mart

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1375808350' post='2165994'] Pfff.... I'm a fanboi, but I think this is stretching it. Half of 'We Can't Dance' is execrable, and the other half isn't as good as it could be. And Rutherford phoned the bass parts in on the last two albums. [/quote] And that's without even mentioning "Calling all stations" ;-)

[quote name='PhilLawton' timestamp='1375793863' post='2165649'] I've been looking high and low for a Warwick fretless and note that the (Chinese built?) Rockbasses are all over the shop. How do they stack up against the "real" Warwicks? Would I be wasting my money? What else could I look for of the same build quality, feel and (most importantly) sound of the originals? [/quote] Where are you based? There's probably a basschatter not too far away who might have one or the other (or both) to let you see the differences. I've got both, and there is a noticeable difference. But tends to be the case, you'd be hard-pressed to say that German Warwicks are 5 times the quality of the Chinese ones (that being, very roughly, the price ratio between them). I'd also point out that the Chinese RBs were re-modelled about 2/3 years ago. Before that the quality control was a joke, but since it is better, I believe. You can tell them apart because the earlier ones had a one-piece bridge (sometimes in the right place, sometimes not ) and the newer ones have the 2-piece bridge. Plus the price tends to be quite a bit higher for the latter, of course! I've got a fretless mahogany Corvette $$ that I could probably be persuaded to part with, but I'd want a bit more money than bagsie is asking for his Corvette.

[quote name='SteveK' timestamp='1375803441' post='2165885'] Seconds Out (live album) Dance on a Volcano is sublime [/quote] +100. Genesis was my first love, musically, and Seconds Out quickly became my go-to album. Thirty years on not much as changed, except that I'm as likely to stick on the '76 "In Concert" DVD as the Seconds Out CD. But the last side of SO is just spine-tingling, from the first notes of Cinema Show to the last climax of Los Endos. It never ceases to move me.

Or, if you want a black one and I don't mind paying a little extra, and ignoring any ethical concerns at this business's recent history, try DV247: http://www.dv247.com/guitars/warwick-pro-series-starbass-4-bass-guitar-black--107314

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1375704949' post='2164450'] I am unlikely to ever buy a 4-string bass again, and I'm actually in the process of selling the majority of the ones I currently own. [/quote] So there are gonna be some bargain 4-string Gus's coming soon? My wife is so going to hate you. ;-) [quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1375704949' post='2164450'] I ordered the 5-string version of the Star Bass, it's the only Warwick design I really like, and I will have to get something done about the headstock if I'm going to be using it a lot in public. ;-) [/quote] Now you really are messing with me head. This is the Squier thread, don't start talking about the Starbass on here, otherwise I'll be thinking you're planning to recarve the Squier headstock! (Don't tell me you don't like the CBS headstock? Heretic!)

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1375644185' post='2163855'] Funny that - I've never dropped a pick in 37 years of playing. In fact I used the same pick for about 20 years - until I lost it. [/quote] Perhaps you should check your drawers. ;-)

I ordered mine on a Tuesday (or perhaps Monday night) and it arrived Friday morning of the same week. Yes, I wasn't assuming there'd be a case. Like you, I assume there won't be one unless they explicitly say there will. So no surprise there, just a bit of disappointment. The MiG Warwicks come with a folder containing a manual with details on what the electrics do, and how to adjust truss-rod and bridge, a cleaning cloth, a tin of wax, a truss-rod adjuster, Allen keys for adjusting the bridge/saddle, strap locks and, for the neck-through models only I think, a spare set of strings. Oh and you get a leaflet about the Warwick/Framus museum, but I guess you can also get those in the local tourist office. Oh, and a cuddly toy. * I was wondering if you were going to recarve the headstock, as I know your opinion of the big W paddle. I would love to see what shape you go for! * no, not really, I was just channelling Bruce Forsyth on the Generation Game.

[quote name='Telebass' timestamp='1375685007' post='2164113'] I use the great big foot switch on my TU-2. Who needs switching cables? [/quote] Yeah, when I use a pedal tuner inline, then I make use of the implicit mute facility. Although if you then unplug your bass, you can sometimes get a pop after you've plugged the bass back in, when you stomp the pedal to un-mute things. But I get nervous having a pedal inline, because it has a battery which might run out. So I prefer to use a headstock tuner these days as I know I can turn it off. (Plus I never play in tune anyway ) Did I mention the obsessive nature of my worries about batteries. ;-)

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1375698909' post='2164345'] IMO £299 with free delivery is still going to be a complete bargain if the instrument is as good as it appears to be. [/quote] Agreed, £299 would still be an irresistible price. Besides, I'm not actually affected myself by the price increase, because I agreed the price of £273 when I placed my order (and paid a deposit). [quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1375698909' post='2164345'] Right now we seem to be interested in the same instruments - maybe there's a Gus bass in your future... ;-) [/quote] Lol! I do love the Gus basses, but would struggle to justify spending that money given that I earn nothing from my bass playing. But, tbh, I've already got Warwicks and a Squier, so I think it's more likely that you're heading over to my dark corner of the bass playing world, and you'll have a room full of fretless 4-string Warwicks before you know it. :-)

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1375693718' post='2164251'] Personally the F# string doesn't cause me any problems, because I just transpose all the strings by the appropriate amount (5 or 7 semitones). For baritone guitars, generally, under 28" scale use the B tuning and over that use A. [/quote] I can't put my finger on exactly why I don't like the idea of an F# string, and I suspect I might actually be fine with it in practice, because of thinking in terms of transpositions, like you've described. Maybe I'll be brave and try it! Interesting to note that Nevada have the full range of colours, but the price seems to have jumped by £30. My dealer told me to expect them in late August; I wonder if I should phone them again to get an update.

BRX is right about the bass being on special offer, so in a sense it feels churlish to complain. But it still cost more than the last new Fender I bought, which came with a hardcase, and more than the last new Gibson I bought, which came with a gigbag. Besides, it's not as if the Starbass used to come with a gigbag or case and this was taken out when Thomann knocked the price down. So I think the sale price is actually a bit of a red herring here. Just out of interest, BRX, how do you store your basses? Are they on stands? Cos I keep most of my instruments in a case, so I actually find I need (or at least want) a case for every single instrument I own.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1375631818' post='2163658'] ... Baritone guitars usually are tuned either A D G C E A or B E A D F# A depending on scale length and taste. [/quote] Shortly before you posted that I did the maths and figured out that ADGCEA is pretty much the only tuning that maintains 6-string guitar intervals and has open strings tuned to notes in the key of C major. (The only other ones are regular EADGBE of course, and DGCFAD, which is too close to regular guitar tuning to be much use for a baritone). So I'll go for that, because I don't think I could cope with a string tuned to F#. Ta!

[quote name='Oopsdabassist' timestamp='1375641793' post='2163825'] If you are playing acoustically, that fret noise seems very loud, but when you are competing against the rest of the band, you really don't notice it as much. [/quote] This is a very good point. It's probably best not to worry about the noise at this stage. Maybe later you can work on "cleaning up" your technique so as to eat rid of this noise, but your priority now should be to enjoy playing!

[quote name='yorks5stringer' timestamp='1375635249' post='2163705'] Could well be minimal packaging due to their Green Policy, they are the greenest manufacturer out there I believe... [/quote] I can't help thinking a greener option would be to ship it in some sort of recyclable packaging, you know, some sort of packaging you could re-use. Like a padded gig bag, or hard case. tappel mentioned that US Fenders come in a moulded hard case, and their RRP is much less than £1500. There is an argument that says there's no point giving away a case or bag because many/most customers will want a different sort of case or bag. For example, if you buy a top of the range Warwick, you get a flight case that probably affords a lot of protection. But also weighs about the same as my car, and so is completely unusable for me. I'd have preferred a gigbag, but I'm sure others would object to a gigbag, and would want the flight case.

I think it's quite cool building a little pick draw into your bass like that. Much more sophisticated a solution than sticking your spare picks to a mic stand. But after I'd read half a page of his "philosophy" I did start wondering if Mark D Philips could maybe learn a thing or two.

[quote name='1970' timestamp='1375622793' post='2163528'] I think it's standard guitar tuning: EADGBE But really up to the user i suppose.... [/quote] Yep, I'm pretty sure it comes set up for EADGBE (one octave below a guitar), but I'm planning on changing mine to some sort of baritone tuning when it arrives. Fortunately I'm expecting to have another few weeks of waiting before I need to figure out exactly what tuning I want. BEADGC (an octave above 6-string bass tuning) is a possibility, although something that has the same intervals as a guitar would probably be easier for me to adapt to.

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1372804931' post='2130314'] Larry the Lame has unexpectedly had to leave us. [/quote] Only just noticed this. Getting banned after just 2 posts: is that a record? Can Larry, with enough coaxing, do even better, and get banned after just one post? Maybe even before his first post? He's set the bar high, but if anybody can reach these dizzy heights, I think Larry's the [strike]lamb[/strike] man.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1375628250' post='2163599'] It's like an alternative reality Crack Converters where people ON crack go into the shop, hand over all the money they own, and leave with some junk that looks like it was nicked from a charity shop. [/quote] Pmsl.

Yeah, that's a real frustration when you're beginning. I'm afraid that I stop these noises subconsciously, so I'd have to think hard to figure out what I'm doing. But I think some of my technique is simply designed to do this, like resting your right-hand fingers on the other strings than the one you're plucking, and holding your left hand in such a way as to be muting the strings you're not fretting. Noise when you lift your fretting fingers off can be suppressed by damping the string with your right hand before lifting your left hand off. I think that's how I avoid it mostly, but I guess lifting your fingers off faster will also help, and that will just develop automatically with practice -it's not something you'll need to consciously work on. Maybe there's a particularly recommended technique for damping, but I'm pretty sure I just developed whatever felt most natural to me, and I'd recommend you just try different things and see what works best.

Bagsieblue and I have both recently bought a Warwick Starbass and we've been discussing the packaging that they come in - namely a plastic bag inside a cardboard box. I don't mind that sort of packaging for a bass that's £2/300 new, but it seems a bit crazy at this price bracket - the RRP is something like £1500 I believe. Given that, I wondered if anybody had any more extreme examples of a (relatively) expensive bass sold in (relatively) cheap packaging. And, to make it less negative, let's hear of good examples - y'know, the cheapy bass that comes in a flight case! Who knows, perhaps we can even shame some manufacturers into upping their game.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1375566160' post='2163065'] I've just ordered the 5-string version. At that price I couldn't really not... [/quote] Darn it, I wish I'd thought of that line when I had to explain it to my wife. (Actually, she's been away with her family this past week, and I carefully ordered it so that it would arrive the day after she'd left. But the swines sent it out sooner and it arrived just before she left. Cue much embarrassment while I frantically tried to think of a justification on the spot. ) [quote name='cocco' timestamp='1375566740' post='2163075'] You think Lee Sklar pays for basses?! [/quote] Not sure. So I chose my words very carefully - ".. what Lee [i]would have[/i] had to pay ..."

If it's good enough for Lee Sklar, it's good enough for me. (Although I'll make do with the Korean version for about a tenth of the price Lee would have had to pay for the German version ) (Ok, it actually arrived a week ago, but I've been too busy to put it up here.)