icastle

How about checking the two little braided wires that travel from the speaker terminals to the cone assembly. Ideally they should be positioned in such a way that the only contact between the wire and the cone is right on the end of the wire. Sometimes there is enough slack on those two little wires that they can lay partially flattened against the cone - that can produce a nasty little buzz...

[quote name='ead' timestamp='1324592162' post='1476163'] Cheers fellows. Is there a particular way to identify compatible SPs from vendors, i.e. do they specifiy which basses match their template? [/quote] Not easily. They both have 13 holes, but the screw position varies slightly. Just look out for 'MIM' in the description of the item you are looking to buy. The other thing to remember is that you might just have to file a little bit of plastic away on the neck heel or pickup holes to get it to fit neatly - they're often made a little tight.

It's not half power exactly but yes, you can use your 2x10 quite safely with that amp.

Yep it's that easy. Make sure you buy a MIM compatible scratchplate though or you'll have a pig of a job lining the screwholes back up afterwards.

[quote name='MusicLover20015' timestamp='1324575953' post='1475883'] [font=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]I know there are going to be people from different sides saying "bass should also be able to solo" as well as "bass solo's ruin the experiance" but i just wanted to know what makes a good bass solo ? [/font] [/quote] Most important thing is knowing when to stop.

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1324559219' post='1475562'] And I kind of bulk at them declaring that they have 'groomed' us...!!!! [/quote]

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1324547432' post='1475359'] Ticketed venues aside, the pubs up here that have asked us to stay outside the area for a couple of weeks either side are friendly local venues, who we know well. If they ask us nicely, we're happy to go along with it. We're all friends... [/quote] Yep. A week or two either side is no big deal as you can use that to entice 'pub B' into a deal off the back end of that. I draw the line when it becomes months of 'exclusivity' with no pay coming in though.

There used to be a law that prevented this from happening (Restrictive Practices Act) but my understanding is that it was repealed a few years ago as it was believed that European Law was a sufficient safeguard. It is - provided you are a multi million pound business, but it's no use at all at a local level, as demonstrated here. I haven't come across that sort of situation here in the East Midlands yet but my gut reaction is that any venue owner trying to enforce such an 'agreement' would have trouble doing so and, unless they are offering a really good deal, are not a business I would want to deal with.

[quote name='deepbass5' timestamp='1324419058' post='1474129'] That is quite usual, most manufacturers just stick the bare wire under the bridge, even my schack and Shuker were the same. I have even had to rub the black painted bridges back to brass to get a ground. what I do is make sure the wire is clean and I bend it over and solder the loop this creates a larger surface area and the solder also gives it some depth, I then re position it away from the original indentation having cleaned the underside of the bridge, bolt it back down. [/quote] +1 That's as good a way as any and is exactly what nearly every manufacturer does.

The multitude of different ways to express volume as 'watts' in terms of amplification has been used for a number of years, by a number of amp manufacturers, as nothing more than a sales and marketing tool and does not benefit end users. In no other industry, that I can think of, is a measurement capable of being manipulated in this way and it's really about time that an agreed method of measuring and expressing this value was set in stone and adhered to.

[quote name='Who's Who' timestamp='1324329298' post='1473162'] But would you say they're as stable following repair? Is there any structural or tonal indifferences? [/quote] Very unlikely I'd have said. The break is generally quite clean and a minimal amount of wood glue is needed. As long as the neck is clamped tight to squeeze the excess glue out of the join then you'd probably need scientific measurement (as opposed to 'sounds the same to me' type measurement) to tell the difference.

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1324328395' post='1473148'] Corrected it for you. [/quote] I was trying to be subtle and understated...

[quote name='Who's Who' timestamp='1324327829' post='1473139'] But then looking at it from a different angle, that necks made up from 9 pieces of wood, so there's already plenty of glue in there. Surely a little more can't hurt!!! [/quote] I have to admit that I'm really not a fan of the Gibson headstock design. The sheer number of head snaps experienced by end users is pretty indicative of a poor piece of design.

Given that wood glues are generally tougher than the original wood and that some models are so prone to headstock breaks that I do sometimes wonder why the manufacturer doesn't break them before they leave the factory and glue them in the first place.

[quote name='brensabre79' timestamp='1324311744' post='1472883'] not sure where you can get the raw material and how you'd get the bevelled edge etc. If you want a cheap option, just get some thick plastic sheet from a stationers. [/quote] Most guitar spares places seem to do blank scratchplate material - try [url="http://www.axetec.co.uk/axetec%20guitar%20parts%20spares%20pickups_092.htm"]http://www.axetec.co.uk/axetec%20guitar%20parts%20spares%20pickups_092.htm[/url]. As for the bevelled edges, it's time consuming without the right tools, but I guess that with time and effort you can get a 45 degree slope on the outer edges.

[quote name='seashell' timestamp='1324295997' post='1472589'] I've especially enjoyed listening to the bass lines and trying to pick out a couple. But they're not that easy, are they? [/quote] Well Steeleye were ground breaking back in the mid 70's with a more or less blank canvas to work on. I was told a fabulous tale about audiences full of old ladies with blue rinses turning up to their gigs because they thought everything was going to sound like Gaudete - a bit like going to see a Mozart recital and having Motorhead appear... The basslines aren't too bad once you get your head around what's going on but they can be kinda 'busy' at times...

[quote name='seashell' timestamp='1324294994' post='1472574'] Steeleye Span 'The Early Years'. Compilation CD, mainly of stuff from 'Please to See the King' and 'Ten Man Mop'. Haven't listened to any folk in ages. Really enjoying dusting this off and rediscovering it. [/quote] Excellent choice. May it never get dusty again...

[quote name='spinynorman' timestamp='1324246100' post='1472279'] Edit: found references to similar problems with SRM450s on the Mackie forum. If it's just a case of finding the back of the socket and resoldering the connection, I could probably do that. If it requires tracing a fault, maybe not. [/quote] Well you've nothing to lose by unscrewing the panel and taking a look - if it's just a solder joint then you've saved yourself a trip to the repairers.

The UK importers of these back in the 80's (British Music Strings Ltd IIRC) weren't fussy about who they sold instruments to. This could have come from a music shop or, as has already been pointed out, Woolworths. This particular model retailed for just under £90 and originally had a white scratchplate. Although the early days of Kay saw some pretty reasonable instruments coming out of the US, by the time the 80's arrived the original company had all but gone and the brand name was being used by an eastern manufacturer. The £90 bass was their 'top of the range' model - basic models started at about £40 and you could even buy an acoustic guitar for less than £20. They weren't particularly nice instruments back then and I'd be astounded if age had improved them any.

The most important thing about playing a harmonic is getting your left hand off that string as soon as you've hit it - it's a practice thing that once you get the hang of, you'll wonder what the big deal was. Harmonics are always clearer on fresh strings - play them right and you can get a harmonic just about anywhere on the neck. Within a few days of playing they'll only respond to the 5th, 7th and 12th with any clarity.

Both Peavey and Hartke give you a lot of 'bang per buck'. I've been using a Peavey Tour 700 for the last 12 months and am very happy with it, prior to that I was a Hartke user. Only reason I moved over to Peavey was that it was time for an amp change and Hartke didn't have a product that matched my requirements at the time.

[quote name='REDLAWMAN' timestamp='1323033303' post='1458563'] I'm very much a beginner and still largely in root/5th land, very slowly starting to learn how to join-up chords a little more creatively. [/quote] Nothing wrong with playing root and 5th. It may not be hugely creative but it works, albeit at a somewhat basic level, and sometimes all a tune needs to carry it along nicely is simplicity.

Auto Wah and a Digital Delay

Fret size won't make your wrist and hand hurt. Things that can make a difference are related to the instrument setup (aka action), neck profile, playing position and technique.

[quote name='Cygnus x-1' timestamp='1323879736' post='1468174'] would think they would be already fitted... IMO, when you remove the 'tug bar' the holes arn't that noticable especially on darker colour scratchplates. [/quote] What usually happens is the screws used to hold the tugbarthumbrest are generally put back into the holes after removing said item.