machinehead

I love natural finishes too. My 75 reissue jazz is ash body with rosewood neck and pearl block markers. Yummy. If I ever bought a Stingray it would have to be natural too. They just seem to suit a natural finish better than any other. Frank.

Since I own both a LG1000 and a LMII I'll chip in with a comparison. LMII. Top quality solid build. Warm and very useable sound and very loud. Excellent all-round gigging amp. I love mine. Hard to beat as a used buy at the current £350 to £400 they seem to sell at these days. LG1000. Just okay build. Will stand up to gigging if you are gentle with the controls as they seem flimsy. I'm a careful owner and have no problems. It's a much better sounding amp than most people seem to think. I wonder how many peeps have actually used one in anger? Full volume on the preamp and EQ to your taste and these things sing. And the volume is good but slightly less than the LMII. Still pretty loud though. I reckon these are great value if you're on a tight budget or want a cheaper back up at around £200 used. I'm happy using either. The LMII is my favourite but it comes at twice the price. Your choice. Frank.

I've even taken a flight to pick up a bass from a fellow basschatter because I didn't trust any courier. It cost twice as much as a courier but it was worth it to me. But then, I live in N Ireland. Frank.

I hope this had a happy ending. Any updates? Frank.

I love owning good amps and cabs, perhaps even more than owning basses. I've gone through a fair number of basses and amps and cabs but owning Barefaced cabs has cured me in that area. I use a Compact for most gigs, Midget for rehearsals and small gigs, and both for bigger gigs. I've found that combination to be very versitile, and the sound? Just fantastic. Both cabs fit together in the boot of my Fiesta, are easy to carry and have a very good shape for carrying. The only cab to still tempt me is the Barefaced Super Twelve but no................................................ Frank.

I play both but started on guitar. I haven't gigged on guitar for about 25 years and much prefer bass. I still like to do a few James Taylor and Ralph McTell style ragtime stuff at parties but I'm rusty due to lack off playing time. I do think that most guitarists struggle to play bass well but of course, some guitarists are excellent bass players. The bastards. Frank.

I'll keep an eye out and spread the word Gareth. It's a distinctive looking so there's a fair chance it'll be spotted. It's more likely to appear in Cash Converters or on Gumtree rather than at a gig. Frank.

I have an American Vintage 75 reissue jazz. It's a stunning instrument to look at with the less common rosewood fretboard and gorgeous mother-of-pearl inlays but the best feature is the slim and fast neck. It's a joy to play. Last year I bought a MIM classic 70s jazz which I would compare very favourably to the 75 reissue in every way but I always thought the classic 70s had a much thicker neck than the 75 reissue. This has never been a problem to me because I can play thick or thin necks, wide or narrow equally comfortably. But, the other day I had the vernier guage out and decided to actually measure the two basses. Guess what - the difference in thickness is less than 0.5mm!! The US jazz is approx 20.5mm and the MIM is approx 21.0mm. Hardly noticeable. The difference actually seems to be that the neck profile is a flatter "C" on the 75 and more "D" shaped on the classic 70s. It's surprising how different the necks feel even though they are not really hugely different, only a very slightly different profile. You can barely see a difference though, it's so slight. I was surprised by this. I think I was allowing myself to be influenced by what I'd read about classic 70s jazz necks but, in reality, they are pretty slim. So, don't be put off the great value MIM classic 70s jazz bass by talk of club-like necks. It's just not true in my experience. Frank.

[quote name='Linus27' post='1155698' date='Mar 9 2011, 06:48 PM']So what did you get in the end?[/quote] Nothing yet Linus. I have my LMII and an Ashdown LG1000 as backup (great amp too actually) and not that many gigs for the next while, plus money is a little tight. Still leaning towards the Classic 450 over the RH450 but that damn Streamliner 9 is calling me as well. Frank.

[quote name='Beedster' post='1153189' date='Mar 7 2011, 11:24 PM']Hi Frank I was bought up playing Satellite and Columbus basses in the '70's, and I remember seeing the first Musicman ad in about '76. I just couldn't take my eyes of this exotic and, although it sounds odd now, really contemporary-styled monster! When I finally got my hands on one many years later, having played mostly Precisions, the contrast was huge, way more than was the case with Jazzes.[/quote] Funnily enough, I also remember seeing my first Stingray in a music shop in Belfast. It must have been in 1976 or early 1977 because I was married in 1977 and couldn't afford to go into music shops after that. I instantly hated the looks, mainly that awful round pickguard and I still struggle to like the looks to this day. Consequently I've never owned a Stringray but someday I might only because of the sound - not the looks. Only thing is, I might be disappointed if my Stringray couldn't do a G&L L2000 sound. Frank.

[quote name='owen3371' post='1154242' date='Mar 8 2011, 06:38 PM']hi,i bought a bh500 amp last week,played it in a very large venue in belfast on saturday night and the amp lasted 3 songs,,,it made an awful farting noise when i turned up the gain,needless to say its in the box awaiting the courier back to where it came from![/quote] Hi owen, Sorry to hear that. Out of interest, what cab were you using? Are you sure it's the amp that's blown and not the cab? Have you tried the amp with another cab to check this? As said above, please keep us posted. Frank.

Excellent! Do you prefer the GB to your RH450? Thanks for posting. Frank.

I see you have a thread up on Stringrays so maybe you've settled your mind on that but...... I'll still chime in for the G&L L2000. The Tribute versions (Which I have) have a neck that is closer to P dimensions than Jazz which should suit you. The variety of sounds is amazing and should cover everything you throw at it. They are solidly built, high quality basses and great value for the price, especially used. I see there's a lovely US L2000 for sale on here at the moment which is worth every penny of the asking price. It's identical in looks to mine and would have sorely tempted me if I didn't already have the Tribute version. Even so, in better economic times, I might have bought it anyway. Good luck in your search. Frank.

I'll go with everyone else here looper. These are great wee combos. I played with one for maybe 10 to 12 years in all sorts of venues. Ultra reliable and a good meaty sound. Bloody heavy but very tough. Not certain about value but around £200 sounds OK. Here's another decent deal if you live near Belfast. [url="http://belfast.gumtree.com/belfast/56/75279456.html"]http://belfast.gumtree.com/belfast/56/75279456.html[/url] Frank.

Reasonable responses from all. I haven't knocked or been negative about the Bergantino cabinets because I've only heard one and it was very good. Most of what we all like and dislike is so subjective anyway. The company has obviously worked hard to build an excellent reputation and they're reaping the benefits of that reputation in the selling price and demand for their products. Top marks for that. I still shudder at the new prices, although I might be more tempted by second-hand values. Frank.

[quote name='Musicman20' post='1134853' date='Feb 20 2011, 09:34 PM']Hmm, not sure. I think the Uber cabs are highly priced as they are good old fashioned 'Made in the USA'. But I agree, the Uber cabs are more than their other lines.[/quote] Don't fall into the old marketing "Made in the USA" BS because that's all it is. I've worked in America, Korea, Japan and China and honestly, USA manufacturing standards are miles behind all the others. China is still learning but, in some areas, they are up there with the rest - musical instrument manufacturing being one of them. The koreans are amazing manufacturers. I even loved the Korean canteen food! The US company I worked in was in California. 90% of the employees were Mexican and unskilled (but doing jobs that trained and skilled American workers used to do, and no s***, some of them had been flipping burgers as their last job) and most of the parts were made in Mexico and shipped to the US for final assembly. Nothing to do with my job but every day I saw a train coming from Mexico loaded with cars. Three cars high and it took quite a few minutes to pass - that's the scale we're talking. Marketing is a facinating subject. It plays to all the human weaknesses. My tip? Look at who is producing the best designed and engineered cabinets, and who is using the best engineered components and buy their gear. Most of the seriously good and real engineering cabinet manufacturers are in the USA but one is in the UK. Aren't we lucky? Can anyone help with my question in post 6 regarding why Bergantino cabs are so expensive? For example, do they use more expensive components, is there expensive research involved, do they give a superior warranty or a sale-or-return policy? Are they tougher, stronger, smaller, bigger, heavier or lighter? What is it? What I will say is this - they do look good but they're expensive. Frank.

I was amazed a couple of years ago when I heard another player using my Schroeder 1212L. The lows sounded massive and I always thought this cab was a bit shy on the lows. As well as that, I was listening from the back of a large room and the volume was huge. It was a good experience and gave me a lot more confidence in my sound. It was a demonstration of what I already knew - you sound different out front! Frank.

Interesting stuff. I wonder why this particular brand is already the most expensive on the market? (I think?) I think MM20 might be right. The price rise in the present economic climate is surely going to reduce turnover, but maybe profits might rise anyway. Is it a case of veblen marketing? [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good[/url] Frank. Edit for spelling corrections.

[quote name='spinynorman' post='1133008' date='Feb 19 2011, 01:58 AM']When I was about 15 I dreamed of owning a Watkins Rapier. Fortunately I never had enough money for my dreams to be tarnished by reality. Oh, the joys of the Selmer catalogue.[/quote] Haha. I've still got my Rapier 33 bought used in 1973. Red with white scratchguard. No point in parting with it now. Frank.

I did have the sheet music for 90% of the songs but my reading is very poor through lack of use. It certainly did help but I still had to practice a hell of a lot. It helped that my music theory is just OK and I know scales/ modes and how chords are built. The truth is (and this is not at all false modesty) that I'm really just an old hacker. But at least I'm an experirenced old hacker. Frank