of the most accurate and natural electro-acoustic pickups available. The TB10 Pro Series bass is entirely handcrafted, leveraging the wealth of experience we've accumulated over five decades. This unique hybrid bass guitar retains the familiar 34" scale length, but the neck radius corresponds to that of a double bass – you can even use a bow to play it. It includes a retractable endpin specifically for this alternative use. This fretless instrument (without frets) produces a rich and powerful bass sound with harmonics familiar from a double bass. Its Palathetic™ pickup from Takamine is considered by experts to be one of the most accurate and natural electro-acoustic pickups available. With the Cool Tube® preamp, the only tube preamp for acoustic guitar, you can leave nothing to chance when it comes to amplification. So, both models are the same, but the discontinued TB110 has the addition of the Cool Tube preamp. I love the double-bass sound of these basses, much closer to an upright than anything else I’ve heard. The negative for me is that I did try one for 30 seconds 12 years ago, and found it required a really strong right-hand pluck. I’m not from that school at all, unfortunately. So my quest for a DB sound with a lighter technique continues. Perhaps the Godin Ultras might get me close. I’m not a fan of the Mwah! that it seems is coveted by most fretless players.

I went to see Pete Oxley's band Hejira yesterday and they did this tune which prompted the latest transcription, Max Bennett's bass part to the title track from the 1974 Joni Mitchell album, 'The Hissing Of Summer Lawns'. Is that the best album title ever? https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/the-hissing-of-summer-lawns-joni-mitchell/

I've got just the 2 pedals, a Zoom B3 and a Valeton GP-5 and each have a single mono input. I'm now looking at an ABY like the Sonicake Buffer to do the job.

According to the Takamine website, the TB10 is discontinued, but they have no mention at all of the DB10. What’s going on? They both look and sound the same on the videos I’ve heard.

https://www.canford.co.uk/EMO-PASSIVE-DIRECT-INJECTION-BOXES This isn't especially low cost, but I bought three of these second hand 12 years ago after they had finished their touring life and they have been kicked all over church ever since. They will accept instrument input, line input, amp output presenting 8Ohms load or even 100v PA speaker thru-input if you have to tap that. Bomb-proof, passive, and completely neutral.

I think there’s a general lack of ‘fun money’ in people’s pockets at the moment.

Depends. But always remember - you can never be too smart on a gig. There are few worse feelings than that of being inadequately attired.

Can i ask what the protocol is when you turn up to a venue that has something like an XR32 and i want to control my own IEM mix. Do sound guys normally allow us to connect to their system and use Mixing station etc?

Agreed about The Who. But they did it anyway, and they've still been out there selling out huge venues. Arguably they're in an even worse situation, with only 50% of the band still being alive! As for Zep, I thought the 2007 Celebration Day reunion gig was great - Jason smashed it, and as a two-nights-only thing, it was enough to cement their legacy, plus we got a good 4K Blu-Ray out of it, for all of us who wore out our VHS copies of The Song Remains The Same! You could apply this to any number of other bands with dead/retired members - I hear it a lot about Queen, for instance. I feel the same way about them that I feel about this Rush tour - people want to hear this music, preferably with the involvement of as many of the original musicians as possible. And that's what they get. I have no issue with Bri and Rog getting up there with Adam Lambert and bashing out We Will Rock You, in exactly the same way that I will have no issues with hearing Geddy and Alex doing The Spirit Of Radio with Aneke on drums. The same way that McCartney still gets up there and does Beatles songs at the age of 83. Their legacies are no less secure for them still wanting to go out there and play their songs. For me, I just want them to get the setlist right - the classics, of course, but also make sure their newer stuff is represented too!