neepheid

Unless you're replacing a broken pickup, then aye, I think you're out. Wow, three in a day, I don't think I've ever seen that before.

Sounds ok to me, nothing to see here, carry on...

You can have @AndyTravis's one, he won it last year

I'm not getting personal, I'm making a comment on your opinion, not you personally! I broadly agree with you - I prefer old school BBs too and it's not some knee jerk reaction - I tried to like the BB434 I had but just couldn't get into it. I've owned a BB300, 350F, 450, 614 and 434, and I currently have a BB1200, so you can see that I tack very much in the old school direction. I'm merely pointing out that the use of dot inlays versus the ovals (or their modern reworking) to differentiate product tiers has been going on pretty much since the BB was created. That a BB234 has dot inlays is not in the least bit surprising to me. But your post has given me some pause for thought and having thought about it, I *am* a little surprised that the 434 has dots whereas previous 4 tier instruments had the ovals (424/414). I'll give you that - that's a disappointing shift of the tipping point where Yamaha sees the lines between their BB basses. Fancy (well, fancier) inlays won't make me like the new BBs any more though - they feel like they've gone on a diet, been streamlined or something I can't quite put my finger on. Some people might love that and think that old school BBs are obese, blobby and clunky, each to their own and all that.

So, you're just going to sidestep the main point of what I was saying - that it's nothing new under the sun for Yamaha to put the simple dot inlays on some BBs?

They always did that though - look at a BB300, 450, 800, even mid tier products like the 1100s. Your ire is misdirected in this case.

Ahh, in my flurry of before the deadline purchases (some of which are arriving today, yay!) I forgot to order replacement knobs for the T-bird (because I don't really care for the silver and gold stock ones - they have no context to be on that bass). Oh well, I think I can manage not to scratch that itch for a year...

As long as it isn't one of these "buying stuff for people that you know they won't like and will give back to you" type scams...

If your experience is the same as mine, then don't do it - if you try one you'll be out, it's that simple.

Nah, band money is band money. You may technically own a part share of it, but I think for the purposes of this thread, it is concerned with personal abstinence. But I'm not the boss, anyone else want to weigh in?

Another vote for the Markbass Mini CMD121P (of whichever vintage, I've got an IV, I think the latest one is V?) - I use mine for band rehearsals on its own and it makes itself heard no bother. I do use it in conjunction with a New York 121 cab at the gigs, but I could probably get away without it.

Why would you need to re-order? The supplier needs to make things right and send a replacement as part of the current order, no? If you mean order it from somewhere else because these guys can't/won't deliver then I think I'd be inclined to take pity on your situation - you made every effort to get it done and dusted before the end of the year and it's not your fault it has failed to arrive.

Like for like is obviously not always possible - sometimes the broken kit is no longer available. I've always viewed it in a "as like-for-like as possible" - and if a direct replacement is not possible then factors like similar monetary value, similar features come into play and it's a judgement call. Sometimes it's easy to spot when someone is extracting the michael - if someone loses their Squier Affinity P in a freak accident and replaces it with a Fodera, for a ridiculous example. Also, if it's objectively a "downgrade" (let's say for financial reasons) then I wouldn't have a problem with it. As for your last point, I'd argue that someone who doesn't own any bass gear isn't really the target audience for this challenge. Buy your bass, get your start then join in next year, IMO.

If your tech/luthier deems a new nut to be required then in their professional opinion the current nut is faulty/defective/broken. Replacing broken things on a like for like basis is ok. RE: strings - some people change bass strings with wallet frightening frequency because they simply must have the zing of new strings for their sound. Also breakages, whilst rare, do happen. Some people only own one bass (also unusual but does happen ) so what are they supposed to do if that happens - give up bass for the rest of the year? These are a few reasons why strings are allowed.

For context, I've been using the Hotone Harmony since March last year. For those times when the singer says "can we drop/raise this one by X semitones?" Caveats - I wouldn't even go lower than -3 with this, it gets a bit warbly. Slowly switch down from 2 to 1, if you do it too quick sometimes the change isn't picked up. Thought my first one was faulty but the replacement was this way (to a lesser degree) also so I just accepted it as a quirk. It not only drop tunes but it goes up too - sometimes I use it as an octave above (full dry signal, about half wet signal) and it works as an octave below. Can do 2 octaves up/down but that's just silly Also has that "detune" function which sounds vaguely chorussy.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/315957293507 Or if you like your boxes unopened - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/314843035389

In the allowed section: "Maintenance/setups that only involve work on existing aspects of your bass (ie no purchasing a preamp to add to it)" I think this counts as maintenance. If you wanted to be super picky then the new nut should be the same material as the old one. But clearly you're replacing a faulty nut so I'm not feeling picky. Pass from me.

Right then, happy new year to one and all, let's wrap up 2024. In total, we had 47 (known) participants 17 (36.2%) folk made it to the end - congratulations to you 30 (63.8%) folk fell by the wayside Fastest/soonest transgression - @AndyTravis on 3rd January - breathtaking! The best "almost made it" - @Mudpup bowing out on the 31st December! I hope you enjoyed the thread, whether you were participating actively, merely observing, or half and half having either not signed up but still stirring the pot, or having bowed out and still stirring the pot. I have enjoyed being your "host" for the increasingly psychotic proceedings and I hope I did a reasonable job of maintaining at least some semblance of order in "court". Enjoy the gear you bought in 2024, losers, and continue to enjoy the gear you tolerated in 2024, winners. But ultimately, the winner of the Gear Abstinence Thread 2024 is... same winner it always is - capitalism! I now hand over the reins to the esteemed @Richard R (a thread "winner" this year no less, so at the very least will be standing on a moral platform I did not have), who will guide you through 2025. May the justifications and rule interpretations submitted under their custodianship continue to be as entertaining and creative as they have been this year. Thank you, you've been a wonderful audience, good night and all the best for 2025!

Ooft! Well, if you're gonna bow out, might as well do it in style! Congrats!

I intend to do an end of year wrap up tomorrow - whenever I emerge from a drunken Hogmanay/birthday fog. So you've got just over 4 hours to stay clean and approximately 16-18 hours to come clean. Have a great Hogmanay/whatever you incorrectly call it and see you on the other side...

Mental note made not to give a rat's ass if I notice that christhammer666 goes AWOL

Final day of 2024... surely if you've made it this far you aren't going to chuck it all away now?

Well, I'd like to be first to sign up. 2025, no gear, go!