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Yes, but realistically, after investing 20 years, surely it's worth giving it another five? Y'know ... just in case ...

Chet Atkins said to his dad “When I grow up I want to be a musician!” And his dad replied “Sorry, son, but you can’t do both.”

I'm with Roger2611 and Lozz196. When I went looking for a vintage Fender I deliberately sought a bass that had some visible wear as to me it probably signals it's a good item and has been used not abused (and hopefully maintained) rather than stuck in a cupboard. As original as possible and un-modded. Mine actually has one none-vintage strap button but I guess I could always remove the old hootenany button and use that instead and leave a hole in the headstock. Gratuitous vintage Fender pics (it's a '66):

Everybody should have Tin Drum by Japan in their music collection. Mick Karn was a God in my eyes...his work with Japan is legendary, however his solo albums ( I have three IIRC) didn't take his work to the next level IMO. Doesn't mean he wasn't a God though....

Looking at those latest photos, I can't help thinking that the knobs would look awesome if they were mounted on top of an elongated teardrop-shaped inlay that mirrors the shape and colour of the f-hole. S.P.

Andy Fraser’s solo on Mr Big from the Free Live album; not technically difficult, but superb build and note choice.

Well it has taken a while, but I've finally had time to give my Burns Barracuda Bass a proper work out including a rehearsal with the band. First the obligatory photos: While it shares a lot in common with the Squier being a Bass VI, in many ways it is a very different instrument, especially when it comes to the pickups and electrics. The wider neck is much more comfortable for me than the narrow Squier. However it is not as wide as the specifications would lead you to believe. Nut width is 45mm, but the actual string spacing between the two E strings is only 38mm, a mere 3mm more than the Squier, and the strings are very obviously set in from the fingerboard edges. The difference is enough to make the neck feel more comfortable overall, but if the string spacing made full use of the available nut width, it would be even more useful to me. The fingerboard is bound in fake MoP which looks great, but doesn't make the dots particularly easy to see in subdued lighting conditions - as I discovered the first time I took this bass into the rehearsal room. At the other end things are less good. The overall string spacing at the bridge is only 52mm compared with 55mm on the Squier, so while it is easier to form chord shapes on the neck without inadvertently muting strings with my fingers, picking the correct string cleanly is a lot harder. For the first week I was constantly missing strings or playing the wrong one. This is one of the problems when the hardware for a Bass VI has been appropriated from a guitar design. The Squier Bass VI might look like it's been cobbled together from bits left over from the Fender Jaguar, but all the important parts have been suitably altered to suit the nature of the instrument. The bridge on the Barracuda appears to be exactly the same as that on the Marvin Guitar and consequently the spacing here is really a bit too narrow for a Bass VI. The relatively narrow bridge also means that the outer string get further way from the edge of the fingerboard as you move up the neck. On the other hand the vibrato mechanism is a lot more useful than the one on the Squier. It's smoother feeling has a noticeable effect on all the strings and has less of a tendency to put the instrument out of tune. Overall the Barracuda is (for me) easier to play than the Squier, but it really needs to have a correspondingly wider string spacing at the bridge to match that of the nut for optimum comfort. The other interesting thing is that despite looking bigger and chunkier than the Squier Bass VI, both basses weigh the same (4.3kg on my scales) the Barracuda feels lighter on the strap and is definitely more comfortable to wear for a 2-3 hour rehearsal. When it come to the pickups and electronics there's a lot more variation between the Barracuda and the Squier Bass VI. The Barracuda has a standard Strat-type pickup selector with the conventional 5 options. However pulling up the tone control nearest the jack socket automatically activates the neck pick up irrespective of the position of the 5-way switch. I was a bit worried that the "in-between" pickup positions might sound a bit weedy, put while there is some thinning of tone, it's all very usable and all the positions work well in a band mix. At the moment I'm favouring either the bridge or middle pickup solo'd or the bridge and neck pickups together depending on the band mix. What is much better than the Squier is that the instrument has a lot of clarity without it being at the expense of the bottom end. To that end if you want to be playing surf-style bass this could well be the bass for you. There's plenty of twang and oomph available, and at the same time should it be required. As you can probably tell, while the Burns Barracuda still isn't ideal for me it's a lot more suitable than the Squier Bass VI. It is usable straight out of the case (it comes with a rather nice Burns branded hard case) without needing to shim the neck or replace the strings, and the bridge/vibrato unit while not being as wide as would be ideal is overall a lot more suitable for a bass instrument than the Squier. I think this bass will be fine for me at the moment, until I can afford to have something mode more specifically for my needs.

Again, don't be fooled - it's not as near done as it looks! But we are on the home straight. I've said before that I have a slightly unconventional way of going about things. Probably much less efficient than many, but it reduces the risk of me knack****g the functionality for style or vice-versa! The top hasn't been finally shaped yet - it's a bit flat-topped and thicker than final target. But making sure that it is going to be straight and intonate OK and just how much to lower the top where the bridge sits are all guestimates until the actual hardware and strings are in place. So that's generally what I do - I string it up and then I can see exactly what leeway I have, or what tweaks I need to make: The bridge area can drop down up to 3mm safely and the curvature from the centre line to the 'f' hole can increase a touch. The spacing (adjustable on this bridge) will be tweaked a touch to get the G just a little closer to the fretboard edge at the 24th. While it's strung up (these are temporary strings) I will also finish shape and sand the neck - being able to play it and really feel how the curvature of the profile works at all parts of the neck as I fine tune the shape makes a huge difference to judging when it's right. Last this is that I can see whether those knobs enhance or distract - I'm doing a second set to be able to do a live A/B comparison where the tops are the plainer poplar (same as the headstock plate). @Len_derby will have both sets and will be able to swop them around as often as he wants I'm hoping to do that extra sanding over the next few days and start the finishing process at the weekend - Osmo Polyx Satin is on its way as I type

I share with you this solo I covered. Tell me if yu liked it or not! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KgxjxvipQI&feature=youtu.be

Looking very nice, I'll bet Len is dying to get his hands on it

Here are the plain knobs - they will lighten a touch when the oil has dried. @SpondonBassed - please note that I SOMETIMES take notice of what you say ref the background The comparison is here: Personally, I prefer the plainer ones on the actual bass - my eye is drawn to the top and not the knobs - but, whatever, Neil will be given both sets

The Libertines were, are and forever will be utter gash. The fuss over Winehouse has been one of the most bemusing things in music. Back to Black is wafer thin ersatz 60s Dusty Springfield type pop updated for the millennium, produced by the most overrated producer ever. Stand up Mark Ronson. Just an opinion of course.

Willie Weeks on Donny Hathaway's Voices Inside is a favourite, as is Dexter Redding playing The Awakening.

Yes - that's my thought. When you add the pattern of the knobs, I wonder if you lose just a smidgen of the bookmatch pattern effect of the body. The plain poplar alternative is the same wood but without the pattern and is identical to the headstock - it may counter that effect and also visually tie the headstock to the body. The nice thing is that I can do both and present Neil with a simple ' do you prefer this or that' and give him the spares anyway By the way, all in, this is 6lbs 6oz at the moment. Less a bit of final finish sanding and plus a bit of finish oiling, that will be pretty much the finished weight.

The difference having some strings makes is astonishing. It looked good before. Now it looks the business too. If one was to suggest an LED for this instrument I would conceal one and only one with a diffuser inside your norrisole to bring out the warm red tones of its backing veneer. I am looking forward to the Andyjr knob comparison post with anticipation. I think it's anticipation... that or I'm still immature enough to get a kick out of typing the word knob whilst imagining it being said by Rowan Atkinson. I found the flooring a distraction. It might be easier to compare knobs with a plain background for the bass itself. I like the ones in the images above well enough. Our Len's going to be spoilt for choice though with the poplar tops. Excellent.

Goodness gracious..! Unaware of other versions of this song, I was inspired to give this a listen, on the back of this recommendation. I regretted this decision quite quickly, and didn't even get past the half-way mark (unusually, as I like to give everyone their chance...). 'Big beat', cheesy arpeggios, vocoders galore, sub-BeeGees harmonies, 'Pooo.. Pooo..' synth 'drums, an 'arrangement' of sorts, although term seems inadequate... Goodness gracious..! It's been quite a while since I listened to such tosh. They say that all is a matter of taste. Hmm... I'll be more wary next time. Goodness gracious..! Warning: Please don't be inspired to make the same mistake as I did without the full knowledge that this is highly likely to not be a pleasant experience. At your own peril, then.

Plenty of good bands need a good and dedicated bass player. Sure you won't be on the shelf for long. And without the "band" you can resume friendships without the smouldering resentment at each others differing priorities with the band.

I like the way the knobs blend in - looks like there are none. How about using a darker wood for the main barrel of the knob so the player looking down can see them but for the onlooker, they are concealed?

Just posted a link to this thread to the GK Facebook page, you never know might help.

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But a lot of the time the mix was a result of the recording technology and practices of the time and not down to what the artists or their producer intended. Anything recorded on tape machines with less than 16 tracks will have had all sorts of mix decisions made long before all the instruments and vocals had been laid down, all of which would ultimately compromise the final sound of the recordings. If you find that several bounces down the line instruments recorded on the first or second pass were no longer in the right place in the mix you could either live with it or go back to the point when they were recorded and redo the track form there. The second option was only really available to artists with the recording time and budget of The Beatles. Most other bands who had just a couple of weeks to track and mix their album would have to carry on with what they had already done. Also on most studio-created albums from before the mid 80s a good part of the sound is dictated by the delivery medium - what can and cannot be cut to vinyl and will play properly on the average record player. Many of them won't sound the same on record as they did in the studio, because too much is lost/compromised in the transfer to vinyl.

I have a 1970 P in sunburst/rosewood/tort just like that 1966 P, which is in used but certainly not abused nick. There's a mobile phone sized patch of wear on the back, and various smaller patches of wear, about half of which were there when i bought it 24 years ago, and the rest has been picked up along the way. I think the fashion for relicing has given an unrealistic idea that old guitars become inevitably battered - if you take good care of them, they don't. Mine has clearly been well used and had some professionally-done repairs over the years (on its second refret and its third jack socket) so its no museum piece, but as a working instrument it is incredible. I would neither seek out battered examples, or shun pristine ones really. All instruments are individual anyway, so it's down to whether or not I like the one in my hand (or more likely, whether I can afford it!)

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Ooohhhh my veneer turned up today very excited but I won't get chance to start it till Friday 🙁

The best bass players (pro or otherwise) are the guys playing the best bass lines. Who cares what instrument they used. Do what the best pro players do. . . make your own decisions and resist following the herd.

It's just a tool. I play a 5 purely because I get piano scores rather than bass parts and I like to be able to play the low end without having to thing about changing things. Half the time I don't use the lowest notes but I have more positions to play in because I can play across the board rather than up and down. TBH anyone who does the "4 was good enough for Jaco" routine is a weapons grade silly billy. There were hardly any 5 string basses around at the time. There was the 15 fret Fender V 1965 but the first really popular 5 was the Stingray and that wasn't introduced until 1987. The year Jaco died. Wal and Alembic did some before that but they weren't common or affordable. Who knows what he would have done if he had lived longer. But one thing I am sure of - he wouldn't have said - "Oh look! a 3 string double bass was good enough for Bottesini so that's good enough for everyone"

It is of absolutely no importance to me what other bass players do. Besides the best bass lines on most albums released since the early 80s were synthesised or sampled and played by a sequencer.

Done the headstock decal

I should also add that having had first hand experience of Shure Super 55 as it was Mr Venom's microphone of choice for the Terrortones, I can say that underneath that supposedly rugged exterior, they are quite flimsy. In particular, the wires that run from the XLR socket in the base to the capsule in the body of the mic are very thin and weedy and if your singer makes a lot of use of the pivot between the two, the wires will eventually break and need replacing. I had to do this 3 times over 6 years with Mr Venom's mic and they continued to wear out with use, even after I replaced the wires with something a bit more heavy duty. Admittedly Mr Venom, gave his mic some serious abuse, but after 6 years I had replaced almost every part, so they are not as robust as their looks would have you believe.

Is that a Heft Control?

lol... I refer you to my previous post! I have a bunch of Steve Vai albums. I'd rather go to the dentists than listen to them.

 I have to agree with this. At uni people played my instrument, I played theirs, I sounded like me, they sounded like them. Disclaimer. I'm a bit drunk, sorry. Running a specialist shop like BD is admirable, and no doubt they do good business. Fair enough, wish I had the confidence to make a visit etc etc. But.....and I know this is gonna tick off just about everyone on here. I've been to a number of big gigs/festivals recently with bassists playing all manner of different instruments.....and guess what..they all sounded the same...boom mush boom. So I put out there a philosophical conundrum. Bass. Do you really need to spend gazillions of quids to create bass tone that Jo public can appreciate?. My ill informed opinion, nope.... And with regard to the above gigs etc... all the P's sounded like all the others. It's made me really appreciate my crap but pleasant sounding Squier. If enough of u have a go at me for writing in this inebriated manner I will pull this post asap.

A sausage shaped f hole and recess would not infringe copyright, according to my lawyers Lovely looking bass btw, and I'd go for the plain knobs myself

That is a thing of beauty!

So yeah, the N8t... I liked it. I liked it a lot. But not as much as the 12 - which for me, is still the piece (ignoring the difference in the price) I would go for from 64. They are both very similar sounding pieces but I much prefer what the bass is doing on the 12. It hits harder, I perceived it to be tighter in the sub bass and with significantly more attack. Overall, I would say the 12 sounds a lot more controlled than the n8t does. It's not a big surprise that the two pieces otherwise sound quite comparable given the similarities in the driver count - but here's the thing for me... The lows in the n8t are a bit less defined (but not muddy) - which is a bit weird given the marketing around it - but I could understand how some people would really like that that sort of signature. It probably has more of a inherent personality tonally than the 12. When describing how I felt about it to Paul (bearing in mind he hadn't heard it yet - I am actually the first to have had his n8t demos in my ears!), I said that I feel like the bass is bit more like sticking a sub in a cars boot - yes, lots of bass but not necessarily as focused as it could be. I found the lows smeared a little with the lower mids - but the extended range of the mids as a whole are lovely. Very smooth and slightly warmer (but only a tiny amount that I don't think you would notice if you allowed any significant time in between testing the 2 side by side) than the 12... but I guess that's where the dynamic is showing it's colour over the balanced armature. The n8t doesn't have that bump in the lows (eq wise) that that 12s had... but I think it's that bump that I prefer in the 12s over the n8ts. So the other pieces I was trying out were the Layla, Lola and Roxanne. Obviously, I'm very familiar with the Roxanne and that was the piece I started with. Immediately I recognised the sound signature even though they have been out of my ears for a while. Switching to Lola, I recognised the subtle difference in the mids. Again, warmer and fatter - the "bloom" that I talk about it. The Siren series are generally quite dark anyway - but I would say that the added dynamic in the mid (note JH apply their dynamic to the mid as opposed to the bass) makes things all thick and gooey - but in a good way. Very revealing, yet very warm and smooth in your ears. There is one issue I've always had with the Roxanne that was similarly present in the Lola. For my ears, there is a slight sibilance issue with ts and esses. Not an annoyance to point of distraction - but still there nonetheless. So Layla. Lovely piece and I was prepared to spend the money - however... I found it ultimately a bit flat sounding compared to the Roxannes and Lolas. The latter pieces have more of a personality in the bass that the Layla doesn't exhibit as much... I definitely think I'm not into flat response in the bass. I like hyped bass. So ultimately, Layla was out - and I still preferred the tightness of the balanced armatures in the Roxannes over the dynamic of the Lola. So you've had my thoughts on the 64 but crucially, it was the 12s verses the Roxannes that I was most interested in. The 12s had better bass - which absolutely shocked me when A/Bing the two side by side. The 12s had a thicker mid despite the Roxanne overall sounding darker. The 12s defo sounded wider and had more "air" (which probably contributes to the 12s sounding less dark than the Roxannes)... but the thing that sealed the deal for me was that the 12s didn't display any of the same sibilance issues that I got with the Roxannes and Lola. (Again, sibilance can be down to my ears as opposed to an issue with the piece itself. Jerry Harvey's ears for example, are going to be different to mine!). Paul hasn't currently got a set of 18s to try but I felt confident I wouldn't like the flatter response given the difference I'd heard between the Layla and it's not so flat siblings, Roxanne and Lola. My other concern was the amount of drivers in the shell - I don't want to look like Shrek on stage! So it probably comes as no surprise that I ordered a 12t... and I'm pretty excited about getting hold of them. So to confirm my opening statement... the 12 is still the piece that I would go for from 64... and did! As a note, I don't listen to whole songs when test IEMs in a shoot out, I switch regularly between the pieces and listen to literally 10 seconds snippets. For those interests, these are the things I was listening to - Hotel California (Hell Freezes Over version) (live) - despite being a live recording, I believe this is one of the best recordings out there to try out an IEM. It's got lots of space in the mix, lots going on in the lows, lots of stereo separation going on (listen to the percussion for a start), lots of detail throughout the whole frequency spectrum - and for me, shows up any sibilance issues that I may have with the vocals. Walking in Memphis - Marc Cohen - just a great studio performance with a lovely thick vocal and is superbly balanced and mixed. Cars and Girls - Prefab Sprout - I don't mind the song but actually hate this recording with a passion but always use this recording to check out sibilance on an IEM. There's a shed load of esses everywhere on this recording that are present on every set up going. If you want to know exactly how bad the esses can be on your IEMs, this is the track to do it. Free - Rudimental - the bass monster finder. If you IEMs can kick hard to the point where you can't stand the bass, your IEMs are officially a bass monster. Bass drum, sub bass, thick mid, female vocal. All extremes! Not necessarily the songs the I would listen to on a daily basis... but I do tend to keep coming back to them to test stuff out. So endeth the JH era, hello 64. What I should say though though, is when you get to this level, they are ALL amazing pieces... and it's literally that last 10% that you get picky over? Would I order the Roxanne again? Of course I would! - it just felt it would be prudent to run through all the pieces again back to back to make sure I was still happy with the Roxannes. Of course I would be happy with the Roxannes... but it would seem I'd be a tiny bit happier with the A12ts.

My mind has changed on this; I did think that all instruments these days are made to a reasonable standard and that was that. If it didnt work for you, it is probably that it didn't quite fit physically to your own body geometry. I then bought a very capable ibanez bass and it had lovely looks but it was soulless in a way that I cannot describe. I bought a jap fender P at the same time and I could not stop playing it, and I hated precisions at the time. It spoke and resonated in a way that I cannot describe. It had music in it. In short, I don't think cosmetic wear to any level makes any difference at all, its all about the qualities of that instrument. Even if it was made by hand in teh old days, or on a CNC router now; you can still get duff wood, duff copper windings, duff steel batches whenever they were made or on whichever continental landmass

I`ve just bought the re-mastered version of Appetite for Destruction and it`s great. Before the guitars were mainly Slash, whereas now you can really hear the distinction between him and Izzy and it`s a revelation, Izzy does so much and his lines are quite a lot different to what Slash plays. It really makes for good listening, hearing two separate guitar lines fitting so well together.

Looks great so far 👍🏻

Guess who heard the N8s today...?

Not so far, apart from the corner bracing inherent in the design. The panels are fairly small and that helps and a simple touch test shows them to be no worse than a lot of cabs. My intention is to go through the sort of systematic process with a signal generator that Stevie used on the Mk2 speakers but band shenanigans means that I'm spending more time herding cats than usual. (and also playing bass and learning new songs, so not all bad) I'm also planning a new cab building technique with more elaborate bracing which would be relatively simple for home builders and I might use this cab as a test bed for that technique. It's always down to time really.

WYWH is my favourite album of all time, along with Moonmadness by Camel. I was always disappointed with the other albums (including Dark Side) which I heard later and which to me don't even come close.

Hogarth-era Marillion. As a confirmed lover of Fish-era Marillion, I totally lost interest when he left in 1988 or so. Recently, though, I figured I should give them another chance because I was probably missing out. I took recommendations and listened intently. In the car, in my room, with headphones and on the stereo. Loudly, quietly, through the PA during breaks at gigs. Then I stopped. Life's too short to try too hard to like something that you just don't. (See also: Led Zeppelin. Meh.)

The problem I have with podcasts is getting time to listen to them, so I don't usually bother. I had a lazy couple of hours today and I thought I should bother... so I did. It works for me! The history bit was nothing new to me but would be valuable to others, the Chowny interview was insightful, both from technical points and a real eye opener as to how much work goes in to getting things off the ground, plus how the right connections at the right time can make or break. I loved the blind test, a great idea... although I had a sneaking suspicion that it was going to be what it was. It was pretty comprehensive and clearly presented in terms of the adjustments being made. It's a potential winner. Congratulations to all involved.