Acebassmusic

Pitza Kustom.....I like it 🙂 Thanks all for your comments. I'll drop a few "in progress" pics in here showing where and how it came together. @itu well spotted! I did think of changing the end of the neck / fretboard to help disguise it but yes the body and neck started as an Ibanez SRX 305. Some subtle (and not so subtle) reshaping here and there and voila the Pitza Kustom 🙂 Theres a photo which, with the sun shining, accentuates what I call the "Pickup Hiccup", where I moved the pickups but didn't finish the top off as well as I could. It looks much worse in the pic than it actually is.

Once upon a time, not long ago, in "bits box" in my cupboard I realised I had amassed a number of items that should really be put to good use. First thing I did was to sell / give away some on here whilst looking out for a donor bass that I could mess with. I've modded basses before but mainly bolt on bits / electronics etc and my idea was to go a step further with more permanent changes. 😧😮 A suitable donor bass was found and over a period of a couple of months I proceeded to: Strip the full body and neck Re-profile the body giving much better access to the 24 frets / fit a battery box Fill body & re-route for pickups, electronics Re-shape the headstock & fit a Warwick Just-a-Nut Re-profile the neck at the heel end to flow into the body better. Relocate and fit bolts and inserts for the body / neck joint. Fit a Babicz bridge which took the spacing from 16.5 to 19mm Install the Seymour Duncan NYC pickups and Mike Pope preamp I'd had in a box 😮 and fitted 2 micro switches which give each pickup the option of parallel / single / series routing. Re-paint the headstock and body in colour shift paint (purple / blue / red) and clear coat the neck. So I'm not sure what to call it it's not really a build compared to what others do on here (and as the build diaries area implies), its not a NBD, not a bitza per say as that implies bolting things together whereas I've taken a hatchet to mine 🙂 .....probably a "partial bitza". Anyway I've enjoyed tackling the processes, made a load of mistakes and learned lots. I'm also quite enjoying playing it. The bass paint finish isn't flawless and this is where I would spend a bit more time on should I do another. What seemed good enough during the build really showed up when the colour was added 😥 However I can't see anyone but me noticing anything wrong when it gets gigged down at the "Dog & Duck". Anyway here's some photos to have a gander at......I'm sure someone will be able to tell what the donor bass was........

Us? Ridicule a fellow bassist? 😮 On here? 😮 Of course we wouldn't......😁🤣🤣 First thing that comes to mind is how loud are you practicing and if this is causing the headaches can you reduce the volume or move onto headphones? (Also how loud are the neighbours if they are affecting your heart rate? 😮😮) As far as sound proofing, it can be done but will cost more than a good pair of headphones, may not give you the results your hoping for and will undoubtedly reduce the internal size of your "little music room". There are a few people on here (and threads) who have gone down the route of soundproofing rooms / sheds / garages and I'm sure they will be able to offer some good advice. I'm lucky I live in a field with our nearest neigbours being 1/2 a mile away....however I can somtimes still hear their gardening music!

Jean Philippe bought my TecAmp rack ears from me. Quick payment, good comms. Would deal again. 🙂

I'm not sure whats happening from your description but I would think its highly unlikely that BOTH cabs have failed at the same time. I would look more at your pre / amp setup for any changes that might have happened since the start of covid. The fact that you have your power amp on full will obvoiusly magnify any problems in your signal chain. Could it be the vibrations from the low frequencies shaking a dry joint / dirty connection / dodgy patch lead and causing the "crack"? Can you try another amp?

Just to put these distances in context....it's like saying to someone who lives in London to go check out the music shops in Birmingham. We in Aberdeen don't live at the ar$e end of the universe.......but we're close to it! 🤣🤣

I know what you mean by "how right it is". I've had a variety of cabs over the years: Schroeder, SWR, Trace etc which are all very good in their own right. However since getting my Berg and Vanderkley cab's I've started to wonder about some of the basses I used to have that I moved on because they didn't quite give the sound I wanted. Maybe if I'd had the cabs first I would have saved myself thousands in trying different basses 🙂 (You can probably tell I like the Vanderkley stuff 😁). If you like the cab now at "home volume" just wait 'till you get rehearsing and gigging. Have fun with it 👍

Now thats a phrase that we should be keeping 🙂 🤣🤣

Ooh, I like your thinking on this one.......however from what I understand you'll be able to sell but not collect any monies as Ebay pay directly into your bank account. Also when you try and list an item they will try taking fee's from that non-existant / empty bank account. Doh! 😡

Just a heads up to you all regarding the Managed Payments agreement that Ebay are pushing everyone into. I have just spent 1 1/2 hours today on their chat "help line" being passed onto various teams, eventually getting through to the Managed Payments people. My aim was to remove my banking details from their system which there was no online option to do.....so I contacted them. Some things I have learned are: Ebay are pushing their Managed Payments system out to ALL account owners. At present you don't need to accept it if you are only buying off Ebay. If you want to sell you must accept it. Once you have accepted the Managed Payments system you will have to enter your bank details. You then cannot delete your bank details only replace them with another account. The only way to get out of the Managed Payments system and delete your bank details is to delete your account completely You can then create another new account for buying only. Drawback with this is that you lose all your feedback as it revers reverts to 0% I did point out to them that they are backing users into a corner but as the people I spoke with dont create policy, it fell on deaf ears. 😡 Hope this helps some of you.

Yes, part of the solution is to build up your fingertips. I don’t want to say callus's as this infers hard lumps of skin and I think this gives the wrong impression of what you need. I’ve been a slapper for many a year (ooh eer! 😊 ) and never had / needed these armour plated skin lumps to play. Yes, your skin will toughen up but it doesn’t need to be by much. I think some of the urban myth that you’ll need to have thick callus to play slap comes from some of the higher profile slappers (eg: Flea) who as part of their style look like they are both playing the bass at the same time as trying to beat it into submission! 🤣🤣 I’ve found that making your amp provide the volume means you don’t have to thumb or pluck the strings so hard meaning less strain on wrist / digits / bass etc. Also build up the amount of time you practice the technique eg: week 1 = 2 x 5min sessions per day, week 2 = 2 x 10min sessions per day etc etc. Hope this helps.

Really! REALLY!!!! Did you HAVE to post this? I was doing so well with reducing the numbers of basses I have / want 🤣

Horses for courses 🙂 .... Sadowsky wasn't really on my wanted list. I liked the look of the smaller bodies 24 fret ones but didn't have any real high expectations of it sounding much different to a normal jazz.......then I tried one in Guitar Centre in the USA and immediately put it on the list 🙂 As far as lusting after basses and then being dissapointed there's a couple. A Wal was on my list for 25+ years and I eventually managed to get a Mk3 5 string. Fit, finish, function was great but for some reason I struggled with getting the sound I wanted. I hear others play them and go wow.....I hear myself.....meh! On the other hand I did have a Pedulla Pentabuzz which was perfect apart from it was "out of tune" all over the neck (maybe that was me....lol). Spector....love the shape / finishes etc and keep trying them in shops (you remember them?) but for some reason they don't seem to fit me right. Same with the BTB the OP mentioned, tried one and decided it's not for me.

"....sell at a fair and reasonable price....." What may be a fair and resonable price for one buyer / seller may not be for another as basses tend to be very personal items. I've seen posts of people lusting after year of birth Fender Jazz's for thousands (yes, multiple times the value that you could have bought them for in the 70's & 80's). Does that make the seller a rip off merchant? Nope, it means theres a market for that bass and someone is happy to pay the money. I doubt there's many of us who if we found such a bass "under the bed" would advertise it on here for under market value! Over the years of buying and selling gear I have had the good fortune of making on some deals. I had a Pedulla Pentabuzz which I sold at a profit of 30% 😮 Does this make me a rip off merchant? Again, nope as the market value was up. The very same bass came up for sale in the last 2 years at over twice the price I sold it for! 😮 Does this make the sellar a rip off merchant? Again, nope as it reflected the current market value and what someone was willing to pay. ....And for balance I've also lost on deals. So, did someone else rip me off? Nope, they got a good deal whilst I took the pragmatic approach that if bills need paying, gear will be sold. I would rather have as little debt as possible than squeeze the last $ out of an item I NEED to sell. There have been some good deals on here over the last year where people have advertised basses at what I would regard as under market value (again very subjective to personal likes / dislikes). I bet no-one has gone to the sellar and said "Sorry I cant pay you £1,000 for that bass, it's worth at least £1,250....here's the extra" 🤣 I suppose my answer to the OP - I don't see the current market as being a special time for buying. There are some good deals out there but that's no different to other years, you just keep your eye open and something will come up. As for selling, I think it is slower than usual, which over time could lead to some deals being available but I wouldn't hold my breath. I've also noticed for sale trends that some months theres a flotilla of Fodera's for sale and the next a stable of Sue Ryders. This may just be one of those times when there are more "professional or posh standard" basses available. Gigs are hopefully on the horizon and "normal trading will resume" 😁 Now, if any of you have a Fodera Emperor 5 available, drop me a PM as I have a spare £500 to spend 🤣🤣🤣

I have a D-400 and did a quick review below as part of a PJB thread HERE. Still havent managed to use it in anger at either a rehearsal or gig.........

Mick bought some CD's off me. Quick payment, great comms etc. As everyone above says - great to deal with. Thanks again.

Nope....that's my job and I have the qualifications to prove it! 🙂 In answer to your question, yes you can have both (or either). Usually you would plug your bass into your amp/Helix etc. and a DI is then sent to the PA. In the PA mixer an IEM mix (of your choice) is created and then sent back to your in-ears via cable or wireless. For this you don't need a cab, but if you wanted one for onstage sound, you just plug a cab into your amp/Helix and away you go. Hope that helps 🙂

This.....and record yourself on your phone whilst you do it. I did NOT like recording myself at all but found that whilst I was playing I "felt" my timing was ok but when I came back to watch it there were some areas that were a bit looser than I remembered! 🤣 It allowed me to focus on those bit's and get them much better and pretty quickly.

Well the top part of the listing says: Item location: Welwyn Hatfield District (B), United Kingdom At the bottom of the listing it says: Shenzhenshi SaidelunTrade Co Ltd Zhiwei Sun 305c1 North block CLP lighting R D center 010 Keji South 12th Road 518000 Shenzhen China As the esitimated delivery is "on or before Thu. 27 May" to Aberdeen I would assume they have stock in the UK.🤔

Nick just bought a load of CD's from me. Quick payment, good comms etc. One of the good guys 🙂 👍

Greg's just bought a load of CD's from me. Quick payment, good comms etc. One of the good guys 🙂 👍

Just bought some D'Addario strings off Colin. Quick delivery and well packaged. Easy deal, good comms would highly recommend. Thanks Colin.

Enthusiasm, a big dollop of woohoo and probably a few "jazz" notes as i'm a bit rusty! 🤣🤣 Not sure what bass though....lol