zero9

I've got 16 x 5" Phil Jones, sounds even more ok

No hot tips, you just need to keep at it. Practice, practice and practice some more, until you can do it.

Sounds like a ball*che to me. Vox/guitards are 10 a penny.

The industry standard for amps / cabs up until the early 80's was generally 'mush'. When Trace Elliott entered the market in the early 80's, it set a new standard for bass amplification. For me, TE has defined the 'modern' industry standard for bass amplification.

Anything by Sting. He's a master at playing deceptively simple lines.

+1 for Hotwires. There are also offerings from Rotosound, LaBella, D'Addario and GHS.

Bit pricey and the pickguard doen't even fit properly I reckon you're better off with a Warmoth build

Probably the best instrument cable available is by Phil Jones, but at a price. OBBM is probably the best price / performance ratio. It depends how serious you want to get

The GK MB112ii on Thomann looks a steal at £301 though. Take advantage of the weaker Euro

It's the age old conundrum of price v power v portability Have you thought about getting a mini 200W amp head and separate small speaker? Some small heads can be had for very little money and appear regularly secondhand on this forum. It may be possible to modify your existing combo for use as a speaker.

You'll be looking at something like weedwackers or Superior Basswork deluxe. The latter may work for the high C as there are 6 strings in the set. These are fairly inexpensive.

Has the condensation occured now that the weather has got colder. If so, it suggests you could have a thermal bridgeing problem in the attic. Basically, the cold external temperature air creates a 'bridge' (or conductive path) from the inside warmer space to outside. The creates cold surfaces in your attic, which, when the warmer moist air hits it, takes the air below the dewpoint and releases some of the moisture in the air. If the problem persists, get a specialist in to determine the cause and suggest a solution. Yes, you can use de-humidifiers, but it won't solve the actual cause of the problem.

Probably the best combination, especially in the 80's, was a Status headless through a Trace stack.

That's why I drive a Volvo, probably the safest cars on the road I think there are two different type of high end instrument buyers. Those who like to gig and play the best instrument they can afford and those who just want to keep it pristine, look at it every once in a while and regularly polish it

May I ask what type of music or style you're likely to play, as this may help in recommending certain db's. Some are more suited to classical styles (arco) than others. Although any style can be played on any double bass, from ply to fully carved, some lend themselves better to certain styles.

What's the point in buying a bass and not gigging it? Even Stadivarii' (or should that be Stradivariuses) get gigged, and they make a £10k bass pale into insignificance money wise. Just be sensible when you take them out and don't leave them on the train (like a former Stradivarius owner did IIRC).

Stanley Clarke has used a wah quite extensively on recordings.

[quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1420331286' post='2648256'] Passive basses sound good through anything. It's active instruments that I've needed to be a bit more selective over! Truckstop [/quote] My experience has been the opposite. An active's greater dynamic range and EQ versatility enables me to dial in a better sound.

I played fretless exclusively in a function band for a while. I find a fretless more expressive and it can also be used for slap and pop if you choose to.

You need to draw the 'liquid' away from the speaker. Best way is to put the cab on its back and pour salt onto the speaker. Works for getting wine out of carpet The other way is just to let it dry naturally. Good job the jack russell didn't do a number 2 on it, otherwise your speaker would be producing a bad farting noise.

I would concur that the way forward is more speaker area with your current setup. As already suggested, something like a 2x12, a 4x10 or two 2x10's, with a 4 Ohm total load should work. A single 10 won't do in a loud band.

Get a Sadowsky preamp.

The simple fact is, a Fender is the most fashionable instrument, but it's a long way short of being the best build quality. History speaks for itself insofar as Fender QC is shocking and the far eastern copies trump them in build quality.

I've owned 2 Fender P's, a 78 and a 2006 US, and regret letting the 78 go. However, I never really got on with the ergonomics, until I tried a Jazz. Tried several Fender Jazzes, vintage, 75 reissue and squiers, all nice but a bit meh in the sound department. Because I like graphite necks, I built a Warmoth / Status Jazz clone and am delighted with it. Suits me ergonomically and looks like a Jazz (my favourite look for a bass), sounds like a Jazz, but isn't a Fender.