mcgraham

This is indeed an interesting topic; personally I can't make up my mind about it all, about how much of an extent woods make a difference in electric instruments. Doing a bit of a thought experiment, in a perfect (i.e. ideal) vibrating system, there is no damping of the waves, no absorption of frequencies and no introduction of additional frequencies. However, all systems have some elements that affect these factors. Construction certainly affects damping (i.e. sustain), rigid construction helps to ensure that the energy in the string is reflected back into the string and not damped by flexing of the attachment means (i.e. the bass). A factor that affects absorption is resonant frequencies of the attachment means; as the string vibrates, the attachment means is excited at certain frequencies by the movement of the string, thus absorbing certain frequencies of the vibrating string. In my mind, this affects the tone of the bass. Moreover, unlike acoustic guitars where the sound is a sum total of the strongest perceived wavelengths of the acoustic sound, magnetic pickups 'witness' but a fraction of the length of the string and amplify what they 'see', so frequencies that would not normally be most dominant can be picked up and amplified. Yet again affecting the tone, perhaps in a significantly more colouring way than the above factors if an instrument is well constructed. In short, (in my very tentative opinion), wood choice in electric instruments is not as important as in acoustic instruments. I think that tone is most dictated by great construction right, followed by pickups/pickup positioning, and wood choice somewhere after that. P.S. And one more thing, lest we forget Lenz's law, magnetic induction caused by the magnet's in the strings actually damps the motion of the strings at quite a specific point (the area the pickup 'sees') so there's even more complexity on how that affects the vibration of the string.

[quote]Nicely developed points Mark[/quote] Why thank you BTW, thank you for sharing your experiences Jake. I, for one, really like hearing experiences garnered by someone who actually makes a living out of performing and teaching music, especially someone who has done this in several genres, scenes and even different countries. My proverbial hat goes off to you my friend! Mark

Jake, it was a point I've mentioned briefly in another thread I completely agree with your points in your post. Particularly the 'musos' attitude of shaking their head at the audience as being arrogant and slightly wanting. I couldn't agree more. It [i]is[/i] biting the hand that feeds you. It is arrogant and cocky to assign one's failures as a musician/artist to the 'publics' inability to recognise one's self-proclaimed talent. I think a number of musicians fall prey to that attitude, that they are 'too good' for the public and they're not appreciated because of it. Let me draw a parallel to explain where I was coming from with the comment you've quoted: In the world of non-music work (office work, construction, you name it), it seems reasonable/logical to assume that the most skilled workers/practitioners would get the most work and most pay for their work, in proportion to their skill level. However, my business-minded Uncle pointed out that this is somewhat [i]irrelevant[/i], as it (more or less) always comes down to what people are willing to pay for a service. If they are [i]happy[/i] with that service, why pay more for something they don't want/need/desire etc. I don't think the situation [i]per se[/i] is depressing, I happen to like a lot of music put out there by musicians who I objectively consider to be mediocre; I am simply acknowledging that in the real world, the most skilled don't necessarily get recognition (or pay!) in proportion to their skill level and devotion to their art. And that strikes me as quite sad Oh, and I definitely don't begrudge people success, props to them for making it! I certainly haven't done so. It's the abuse of fame and fortune that I'm not so keen on, i.e. when lack of integrity shines through. But that's a different kettle of fish. Mark

Now that looks more like it. Is your head loose inside it though? or is it a snug fit? Mark

Again, I think that is just a padded rack case, rather than a true soft case. I'm looking for one like the softcase your Clarus has, but for a 2U amp. I think the shop linked above may do the trick. We'll see. I am also considering getting that BKElec PA monitor style Class D amp inserted into my Schroeder to make it active. Although that will further reduce the internal volume of the cab, which may bring up issues. Mark

I was under the impression that the Aguilar sleeve was reinforced quite heavily? Mark

I've dipped in and out of this thread, taking what I can from it. In response to Berlin's comments, I agree with his stance on learning theory (that it's good to do so) and that we should approach music in a more serious way. When I say 'serious', I do not mean in a sober, work-like manner; I mean that (I feel) we should be pursuing excellence in our musical endeavours, and avoiding complacency. I do NOT agree with his sober attitude that seems to prescribe a militaristic necessity to do things that way. Let's really be objective here, music is an art form, a beautiful God-given medium; it's something to be enjoyed, in the playing of, the listening of and the making of. But even then, it's not the end all and be all of life. Someone said earlier that JB comes across as bitter, that he may feel that the way things are is unfair. Well, whilst I don't think being bitter is the right response (or even helpful or useful), I can definitely sympathise with him there. There are few things I find more depressing than seeing inept/complacent/poorly skilled musicians making an absolute fortune, whilst committed/dedicated/talented musicians struggle to make ends meet (saying nothing about songwriting ability). The only thing I can think of right now that is more depressing than that is that the public (in general) have difficulty discerning the difference between the skilled and the unskilled. Personally, I love the fact that anyone can pick up a bass, guitar, piano etc for a song (at least to start) and can gain access to basic lessons for free off the net. It makes the making of music, and the associated joy of that, so much more accessible than ever before. [i]Unfortunately[/i], few people seem to progress beyond that first stage. Whilst music is not the end all and be all of life (as I said above), it does make the modern musical world a fairly surreal one to play in. Re: opinions - we're all entitled to them but ill-informed/mis-informed opinions spouted and insisted upon based little more than assertion are just absurd. Re: Tal, I also do not see what the fuss is about. I see a reliable female bassist who can hold a groove (I'd gladly have her as a bassist), but with fairly formulaic lines, at least when improvising. Not much more than that TBH. Mark

Yes I have tried google. All I managed to find were bags akin to semi-hard cases, which is not what I'm after. If you can direct me to some, that'd be much appreciated. Mark

Hi there I'm looking to get a softcase for my Thunderfunk. I've already got a 'soft' rack bag for it, i.e. a wooden rack case surrounded by material rather than ABS; what I'm looking for (for lack of a better explanation) is equivalent to a rockbag softcase but for a 2U amp. Does anyone know of anything like this? Mark

Good choice on the Schroeder! I'm glad to see another bassist playing through them, hopefully for keeps too. Mark

Exciting stuff! I didn't realise the full extent of your plans. I wish you all the best with them and I look forward to seeing them come to fruition! You've certainly picked a top luthier to collaborate with. Mark

Too right they keep getting better! As you said Mark, now is the time to get in on the action with W&T; they're relatively new but full of talent, so demand is low and quality is high. In a few years demand for these basses will rocket, then you'll have a comparable 2 year wait time that Fodera have. Quick plug for Mark and BassDirect. Without them I wouldn't have got to try W&T, and BD helped get this project off the ground before it progressed to one-on-one direct discussions with W&T. Great support; understanding and genuine too. Thanks Mark! Mark

Glad to hear you're enjoying it, even though it's so short They really are great basses aren't they? There were a large number of people who tried the Spectrum model at the Northampton bash (which I wasn't so keen on soundwise, relative to the others) that were reeeally taken with it. Mark

I know. Very quick. Combination of things: they're relatively new so they don't have loads of orders; they're very efficient with their workload; and the chief luthier (Erik) is a very gifted and fluid luthier. I have scrutinized their work closely, and I can find no faults with what they are producing. I consider them to make the best basses I have ever played or examined. Thanks for your encouraging words on wood choice; always good to be assured you're going in the right direction Mark

Alrighty, a quick update: 1) The neck is now 3 piece maple-ash-maple. It had been a toss up between 3 piece ash, 3 piece maple, 3 piece ash-maple-ash and 3 piece maple-ash-maple from the beginning. We've changed to this in order to keep the 'even' tonal sound of maple accented with the 'throaty' sound (ala Matt Garrison) that the ash imparts to the neck. 2) ETA: 1st half of September 200[b][u]8[/u][/b]. Mark

Has anyone had a chance to try one of these yet? I'm quite interested in checking them out. Mark

By suppliers do you mean with regards the parts? Mark

I can see what you mean by 'awkward lines'. 'Deformed' would be my blunt description. Mark

I'll just put your Ampeg against the door to prevent you from leaving Mark

Cheers buddy! I'm looking forward to doing the same You're first on the list to try it. Mark

Thanks for vote of confidence! I am indeed going for the notch, I really like it The next batch is starting more or less right now! I've dropped them an email asking about a rough estimated completion time so I should know more about that sometime soon. They do work very quickly though, Erik is a very 'fluid' luthier. Mark

Here are some pics of some basic mock-ups we'd done before deciding on the above specs. I really liked the look of the ebony fingerboard with the ash neck through showing, but I felt that I'd enjoy having a bass that made a bit more of an artistic statement; this is something W&T are keen on doing, and I think they're rather good at it! [attachment=11319:eb.jpg] [attachment=11320:sw.jpg] Mark P.S. FYI, the lighter more maple coloured fingerboard wood is satinwood

Reeeeeally???? Hmmm, that may be worth a look... scratch that, [i]definitely[/i] worth a look. Yea check out his website bassjamm, that's where I got two of his albums from.