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[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1328008920' post='1520130'] you're the bassist. Your rhythm will be the best to follow I'm sure you're totally right, I don't have a lot of experience in the genre [/quote] Gawd, you don't want to follow me - I'll get you into all sorts of trouble... EDIT: In fact, I have been known to shout [i]'Don't follow me, I haven't decided where I'm going yet!'[/i]

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1328005865' post='1520070'] I've been recording a couple of folky people recently and they've asked me to put bass on. With the lack of bass drum, I was really trying to get the bass to replace that and take up the rhythm role. Unfortunately I was asked to put bass on after the tracks were almost done, so I had to play in time to speeding up and slowing down, but yeh, my main point is that if there's no kick drum - try and be the kick drum? [/quote] Possibly, but you have to be aware of what the rest of the group is using as a rhythm 'source' or you'll take half of them off down a totally different avenue or get left there on your own when they ignore it.

[quote name='garethfriend' timestamp='1327969675' post='1519841'] yeah that was my plan got a load of recordings to play to, think I might have had a breakthrough already - one of the songs just clicked, don't know how to explain it but I'm playing wherever the guitars are not and repeat. Makes no sense to me but it works, just a case of practicing listening for the repitition so I don't loose it. [/quote] Yep, it's a lot more awkward than rock to get right because you have to get a totally different sense of rhythm going on in your head. After 30 years of playing in the folk/folk rock/roots genre I really have to concentrate when I'm playing more mainstream stuff or I end up giving the drummer a nervous breakdown. [quote name='garethfriend' timestamp='1327969675' post='1519841'] I think the other one I'm having trouble with is actually due to the recording, it's mumford and sons - lion man, basically he gave me a track of him and a guitar and he speeds up a load after a break (a little excited possibly) which is definitley throwing me off, it's only that section too so hopefully the drummer will keep things in check on the night a bit. [/quote] Just had a listen to it on YouTube - I can see how the guitarist speeds up after the break - the temptation would certainly be there. I've only got monitor speakers so I couldn't hear exactly what the bass player was up to, but I'd guess that he's following the bass drum for the chorus and then sparingly latching onto the banjo player for the verses. The hardest bit is going to get the dead stops that appear from 3:30 onwards. [quote name='garethfriend' timestamp='1327969675' post='1519841'] Am actually looking forward to this gig a bit more than I usually do as it's a challenge, possibly got one practice before we go on so a bit of a chance to put it into action live before the night. [/quote] The biggest danger really is that you'll be tempted to fall back into 'rock mode' and find it impossible to get back out again before the end of the song. Stay cool and calm and you'll be fine.

Bit of a culture shock eh? Having been somewhat immersed in that particular genre throughout my entire playing 'life' it's second nature now and trying to explain it is surprisingly difficult... Like all music, there is always 'something' that has a repeated rhythm within a folk tune. The trick is being able to work out what that thing is and 'latching' onto it. Once you have that you have to decide whether there's any point in playing at that point or if you're going to play either side of it instead. You have to do one thing or the other though, doing both will end up in a real mess. It is perfectly acceptable to vary that point between verses and choruses, but you have to be careful otherwise you might be going down a more folk\rock route that might not be appropriate within the constraints of the tune\band. Given the short amount of time you have before the gig, it's probably best to either get a recording of the band or ask your mate to point you at versions of the tunes that are closest to what they do and immerse yourself in that for a few days.

I racked my brains, but, for me at least, the only 'musician recognisable' type companies that spring to mind for standalone power amps these days are Yamaha and Peavey...

[quote name='brensabre79' timestamp='1327925200' post='1518746'] OK I tested it out with a 4 pos. switch I have while Iwait for the 5 pos. It works perfectly! So I have foregone the 100% neck pickup with 50% bridge as I don't really need this for my purposes. In the 100% Bridge 50% neck position I get all the growl from the BPU with a bit of the thud of the NPU, a little tweak of the preset pot and the mix is just right. I haven't put the capacitor in yet (waiting for those too) and I think I might have to revise the position of that in the circuit but for now I'm pretty pleased with it. once I've put it all together I'll post a revised diagram. Thanks everyone for your help! Bren [/quote] Brilliant That gives you a working 'prototype' that you can use as a fixed point to experiment from.

[quote name='GeeCee' timestamp='1327931281' post='1518928'] As many others have said, you need to call John and maybe make a visit to the workshop. Given the age of the bass it does sound a little like some of the problems John had when he switched to a different shorter truss rod for a while. [/quote] Yes. That would certainly explain the 'mechanics' of how the middle of the neck is pulling forward. John might know which trussrod he'd have fitted to that particular bass from the serial number.

[quote name='Bobby K' timestamp='1327907203' post='1518453'] Yeah, I did that very image search myself before posting here and generally found this to be the case. This is a yamaha though, but I don't suppose it matters. If I had to guess, I'd solder the wires back in as you describe. We'll see what happens... [/quote] Well it's a pretty safe bet. Yamaha won't be making their own pickups, they'll just be buying them in from a parts manufacturer. From a logistics perspective it doesn't make sense for any manufacturer producing a 'basic' item to deviate too far from what their customers are used to or else confusion is pretty much inevitable.

[quote name='jonannlou' timestamp='1327880924' post='1518353'] Ie can you make it even looser turning the truss itself? Just a though!! [/quote] Nope. Truss rods work in one direction only. Tightening a truss rod pulls the neck 'back' to compensate for the tension of the strings pulling the neck forwards. Once the truss rod is fully slackened it's effectively doing nothing.

No way of testing which end is which just using a DVM as far as I've ever come across. There is something I have noticed though. Lay the pickup down so that the top surface is facing you. Turn it round so that the solder end is on the RH side. The white (+) wire always seems to appear at the top and the black wire below it (have a Google image search for JB pickups and you'll see exactly what I mean - the two lead ones always seem to follow that convention.

Not a great recording, but here's new frontman Blair Dunlop (his mum is Judy Dunlop I've been told) with his dad. [url="http://youtu.be/KkYnd71jjKk"]http://youtu.be/KkYnd71jjKk[/url]

[quote name='Big_Stu' timestamp='1327867540' post='1518002'] Slugs of fag-packet on a JayDee?? Sacrilige!!! [/quote] Worry not, they were recommended purely as a temporary measure to test the assumption that a nut change would do the trick, or whether there was something more serious involved.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1327843838' post='1517509'] I just shouted drum solo and just managed to get to the loo in time! [/quote] I always do that if someone shouts 'drum solo'.

Yes, never unexpectedly though - it's always been down to my stubborn determination not to let people down. I've popped freshly stitched wounds and bled profusely. I've done 52 'challenging' straight hours without a break before gigging and have no recollection of how I got home when I've woken up on the floor the following morning. I've had to get roadies to track down chocolate bars half way through a gig because I've felt myself slipping into hypoglycemia - a side effect I get is lack of muscular control that I can hold off for a little while using willpower (aka being a stubborn b*st*rd) but makes every muscle I have scream. Fortunately, I don't really do the usual illnesses like colds and so forth so this sort of stuff is pretty rare.

[quote name='jonannlou' timestamp='1327791911' post='1516979'] I don't think this one has ever been back to Jaydee, its had one owner since 1987! I'll try a trusty bit of a fag packet to raise it up! [/quote] The point I was clumsily trying to make is that, if this instrument [b]was[/b] one of the ones that have issues, it's potentially been 'out there' for 20 odd years and, if there was a major defect with it, it would probably have come to light and been fixed long ago. I'd use a scrap of fag packet as well, but it doesn't sound very technical when you put it like that.

There were a number of Jaydees that had issues back in the late 80's but 20 years should have taken care of most of those by now. It does sound as though the nut has been cut too deep though if you're catching the first fret. If you want to check you can set it up properly before going down the replacement nut route then just slacken the strings off a little and shove a little bit of card between the nut slot and the string as a temporary shim and try setting it up again. If that works for you then replacing the nut is definately the right route to go down. HTH

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1327783918' post='1516841'] I first heard a track from "No Roses" on a Folk sampler album (on 8 track cartridge!!) called "Clogs" when I was really young & it completely blew me away as I'd never heard anything like it before. [/quote] My introduction to it came from catting to people in the folk clubs back in the 80's who had seen Shirley and her sister (Dotty or Dolly?) playing years earlier. By that time the album was already about 10 years old and I had to get it ordered in specially at my local record store. I played it to death and it was probably that album (along with Liege and Lief) that shaped my musical direction and influences to this day. [quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1327783918' post='1516841'] I found the lyrics and the instrumentation completely captivating & listened to it over & over again - the track was "The Murder of Maria Marten" & I still love it to this day. [/quote] 7.5 Minutes of quality in one tune - hard to find that on an album these days let alone all in one track [quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1327783918' post='1516841'] When I was in my first band with friends in high school I suggested we cover it & the rest of them thought I was insane as they were all listening to stuff like The Clash & The Damned. Their lack of enthusiasm (& also not knowing anybody who played a Hurdy Gurdy) meant I never got to realise my dream of performing it. [/quote] I pretty quickly realised that I needed two groups of friends - one of my own age group who would go to Clash gigs and a second one about 15 years older than me that I'd play music with. It's only over the last 10 years or so that I've started working regularly with musicians younger than me... I still like being the youngest one on stage though. I've never played Maria Marten but we did do a very nice version of The White Hare that got feet tapping.

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1327753297' post='1516215'] This is good news. I'm sure Ashley knows what he's doing & wouldn't do this unless he was sure it would be a bloody good band & a worthy successor to all his other Albion projects. One of the new line-up is Ashley's son so his DNA will be present even if he isn't. I was listening to some old Albion Country Band vinyl only the other night - "No Roses". Superb Stuff. [/quote] I seem to remember Ashley's son appearing on a track with his dad years ago when he was really young so it's obviously a family trait he's inherited. I'm going to have to go dig out my copy of No Roses now you've mentioned it, I haven't listened to it for years.

[quote name='noelk27' timestamp='1327708563' post='1515864'] Oddly, the new Runrig sound (mid/late 80s) reminded me of old Big Coutry. The circle would appear to be squared. [/quote] It does indeed!

Well, the intonation setup looks pretty daft from what I can see. Can you get access if you use a screwdriver like this..? [b][/b] Running out of saddle travel seems to be one of those things that gets flagged from time to time with various models. Unless the bridge is easily 'backwards movable' (and it doesn't look like it is on an LX6 without some extreme woodwork butchery) the only real option I can think of seems to be using a heavier gauge string.

I haven't actually seen anything by Queen 'post Freddie' but I saw Big Country had reformed with a new singer. The new Big Country sound reminds me very much of Runrig.

[quote name='Len_derby' timestamp='1327700499' post='1515745'] In Business Management Bollox-speak I thiink it's called 'succession planning'. [/quote] Yes it is - to both. I was thinking about it, and was shocked to realise he must be almost 70 by now. Then I got even more shocked when I suddenly realised I'm closer to 50 than I was this time last year. If anyone wants to sing me 'happy birthday' then you're three weeks too late, but don't feel bad about it because I only just realised I'd missed it as well.

Just noticed that The Albion Band are reforming... without Ashley Hutchings. For those who are scratching their heads and wondering what on earth I'm talking about, Hutchings is the bassist that formed Steeleye Span and Fairport Convention before forming The Albion Band. The Albion Band have always had a pretty 'fluid' lineup of top notch folk musicians, and have always had 'reshuffles' every few years to keep things fresh. The one constant has been Hutchings, the man that found all of these diverse musicians, drove things forward and remained their solid bass 'anchorman'. In this new lineup, he's taken a back seat and replaced himself as well! My initial response at the news was somewhat negative, but having listened to a sample of the 'new sound'... very much what I'd expect if The Levellers bumped into Steeleye Span down at the local pub... ...it is a little odd but rather good... Link [url="http://www.folkicons.co.uk/frameset1.htm"]here[/url] for those that are interested or intrigued...

Well I use an external Fishman and can't fault it, but as Prosebass has already mentioned - Artec. They have an enormous product range and features (albeit often rebadged) in products from very well known manufacturers. [url="http://artecsound.com/"]http://artecsound.com/[/url] The only 'catch' is that some of the products are for sale directly into manufacturer markets only and it takes a bit of hunting to discover which products aren't available.

Assuming you've already tried substituting the guitar lead... I'd start with fuses. If you're getting a hum then the one in the mains plug is OK and the one in the mains socket on the back of he amp is OK, but there's usually going to be at least one more inside the amp that you should check...