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Finished!

Resurrecting this thread... A couple of weeks ago I had a mad weekend and bought three basses; I only intended to buy one, but I went to the shop and whilst we were looking for the case for it I spotted a Hohner The Jack project and picked that up too, then when I got home I found that my spotter bid had also won the auction for a Westone Quantum in need of some TLC, so I ended up with all three. Hohner The Jack The Hohner The Jack had a bridge mech missing, no strings, and dead electronics, and looked like this. I managed to acquire a replacement bridge and used it as a donor for the missing parts; the remainder went onto another project (see later). So, I gave the instrument a light polish, completed the bridge, and put on a set of Status strings: I put in a battery but it didn't light up, so I set about finding a fix for it. Coincidentally I found someone selling a The Jack with a twisted neck, so I contacted them and agreed a price to buy it, pending confirming mine didn't work. A couple of days later I got to spend a bit more time on it and I plugged it in; lo-and-behold it worked (both passive and active)! So, it looks like it's just the LED; apparently not an uncommon issue with these, but I can live with that. So, I've ended up with a rather nice bass for not a lot. Westone Quantum A few days later the Westone Quantum arrived; the seller kindly agreed to post it to me, as I had a change of plans from my intended drive to collect it. It looks like it may have been overpainted from blue and it needs a back cover for the control bay, but it's kindof cool as it is. The headstock has a serial number. (And yes, I will sort out those strings!) So that's a nice one for the collection. The rest of the headless bridge... So, after using the bridge for donor parts for the Hohner The Jack, I used the rest of the unit on a headless doubleneck which had a cheapo "Overlord" one on it. The bass neck is now pretty good and it has quite a nice deep resonance to it. I've got to do a bit of work on the guitar half, replacing the pickups (I'm pretty sure those are not really EMGs!), sorting the nut (it's too high, so pressing the 1st fret makes it out of tune), and the "Overlord" bridge's trem mech is poop so it's only usable in the locked position.

Not surprised, very similar look to my first Cazpar 4 (see below with the other 2 I've had). They're wee gems and generally under-rated it seems to me.

Finally got this in my hands yesterday. The sale was agreed a week ago, but we needed to arrange a meet up. 2016 American Vintage ‘63 Reissue in faded sonic blue. The tort guard is a Fender guard but not the original, however the original is included. 8lbs 15 oz. It had La Bellas on it, but really heavy ones, so I’ve swapped those for some La Bella 760FLs. It needed a truss rod tweak to reduce the relief even after fitting lighter strings, some saddle adjustments and the pickup height. It’s now playing really well, very low action with no fret buzz, and sounding great. It has a piano like clarity unplugged which is really noticeable compared with my other basses, very resonant. I’m get used to the wider nut width and I think it will be fine. I’m really looking forward to taking it to rehearsal next week. Cheers, Rob

Do you make enough money to live on? Professional, if not, amateur. Some professionals are average players, some amateurs are amazing.

Here's mine; parallel loops in the Line Selector for Synth, Sub or Synth & Sub with a sprinkling of filter / trem / delay / reverb afterwards for a bit of sparkle. I play primarily weddings and functions covering funk / soul / motown / disco / pop / dance

Not our best, however I'll post anyway. New Years Eve at The Barley Pop. https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1149239815962581&id=100000222668845&sfnsn=mo&mibextid=RUbZ1f Blue

Good idea - we’re all taking pitchforks for the six string traitor, right?

Bigamy At Christmas - Tony Ferrino

Nothing says ‘new baby’ like a new bass. Its a celebration and an investment in your legacy and their inheritance. I’d go big to be honest.

I was looking for a a part and found a fretless Jazz Bass neck I must've bought a while back, so I decided to go ahead and see if I could make up a bass. I'd like a MIM Jazz body for it, but in the meanwhile I've acquired a fetching purple Squier PJ body to be getting on with... I managed to find most of the required bits in my parts boxes, though I'll probably get a Fender Hi-Mass bridge for it (they seem to work well with a fretless and flats). The J bridge pickup is leftover from putting the neck one onto a Cowpoke bass, so that was fortuitous, and the P is an I'm not sure what, so will have to see. I think I've got a set of knobs for it and probably pots. I'll probably spend this evening bolting the main bits together and will then look at the electronics.

Don't Fear The Reaper - Blue Oyster Cult

Very disappointed by the quality of replies to this thread. 1. You need a backup exactly the same as what you already have. 2. You also need a backup that is different just in case you play some songs that require a different tone in the future. 3. You also need a backup exactly the same as the bass described in 2.

IMO a back-up instrument should be the same as your main one. Failing that it should play the same and be capable of the same sounds to the point where you could and would be happy to play the whole set with either.

If you like your tone as is then it's a done deal. Backup Stingray.

Of course. And burning torches

Jan 2023 update:

Before buying a board work out what order you want your pedals, and how accessible each one needs to be from a performance PoV. IME anything that needs to activated mid-song is best placed on the front row where you can activate the foot switch without worrying about inadvertently hitting another one. Save the upper row(s) for pedals that are either always on or those that only need to be turned on and off between songs.

Thanks everyone. Really appreciated the support. I'm going to go for it 🤦‍♂️

The problem with Later series 11 to 943 is that it followed a formula of octogenarian that never-was-much-in-the-first-place, 2 or 3 nerdy indie bands armed with four chords, a token soul chanteuse, some worthy 'world music' combo and a weirdo of the week. This has been topped off by Jools' brief and uninteresting wide-eyed fanboi interviews.

Crosstown Traffic - Jimi/Green Cross Code Man

All of the above. Routers along with planers are probably the most dangerous tools in the shop and when they bite they run away very quickly.

I just peeled of a bit with a vegetable peeler and rubbed the root straight on. If the surface of the root dried out a bit taking another slice off to get a fresh surface to rub the juice out of. I have now done two coats of finishing oil and its looking good so far. The oil has just tamed the brightness down a bit as expected. I am happy with how its going especially for a Bitza project. While its apart the next step is to graphite paint the cavities. I usually use copper tape but this time bought some Rustings paint for the job to see how that goes

I’m way late… NYE was a private party at our mate Malc’s place, Langtoft Fen, way out in the flatlands. Great: a captive / friendly audience and we had them dancing all night. Good sound too, even if I do say so myself. Even with plugs I was ringing after 9-12:15 with a couple of breaks. A little three piece gig this coming Saturday, just back line and a vocal mon. Looking forward to it, haven’t played without a second guitar and keyboard for ages!

Maybe a G&L Kiloton? The same but different.

For setting up my first time I followed the approach in these videos by Elixir, which are really clear (sadly in imperial measurements). Having said that, I have tweaked things a bit in string height to allow for my playing style. After all of this I then fiddle with my pickup heights to get a nice even sound/volume across the strings. I've found that a sort of warbling/throbbing sound means the pickup is to close to the strings (I think the magnet in the pickup starts to pull too strongly on the string) S'manth x

British power...

NYE pub gig. All good. Friendly drunk crowd, three sets including a couple of new songs, got paid, everyone happy. Used a biamped rig because, well why not? Bugera beast handled bottom and low mids via the TE cabs and the TC Electronic handled mids and tops. Split the effects from the Ampero. Sounded massive.

I was just getting pics of my 32” scales for that thread and decided I needed an updated family shot for my shorties. Left to right: ACG Mule fretless ACG TKO Classic Conway Instruments Taranis fretless 5

I quit going there before they could kick me off. Maybe it's different now, but ten years ago it was one of the worst moderated forums I've ever come across. IMO anything that can't be said in a paragraph using non-technical language is a waste of time for all involved. KISS isn't just the name of a band. 😉

Jazz neck, brass nut, Wilkinson tuners: Used some Montypresso relic wax to darken the fingerboard and make the maple less white. I'm pleased. Light oil finish feels great. It feels a lot tighter - drilling new holes and super tight fit has really coupled the neck and body. Feels like the mids are much stronger. I hvae been recording as I've gone along but the labeling has been poor! I'll need to reconcile recording dates with posts here before I can post comparison audio. Might do some more work on the nut and obviously get a string retainer for a better break angle at the nut. Mainly I'm waiting for some new strings now as the set I have on there were already old ones which I've now taken on and off about twenty times and feel pretty dead! I can confirm that the pickups sound a lot clearer to my ears at 18V. If you check the manual it does suggest running them at 18 for extra headroom: https://www.emgpickups.com/pub/media/Mageants/p/_/p_p5_p6-b245_0230-0107rf.pdf

Death is not the end. Kylie, Blixa and co.

It's definitely not! A bit late to the bickerfest (on holiday, not paying attention!) but Kawai Gakki was a manufacturer in its own right with a guitar making history going back to the mid 60s when they acquired Teisco's manufacturing facilities specifically for that purpose. The Fernandes Alembic copies (related but not identical) were also made by Kawai. I suppose it's because of the prominence of the through-neck Aria Pro basses that Matsumoku is indelibly linked with all things stripy & MIJ, but every major Japanese brand/manufacturer did them (Ibby Musicians, Kasuga Scorpions & many others) and the irony is that the entire trend was 'influenced' by Alembic in the first place! Anyway, 'nuff pedantry, absolutely delighted to see this one being given a new lease of life & the care & attention it deserves.

a classic I've been listening to recently (the whole album)

I agree. The point of the show should, however, be presenting a decent output rather than giving Jools' band a regular paycheck. It used to be a show that had sets by musical legends and introduced new talent. Trotting out Ruby Turner every year doesn't really fit that bill no matter how good she is.

Yep - she's absolutely dynamite. Got to play with her once, and she was immense.

I can only think he painted it at night with the light off. He seems so pleased with it as well. Jeez.

Just add to this table saws and you have the holy trinity of digit decapitation (or worse).

OK, so I am not a luthier or anything but assumed it was customary to take a bass to bits when painting it? Instead of slopping over the jack socket, pickgard, pickups, bridge cover (gold ffs?) neck etc etc. Then not painting the bits your 3" brush couldn't get into. Jeez.

I've had a Giovanni de Meglio 1905 Model A mandolin for some time now and have recently added a Sherwood mahogany solid body electric to join it. Sherwood was the name used by Hobgoblin music for their UK-made mandolins. With the fretboard being so small it takes some dexterity but I do like the instrument being tuned in 5ths. I'm mainly a strummer and there's an element of overtones or drone notes available, similar to what I've experienced on the Turkish saz (three courses of strings tuned GDA, although that instrument is a different kettle of fish altogether with its microtones and 17 notes to an octave). And if it's drone notes you're after, try the Irish bouzouki tuned to GDAD. Greek bouzouki on the left and, on the right, the Troubadour electro-acoustic Irish bouzouki with resonator and Wilkinson pickup I got a few months back. Was originally just an acoustic but it's been souped up and it's a lovely thing to play. Sounds incredible when used with a delay pedal and a bit of echo. I'm no virtuoso but these instruments are such fun to mess around with.

My NYE gig was in sunny Scarbados on the Yorkshire coast. Fairly standard dinner dance type do, in a nice hotel. Good to play with my pal Gary Gillyett, along with a singer and pianist. Played for ages - started at 8pm, and finished around 12.30am with barely any breaks, so a bit of a slog. Hotel manager and staff were great though, and really looked after us and our ladies. I was pretty knackered the next day, it's been a while since I've done such a marathon. (Forgot to add - used my lightweight Jazz bitsa into Fender Rumble 100 - proper portable old gimmer's rig!) No beach babes around, but there was Thor, the magnificent walrus you may have seen in the news. Scarborough Council very wisely decided to cancel their midnight fireworks display in case of scaring Thor, but I reckon someone tipped him off as he slid back into the harbour at around 11.55pm to continue his journey North. Happy New Year to all you BC folk! (PS Thor is the one in the last pic.)

5/64ths at the 17th fret. 12 thou neck relief at 7th fret, capo on 1st fret, hold down last fret.

Nice NYE gig in Minehead (England's answer to the Maldives 😎). The crowd were up for it and so were we. What could possibly go wrong? Well, we had to find a dep drummer at the last minute, but all went so well that we played til 1am and the venue paid us more than agreed. Not a bad start to the NY!