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It's the Russians. The Guardian says so.

I'd like to declare on record that I'm happy to take any money to endorse anything. *waits by messages inbox*

I shall do my best. OP is concerned that people may be recommending bass equipment when they are, in fact, benefitting from these recommendations. Others are unconvinced that this either happens, or is a problem if it does. Some would like to benefit from bass equipment manufacturers by recommending gear (tongue-in-cheek mostly). I'm concerned about invisible moderators. Ricky 4000 is incontinent. 🚱 I hope that this is a fair & accurate summary.

Apparently not. The general consensus around seems to be that Led Zep should be handed that particular gong...

There's a tried and tested way to find out. Look in your sock drawer: if you discover a bombastic moustachioed chap waving a bogus lawsuit at you then it's John Hall. If it's a bare-chested, weasel-featured little f*ck smelling of cabbage and saying 'Ni-ertch ni-ertch ni-ertch' it's Putin.

I know I've been AWOL for a bit - but can anyone explain to me what this thread is actually about? Last time I felt like this, I was half way through Twin Peaks

A defining feature of Basschat is that it's only as strong as it's members and we reply on them to report anything suspicious - could you help us by flagging the posts you refer to?

There's a strong likelihood that a lot of others will feel exactly the same. Easy for me to say I know, but try not to overthink it. Yes it probably will be crap for the first little while, but patience and a positive attitude will definitely help get you past that stage. Enjoy!

.Upgrading to better quality equipment than you currently own has been scientifically proven, over & over, both to improve your playing and to make you happier and more productive in all aspects of your existence. There is no flaw to your musical understanding or deficiency in your technique that cannot be overcome by simply buying a new bass and amp. This effect is enhanced if the new arrival is in addition to your existing equipment, rather than as a replacement, and further optimised if the incoming equipment is purchased on finance

…. and more sanding! I'm quite pleased with how this is going and the joint between the two halves is looking really nice: I'm now at a point where I need to dismantle the walnut bass so I can transfer the neck to the spalted beech body. I need to do this to ensure the carve on the heel will blend into its new body and so I can get on with making progress on the new short scale neck.

I'm really keen to start playing again, so I recently signed up for this: https://abbey-road-music.com/abbey-road-army-registration/ The details have just come though and it looks like enough people have signed up to form five 'bands', including a good number of returners from the previous one (which has to be a good sign!) There will be a first meeting this month to divvy us up (a bit like the Sorting Hat?) There will be seven rehearsals starting in April and a seven-hour several bands gig on 19 May. I'm pretty much the target demographic (50's , haven't played in a band for decades, vaguely competent rather than talented...) and it's a lot cheaper than buying a Lamborghini. Now I know the timetable all the questions start coming... Who will I be playing with? What if the music they want is crap or needs a Billy Sheehan/Pino Palladino? What if I suggest a song then find out I can't play it &^£^%$*^!!!!! Big worry is I know it takes me an hour to settle down my nerves when playing with new folks so at first I will come across as complete crap! I know the aim (and what I want) is just to enjoy the crack and make some music but what if they all go off note-perfect first time like the Commmitments playing Mustang Sally.... Has anyone on BC done something similar? All the backline is supplied for practice and performance; for some reason taht's making me worry even more about choosing which bass to play. I suppose I should take the one I find easist first time,but it's tempting to think 'which one will sound best' or worse 'which one will give me the most cred'. Crikey this is worse than worrying about my first band audition over 30 years ago (which was a miserable disaster - I spent weeks trying to learn all the songs on a tape, then they didn't want to play any of them).

It can only be a good thing in my view. A genuine patina of use is one thing. Taking a sander to a perfectly good bass almost smacks of sharp practice....

OK. I'll come clean. I need to declare a commercial interest. Basically, I'm anybody's for a couple of jelly babies and a sherbet dib-dab.

That'll teach you for either leaving your bass too close to the radiator or writing all that anti communist claptrap on the gulag wall

Fücking Meercats, up to their usual tricks.

DNS attack out of Murmansk, obvs.

Oh come on, are you seriously suggesting there are basschatters out there in bands making money?? Gerroutofit!

Quite a few forum members seem to be actively plugging bands - some of them are even members of these bands!

Custom colors are looking tasty

It's about transparency, yet as clear as mud. Quite a feat, really.

You're a troll. And a whore. I'd like to add that I am not sponsored by Ric' International, and Mr Hall has in no way kidnapped my dog (I miss her so much!). ~ This post is brought to you by Tenna Incontinence Pants for Men - Now I can PMSL and not give a ****! 👍 ~

They say that the simple ideas are always the best. Instead of hunting around for a screwdriver, dropping the screws and spending ages looking for them you can hook a finger nail underneath and open the cavity. Saves sooo much time and angst. I know @Andyjr1515 didn't "invent" this but he sure as hell makes sure that it gets used to make life easier.

It'll come as no surprise to most that Yes are arguably my favourite band and Chris is without doubt my favourite bassist, but I also came to him late and in a rather Roundabout (sorry) way. I'd heard some of Relayer - as low level background music - when in my mid teens at a friend's one night, and remember I initially struggled to get my head round (a) Jon's voice and accent (in spite of me also being Northern) and (b) Sound Chaser, although I was aware that they were the favourite band of the cool set (yes, really) of 6th formers. At that point Chris didn't really register; I hadn't started playing yet. When I started playing bass I bought a Ric because of Lemmy, Geddy, Roger and Glenn; oh, and Gaye Advert, and Martin Roach, who was at the time bassist in the Blackpool Jazz Orchestra, who my dad played with. At the first gig I played, which was at my old school 6th form (I'd left by then but the rest of the band were still there), at the end of the gig one of the cool set said "bet you wish you could play like Chris Squire". I answered "I can" (I couldn't), with youthful ignorance and stupidity, not having any idea what he actually played like. Then a couple of years down the line I read in The Rickenbacker Book that Chris was famous for using Rickenbackers, so I thought I better check him out. I bought Classic Yes and that was it. Fave band, fave bassist. I was lucky enough to see him with Yes 5 or 6 times, and met him twice. The first time I told him that I had been playing bass for 30-odd years and that in my opinion he was the best there was. He said a very heartfelt thank you, which is a memory I'll always cherish. Thankfully I've also got the signed programmes to remind me. When he died I was in a pretty bad place anyway and also was still shellshocked from the number of other heroes who we'd recently lost, and it didn't really sink in. At the tail end of last year I was watching Yes at Glasto on Youtube and it suddenly registered with me that I'd never be able to see him again and I finally broke down. I miss you Chris, as I'm sure do thousands of others. R.I.P. As an aside, I also got to see Entwistle twice with The Who, although annoyingly I only heard him when they raised his level for solos. If he'd known how low he was in the mix, I'm sure he'd have gone bananas.

This sounds like it should be recurring comic strip in Viz

I got a £10 voucher from Thomman for doing a review - does that count?

I've decide to take the suggestion made by @TheGreek, @Andyjr1515, @wrinkleygit to use magnets to hold the control cover on. I've used neodymium magnets in the body and in the cover. I have to say, I do like the way this leaves the back of the bass very clean with only the bolt holes for the neck visible. I haven't put a notch in the body to allow this to be removed as it shouldn't need to be taken off but if necessary, a cocktail stick through the jack socket will do the job. Just trying to leave the back as clean as possible. So thanks chaps, a good idea that I will implement on other basses!

I’m a moderator on another popular electric stringed instrument forum - should I have declared this bias before? Or am I now as popular as the judean people’s front?

I’m worried this is a ruse by guitarists to gather bass players on to a ship then torpedo it.

As I've just said in a PM to one of the mods, I'm not going to name names, but I do think that if you work for a business, or take money from one, it should be declared out of professional courtesy, especially when expressing strong opinions about the gear made by your competition

There are sellers here who contribute to none of the threads. Their membership is clearly nothing more than a commercial venture.

Acquired a Fame fretless from Bigthumb recently - really fine bass and an enjoyable transaction. As we know, Fame is Mayones re-branded for MusicStore Germany. More recently I think the Fame guitars and basses are slight variations on the Mayones, but in the case of my BE4 it is really identical, it's a Mayo BE4. I thought it may be of interest to get up close and see what we have got> I haven't worked out how to place text next to pics so...sorry!! - look at that neck fit. I know you can use routers and template guides etc, but they didn't make life easy. This compound curve is immaculate. Top work. - the pre-amp and pot cover is cut and shaped from a solid piece of ovankol. I expected a veneer over plastic, but this is major work. Not technically better, but wow these guys like to shape wood. The ovankol body is beautifully formed and crafted. - 6 bolt neck, even the bolts are offset parallelogram-style. As good as it gets. - ebony fingerboard - I've never seen better - very even tight grain dense true black. Top quality ebony. I could go on ! Every single detail is really impressive - excellent woods, workmanship, finishing... I think it's funny that the naff Fame logo is slightly peeling off, like the bass wants to disown the sticker. Anyway Fame sounds a bit Poundstretcher to me - it may fall off quite soon. Big thumbs up from me to the guys at Mayones - this is so much more than a W copy.

Is it my imagination or am I seeing fewer reliced instruments out there? Fewer manufacturers offering 'road worn' options? A shortage of eBay chancers with belt sanders? Just wondering. Eek.

I picked up a Handbox R400 last week but I’ve only really had a chance to play it properly today. wow! What a sound, full, grindy & just wonderful! I put it through my Barefaced Two 10 & they just work perfectly together. The levels were set flat for the bass & treble, the gain was set at “crunch” & the contour was off. The drive button was engaged. The sound was a slightly overdriven grind, which was nice I found that the contour makes everything more bassy 6603BEB3-4F71-4ECC-8485-392019805F33.MOV & a touch muffled. I have a rehearsal on Thursday, so will be able to try louder volumes & I may find that the settings need adjusting. I can’t wait to find out! Excuse the playing, it’s just to give an idea of the sound which was recorded onto my iPad.

I've just ordered one along with a RM500 evo 'll ,I'll report back

If it helps, I'm loosely affiliated to Mrs Miggin's Pie Shop, I'd recommend a cup of coffee and a shepherds pie.

Taking time off bass? Yep, done that, though to be fair I was playing guitar instead, in a variety of bands & styles. Stopped bass and sold all the bass gear around the middle of 1983. Started again Feb. 2017, though to be fair, when my son started trying out bass in 2007, I had a noodle around with it then, especially when he stopped after just one gig. And then at one point between then and now, I bought a Dean Pace because I'd always wanted to play walking bass upright-style. (Actually it was October 2012 because I bought it from @davehux on here). Except I didn't really get around to it too quickly and it's only in the last 18 months or so that I've managed to get that working. Slow learner, me; mostly down to indolence. Oh, and lack of talent as well; mustn't forget that. And here I am back again. Can't stay away from it. Lots of people who hear me playing bass wonder why I'm still playing guitar - "you sound so much more natural on bass", they say. (Lots of people who hear me playing guitar also wonder why I'm still playing guitar, but anyway...) But, when I was in-between bands...I never stopped playing something. So if you're going to keep playing...then that's the answer, whatever the instrument. Don't lose touch with it. When you can feel your fingers start to twitch when you hear a killer bass riff...you'll know that it's time. You'll know.

Another request for a dedicated PA/Live music thread from me. For anyone in a gigging band there are all sorts of experiences you want to share and practical problems that you need some help to solve. Having a home would be great.

I've a narrowboat moored near Stroud and can offer a much better budget deal. A two hour round trip via Sharpness and you can have a go on my Cort, plus a can of wifebeater and a Breville toastie. £20 all in!

Absolutely Dave - Thank you very much!

How would we see them? They could be sneaking about anywhere & we wouldn't know!

This. The various shoot-outs we've done at the SE Bass Bashes have proved to me that you can make 90% of the gear on the market today sound good enough for any gig. Being picky is seen as a good thing, but IMO it is a distraction from the real job we have, learning to be better bass players.

Wasn't it Alex James who said something along the lines that bass is like a pencil, you just need to find a pencil you find comfortable to use. Sort of insinuating that they all do the same job and not really any different. I tend to agree with this somewhat, certainly live. In fact I bet it would be pretty impossible to identify which bass is used if a bunch of tracks were posted and then asked the question, Precision, Jazz, Stingray, Thunderbird, Telecaster bass, Warwick etc.?

cherry neck with birds eye maple board to finish

Straight tru oil finish

I like the simplicity of only having one control knob, but does anyone actually play with volume below max? We aren't guitarists trying to drive a preamp for solos. I think volume is the only control on my bass that I never touch.

Nee-Ner Nee-Ner! We're the Shill Police and you're f**king nicked, me old beauty.

I just think these days we are really fortunate, some of the really cheap gear is really playable and solid compared to when I started and the encore basses were just beyond awful. We are also lucky that you can buy old amps and combos, that were great quality back in the 90s for little money. I have a early 150w Ashdown combo that’s superb and it was £90. It completely obliterates all the TC combos I have played (although again they are a lot lighter). I guess it’s just a great thing that you can go and make music with little outlay if your on a budget. I love ‘nice quality’ kit but also love that I can go make a good sound with a Harley Benton and a £100 trace combo. Good times!!

You mean woofers, which takes us full circle. Next up: Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon.

I've told this story before. Did a gig in Portsmouth years ago, amp broke up with 3 or 4 songs + encores to go. Still made a noise but what an horrendous noise it was. A crackling distorted rumbling fart from which no notes could be discerned. I battled on just staying in time and widdling around the lowest notes. It was awful. Not only did no one in the audience notice but neither did my band mates. I learned a lesson that day. Now I know I buy different gear because I like to do so. No one but me really cares.