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I had to look very closely at my Space 5 to see that the top wasn't a single piece of wood. There's about 5cm between the pickups where there's a slight difference in shade between the two sides. If GG said they were inspecting it, and presuming that the mismatched top was explicitly stated as unacceptable on the first instrument, then it seems like a very good case for returning it and expecting the shipping cost to be covered. Or ask them for £200 off the price and put veneer on the top, thus making an attractive and unique instrument.

Thanks both. I have got pretty close now by fiddling with the chorus settings and changing the compressor model.

In terms of approach - we've gone for the same i.e. recorded the audio first and then mimed while filming. It's not everyone's preference, but means you can get the audio tight off-line and without the pressure of a film shoot. The key with the miming is that your singer(s) need to be very on it, because that seems to be most easy to pick up if it's out. I guess followed by the drummer not being in time!

Our Sunday jam night ended last weekend, after 387 sessions (almost 10 years) as the venue is being sold. It was an emotional evening. We are casting the net for another venue, but if we don't get one, it's not the end of the world.

Bought a used one of this exact model recently and have found it to be a very full sounding instrument. The previous owner bought it direct from Thomann and hadn't really taken to it. It was more or less as it came out of the box when I acquired it. A few things I would point out worth checking with regard to setup that may improve how your bass sounds. The original strings on my example were a set of unremarkable sounding round wounds. I swapped these out for a set of 45-100 Fender stainless flats, my preferred string on my other basses as well. There was an immediate improvement in the sound. The pickups on my JB40 were also screwed as low as possible so re-adjusting them up made another big improvement. I find the pickups sound quite good and see no reason to change them. The neck is a fairly chunky affair on these and my bass had a slight back bow which wasn't allowing the strings to vibrate properly. A little tweak on the truss rod to loosen tension and add a little neck relief worked wonders as well. For the money these are quite remarkable instruments. My JB40 is very resonant and I think that may be in part due to the very heavy ash body. It does big deep lows and has that fretless mwahhh by the shed load, especially using the bridge pickup. If you aren't keen on checking and adjusting settings then it would be worth asking a bass tech to check the setup for you before spending any money on replacement bits🙂. Sometimes a little bit of setup time can make all the difference.

I love to hear about reasonably priced instruments being valued and players who find them to be excellent value. There's definitely a place for a nice quality, affordable bass at venues where you wouldn't dare to take your £2k pride and joy. 🤩

Gibson never gave up on the 335, but on the Les Paul back in 1960. They have also been making mandolins which are arguably the best in business since 1894 and still had to file for bankruptcy protection a couple of years ago. Times change.

Just finished a Big Muff 2 using the veroboard layout on dirtboxlayouts and it's GREAT!!

Would the Fifteen work well in a rock/indie rock context? Pbass with pick and rounds. Or is the SV much better suited?

Am looking forward to one of my last gigs this year. It’s at the wonderful Sun Inn in Beverley this coming Sunday. My duo play here once a month, and for our December gig we get some friends up to sing with us as well. Last year was a hoot, and included landlord Paul who sang really well. They get to choose what to sing, so it’s a challenge for us too!

Just saw this on Facebook from Macca: It is very sad to see Höfner go out of business. They have been making instruments for over 100 years, and I bought my first Höfner bass in the sixties. I have loved it ever since. It’s a wonderful instrument to play: lightweight, and it encourages me to play quite freely. It also offers pleasing variations in tone that I enjoy. So, commiserations to everyone at Höfner, and thank you for all your help over the years. - Paul

We played there last week, absolutely superb venue!!

Thanks Dave, yes I’ve got the pickups adjusted so that the volumes are pretty consistent across all strings. The eq I used on the rehearsal rig was pretty much flat and the lack of depth on D & G was quite clear to me. I think different gauge strings may well be the way forward, and will be fun too. I just wish Elixirs came in short scale.

We recorded 6 tracks at a studio, cost around £400 and then hired a room above a pub for £50 (The Queen of Bradgate in Leicester if you know it). Our guitarists brother filmed it while we mimed and then edited to this showreel. I guess a professional filming and editing would charge around £400 so we saved that cost. Proves you can get something done for less than a grand. We've had at least 10 gigs from it so a great investment. https://youtu.be/5aGfwosPMwk?si=WZ4oI5QiMWHiqLFN