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Showing content with the highest reputation on 13/10/18 in all areas
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I own three Peavey B-Quad (original owner). Two 4 stringers fretted and one 5 string fretless. The two 4 stringers are 2 of the first 12 pre-production prototypes (Violet & Teal). I have a personal letter from Hartley Peavey stating so. These were on USA dealer tour at select Peavey dealers featuring Brian Bromberg himself giving a seminar/demo. It was a fantastic experience being able to sit just a few feet away from Brian as he just blew everyone away with his virtuosity. The 5 string fretless I have was custom made. It's one of the very last B-Quad made (see extended story below) I had to contact Brian to get permission for the changes (no fret lines, side dot markers placed were the frets usually are, and no "B" at the 12th position). Surprisingly he approved it! It's black, black hardware. If Darth Vader played bass this is the bass he would have. The pre-production prototypes have electronics and piezo bridge saddle pickups that were designed and hand built by Rick Turner, co-founder of Alembic. I don't know how long Turner continued to make the pre-amp for the B-Quads. I do know that he wasn't happy with the Peavey relationship at some point because I had to contact him for a piezo bridge saddle pickup replacement for one that failed. He had ONE in stock and kindly sent it to me for FREE (Thank you so much Rick!). The custom 5 string was a disaster. It took 18 months to arrive. I had to repeatedly complain and inquire "where's my bass?". It turned out that because of the above mentioned "custom" modifications, someone at Peavey thought it was a defect and had tossed in pile of other defective components. When it finally arrived, it had the wrong hardware (I originally ordered gold), and the batteries were dead. It had different electronics, different piezo bridge saddles, sounded way different, and I never really liked the way it felt. BUT - it sure looked cool. It always draws comments from the audience with the shiny fretless, almost glass-like black fingerboard. At the time I bought the first one I really had my heart set on a Modulus. The sales guy suggested I try more instruments including the B-Quads. I hadn't been playing for a while and was just getting back into the music scene. When he left I decided to try a B-Quad. To my surprise, my wife who was with me suddenly said "I like the way you play this one. You're playing things I've never heard you play before". I was stunned. Why? Because at Brian Bromberg's demo one of his pitch lines was "This instrument will bring out music in you that didn't know was there". I thought "holy s***! talk about taking the words right out of the horse's mouth!!" So I bought it. It was nearly a year later and the other B-Quad left behind from Bromberg's tour was still sitting there. I was surprised no one had bought it yet. The store manager knew I had bought the first one and caught me eyeing it again one day. So he said "give me a figure - take your time". So I thought about it and finally gave him a rather low-ball figure. He then showed me his calculator. My "bid" was $50 higher. He sold it to me for the lower price.5 points
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NOW SOLD. I bought this bass brand new very recently, but having played 5 strings for the last 20 years, I cannot settle back into playing a 4. The opportunity has arose to purchase another 5, so I am putting this up for sale. It's a great playing and modern sounding bass with a range of different tonal options from the pickups and pre-amp. It has not left the house and has barely been played. No marks and is in as new, mint condition. It comes with a brand new Spector hard case – once again as new. This is the manufacturers description: Carved European alder body with a USA figured maple top and a slice of Walnut NECK WOOD: 3pc Maple with Graphite Rods inside for additional strength FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, with mother of pearl Crown Inlays NUMBER OF FRETS: 24 SCALE LENGTH: 34" HARDWARE BRIDGE: Spector zinc brass alloy locking bridge, with intonation screws Brass Nut PICKUPS AND ELECTRONICS PICKUPS: EMG 35TW ACTIVE TONE CONTROLS: Spector TonePump +18db boost only, bass and treble CONTROLS : bridge pickup volume with push/pull function for single/dual coil selection, neck pickup volume with push/pull function for single/dual coil selection, treble boost and bass boost I am happy to accept Paypal. £1175.00 and £15 post and packing. No trades thank you; just interested in a straight sale.4 points
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4 points
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I don't quite understand why this video has generated so much opprobium. Someone has dared to suggest that open strings sound different to a fretted note; that playing in time is a good thing; that overcomplication is not necessarily a good thing and that money end of the fretboard is not a bad place to live in a band context. I can't remember what the fifth thing was, something about not changing the chord by playing the root at the start of each bar. I don't think any of that is bad advice for a beginner/early stage intermediate bassist. It may not chime with all the mega star bassists on here with their multi-million pound deals and globe-hopping tours but I recognise the sense in it.3 points
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There was a video on his Instagram page the other day playing a fodera and I thought it was one of those mock “shred” videos.3 points
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Much the same for Mark King. Obvs he's best known for his slap, but what seems to get overlooked is that his fingerstyle playing is quite breathtaking.2 points
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I think we have the answer then! The board is 7.25 at the top and probably at the bottom, thus appearing a bit looser, and the frets a bit tighter due to also being 7.25 Cor. I'm sticking to a one piece fretless neck - this stuff is too hard for my little brain 😁2 points
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I showed it some interesting local sights, have recorded a couple of short videos including a comparison with my Allen Eden Jazz. They will follow in a couple of hours once they are uploaded to Youtube.2 points
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Last night was the first of two nights at Oktoberfest at Rougemont Castle, Exeter. Full stage rig, lights, PA and sound engineer provided so just back line to load in which was a change. Sound was good on stage and out front but one of the guitarists was having issues from a crackling radio mic on his guitar which was fixed by going back to a good old cable. Over four hundred tickets had been sold so lots of lubricated punters but went down really well. We shared with an excellent oompah band who were great fun. Overnight security meant we could leave the back line and drums in situ so in theory we should just be able to plug in and play tonight. This evening is a sell out so no doubt it will be lively!2 points
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..........hang on a minute, did you write floutwounds ??? Everyone knows that only trainee prima donna guitarists can use these. Full on prima donna guitarists then move on to flouncewounds.2 points
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These make for a great drive pedal! This is a really good description of how this pedal works in drive mode, the AGS side. The Tone Hammer is a totally different animal. With the AGS off, it's just an uber clean EQ with gain boost. Very high quality, and the sweepable mids are fantastic. You know how everyone raves about the Sadowsky outboard preamp/DI pedal. I had one, until I got my Tone Hammer. The TH covered the Sadowsky thing VERY well. The low control has the same 40 hz setting with the AGS off, as does the 4k treble setting. The sweepable mids on the TH are just wonderful, though I do wish it would go up to about 2k. No big deal. The EQ on the TH is flat when it is engaged. When you also turn on the AGS, at the lowest setting, there is no hair on the notes at all. Again, NO hair at all unless your bass is just SUPER hot in terms of output. What does happen when you engage the AGS is that highs are immediately rolled off in a way that simulates a vintage tweeterless cabinet. So the tone gets warmer sounding off the bat, even though the lows and mids are still the same. The Treble control now acts more like a Presence knob does on the Sansamp stuff. It dials in grindy mids in the 2.5k region. Very slick. The lows are tightened up a bit as you boost them, so instead of getting really deep and boomy, they get fat and vintage. Again, still no hair on the notes because the AGS gain is fully counter clockwise. The mid control still allows you to cut/boost mids where you want them. Very slick. Vintage tones with no hair. As you add more AGS gain, the tone gets warmer until you get some hair, and then it starts overdriving. With the EQ flat, the overdrive tone is VERY mid-oriented such that it can sound a bit nasally and harsh. But remember, this is with the EQ flat, and most folks who are used to hearing a classic tube amp (think SVT for example) should note that an SVT is no where near flat. There's a mid scoop. So to get rid of that nasally midrange in the TH, you have to cut mids as you boost the gain. Setting the knob around 2-3 o'clock puts the mid control around the 750 hz mark, where you'll get some classic SVT'ish mid scoop going. Start cutting the mids there to get the tone you want. Cut to anywhere from 10 to 8 o'clock, and you can pretty much close your eyes and thing your running through the BDDI and not the Tone Hammer. The cool thing is that you aren't having to use a Blend knob at all to control that mid scoop. Just scoop the mids as deep as you like to get the tone you're after, and then adjust the Treble (which now more like a Presence, remember?) to get the amount of cut you want. Then, dial up the bass if you want it fat and deep, or cut it back to keep a thinner tone. Very slick, and way cool. Here's another trick about the TH that I use a good bit. I'll scoop the mids ALL the way out around 750 hz for a rock tone. With the Bass/Treble boosted to around 2 o'clock, this is very similar to the "Fat Tube" setting from the BDDI manual. But the cool trick is instead to cut treble and bass back. I'll set bass to 11 or maybe 10 o'clock, and cut treble all the way back to 8 or 9 o'clock. The result is a very warm, lower-mid dominant tone (because the upper mids and lows are cut back so far), with a subtle, understated top end. It's very B15'ish and sounds awesome with a P bass or jazz with flats. At this point, if you want more depth, rather than boosting the bass, you move the mid frequency knob clockwise, which pools out upper mids and articulation. If you want more of that, then you move the knob counter clockwise to bring those upper mids back into the tone. The highs and lows stay the same, so it's an easy way to adjust your tone on the gig to get more/less articulation in the mix. These are just a few examples of what the Tone Hammer can do. I'm a huge fan of it obviously, but I came from being a BDDI user for quite a while, and I just never could bond with the new VT pedal. I still love and have a deep respect for the BDDI, and while I don't use one myself much anymore, I know I can always make it work. The Para Driver I wouldn't bother with myself. A lot of folks around here have slammed the Tone Hammer because you can't use the AGS like a second channel, where you can engage/disengage overdrive at will without causing volume differences. I guess I can understand that, but really that's not the Aguilar'sdesign intent. Instead, think of it more as a single channel tone shaper, that will "hammer" (pardon the pun) your tone into a wide variety of directions. It just takes a little time playing with the controls to figure out what does what. I still learn new things about it all the time. It's not that it's complicated, but rather that the AGS circuit ties in very closely to the mid control, so changing the mids affects the overdrive tone, and the more gain you add, the more the low end tightens up to prevent things from getting muddy2 points
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2 points
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I managed to get a new Peavey 210TVX for a good price (must be last one in the country surely?) to replace the vanderkley. Only had it since yesterday but It sounds nice and clear - and very loud - so it looks like the vanderkley might be for sale. Not a bad rig for just over £400 all in.2 points
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Depends on what bass you’re playing really, and what DB sound you’re after (jazz and bluegrass DB are very different tones). Either way, I think it’s less about EQ and more about playing style. I’ve also found that the tiniest bit of reverb can add to a DB feel.2 points
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It's one of the BBs from that era, don't recall the numbering convention but something like a BB6042 points
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The numbers do seem to contradict but the electrical energy input can be stored by the power supply such that when demanded by say a loud low note it is used for a short period of time for that note. So the power out does not exceed the power in over the long time, only in short bursts due to being stored by large capacitors which are continually recharged waiting for the next loud passage. Using a water analogy, you could fill a large water tank via a dripping tap and then when full, release all the water very quickly in 1 go. And then repeat.2 points
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2 points
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For sale I have beautiful Zon Legacy Elite 5. Please check the official site where you can find that price for this model is around 8500$. 5 strings, 34" scale mahogany body with master-grade top composite neck with 24 frets two bartolini pickups high-gloss finish and chrome hardware hardshell case Bass is in excellent condition with minimal cosmetic damage visible in the pictures. I can send additional pictures of any part of guitar to the interested buyer. Shipping cost are not included. I am located in Croatia, so in case of interest for Zon we can find best shipping solution that will be covered by buyer. Thanks a lot guys, Cheers!1 point
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£22 delivered, tiny, and it sounds pretty damn good. Downside? Not that versatile. But that's all. If you just need the occasional quacking from your bass and don't want to spend much, or take up too much space on your board, I think this is a pretty good one. On bass it works very well, it doesn't lose the low end or get extreme... it's very easy to get a good fast 'wah' out of this with bass. I haven't found a *good* demo online... but if you listen to RHCP's 21st Century, it's easy to get that kind of sound: On guitar... I love it for leads where it smoothens the attack. Like this: It's not going to replace my Soundblox BEF, but it's a pretty cool little pedal. A lot of the cheaper envelope filters get too honky or lose all low end... not this one! You don't get a lot of different sounds, you can't do down-sweeps, you can't make the sweep time change a lot... but what it does it does well.1 point
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1 point
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Just saw this on Facebook Highly doubt it means anything but would be cool to see what Sire and Victor could do with a budget bass....1 point
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1 point
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Theatre Gig tonight in Street backing a local singer- keyboard player. It was a Christian event and had the use of an Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 and Barefaced 2x12 cab which sounded nice on its own and great through the house PA. Slightly incongruous set: Smooth Operator, Watermelon Man, I'm Coming Home Baby and Let's Twist Again! This may be contentious but after hearing the worship band (who were very good) I think William Booth was right however.......!1 point
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@BreadBin : you can use this photo for this month photo comp theme. I love it.1 point
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1 point
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David Bailey (photographer) once said if you can't take a decent picture on a Kodak disposable camera, you can't take one with a Leica SLR either. Same with anything, the magic's in the fingers.1 point
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the look on Chuck's face when he first hears Yoko's input at 1:19 is worth a look. Macca having Linda in Wings looks almost sensible at the side of Yoko doing vocals, what was Lennon thinking?1 point
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Aha! Indeed. Yes, if I had intentions to use other midi-capable pedals then fine, but it doesn't look like I am going that way. So... I'll just bend over and use the switches manually and/or get a second or even third Aftershock. Glad I realised this before I bought a Gecko. I had not even thought how they connect together I assumed USB.1 point
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Yup neurohub, which for me only makes sense if you have at least a couple of SA pedals (I have the Manta too). So I agree with you, just get your 2 or 3 fav AS drives sorted and just use those. Simple is good!1 point
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Me too - on some of the photos. The only thing....and it might be an optical illusion...is that on a number of them I've looked at, I reckon that the FRETS might be a tighter radius than the board. Doesn't it look the same to you? But bear in mind I have astigmatism and varifocals. Which is another reason you might want to disregard my comments...1 point
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... yeah, still loving it, but I hadto do something. Black on black looks great, however it's not the best for visibility. So I did this. The look is growing on me, it's not my favourite, but at least I can now see the settings clearly and quickly1 point
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Actually - I think you are probably spot on! And remember - on this subject, I REALLY don't know what I'm talking about1 point
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Interesting. All of the talk of different radii and other such matters piqued my curiosity and I went and looked at my 64.. Ignoring the fact that the corners are pretty much worn down from years of something.. it does look a bit like the board is 7.5" radius top and a similar radius bottom, and thus the neck top is not far off 7.5".. but it is quite difficult to tell. If you follow the lines of the frets vs the bottom of the board then to me, there doesn't seem to be a huge difference in radius - but again it could be less scientific than that. Having measured it, the board (at the frets) is definitely 7.5" but to me, I'd be surprised if the bottom of the board is as much as 12" Having said that, my understanding was the rosewood board was cut to 1/4" or so, the underside then curved appropriately, then the top of the neck pin routed for truss rod, which was then fitted, and then the board glued to it, and then the top of the board radiused to match. It's more than possible that a standard radius was used for the bottom of the board and presumably it was determined by the channel required for the truss rod. I also believe that the logic behind this wasn't to save rosewood and thus cut costs, but to enable the truss rod to be mounted slightly higher in the neck and thus deliver more power and stiffness. This pic of some mustang necks clearly shows the truss rod higher in the veneer board on the right: I've seen some P slab boards where the truss rod nut cuts into the slab board as well which suggests Fender wanted the rod higher but it compromised the board in some way.1 point
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I play a load of cheap stuff. Bass, amp and cabs cost less than £400 for the lot. Everyone says it sounds great, which puzzles me. I don’t love my set up at all. I do however, love playing.1 point
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I used rounds for decades, discovered flats, enjoyed them immensely, but after about ten years I'm now back with rounds. Obviously they aren't as slick, but I counter this by playing for hours every day and thus have developed huge pads of hard skin on my fingers. The issue I get at sweaty gigs is my left hand sticking to the back of the neck, but found that judicious use of a Scotchbrite pad makes the neck silky and satiny smooth. Next!1 point
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When you said you preferred a Trace over a V3 Rumble I thought you were nuts. But now, I'm really not so sure...1 point
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That does make sense for the bass guitar, as a clean bass note starts with an amplitude peak which falls away to a much lower sustained level, then decays away. The TC Active Power Management blurb describes how the system heavily limits the initial peak, so that they effectively only have to amplify the remainder of each note. EDIT: Although we should all probably stop worrying about power, and listen to how loud an amp is and whether we like the sound, inevitably we are always going to want numbers to compare.1 point
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I love this video of John Lennon and Chuck Berry. Especially the bit where the sound engineer switches off Yoko Ono's microphone, as soon as she starts wailing.1 point
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Sorrow for the end, but hopefully many good memories to carry. Good to be positive about the future. Hope all goes well.1 point
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although that's what she said, but what she demonstrated was don't play different open strings without damping, which is correct.1 point
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1 point
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From what was, up to that point, a good series, I felt this was a lame episode, merely done as filler. However, there were some little nuggets of information that were interesting, but not nearly enough. I’m hoping for a return to form tonight (there is another one isn’t there?). For my own tastes, I would’ve liked to have seen Manu Katché, Vinnie Colaiuta, Stewart Copeland and Steve Jordan in the list, but that’s just me.1 point
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1 point
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If the split shaft is already bent then it may have been weakened enough to break - I have bitter experiences to confirm. Packing out the socket of the knob with foil works as an alternative1 point
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Must be the iPad but she’s going to make me a what..?1 point
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1 point
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1 point
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One thing to consider is that the volume control in the Mesa D800+ is far more linear than many other amps I have played. It keeps getting louder all the way up, it is possible that the GK has much more of its power in the first 50%. I have played a few amps which fall into this category and seem incredibly loud at a one third turn of the volume knob, but then have little useable clean volume after that.1 point
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Fantastic review, thanks! I've always been impressed with Jeff Genzler's products and still own his fantastic GB Neox212 cab which to my mind is the best value 2x12 on the market.1 point