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Always take a gig! Our new singer was on holiday so a friend from a band I depped in stepped up, as did a harmonica player. We just jammed it, great fun! Otis Jay Blues Band, Flea Jazz into an Elf/Barefaced One10 combination.

Yay, I got a good one! Cosmetically looks great, the best top out of all three and also the lightest being 8.2lb/3.7kg. A little bit too much relief for me at the moment but that's easily sorted.

Hi all, I've been on Wal's wait list since 2021 and was finally offered a build slot in June this year. It's due to be completed late next year just in time for my 30th birthday (fingers crossed). In the last week I've selected my facing and had a progress picture of the neck. I'm not sure how many pictures I'll get but figured some people may be interested considering how difficult it is to get a new Wal.

@binky_bass saw a T'Bird in CackConverters, and posted a thread... I had a hearty Spag Bol, Garlic Flat Bread, and half a bottle of cheap Malbec, so was a bit vulnerable... Next thing i know Russian Activists hacked my brain via Stolichnaya Vodka, they no longer need mobile phones and computer viruses, they can attack at the Alcohol/Molecular Level... who knew?... so be careful. T P-Bird Pro, Thru Neck, Improved Bridge, Active Model in Natural Finish... But, the Pickups in the Active Model are Low-Alcohol, Half-Fat models at 7k rather than a Proper-Pint, Double-Cream 14k versions of the passive model. Oh What to do?.. a quick search of the classifieds turned up @mike 110 and a DiMarzio Model 1... A 'Match' made by the Hard-of-Hearing! So going Single Mudbucker at the Neck/Mid Position, Empty Cavity at the Bridge, A500k Vol, and Pure Tone Jack Socket and will be wearing Olympia Stainless Steel Flatwounds. Cavity is 92mm, Pup 90mm so reasonable fit, maybe a shim of veneer?, Width is gonna need a 4mm chiselin' a side to go from 40mm to 48 for the coils, String / Pole spacing is a little tight at 48mm, 52mm would be Bang-On for the Neck/Mid position, 'spose they are meant for a more up against the fretboard fitting. Might need some wood blocks glued in for the pickup mounting screws. Putting the Thunder back in Thunderbird...

I'm starting to get the feeling that this thread has long since exceeded its usefulness.

You were just as tedious the last time you started this off.

New Hollow Body Bass Day. I've been after a hollow body bass for the tone and this showed up in the research. A Sire Marcus Miller GB5 - the fretted version. I was impressed in the demo videos I saw/heard - it had the sound I was looking for and it's not bad looking. There was one for sale in Bax at £397 so I jumped in. Ordered on Tuesday, it arrived this afternoon. Shiny black (that won't last after my grubby fingerprints get on it 😀) , great playability straight from the box and almost the sound I was expecting without any dialing in of the amp. My only criticism is that the point on the body where my arm rests is quite sharp - no contour. It means a slight adjustment of the position of my hand to be most comfortable. Not so much of a problem if I'm playing with a pick (which won't be that often on this).

I was brave enough, or maybe daft enough, to give the fretless a run out. Due to the dep guitarist being unavailable we switched songs to make it easier for others to join us. So the pub was treated to punk on a fretless. The host band even had the good grace to have my vocal mic low in the mix at the start which gave a me a bar or 2 to (almost) find the pitch 😀. 3 bands didn't turn up which meant a runaround for the organiser to fill those slots. It became a Blues Jam - which was fun.

We've been rehearsing Crazy Train, now ready to play at our next gig. Got a railway cap for our singer to wear!

Just put her on the spot and asked Lady Ez, the results, I think, are very telling: “Baldy” (Tony Levin) “Er, Al Pacino?” (Pino) Then 2 guitar players Finally, Sting.

That was your best attempt at raisin a laugh.

Likewise... Blimey, we're about as current as a sultana 🙄

Due to a gig cancellation I'm now free for the bash. Please be gentle as it's my first time. I can bring... Serek the Grand Serek Midwestern 5 GR bass Dual 1400 GR bass AT212 Warwick Gnome Sonic Farm 2di4 Vovox instrument cables. For the raffle.... New guitar strap. Marc

You'd probably rephrase that if you heard me saying that in my natural strong Spanish accent

Damn.... when I saw the thread title I thought "now THAT'S something I can contribute to. I can name 10 bass players!" Sadly not. As you were.......

I love the idea that the general public would know that lot. Maybe Ant and Dec Jaco ( and his moonwalk) Windy Miller Victor Meldew Larry Grayson Tigger and Poo Boots the Chemist Weymouth Kim Jong that Korean bloke with the dodgy barnet Paul McCartney

Blu De Tiger See what I did there 👍

Thought I'd post this here too since i photo'd it for a different thread on basschat this evening! Can't mind if I've posted it before.

A revelation! With no gigs for the forseeable, and after following this topic, I've spent the last few days seeing if I can play the tunes we usually perform from memory, and so far yes I have a list of 12 and growing! So pleased I tried it - as you say it became a crutch.

@SkyboneI'm a BIG Hawkwind Fan 😉

Me too.

Well, when pressed! I know it wasn't grape, but a vine attempt nonetheless.

No, it's the Tooting Popular Front Showband. Power to the people!

I’ve only ever owned 7 basses and I still own 6 of those. I think that 4 would count as milestones for me. Still own and play them all. My Aria SB700 - my first ever bass bought new as a 18th birthday present My 1985 Mark 1 Custom bass - bought second hand in 1991ish for £500 after I saw a classified ad in the back of Guitarist Magazine. My dream bass so a real milestone. My Tony Revell acoustic - funded from my split of the band recording funds when my college folk band dissolved in 1992. Custom ordered from a luthier based in Wales (he later went on to create Revellation basses - a short lived high level model) …and finally my 1979 Wal Pro 2 E - bought second hand in 2001ish for about 500 quid… just because I wanted one and there it was in one of my local guitar shops!

A friend shared this event with me. Norm Stockton is coming to Orpington on 2nd October. I plan to attend. 2024_10_2_London.pdf

Its intended usefulness is a speck in the rear view mirror...

Last time, my band all bought parts of the PA, equalled out as best we could. So 1 person bought the desk, someone else bought the FOH speakers, another bought the monitors etc etc. Then if someone goes they can take their bit with them. Depreciation is their problem on the bit they own, or the remaining members can offer to buy that element if they want to. As it happens that band folded completely and everyone just took their bits. I had the FOH speakers and stands. As I was using a Yamaha P5000S power amp as my bass power amp at the time I had some fun setting them up in my house for use with music and TV! I eventually sold them when I realised that was easier than divorce.

This! Especially fuzz pedals, like the MXR Bass Deluxe Fuzz mentioned by OP, are very sensitive to signal impedance. On my EBS rig I also have to keep a close eye on my treble and bright EQ settings and tweeter level, or it will just be top end fizz noise rather than a nice drive. Probably won't be as much of a problem with OP's Orange rig. @Renno92, do you get similar results with the passive P or do your drives respond differently to that?

Ha ha, you can actually measure the TS parameters and calculate them from physical measurements using the added mass method but without the software you are in for some serious calculation even after your physical methods. It's a world of pain You can get a decent measurement using a stadard box and impedence plots too but again I wouldn't recommend it unless you need a new hobby. The theory treats the speaker as a tuned circuit with capacitance resistane and inductance standing in for the physical and electrical elements of the speaker. It's actually really interesting for a total nerd like me, a retired science teacher but not a practical proposition who just wants a nice sounding speaker. I think trying a 3cm cardboard tube in the tweeter hole will be an interesting experiment and sound ok at low to medium levels. If you really like it then you can always mod the cab with a bigger port tuned to the same frequency later on to preserve the sound with reduced wind noise from the port.

I always thought of the Fender P as the Avometer 8 of basses.

Are you only stopping pensioners on this street? 😁 Id say Paul McCartney is the one 50% would get. Other than that, no hope!

So, the truss rod does move the neck, but not much. However, the neck is "right", and very rigid, so doesn't really need the truss rod to adjust it. All is well. I have dropped off the spare case at the luthier, and they will contact Toby Diggins for a date to send the bass to them. I have decided not to have a logo on the headstock - I can't find the right one, so, best to leave it off. As for the bridge saddle, I will let the luthier tell me whether the genuine article is necessary, or if the lump of metal was designed to transfer more vibration to the bridge and body.

True, most people don't know the difference between a bass guitar and a normal guitar

I’d say most people probably wouldn’t know any

That's Numberwang!

If you want to relive your youth, go and see some new bands at small venues where you can get up close and personal with them.

If that was my daughter that you'd just accused of dressing like a prostitute, you and I would be having very serious words. Sorry, this is absolutely out of order. 'Suitable role model'? Seriously? You realise it's not 1970 any more, right? I'm sure she'd probably pee herself laughing if she saw that, but I wouldn't blame her if she got very cross about it either. Anyway. For our delectation, here are a group of male role models promoting themselves and their instruments in a sober fashion. Perhaps one of them looks like a whore?

You and your band should carry on playing as if nothing out of the ordinary has happened. Don't look accusingly at each other or do anything else that would signal that someone has made a mistake. The chances are that unless it was so bad that it bought the song to an unexpected grinding halt within 30 seconds of the start, no-one in the audience will have noticed. IME to sooner you stop worrying about what will happen if you you make a mistake the sooner you will stop making them.

@binky_bass fault... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Needs all the usual... but, FAB!

It all rather focuses the mind on why anyone needs guts in 2024. Playing low-volume acoustically there's no real doubt in my mind that guts sound simply sublime, and are a pleasure to play. Introduce any amplification worth mentioning and the benefits start to slip gradually away, until you reach gig volume where you're feeling the notes as much as you hear them and the material used to make the string becomes of very limited interest. And then you go and spoil it all by saying something stupid like "but what about other people?". Ah yes, other people. your band members, other musos in the audience, bar staff, punters, drunks ... what do they hear, what do they notice? We've all answered tougher questions than that, right? I could afford the £700 if I needed to, if I spent my hours in recording sessions at Air Studios and if the sound would be valued and appreciated, but I'm a pub/club player. Seriously - what's the point?