Leaderboard

We played the Wheatsheaf in Calne last night with the drummer from our first band, 35yrs back. We’ve reunited a handful of times in recent years and it’s both nice to have a real drum beat & good to have 60% of my Sixth Form band back together. We’re just so comfortable in each other’s skin. I thought we played well. I was on my mandocello for 90% of the show and there were flashes of us all being really on it at times. The two bands who were on after us both came up after and said “how are we supposed to follow that?”, which was typical of the ego free and friendly nature of this multi band gig, raising money for Bristol Children’s Hospital. For the record, music has never been about competition and both bands did their thing well. I was particularly impressed with some of the earlier bands who were so young. I was talking to some 17yr old bassist who really impressed me and it’s so good to see that generation getting out there and doing it. A great day.

We played a new venue last night, the Palace Place social club in Paignton. They have a PA, but the monitors were elsewhere so we took our desk and monitors and plugged into their amp. The room was quite tall and we needed to dial back on the higher frequencies to control the sound. My bass rig was filling the room nicely and didn't need much FOH, but the guitar did. A decent FOH and stage sound sorted and we blasted through our 2 sets. This club is near an old favourite pub which has changed landlord and direction, so we are not playing there anymore. We will secure more gigs here so that keeps us busy enough. They were pleased to have us and suggested coming down when it is quieter and setting up with their system and digital desk and monitors so we can just plug and play for the next gig. We didn't have a lot of time last night for that. Quite a few people who used to see us in Paignton came last night now we are back in town. My usual rig of StingRay, RM500 evo II & BF 210. Shoes were my new Skechers slip on' which are super comfy.

Back at it after a weekend off, with Nine Lives at The Railway Club in Keith. A weird one - I wasn't feeling 100%, had been fighting a lurgy for the past few days but had got myself to the "you'd be well enough to go to work" type state so I decided to go for it. Unfortunately, it wasn't very busy - probably an effect of the Greece vs. Scotland game being live on the Beeb. Things got a bit better in the second half, we had people sporadically come through from the bar area to see us for a few songs then bog off back to the bar. Yet we were still treated to some chair dancing and acrobatics/tumbling. How odd! It was more interesting from the gear point of view, as this was the first time I had taken my Jack Casady out to a gig since I finally got a replacement coil and fitted it. Happy to report that it is back to its normal self - capable of generating feedback, but in a controlled way (instead of reacting simply to being in the same room as a not very loud amp, as was when the dodgy coil was in there). There was a sustained note for 4 bars during one song during which the JC did a lovely slow feedback buildup - became noticeable around bar 2 and built up gracefully (and quite musically) but never to annoying levels. Chopped it dead at the next bar. Loved it. My JC is back doing its JC thing. Gear was the Epiphone gang (Jack Casady then Thunderbird) into the cubist wasps.

Nice to see some bass specific programs on TV , definitely worth a look . Apologies if this has been posted before .

board for the RnB covers band that I play with.

Both! 🙂 I was inspired by this one and she helped me a lot with the design work... We work together in a advertising agency.

We appear to have had two miracles this weekend, the England rugby team managed to wallop the All Blacks and we have had a day of non rainy weather. So I've managed to warm the glue as its rather cold, Cut down two panels for two cabs, I have two new cabs and one slightly not-so-good-not-as-neat-as-I-would-like-it-now-going-to-become-a-spray-booth-cabinet. practise makes perfect or in my case, slightly better than the last one. I've cut down the first cabs baffle so it's going to hold the 3d printed blue air filter. I've also assembled and glued three quarters of one new cab and that's all clamped up waiting for the glue to dry. As it gets dark quite early here, I didn't get around to the second cabinet, but now the pieces are cut, I can do something’s indoors. Still need to cut the holes for the loudspeaker but that'll have to wait for next weekend now.

Mine arrived on Friday. To say I'm delighted is an understatement. At 9.2lb it's no lightweight but definitely manageable for me - so happy there. This was a B Stock Bass so I immediately scrutinised it. All I could find was the tiniest imperfection in the paint on the front, invisible from a metre away. So for £289, an absolute bargain. The Rosegold finish is lovely, almost, but not quite, pearlescent. The neck is a bit deeper front to back than I'm used to and the finish is a gorgeous satin that feels really nice. It's got a slight tint that looks really classy. All the fit and finish is flawless. The action was a bit high with the slightest of back bow in the neck, but 20 mins with a tuner and a couple of Allen Keys soon sorted that. Got a nice low action on it now and it plays like a dream. I went for a Z3 as opposed to a Z7 for the simplicity of the preamp. I've got a bass with the Z7 pre - and it sounds great and is very versatile, there's just a bit too much there for me to manipulate quickly while playing live. What I've found though, is that each band of EQ on the Z3 is so powerful, I'm using it in conjunction with the volume control which again gives me a lot of choice and makes it quite the distraction! Having said all that, it sounds bloody brilliant. Just like a Stingray. I love the sound, but I'm not sure it's a sound I could use my current band. Although it sounds ace, the EQ can't really change the fundamental tone of this bass. It sounds like a 'Ray. Tweak the controls and it sounds like . . . . a 'Ray with the tone controls tweaked. And that ain't a bad sound to have! I'd been wanting to scratch a Stingray itch for a while now and had considered investing in the real deal, but I'm glad I didn't - I can't honestly think I'd easily find one as good as this - and for under £300! It would've been nice if they'd kept the 3/1 headstock that appeared on the prototypes, but this headstock looks good now they've reshaped it a bit and the silver Moniker looks tasty!

First coats of poly on the Wenge and Elm J bass Paulownia Musicman and Walnut shortscale P bass finished with their satin nitro alongside @HeadlessBassist Walnut J bass that’s is all polished waiting for its graphite neck to arrive.

A weekend of Eagles tribute shows. Halifax Playhouse on Friday - a beautiful old hall, formerly a methodist church. A lovely, friendly crowd. A bit of a nervy trip back to Tyneside which involved negotiating a couple of floods. Next day, another Playhouse - this time at Alnwick, a little closer to home. Another lovely crowd. The front row of seats is int he same level as the band, and one particular highlight was when a chap in the front row spilled his drink, sending ice all over the stage. He got on his hands and knees, and crawled around under our feet trying to pick it ip, which he couldn't quite manage as ice is rather slippy. It all went on for a comically long time. This is the stuff you really remember in years to come. Next stop - Edinburgh & Whitehaven. Pics...

Sometimes more wisdom is shown by being aware of when not to overdo things and to support the song as a whole. To me it shows understanding of the song and the other instruments (inc vocals) as a whole.

Weekend off for me this weekend but starting next week its every weekend until some time mid January if i remember right. All Sat nights except for the Fri and Sat before Xmas. Good thing is PA is supplied on both those gigs so its an easy load in and out for me. Got a rehearsal this Thu night to run thru the Xmas songs ready for some party night Glam fun. Dave

I stopped taking my bass to our local jam night as it was just too much hassle - either lugging guitar+amp or double bass. Instead I've been taking my violin and improvising harmonies (sadly I do not take a good photo when concentrating on playing)

OLP Tony Levin - swapped for a 4-string that cost me £75 and £50 cash, and needed a truss rod adjuster wheel fitting (another tenner). No upgrades yet.

Royal Blues (originals Americana), at The West Hampstead Arts Club. It was either a bus ride for 3 stops from Kilburn, or a 10 minute walk. What Google maps didn't say is that the walk was uphill 😖 (and it started raining). We were a support band, second out of three. Soundcheck at 6, so of course we were soundchecking at 6:45 (Showtime 8:15, actually onstage nearer to 8:45). It's a small venue, 30 punters make the place look full, which was fortunate... The sound person was great, onstage balance was good, and FOH sounded good according to punters. The 2 new songs debuted at the previous gig were included and went down well. Ibanez UB804 -> Getaria wireless -> DI. Footwear - maroon creepers. This was the back of the stage. In front of the drummer and myself was the guitarist, lead vocalist, and 2 backing singers.

Last night we had our first stadium gig. 80,00 screaming fans, helicopter in and out, 50kw PA, individual dressing rooms. Then I woke up from my pre-gig nap. It's true we were in a stadium - the Swansea.com stadium - but sadly all the rest of it was fanciful daydreaming. Last night the Hull band played in support of the annual 'Big Sleep Out' event, raising money for the local homeless charity drop in centre, Matthews House. We've been raising money for them for years and we regularly play with their choir so they asked up to do a short set at the event, in which folks get sponsored to spend a night sleeping out in the open. We were due to play in the stand overlooking the pitch (the pitch itself was strictly off limits to all) but Storm Claudia put paid to any open air performance, and instead we played in the main concourse under one of the stands. The audience was limited to the people who were volunteering to sleep out, the choirs and the staff and volunteers who were helping out on the night - about 200 in total. Swansea City football club were sponsoring the whole event, hence the venue. We were due to play for about 30 minutes; the choir kicked off the entertainment and we joined them for three songs before carrying on. We ended up playing on longer than expected as the audience kept asking for one more song. Well, you can't say no to the punters. Eventually, the stadium's own noise curfew brought us to a stop. Great atmosphere, dancing, singing along etc and more than £42,000 raised by the time we'd finished playing. And no, that wasn't money paid to get us to stop. We used the stadium's events PA but our own desk as we are a 13 piece and we brought our own sound engineer. My kit for the night was my Squier PJ into a Behringer pedal tuner (I just can't get on with clip-on tuners) which also acts as a mute and my Ampeg SCR DI. Straight into the desk as usual. Outfit was geared towards remaining warm and black boots completed the look. Highlights for me included dedicating and playing the song 'Heroes' (already a favourite) to the folks staying out overnight and dancing with the choir leader at the back for our encore of 'Hey Jude'. The Matthews House choir The stadium. Ready to soundcheck Mid gig

Here is my new part bass I finished recently and which make me proud of: Warmoth body, Musikraft neck, nitro paint, Fralin splitcoil. The design, paintwork and the printing I made with the help of my wife. Enjoy it!

In terms of iconic bass lines to popular songs and who played them, then I think my choice of photos would be Paul McCartney (Ths Beatles), Sting (The Police) and maybe someone like Roger Waters (Pink Floyd) or John Deacon (Queen) or James Jamerson (Motown/Marvin Gaye) or someone from the Disco era (Bernard Edwards/Louis Johnson). If it was my choice then it would be Pino Palladino, John Giblin and Jaco, be all out fretless bass and have contributions from Paul Webb (Talk Talk), Derek Forbes (Simple Minds), Sting (The Police), Jeff Ament (Pearl Jam) and Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel) to name a few. Now that would be a show 😂

I agree, I find it quite baffling regarding the comments on Adam Clayton, who bass lines couldn't be further from playing just root notes, at least no more or no less than any other rock band like Queen, Pink Floyd, Bon Jovi or Iron Maiden. He also plays in the rock genre and is simply serving the song, the role of any good bass player. Plus it's about iconic bass lines and not virtuoso player, if you look at bass lines like Under Pressure, Come As You Are, New Years Day, Love Will Tear Us Apart, Money, all very recognisable so iconic, but certainly not hard to play or on any level of virtuoso.

I think Kris Novoselic and Adam Clayton are both decent players who've come up with good basslines on great records. I certainly don't understand why Adam Clayton is considered a poor player by some people. He's got a style and sound that works really well.

I actually have a board for bass for the first time in several years. Mostly DIY ones I've made so I'll need to do some explaining. Currently bedroom auditioning pedals for a new band project so it's not very neat or portable. I'll explain them in rough signal chain order, right to left, bottom to top. Bugle - Simple Active EQ I think based on the EQD Tone Job (I needed one with side jacks) SIlver with scratched graphics - Schalltechnik compressor Revolver Ocelot - OC-2 clone Mario - Parasit studios 1985, multivoice digital synth Jet Set willy - Parasit studios multiwave mega, wavetable synth Boss LS-2 - The dirt pedals in the middle row are on the two loops for blending together. SIlver with white knobs - Traynor TS-50B clone (the tronographic rusty box is a ts50b clone) Monochrome (right of middle row) - ss/bs TAFM clone Bender - Brassmaster clone Ma Beagle - Chunk brown dog clone Small silver - Phase inverter for blending on the LS-2 Silver blue knobs - EQD Westwood clone Black with blue knobs - Darkglass alpha omega clone Duck tales (top right) - Chunk 00funk clone Sci-fi lady head - Boss dimension c chorus clone Space Koala - EQD grand orbiter phaser clone Silver yellow knobs - Boss BF-2 clone Water tribe - Fairfield shallow water clone Acquisitions Incorporated - EQD afterneath clone Futurama - Tremulous Lune tremolo Multi stomp is doing all the delays at the moment. Too much? If less is more then think how much more more would be.

@Rich77 @Phaedrus01 and @HeadlessBassist yours were delivered about half an hour ago. They're looking much better, the weave really pops. I'll send you each some photos tomorrow. JB4 Batch 1 #2 v2.mp4

Yep, and sometimes something that shouldn’t work in theory results in something magical in practice 👍

Please note that the word "retard" is not a pejorative. Thank you.

Dave, I did a little research on Bobby. I'm 7 years older then him. I was born in 1954. Bobby was born in 1961. Dang, I'm older than guys I thought were " old guys". lol He passed in 2021. I think he did a lot for very little credit. Daryl

Sounds great. However is he an all round fit for the band? We auditioned an excellent guitarist a few years ago. The audition was great. However, before he left. He said, " I just want to play" then went on about not caring about money and said he'd play for gigs for 50 bucks. We decided not to go with him. He didn't fit the band model. We don't want the guy that will gig for 50 bucks. There are other bands where that mind set would be a better fit. We're also not looking for the guy that just wants to play . If we were to bring in a new band member and if he/she asked me how to fit in, here’s my answer. 1. We don't rehearse, so don't broach the topic. 2. Don't make song suggestions. 3. Don't make any type of musical suggestions. 4. Show up on time for sound checks with working gear. 5. Have decent improvisation skills. 6. Be interactive with us on stage. What to expect. 1. You'll perform with pro sound and lights. 2. You'll have at least one gig per week. 3. You won't have to play late night bar gigs. 4. You will be paid in cash prior to every gig. 5. You'll make more money than what your use to. 6. Nobody will comment or make suggestions about your volume, tone or playing. We're not for everyone, however our band model has worked for close to 20 years. Daryl

Seems like the sort of thing a guitarist would do

After 24 hours of continuous rain we were not surprised that turnout was a little low at the Bricklayers in Sharnford last night. Especially given that the pub is next to the river. In fact as we left the landlord came out to fix the last few sections of the flood barrier in place! As usual it was a tight squeeze in the corner. It was great to play at a lower volume though as we could hear everything and had no sacrifice of tone. The guitarist took his Mesa Boogie but had a tiny little Vox amp plugged into the speakers rather than using the Mesa amp - much easier to get a decent tone without volume. Well it sounded good to all of us anyway. As I said, a selective audience but some of them had travelled quite a distance, which was appreciated by us. We even got some up dancing (ok, it was the WAGS 😂) I don't often do vids but this one isn't too bad, even if it is me singing!

Digitally printed direct over the body: MOV_3133.mp4

At the time of writing, this vintage SVT doesn't quite belong to me just yet but I've been making use of it since April and there's a deal in progress.. A little history.. From 1967 onwards, Ampeg was no longer an independent concern with Unimusic acquiring a majority share in the company. Apparently this was later, much to the regret of founding partners Everett Hull and Stanley Micheals - both had left the company within 12 months of Unimusic being involved with Ampeg. With a new vision for the company, Unimusic had financially elevated and stabilised the business, redesigned the logo plus they were very aware of Leo Fender's success who was definitely watching and listening to the ever changing music scene. Ampeg knew something special was needed to best Fender, so had engineers Bill Hughes and Roger Cox working on a new, world beating rig - today we all know the SVT and it's cab(s!) as a monster in every sense. Ampeg had changed hands a few times during the '70s with Magnavox and later MTI purchasing the company. The SVT itself had gone through a few detail changes but from 1970, it was fundamentally still the same machine which had been made in the US with US parts including the heavy duty mains and output transformers. This changed in around 1979 with production being moved to Japan by owners MTI - the SVT now had different cosmetics, slightly different component parts and transformers some of which had changed it's character just a little. Today, vintage 'MTI era' SVT models are still reasonably sought after and are apparently an excellent amplifier although I've never had the pleasure of playing through one, personally. Interlude.. The world of music and undoubtably, the sphere of electric bass had changed alot since (and no doubt, because) the original SVT had been introduced in '69. By the mid-eighties, companies like SWR, Trace Elliot and David Eden were putting out sophisticated, high power transistor based amplifers that were now capable of matching the muscle of the Ampeg. Many had comprehensive, active EQ, pre-shape filters, compressors, balanced inputs and outputs, some had crossovers and bi-amp facilities whilst others sported stereo fx loops and side chain insert points - all very high tech. The original SVT had a basic active EQ which still sounded good and was certainly advanced for the late sixties but offered none of the clever and modern features offered by this new wave of amplifiers. What it did have, however, was a legacy, charm and a sound that was loved by a generation of players - the new owners of the Ampeg company knew this and would use it as their jewel in the crown to rebuild the company. Enter St Louis Music.. MTI sold the designs, production rights and existing stock of Ampeg parts to SLM in 1986. To put Ampeg back in the limelight, SLM concluded that products should be American made once again playing on the appeal of home-grown, top quality products - as such, the 'Skunkworks' team was assembled. This comprised of a small group employed to make 500 'original spec' SVT amplifiers. Between existing inventory and transformers supplied by the Electrical Windings company in Chicago, production of the 'Skunkworks' SVT-HD began. I say 'original spec' as they weren't quite truly original spec - some of the original valves were becoming harder to find in the '80s so some subtle component substitutions were made to make use of the ubiquitous 12AX7 / ECC83 rather than the 12DW7. Beyond that, as I understand it, this version of the SVT was a real 'oldskooler'.. In brief.. What is it? A limted edition, US built all-valve SVT head. How old is it? It was built in 1987. Which number is it? 191 of 500. How powerful is it? 300w RMS at 2 or 4 ohms. What valves are in it? 6x 6550, 5x 12AX7, 2x 12BH7 and 1x 6C4. How much does it weigh? 85 lbs / 39 Kg. Is it worth it's weight? No doubt. Does it sound good? Really..(!)? This example.. So, this particular unit has come to me via friend Craig, famed for The Sisters of Mercy, The Mission, The Alarm and more recently, Spear of Destiny. As I understand it, this was one of his main gigging amplifiers on larger shows up until around 15 years ago when it began to develop some reliability and performance issues. It was sent for service / repair and returned in an apparently healthy state, however, it had since been replaced and, from somewhere around 2010, the SVT had simply sat in a lock up doing nothing. On arrival at the studio, it was grubby, smelt bad and looked very unloved. I gave it a thorough wipe over, laced it with contact cleaner and allowed it to aclimatize in the live room before making any attempts to fire it up. Craig was unsure as to whether it would work properly or if it still had some problems so intreague got the better of me and I ran it up - the lights came on the panel, the fan spun and valves began to glow which I figured were all good signs. After a few minutes, I threw the (very questionably placed) standby switch and there was a thump then a slight hiss and a low-level hum through the Ampeg PR810 it was plugged into. Grabbing the nearest Jazz bass which happened to be my Squier VM, I plugged into the front panel and, after it's long sleep the SVT lived once again. Almost instantly, it sounded glorious. In Use.. Since then, it's done a few gigs with me and seems to have settled into regular use without any real dramas. The live situations have been with the electronica duo 'Disastrous Robots' so no acoustic drums or big Marshalls but it's still been required to support the bass without any help in a moderate space - more on this later. There are a few minor issues still to be dealt with. 1: the patching points on the rear panel aren't great with the preamp out partially bypassing the EQ section and radically changing the sound, 2: the bass control on channel 2 does nothing and the fan is the noisiest thing I've ever come accross in the world of amplification. Despite these minor (and soon to be rectified) issues, this SVT is amongst the lovliest, most musically complimentary amplifiers I've ever plugged into. Does the Ampeg knock my beloved green and black all-valve Trace Elliot V-Types off their much prized-perch as 'best amps ever'? I may have asked this question before.. The whole SVT thing has been a real eye opener for me in the last few years, and, at the time of writing, I'd be hard pressed to choose between them. It's a good job I don't.. 🥰 Whilst the Trace V-Type and the SVT are certainly different machines, It does seem prudent to make some comparisons between the 'Skunk' and the CL that I've owned for a little while, now. As you might expect, I've done the whole 'lets put the same settings on and see how they compare' - rather unsurprisingly, they do sound similar. It should be noted that absolute direct testing wasn't possible owing to the Skunk driving either the PR810 or my SWR Goliath Jr III cabs whilst the CL was plugged into a 410HE and 115E setup. For both rigs, I'm once again employing use of a Jazz, the lovely Yamaha NE-1 EQ unit and Ampeg Opto Comp before the amp. Of course, it should also be noted that the CL is a gain / master setup whereas the vintage amplifier is simply a volume. Any comments I make should be taken strictly as opinion as I've made use of nothing but my eyes and more importantly, my ears to draw the conclusions - as ever YMMV. Enough waffle, how does it sound.. It sounds absolutely killer in nearly every way. It can be fat and warm, it can be bright and edgy, it can be thick and smooth - I can't really see how almost any player couldn't find a useable sound using just channel one. The EQ is similiar to that of the CL but has two less mid positions with only 200Hz, 800Hz and 3kHz being available plus the Ultra Hi and Ultra Lo controls seem to work in a more exaggerated way - the latter having three positions with an addition 'cut' option rather than just in or out. The three-way midrange switching can bring about a high degree of tonal change - of course, assuming there's a degree of cut or boost applied. The whole EQ works in a reasonably linear way although the mid range control, towards the end of it's travel, feels like there's a bit 'more' happening which I'm assuming is some saturation within the tone circuit. The modern SVT exhibits a similar characteristic albeit a little more tame. My personal preference for tone is for fat low mids, attenuated upper mids (no clank, please) and plenty of sparkly 'ping' so using the left position on the mid select switch (200Hz) with a fair amount boost, a slightly cut bass, a slightly cut treble and Ultra Hi switched in, the amp sings. The note definition and delivery are near perfect for me - not too burpy (although it'll do that if needed), just fat and present whilst the top above around 5kHz is transparent but still sounds like it's glued to the lower frequency portion of the tone - something very tricky to define using words. Running the amp only a little louder than bedroom level does nothing but improve this seemingly natural cohesion of the notes and, whilst I don't operate it at stadium rock levels, that small increase does make a difference. I expect that subtle change is possibly a little bit more of that saturation through the various EQ stages although the amp has power for days. As mentioned above, I've done a few shows with it - the SVT being a full fat 300w all valve amp, it's available power and scope for volume certainly aren't something I've found lacking..! Much like it's far newer stable mate, the CL, it could have easily overwhelmed the modest PA and guitar amp setup we use. I can't decide if it's louder than the CL as they've never been through the same speakers but it does feel 'fat' (phat, maybe?) and possibly a little 'fatter' than the more modern example. With a few more hours on it, hopefully I'll be able to say for sure. I also 'jumped' channels in the traditional Marshall / Fender way with the 'bright' input on Ch1 feeding the 'normal' input on Ch2. Being entirely objective, this wasn't at all needed as I ran the level quite low compared to ch1 but it made me feel better as I was using 'all of the pre-amp' despite channel two having less facilities and less character of the first input. Maybe this has added to the fat I feel? Arguably, (and on the forum, it really has been) the numbers mean nothing, at the gigs, the volumes have been at 2.5 and 1 respectively - no master, just input volume controls governing everything. Whilst it's probably fair to observe that a number of my reviews suggest there's something uniquely special about every amplifier - and, I believe there is - in this case, this SVT-HD really does have a bit of magic and mojo about it. Whether that was something baked into the original design of the SVT or something that's come about in it's use as a true piece of rock n roll history or maybe it's simply something I feel and hear as a player, this amplifier has 'it'.. My friend Phil, who has owned and played through everything (including my V6 as it used to be his) with valves inside over the last 30 years and is currently using a Boogie 400+ said it was the best sound he'd ever heard after just two minutes with it. I suspect it's clear if you've managed to read this far, I'm particularly taken with the sound and feel this amplifier. Features.. Being based on an amp with it's roots, in the late 1960's, these vintage models aren't exactly bristling with features but there's more than enough to get by. The useable, active EQ works very well and is reasonably predictable plus patching points (once sorted) offer a degree of useful I/O although there's no modern amenities like an FX loop, balanced outputs or any other bells and whistles such as a tuner out etc.. Two inputs per channel - one is hi-passed and the other is full range. Ch1 - Volume, bass, middle and treble plus a three position ultra low, a three way mid frequency change plus a two position ultra high. Ch2 - Volume, bass and treble supplemented by two position ultra high and ultra low. Preamp out and power amp in patching points. Output impedence select switch. Parallel speaker output jacks. Build and condition.. Despite being made nearly 40 years ago and having led a true rock'n'roll life for at least half of that, the SVT is in reasonably good shape. There's a number of marks on the tough looking tolex plus some surface corrosion is apparent in places but other than the previously mentioned minor faults, it's in good order. The Marshall branded 12AX7 tubes and odd-ball 6C4 in the preamp work well plus the two 12BH7 and big-bottle Sovtek 6550s all seem to have plenty of life left in them, too - there's no lack of go nor are there any or odd noises to mention. On that front, no news is good news. If we were to wind the clock back to 1987 and inspect the amplifer as new or simply pretend it's not had many years of use, it's apparent the build quality is very good. Whilst not boutique in terms of component choice or finish, as per a MESA or even my V4 Mk2, the SVT was assembled with the same quality and care comparable to that of an eighties Marshall. The knobs are a little stiff but not sticky, switches are satisfyingly 'clunky', chassis panels are solid with prints and paint being clean and accurate, all of the hardware including the chunky side handles are up to the job plus the upholstery is finished cleanly. Looking on the inside, I'm surprised that based on the size and density of iron in the transformers that the Ampeg didn't come with a warning about having it's own gravity field - it's unreasonably weighty. Also on the plus side are the size and number of large PSU capacitors both on top and inside the chassis - I feel there's no skimping on parts here. One element I'm less sure of is the cooling fan. It's rear panel mounted to the left of the output valves, is quite large and seems to run very hard causing it to be exceptionally noisy - it roars, however, it's placement hardly seems ideal for optimal airflow through the wooden case. It's entirely possible that I've missed the point in it's design but it almost feels like an after thought.. Having said that, If it's lasted this long, then surely it's doing it's job. So, where from here.. In short, I intend to keep it going and continue to both record and gig with it - afterall, it's what it's built to do. Yes, as mentioned above, there are some small issues but I have little doubt, Kev the repair man can easily remedy these - he's very good indeed. There are a few other things to observe and consider when owning and running such an amplifier. The weight is something that is simply unavoidable - it's exceptionally heavy. The cost of replacement valves is something that never gets cheaper with time and with so many of them, a full change will be mighty expensive plus the 6C4 is out of production. Tweaking and correct setting of bias and balance adjustments will require a scope, a dummy load and a meter - almost certainly a job for a proper tech. Whether reliability will become a problem in the future is yet to be seen - so far, it's given no cause for concern but I'm aware that given it's age, problems might well present themselves at any time. Despite all of these, the amplifier is an absolute gem and I feel the sound alone makes all the potentially negative aspects absolutely 100% worth while. I have recently sold my superb Trace Elliot 122H on to a new and loving home via this fantastic community. It's performance was truly excellent but for it's size and weight, there's little difference between moving that or the SVT and a 2x10. For the future, I've bought an inexpensive, used Ashdown 2x10 + HF cab that I will re-driver (possibly with Ashdown drivers or Celestion Pulse - I'm in cahoots with Phil Starr currently) to be a four-ohm enclosure which will give me a compact, single cab solution to go with the heavy Ampeg. The added bonus being I can also use the CL, the V4 or the V6 with it, too. If you're looking for an amplifier that does the 'SVT' thing, then this will do exactly that but by the same token, if you're looking for something that does something a little left or right of centre, then this may also fit the bill. Maybe you're in a shop and there happens to be an old HD sat there, give it a whirl and see how you feel about it but be warned, you might well take it home. As ever, in the crazy, opinionated and often less than objective world of instrument and amplification, one size never fits all but as long term Trace Elliot user, the 'Skunk' certainly floats my boat.. 🥰

Looks like you’ve got a side gig here if you wanted it…

Krist played some excellent lines with Nirvana and Nate Mendel is hugely underrated as a bassist and musician ( not just Foos but Sunny Day Real Estate too ), again his lines are great and not ' pounding out root notes' by any means. Jaco they aint but their lines, melodies and support are perfect for the songs and they do their job of filling the space excellently.

Don't shoot the messenger! I'm sorry to break the news but in wider society being a bass guitarist is not regarded as the prestige occupation which it ought to be. Although I would concede that in Jamaica I expect that might be a bit different.

This all sounds too much for ordinary coincidence to me. Can you think of any reason why you might be targeted for a hate crime?

At last, my very own 'signature' model!

Another quick one, the complete Jeff Berlin part for 'J.F.K.' from the 1986 Kazumi Watanabe album, 'The Spice Of Life'. Another one of the more accessible Berlin performances that most of us should be able to pull off. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/j-f-k-kazumi-watanabe/

Trolls be trolling... best response is no response (said the hypocrite...)

Squier Jazz Vintage Modified Modified. Apart from the Aguilar pickup, V/B/T controls, and pretty control plate, and the neat defret job, it's just the same as any other Squier Jazz. No tear-out, the slight wiggliness on the lines is from the fret tangs.

There is one improvement that could be made. Just make the pins retractable so they swivel flat when the plug is extracted, and with a button on the top to swivel them into place for insertion. This removes the issue of stepping on three vicious pins when in bare feet causing pain, or in shoes causing damage to the plug.

Never quite understood why - as the commercial makers do - sticking a jazz bridge pickup on a precision makes it a PJ. It's just a modded Precision. Anyway - mine isn't. Just finished nailing this together. It's a Frankenstein based around a Squier PJ body and a new Fender 70s Jazz neck. I found some SDQPs on eBay. Got a Hi mass with some Amazon vouchers I had given and for the princely sum of £3.54 got a vintage pearloid pick guard off Temu ! Every hole lines up perfectly. I shielded the inside with slug tape from the garden centre and rewired it so it's vol/blend/tone. It's far more the love child of a Precision and a Jazz than most. Not a great pic but it does have Milly eating a scrambled egg in it !

Update time - Four of the batch 1 necks should be finished next week with the other one available next week. Thanks again for your patience.

Its odd but whenever i used to see a band, no matter what style of music it was, i always applauded at the end of each song unless the band were absolutely diabolic and making lots of serious mistakes but i don't recall that ever happening. I'm happy to see any band play especially if it looks like they are enjoying it themselves. I'd be that one guy in the audience that's clapping. Dave