leonshelley01

I am surprised Fender aren't chasing a Chris Wolstenholme signature Jazz as they would sell well, although I don't think his are modded particularly.

Ibanez basses and guitars are probably pound for pound the best value manufacturer out there. They are well made using decent materials and their quality control is excellent (far better than many other far east factories). I have had a couple of their basses in the past and use a couple of RG guitars regularly at gigs. However, like most things, you must try them first. Not everyone gets on with the very slim (but very stable) necks.

[quote name='Josh' post='414630' date='Feb 19 2009, 07:17 PM']Why can none of you married players seemingly ever put your foot down?[/quote]

I did. Since the divorce I can have as many basses as I want. Of course I don't have as much time to play now with the travelling to see the kids...

Let us know Marshall's response. It will probably influence my decision on whether or not to get the cab.

That is really quite bad. I had toyed with the idea of getting the extension cab, but may give it a miss now, as the combo has enough volume for me anyhow. Has anyone actually contacted the Service Department about this, especially as it is not a one-off so they can improve their QC?

[quote name='bremen' post='411856' date='Feb 17 2009, 12:11 PM']Perhaps I'm being silly too, but maybe the guitarists could play a little softer while you're soloing?[/quote]

The guitarists always seem to be in the middle of a volume war, so fat chance!

My bass also has a couple of volume knobs, just a tad difficult to adjust mid-song without dropping out for a bar or so.

I have just been offered an Electro-Harmonix LPB-1 for gratis, so that should resolve the problem anyhow. Thankyou everyone for all the advice though!

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='411739' date='Feb 17 2009, 09:54 AM']I forgot to mention another Ibanez on this thread... BGM rated the SR300 as the best value for money bass out there...

Three band eq with style sweeper mid control as well. What more do you want for £230??[/quote]

I loved the neck on mine when I got one and I am an Ibanez fan having had a GSR200 in the past and two RG guitars, but I could not get on with those "rounded" top pickups. There was not enough pickup standing proud for me to anchor my thumb on when playing fingerstyle. If you can get over that issue, they are great basses, however I traded mine in for a Squier CV 60's bass which I am more than happy with.

On another note, I am constantly impressed at how good a lot of the current "beginner" basses are, be they Squier, Ibanez, Vintage etc. compared to the stuff around when I started (huge necks, plywood bodies etc.).

I, like others, listen to the song quite heavily to learn the structure first. Then I get the tab for it in the Guitar Pro format with drums, guitars, keyboards etc as well as the bass. Using POD farm I dial in an appropriate bass tone on the PC and play along with the Guitar Pro having muted the bass. If necessary, I slow down the tempo at first then build up to "full speed", breaking the song down section by section. Quite often at this point I may start imposing my "style" (or lack of ability!) in order to suit any arrangement changes necessary due to the bands setup or boredom by having to play contant eighth-note root notes!

To quote Bad News, "Our Jimi, Who art in Heaven, Hendrix be thy name!"

Great touch and tone, only Stevie Ray came close. In more modern times, Slash and John Petrucci.

That was very poor work on the cab, and full credit to you for finding the fault yourself. If you need to, give Marshall a ring on the number I listed earlier, I'm sure they will be able to help, they've always been helpful to me. But maybe that was just a mixture of my winning smile and animal magnetism!

I've just realised I'm being a bit silly. I have a Zoom B2 MFX as a back-up to plug into the PA in case of amp problems. I can just set two patches up with no effects but differing volumes. Doh!

Cheers for all your suggestions though!

[quote name='escholl' post='411091' date='Feb 16 2009, 02:01 PM']what if you were to make a cheap signal attenuator, put it in line after your effects, and turn it off for solo's (hence boosting the volume by however much it was attenuated?)

could do the whole thing from a place like maplin for under a tenner, if you know how to solder.[/quote]

I was just on the Electro-Harmonix site and they now make something similar (Signal Pad). I think I shall look into building one.

I've just compared my Jazz to an Ibanez RG guitar I have and the body size on the Jazz is only about a 1/2 inch bigger around the edge. Maybe he likes Steinbergers?

[quote name='johnnylager' post='410970' date='Feb 16 2009, 12:38 PM']Don't you have 2 channels with that amp? Use one as a solo channel?[/quote]

Unfortunately I use the two channels blended as my main tone!

[quote name='lemmywinks' post='410977' date='Feb 16 2009, 12:45 PM']I'd imagine the Behringers will do the trick, just don't stomp on them too hard or you might be getting a lot less volume than you'd hoped for![/quote]

That was my main concern as they look to be made of cheap plastic.

[quote name='alexclaber' post='410982' date='Feb 16 2009, 12:47 PM']How good are you at turning knobs with your foot?[/quote]

My other thought was to get a volume pedal and put a "stop" on the quiet side to keep a uniform volume for normal play and then open it up for the solo's.

At the moment I run a Jazz Bass through a modded Crybaby and Bass Big Muff into a Marshall MB4210 and I am really happy with my tone. My problem is I have two solo's in the set where the guitars are still going full tilt and I need to boost my volume in these sections without changing the tone significantly. Unfortunately, due to the credit crunch and lack of a current job, I need a very cheap solution. I was looking at the Begringer Volume Boost Pedal or Bass EQ as a possible solution. Any thoughts?

[quote name='chrisAngryman' post='410531' date='Feb 15 2009, 10:16 PM']Marshall service dept is second to none[/quote]

I can confirm that. I had an AVT275 that blew when our drummer kicked it over by accident. I took it to the Marshall factory in Bletchley who carried out the repair in 3 days at no charge under the warranty. I does help that I live 20 minutes away, but they were very helpful and keen to keep customers happy with their products. Give them a ring on 01908 375411.

Had mine a while, rehearsing/gigging at least once a week and I have had no problems at all, apart from getting through doors! Tone is great and I have not had any cut-outs myself. One word of warning, do not use the built in compressor, it is very clicky. Personally, I don't use a compressor, but if you do, front end a pedal before the amp.

When I bought my Jazz bass, I had gone in with the intention of buying an Ibanez SR500, but discovered I didn't feel comfortable playing it. I then tried every other bass in the shop in my price range and the Jazz just felt right. The pickups were poor and I've also changed the bridge, but it is comfortable to play and is very versatile. It also sounds like a bass as opposed to a baritone guitar like many modern basses.

I think Leo Fender just made good designs, which is why so many other manufacturers models are based on them. I own two Ibanez RG guitars, which are basically Strats with 24 fret necks, Floyd Rose trems and humbuckers.

Fender are like The Beatles and Bob Dylan. Both artists wrote great songs, they just didn't always record the best versions!

Second hand Sattelite P Bass copy was the first. I decided on bass as although I had a guitar already, there were loads of guitarists at school but no bassists so I would always get a gig! I also told girls that it wasn't the size of your feet but the size of your guitar that was the clue to package size! Went for the P Bass because I wanted to be Steve Harris.

IN:

Fender MIM Jazz (plus Gotoh Bridge and SD Basslines Hot pickups)
Squier Cool Vibes 60's Precision Bass
Ibanez SR300 Bass
Marshall MB4210 Bass Combo
Washburn DC10SCE Ovaganol Acoustic Guitar
EH Big Muff
Line 6 Toneport
Cubase Essential 4

OUT:

Ibanez SR300
Ibanez GSR200
Zoom 505II GMFX

UNCHANGED:

Ibanez RG470
Ibanez RG370
Line 6 Spider II 210
Zoom B2
Dunlop Wah

Pretty happy with my equipment now, decent bass and guitar setups and the ability to record reasonable demos, so (fingers crossed) my GAS is cured.....probably.

I have a 4210 and have been very pleased by it. It is a very versatile combo tonally and great value for money. I will probably get the 1x15 cab, not because I need it as it is plenty loud enough (the drummer asks for it to be turned down sometimes), but to intimidate the guitarists!

I have the Classic Vibes 60's Precision and couldn't be happier. I just could not justify the extra expense of buying a MIM Fender. If these had been around 18 months ago, I probably would have bought the Jazz as well!

The staff always seem so miserable in Coda! They are helpful though, and the pricing is nice and cheap. I got a really good deal on my Jazz Bass and Marshall from there.

Never had any lessons as such, but through books, other musicians and learning covers, I learnt a lot of the basics. More recently, using the Lick Library Bass Legends series of DVDs has increased both my knowledge of theory and "chops" so I am more confident in my own style of playing.

Great starter bass, very easy and comfortable to play.