Leaderboard

Ive played it on a few rehearsals now. First off, Its not a Jazz Bass..But really its a modern sounding bass that looks a little bit like a Jazz, as the Sei Looked like a modern Jazz and sounded like a modern Jazz. The Sei was so well made it had a clarity across the fretboard and this instrument is the same, but just sounds a little different. Its a double hum bucker 34' scale beast with an 18v powered GB preamp. Ive never been a fan of the light show that he offers so I'm glad it didn't come with any of those tarty bits that seems to add a lot of money to an already great bass.These GB's are being sold for well over £2000 used because of these options. I just wanted a great bass that had some growl. And that it has, with a super tight B string. Ive put some new strings on it being my die hard favourite DR Fat Beams that sound so cool when set at the right action. I had a preconception that GB basses sounded like a super modern Mark King zingy Jaydee Alembic sounding bass which im not a fan of. Not the case. I can dial in some really old school sounds from this instrument as well as some more MTD sounding tones.Playing Dangelo tone off stuff is cool. Its EQ is fairly easy to work out. It feels wonderful to play neck wise. I will say its not as comfortable to play as the Sei Jazz because its neck is a little and I mean a slight difference depth wise at the nut end. And there is no cut away on the back by the neck bolts. But it is super nice to hold. You feel like your playing something very special and well made. UK bass royalty one might say. The flame neck is insane with purple heart strips. Insane Birdseye maple neck. I soooooo dig the burl walnut on the back of the headstock, a really cool touch. . The body is swamp ash with a Burled Walnut top with a purple heart sandwich. . All in all this instrument is just as good as it gets depending on your flavour. To be honest it could be a bit more Jazz like, but im being picky. What it does it does incredibly well. A joy to play and it makes me smile when im playing funky soulish stuff with the band through a 212 Aguilar. I believe Harry from this very forum asked for this bass to be made for him by Bernie. So if your about dude, please chip in if I have missed something.

Yup, I heard they'd run out of dough.

So here’s a story: on the Dutch bass forums someone linked to a De Gier fretless that was for sale on Bassic.de for a pretty good price. It was just before I went on tour to Germany, so I thought: let’s check where the bass is located. It was in Schwandorf, about an hour’s drive from Nürnberg. Now on the first leg of the tour we weren’t going to be near there, but we were going to play Nürnberg on the very last night of the tour. However, we’re touring by train so going to Schwandorf was going to be a bit of a hassle. I sent the seller a message asking if he’d be prepared to come to Nürnberg, so I could check out the bass in my hotel. His first response was “sorry, that’s too far away”. Hm. I really wanted to check out this bass. So I offered to pay his petrol and put him on the guest list for our show, while simultaneously checking out what it would cost to rent a car, in case he said no. And then I got an email: he was coming to Nürnberg! I felt sooooo lucky. He came to my hotel room to check out the bass. Amazingly friendly guy who told me the bass once belonged to Karel Gott’s bass player. Gott was a Czech singer whose state funeral happened two days ago, when we were in Prague too🤯 So here it is: my new De Gier Origin, serial #020. Padouk body, maple neck, spalted maple top, cocobolo fingerboard, Bartolini pickups, Aguilar preamp. It sings like nothing else, the low B is insane. I’m in love. This is one of the few basses that can compete with my world class fretless Jazz.

I got back from screwfix after getting the spray glue and the PVC pipe. I cut the pipe and then I thought I had some black spray under a unit in the shed. I reached in and pulled out.. a full can of spray glue, yay! Oh well, not going to be short of that. Anyway, after cutting the pipe I was looking at this piece, as one of the first things to do, and after much deliberation of the "you know if you get the router out you WILL mess it up" type, I once again overruled my common sense and decided that I didn't like the option of just glueing it, so I used the open brace as a half template, and in two cuts, did a recess around the hole. And didn't mess it up.

I started the site in about 2002 as Bassworld and since then it’s evolved and changed lots of times and had different names along the way! I’ll write a full history of the site at some point for the history books! It’s quite a story actually for a few reasons, up to and including an FBI takedown!

Too slow... Usually this reply comes in the first 5

Had the opportunity to do a little more work on one of these today. First up was drilling the holes for the neck bolts. This was followed by routing the pockets for the neck and for the bridge using the template I posted previously: Next up was round the edges of the bass. I fill in the pockets whilst rounding the edges to reduce any chances of splits or bits going missing!! So this is how it looks next to the headless version. I'm quite liking the way the grain is flowing on this. Should be nice when finished.

Connect your battery via a toaster timer switch..... Give the dial a twist at the start of each song and then you've got 5 minutes before the battery automatically disconnects itself. Obviously not suitable for metal, or any other genres with songs longer than 5 minutes!

Having given the matter serious deliberation I have reached a conclusion. It is probably for the best that Messrs gear4music did not offer Mr Pedro @ped a job. Permit me to expand. * Mr Ped is an intelligent, organised individual with boundless creativity and world-class problem-solving skills. To shackle one such to an entry-level job where he would doubtless be reporting to a mouth-breathing dullard of dubious personal hygiene whose sole accomplishment is the ability to sing the company song would be an unconscionable waste of Mr Ped's talents. * IIRC, Messrs gear4music have long enjoyed (if that is the mot juste) a 'patchy' reputation on this forum. Were Mr Ped to be an employee of said company he might find his leisure hours disturbed by private messages from BassChat members the content of which communications might include but not be limited to: 'I ordered a set of 45-105 D'Adds last week. They aren't here yet. WTF not? Sort it pronto, shop boy'. I think we can imagine the damage such might do to Mr Ped's standing, based as it is on impeccable impartiality and omniscient omnipotence. His authority would be diminished; leadership rivals would fancy their chances; stillettos would be sent off for sharpening. The fabric of our community would be in clear and present danger. * Mr @ped would be forced into constant and unceasing interaction with the shopping public, a group comprised in the main of (i) ill-informed nit-wits (ii) furious complainers who when asked their name reply 'I'm Mister Smith' (iii) dopey, passive-aggressive prevaricators and (iv) sundry other filth and sweepings of the gutter. While I might wish such an outcome upon my many enemies it must be clear to all here that Mr Ped does not merit such a fate, never mind that some of those he has dispatched to Finnbass Island might disagree. * Painful though it may be we cannot avert our gaze from a possibility which would strike to the heart of the forum's rugged independence. Gear4music are Gibson stockists. Gibson not undeservedly get a hard time here on the forum, not least for their corporate shortcomings and the antics of those who run the company. Imagine that Mr Ped were working at gear4music and that the Gibson rep swung by one day and someone were to say 'Oh, this is Ped, he's just joined us. He runs BassChat, y'know' and the blood might drain from the Gibson rep's face and he might say 'Oh. BassChat. The bass forum that savagely mocks my company's senior management on the basis of their competence, their personal appearance and their dress sense? The forum that made poor Henry's life a living hell? That BassChat?' and Mr Ped would reply in the affirmative and the Gibson rep and the gear4music spod might draw off to a distance and a muttered conversation might ensue and the gear4music spod might waddle back over and say: 'Look, Ped, we need to do something about the way that BassChat's members slag Gibson off' and an uncomfortable pause might ensue, whereafter Ped might say 'I really don't know what you mean' and difficult tensions might follow. TLDR: I cannot rejoice that Mr Ped did not get the job. But it's probably just as well

No topping that!

I've solved that with my BT SmartSwitch(TM). The BT SmartSwitch(TM) is built inside the jack. Just unplug your bass after rehearsal, and the BT SmartSwitch(TM) will automatically disengage the electrickery and, importantly, the battery! Yes, I'm a genius. Ad in Marketplace to follow.

This. The full subtext of the letter is ; ”Hi Chris, Our legal bods have told us that, what with discrimination and employment laws being the way they are, and our managers being a bit careless with their phrasing now and then, it’s better if we send everyone the same rejection letter. Rather than us say ‘we looked at your application and decided you’re not for us because you’re too old/young/male/female/white/non-white/gay/straight/disabled/tattooed/chavvy/posh/whatever’ (delete as appropriate) and leave ourselves open to all sorts of moaning and whining about discrimination and sexism, racism or some other -ism, we figure it’s just easier to send you a letter that says ‘Aw, Chris, mate, what a bummer. You’re probably awesome but wouldn’t ya know, we just took someone on’. This way, we can safely junk your application because you’re waaaaay over qualified and old when really we just want a young school leaver - preferably a pretty one with nice legs (not that you can say that these days, see my point above, God, what is this world coming to? It’s political whotsit it gone mad) - and you’ve got no comeback. So, like, thanks and all that, but, hey, vacancy filled So, y’know..... Good to hear from you though. You have a great day.....”

Providing a facility for people to argue about planks of wood with strings on (Basschat)

For someone who doesn't read music.!!. This guy is sometimes accused of over playing. My take is when the notes hes playing are this creative I really dont care. As long as the cat can groove. And groove he can. Musical director for Chaka Khan. Some of his fills are soooooo gospel/shout and just magic. I also love that he really emphasises on finger style. Rarely double thumb and slap are used. When he does slap, its just thumb/slap and its used in context and for a certain part. He dwarfs that MTD 6 string. What a fantastic bass player this guy is. a joy to watch and hear IMO.

Evening all, Last night, I fulfilled a long held musical goal of mine; namely, I attended a clinic held by Jeff Berlin at GuitarGuitar Glasgow. It was something of a drive to get there from Northumberland, being a 300 mile round trip and faced with torrential rain on the way back, but I would do it all again. I hope that I can collect my thoughts here to advise my fellow bassists on why I found this clinic so enjoyable and informative. First, a small precis in which I will explain how I ended up here. I have played bass since I was 13 years old, though when I was about 24 I hit a short slump and picked up a guitar. I never enjoyed myself like I did on a bass and I felt the urge to go back to playing bass. I had always loved the music and playing of Jeff Berlin and I knew he was a respected teacher, but I knew little of what he taught and advocated. I felt like I needed to really change the way I looked at my own playing and what I could do to improve and I ended up seeking out information on the way that Jeff taught. I felt like my playing had hit a plateau for years ago, and despite transcribing ever-more difficult pieces, I felt like I wasn't getting any better or worse as a player. At the age of 27, I picked up the bass again and began to follow what Jeff would refer to as 'music only' education. Following that, I took strides forward in my playing and improved at a rate that I hadn't done since I was a teenager. It was both a musical liberation and rebirth for me. In time, I came to chat with Jeff online and I took part in his reading course and the conference Q&A sessions that were held for the first to buy into that course (which taught me to read music, perhaps my biggest musical failing). Jeff became a friend and I knew that, if he ever did come to the United Kingdom, I would go and see his clinic or show come hell or high water. So, enough about my own journey to this point. I went to that clinic knowing what to expect, though what I want to do is put you in the shoes of one of the forty of fifty people there who perhaps didn't know exactly what they would hear. Entry to the event was ticketed, but free, and was sponsored by Cort guitars. Jeff was funny and warm, breaking the ice and putting everyone at ease. I could feel the room relax as he started talking and he was the perfect host. Although the venue surprisingly did not have any chairs to hand, we were all happy to remain standing and we did so, utterly captivated for around 90 minutes. Jeff kicked us off with a solo piece, asking the audience to name four notes. He then proceeded to improvise a beautiful piece based on that four note progression and he would refer to that four note phrase on a number of times when he played. When he clicked that chorus pedal on, I could not help but grin. The tone and the playing was sublime. I felt as though magic was happening in front of me. Further on through the clinic, Jeff played 'Runaway Train' from his 2000 album 'In Harmony's Way'. He later treated us to an improvisation on a theme from Beethoven's 9th, which had me floored. However, Jeff did not make his playing the focus of the event. Instead, he invited members of the audience to take a seat next to him and would ask them to play something. What followed was straightforward, honest advice that measurably improved the playing of everyone who came up. As Jeff advised and corrected each player, he would ask us in the audience if we could hear an improvement in the music being played and we all replied positively. I appreciate that it must be nerve wracking to sit in that chair in front of your peers to be critiqued by one of the luminaries of our instrument. Like I said, Jeff is so warm and friendly, so adept at putting the student at ease, that every player quickly settled down and started to improve. In focusing his attention on that player in that moment, Jeff demonstrated the sound academic principles he has so long advocated and how they can reap reward for anyone who follows them. As the members of the audience continued to come up, Jeff held two demonstrations that were paticularly impactful and really had the room engrossed. He invited a lady up from the audience who was not a musician and had her take the Cort Rithimic bass provided for the guests. Jeff had her play an E in straight quarter notes, demonstrating that everyone has a sense of time adequate to become a musician. Jeff improvised a piece over her bass line and there and then, not only did she become a musician but she was backing Jeff Berlin in a clinic to a room full of people! The highlight of the educational side of the clinic for me was when Jeff called up a guy who been playing for 25 years but didn't read music. Jeff called for someone to grab a load of sheet music from his gigbag. It was in fact, package 1 of his five part reading course (he did not mention this in attempt to make a sale but I think he could have done so, as it is a great course). Jeff then asked his guest to identify the notes on the page, if he could, and as they worked them ou together, the guest played two bars of his first etude read from the page. As per a show of hands earlier in the clinic, there were a lot of non-readers and rockers in there. I looked around the room and there were smiles all around me as this guy played slowly, out of time, as he read each note. Every mistake was addressed and corrected and the guest had just read his first music, in front of a crowd of strangers. I am not lying when I say that the room was on tenterhooks between every note and you could have heard a pin drop. The round of applause that followed was utterly heartfelt. I left that clinic feeling better about myself as a player, inspired to continue reading, inspired to continue trying to improve. I am sure everyone there felt that same inspiration as me. This really was a clinic for everyone, as there was no barrier to entry. It wasn't just for academic musicians, jazz or fusion players. There was something for everyone; advice that transcends your level of playing and cuts to core of what is at the foundation of being a good musician. Therefore, I would recommend players of all genres, of all levels of skill and experience, to seek out these clinics where they can. Following the event, my brother and I said hello to Jeff. He recognised me from the chats we had had online and asked me why I hadn't introduced myself sooner. He signed the back of my Cort Rithimic bass and we took some photos. I will post these below. I am holding my Rithimic and my brother is holding his 1991 Ken Smith BT5. My brother is also a big fan of Jeff Berlin and a huge fan and supporter of great music in general, so it was really cool to go on this trip with him. I would like to thank Jeff for putting on a really great clinic and for being a gracious host, Cort guitars for sponsoring this clinic tour and to GuitarGuitar Glasgow for giving us an excellent venue. [

How about a dummy jack made of plastic, so folks could keep their Stingrays connected without draining the battery? The dummy cable could be made from cooked spaghetti, which would break if somebody caught their foot in it. 👍

Here's another one: the PedalPCB version of the EQD/Sunn O))) Life Pedal. I didn't like the knob and footswitch layout too much. I also wanted a jewel light for the main on/off. So, everything got moved, except the clipping switch and the boost foot switch, which explains the spaghetti wiring in there. Sounds pretty good. Here's a quick sample: 0:00 clean 0:07 Rat on (Dist kinda low) 0:15 Octave gets turned up 0:22 Rat + full Octave 0:33 Rat only (0ctave off) 0:37 Rat + Boost 0:44 Rat + Boost + Octave (full) Clip switch down.

Don’t know if you all seen/hear this, but these audio clips are very well recorded, demonstrating the response of the compressor to different playing techniques:

I handed a CV in at 16 to Asda, where a friend of mine worked in the warehouse, because he reckoned it was easy money. I was working evenings in a hotel and wanted a few more hours. Asda sent me a letter saying that they weren't hiring and stating that they'd put my CV on file and contact me if any jobs came up. Fourteen years later, I'm still waiting for their call. I have all but given up hope.

Last night we played what I consider to be our biggest gig so far, Telford's Warehouse in Chester. Its a well-known music venue in the local area and it was packed last night, it was for a special birthday party but it was open as usual too and looked full to me (which was a relief! I'd promised we'd bring in a decent crowd). Also this was the first with proper mic'ing up, PA with high volumes etc and earned us decent money. The band was really well prepared and played brilliantly, everyone seemed to have a good time and the feedback so far is good too. Some of the logistics were "interesting", there were 17 of us after all!!! As seems usual to post, here was last night's setlist: Opus One Get me to the Church Corcovado Fever Blue Moon In the Mood A Little Blues Please Big Bad Handsome Man Singin in the Rain Never Loved a Man Leap Frog Rock Around the Clock Happy Birthday INTERVAL Birdland Valerie Sir Duke Ain't no other Man Music To Watch Girls By Tequila Geno You know I'm no good Tainted Love Little Brown Jug Copacabana Don't Ever Think too Much

Ask John, he's very approachable, and very knowledgeable. His contact details are on his website. https://www.east-uk.com/index.php/home.html

Finished...thumb rest and string tree now in position...👍... Very, very, very happy with it...only teeny, tiny gripe is that I would think more about the positioning of the decal in future, try set it parallel to the string line... Had use a nickel jack socket plate as the chrome one I had was too small, so may change that over too at some point... Ran through a few songs at rehearsal last night, man that Lindy Fralin pup is HOT...

Well the story starts from my Sei. Some might know that I sold it. To Carlsim on BC who is a total gent and a very cool guy. Said bass was posted too Carl. Carl then got in contact with me. I posted in my advert that the preamp was a a UNI Pre. I meant to say it was a U Retro Deluxe but I advertised it wrong. My fault of course. Well after a few PMs back and forth Carl worked out that it wasn't either. It was actually a J Retro Deluxe. BUT the bell plate when it was fitted was not installed, so I presumed it was a U Retro Deluxe. Confusion much so. Anyway it was a pain in the derrière for Carl because he had paid for a bass that wasn't what he expected. So I sent him some money to get the Preamp that he wanted which he wanted being the UNI pre.lets hope it fits we/he said.But all was cool. John East sent him a Uni pre and bless Carl. He un installed the J Retro and then fitted the Uni pre which he is happy with. Carl after a few PMs sent the preamp direct to John I spoke to John East about this situation through numerous emails and on the phone throughout this situation which he always answered. I then spoke to John about getting a new Jazz bell plate for said J Retro. He said on the phone that he had a plate no probs. Now this is where John East is not just one of the greatest designers of possibly one of the best preamps for a bass on the market, but one of the most easy to get hold of nicest guys and one on one its like talking to your next door neighbour . I spoke to him and he said to send him the preamp, he would give me a free plate from his stock that has a slight blemish, he would then rewire the preamp and fit new knobs.! FOR FREE.!! all I have to do is cover the postage.. I don't really need to add much to this. I dont want want to endorse asking John to give away free stuff, but what a guy and what a gesture. For me first off this is what BC is about . Honesty, communication, and wanting other bass players to be happy with what you have sold them. But really its a big up to John East. What a gentleman..

Continuing my quest to further stress test the floorboards of my mancave, I got this today. It's lived in a full flight case for most of it's close on thirty years and as a result has fared far better than many of the others I've looked at (the 'rubberised' cases tend to have chunks missing out of them looking like they've been nibbled around the edges). Some of the grey/silver paint has worn where it's been slid in and out of the flight case and there's a very slight nick out of one of the corners but other than that it's in fine fettle. The front and back panels are immaculate with all switches, knobs, lights and sliders present and correct and working. It really is in superb nick and sounds great. No scratchy pots, all switches and sliders operate smoothly and with a quality feel to them. No unwelcome buzzing or hissing and the always on fan just spins away quietly in the background. My MkIV is the quietest running amp I've ever heard and this is just the same. So I've got the MkIV, the Series 6 and an SMX (and an Elf). Just on the lookout for a pristine MkV AH250 now and then I think I'd better call it a day. 😁

So I think I'm developing a Sandberg addiction. This VS4 arrived today: As a sibling to my roadworn VT4 I love both these basses, super light weight and beautifully balanced. They sound incredible through the Lil' Stubby. I did have to move on my series I california VM4 to fund the VS4 but I do much prefer the California II's.

I'm quite looking forward t getting this one done. Just trying it with the neck template in the pocket it feels quite comfortable. It's the first time I've tried using a solid slab of spalted beech for a body and, so far, the grain looks interesting where the body has been rounded. I will shape this one a bit so it will be contoured for tummy/belly and forearm. I've also got the Sapele one to continue with. I will probably stick with a 23" scale for that for comparison - if I prefer the 25.5" scale I can always make another neck later.

Would mean all Prog songs being reduced to 5mins. Drummer will be going heck for leather to achieve that

I was thinking more of millinery. Or haberdashery. No one's going to go into a haberdasher's and say 'Good day to you, young man. I wish to purchase two hundred one-inch pins, a gross of doily edges and ... are you that Ped out of BassChat? Why, I oughta...'

Who knew the full length version of the Rainbow theme is actually a haunting slab of progressive folk...

Apparently the only difference between this and the CE2 is larger input/output decoupling caps to preserve the bottom end and the effect level pot.

I've been friends with John since 1990, and i met him through a friend and jammed with him back then. He's always been the nicest guy and incredibly helpful. He was on the digital team that built a monstrous desk for Pete Gabriel. What he doesnt know about electronics could be etched on the perforated edge of a 1st class stamp

That's Bryan May that is 🤣

Is this like a vegan burger made from 100% Scotch beef?

You and me both! 😁 Is this the one that Jay had up for sale? I didn't manage to persuade him to trade me it for a bass that I've now managed to sell. Timing eh!

We were playing Feel Like Making Love, ironically a fight breaks out in the pub.

Ganja smuggling is one of my favourite eek a mouse tunes , the Bassline just sits in the mix so good, and to mix it up with, here I come sounds great .

There's a clause in the contract that says you have to play Margarita Time

I once received a curbow fretless 4 from a gumtree seller via Hermes packaged in two bin bags with a hair band in the middle of the neck to fasten them. Not a scratch... which in hindsight wasn’t that relevant as the bass was s**t 😐 I also once received a fender jazz (via DPD) in one of their new style hard shell cases which are great and very heavy duty. Arrived with one of the corners crushed and smashed up to such an extent that I had to open the case with a crowbar... Again the bass was OK though. For any bass worth more than a few quid, I really wouldn’t want to ship without a hard case. You can buy one from Thomann (and others) for a few quid. I’d do that and add it to the price. Would give you the cardboard outer sleeve too. That Eurosender link looks good. Next time I’ll use them 😊

Stunning bass and nice write up. I had a Goodfellow, back in the day, which was amazing but this looks even better. Congrats.

I'm not an HR bod, but you are wrong. There is no law forcing a company to advertise internally or externally. There is a law that prevents employers discriminating against internal or external candidates. Depending on the organisation, there may be local agreements in place with trades unions to advertise vacancies internally before going external.

Have to say the winch operator role sounds way more fun.

I was thinking about John just the other day - I was driving home from rehearsal in Leicester and my sat nav avoided traffic on the M40 by driving straight past his house. I recognised the aerodrome opposite and had just worked out where I was when I drove past his place. Lovely chap, I bought a uni pre from him last year for an Ibanez six, but it wouldn't fit. He invited me over, we chatted for an hour or more while he had a good look at the bass, confirmed that the pre amp wasn't going to fit because of the way the cavity was made, and refunded me the money. Shame though, I have had one of his pre amps in another Ibanez six and it was great - sold it because it was too heavy for our 2 1/2 - 3 hour gigs. I hadn't considered that I couldn't slip one of his pre amps into the lighter replacement without some serious non-reversible surgery. I am still thinking of going down that route though. A very knowledgable, very pleasant man.

A Switching Box. I decided to keep it simple(!) It's the black box bottom middle. Two effects loops, I'm using A for distortion pedals and B for modulation effects. HPF, Tuner, Compressor and EQ are before the box. Buttons are, left to right: A/B --- BYPASS --- AND/OR. The 'AND' function is series not a Y or parallel. Everything is true bypass, except that when B only is selected the input of A is still connected to the input - this doesn't cause any detectable loss of signal. I couldn't find a way to avoid this using no more than 2 switch poles. This does mean effect in loops A will bleed through to the output if you run the box backwards, so it is unidirectional! The A and B LEDs light dimly to show the configuration when the bypass is active so you can tell what will happen when you turn bypass off, done by putting an extra 4K7 resistor in series. Some crude diode logic allows all the LED switching to be done with one pole of each switch. The A/B jack sockets are bypassed so if you don't have anything plugged in there's still signal continuity BUT plugging in either send or return without the other will break continuity. Power connector not shown on circuit diagram, but fairly obvious where to connect it. Box will work without power, just no lights! Working this out was a bit like doing suduko and cost me a night's sleep!