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Well, first step taken - roughly sketched and wood picked! Was going to buy a kit to build originally but decided to take a risk. Opinions welcome on design - sticking with something relatively basic for now. The plan is 5 string, 34" scale, bolt on, ash body with spalted alder top (couldn't resist) and padauk neck (love the colour). Undecided on fretboard material yet. I wasn't sure whether to post this or not - I'm a long time lurker in the Build Diaries section, and am constantly amazed by the skills of the members in here. So any input is most welcome!

👍 Please, please, please do a YT video of why 5-string basses are an annoying distraction, and people who play them are '90s throwbacks! You could call it something like 'The 1990s called, and they want their stupid big toy ukuleles back'! Or 'Slap bass is for w***ers'! I would pay cold, hard cash to see the BassChat response to that!

Normally on a well-lit street corner. Thanks for asking.

Hello basschaters Have anyone experience with this bass ??? I m very close to buy one but I can't find any info 😕 Any infos are welcome Cheers Steve

I've got a cat, which is pretty much the same thing, only less subtle.

I doubt many here feel 'attacked' by the post. It's more that the poster has spectacularly misjudged his audience, and clearly hasn't spent enough time looking around BC to appreciate that a community largely comprised of middle aged & often highly experienced musicians, many with 30-40 years of regular gigs behind them, might not be very receptive to his somewhat condescending and judgemental post! As a result he's been on the receiving end of some suitably tongue-in-cheek ribbing & light-hearted p!sstaking, and interestingly, hasn't been back!

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Or... it's a YouTuber who wants a few more hits on his video so signed up to Basschat just to plug it.

These aren't new, but I'm new here and someone told me to post them up, so...enjoy The McNuggies (mn01ppg)

Someone's sleeping outside tonight..... ....... it's me, isn't it?

That's not a parasite! That is your Lord and Master!

I remember this one time at a rehearsal, the drummer says to me "Woah, during that last song, it was cool when you did that JJ Burnel style slow-motion karate kick". I corrected him immediately, by pointing out that I was simply stepping over a guitar cable that was dangerously stretched out 2 feet above the floor. I then convened what was the first ever health & safety meeting - which I am rather proud of.

It seems it’s time to throw out a huge shout out to Mark, Ash, and Will, at Bass Direct. They’ve been looking after me so well (as always) over the past 2 weeks, and I just wanted to thank them SO much for their A1 service, their care, their time and especially their friendship. These guys ROCK!! I’ve been going to BD for over 10 years now, for everything bass related. I felt it was time that I shared my experience, and especially like so many companies, working under very difficult circumstances. They never get flustered, always listen, talk, understand, and help. Efficient, friendly, and caring. I know it sounds like a “love in”, but I just wanted to share something positive in this weir, and dark time. They deserve much recognition in my humble opinion. Anyway, pictures of my 2 new Spector purchases, soon. Stay safe. Cheers ☺️

I’ve just bought 2 simply wonderful, Spector basses. I decided upon a Euro Bolt 4, and a Euro LX 4. Both have Aguilar pickups, one with the OPB-2 preamp and one with a Tone Pump preamp. I’m completely and utterly enamoured with them both. They’ve had a basic set up, and need my preferred strings put on them, plus a small nut adjustment, but I’ve recorded with them, and they have blown me away. Stunning to play, and I just can’t believe I’ve not been down this route before. So happy, and Bass Direct have been fantastic helping me to get these incredible instruments ☺️

Zappa - An Alex Winter Film They've just been talking about it on 6music. Interestingly, Alec Winter is the actor from Bill and Ted's adventures... the one who WASN'T in The Matrix. So. Bonus.

That's classed as a standard workshop on here 😁 you are in good company 👍🏼 and will never be short of brilliant advice or opinion 👌🏼

Finally made a decision, yes, I would buy the squier mustang. Or the bronco. So I bought the TMB35

Deal. What could possibly go wrong!

Okay this is real feedback and something I can get behind. Also something that should have been obvious from the start. Condescending tone is something I truly don't get from the video (or light-hearted in the thread for that matter). And I do like that it seems to be intentionally avoiding anything actually related to music theory. I think everyone can find enough lessons about playing differently to make things interesting. There is a difference in being a relaxed and casual and being passive and boring. Not a problem for experienced players, that is true. I did check the profile and agree that signing up only to promote is a bit fishy.

The video comes across as "I'm more clever than you" but then discusses something incredibly basic. What's funny is it is boring presentation, taking over 7 minutes to tell someone else how not to be boring with only one major point being made which let's face it is very weak, not interesting or insightful. Contrast his video with Scott Devine's and its worlds away in terms of engaging presentation. There's also a million ways you can talk about being "more interesting" in terms of what you play on your instrument, not how you look, and if the content were like that there may only be two pages of scoffing and not four.

Love the look of this already, that wood combinbation is going to be a stunner. padauk and wenge are a cracking combo colour wise id say. beyond pickups any idea on electronics/controls? looking forward to seeing this come together! and +1 on working on the dining table/a workmate, a proper workshop only makes things faster, not easier do you think there's a woodworkers WAG's forum somewhere where they all meet up to complain?

As Ronnie Corbett said....”I know my place”

Y'see, the problem with this YT vid is that it would probably go down well with an audience composed in the main of peppy, young tyros, e.g. little Beppo gasps, mops brow: 'Must remember to move around, make eye contact, where's Eb on the board?' Trouble is, the average BassChatter is about 58 years-old and has either (i) played every toilet gig from Penzance to Aberdeen or (ii) never got out of the bedroom (which is fine, btw). Thusly, exhortations to wiggle around and / or wave to the audience between songs must gain little traction among those who already know it and already do it, or by predisposition won't do it, or don't need to do it because they'll never play out, or through infirmity can't do it.

So you all likely know my propensity to modify or tweak what I buy. This thread follows my tendency in that... I recent years, I have found that a lot more is about the player than the instrument (to a large degree, anyway), so I might as well buy a cheaper instrument and tweak it to my liking than hack up an expensive bass. Though I do own expensive instruments, increasingly I am getting a lot of joy from cheaper ones. Now. I became quite entranced with the sound of the Stingray in my youth, but always found they sounded worse in my hands than in someone else's. At least, until I spent about 6 months working on my right hand technique a while back. I bought and sold 5-6 Stingrays for this reason. Now, I am happy with how they sound when I play them, but it turns out I really dislike the 3EQ versions, and eventually I realised the sounds I liked best were 'older' Stingrays. I also favour Jazz width necks over Stingray or Precision necks; getting an SLO Special Stingray looks a very expensive affair. Not to be mean, but I happen to think Stingrays are mostly a one trick pony, and I can't face stumping up huge amounts of money for that, much as I like them now. So the goal became getting 'the sound' without forking out for a Stingray Classic or a vintage Stingray. So, in many ways, a Ray4 fit the bill. I bought a Ray4 a year and a half ago - the videos by JuliaPlaysBass on Youtube giving me confidence in doing so. It got about 80-90% of the way to the sound I wanted, and I played it stock for about a year. Good value for money, although I did get the frets levelled and get a new nut installed. (The original nut needed filing down to be properly playable, which I did at home, but a proper fret level by a luthier made the instrument feel just great to play). Eventually, I replaced the tuners with an old set of Hipshot Licensed Ultralites I had lying around, because the original tuners were not that great, and it felt like I was invested in the instrument after a while. That was a nice upgrade. I had to shim the Ultralite tuners to fit the holes, but it was worthwhile. I just used electrical tape, worked fine. I quite like the very practical ethic of not filling the old tuner screw holes, gives a kind of industrial look. So. As I continued to play the instrument, I realised I wouldn't mind putting more into it, as it had taken on something more personal to me. I did a lot of research using Low End Lobsters series on modding his Ray4s (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrGKPGOKp9M and the Mold Smoothie Project https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRkzMzjkD58) and ended up purchasing the John East 2 band MMSR EQ (without plate to make it cheaper) and the Aguilar AG4M. That got me 'the sound' plus a bit more, as the EQ has a slightly bigger range than the original. The install was easy - John's products are brilliant in my opinion - but I got a bit of hum out of the Aguilar, which I did not expect. I ended up shielding the pickup cavity, which seemed to do the trick. I do have a fairly electrically noisy household, so it's good at picking up issues like this. The Aguilar is a 'vintage style' Stingray pickup, so perhaps it wasn't surprising to get some vintage aspects to it, lol. So, now I had the sound. However.....the bridge had been a subtle annoyance to me that I tolerated for a long time, because the instrument was inexpensive, but replacing the bridge felt a bit wasteful to me. It's a perfectly good bridge, and I have never found the magic in a bridge change that many people talk about, though I have swapped plenty in my time. Eventually, I realised that I could try to fit an old Stingray mute set on there, which would allow some flexibility if I desired it, and also look a lot better. Bass Direct sells them for £28 shipped...so, I bought a set. Turns out, the long metal plates of the mutes fit perfectly under the existing Ray4 bridge without having to modify the bridge or bass in any way. Sweet. I spent a long time looking for inserts to put into the wood under the bridge for the mute screws to fit into, but I could not find a supplier here or in the USA for the right size. Strange, but there it is. I bought a few of different sizes just to try them, but the screws never worked right in them - either too small or too large. I dug out old pics of vintage Stingrays with the bridges and hardware removed, and it turned out that it looked like those screws simply went directly into the wood, not an insert. I also messaged Low End Lobster to ask him if that is what he had done with his bass, and he said he simply screwed them directly into the wood as well, and it worked fine. So, one 4mm drill bit and a lot of measuring later, this is how it ended up... It's not perfect - the hole I drilled for the screw through the bridge under the G string was 1mm off where I wanted it to go, even though I used a centre punch - but it looks right, and furthermore, the mutes are totally useable and the sound is very cool. Even with some candle wax to lubricate the screws when I screwed them in to the bass, they are a slow turn, so it's not instant adjustability, but a minute or two will allow me to return it to the 'non-muted' sound. The finished article. I need no more mods. This has been a real labour of love, over a long period of time, and I am really happy with it. It's cheaper than any of the options I might otherwise have had to consider given my requisites, but it's difficult to recommend it if you're not as picky about necks/EQ etc as I am. A secondhand SBMM Ray34 or similar is better value, though those don't have the forearm contour that I think is critical either. But you get the gist. I think I spent around £600 all together, and it looks and sounds great. This is now, finally, my 'Stingray'. Pete

Ring of Fire - Johnny Cash

OK Well i have spent the last three days making a 1/2 scale bass out of none tone woods, well woods i personally wouldn't choose to have a bass made out of. pictures attached. Looks quite nice but sounds stinky poo. some of you may point out, but it has no pick up or E.Q. So this just goes to prove If you use none Tone woods you had better concentrate on getting a good Pick up and pre-amp in the thing. otherwise ya lost. This is for my two year old grand daughter as she destroys Kiddie acoustic guitars by standing on them. Here is the sales pitch. Lime body ( basswood ) to you. actually an old chopping board. Nice English aged Oak top , from my Fathers wood collection Pine neck, with Light flamed Oak board and matching head stock. Padauk bridge and bone nut, left overs from a Shuker build course. Only had three old machine heads so its a 3 string bass. So that's it, If you want a real bass get someone who knows what he is doing and ask for some nice tone wood.

You're getting nothing until you apologise for throwing up in my walking boots this morning.

No. It's Teebles!

I don’t think Bill Wyman did too badly out of just standing there and not smiling..... (saved his energy for “off the stage”, maybe?)

Yeah,I participated in the crowdfunding for this over 6 years ago 😂 Actually, the funding was to digitise the material in the vault and the documentary was a parallel project utilising the vault material. We got the doc a few weeks ago, I thought it was well worth the wait, there's a lot of stuff in there I had never seen before. If you're a Zappa fan, there's probably not a lot you didn't know already but it's a great overview of the man and his music.

I got slightly damp just reading that 😁

Only if you wear a big badge saying " I IS TEEBS!" If you just put your real name on your badge then I will have no idea who you are.

Like most advertising, it seeks to create insecurity and then offers a cure. Do you welcome parasites into your home?

Cruising through Romford listening to the cool ruler

Yes, it was in the east wing which I only use in the summer months..... honest. It’s only a cheap copy that I was given a couple of years ago that has been at the back of a cupboard behind other stuff since we moved. If I’d remembered about it then I would have used it as a template for the short scale Tele bass I’m making rather than have hunted round the web for a plan!!! Doh! Should have the Telebass ready for this bash.

The majority of you preferred the fingerboard extending to the pickup. So that’s what I did! Also did the fret positions markers

I would have to say, on the one hand, they do, and on the other, they don't. If he'd come on here with a vid about using a particle accelerator to analyse the sonic properties of a slab body Precision we'd have been all 'That's so amazing, like' and sending him boxes of chocolates.

Still annoyed I bought the wrong URL for this site and now there’s tons of bass players here 😖

Spector fans! Hope you are all fine and staying safe. This showed up in my YT feed today. Cool limited run Spectors with Ziricote tops. I have never heard of that wood but I think it looks great. I really like what the Ish guys are doing. In the video, Jesse is playing a NS-5. However, I really dig the the Spectorbird with the pale moon ebony FB. 😍 Hope they'll make a video featuring that one too.

I am a Jazz musician. I never play on a stage big enough to move around on. And nobody notices the bass player unless s/she catches fire. Well known fact. Also, eye contact doesn't matter when the whole audience is wearing varifocals.

I don't think that jigging around makes you an interesting bass player, and standing still doesn't make you boring. What does make a boring bass player is tedious note and rhythm choices, and perhaps more importantly, not Looking Like You Mean It. Any fool can bounce about uncoolly dad-dancing, but not every fool can stand stock still and absolutely kill it, like say Ron Mael or Kraftwerk! And any fool can move all over the stage wearing exactly the same clothes as they wear every other day (i.e. tshirt and jeans), but not every fool actually Looks The Part, like Bootsy!