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BassChat: The Movie - News Tinseltown reels as Brit-flick provisional cast list leaked: Chris O'Dowd as: Kiwi Zachary Quinto as: Ped Christopher Plummer as: The Bass Doc / Sir Charles Lytton Yul Brynner as: Happy Jack Alan Bennett as: Billy Apple Brian Blessed as: Dad3353 / Prince Michael Bakunin

Just watched some rapper (someone Lamarr) (I guessed at the double "r") Appeared to have backing track problems at the start, every other word bleeped out no doubt due to language and all this whilst his mate smashes up something Lamborghini looking with a baseball bat. You know what? I'm glad I'm old😤

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Thought I'd share this little moment with you... Earlier today I pulled into a car park and spotted a large estate car parked awkwardly on the side of the entrance with its hazard warning lights flashing. Does this person need assistance I thought? A guy was leaning against it scanning the carpark for who knows what... Meanwhile another man was walking toward him with intent. Both nodded as if to say, yes, I'm your contact. Was this a drug deal, undercover cops, secret services???? Just as I checked in my rear view mirror I realised, I know this guy. He was half hiding inside the collar of his jacket but there was no mistaking it, it was @thebassdoc!! I knew that face from the good old days of the bass place, but hadn't seen this revered figure for a good 20 years. My mind raced at what was in the boot of that estate, a quiver of expertly set-up basses most likely!! As my car rolled into the first available bay and I scrambled to get my basschat autograph book out, I looked back and he was gone. Disappeared back into the bass underworld. Ha ha, the whole thing felt very cinematic in a non-stalkery, not geeky-at-all kind of way!! Liam Neeson or Matt Damon would be good casting shouts for the badass bassdoc. This opening scene could then lead to a groovy theme tune, like a bond film, but better Apologies to @Thebassdoctorifthisisabitcreepy

Wind back five years and you’ll hopefully understand why this bass is as special to me as it is.... In Feb 2013 I was diagnosed with a massive tumour on my right kidney. It was at Stage 3 due to the size (an unbelievable 9.5kgs!) and I was told by the surgeon that it they didn’t operate soon it would kill me one way or another. On Thursday last week, I was given the good news that I had no signs of recurrence and that they were leaving it to me whether I wanted to continue under observation; in short they were happy for me to be discharged. To get to the 5 year milestone was something I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to, so to say I’m relieved is an understatement! After a few tears (something in my eye) my wife told me to treat myself and knew I’d been hankering after one of these: who was I to refuse! After an early morning start I picked this up from Bass Direct on Saturday. The guys kindly restrung it with TI Flats and it really is the best Fretless I have owned. It is more special to me than words can adequately convey. Here it is:

Just be careful not to mix up your car park assignations. I met a chap in a car park to buy a bass cab and ended up with £200 worth of hash. It's terrible - no low end, undefined mids and a harsh top end. (Also nice to know the bassdoc's still about)

Go to The London Bass Guitar Show for starters!

Best bass ive ever played was a Sei. Second best bass ive ever played was also a Sei. Neither owned by me. @joncaulfield72 owned them both.

By the way, you can still specify purfling on the fingerboard - a choice of various different types is available - when custom ordering (it's likely I'll have it on my next), so whilst you see it much more on the early basses it isn't necessarily an indicator of the bass being old, if that makes sense. I don't know why people don't specify it more often to be honest, I think it's a beautiful aesthetic touch. Oh, and Martin is a gent and then some. I've been a regular customer since 1996 and he's one of the nicest, most genuine blokes you'll ever meet. I love the Gallery. I wish I could live there.

I don't understand any entertainment awards. All I can see is well known and in the main, wealthy people patting themselves and each other on the back. I find it quite embarrassing and cringeworthy really. Why anyone would want to watch this type of media driven shambolic tripe is beyond me. 😂

Know what you mean. Gave up all that faffing a while ago now, nearly always just set the eq flat and make slight adjustments if necessary on the fly. Works for me

If he's so socially right-on, why didn't he sell the car and get a few homeless people off the street? Or donate it to a charity to auction?

If I've understood your description properly, then it sounds as though the second from last fret is slightly high. If that's the case then it would need, either tapping back into position, assuming that it has lifted, or filing level and then crowning.

Let me guess. Stormzy, rag and bloody bone man and dua lipa. They seem to be the only musicians the public are aware of at the moment.

So I guess pulling on a bong midsong is deemed unacceptable these days?

It's hard to believe there's a comment that is more interested in the Basses than the Beer...!

Not heard of this brand, but familiar headstock & body shape. Very Ibanez Blazer-esque? https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F292450625132

Yes I have used it at 2 different venues with drums, both with the Eminence. The first one which is a large room with tiled floor and hard surfaces I thought it lacked a bit in the low end. I tend to leave the eq flat because it sounds so natural and I'd only just got the Clarus SL-2. Now I'm familiar with it I'll take it again and adjust the eq and it should be fine. The second venue is smaller and carpeted. The line up was sax, trombone, guitar/banjo & drums. It was Mardi Gras and the drums were quite loud at times but the Upshot was great, I could've gone louder if needed but it seems to fill the room, I could hear myself no prob and no one asked me to turn up. Haven't played bass guitar through it yet with drums but in a trio without drums the Jazz Bass & Rob Allen sound great.

if it's overkill for you playing sold-out arenas then what excuse have I got when I'm seriously considering getting one just for home practice?!

Afternoon all, It all started many moons ago. My tax rebate had just come in and I wasn't finally in the position to buy the rig I wanted. Nothing flash, just a nice and simple TC rig, the BH250, a BC212 and a BC210. I loved it. Perfect rig for me, enouh output, nice and light and I liked the sound. For a few months I gigged it regularly with a funk/soul band a weekends, up until one rehearsal when the band fell apart and disbanded. After that I struggled to find a band I enjoyed playing in and decided to sell the 2x10. It was surplus, so it went and I kept the head and the 2x12. I started planning again but with a loud drummer and louder guitarists so I sold the BH250 and replaced it with the BH550. Brilliant. For the past few months thats been my gigging setup and it's worked. Then a friends band got in touch about a dep and I helped out but found the 2x12 being a tad quiet with them and started thinking about going back to two cabs to get the most out of my head. Originally I was looking at the Hartke Hydrive 112. The switchable impedance was the selling point, but part of me wanted to stick with TC. Wait! TC do a 2x8 with an extension socket. That'll be perfect, nice and light, and small enough that the Mrs won't complain about it taking up space. Anyway, last week I spotted one on eBay and got it for a pretty decent price (£140 shipped). Whilst waiting for its arrival I started looking in to removing the head unit and just found loads of pages saying you can't without opening the head unit, it won't work, don't bother, etc, you get the picture. Anyway, with little work on (and conveniently over delivery day) I thought I'd have a crack at it. First thing i did was set up as a full rig for a test run of bypassing the built in head (and to take a photo). Next up, after seeing the thread on putting LEDs behind the mesh, it reminded me that I'd wanted to do it for ages. These conveniently arrived a few days before so they went in. After that, justify it to the Mrs. As I shared in the current BG250-208 thread, I've now incorporated the 2x8 and my Roland street cube in to some kind of surround sound/stereo system using the aux in on them both (she loved it...and doesn't it look lovely with the LEDs in it). Last up was the head removal. Following on from the general consensus that the head unit needs to be opened up, I started inspecting that and realised that there's no way that the head is screwed on afterwards. Looks like we're going in through the front then. Mesh back off, driver popped out, and hit a wall. Star security screws that have been filled in with resin. Nothing some pliers and a screwdriver can't fix. The star screws can be turned with a small precision screwdriver. Driver back in. Mesh back on. Flip it over and the head is still in place...hmmmm. Let's see if I can lever it...yep, there it is. So now my rig is a BH550 into a "BC208" into a BC212. The speakon "fly-lead" out the back is remedied with a speakon straight coupler and the extension out is, well, the extension out. You guys knew that though. All I need now is more LEDs so the 2x12 matches the 2x8 and we're all good. Oh, and now I've a surplus BH250...with no feet. Cheers, James

^^ What does 'need' have to do with it!?

WAIT until he's started his course, got settled in, spoken to his tutors and come to understand exactly what hardware he needs to progress with his studies. He won't need a new mac on the first day of his course and will have a better understanding of exactly what's needed after 3-4 months.

A MacBook would be great for him but they are expensive, especially if you are buying new. I'm using a Mac Mini and it's very good but portability has already become an issue for me so, I would imagine portability would be a must for a student. I don't know how responsible your son is but I know my lad and he breaks everything portable! His room is full of smashed Apple products. If I was buying for mine he would definitely get a refurb or secondhand with some sort of warranty. There's always new for old on the house insurance too! Whatever you decide to get, try and get as much RAM as possible for your budget. Saw some Logic X licences from old machines on eBay for a tenner recently. They may be worth looking at but I'd do some investigation first. Good luck!

I know ....it's indecent isn't it.

The serial number is on the bridge - you can get the DOB and build details from EBMM customer services or from the serial number thread on the Musicman bass forum. If you're talking SR4s, late 80s ones for sale aren't that common. They are generally really nice basses - value would possibly be around £1000 + dependent on whether they're in a desirable colour, with ohsc (quite rare) for any MM basses up to mid/late 90s. As a for instance I once was involved in bidding on a 1987 trans red 2 band, immaculate condition, crazily figured birds eye neck also with an ohsc - teardrop MM type - it went way above my upper limit and sold for £1250 ish...... in 2007. I subsequently found out the hard shell case alone was worth, at the time, over £200. I would say around £1000 + if the bass is in very good condition and all original - bear in mind new ones (undiscounted) are around £2000. I wouldn't sell a Stingray for less than £850 these days. Bear in mind there may be another price like when the new Stingrays appear later this year - which may bump up the used values again. For those who just want a Stingray, then these prices won't suit as if you find someone desperate to sell you can probably pick something up cheaper - but as with all instruments many people are more specific with their requirements - look at the price range for a used 'Precision' bass - anything from £250 to £10k plus dependent on what you want.

@maxfox you're doing just fine. English is complicated

I'd better update the profanity filter before someone is offended See you there Steve

Ahem, your "stinky poo list".

I'm just going to drill for a set screw to keep it in place.

Definitely inspired by the Ibanez headstock.

Nick Cave & Kylie Minogue Bone Thugs n Harmony & Phil Collins Lady Gaga & Metallica at the Superbowl

Yep! Spent a few years faffing around with my old TE amp trying to get find a tone that in the end was just a flat setting with a bit of HPF. Thank god for the class-D boom!

I know there's probably not a right or wrong way to use BDDIs or VTBASS type stompboxes, but personally I've never had the desire to simply lump one into the front of any head. I played with a guitarist one time who got a pretty acceptable tone by playing a Les Paul into a Fender Twin Reverb. For some insane reason he started building this huuuuge pedalboard with several distortion/fuzz pedals on it...he just couldn't grasp the concept of how coloured his tone became when he piled output from a distortion pedal on top of an already distorted amp tone; he'd look at you like a lost puppy. 'Clean? Wny would I want to have my amp running clean?' He threw thousands at gear and eventually wised up that the Les Paul/Twin Reverb was the best tone he'd ever had. Sigh.

You can't give prizes and awards for songs. Music is ART, not SPORT !

Has anybody mentioned Sandy Shaw and The Smiths.. The "coolest" band ever and somebody old enough to be their Mum..

Hi Here is my last music video. I hope you will like it ! You can ask any question you might have :). Let me tell you the story behind this song's choice : I have been a big fan of Bobby McFerrin for years. The albums "Bang! Zoom" and "Beyond Words" are probably my favorites out of his discography. Unfortunately, I still haven't managed to see Bobby performing live even though I have tried many times ! - The first time was in 2009. I had bought tickets for a concert in Paris, and haven't been able to get there for health reasons. I sold the tickets the day before the show on the internet. The person who bought me those tickets described it to me as one of the best show she had ever seen. - The second time was in 2012. I had tickets to see him at the festival "Jazz des Cinq Continents" (Marseille, France). He was performing with "Yellow Jackets" as a guest. My car broke down the day of the show and I ended up giving the tickets to a friend (by email) who was already there. As a compensation, I was able to watch the show on youtube a year later... - The third time was in 2017. I had bought tickets for a show in Lyon (France). The show was due a few days after my sister's birthday. It was perfect for a gift! Once again, I was out of luck, the whole tour was cancelled because of Bobby's health issues... Few months ago, I was transcribing Jeff Berlin's version of "Tears in Heaven" (from the album "Taking Note" released in 1997) and I had the idea to apply his concept to another song. As a tribute to Bobby McFerrin, I chose to work "Don't worry Be Happy" and to play it during my concerts. I'm not worried but I am still hoping to see him live some day! This track will appear on the next EP of the Thomas Laffont Group. Let's record together this CD thanks to your financial support! Here's the link to our kisskissbankbank's page if you wish to follow us in this adventure : https://www.kisskissbankbank.com/en/projects/the-house-by-the-sea

My ever changing board. Removed a few pedals, added a few new ones and moved a few pedals around and slightly changed the order. Gone: Spectracomp (barely used it), Black Teeth (RAT clone) and Bass Sweeper (also barely used). New: Golden Halo and Alpha-Omicron. The Darkglass Alpha-Omicron is in a league of its own, whatever setting I try it sounds great! I think I'll be busy for quiet a while searching for my favourite settings.

Rancid's 'Time Bomb' is now in the ska band set. I'm a happy camper :-D

Elton also played on Black Gives Way To Blue by Alice in Chains

I just purchased a Hohner B-bass from Andy. It was exactly as described and really well packaged. Despite the best efforts of the morons in the post office it got here safe and sound. I would happily deal with Andy again

The belief that a bass sounds different depending which wood the body is made from (tonewood), is largely risible IMHO, but in my experience the chunkiness of a neck does seem to have a bearung ob tobe. I'm sorry, I have a cold.

Specific measurements are all well and good, but action is subjective. If you're getting buzzes and rattles then it's too low, if you can't play properly because it's too much effort to press the strings to the board then it's too high. If your bass is sounding good and is comfortable, it intonates properly and it feels right to you, then it is right.

Let’s hope it sounds as good as it looks

Forgot to say that even the entry model Spectors are very playable. Don't be put off by the single pick up models, especially when you see them for less than £200. There's one here for £100 which is a steal for somebody.

Be really interesting to see how this A/Bs against the Ashdown CTM100 (currently on sale for £999 at Gear4Music) which it seems to be in direct competition with? On the surface it would seem that the CTM has the better EQ and tone shaping controls and, of course, that all important trademark VU meter The Handbox is 3kg lighter.

I'm trying to convince myself I don't need one...!