zero9

The Status graphite neck heels are hollow. The bottom of the heel is typically 6 to 7mm thick.

I concur with walbassist, get your luthier to set it up to your liking. Mine did.

Make sure your bass has "Fender" on the headstock, otherwise it's not a proper bass and you can't call yourself a bassist

Take up cycling or long distance running. Something to take your mind off things until you find your mojo again

Have you approached the shop to find out if they'd like to have you on their books as a bass tutor? There nothing stopping you placing ads locally in the paper or in other shops, if that's the market you're after. The internet is an obvious one as already mentioned. Set up a beginners workshop in your local village hall etc etc, advertise it on the internet via the usual channels.

Yes and no. Yes because it's a Fender and the only bass in town. No because there are far better bass guitars out there for the same money

Fender could put their name on a plank of wood and it would sell (they've been doing this for years). If I was looking for the ultimate bass, Fender wouldn't be on my list to approach.

You've answered your own question. You want a P and have done with it A P is just as good at funk as any other bass. There's a lot of myth in using a particular bass within a particular musical setting.

If you're looking to get a slap sound, you'll need a twin transducer such as a K&K Rockabilly Bass Master Plus or similar. This will allow you to pick up fingerboard sounds and may also help with getting it to sound a bit more like a full upright. It's going to be trial and error and the transducers need to be well fitted to get the 'best' sound. You'll always struggle to get an acoustic tone without much of body to work with. I concur with Clarky about the Realist sounding dark. I found the K&K less so inclined.

Just make sure to occasionally gig / run the back-up. You don't wanna find it ain't working when you need it to

Check out 'Back Door' with Colin Hodgkinson. Not 2 piece, but certainly no guitar

If you're looking at something in the same league sound quality wise to the Apogee Duet, you could also consider: RME babyface Focusrite Forte Or if you don't like break-out cables the Universal Audio Apollo Twin

No, there is no 'optimum', as it depends entirely on your technique. However, if you persevere, you should be able to learn to slap with very low action. If you've only just started it will take a while to get a clean slap sound.

I concur with ikay. When I did have a five, I used a smaller gauge B string, which gave a better balance to the overall sound. Some string retailers (such as Status Graphite) will let you buy individual strings. For a small spend, you could buy a couple of different gauges of B string and try them with your current set. If you know another bassist or good guitar tech in your area, it might be worth getting them to check out the instrument if you're not sure. Sometimes a second opinion helps.

I would advise against a practice amp. A headphone amp or cheap mixer with DI in would be more useful for home practice. The Roland is a nice combo, but expensive for something that outputs 120 Watts, and won't be loud enough for a band setting. For the same money, you can get a brand new separate amp head and 2x10 cab rated at 250 Watts, such as TC Electronic, which will do most things.

Your Status S2 should deliver most of what you need tonally, no need to tweak the tone knobs on your amp. That's been my experience with Status.

Not sure whereabouts you're based, but why not come along to the Double Bass Bash in October. You'll have a great opportunity to try different uprights and speak to various owners.

Based on the EMG website, the soapbar pups are generally sold singly and include vol and tone control as well as the connectors etc. if you have two pups, you'll need to buy two of these. I've only ever used the J bass set, which are available as a complete set, and can vouch for their ease of installation. If your looking for a bit more headroom, it might be worth connecting two batteries to get 18V. The EMG website should be fairly informative in this regard and has some useful downloads.

It's a bit like asking "which car is best for driving along a country road". It depends on how you like to drive and the country road. Isn't the funk in the fingers anyway? I'd focus on some funk fingers instead.

The problem is more likely to be with the amp/cab, room and eq setup on the night, not the bass. If the bass sounds fine through headphones / cubase, the problem is elsewhere. I once plugged into someone else's rig during a rehearsal and had a similar problem, when my bass just disappeared on certain notes.

Unless you opt for a very low tension 'rockabilly' type steel string, other steel strings, even Spiro Weichs or Spiro solos (tuned down to EADG), are still 'harder' and more tiresome to play compared with a bass guitar. If you do want something easy on the fingers which requires less effort, soft nylon strings or similar are the way forward. The benefit as outlined above is that a nylon or hybrid type string is more likely to give you an approximation of an acoustic double bass type thump, if that's what you're looking for. I've spent a small fortune in the past experimenting with different strings on an eub and it always sounded like a fretless bass guitar, when strung with light gauge or soft steel strings. To get a warmer sound with a bit of thump requires a hybrid, nylon, or rubber type string. Keep your eyes on the for sale sections as cheap strings come up regularly, if you do want to experiment. Just my experience.

Status do hotwires in short scale and 4 different 'flavours'. Very reasonably priced

With a piezo you have the option of putting almost anyhting on the eub. For something low tension and cheap, look at a nylon type set such as Weed Wackers or Superior Bassworks and the like. They can be great fun and easy on the fingers.

It says 'used' - no kidding The username 'nutta' also inspires confidence.

It's always worth persevering with your current set-up. I would try rolling off some of the bass frequencies on the platinum pro and cranking up the volume. I play a couple of fast punk songs with the band (on upright), but have adapted these to a fast walking pattern. I use steel strings through a piezo, but it still sounds like a double bass. The punters don't really worry about the sound of the bass. If you're holding a double bass it's the visual aspect which they notice, rather than the sound Keep on playing