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Soller and Sivcak is not a name that many recognise unless you know your European basses. I played an OSC 2 a while back and it was killer. The bass I'm hoping to acquire soon has Sadowsky pickups and a Mike Pope 3 band pre.The middle one.

There's one of them trying to get me to join his band. He's seriously full on anti vax and thinks just about everything is a conspiracy. I told him I've just started a job at Astrazenica so don't have time for a band with all the illuminati meetings after work. He didn't reply to that message, I'm not sure if he realised I'm taking the fosters.

This is possibly the most important piece of advice.

It is said that some of the Impressionists, such as Cezanne and Van Gough, deliberately skewed the perspective in their 'fruit on a table' paintings to create the illusion that the fruit or crockery is just about to fall off the table and thus engage the viewer who instinctively mentally reaches forward to catch it: Then again, it might be just that they couldn't line things up accurately.... But enough culture! Back to guitar building It is with shock and apologies that I have to confess that two of the points on those diamonds are indeed lined up! Clearly, my illusionary techniques need some brushing up. But fear not. Next time I do any diamond holes, I will do absolutely everything within my abilities to ensure that none of those points line up.

I’ll make The Avengers with my superpowers one day… Ok, ok, maybe a bit part in Justice League… Alright, an extra in another Suicide Squad reboot. IMG_2013.MP4

Washburn Taurus t14

If they are antivax conspiracy idiots I’d be quitting the band on principle.

Just whipped out my Roadster and a couple of DiMarzio-equipped basses & can confirm dimensions are identical - the Roadster P units are maybe 0.5mm wider front-to-back, otherwise they are the same. Unless current Model P/Model J dimensions have changed from the 70s/80s originals, they should drop straight in. Only caveat is I didn't remove them so can't confirm the depths are identical, but considering the Ibby units are otherwise clones, it'd seem unlikely. In other news, completely forgot quite how pretty my RS924 is - must take some pics that do it justice!

How about just 'vocalist' Dave? 😆

Well we have a band meeting tomorrow, where the drummers reluctance to gig will be discussed. He's already said he'll be happy to sit in at rehearsals until a new drummer is recruited. Now all we need is to find a decent drummer who is as committed to gigging as the rest of the band is.

I would have thought a drummer with out a kick pedal could be a good thing, bit like a keyboard player with no left arm, more space for the bass

Cards on the table for everyone. Just because you’re not gigging don’t assume that the project has no merit; the benefits to mental health of leaving the house once a week to do something that you love shouldn’t be underestimated. It may be that you all decide to wait for the drummer, and enjoy a weekly meet up and bit of a social, or you get a different drummer in. No good can come from keeping secrets from only some of the band, and I think it’s unfortunate that the drummist has put you in this position.

Neon Meate Dream Of A Octafish - Captain Beefheart

I think the first ones he assembled were from already made parts - but not all pre EB Stingrays are heavy - I don’t recall mine being heavy although it was about 40 yrs ago when I bought it so such things would probably not have been at the front of my mind - the main selling points were that I wanted one, loved the sound of the instrument and it had a very easy neck to play (the lack of the latter was one of the things that put me off my previous heart’s delight, a Precision). Moving to EBMM Stingrays, I find the 90s models have a slightly more chunky neck - still great to play - but the later production and current Stingray Specials somehow have totally sublime necks - in my view it’s a combination of the attention to detail (they’re all hand finished), the roasted neck, the finish on the neck and the profile/width combination. In terms of weight, my Classic Stingray (made April 2010 from very early production) is 9.75 lbs. My Old Smoothie (also slab bodied), from 2016 is lighter - about 9 lbs. I have a 2014 mahogany bodied Sabre Classic and that’s also about 9 lbs - as is my 2007 Stingray 4HH. More recently, the Stingray Specials are generally light in comparison, even the 5 strings - my 4HH and 5HH are a little over 8 lbs. My last two EBMM basses (Stingray Special long scale Tim Commerford signature - passive) and Bongo 5HH Crescendo are just under 8 lbs and 7.75 lbs. From this I’d conclude that the more recent production is lighter generally than the 90s/2000 models. However I would point out I have an SR5 which is between 10 and 11 lbs - but has excellent balance on a strap - using a well padded strap this bass is fine for me on a gig - it sounds and looks great as well - lovely figured ash body/maple neck. 10-11 lbs (2003 5 string/ash bodied bass) Under 8 lbs (2021 basswood bodied bass) Just under 8 lbs (2021 ash bodied bass)

Even the Sterling isn’t a lightweight Ped, I’m on my 3rd and it’s the lightest I’ve had at smack on 9lb. With the smaller body, headstock and neck profile you’d have thought it’d be a fair bit better than it is. I’m sure there are some lightweight ones out there, maybe it’s just keep looking. That said I still think the Sterling is one of the nicest neck profiles out there.

I've just discovered youtube shorts... so that's what I'm spending the next few days doing!

59 min cycle you say? In which case a SupaFunk pedal is entirely justified.

I never really saw the appeal of a relic bass myself until I found a brand new Vintage V4 Icon for a steal at £200 so I nabbed it. The relic-ed parts on the neck and fittings were really authentic looking but the body was terrible, looks much better after I took to it with a scalpel and some sandpaper though. Would I buy one again? ... Meh? (picture on the stand is before I made it better... or worse depending on your view)

Mixing cabs is always a compromise. EQ settings cannot be perfect for both. Sell the 4x10 and get something that gives you what you need in a single cab, and then if you still want more, get another identical one.

Saw Level 42 last night in Cambridge and Mark started with his original and then a newer Supernatural later on the gig. I'm not sure whether my ears became fatigued but the earlier bass had a more aggressive hi mids growl to it. This could've been down to EQ setting on the bass but I definitely preferred the extra presence of the early one shown here. A fantastic night; Mark's playing was as good as I can ever remember with Mike and the rest of the band super tight.

I've a few sig basses , all Peaveys. Not one was bought due to the "artist" involved 🙂 Peavey Sarzo and the follow up RSB model , Ellefson Scorpio DE, Jeff Berlin Palaedium, Randy Jackson's RJ-IV and finally the Bromberg B-Quad. All decent enough ; the stand out sig from Peavey wasn't really sold as a sig, just had the fella's initials. Tim Landers designed TL series. Three on the right ,not the pointy one👍

My fav setting at the moment for Gary Numan style sounds is the Acid preset; Dry @ 3 o'clock Synth @ 3 Sens @ 12 Ctrl @ 10 The ctrl setting is less critical on this preset.

Just purchased a Mono Bass Sleeve. I have been looking for a decent bag or case for my 32" ACG Recurve. 32" is a difficult scale length to find cases or bags for. I tried the more expensive M80 but the bass moved significantly when the case was closed. The Bass Sleeve however holds the bass really snugly, no movement at all. The Bass Sleeve is beautifully made and perfect for this particular bass. I have another 32" bass and two more on the way, I may have found my brand!

There's a drum chat? How do they hear each other?

I have quite a bit of home built gear (basses, cabs, pedals, guitar amps) which is inevitably going to be British. I do like the idea of supporting smaller quality makers wherever you can afford to, but I'm not patriotic about it.

I know I come to this from a different angle as my background is classical... I'm probably weird, but I enjoy theory and that's not just about various flavours of 7th chords, but things like writing four part SATB harmony, realising a figured bass, score analysis... Do you need to be able to identify a Neapolitan 6th chord? No, you don't, but theory and understanding how/why harmony works is useful information and will help with understanding why some things work and some things don't. As I've said before, I don't have issues reading music and all the music I currently perform involves reading - I currently play cello in two amateur orchestras, and bari or tenor sax in a sax group. You don't need loads of theory to get along as a player, but having some understanding will help. and it can be useful when you encounter problmes with a part and need to work out what's wrong with it when the music publisher/editor has got it wrong.

Andy is the Chuck Norris of bass identification.

Theory is the easiest part - you learn it once and it's done. It's not an evolving, continuous or subtle process. The hard part for me is with ear training, consistently recognising intervals and notes on fretless..

I think The Man-Machine is my favourite album but this live version of Numbers is hard to beat…

From all over the world. Purposely limiting to just UK stuff is as cringy as the Americans and their ‘USA or nothing’ approach.

Like he said. 115s in general don't add any low end to 410s, and they have lower sensitivity and maximum output. That said, where 410s are concerned the Orange OBC isn't exactly stellar, being loaded with entry level Eminence Beta 10 drivers. I'd be looking at replacing it, rather than trying to augment it.

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A+B mix bypass setting. Put your drives in the A loop. Nothing in the B loop. Keep the LS-2 on permanent. When you kick in the drives, you’ll still have clean bass in the B channel. You can tweak the A and B volumes to suit your taste. Great pedal. loads of other stuff you can do with it too.

Be kind. Ask him to tell the others within say, a week, or you will have to because it's getting in the way of making arrangements. He might actually want to back out but finds it easier to tell you as the new guy than his long standing mates. He might even be expecting you to tell them and might be surprised you haven't. Doesn't have to be an aggressive conversation - ask him in a way that doesn't close any doors in the future.

He should be telling them.