Green Alsatian

Would that be an 'o' shaped neck profile? Wonder how one would 'refret' it, should the frets wear down. Does one oil the neck with Castrol? Etc.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1387536441' post='2313008'] I think that the most recent album Staring Down the Barrel is a very good album indeed, and in my opinion compares well to any Blockheads album with the exception of New Boots and Panties which is an absolute classic. The 11 reviewers on Amazon seem to agree with me. As does the BBC reviewer. [url="http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/3xw6"]http://www.bbc.co.uk...ic/reviews/3xw6[/url] The whole album can be heard on Spotify. [/quote] Indeed it is - I liked the central theme of what we're doing to the planet running through Staring Down the Barrel. I as I mentioned in another thread, I grew up with New Boots and Panties and it'll always be my fave followed by Do It Yourself and Mr. Love Pants. Have you heard their latest album 'Same Horse Different Jockey' yet? It's great! Plenty of catchy tunes on that one. Here's the video from the first single, 'Express Yourself': [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSb0uHwdTvg"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSb0uHwdTvg[/url]

I'd be gutted if Norman wasn't at last Friday's gig too - sorry to hear that you didn't get to see him in action. [quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1387527400' post='2312870'] TBH The Blockheads without Ian Dury (never mind NWR) seems a fairly pointless exercise to me. [/quote] I don't agree, since it was Chaz Jankel who wrote the bulk of the music to back Ian's lyrics. His absence is really noticeable on 'Laughter' (although having Wilko onboard for that album was great). I'm a huge Ian fan and think his best material was when backed by The Blockheads. They're are too good a band to be not playing and their new material with Derek is excellent - well worth checking out. That Derek does justice to his old mate's lyrics when they play the older stuff live is a bonus.

Madstock was the one that gutted me the most - I'd not long started my first job and as I was a temp, couldn't get the time off to go (Madness are another of my fave bands).

I've just got back from probably the best gig I've ever been to, watching The Blockheads playing at Eric's in Liverpool. I grew up with New Boots & Panties, as my old man (no pun intended) bought it for my mother when it came out in '77. I missed out on seeing them with Ian on several occasions in the 90s through various circumstances, much to my chagrin. I missed a gig in town a couple of years ago when Derek The Draw took over on vocals, through getting my dates mixed up. Not tonight! They were fantastic and played a great selection, including a few from the new album, 'Same Horse Different Jockey', which I've been hammering since it came out a few weeks ago. Derek did a smashing job with the older material. Naturally, Norm was on top form. I was wondering what his bass was, as I'd noticed that he wasn't using the Bass Collection Blockhead bass in clips of him playing with Wilko recently, so I got a good look at the headstock tonight, which reads 'Faith & Grace'. It's a custom-built model, based on his '62 in shoreline gold from Joseph Kay Guitars. Sounded fantastic in Norm's capable hands - such a pleasure to see a bass hero of mine live at last. (especially after seeing Scott Gorham in action with the Black Star Riders two weeks ago)

That is precisely the colour and model I'm after myself. I intended for one to pair with the 55-01 I had in maple/natural which I bitterly regret having to sell when the gearbox in my car decided to erupt earlier in the year. If the 02 feels/plays as nicely as the 01 (and I see no reason why it shouldn't), I think you'll really enjoy it!

No probs. A couple of things to check are the volume of the B string and that the electronics are okay. The first one I bought had the 'weak B' problem, as Epiphone let out a batch which featured 4-string pickups on them. When I first tested it, I couldn't really hear much due to the Eddie Van Halen wannabe a few feet away. On taking it home, I noticed how much lower in volume it was and took it straight back and that the electronics were really noisy, even with just a little treble boost. The replacement didn't have these problems and had the treble/bass controls in opposite positions (the first must have escaped QA!). Sadly, the string/bridge issue was.

I had one of the early Pro-V models (prior to Epiphone moving the strap button to the base of the neck) and had difficulty fitting a 130 D'Addario in the bridge. The only way I could get it in there was to flatten it slightly with pliers and this deadened the string, naturally. A taper-wound set will fit it, but I didn't like the string nor its sound, so I ended up dropping the guage to a 125 and resetting the action. I don't know if Epiphone changed the bridge, as it's a bit a silly design to be limited to certain guages. Ask the store if a 130 will fit it - you could order a set and have them fit, just to be certain.

The last time I encountered this, I bought some dowel from B&Q, drilled the existing screw holes wider to accommodate the dowel and glued them in with wood glue. When the glue had set, I cut the dowel level with the back of the neck and used sandpaper to smooth it out. Finally, I fitted the neck and then marked/drilled new holes. Sorted!

Here's a demo of one being played in a mixture of finger and slap style with rounds: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gb2mJrFm-qc"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gb2mJrFm-qc[/url]

[quote name='FlatEric' timestamp='1386663191' post='2302684'] Very well described! Great balance, luvverly neck and a bit more bark than you would expect! This is mine. A cracking bass in many respects. Cheers. [/quote] That's absolutely gorgeous! Here's mine, which has seen a bit of action. The original knobs are long gone and looking at the bridge and headstock, mine is a later model (any ideas?). When I got it, a previous owner had rewired it, so I downloaded the schematic and as the pots had seen better days, I completely rewired it with the treble-bleed circuit on the volume pots as per the schematic.

I picked up a Foundation earlier in the year - love the Super Ferrite pickups in it. Like a Jazz bass but less polite.

Same here - I use the 'book' settings for reference and then see how low I can go and then tinker with the pickup height. As I play with a light touch, I can go pretty low without buzzing.

You could always look up the factory specs - on a Fender Jazz bass, when holding the string at the last fret, it's around 7/64" (you can convert that to metric easily) on the bass side and 6/64" on the treble side. It's a good starting point for your Sadowsky and you can work from there. On a MM bass, here are the specs from the Music Man website: [i][color=#000000][font=Helvetica, Arial, FreeSans, sans-serif][size=3]The factory specifications for the pickup height is 6/32" or 4.76mm from the top of the plastic pickup cover to the bottom of the G string. The angle of the pickup is set fairly level, so the larger strings are naturally a bit closer. If you haven't already adjusted the pickup or changed to a very heavy gauge string set, you shouldn't have to do any adjustments on the pickup.[/size][/font][/color] [color=#000000][font=Helvetica, Arial, FreeSans, sans-serif][size=3]On the 2-pickup basses the measurements are virtually the same on the bridge pickup and the neck pickup is further away, about 8/32" or 6.35mm from the bottom of the string to the top of the pickup cover.[/size][/font][/color][/i] If you do find that your playing style hits exposed poles - put some black insulating tape over the poles. It won't affect the pickup and is a lot cheaper than changing the pickups.

One thing I notice about the B3/G3, is that on the B3, the ins/outs at the back are labelled with words across the top of the casing. On the G3, no words, just icons for each of them. B3 - DC In. G3 - plug icon. B3 - Power. G3 - power icon. B3 - USB. G3 - USB icon. B3 - Control In. G3 - expression pedal icon. B3 - L-Output-R. G3 - headphone icon and speaker icon. B3 - Balanced Out. G3 - icon of an XLR jack. B3 - Input. G3 - picture of guitar. Are Zoom suggesting guitarists can't read?

Plus no spaghetti junction connecting it all up! I still think the RD-1000 is one of the more attractive designs of that era - still looks pretty futuristic today. I too loved the brighter of the pianos on the MKS-20 - made for a great Yamaha CP-70 like sound. What struck me the most about the MKS-20 is the actual size and weight of it, compared to other 2U modules that were around that time. The RD300SX I had was one of the newer sample-based Rolands (circa 2006), rather than the older RD-300 which had the RD-1000/MKS-20 Structured Adaptive engine within. I did come across the 'baby' version, the RD-250 in a Cash Converters a couple of years ago. They wanted £100 for it, which I kick myself for not having at the time. I don't think they knew what it was: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvipWADb0GM"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvipWADb0GM[/url] Gutted!

I have the Yamaha P105 and you get a lot for what you pay for - the pianos are great, the EPs aren't bad (not as good as the Nord Electro I used to own) and the other sounds are useful. I like the feel of the keyboard - very responsive. It's a simple pleasure having decent on-board speakers for when I just want to turn it on and play, without having to switch on the mixer and monitors. I owned a Roland RD300SX a few years ago which I really liked but after my instrument cull of 2009, the Yamaha is my first digital piano since and fills that hole rather nicely. BassTractor - did you ever play the Roland RD1000 (from which the MKS-20 is derived)? I GASsed after one of those for years until. A forum friend I knew had one and was still using it because he loved the action on the keyboard (and of course, the sound). I too had the MKS-20 and foolishly sold it a few years ago - not many sounds, but every one of them is excellent. Even though the piano sound isn't as realistic as modern sampled/modelled sounds, I felt its sound gave it a uniqueness. The EP sounds with the lush onboard chorus and a hint of tremolo were lovely. I've not heard a sampled set of vibes that sound as nice as the ones on the MKS-20 I later picked up the P-330 but it just didn't sound as rich.

If you can get one second hand, go for it - £650 is a mighty bargain. I'd happily buy another one new, as of all the P-basses I've owned, the 2010 US pipped them all for the overall combination of feel and sound. It's the neck, which sets them apart, for me. I have one on my shopping list for next year.

The only reason I watch bass (or indeed any music gear) videos on YouTube is because I want to hear a demo of the instrument. It's a bonus if they can player in the video is good and I'm not ashamed to admit that a pretty lady player (as with Marta and in this thread, Anna), is certainly preferable to watching a fat, bearded scruff like myself. As for Anna's Stingray - I like the gold/blue combo but not the scratchplate colour - a gold anodised one would look pretty cool. Besides, it'd go with her hair.

I think in this instance, you should just tell him to f*** off. You have to be cruel to be kind!

The Squier and Yamaha Pacifica starter packs are a good starting point and contain all the bits needed to get going. I've had a couple of Pacificas and they're great guitars for the money. My brother got one of the Squier Stop Dreaming... Start Playing! packs and I checked it out for him - nice guitar, perfectly playable out of the box and even better after I'd set it up for him. Yamaha Pacifica: [url="http://www.effectpowersupplies.com/yamaha-pacifica-012-electric-guitar-starter-package-metallic-red-3664-p.asp"]http://www.effectpowersupplies.com/yamaha-pacifica-012-electric-guitar-starter-package-metallic-red-3664-p.asp[/url] Squier Pack: [url="http://www.soundsliveshop.com/p/Squier_Stop_Dreaming_Start_Playing_Affinity_Strat_Frontman_Pack_Black/FEN-030-1612-406?CAWELAID=1830894313&catargetid=1823399575&cadevice=c&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CKPaw4bb0roCFWTHtAodIVkAMg"]http://www.soundsliveshop.com/p/Squier_Stop_Dreaming_Start_Playing_Affinity_Strat_Frontman_Pack_Black/FEN-030-1612-406?CAWELAID=1830894313&catargetid=1823399575&cadevice=c&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CKPaw4bb0roCFWTHtAodIVkAMg[/url] If you're able to take your daughter to a shop to try them out, that'd probably help, but I doubt you'd have any trouble with either set bought online.

If it's any help, I had the SRX390, which was a translucent black with a bound neck and body and no scratchplate. A very good-sounding, looking and feeling bass - especially for the price. You could play any type of music with it - good pickups and electronics. I doubt you'd regret buying one.

It's ace isn't it? I spotted it in Tesco with the Classic Rock mag on Friday and the money couldn't leave my pocket fast enough!

Buy a sunburst scratchplate.

I remember the first time I ventured into town to buy a new set of strings for the Kay P-bass that started me off in 1989. It had a roundwound D & G and two flatwound E strings for the E and A. (not to mention action you could slip your pinkie under at the dusty end of the neck - no concept of setups!) Anyway, one of them snapped as it was rotted and I went into Rushworths in Liverpool and asked for a set of bass strings. I'd accompanied many a guitarist friend, seeing them getting their Ernie Ball Regular Slinkies for £3 or whatever it was back then. "A set of bass strings please mate!". "What guage would you like?". "Err... what have you got?". "Light, Medium, Heavy." "I'll have a set of heavy please." Rotosounds. It was quite a shock to learn that a set of strings was about £12 then, but I had my part-time glass collector job which got me my pocket money. I went with heavy guage, reasoning that they'd last longer. I suppose if anything, it did me a favour - learning bass on heavy guage strings helped strengthen my fingers and toughen up the tips. It wasn't until I started reading Bassist magazine that I started picking things up like setups and how string guages affect playability, as until then, I knew no other bassists. My mates would go "f***in' hell, they're like brake cables!" when they'd have a go of it!