sussexbassman

As a huge Beatle and McCartney fan, I bought a Hofner contemporary series violin bass. It sounds great in having the thump sound, but I'm not overly impressed with the bridge adjustment. I like a low action and I can't really get there with this bass. General build quality is good though. I use it for about 10% of live gig songs (mainly Beatles or 60's of course!)

There do seem to be a lot of ebay sales where the seller is selling "on behalf of a friend" and knows nothing about bass guitars. It's good advice to steer clear of these "deals". I'm 'fortunate' to be old enough to have bought my '78 Precision new so I know that's not a fake!

[quote name='gjones' post='1172782' date='Mar 22 2011, 11:52 PM']The art of negotiation is to start high. So when they ask how much you charge say £10,000 and you can work your way downwards from there. By the time they've beaten you down to £5,000 they'll think they've got a bargain.[/quote] You're not a double glazing salesman by any chance?

Very nice bass. I'd just throw in to the mix the Reggie Hamilton Jazz bass which has everything that the MIM Precision Deluxe has but also a passive mode (and hipshot drop D tuner). If you get a chance to try out one of these often overlooked high quality P/J hybrids, I would recommend you do.

Very interesting and useful thread (even if it might be in the wrong place). I play in two covers bands in the SE of England and the going rates for the whole band are: Pubs: £200 to £250 Social Clubs: £275 to £550 (big nights like NYE are £750 to £850+) Private parties: £300 to £400 Weddings: £600 to £800 (upwards)

I've been playing in function bands for many years with just my P-bass and it has covered [i]most [/i]things I've asked of it. However, there's always the odd number where you want a bit more growl or get down to low D. I considered a Fender American Deluxe P or going down the 5-string route, but in the end I have acquired a Fender Reggie Hamilton Jazz which has P and J PUPs (like the ADP), a thicker than usual J-neck, but is £500 cheaper than the ADP and has a Hipshot drop-D tuner.......does it all for me!

[quote name='niceguyhomer' post='1133659' date='Feb 19 2011, 06:16 PM']I'll tell you the truth Chris, I picked up a Combustion and played a few riffs on it and never ven noticed the frets were wonky. I've never played anything with fanned frets before and it was like I've been playing them all my life. Bit tricky when you get past the 12th fret but no big deal. The build quality is stunning on the Afterburner and ABZ and they're very light.[/quote] Yes, I played an Afterburner at the bass gallery and the fanned fret thing was not a problem. I will be getting myself an ABZ at some point because it has the sounds I want. Just need to stump up the dosh!

[quote name='Davo-London' post='1132816' date='Feb 18 2011, 09:37 PM']Here's my old 78 P fretless: Davo[/quote] Yep, my 78 p-bass has the 'Made in USA' in the same place on the headstock under the word 'Precision'.

[quote name='Donnyboy' post='1081463' date='Jan 7 2011, 07:49 PM']Not as heavy as my Aria SB 600 - that is a beast! [attachment=68104:DSC00259.JPG] Don't want hijack this topic but here's a recent pic[/quote] I often see these comments about heavy basses..... Just get a wide thick strap and you can forget about it!! Surely the most important thing is .... does it give you the sound you want?

So, I've just got home from a trip to London to try out some basses. I did Denmark Street first for the concentration of shops, but of course no one had any Lakland, MTD or Dingwalls. I did find a G&L 5-string in The Bass Cellar (was on my original shortlist) and this felt and sounded very nice. Had the versatility and could mimic the P-bass sound easily. But I confirmed my suspicion that 34" is not enough for a B string! It felt very loose. I will have to go at least 35". Then I trekked up to The Gallery at Camden and they only had the one Dingwall - the green combustion that's been on their website for a while. I spent half an hour playing it and soon adjusted to the fanned frets so that was good. But I wasn't overly impressed with the versatilty of sound which confirms I need to try the ABZ. They didn't have a Lakland 55-01 or 02 but I tried another Lakland 5-string and really liked the feel and sound of the low B again. So that's still a contender. Bottom line is that I still need to try an ABZ and a 55-01 to make my decision. So I'm hunting for more stockists ...... maybe a trip to Bass Direct at Warwick. Does anyone know some good stockists of Dingwall and Laklands??

I bought my 78 P-bass in 1978 (i.e. brand new) and would not swap it for anything! However, I would add a modern bass to it (e.g. a dingwall. would compliment it nicely, I think).

Thanks all for the varied inputs. I 'think' I've made my decision and it's a Dingwall ABZ, but I'll confirm it after Saturday!

I'm going to The Bass Gallery to try out a Dingwall ....... I feel I have to before I make my decision!

Thanks for the replies. I do plan to try some out, but if anyone else has personal experience / knowledge, I'd like to get your view to add into my decision process.

I've had a USA Fender P-bass for many years which I love, but increasingly I feel I need a 5 string and a bit more versatility of sound. My budget for a new bass is up to around £1K. I don't want to lose the P-bass sound completely, so am looking at maybe a 5-string P-J hybrid or something simlilar. Fender have discontinued their USA deluxe 5-S P, so I've considered a G&L Tribute L2500, but I want to go 35". So right now I'm looking at either a Lakland 55-02 or an MDT Kingston Heir 5. Does anyone have any experience, views, opinions on this choice? Or any alternative options I should look at? Thanks!

Thanks again everyone for your words of wisdom. I've made my decision .... I'm going for a 1 x 15" compact (already on order) During my procrastinations, I was a little surprised to read the minimum frequency response of the various Ashdown cabs: 2x10 compact - 75Hz 1x15 compact - 41Hz 1x15 standard - 37Hz This implies that the 210 won't be good below the D string! and even the 115 standard wouldn't handle a low B ....? Any thoughts on this??

[quote name='phatbass787' post='863212' date='Jun 10 2010, 01:18 PM']I think that if youre happy with the sound you have but just need to move a bit more air go for the 210, if you want a bit more booty then the 1x15, its personal preference really and you have to decide what it is you need...[/quote] Yeah I understand that in the end its a personal decision, but I value the views of other experienced players..... In the past I've mainly used a Peavey Mark iii 15" Black Widow combo which was always a bit on the muddy/boomy side and at 130w struggled for volume in larger venues. I then invested in a Peavey Max 700 rig with a 210 plus 115 BW expecting it to give the full range sound. It was obviously very loud (too loud really for my gigs), but could never get a warm, creamy but well defined tone out of it - still seemed boomy and/or 'toppy' depending on EQ. So that's why I moved to a fairly meaty 2x10 combo - haven't had it long enough to say I'm 100% happy with the sound, but I'm very close to the sound I want after a session in the back garden and don't want to get muddy/boomy again! Maybe I'm talking my way towards the 210 extention option .....?

Thanks for all the inputs so far guys - currently 4 : 3 in favour of the 115. I think this highlights my dilemna! Still not sure which one to get. If it helps, I mainly play pop / rock / soul covers. Any other views would be very welcome .......

I have an Ashdown ABM C210T 500 combo which is great for pubs and small clubs. I want to add an extension cab to the combo for larger clubs and small outside garden party gigs. I'm trying to decide whether to get a 1x15" or 2x10". Adding a 115 would seem to give a more "full range" sound, but the 210 should give me the same sound I currently have but just more of it. I like a warm, creamy (but not muddy) sound with good definition and clarity to cut through against the guitar and keyboard. Anybody have any suggestions or advice on which way to jump - 210 or 115?