BigAl

I too have been using a Hercules stand for years, despite it looking a bit awkward it grips the bass well and the small size is great. A word of warning though, the pivot of each arm that hold the bass on mine have been exposed and the hard tips have destroyed the finish on either side of the strap button on the back of my basses! I'm not too precious about instruments that are used a lot but this was annoying when I eventually noticed it.

I have a JV Precision hanging on my wall with a broken truss as well! I got it like that cheap and don't really need it so haven't done anything to fix it. I would suggest that if the truss doesn't seem to be straightening the neck out enough that it has bottomed out. Anyone else having this problem should check the http://basschat.co.uk/topic/97682-truss-rod-maxxd-out/page__view__getnewpost thread.

The batteries ran out in my Big Al months ago and despite having spares I've felt no need to change them. It still has the big full sound I like in passive mode, with plenty of the bite you would expect from a Musicman. And that's with really dead strings too...