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Showing content with the highest reputation on 27/12/25 in all areas
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Received a message from my sister in law asking me to email as she wanted me to do a favour. I replied positively, and then received this. It immediately smelt a bit odd, then I discovered my wife had also received the same email (allegedly from her sister) Contacted her sister, who told us that she'd just discovered that everyone in her address book had just received the same message 🙁 Be careful out there.7 points
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Thanks for everyone's help, it has been super helpful and I do really appreciate it. As a side note, my daughter has taken up bass and as a first bass, I bought her the HB Mustang and I am super impressed with quality of it, it is a really good bass for the money, in fact way better for the money than expected. So I'm going to take the plungexand buy the HB MV-5PJ. For just over £200, I cant really go wrong as a tester into the world of 5 string bass.6 points
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After a rethink on moving on the H90 and a recent Bassrig purchase, this re-jig is working out very well.6 points
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Yes. Yes, I do.6 points
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My signature sound is to play everything slightly out of tune and out of time.4 points
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Great pickups and bloody loud too 😁 Some folk with shallow pickup cavities moan the Entwistles are too tall. Solution. Dot of paint on bottom of pole piece machine screws, drop into the cavity. Paint marks where the poles will land, take drill and bore holes. Job done 👍3 points -
I play in two tributes; one I do purely as I love the band (Cheap Trick) and the 2nd I joined as I liked the band (INXS) and it was an ideal opportunity to play better/bigger gigs (but not necessarily for more money). A couple of observations. Be sure you like the material, nothing worse than playing a couple of hours of stuff you don't like. Network with anyone you know in a tribute band, you'll likely get any gig/band through contacts. Be prepared (if you aren't already) to use IEM and compromise on 'your' sound because you may be doing gigs where you have a 15-30 minute turnaround with other bands. Don't take for granted you'll be getting good money; we've done gigs where I'd have been paid more for a pub covers gig. Some gigs 'might' end up being percentages of ticket sales (your band can of course refuse these). If you choose to do a tribute that is often covered, you'd better be significantly better than the local competition. If you choose a less obvious tribute, you could end up with very few gigs... it's a fine line. The singer/frontperson is where it is at (unless it is something like VH), so you'd be a numpty to join a band that doesn't have that main ingredient. If you elect to play 'Fake Festivals' you might need to travel considerable distances for gigs (does anyone in the band work on a Fri/Sat/Sun?), you are likely to be ofeered a series of gigs and you can't cherry pick otherwise the organiser will need to work twice as hard... and they don't like that!3 points
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Very much this^^^^ and who knows you from seeing you play in other bands. That is not to say that advertising on Join My Band, etc doesn’t work too (I got my current gig through JMB) but the ‘network’ is where a large percentage of gigs come from.3 points
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I chase a tone which is clean, bright, active, "hi-fi", plenty of upper mids. One man's meat is another man's poison and all that. How boring would it be if we all had the same tonal preferences!3 points
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In case you didn’t know (many already do), I highly highly recommend putting “Thrust Bearings” onto your tuning screws….. it massively improves the tuning accuracy and ease of use. Many already know, but in case you don’t, it cost a couple of quid, and is a game changer.3 points
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Precision. Flats. Tone control only just on. Valve preamp, gain at 1 o'clock. Slightly more bass than middle and slightly more mid than treble. Pair of 15s. To my ears, a nice big, fat sound with a good deal of heft but good definition.3 points
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Here is a pre Ernie Ball Musicman Sabre. Serial number C0003xx which dates it between 1979-1981. AlI original except the d-tuner ( original is in the case). All electronics and the truss rod working as they should and the neck is straight. Pretty decent condition given its age. See photos for the few flaws; scuffed headstock (actually not too bad, the picture is worse than the reality!); aging on the tuners; mark on the fretboard and the worn section of the neck. Frets ok but a couple might need repair, burn mark on the bridge humbucker, small scratch on the body, scratching to the pick guard (obviously) and a couple of rusty screws. Hiscox case included is fully functional but there are a couple of scratches. Neck: Bolt-on maple, 34” scale, maple fretboard with 21 frets; 3-bolt, nut width around 1.625”–1.67”. Pickups: Dual humbuckers with exposed pole pieces (large 3/8” alnico magnets on bridge pickup. Electronics: Active 2-band EQ (bass/treble boost/cut), master volume; 3-way toggle selector, phase switch (for out-of-phase tones), and treble boost switch. Powered by 9V battery, 3+1 headstock tuner layout. 19mm string spacing at the bridge. Weight between 9-11bs. I can take a more precise weight if anyone wants it in a couple of days. Price excluded shipping. Currently I don’t see one of these cheaper online. No trades, unless you got a very good Yamaha. Merry Christmas to all fellow Basschatters. Keep playing and in good health. I wish you all well for the New Year. Regards David3 points -
Made in Japan Metallic black 9 lbs 6 in weight 24 frets Rosewood finger board Frets in good condition JBE P/J pickups I had the electrics changed to a Glockenklang 2 band preamp a couple of months ago as the original was temperamental (it is included. If you know what you are doing with a soldering iron you might be able to get this back to original spec). Some chips but nothing major Gig bag Pointy headed goodness It’s the first bass I’ve ever had that just ‘hangs’ right. No reaching with my left hand. Right hand placement is just ‘right’. I’m only selling as I’m going to have major difficulty paying my mortgage and bills and I’m not in a band, so it’s this or my cheaper, improved (bridge, pickups) Squier VM Jaguar V, but the Charvel will go more towards the bills.2 points -
This came up as a served advertisement while I was shopping for new strings (don’t ask). It seems like you can pick up a brand new Fazley DB kit for £200. https://www.bax-shop.co.uk/double-bass/fazley-b-sb-900-4-4-double-bass-with-gig-bag-bow-and-rosin?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=ADC_Bax_UK_NBD_Shopping_Own-Brand_bucket2&utm_id=23191023039&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23191023039&gclid=Cj0KCQiApL7KBhC7ARIsAD2Xq3AioZBKqiKZNwZrsYRae76SKQskh5g9HxzM_AoZY15DVkeyQSFswmMaAnwVEALw_wcB2 points
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This sucks. I am sorry to hear it.2 points
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The GP12's are reasonably complicated amps. Probably why I prefer GP7's but I do have a series 6 GP12 and a 250 GP12 SMX, both hum free. If I had a penny for every minute I spent trying to track down a hum on a GP12 I'd probably have quite a few quid by now. There are at least three power supply points that have smoothing caps, the output board, the tube circuit, and the pre-amp board. Dublier caps on the output boards are in my experience very durable. Unless they are obviously leaking or bulging they don't usually cause problems even after 20-30 years. Not to say they can't cause issues. Worn dirty jacks and loose or tarnished ground points are very common noise generators on these amps after many years and IMHO always worth a check, especially the back board, before getting into scraping hot glue from boards and components! 🙂2 points
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yeah - as noted above, it's all about the contacts. My main band atm is an Ozzy/ Sabbath trib that I've been doing for 12 years or so. We started small and have built it slowly over that time, but due to the sad news in July, things have been mental. Also through some of the contacts I've made, I pick up work depping with a Metallica trib show among others. IMO You're better off finding an iconic band that ideally doesn't tour here or very rarely comes here and forming a band around that. JMB can be useful as can forums similar to this2 points
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Yes there are some 'genre' tributes but I think it can be trickier to pitch. For instance, if you did a Britpop show, you would somehow need to differentiate your act from a thousand pub bands knocking out covers of Oasis, Pulp, Blur etc. It's important to have a unique selling point (USP). If all this sounds very business-oriented, that's because it is!2 points
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To add to this and illustrate just one of the points above, you don't necessarily need to "tribute" a specific artist, there are two (that I know of) acts out there in direct competition that tribute the genre that is the punk and new wave scene (1976-83), there's Punk Off! and rePunK'd. In some cases they play the same venues but well spaced on the calendar. Both have well-produced showreels and they are very savvy with social media. Ticket prices get up to 35 quid for theatres and the amount of graft that goes into the production, planning and stagecraft exceeds that of a function/covers band by an order of magnitude. There's up front investment as a business proposition long before any profits of ticket sales come in and at that level someone needs to be "on it" pretty much full time.2 points
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Be aware that is a long and expensive road. You need to pick an artist with enough well-known material (with maybe some album 'deep cuts') to fill a 2-hour show, and a strong enough base of diehard fans and/or well-heeled (usually mature) punters to pay for tickets. Some acts really require lookalikes as well as soundalikes. If the material is heavily produced/orchestrated, you may need synched tracks to fill out the sound. Then you'll want a professional-quality showreel for you or your booking agent to send out to venues. If a venue already has a tribute to your chosen artist, they may not wish to take a chance on an alternative. Just some things to think about...2 points
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I think this could be a good shout. If you go down this route my advice would be to make sure you have your key ingredients in place early. I spent 4-6 months (with a friend) rehearsing, planning and putting together an Aerosmith tribute and we were so keen and over the moon with the guitarist chemistry, drummer, band name and sound that we were ploughing ahead without the crucial ingredient, Tribute Steven Tyler. We auditioned a lot of singers (male and female) and we always thought that it would just be matter of time, we never got there and didn't have a Plan B. We could have taken one of the auditioned singers and easily done something else very good but all of us were fixated on Aerosmith. We found out the hard way why there aren't many Aerosmith tributes around. I would drop everything to be in a good Aerosmith tribute (sorry, current bandmates). I'd also love to do a Pearl Jam tribute, I'd get to wear Vans and play my Hamer every gig. Having an idea of what tribute you'd like to be in and knowing all the obvious bangers off pat gets you off the blocks.2 points
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Never played in a trib band myself, but most seem to be put together by people who are particular fans of the act & personally influenced by them. It might be an idea to think about it from that perspective with a view to starting a band rather than walking into an existing one.2 points
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This is how it works. As soon as I did a few scratch band wedding gigs I found the phone started pinging. (Nobody rings anymore, do they?) Thankfully I’m out of that now.2 points
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Mrs Zero says I always sound like me. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.2 points
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It’s about who you know really. I dep on rhythm guitar (mostly) and bass (occasionally) in a Dire Straits tribute that plays theatres and arts centres all over the UK. I met the BL through a mutual friend who was putting together a scratch band for a wedding - not something I recommend btw!2 points
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We have a winner?2 points
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I don't know if I have a signature sound as such, but I do have an unhealthy amount of basses which I somehow manage to make all sound the same. Not necessarily identical but it always sounds like me, so I suppose that is my signature sound.2 points
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My youngest son who recently turned 18 bought everyone alcohol because he could. I rarely drink but I understand it was a novelty for him to be able to do that legally. i got a 4 pack of bottled 7.5% Nigerian Guinness - I’ve not tried it but I expect it to be vile. I’m saving it for the next time he comes for the weekend so that he can suffer the poisoning.2 points
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Already done and dusted!2 points
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Nope - looks like you'd need to create a separate battery compartment. Here are the basic dimensions on my bass. Body thickness = 42mm Standard cavity depth & width = 30mm deep, 22mm wide. Pots and capacitor depth from bottom of control plate = 24mm. Duracell battery = 23mm wide (wider than the standard cavity routing, and 18mm thick.2 points
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I did pro pantomime for four years at the Sheffield Lyceum. Sometimes you’re in the main pit in front of the stage and others you’re often in a room behind the pit operating via tv monitor. Usually, only the MD/pianist can see the monitor, but the whole band is hearing the proceedings on headphones, as well as the band mix and any backing tracks to add other parts. They’re tough runs - we used to do somewhere around 56 shows, sometimes three shows a day when the school kids would arrive by the coach load on early December mornings.2 points
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Same used to happen to the telephone handset cable. Not from getting up and walking in circles but from mysteriously picking it up and rotating it between the phone, your ear, and putting it back. If you often put the bass down you have another possible source of the dreaded twizzle. BTW, it sure looks like a bad case of cable mismanagement by someone who coils one way only and thinks they are doing great.2 points
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Fretless jazz with flatwounds. Fingerstyle. 100% neck pickup, 0% bridge. Tone knob set right round to the most mellow. GEB7 pedal with the lowest band set very low and the rest in the middle position. A clean amp with the EQ set level across the bands.2 points
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I'm going to try to do gear abstinence next year, so I thought I'd have one final swatch at FB marketplace. I was instantly reminded how dangerous it is when this bad boy appeared for a very keen price (complete with a Hiscox Liteflite hard case) and on the right side of England for my purposes. I decided to carpe that diem. 9 hour round trip, but it was definitely worth it. Basically unusued, the only issues were that it was a bit dusty in places, and there was some goop on the headstock where a clearly disintegrating stand had been cradling. Managed to get that cleaned off - it hadn't stained the finish, yay! Gave it a fret polish and oiled the fingerboard and gave it a good old setup. So, how is the "Stingray killer"? Good, as far as I can tell in headphones. My favourite finish for these basses would be Soda Blue, but this natural one is growing on me in its elegant simplicity, and the black pickguard suits it very well. But that's it! No more! I will be striving to make 2026 a fallow year in the gear acquisition stakes, so I guess I was getting one final hit in before the lockdown. FYI - no Stingrays were harmed in the making of this. Merry Christmas to me (and everyone else!)2 points
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One day, we'll venture South... which brings us nicely on topic; certain bands might (and I'm blowing our trumpet) be better than the real thing but you can't justify the travel fro the gig!1 point
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Pardon my re-animating this old thread, but... My Hartke Kickback 12's amplifier started needing service and I had this head sitting on my desk. I had recently swapped out the original speaker of the combo since it had started rattling, and the new speaker (Hartke neo/Hydrive) is 4 ohms, so it draws the full 200w from the Elf. This little Velcro-cobble-together parlor rig has really been working out great for small gigs, acoustic/electric mini-band gigs, rehearsals and small room rock band gigs. I really like the sound, and though it's no Series 6 it does deliver a warm-like, gentle punch and throws really well. I've gotten very positive remarks about it, so it is delivering. This is the best small gig-rig yet, for me.1 point
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A lovely looking bass and I can only echo Owen’s sentiments. I hope that your financial situation improves dramatically and rapidly1 point
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No matter what bass I play, or what head, speaker or combo, my signature sound is exactly the same.... flat, boring and uninspiring.... Guitarists love it1 point
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Going for some sideways action tonight to try a facilitate better on stage monitoring.1 point
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They were low cost cabs and average quality at best. I would look at Fender Rumble v3 cabs as a better product and low price If you can step up further then MarkBass MB58R series are very light and sound great1 point
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That's what I do - two sets of identical wirelesses, one branded Lekato and the other M-Vave. £25 or so from AliExpress.1 point
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I'm looking for a bag to hold my Schertler Unico, and that looks like it might be the right size, will measure up and see. Thanks1 point -
As soon as it appeared on the BassBros socials I had to have it. My 2nd birth year Rickenbacker. Fireglo…..but I kinda feel it’s not actually fireglo but maybe Autumnglo?! It’s a lot darker and brownish to what I’d expect a fireglo to be (pictures show it lighter than it actually is) Either way I love it.1 point
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I decided this morning, after being unable to find a shop with stock, to order the MIJ ‘Noir’ only to find that over Christmas it had Sold Out. i know I should never have procrastinated nor posted it in here.1 point
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You're not chasing your vestigial tail are you?1 point
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Whatever bass or amp I use I sound like “me”, with me being scooped mids and boosted highs. I set up like this as in general I play rock/punk in bands with humbucking guitars so lower the mids to not congest that area, and add highs to sharpen/tighten the sound and not be flubby on the lows.1 point
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1994 MIJ Ibanez SR 890 with Wilde (Bill Lawrence) PJ set £350 with pickups or £250 without pickups Moving on my Ibanez SR 890 to raise funds for a Jazz V. This bass has a lovely thin and fast neck, but I find it's a little too slim to be comfortable for my hands, which are more used to Fender dimensions. When I bought it the stock active pickups had some issues and the preamp was noisy (and on closer inspection, corroded) So I replaced the pickups and preamp with a Wilde PJ set, currently wired passive as 2 x volume + 1 x tone. The Wildes have a very clear and bright sound which I found to be a big improvement on the stock pickups. The sale will include the original active pickups, preamp, and knobs. The installation was a bit challenging for my limited skills, as the pickups are a tight fit to the routes, and my soldering is not the best.. it all works but might not be pretty! As you will see this wiring has left a spare hole for a pot. My plan was to hook up a G&L style low cut, but as it's a work in progress I'm selling it as a kind of "project" bass, which I hope the asking price reflects. If you had different pickups in mind I'm happy to keep the Wildes for something else and sell for £250. The knobs were custom ordered from Xentric Guitars - I have a second small pot which will be included in the sale. The neck is shimmed to get the action lower - it's good where it is, but the bass side of the bridge is down as low as it will go. General condition is very good - there is some light finish scratching and a few small dings / marks as you would expect on a 30+ year old instrument. Some fret wear but plenty of life left in the frets. Includes an Ibanez gig bag.1 point -
Best Buy It has to be this, the bass was bought on the rebound, I missed a Lakland i wanted. I wasn't looking for one of these but the spec's pulled me in. Light with the deepest bottom end passive. I don't need the active EQ on this. A great endorsement when you get something you didn't want or lust after, but find it to be just what you always needed.1 point
