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Having reached the age when my kids should be going off on tour, somehow it is me that is venturing out for the first time! My band, Lee Ainley's Blues Storm, is heading out with Zoe Green and Eliana Cargnelutti, on a three female fronted band tour, Ladies of the Blues. A bit of a message for all of those who ask "am I too old?" "is it too late?" "should I/Shouldn't I", well the answer is go out there and do it, you never know what is around the corner. For any of you within striking distance of any of the dates, do come along, support your local venue and fellow Basschatter! Here's the dates.

OK then that explains perhaps why you have concerns and why those of us who have dealt with these issues over a number of years are so frustrated with you. It's a simple matter of misunderstanding. Measuring an amplifier's output is basically very simple. You connect it to a big resistor of 4ohms (say) put a signal into it and increase the signal until it starts to distort. At that point you measure the voltage the amp can do without distortion (less than 1% is the usual measure) and then the power is voltage squared divided by the resistance. Conventionally this is measured over the whole range of our hearing 20-20,000Hz. It's slightly more complex for a class D amplifier as this operates on high frequency pulses all at the same voltage but passing it through a low pass filter makes comparable measurement possible. In the US there is long standing Federal legislation to stop misleading claims by advertisers and in Europe various standards exist with the DIN standard widely known. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audio_power There's some good links at the bottom of the article if you are interested. You simply cannot design an amplifier without knowing all of the parameters and indeed specifying all the parameters of you amps so the claim of 'we don't know the rms power' or 'we don't calculate it that way' isn't credible. Another factor is the input power, an amp cannot put more power into the speaker than it takes from the mains. In fact it will lose power both in it's power supply and in the amplifier itself. A class D design with a switch mode power supply is likely to be somewhere in the 80% efficiency range, so if the amplifier has indeed an input rating of 880W then it can only put out 700W. Then there is the long history of Behringer over claiming power outputs in their advertising. For example I own an old Behringer EP2400 PA amp, claimed output 2400W. When you delve into the manual as I did before I bought the amp I found it would produce 285W continuous into 8ohms with both channels driven. I was using 300W speakers at the time so it was an ideal match and a lot of bang for the buck so a good buy. The over -claiming was irritating but I'm a scientist and the data was all available. With the Beyron it isn't and Behringer are no longer publishing all the data on a lot of their gear. I think it's pretty stupid really as a 500W amp at this price is still beating the whole market and false advertising just makes the company look suspect and contemptuous of their customers. As a 'Physics person' I come on here to repay all those who have helped me with my bass playing by advising them as best I can on technical stuff. I'm still enough of an old hippy to see the people here as friends and I don't want them conned. If someone delivered a Beyron to me it wouldn't be difficult to test it but I know more than enough to know that it makes way less than 2000W. If it is part of the decision of what to buy then I want people here to know what is true and what is incredible.

Another NBD for me - this time a Stingray 5HHS. I picked it up earlier today - had a bit of a play in the shop and it sounds very nice - I was curious how the B string would sound with the revoiced pre amp - didn't need to worry as its a tight and focussed sound even with the bass fully boosted (and it's got a lot of bass boost). Anyway, after a 7 month wait here it is!

@itu Here's some photos. For the preamp Tune just used their standard one and hooked the piezo bridge to it. The neck pocket is very long but really secure. Since I had the camera working here's a few Peaveys folks don't normally see. L to R G-bass, Randy Jackson -IV, B-Quad and the Midibase. Yes, Peavet spelt it with an 'e' 😊

I've had a couple of rare ones through the door. On the subject of Status Graphite, I used to watch a video of a guy playing one on YouTube years ago, back when YouTube was nowhere near as big as it is now. I later ended up coming across a Series II on Basschat. I can't recall if it was an '87 or an '88. I bought it, and it was when I later watched this video that I realised I now owned the bass featured in that video! A strange coincidence. I also used to own a first generation headed Stealth six string in natural graphite, of which there could only have been a handful made. I have seen a green tinted Stealth six string for sale here and on Statii.com, but I haven't seen my old bass pop up since. I wish you could still get that S1 body shape from Status, it was really ergonomically pleasing. Probably the rare bass that gives me the most enjoyment is my Bogart Blackstone, previously owned by Stuart Clayton. I had long been a fan of Stuart's playing, and had known he was responsible for the sought-after Level 42 transcription books. I recall watching his cover of Alain Caron's 'D-Code' on YouTube, probably around when it was first uploaded. I was just in love with the playing and the Bogart Blackstone bass he used in the video. I had made various enquiries trying to buy a Bogart over the years, none of which worked out. To me, they were super exotic because graphite doesn't seem to cross borders - England is full of Status Graphite, France seems to do well with used Vigiers and whilst Modulus may seem exotic in the UK, they're pretty easy to get hold of in America. I always put this down to a lack of specialised dealers for these basses, meaning they tended to sell within their own borders. In all of this, Germany had the SKC Bogart, Schack and SKC Clover Slapper basses. I understand that Stefan Heß, the man behind SKC Bogart, supplied both Schack and Clover with graphite parts, including the shell for the monocoque SKC Clover Slapper, which was a German analogue to the Status S3000. The German graphite seemed so exotic. So frequently seen on Ebay.de and so rare in the UK. In the summer, I chanced across an advert of this guitar for sale at The Gallery and I had to have it!

Mrs B pipes up tonight ”So what bass related tat do you want for commericalmas this year then? I suppose you want one of those little Helix Stamp things?” ”If you say so, dear..”

I ordered a new bass today, a Spector Euro 4LX DW (Doug Wimbush) in Amber... doesn't arrive until next week so it's now a waiting game... Anyone on here play a Euro 4LX? It's too late to ask whether people like it or not (*I* do and that's what counts) but I'm interested in how you are finding it. How am I going to wait?? *groan*

A (hopefully) humorous observation that on a fretless, much of the metal has been removed.

Well as we have managed, somehow, to get to the 300th post on this thread, I thought it would be good to see if we can keep things vaguely positive between us in goodly BC fashion. So here's wishing you ALL an excellent rest of the weekend and particularly so for any of you taking your Bugera Veyrons out on the road. ...I'm off to watch Incredibles 2 on BluRay.

Don't stress too much about it, that will only hinder your learning. Learn what you can in the time you have got, what you can't improvise! Many originals bands do just that live onstage. I've found that listening to a track (whilst not playing along) is good for me, I actually listen to it and get a feel, rather than wonder where my fingers etc are going next. Takes some effort 'not' to pick the bass up though! Good Luck.

I'd say, go for either - but be upfront about it and tell them why. If you hide anything it'll only one back and bite you later. Playing your parts competently is not all that's required to be a successful band member. Turn up time, have reliable gear and generally don't be a a**hole. It always surprises me how people don't get that. Anyway, good luck! I hope it works for you.

Surprisingly the nitro is drying quite well despite the cold and no sign of blooming, very handy as I'm getting more on than I hoped. Today I put on a couple of coats of clear gloss after cutting the sanding sealer back, then had a long walk on the beach before returning to put on the gold metalic, a day earlier than I imagined. I did the edges first after resetting the gun to output a very small amount in a narrow pattern. After they had dried I feathered in the faces spraying onto each corner at 45 degrees, it took two or three passes to get the right amount on. So tomorrow I can spray the black burst on the two Ebony dragons and the red on the Maple to finish the candy apple burst which I think/hope is looking promising

Usually, yes. But regardless of how the quoted power outputs are derived, if the Bugera really is putting out a similar amount of power to competing products that quote an output of less than half of what Bugera does, then it'd be fair to say that the 2000W figure is intended to mislead.

Love this playing. . .

I'm of the opinion that just because the pedal is capable of all these different sounds you need some discipline not to use them just because they're there, I only scratch the surface with my Zoom B1on but it does want I want it to do so that's good enough for me

Taking bass tart to a new level....matching strap!!

That's a terrible tale @Roger2611! But you shouldn't blame yourself, or let your songs suffer for it. You were quite positive towards him considering.

I have a few basses you won't see many of. Gordy Blueshift twin-neck. As far as I know this is a one-off, built in 1985 for a Manchester-based pro - his name's on the case but I can't remember it off the top of my head. Did a bit of research when I got the bass & sadly I don't think he's with us any more. It's been refinished in this rather fetching transparent pink - the original black's visible in the routes & pockets. The fretless neck is gorgeous, but my back hurts just looking at the pics. Thematically related - Retrovibe RV4 - only two in the world with this subdued and sober finish: Some may be aware that I have a vague interest in Japanese instruments - some of which don't turn up on Ebay (or anywhere else) much, like this Tokai Talbo B135. This is the 2000-ish reissue, but still spectacularly uncommon. Had this since 2003 after being consumed by a fit of GAS whilst stumbling around Denmark St. The only one I've ever seen in real life, and not seen another come up for sale since. Continuing with MIJ stuff - Washburn SB-40. This model doesn't appear in any catalogues, and seems to represent a halfway point between the Vulture & the Force series - there is some dispute amongst Washburn anoraks whether the model designation's correct, despite what it says on the sharp end. It's almost a fretted version of the bass Bathiki Kumalo used on Graceland, apart from the reversed P pickup. From the same era, a gorgeous through-neck from Kasuga Gakki. Badged as Pro Martin, which I think was exclusive to European markets, elsewhere this was the Kasuga Scorpion SCB1200. Another bass you could search for for years - as I did. Staying with the Big K - 1975 Kasuga EB750, one of the most elusive (and prettiest) MIJ Rickenfakers out there: And a curious Japanese take on the Jazz, with styling influenced by mid-60s MIJ design (and a few sympathetic reversible mods by me), a Kawai KB-10 Sleekline:

Not sure if this has come up already in the 12 pages, but the quoted power consumption of 880 watts is the same as the GK MB800 Fusion. Since both amps have similar topology (Class D power amp, SMPS, preamp using 3 x 12AX7) and the power consumption has to be rated consistently for regulatory reasons, it would seem a reasonable guees that the output might be roughly in line with other manufacturers compact 800W bass heads.

Went up to Exeter today to have a look at a few basses. Not really getting on with my MIM p bass and as I’m back in a band again I thought I’d have a look around, try a few and see what I like. I was expecting to be coming home with, if anything, an Ibanez SR as I had an SR600 in the last band and quite liked it. Anyway I tried a few out today - Rockbass NT Streamer MIM jazz Aerodyne Jazz ibanez SR500 Mustang PJ And this Ray 34 that was heavily discounted at Project Music. I’d never played a stingray type bass before but always been interested. Once I’d played it I kept coming back to it and nothing else seemed to have as good a combination of playability and tone for me. Pretty versatile tone wise too. Can’t believe the punch, definition and clarity. I absolutely love the neck on this. The notes seem to just flow out of my fingers! ! Very happy and can’t wait to try it out at band practice this week. cant stop playing bullet in the head!

Hello everyone, I made a youtube channel with short videos, no talking, just playing, if you like please support me and subscribe. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjKfMd6Ckt3UzxSsjtHJPYQ?view_as=subscriber&pbjreload=10 Jo Bass

Hi folks Just uploaded a video on left hand technique to Greg’s Bass Shed. This will be useful if you are a beginner or intermediate player looking to quickly improve your technique. If you have any questions or feedback then please comment below or on YouTube. I’ll answer as quickly as possible. Hope it’s useful. Greg https://youtu.be/JjU08-m86SE

Kool, lots of information in these pictures and notes. Thank you, sir. Had to look after the Cyberbass/Midibase -thing and I found this from Talkbass: "My name is Mick Donner and I was the design engineer for the Midibase and Cyberbass projects while I was at Peavey. Hopefully I can answer some of your questions. There wasn't actually any trademark conflict with the guys at 360 systems. We just talked about it and came to a gentleman's agreement that changing the name was the right thing to do. There were several reasons for the physical changes from the Midibase to the Cyberbass. The Midibase body was based on the Peavey B-90 which had been discontinued. We wanted to bring the Cyberbase in line with the current bass shapes which were like the Palladium and Axcelerator basses. The Midibase note on and velocity sensors were built into the bridge pieces. Steve Chick and I found that if we moved the sensors away from the bridge pieces, we would get a more accurate read of the string so we put them into half of the bridge pickup. The software had several upgrades including a total reset, faster tracking and a "fretless" mode that blurred the note on/off triggered by sliding from one fret to another. Bending from one fret segment to another on the neck was done in the software. This was partially accomplished by making the cuts in the fret at a diagonal which caused the string to connect with both frets for an instant. This told the engine that the string was moving to another segment. This was not available on the Wal or Valley Arts versions of the basses that had cuts perpendicular to the frets. You had to play accurately. During my time as a product specialist for the Cyberbass my technique improved a lot because it had to. I still have one of the first Cyberbasses along with a rack full of Peavey sound modules and everything seems to be working just fine." AND this one (question was about suggested string types): "The two concerns with Stainless (steel strings) are the excessive overtones generated by the SS string and fret wear. The bass just seemed to track better with the nickels because the center of the note seems to be more dominant. As you can imagine, a fret job on one of these would probably be beyond a nightmare. The nickel strings are softer than the stainless so it would take a lot longer for the strings to be part of the problem."

For illustrative purposes, here is a map of the bass journey, tounge in cheek you understand.

Spending time on a British forum has taught you well Blue.

Whichever you do, do some practicing at volume with a backing track. Nothing like going into a rehearsal studio after bedroom only playing to unnerve you.

Hi Bass players. I'm Bob O'Brien a 61 year old jazz upright bass player who has been playing on and off for about 50 years. I play a German flatback bass of unknown origin made in the 1850's with a Revolution Solo pickup and use a Gallien-Kruger amplifier for small gigs. I studied at Berklee in the late 1970's, stopped gigging after getting married to pursue a day job, and retired in August (finally!!) and am playing the bass regularly again. I've kept my chops up fairly well over the years but completely lost touch with equipment, technology, trends, etc that affect bass players. I really appreciate the wealth of bass knowledge on these pages and look forward to learning from everyone here on the boards.

Björk

I’ll risk disqualification after drug testing. Sandberg TT Bass, old shape pre 2015. Haüssel pick ups, passive, Hard core aged, reverse matching headstock, P instead of jazz neck profile.

Her’s the dates?!? Methinks you are taking the female theme a bit too seriously 😁 Mike, have a blast and do let us know all about it - tour diary?

@itu Had a pc crash last night so no photos until I'm back from work. A wee correction, the B-Quad had a Modulus neck but for the G-bass and G-V basses Peavey sent their necks to a gun stock maker for wrapping. Been plenty confirmation from Peavey over the years the company involved was Bell and Carlson.

I did all my rock listening in the late 60s/early 70s and after reading the hyperbole soo wanted to like this bunch. But I don't. They simply aren't very good. Style over substance. They must have spent weeks in front of the mirror, trying to get the pose and clothes right but they don't have the spark or energy. The tunes are lack-lustre, the playing less than mediocre. Yes he sounds a bit like Plant but, to me he sounds more like 'Little Eva' - maybe they should consider a cover of 'The Locomotion'. Singer has a few scripted poses but otherwise has the presence of a shop dummy. Before heaping praise on these poorly manufactured imposters folks should watch footage of any of the rock greats from the late 60s early 70s - Led Zep, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and there is just no comparison - they were even younger than this bunch when they started but they could PLAY - with energy and excitement. That ain't rose tinted glasses, it is having ears and a soul. Seems to me the fuss made about this lot has less to do with what they are like as a band but more about the state of modern rock music and the dearth of talent. 'In the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king'. [/rant] IMO etc, obvs.

Welcome! As said, lots of good stuff on 'tinternet, but imho a good teacher - a real person who will know what you want to do and how you're getting on and will give you specific personal motivation - makes all the difference. Grade 3/4 after 3 months sounds a bit ambitious to me - I've been playing for about 3 years and I'm planning on RGT Grade 3 next spring. But trust your teacher! Sounds like you have better aptitude and / or practice habits and / or relevant background than I do 🙂 But also as @T-Bay said nothing is as good as playing with other people. That's what bass is for. And "less is more" - as soon as you can play one root note per bar you're a useful member of a band, and you'll grow from there. Hope it goes well, let us know 🙂

I definitely don't need one of these. i've got a Zoom B3 and a G3n which cover all my tone shaping needs and more... and while a one-box solution would be slightly more convenient, I don't gig on guitar and rarely need or use anything more than a tuner for the gigs I do on bass. So the real question is....... will I be able to hold out until the price drops a bit before splashing out on one?

Cheers. Just hanging fire as buying the Pickguard for the bass is taking 4/5 more days than buying the bass took. im sure he’s just busy, so I’ll remain chilled 😉

Aria jpj3

Why not use the lineout instead? Could use both amps then.

Had a few strange ones over the years that I might have related before. Singer who didn't sing anything - he kept going to the mic, taking a breath then bottling it Drummer who did no fills whatsoever for an entire rehearsal, just an occasional cymbal. His timekeeping was spot on mind! Keyboard player who forgot his keyboard. Another keyboard player who was struggling with a song intro. The drummer showed him how to play it. He pressed some buttons & asked the drummer to repeat it. Turned out he had recorded what the drummer had played. When we were ready to start the song he simply pressed play then stood back and folded his arms 😂

Does Wings count? 'The band the Beatles could have been'. - Alan Partridge.

Given the lengthy (repetitive, dull, exhausting, occasionally illuminating when you get wisdom from folk like Phil) debate on this topic and young master Cuzzie's (actually I got called "young man" at work the other day, made my day!) follow-on thread, I was minded to find out whether our US brothers and sisters would be more relaxed about Bugera's marketing and whether we Brits were just being a bit prudish about the whole thing. Exactly the same reaction in the US and pretty much the same proportions as over here. Over 125 responses in just two days and over 90% think that Bugera are being deliberately misleading. Some great comments there too including from a guy who is "Development Engineer-Mesa, Product Support-Genz Benz" who knows a thing or two about amps. I thought this quip from one of the other guys was hilarious: Behringer (Bugera) uses advertising company watts. Three ad execs stood there and said "Looks like 1500 watts to me", and another added "Hell no, look at that logo, that's a 2000 watt logo if I ever saw one". Given that Bugera have potentially got a really good and great value product here, someone at Bugera should fire their head of marketing.

If you can make or contribute to making music you are a musician Dave

Wonky building downstream a few blocks from Charles Bridge is quite famous. Good enough campsite and hostel at Branik, beside the river, with a tram stop nearby. Tends to get flooded, though, and has mad swans. If you like aeroplanes, the museum at Kbely is worth a visit - if only to see the rubbish post-war "Avia" Messerschmitt copies that used Me109 airframes with a Heinkel bomber engine shoehorned in, allowing the pilot to shoot off his own propeller very effectively.

@Skybone is willy wanging different to welly wanging

The duct tape is probably so that the guitar wouldn't talk. That guitar must have seen a lot...