Lozz196

A couple of weeks back my band played a gig in Malta, and as I hate flying they got my part covered. The stand-in bassist had an Aerodyne Jazz strung with Fender flats and it sounded great in the mix with a bit of drive from his Sansamp. I was rather envious as I just don`t seem to have the knack of getting the best from a flat-strung bass.

I`ve been in the same situations with Stingrays, I love them, how they`re crafted, how they play, how they sit on a strap, everything. Except for the sound. When I hear someone else play one it sounds awesome to me, yet when I play one it just sounds wrong, probably through so many years of playing Precisions, so after the initial high of getting a `Ray I tend to fall out of love with it quite quickly.

That is interesting as I also thought that the QPs were scooped - rather massively so to be honest - maybe it`s more a case of certain areas boosted then?

I`ve recently got a Fender Player Precision, really nice bass but the pickup does sound a fair bit different to my fave US Precision which has the Custom Shop 62s, the 62s having more lows and a mid-scoop. Adjusting the eq I can get near but not exactly the same. But this is at home. I`m not going to make any changes until I`ve used the bass with the band this week, who knows, in the band setting I may well prefer the sound of the Player.

Awesome, well done, that’s a great one to get

As it happens I’ll be putting one up on here soon….

They’re nice basses aren’t they, play & sound great.

Great songs, SLF one of my all time fave bands.

Great clip, GP as always comes across as really decent chap

Was that Black Sweden? I thought their version of Take a Chance On Me, which they put to the music of Enter Sandman, was excellent.

I’ve done similar - using Hipshot Ultralites - and imo it’s a worthy modification, makes a bass balance better and less wear on the shoulder.

Tuner-wise most likely Hipshot 1/2” Ultralites. Hipshot are very good at advising re their products so may be worth messaging them to make sure. Ultralites make a big difference to regular Fender Mex tuners. Pickups - well years ago I put a Seymour Duncan Hot Stack in an Aerodyne Jazz, kept the sound pretty much the same but just much bigger & fuller, hum-cancelling too which is a bonus.

Or go to the bar if there’s a solo in it

Shame but often gut feelings can be the ones to follow. I encountered similar a good few years back, the main thing that put me off was the drive to rehearsals, 45 mins in summer along country lanes, I knew that I wouldn`t last doing that in winter so declined, though I did offer to stand in for them until they found a permanent bassist. Did a couple of gigs which were good fun as they were a good bunch but ultimately my day one instincts I think served well that day.

Good points @Dood, I was always a high-action heavy-plectrum heavy-hitter, which may account for wear & tear on my hands, but over the last few years have changed these, now preferring a low action, lighter gauge plec and employing a softer touch. I`ve found that these have made playing much more enjoyable for me, as well as helping me master songs that with my old caveman techniques would probably have been beyond me.

I`ve not got any suggestions but will keep an eye on this thread as am in the same position - not had the injections yet but I fear they are looming. I`ve spent pretty much the last year adapting my playing technique to the point where I hardly touch the neck with my thumb now and that has really helped me, it may look a tad daft playing with thumb fully extended but I don`t care about that. I have looked at support-thingys on Amazon but none of the reviews mention musicians/playing guitars so not bought one yet, again I think this purchase is looming.

Good call, thanks for pointing this out, does make PayPal with fees seem a much safer form of payment.

Well the one in the Dirnt is Fender Custom Shop 59, which they don’t sell separately. However I did recently see a vid on YouTube with MD discussing his sig bass and he mentioned that the Fender 63 pickup was similar sounding, so may be worth checking out.

Just bought a second hand Mex Precision from Bass Direct. Parcelforces system did its best to keep me on tenterhooks over the weekend but the comms from the BD team throughly were both extremely prompt and excellent. Bass arrived today and am really pleased with it.

2 nice basses there, congrats

I think trying to understand all of that would give me more of a headache than hearing it at full blast. Pretty much left me behind at the 810 rig. I’ll bet it sounds amazing though.

Happened to me. You weren’t Man A were you?

Ain’t that the truth. I often wish I could just listen to a song without mentally separating the instruments and listening out specifically for the bass. Too late now though.