Matt P

right, i've asked a few questions here and there about this and i've done a few searches but i've just managed to get myself into a huge knot! my current rig is an SWR Headlite into an Ashdown 4x8 with neo speakers and i'm looking at getting a different cab mainly to get something lighter and louder. my first thought was a Barefaced compact but i'm worried that i haven't got the power to get the most out of it, i've seen Alex mention that he has virtually no experience of the Headlite and when i've used other cabs i get very varied results; - Ashdown 4x10 (in the practice room) - have to run it almost flat out to be heard (set to the point where the clip light briefly lights when i really dig in) - old Peavey 4x10 + re-speakered Behringer 1x15 (church rig) - barely have to push it at all and i can drown everyone in lovely bass. (not that i would) - Ashdown 4x8 (playing for a kids worship event) - easily heard with very little effort. - Ashdown 4x8 + Trace Elliot 1x15 (wedding gig in a good sized room to 300 ish people) - i've no idea! everyone said it sounded good but it was for a friend and they might have been being polite as it was our first gig! i know that two of those rigs are 8 ohms and the other 2 are 4 ohms so i'm putting different amounts of power into them but i've just got this niggling doubt that i've got the power to run a single compact and make myself heard. Has anyone tried a compact (or any Barefaced cab as i'm also thinking of a midget (T)/compact stack or a super12(T)) with a Headlite? did it work well? loud? punchy? can anyone reccomend some light/smallish cabs that would work well with the Headlite for a pub blues-rock covers band playing to maybe 200 people max? Space is my main restriction as i have loads other stuff and everything needs to be easily hidden so 4x10 cabs are totally out, the 4x8 fits easily in a cupboard at the top of the stirs and i think i could move some stuff round and fit one or maybe 2 compacts into the same cupboard instead, 2 smaller cabs would be easier to accomadate than one bigger one. Thanks in advance and sorry for the slightly rambling post. Matt

grr wish i hadn't read through this topic, i came in to put some good words for the 4x8 as i use one (albeit with replaced neo speakers which makes it 20kg) i quite like mine and was only thinking of upgrading when i had the cash for some barefaced goodies but now i'm looking at the gk 2x12 and thinking that do the job pretty well (pub blues/rock band with no pa reinforcement) how do people think it would pair with an abm 4x8? or should i buy 2? (this might all be moot as i don't have any money till friday and the gk cabs might have sold out by then (or i might just give into the Barefaced Compact GAS) Matt

[quote name='3below' timestamp='1352931354' post='1869609'] Drilling the hole is easy, can you get me a set at amazing price from same shop? [/quote] i think the price was a one off, the owner of the shop used to work at D'addario and is in a band with a guy who still works there (their distribution centre is very close to us) i've spend quite a bit of money in there over the years and have built up a friendship with the guy. i've seen good prices online though, i think i got a few quid off the the best online price, which i then spent on my bus fare into town and a fresh cream donut! stringbusters have them for 38 quid for the 5 string set. [url="http://www.stringbusters.com/Ko-Bespoke/productlist.asp?cat=1/BASS+STRINGS/BASS+STRINGS+DADDARIO"]http://www.stringbusters.com/Ko-Bespoke/productlist.asp?cat=1/BASS+STRINGS/BASS+STRINGS+DADDARIO[/url] [b]Matt[/b] Matt

i was i bit worried for a moment there, i've just bought a st of chromes for my project rockbass 5, it's got the one piece bridge so it looks like i might have to get my drill out to widen the hole. luckily i got the strings at an amazing price from my favorite guitar shop so if i can't get them to fit i won't lose anything selling them on. matt

can't help you with a Fender unless you find a modified one that someone has striped the finish off (like my one which i'm afraid isn't for sale) Have you thought about a Sandberg? the California vs is available in natural gloss or matt and the general opinion is that they're incredible basses. http://www.sandberg-guitars.com/basscat-overview/calv-series/calvs the configurator will allow you to see the combination you desire, i tried to link the image but if you paste 14.2.1.0.2.1.3.1.1.1.1.1.0 into the box it should take you to the right spec. matt

No trouble with mine that wasn't abuse related, i'd give them a call, from what I've heard they're pretty good when.it comes to customer service. Matt

I''m a huge fan of Hiscox, my 77 lives in one and i have them for most of my guitars, for a precision bass you want the EBS case not the EPB which is for oversized basses. [url="http://www.hiscoxcases.com/standardguitar_hiscox.htm"]http://www.hiscoxcases.com/standardguitar_hiscox.htm[/url] when i bought my first Hiscox the guy in the shop demonstrated the strength by putting my beloved acoustic in the case and then standing on it! they're not cheap but my acoustic would be firewood if it hadn't been in a Hiscox, (incident involving a caravan tyre blowout and a Large gas bottle) i'm currently on the hunt for more hiscox bass cases for the rest of my collection, trying to get them secondhand to save some money. Matt

Does anyone know if Howard has managed to reclaim his workshop from the builders? having just sold a bass i'm yearning to get my jazz up and running, i've got his number but don't want to disturb him if he's trying to get the backlog cleared. Matt

sir i owe you a beer! the use of bicycle chain links as pedal mounts is inspired, i have looked at the ones that jonnyshreadfreak sells and thought about buying some many times, i never made the connection to bike chains, 5 minutes work with a bit of spare chain and my chaintool and i now have all the mounting parts i need to start my pedal board project. matt

I'll leave off calling about getting my jazz sorted as well then, i'd sort it myself but Howard seems to have the magic touch when it comes to anything designed by Leo. Matt

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1351794047' post='1855546'] hey thanks guys, I too suspected the speakers, they are big for the room I have them in now, I'll try repostioning and a port plug, any sugestions for smaller speakers that will enable me to hear the bass nice and clearly? Like the OP here I'd like something 2nd hand, say up to £100 [/quote] i swapped from a pair of budget KEF floorstanders to a pair of Castle Durham 2's sitting on Atacama stands, the speakers were 60 quid from a guy up the road and the stands were a local ebay find for about 20 (including the atabites filler) the difference was huge, the floorstanders sounded fine in my old rented house but in our current living room they sounded useless, i tried positioning and port plugs but nothing helped, sold them to a friend and they sound pretty good in his living room. the only problem with the castles is the lack of spare parts, when i bought mine the seller had another identical pair that my friend bought, they turned out to have dead tweeters, he had a chat with the seller and was given all his money back and told to keep the speakers, he then manage to get hold of a guy in york with the last pair of correct tweeters, £90 latert he had a pair of speakers that sounded as good as my pair if not a little better, i live in fear of the day that mine develop a fault as i know that repair might not be possible and i love the sound. the mission 727's in the classifieds might suit your needs.

secondhand would be my reccomendation, yamaha or aria, if you can find one with a solid top then even better, mind you i just picked up an ariana (budget Aria) from the 70's (i think) and it's all plywood but sounds amazing! the previous owner bought it in a junk shop. i'd be searching the secondhand stores and the like. butthe deal that Ian is offering would be my first choice, especially with the hard case for an extra 15 quid! (a bit of gaffa tape and should make it useable enough) get some new strings for it and you're still under budget! (i'm a huge fan of Newtone heritage 12's, the finest strings i've tried and i've tried plenty over the years from most of the big and not so big names) Matt

check out [url="http://www.tnt-audio.com/int.html"]http://www.tnt-audio.com/int.html[/url] they have a diy section with stands etc, i've been using a flexy rack for years now and it's fantastic, i'm currently building a modified uprated version using thicker shelves and bigger threaded rod (and more space) they've got 2 different speaker satnd options but these look pretty good and should be dirt cheap to build [url="http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/stubby_e.html"]http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/stubby_e.html[/url] matt

the t-amps have been on my wishlist for ages but for a bargain amp i'd go with Dingus' suggestion of a cyrus, they're very nice bits of british kit made not too far from where i grew up. i've got a bit of an eye out for a newer hifi amp to upgrade the arcam alpha 5 in my main system and a cyrus is on the list, however the list also contains audiolab, nad, naim, roksan and a newer arcam (and there are probably a few other makes that i can't currently recall)

i love everything except the colour really (which might grow on me) that's some incredible work you've managed, if it were fretted i'd be bugging you to sell it to me! the detail that you've gone to is fantastic. the veneering on the headstock looks perfect and the control and scratchplates wouldn't look out of place on a 3k custom bass. well done Sir! Matt

Just bought a project Warwick rockbass Corvette from Rob and the whole deal was totally painless, it arrived quickly, well packed and exactly as described, deal with confidence in this fine gentleman. Matt

I don't have any experience of the Peavey basses, but someone on here will, have you run a search from the main page (box on the top right) that will throw up any post that mentions them, someone might have reviewed one. (the reviews section is very useful) matt

the bespeco one works without the battery, it only powers the LED, it's not the smallest but i've yet to break mine in about 10 years of stomping. a diy one could be built into a box not much bigger than a matchbox and would be much more rugged. Matt