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HNY...Our band Fynnius Fogg is 50 years old (same members) how did that happen? ...the secret is lots of basses & gear keeps you young!

Nothing to shout about, I know, but in 1978, I was working on Cruise ships around the Caribbean. We (onboard musicians) often, when ashore in Miami, would drink with American musicians in local bars. They played and introduced music to us to listen to, which we then picked up from local shops to bring home. Or on occasion, even better, New York record stores. One of the albums, was the one in question, 'Streamline'. You know nothing about me so please, do not question my honesty when I'm just trying to converse musically with you. Because of the Web, listening to music is instant these days. Back then, it wasn't. If you were over in the States, or you mates came back with records, you got to hear less chart orientated American music a little earlier. Probably earlier than people (like yourself) who marched up and down Denmark Street or, danced around sparkly handbags with their mates, wearing Platforms and Flares, during Discotheque competitions in 1978, Enjoy the New Year celebrations, Ol' Bean... 👍

I decided to evade the GAS 2022 challenge on a technicality, and ordered this yesterday PM, ETA next Wed.

Welcome to Basschat You'll have gathered that this has been discussed a lot in these pages so it might be worth using the search facility to find some of the older threads. Equally we forget sometimes that we were all new here once so I'll attempt a quick answer. The gist of this is that size is only one of the things that contributes to the 'sound' of a speaker. It's important, but only a small part of what makes the overall sound. Not all 15's sound the same by a very long way and neither do all 10's. It's not even true that bigger speakers have more bass than small ones; my 5" hi-fi cabs go lower than my 12" bass speakers. So, it's not a very informative debate, most of your answers will be of the 'I've got an xxxxx speaker and I love it it's a 10/12/15 so that's the size I like. The best advice is to approach speaker buying with an open mind and listen to as many speakers as you can, then choose the one you like irrespective of the size of the driver/s.

We were a 4 piece pop PYE record band in the 70's (when you were payed properly! and could afford to import some great semipro kit) in the 90's switched to fundraising ...in 2019 FF recieved the Queens award for voluntary service and became a 3 piece (G B & D) the keyboard player retired... we now perform simple pop covers..2 x 1hr 15min sets, (silent stage no backline or monitors) and finish @ 10:30....Coco & bed...ha...planning 23 to 25 gigs this year (if allowed) https://www.facebook.com/groups/156699317688562

Use the search function on Basschat as to 10 / 12 / 15 and 'sound/tone' because this thread is going to feel distinctly confusing very soon!

Your cables continue to speak for you!

Hollow-less and semi fretted?

Favourite purchase of the year, is by far this Hohner B Bass.... absolute steal, and a joy to play. Bargain of the year is the TC BG250 behind it..... £40.... and it sounds fabulous.

Nooooooooooo!!! 😱

I went left field in the end.... This was drawn to my attention and BINGO!!

Afternoon and HNY. This is a long one - for good reason - and a copy/repost from elsewhere here. Seems an apt question to put to the masses. Anyhow, wife put the radio on, first track for 2022 is/was the final 30 seconds of Le Freak by Chic. There's a story that springs to mind every time I hear this song, although I'd actually also say with some certainty that, like Stairway To Heaven, I've never heard it all the way through. Back when all this was fields and I was in my teens, I played in a punk band called The Crime; I was in the 6th form at Strodes College, Egham, Surrey. Strodes was ex-grammar, the only grammar school kids there though were about 40 of Egham's most gifted, the 6th form were a few hundred oiks. I'd been approached by a couple of kids from the 5th year asking if I was the bass player they'd heard about ('I don't know, am I?'), at which point they told me they were playing the college's Valentine's disco three days time and could I play with them. I declined, they asked me again later in the day, so I said yes, jammed with them the next day and did the gig the next night (Friday). The Friday night arrived, I borrowed some khaki combats from my dad and tore up an old t-shirt; the main hall was rammed, the front half about 150 people dancing to music supplied by a local disco guy everyone knew as Fat Malcolm. Back of the hall and outside maybe 200+ punks. (I spoke to a mate earlier, he said there were loads outside too.) A few minutes before our allotted showtime, we were already on stage, standing behind these big curtains (45 minutes of covers by 999, Pistols, Rich Kids etc.); Fat Malcolm is playing Le Freak and making a Tony Blackburn style comment about, 'This is Chic and Le Freak, after this live music from The Criiiiime!'. Everything was live on stage as the chaos started. I distinctly remember our singer shouting, 'We're already 'ere ain't we?' into a live mic, a power-chord ringing out and the drummer trying to climb up a fairly high riser after throwing the curtain opening switch (he was later berated by staff for unauthorized use of electronic equipment). I peered through a crack in the curtain and witnessed the punk guys rushing to the stage, while the disco-dancers hi-jinked it to the to the back of the hall. I glanced over to Fat Malcolm who was desperately trying to get the lids on his disco-twin decks while all manner of stuff was being thrown (and spat) at both him and us. The stylus on one of the decks was skating across Le Freak under a hail of bottles and phlegm. I was laughing uncontrollably for 45 minutes; I knew right then that this was, after barely playing two years, my happy place and I'd always find happiness in music, whatever the genre. I remember little of the gig aside from the sea of punks pogoing, gobbing and stage diving, wads of phlegm covering the stage and the singer. At one point someone threw a Party Seven can (full of wee) that rose spinning and spraying. Arching away, it sailed past me and hit the drummer full in the chest, knocking him off his riser. We didn't miss a note. So there you are. While I've never actually heard Le Freak all the way through, but just a few bars of it remind me of this.

i met Huw, great guy ,, do not tell me where he lives ,, coz i will just grab that bass off him , one time ;D lol so ,, i did by a bass guys ,, no longer have it ,, drum roll ,, it had everything i wanted , not fender , at all in shape twin octave, that was well machined / made very stanley clarke looking alway remember it having 2 pick ups not 1 tho ,,,, & a decent price for a beginner The Dan Armstrong Sliding Pick up ,, The Red Imperial Players 1st Bass

I don’t plan on adding any cheese to it… I might play a bit of cheese on it!! I gave it a 1200 grit wet and dry sanding with oil yesterday and it’s currently curing so little action at the moment I’m afraid. Should be another update in a day or two

Glen Matlock played a Rick, some of the time at least. I think Sid might've used a Precision, but more for hitting punters than playing. Re the funkage, it wasn't my scene during the era @Bean9seventyis relating, but I did become a massive MK/L42 fan/copyist from about '83/4 and remember he was such a regular interviewee in the old Making Music freesheet that it became known colloquially as Mark King Music. The point is, many of the anecdotes in this thread were related by the man himself in those interviews so me (and probably one or two other BCers) are familiar with the fact he was a drummer from the IoW who blagged a job selling basses in Macaris, & that he got his first JayDee because he couldn't afford an Alembic but an s/h JayDee turned up in the shop, and it looked a bit like an Alembic. Apropos of nothing - I did buy a Washburn B20 from Macaris during the time he would've been working there, and it might or might not have been him wot sold me it. The point however, is that I sold that bass a couple of years later because the position of the neck pickup right up against the end of the fretboard made it nigh-on impossible to play Mr Pink on. And that's the circle of life, or something.

I wonder where your bass is? Is it near your ankles? The position of the bass influences the bend of your wrist etc. This can have a bearing.

Hi Phil, Thanks for letting me know how it goes here and your thoughts on speakers. I’ll search here and dig some stuff up instead. Just seems hard to find info as there are millions of threads and results when searching, most of them irrelevant, but I’ve only just arrived 😬

I made it too!

Your Italian style, flair, and panache, is obviously wasted on Basschat! 🇮🇹

So 2022 starts off with deja vu, and not in a good way. Getting sucked in this time I am not. 🙄

That fretboard is hideous. Seriously, how much would it cost them to chop the fingerboard off at the nut like everyone else?

Yeuch. I blame Fender for starting the rot. 😉

Keep the votes coming, guys ... 😂😂😂

Blasphemy!!!!!!

Not sure about anyone else, but I made it.

Mingus - Blues and Roots Prince - The Rainbow Children Meshell Ndegeocello - Peace Beyond Passion Miles Davis - Kind of Blue

Picking up Monday. Just ran into it, the timing was there. It's been modded with an extra transformer, to handle the extra draw created by six Tung Sol KT-120 power tubes. That's a bigger tube than stock specs allow, but the mod brings it within tolerance. I'm going to plug an Epiphone Thunderbird Classic Pro into it, and run out of a Bag End-loaded SWR Big Ben (1x18). Photos to follow, and hopefully some sound clips, because I'm pretty sure this is going to have been worth doing. This is how I'm starting the new year... This is novel indeed. I'm pretty pumped.

My Tribute LB-100 arrived yesterday. Too many whiskies to give it a proper go yet, but I did pop it on the bathroom scales as promised @bigthumb 3.9kg = 8lb 10oz Bathroom scales mind, so probably not the most accurate measure, but that's what I have for you.

Oh god. it’s the covid of bass topics.

Best quit while you're behind @Silvia Bluejay! 😉💋

Regarding reversing the coils on the P pickup on a Yamaha BB, whenever I play a BB2000 (classic bass) I am reminded what a noticeably lean sound it has. There is no getting away from the fact that it is not a warm- sounding bass. Whether that is because of the reverse P pickup is a matter for conjecture, but it is definitely a thing. The 1024/ 2024, by way of contrast and for example, has a fundamentally different sound, with a big cushion of bottom end. Whatever BB you customise, are you sure you want to upset the tonal balance? Just playing devils advocate, but are you sure you it will be better rather than just different? What is it about the existing sound that you are dissatisfied with? Why do you think reversing the P will remedy that dissatisfaction? For me , one of the great things about the Yamaha BB is the remarkable balance between the P and J pickups compared to a traditional Fender- style PJ. I've no idea how they did it but a long time ago they recognised the problem and sorted it in a way that still eludes most other manufacturers. Much kudos to Yamaha for that.

Now exploring low keys, 3 Hohner Thunderbirds C,A&G and a Dabell (F)so far. Collection up to 28 and counting. Confident enough to open mic and busk now, when covid permits. mostly diatonics but a full set of Chromatic CX12s as well as a couple of Tremolos. Early New Year ambitions are Stone Fox Chase and Orange Blossom Express.

I’m fairness, I am just stirring the pot - I have both 😜 (sorry for the derail, I am LOVING following this thread)

Thank you!! I ended up going for an Eich T900. I had very good memory of it, I had it a couple years ago and loved how portable it is and super super clear and responsive - this suits me considering I'm using the HX Effects for all the colouring (effects, Ampeg/Sansamp/Darkglass drives...). I like Aguilar but had the feeling Eich would always give me a 'blanker' canvas to paint on. On that note, I love the look of those royal purple Aguilars but haven't seen even regular 2x12's second hand.... and that's a hurting £1100 cheapest I've found...! I've seen a Barefaced Big Twin II and I'll be going for it. It is a 900w behemoth at 4ohm alongside the Eich, but a 'better than FRFR' cab that I can even throw IR's through from the HX Effects - that way I can either colour or not or change my cabs setup or just use it without IR's/cabsims with the Big Twin II... after all it can even be used as a PA with that 30hz-20khz range... and I was offered it second hand which saves me a good pinch, £825 for a £1310 cab with cover.... I can't be more pleased! Now I'm just doing maths to see if I can fit it in the boot of the CX-5 comfortably alongside the bass Best, Ander.

I stayed in touch with Thumper after his Finnbass demise.

Strawbs

Looks like a fire hazard, but makes me sound better than I am.

Not seen Tim around for a while

Well well well, impatience rears it's ugly head. In an ideal world this, as mentioned above, would get another couple of coats of lacquer. But I'm home and want to finish it. I flatted as much as I dared and then infilled any little low spots with superglue. Superglue polishes up nicely and it was mainly along the borders between differing woods that needed filling. In certain light you can just see the difference between lacquer and superglue, but as it's over woodgrain, not a solid colour, it's very difficult to see unless you know what you're looking for. A, you can barely see it. B, it's an old Kay that was free. C, I need to stop being so fussy. 😁 Now the body/neck is done I need to do something to stabilise those pickup casings. More superglue I expect, or some black resin, depends what I've got at home. I've got a Wilkinson bridge with brass ferrules in my parts box which will suit and a set of gold speed knobs. I'm sure I've got enough spare looms to be able to renew the wiring and pots as well. The TRC and nut have been polished and lacquered. Just the neck and frets to sort then. Horrible indoor lighting photos.

A whole page and no mention of @BigBeefChief !

This thread is like trying to do a Rubik’s Cube on acid whilst riding a rubber roller coaster,,,

bit of a story... A drummer invites me for a session a couple of weeks ago but i catch a cold so we agree to postpone. So we finally get together last Friday at the conservatory and he brings me to a room with two big cases with double basses inside. I don’t even take them out, they both look decent, i just strum both and choose one. We get to playing and i like the feel and the sound so i have a look and it turns out it was made by the great German master luthier Hoerst Gruenert. And i remember meeting Mr.G almost 20 years ago at a bass workshop in Graz where he exhibited some of his basses and even made some repairs for people on the spot. I liked his basses but they were way to expensive for my student pocket. So i enjoy the bass and the session is good, nice players, fun tunes. Over the weekend i have a look at the Gruenert webpage and fantasize and i also remember seeing 2 Gruenert basses on the webpage of a local luthier. I check again, a used 4 and a used 5 string for sale at 18,5k… Comes monday i’m browsing the local secondhand webmarket, a bass pops up with 3 bad photos, 2 of them of the Lion head top of the bass. Description says it’s a 1979 Gruenert. There’s no price set, just option to bid with no reserve price. And it’s less than an hour away. I write to the seller asking for better photos, more details and get a reply saying he’s not the owner, he’s just selling. The owner passed away recently, the family is selling off his gear. The first bidder says 500. By the end of the day three people are bidding, it goes up to 1,5k. I’m not beeding, i’m checking and waiting. Tuesday morning i wake up sick with a bad cold. But i nevertheless call Mr. Gruenert at his workshop in Penzberg Germany, he confirms that he did and still does Lion head top on his basses, might really be his, flamed maple sounds right... I get another answer from the seller and he uploads good photos. It’s the real thing, it has the insignia on the back and inside, all the marks. We agree to meet on Thursday afternoon. The bids go up and are around 2k in the evening. I wake up Wednesday morning even more sick. I manage to organize a car from a friend so I could drive up as i don’t feel like taking the trains. The bidding goes on and is almost at 3k at the end of the day. Thursday morning... one bidder dropped out, two left. One at 1200 (?), the other at 3150. I collect the car, pack my family and drive out. We get to the place, the seller opens the case and there it is. A Gruenert, no doubt. It's been used and played and has some scars and a small opening between the lower rib and back, nothing major except… a major crack on the top going from the bottom up. It looks like it’s been there for a while, it will need attention sooner or later. But otherwise the bass looks, feels and sounds great, no rattling, pure sonic beauty arco and pizz. There’s dust on the soundpost so it hasn’t been worked on in a long time which means it’s stable. That crack on the top is somehow a plus, because it makes a great point for price negotiation. It is a problem but it has a solution, has been proven over hundreds of years. The bidding stopped at 3.3k he says. A short negotiation follows after which he takes out a french bow, a bow case, a DPA mic and points out to the quality case/bag and bass buggie transportation wheels. He’d rather sell it all as a package as he doesn’t want to deal with multiple sales and buyers. I don’t need those things except for the case maybe so i can bring it home (forgot to take my case...). The advertised item was the bass alone without the extras. A even shorter negotiation follows and i’m packing the bass and the rest of the stuff and putting it in the car! Christmas really came early! I don’t mind making a great deal, but in my eyes this has destiny written all over it. I'm also a bit superstitious so maybe i shouldn't be writing this but i'm extremely happy and wanted to share the story with fellow BCers. There's a great Gruenert in the house and i’m going to play it now. Happy holidays all!