Matt P

i have to say that i love a P/J and my main bass is in fact a '77 P-bass with an added j-pup at the bridge (some kind of dimarzio we think) but i didn't do the work it was done years ago by a previous owner. if i had an unmodified p-bass then i wouldn't have the guts to have it modified. i'd probably be looking for a bass that already had the P/J config or getting a jazz and swapping the neck pickup for a P (easily done without major surgery) having had a little glance at your collection of basses i'd have thought the jap p-bass might be the more likely candidate for an extra pickup, or maybe a p-pup in the jazz (might just require a new scratchplate if the routs are big enough and would be easily returned to standard spec) but it's your bass so it's up to you what you do to it. if you do decide on a MM pickup then you'll need to reverse the p-pup to get it in the sweet spot, search on here for Pingray to see how it's done, i'm going for this pickup config on my new Letts 5 string. Matt

big thanks to everyone who turned out, i felt very welcome! i can't wait for the next one, hopefully i'll have some new toys to show off. some of the kit i was allowed to try was outstanding, i just wish i'd had the cash to take some of it home (and the space n the car!) i can think of at least 5 basses there that were up for sale that i'd love to have brought home with me. Matt

Is anyone who's going to the bass bash tomorrow interested in a cheap P/J bass? I've got a sunburst bitsa that needs to go to make room for my incoming Letts custom. It's a fenix body with a ryder neck and ibanez pickups, i had it assembled by the Bass Doc and it plays very nicely, strung with flats. 140 quid? I'll bring it along if anyone's interested. i'll also have my Ashdown 4x8 with me which will be for sale later this month when my new Barefaced Midget cabs arrive. trials welcome and i'll hold it for someone if they want it. I might bring My Yamaha RBX765a along too which will be up for sale when my new Letts bass arrives in March. Matt

For me a 5 string is all about versatility, I play in church a lot and there seem to be loads of songs in e flat, the low b means that a descending bassline that was written on an organ can be played properly. I also love it for songs in e as it gives me a fretted low e. I will agree that not all 5 strings are equal. But there are some great budget ones available. Matt

the only point i'll make is to check that you have enough adjustment to set the intonation of the lowest string, it will likely have to go back from the position it was in for the E string. if you don't feel confident to set the bass up yourself then a good tech should be able to set it up for very little outlay as it should just be tweaks and fettling. Matt

i'm a bit bored so i had a look at the pics and the schematic, i think that you need VR1 (10k linear) and VR3 (50k Linear) i think these are the right pots http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2pcs-Potentiometer-Pot-B10K-10K-Linear-shaft-20mm-/150592219036?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Components_Supplies_ET&hash=item230ffee79c http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2pcs-Potentiometer-Pot-B50K-50K-Linear-shaft-15mm-/160573866934?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Components_Supplies_ET&hash=item2562f2c3b6 both are from china but it's only just over a fiver for 2 of each of the pots, worth a shot? Matt

Ok, well if you need any help just give me a shout, I'm sure some packaging could be fabricated. Failing that are there any Manchester people heading to the north east bass bash this Sunday? I'm sure the bass could be transported there and handed over Matt

i'm not in the market for an EUB at the moment but i work in the same village as the seller and i guess i might able to be a middle man to get it to someone who wants it. how hard would it be to pack up and post? Matt

there's not really an option there that i wouldn't like to have a go at but i voted singing, i play guitar as well but the abilty to stand up and sing in front of an audience would be ace, i did it twice, solo, accapella, in front of a whole school and i've not had the guts to try again (i didn't want to sing but i had no real choice) Matt

i've never owned anything tottaly cr*p, i've borrowed epi eb's and played a few cheapies but the worst one was actually a mex precision that a mate was trying to sell, it had hung on the wall of a local pub for years and sting had signed the scratchplate so my mate thought it must be worth a few quid, unfortunately no-one had taken the plastic off the scratchplate before getting it signed and the signature was wearing off, it had an action that you could get a bus under and sounded dreadful, last i saw of it was an advert on gumtree with an asking price of £1000! by contrast one of the best p-basses i've played (with the exception of my 77) was a mex precision special (with the p/j pickups and a gold scratchplate) that belonged to another friend, it played like butter and sounded perfect. i don't think he'd part with it for 3 times it's street value! Matt [size=2](edited to try and improve the spelling, not sure if it's any better now though)[/size]

how wide is the head? i've got an ashdown 4x8 with neo speakers that i'll be selling very soon, it's almost exactly 20kg and nice and compact, if you're in the north east you'd be welcome to try before you buy. (although i could probably post it without too much fuss) i'll not want much money for it either, maybe about £100 + P+P, it's a bit scruffy but it sounds great. Matt

currently an ashdown 4x8, but will be swapping to 2 1x12's as soon as my midgets arrive would have gone for a 2x12 but wanted smaller cabs as they live upstairs. Matt

This is a long shot but is anyone coming up from Lancashire? I might need some pa speakers brought over. Thanks Matt

for practices i'm the taxi, we're a three piece, the drummer can't drive (not sure i'd trust him behind the wheel!) and our guitarist/vocalist can drive but his only vehicle is a pickup truck with a tiny cab and no load cover so not great if it's raining! (it's his company vehicle and usually full of tree trimmings and dirt anyway) i don't mind for the practices as they're on my way and the others pay for the drinks and snacks at half time. for gigs we split gear between my car (driven by my wife) and the singers girlfriends car (driven by it's owner as the singer isn't insured to drive it) i'm pretty lucky as my band is made of 3 great friends so it's not a chore. Matt

[quote name='paul torch' timestamp='1359023385' post='1948507'] Cheers Matt. I've done a search in the for sale section but can't seem to see any there. [/quote] i must apologise! i've just had a look and there's only one available at the moment (and they'd rather sell with the head) i'm sure that last time i looked there were about 5 SVT210AV's up for grabs. this is the only one i can find at the moment [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/196875-ampeg-micro-vr-svt-210av-cab/page__p__1944593__hl__ampeg__fromsearch__1#entry1944593"]http://basschat.co.uk/topic/196875-ampeg-micro-vr-svt-210av-cab/page__p__1944593__hl__ampeg__fromsearch__1#entry1944593[/url] Matt

i forgot to say that there are a few for sale in the marketplace too! might be able to save a few quid! matt

i'm afraid i can't help with the Hartke cabs but have you considered the Ampeg SVT210AV ? a light, affordable 2x10 that's designed for vertical alignment, similar price to the tc cabs and any store with the pf350 in stock is very likely to have the svt210av in stock too. 200w @ 8ohms per cab should pair nicely with the head and they look fantastic. they were very high on my try out list before my wife gae me permission to blow my budget and order my midgets. i'm pretty sure there are a few guys using svt210av's on here but i can't remember who they are! Matt

well as some reinforcement to the other comments I've just dug out the old fat beams and they look exactly the same, the ball ends are identical, the windings look right and from your description of the sound and feel i'm 99.9999999% sure they're fatbeams. they are expensive but they're fantastic strings, i'm tempted to order a set for one of my 5er's but i'm on a flatwound kick at the moment. Matt

i've got an old set of fatbeams at home, i'll compare them to your pics when i get in, i used to use them exclusively when i just had a 5er, i'll probably go back to them one day when i wnat a change from flats (which is all i use at the moment) Matt

i have a pretty low alcohol limit, on a night out to the pub with my friends it's about 3 pints max, maybe 4 if it's my birthday. i once played a gig on guitar after a pint of beer and didn't enjoy it, i usually don't drink any alcohol before the first set but i'll often have a pint of real ale (max 4.5%) at half time, and our second set is designed to be easier to play and remember anyway so i'm usually ok. our singer used to play drums in a blues band and i once witnessed him drink 12 cans of lager that his girlfriend had smuggled into the venue, he had them all poured into pint glasses and lined up on a windowsill behind a curtain right behind his kit, it didn't seem to affect his playing at all, luckily he's dried out a bit since then! matt

the Bass Doc would be my first port of call, he's currently without a computer but is reachable by Phone, he's based just outside Newcastle upon Tyne but can do post too, if you want his phone number then drop me a PM and i'll ping it back. the last scratchplate he did for me was cheap tortie but i think it looks great. (it was [i]very[/i] cheap as well) he has stocs of differnt materials according to what you actually want, i just wanted a cheap plate to get my bitsa working. Rushbo has just had a red tortie plate made by him so should be able to give you an idea of price. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/190868-the-bass-doc/page__st__80__p__1937090#entry1937090"]http://basschat.co.uk/topic/190868-the-bass-doc/page__st__80__p__1937090#entry1937090[/url] Matt

[quote name='jaydentaku' timestamp='1358334650' post='1937055'] I am bringing my Letts along. [/quote] excellent, i look forward to seeing/hearing it. Matt

is anyone able to bring along an ACG or a Lettsbass? i've got GAS for a custom bass but haven't had a chance to see work from either of these great builders in person. matt

oh well, good excuse for another bash later in the year maybe? late summer? i'm just hoping my new cabs arrive in time so i've got something shiny to bring along! will there be name badges? it would be great to put some faces to names/usernames. Matt