Matt P

i haven;t tried the powerball but i did buy a gripmaster a while back, and didn't get on with it at all, the guy in the climbing shop recommended one of these http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en-gb/shop/mountain/accessories/forearm-trainer it's great, they're cheap and smallish so i have one on my work desk, one at home and one in my bag, they're great for warming up when you haven't got an instrument in your hand, perfect for before sound check and then that gap between sound check and performance. or just as something to play with while on the phone or reading Basschat. Matt

typical, mind you having looked at the spec it seems to be a great amp! Matt

does the band have a rack already? or is it something you are planning on getting? if not then i'd be looking at a pedal option, probably one of the Tech 21 Character pedals that Mcgraham suggested. if there is a rack that has a space then i'd be looking for a tube guitar preamp, plenty of options available, personally i'm a marshall fan so would be looking for a jmp-1 or a 9004/9001. another option that i found was the Randall mts system, it's got swappable preamps (valve) the RM4 is a 4 bay rack that you simply fit 4 preamps into and it gives you switching options, they have a good range of different preamps that you can fit, fender, marshall mesa boogie etc, and they look great. matt

sorry if i missed this information but what is he currently playing through? does he need loads of presets and different amp sounds or just a good valve preamp (like the engl above)? if he's trying to replace his entire fx/amp/cab setup with a single box then there have been some good suggestions made already (a friend uses the line 6 stuff in his rock covers band and it sounds great). if it's just an amp that he wants to replace then a good preamp will do it, maybe a sansamp which would integrate nicely into a pedalboard? i've had loads of dicussions with guitarist friends (and am a guitarist myself) and the younger ones all seem to think they need the latest digital modelling amps with hundreds of presets, i usually lend them my tiny terror for a week and they change their minds! Mat

Having read this i think i'm going to put Newtone's at the top of my shopping list, i already use the Newtone Heritage balanced phosphor bronze strings on my acoustic guitar but it never occurred to me that they could do the same with Bass strings! Matt

i'll have to watch it on the iplayer, my wife is in the middle of decorating the living room and the telly's under a dust sheet till it's finished.

I've played a few and they have all delivered the goods, i had a Superfly for a while too, bought it new but never totally trusted it (i read a whole bunch of reviews before buying so went into the deal with open eyes) i loved the tone of the Superfly and the programmable EQ was excellent but it started getting noisy (high pitched whine) so i got the SWR Headlite instead and gave the Superfly away (to a friend who was starting out, i explained the amps shortcomings before i let him take it away). I'd go for a ABM if you can, they seem to be pretty bulletproof and Ashdown have a first rate reputation for customer service. quite a few of the practice rooms round here have Ashdown rigs and if they can survive that abuse then they can survive anything. the main thing is to buy from the classifieds here, you won't get better value from anywhere else! (and if you collect in person from the seller you might get a nice cup of tea and a biscuit while you try it out!) Mat

does it need to be clear for an amp? i'd go with a self build made of plywood with piano hinges maybe, and line it with some kind of dampening material. my church bought a drum screen to reduce the onstage volume and all it managed to do was reflect the drums back against a wall and make them very loud on the balcony (and deafening for the drummer, it was painful behind the kit even with a moderate drummer), we had to add some acoustic panels on the back wall to balance it all out (we ended up ditching the screen as it was easier to get the drummer to play quieter, which coupled with the acoustic panels sorted the volume problems.) Matt

having gone to the trouble of having my lighter bitsa made for gigging i actually used my 77 for the whole of my last gig, it just feels and sounds so right, i'm actually thinking of selling the bitsa to help fund a new cab or a better 5 string. i got through both sets with a big stupid grin on my face that wouldn't have been there with the bitsa and there was no pain the next morning. Matt

a friend of mine (dodge_bass) has one, sounds great (although i haven't played it i was just a punter at a gig) i think it's replaced his sadowsky as his main 5 string, to me it sounded like my beloved 77 p-bass (which i actually bought from dodge_bass) but with the added bonus of a low b. I now have serious GAS for a 5 string p-bass but am veering towards a sandberg rather than a fender as i fancy the added sounds of a vm5/pm5. Matt

good luck with the search, i'll keep my eyes out for it, i'm on a similar mission to find a friends old yamaha acoustic, it got left in the carpark behind leeds corn exchange by a band member 5 years ago, every yamaha i see for sale gets checked to see if it's the one. ypou'vre got a better chance as the bass is far rarer. Kiwi, any chance of some more info on how you got your bass chipped? i'd love to do this for some of my more valuble instruments. feel free to send info by pm if you don't want to broadcast how it was done (thereby possibly telling people how to undo it) sounds like an ace way to prove ownership. Matt

i've been using the schallers for about 10 years now without any problems, i found that if you follow the guide linked above and enlarge the strap hole properly then the lock fits much better to the strap, it seems to just grip better and doesn't turn, i've seen some copies of the schallers and they'd modified the design slightly, removing the chamfer from the outside of the button and putting a bigger chamfer on the pin, looked far less secure to me, the schaller ones seem to grip better. i've seen the dunlop ones and used them on a friends guitar but I never really trusted them I prefer the schaller design, to my engineer mind it seems the better design. but each to their own. Matt

i've got hardcase for everything so orientation doesn't matter but i've also got a few stands around the place and a big rack for the cases, so there's usually a couple of basses and a couple of guitars on stands or wall hangers and the rest along with the cases are all in one big rack, i like to have a bass to hand to noodle on. Matt

Difficult question, have voted ernie ball as i have the flats on my precision, the others have all got picato flats and i really like these too but the precision's my favorite and that has the ernies so that's what gets my vote. i had a long time on dr's but the stories of bad sets and duff strings put me off, if the quality has come back then that's probably what i'll fit to every bass except the precision. i've only considered bass as well (i assumed that's what you were asking about) on my acoustic it has to be newtone heritage (just ordered 10 sets to keep me going) and on my electric guitars it's d'addario 10's (again order them 10 sets at a time to keep stock)

wow that's some neat work! the extra cost is fine by me, they look very nicely made. let me know when my name comes outof the hat and i'll send you some money. Matt

i'm expecting this for our next gig, we're playing for a friends wedding, they asked and we mistakenly said yes, the bride to be was under the impression that we'd just need a couple of practices before the big day but when they asked we were'nt really a band (we'd just jammed together a few times) we've all played in bands before but just not in this configuration, we've spent the last 3 months learning and practicing suitable songs, and it's been fun (we're going to keep on after the wedding), at some point someone (probably the groom) will shout "play freebird" (a long running joke with his best man who plays lead guitar in a rock covers band and refuses to play freebird) so we've worked out a version that works for us and we're poised to launch into it at any point. hopefully that should earn us a few pints to round the evening off. Matt

used this to go take some better pictures of my baby, this is my best acoustic, (I've got a Yamaha cutaway dreadnaught too but i have hardly touched it in the last 4 years) McIlroy AS25, Cedar top, solid claro walnut back and sides, bought 3 days before my wedding as a present to myself (with permission of course) that was 4 and a bit years ago, i still get a buzz when i play this guitar, i can't quite believe it's mine! at the time the single most expensive purchase i'd made, but the finest acoustic guitar I've ever played (and I've played some really expensive instruments from some big names including Martin, Taylor Takemine and Collings) Dermot McIlroy (pronounced mackleroy) learnt his trade at Lowden, and this shows in his guitars, i've played a few Lowdens and they're wonderful but the McIlroy has something special about it. a 40 year old (ish) Fylde has got close as well. [attachment=114128:P1020970.JPG][attachment=114129:P1020973.JPG][attachment=114130:P1020971.JPG] Matt

did i Pm you? can't remember if i did (and can't check as i'm on my mobile) if my name's not on this list should i pm to get in the queue? i'm up for either preamp as long as it has a blend pot (i would eventually love to have one of each but am a patient man and will happily wait my turn.) matt

nice, my first guitar was a red aria magna 20, if you ever need to sell this on give me a shout, I'd love to have a bass to go with it. Matt

Has no-one got a precision 5 string they could stick a ruler over? i just want to know if the spacing is close to the stingray 5 so the strings will run properly over the polepieces, then i can start the search for all the bits for my build. if the spacing is different to the stingray (more than 1/2 a millimeter string to string) i'll start looking at buying something from the classifieds. (sandberg is the current favorite) Thanks in advance Matt

the spacing doesn't really matter to me when playing as i find i can adjust pretty easily, i just want to make sure that both the pickups line up properly with the strings. i've got my eye on a number of possible basses but i really want a good precision tone, the added musicman pickup would be a bonus and hopefully quell the nagging thought that i really want a stingray as well. I also like the idea of owning something unique, i've never seen a 5 string jaguar with a p/mm pickup combination. Matt

i'm hoping someone can help me here, i'm trying to find out what the string spacing at the bridge is for the Fender Precision V and Google hasn't been much use. I heard a guy play one at a gig yesterday and it sounded just like my beloved 77 but with a great low b as a bonus. i'm Gas'ing for a better 5 string and have been toying with the idea of a P/MM pickup combination on a Jag body with either a jazz v or a stingray 5 neck (depending what comes up in the classifieds here). the pickup combo will be very much like the Pingray that Ou7shined built but on a jag body in sonic blue with tortie scratchplate. with fender and musicman usa pickups most likely (again it depends what appears in the classifieds) if it all looks too expensive or complex then i'll probably just wait for a sandberg PM/VM 5 to come up secondhand. (the build will be mostly secondhand parts with the probable exception of the body) Thanks Matt

last time i played a pub gig on bass i only had one bass so that was easy (about 300 quid's worth i think) but back in my guitaring days then it depended on the gig, i played a few acoustic sets with my Mcilroy where i was definately uneasy (very low stage and very drunk punters very close) i think i would have been happier with my old Yamaha and i'm darned sure the punters wouldn't have noticed the difference between 2k's worth of handbuild Northern irish beauty and a 25 quid argos special. i have had a cheap bitsa p/j built as an alternative to my 77, but that was mainly because of the weight, i can only play for so long with 11lbs of bass on my shoulder, so a short set will get the 77, but if i'm up there for a long time then i'll only use the 77 where it's needed for a song here and there, the bitsa will get most use. all my instruments are tools to be used and i try not to get precious about them, and i do pretty well most of the time but the thought of damage to my Mcilroy brings me out in a cold sweat. Matt