tauzero

NYE do for us in a social club in Brum. Three different people telling us different things about times (one of them expecting us to do till the bar closed at 1.30, which wasn't the agreement at all), the club had a crap DJ in the other ground floor room and karaoke upstairs and charged £8 for us and were surprised there weren't more in, and we finished up doing 3 x 1hr sets with a break for the bongs in the third set (and I was just returning from the toilet after we'd stopped and switched the radio on when I heard the DJ next door unleash the bongs, two minutes early). Took the Trace 1x15 cab I bought recently plus the racked up Ashdown Superfly/Lexicon MPX100/Audio Technica wireless kit - must do some more work to get a better sound, had some clipping at various points in the chain. And I took the upright out for its first covers band excursion for a few months (it was fun playing Wonderful Tonight on it).

[quote name='The Funk' post='111405' date='Dec 31 2007, 11:47 AM']I agree. I've never understood mid-scooping. The mids are the best part of the sound![/quote] I love my smiley face EQ. Am I actually the only bassist in the universe who does? Cuts through the mix and gives me lots of low-end rumble. Boosted mid just sounds weak and weedy.

[quote name='BeLow' post='111205' date='Dec 30 2007, 10:29 PM']I would advise buying a book - i used this one to more or less build from scratch - you don't have to follow exactly but it helps explain things - others have different books they have used - but this worked for me [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Make-Your-Own-Electric-Guitar/dp/0953104907/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1199053445&sr=8-1"]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Make-Your-Own-Elec...3445&sr=8-1[/url][/quote] Copy of [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Building-Electric-Guitars-Hollow-body-Semi-acoustic/dp/3901314075/ref=pd_sim_b?ie=UTF8&qid=1199053445&sr=8-1"]Building electric guitars by Martin Koch[/url] - £12 or so Girlfriend's face after seeing the book - priceless

[quote name='nick' post='111803' date='Jan 1 2008, 02:44 PM']Just for info, in case anybody's interested; seller of thru-neck 4001 a-like,Item 170181713050 [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=170181713050&ssPageName=STRK:MEBOFF:IT&ih=007"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...F:IT&ih=007[/url] did not accept my maximum offer of £200 - which is OK with me. [/quote] Right, who's going to offer him £150?

[quote name='Bassassin' post='111367' date='Dec 31 2007, 11:05 AM']And finally, for the lovers of the weird, esoteric, and exclusive to Woolies in the late 60s/early 70s, a Teisco EB(?) which was probably sold as a "Top Twenty":[/quote] I'd forgotten about the Woolies guitars. I bought one - the six-string semi-acoustic. I remember there being a solid-body electric and an acoustic. I'm sure my brother bought one of the range too but can't remember what. I actually have the neck and body of one of the six-string solids knocking around in my garage - maybe I should stick it up on ebay in case anyone should want to restore one of these fine examples of junk.

[quote name='jono b' post='111143' date='Dec 30 2007, 08:55 PM']I've been thinking about buying parts off of ebay such as a body/neck/pickups/hardware and assembling a fender type bass. Are there any problems associated with this? I've been told that the neck and body might not join up properly and throw off the intonation and alignment, is that true?[/quote] You could buy a kit, eg. [url="http://www.themusicking.co.uk/build-your-own-electric-guitar-kit-p-bass-style"]this P-bass kit[/url] (which has got the wrong description on it). Though bits and pieces [i]should[/i] fit together OK, as they should be made to identical standards.

[quote name='youngie' post='110936' date='Dec 30 2007, 01:35 PM']alright, am new on here. im a new player, and fancied building a bass of my own. Have many of you done it before?[/quote] I've assembled one, but not done anything more ambitious than that yet - next project is the next stage, I've got a couple of Warwick 5-string necks which will be going onto a body which I'll be making myself. Are you talking about a complete build from well-nigh raw materials, or using some pre-built parts like the neck, or a pre-cut fretboard?

Already mentioned - Money, Chain, Can't hurry love Not yet mentioned in the Queen ones are "Want to break free" (which we do segued onto the end bit of Chain). Boingy stuff - "Mr Soft" by Cockney Rebel In the heavy section, "Paranoid" - adds the variation to the song while Iommi's guitar remains invariant Disco stuff - "Just an illusion" by Imagination (Youtube has a [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPuIpPYGXMM"]live version[/url]) - discotastic! Hang on, it must be jazz, the bassist is wearing a beret... A bit longer ago - "Stand by me" by Ben E King Absolutely vital for the song - "Fever" by Peggy Lee

[quote name='Tee' post='107564' date='Dec 21 2007, 11:58 AM']eg Oasis -> The Beatles, The Enemy -> The Jam, Kaiser Chiefs -> any nursery rhyme, to name but a few.[/quote] The Kaiser Chiefs have sat down with the entire collected works of Paul Weller (although I think they've discarded the Style Council era, which can be nothing but a good thing).

What I finished up looking like on my 50th birthday: [attachment=4321:Mike05.jpg] And playing on a microstage at Pickles in Brum - note use of Kirlian photography so my aura playing the double bass is visible. Also note that a headless bass would be preferable to the Tsai as the singer is less likely to get an earful of machine head (no, not Machine Head, that's a different thing altogether). [attachment=4320:S6001001a.jpg] Must work out how to get decent flash photos with that camera...

How many does a twin neck under construction count as?

I don't have stuff packed and ready to go - it's mainly large items and I don't have original packaging, so I prefer buyers collecting, and if not, I'd rather not have a box made up to send them in until I know that I'll need it, otherwise it'll be a waste of a box. I do try to keep buyers aware of when items will be sent out though.

[quote name='ARGH' post='108439' date='Dec 23 2007, 10:00 AM']Ok,this has been going on for years now,and I understand the 'What the eyes dont see ,the engineer dont judge" answer,but why spend 3k+ on a Fenderesque or straight bodystyle copy,when you could just get the real thing,and spend 2-300 quid on new guts for it,or parts replacement the lot for the same price?[/quote] I don't understand the point of buying a bass that looks like a Fender for multiples of the price - either buy a Fender for Fender prices or buy a bass that doesn't look like a Fender (so people will realise it's a bit special) for a lot more. Surely the main point of buying a copy is that you pay less than what you'd pay for an original?

I've got perpetual mild GAS for basses - I haven't got any 6-strings, I'm not entirely settled with a 5-string fretless, I'm happy with the 4-strings and the 5-string fretted. My big problem at the moment is amps. The Gallien-Krueger has served me well for 15 years but hasn't quite got the low-end oomph that I want, and the bigger stuff I've had or have got is heavier than I want. I've recently picked up an Ashdown Superfly which I'd like to keep going with, but the speaker I made to go with it isn't sensitive enough and is a little bulky (though it is excellent for range and lack of colouration) so I'm planning to make a pair of Omni 10.5s (which I could also use for PA for the acoustic duo) - but the Markbass CMD 121P and 151P both really tempt me too. Aaargh!

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='108767' date='Dec 24 2007, 01:26 AM']Yup, I take a 4 way with me as standard too (in fact my lead guitarist relies on that fact) but I also lose them. You'd have to pretty bad to lose your amp. [/quote] I use a Gallien-Krueger 200MB, the predecessor to the MB150 - it's almost exactly the same size as my mains extension.

[quote name='Buzz' post='108758' date='Dec 24 2007, 12:28 AM']It's something I've dealt with on other forums regarding the fact sarcasm doesn't come across in text at all.[/quote] It can - it does need careful wording though, and an audience that doesn't include Americans (if it does, they need the word NOT! added at appropriate places). But back on the original topic, I'm new here, and wasn't a Bassworlder. I've only recently started using web forums - I've been on email lists and newsgroups for about 15 years though, and some of them can get quite heated at times. Compared to recent stuff on alt.guitar.bass (there's a couple of pretty flaming threads about smoking bans), BC is never more than lukewarm. Self-censorship works if enough people are willing to criticise behaviour they see as unacceptable, but OTOH if only one person criticises someone's behaviour, then the implication is that that person is probably unusually thin-skinned.

I carry a reel-type extension cable with four sockets. The only drawback with it is that the sockets are 2+2 rather than four side-by-side and plugging a wall-wart in means I generally can't plug anything in to the opposite socket, but as I normally plug in two plugs and a wall-wart, that's not actually a problem.

I don't generally drink alcohol before going on. I don't totally exclude it, I may have a pint or two through the evening, but it does affect my playing to a certain extent. I've never had anything herbal before a gig and, even if I still smoked it, wouldn't want to. Our singer does drink a fair bit and although it doesn't affect his voice, he's liable to screw up the arrangement of songs, so we all have to be ready to follow him. Which is all very well if you're James Brown, but not if you're doing the club circuit.

[quote name='Jebo1' post='106980' date='Dec 20 2007, 11:31 AM']Oh, and each relist on an unsold item is free, so I think the guy will keep doing it forever. Until someone complains to ebay, or decides that £2500 is a good price for a CAR refin JAzz (by the powers of inflation in the vintage market, about 10 years time I'd say!)[/quote] The first relist on an unsold item is free if the item then sells on that relist.

Although I'm not currently using it, definitely the fretted Thumb - an '87 which I've had since new. If I can manage another on with the other hand, it would be the Antoniotsai fretted.

[quote name='cris the man' post='105718' date='Dec 18 2007, 08:16 AM']i know , the king of cheese... its a 12 string bass , just a 6 string with 2 strings together for each note[/quote] Um, I think you'll find it's a 4-string with 3 courses of strings, one fundamental and two octave. Like an 8-string but with more top end. At least that's what most 12-strings are. <google> Aha, here we are. [url="http://www.12stringbass.com/dean.htm"]Dean Rhapsody on the 12-string-bass website.[/url] Must admit to being a bit tempted by an 8-string - I've played a few but I'm not sure I'd really make much use of one. Most octave pedals won't emulate them properly as they generally go an octave (or two) down, not up.

[quote name='jazzbob' post='104741' date='Dec 15 2007, 07:37 PM']So before I get hypnotised by the Urge's looks (if not the slightly dodgy name) what else would you recommend for a good all rounder for under £1500? Do you have to spend a lot more for 'real quality' or can you get a rock solid, electronically quiet, good looking, narrow neck, no hassle bass for that price.[/quote] I haven't actually lived with a Schecter at all but from playing a few, the Schecter Studio-4 could well fit your neck needs - shallow rather than narrow, I think. Worth trying one out anyway. You could buy at least four of them for your budget...

[quote name='radansey' post='104524' date='Dec 14 2007, 09:47 PM']Looks and sounds great. I need to sort out the castors - not sure whether to screw directly into the bottom of the cab or make a 'skateboard' to wheel it around from A to B. Any suggestions/advice??[/quote] Yes, get a folding sack truck instead. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160189342261"]Like this.[/url] It has the advantage of forward compatibility with whatever heavyweight you get in the future, and your amp won't run away when you play on a sloping stage...

[quote name='ARGH' post='104745' date='Dec 15 2007, 07:51 PM']So where do all the Washburn Status's go Dave?[/quote] There was one in PMT a few weeks ago. I picked it up and played a couple of notes and put it straight back down. I've never encountered a bass with no sustain whatsoever before, not even with ten-year-old strings on. Were they all that bad?