JPJ

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1488042371' post='3245345'] Regrettably I think the first assumption you need to make when packing anything is; assume it will be dropped as a direct hit on it's most vulnerable side/corner/edge... more than once. All that said; good luck in getting it fixed. PS - I know packing wasn't in the OP's area of control. 2nd rule - read the small print. There's no point in paying the insurance cover against risk of damage, if the small print says "all instruments must be in a flight-case", and you didn't pack it in a flight case. [/quote] To be fair to the Seller, he had done an excellent job of packing the bass, and there wasn't a mark on the box to suggest the damage that lay within. Let's see how far we get on pursuing a claim against ParcelFarce. My local luthier has had a look at the damage and thinks it's fixable without too much effort.

Take a rubber band, cut it into sections, place a section between each string and it's saddle. Takes the edge off new strings a treat 😎

So I decided to take a chance on a KK Baby Bass as my next steps in the world of DB. A lovely five string came up on eBay and after a couple of friendly exchanges with the seller, a deal was hatched and the bass was bought. Only problem was the 369 miles between me and the seller So the plan was further developed to include insured shipping and the bass was packaged up and dispatched. Now when I learned the bass was coming with ParcelForce (aka ParcelFarce) I was a little concerned, and I awaited delivery with baited breath. ParcelForce give you a helpful eleven hour delivery slot with no online tracking, and of course they chose to deliver within the precise 30 minute window when the house was unoccupied, so this morning I trekked over to the local depot to collect the bass. The packaging was extensive and looked intact, so I was somewhat relieved, and even more so when the ParcelForce lady commented that this was just as well as they don't insure musical instruments. Dashing back to the batcave, I eagerly unwrapped the cardboard and nine miles of packing tape, and eased the substantial padded gig bag out of the box. Again, everything looked good, so I unzipped the gig bag and 'bang' the fingerboard, complete with truss rod fell out first! Easing the rest of the bass out of the case showed, three substantial chips in the finish of the top (probably from the truss rod retaining brackets), two bent tuners, the bridge knocked out of position, and the end pin driven so far into the body that the rubber foot had come completely off, and the end pin locking bolt bent. Its pretty clear that despite the 'fragile' stickers all over the packaging, something heavy has been placed on top of the bass, levering the fingerboard off (tearing the ebony at the nut end). Also, it must have been dropped on its end (both ends) to dislodge the end pin and bend the tuning pegs. As i type this, the seller is contacting ParcelFarce and I'm in contact with my local luthier about reattaching the fingerboard, but once again, a beautiful instrument has been virtually destroyed in the hands of couriers. My advice to my fellow basschatters is avoid couriers like the plague and avoid ParcelFarce in particular after this episode. Will keep you lot posted as this develops. [url="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/JPJ/media/84E0ADDE-13B1-49B0-B5B0-3861FBE64768_zps6fmlsvfy.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/JPJ/media/70B997FC-8550-41F9-8BC5-3AAF4A408373_zpsikxmcg3w.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/JPJ/media/FA6D5E55-46D6-4FC9-ABF4-571EA56BE587_zpsojopmihf.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/JPJ/media/1B944A7E-45D8-4CCF-B3EC-472E1C0E705D_zpszubygxdk.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/JPJ/media/6C149797-CFFD-4290-9BA9-865821DE6953_zpszxcu7ftq.jpg.html"][/url]

So after much humming and haring and lots of internet research I have plumped for that five string KK Baby Bass that was up on eBay for a very reasonable £750. Will report back once I have my hands on her, but the videos I've seen online suggest I'll be able to get the tone in my head, and the body shape/size means its a bit more appealing on the eye than the 'stick' style Yamahas.

I had one when I was going through an 'effects phase' and liked it but found it performed much better when powered from a transformer than when battery powered.

So as promised, I'm reporting back after a full band rehearsal. Generally, the Fanes are a big improvement over the OEM speakers. Volume was definitely louder for equivalent control settings, and the overall sound was fuller and fatter. Anything below a G on the E string is obviously the limit of these speakers / cabinet size, and the volume noticeably dropped off, but the speakers held up well, no farting out or any other nastiness. I'm still in awe of this little combo, the speaker upgrade has only enhanced my feelings. An unbelievably simple little amp with a great inherent tone, way superior to any other TC offerings I've tried in the past. True, it's not loud enough on its own to gig with in the main electric band, but for the acoustic band it's perfect. On the whole, I'm very happy with the upgrade.

I've used both softwood and ply to brace my builds, but always rebated into the panel. My 'test' was far less scientific than Stevie with his test tones, but I found that whilst ply 'on edge' added a lot of rigidity to the panel, the softwood wasn't far behind and it definitely had a damping effect which i guess is because the softwood would have a different natural frequency to the ply.

[quote name='TheRev' timestamp='1486054845' post='3228889'] That's a good price for a SLB 200. I'm local to the seller so if you want someone to check it out, just say the word. Dave [/quote] Thank you Dave, I am chatting to the seller at the moment. If I decide to pull the trigger I will take you up on your very kind offer. Cheers Kev

Without wishing to sound negative, I'd recommend a good quality filter face mask with the right filters for nitro, and spraying in a well ventilated space. In my experience, nitro is also pretty temperature sensitive and if it gets too cold whilst still flashing off it can go milky.

Happy to contribute to the process 😎

[quote name='andyonbass' timestamp='1485973357' post='3228188'] Here's a screenshot Tom, if you're on Facebook you might be able to message the seller..... [attachment=237109:Screen Shot 2017-02-01 at 18.15.31.png] [/quote] Cheers Andy, interesting!

[quote name='andyonbass' timestamp='1485948571' post='3227887'] This? [url="https://m.facebook.com/groups/298259546971359?view=permalink&id=958531427610831"]https://m.facebook.c...958531427610831[/url] Not mine btw! [/quote] Sorry that's a link to a closed group, any clue as to what it is?

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1485949379' post='3227896'] Yes, we originally planned a slot port and I built one and showed it around to a few people. It did look nicer than the round port version. The problem was twofold, the design was meant to an easy build for someone at home, I found I needed no fewer than eight clamps whilst glueing up which I didn't think most people would have to hand. Without extensive clamping the round ported cab was an easier build. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly putting the slot in meant the speaker was effectively operating into a square space and we got an unfortunate and clearly audible resonance on some notes giving a slightly artificial sound (I quite liked it, but that's just me). We killed that in the end by putting a big slab of wadding on top of the port shelf. It wouldn't be a problem with a 2x12 as you wouldn't have a short squat cab any more. If you want me to talk you through a 2x12 version I'm happy to do so at the cost of asking you to post up your progress on BC [/quote] Deal! I was thinking of a central slot port, with a driver above and below in a sort of homage to the Acoustic designs of old which always looked pretty cool to me, plus the side slot port is pretty much the exclusive territory of Barefaced these days. Having said that, the Berg OBBM is selling at the moment looks pretty cool with those corner ports that remind me of my old Schroeder 21012 (probably the best cabinet I've ever owned for 'tone' and 'projection').

Another thought. I did want to build a 2x12 version of the original 1x12 design but really prefer a slot port design. Without trolling through the whole thread, can someone point me at the relevant posts as to why a slot port wasn't used?

I've built a couple of small bass cabs over the years, and I've found that rebating softwood battens into the cabinet panels not only adds strength but can also damp the panels. It's not a difficult thing to do once you own a router.

Pleased to hear of your delivery time. I waited almost two months for my Micro Thumpinator to arrive, which it did last week. I plugged it in and it works so well that no bass whatsoever made it to the output socket, just a mild white noise Currently on its way back to SFX for diagnosis, I will keep you lot posted with progress. As an aside, what power supply are you intending to use with it, as they do not come with one?

So I was the buyer of Grandad's Fane speakers. They arrived safe and sound two weeks ago, but due to working away Mon-Fri I only had a chance to fit them this weekend, and even then late on Sunday. Firstly, I bought my BG secondhand and I noticed that the front grill badge was 'the wrong way up' on mine (bottom right instead of top left). I'd wondered why this was the case until yesterday when I opened up to fit the Fanes; the previous owner had taken the time to fit proper acoustic wadding. So the Fanes installed without any fuss, and my immediate impression is of a slightly brighter, more middle biased overall tone, similar to when I reconed my SWR Goliath 4x10 with Deltalites. Absolute scientific testing using a reference Behringer SM58 clone into my X-Air mixing desk showed a like-for-like volume increase of around 4-6db for the same volume & tone control positions. The Fanes are a much more substantial speaker than the OEM drivers, pushing the overall weight of the combo up slightly, but not that she's gone beyond the one hand lift convenience of the original. I'll give her a run out in rehearsal next weekend and report back on whether simply reducing the onboard ohmage results in a real terms volume increase or whether this was a fools folly.

I briefly had the SWR Marcus Miller pre into a QSC power amp, the idea being this would be a lightweight alternative to the SM1500. In reality, it was marginally lighter, but the voicing of the MM preamp didn't really suit me, so it was added to the list of amps I've owned.

Thinking aloud here, it is clear that the acoustic properties of a double bass are fundamental to the overall tone, even when that tone is amplified using a bridge mounted piezo style transducer. Part of the physical size of a double bass is down to the need to be heard in a pure acoustic environment and it is that physical size that prevents me from moving to an acoustic db. As an amateur wood butcher, this has got me thinking, how big a body do you need to leverage the tone of a 3/4 size db via piezo?

[quote name='Merton' timestamp='1485435074' post='3223935'] I hope you're not mixing drum sizes? That way madness lies..... [/quote] I've been using two 10" 4 slice toasters and a 15" Hotpoint for quite a few years now and no one has complained about my tone! 😤

Ooh I so want this, but it leads me on to a related question. I know its conventional to stack the tumble dryer on top of the washing machine, but surely with the larger drum, the tumble dryer will give a better low end response if you stack them the other way around?

So I used to own one of the original Stagg EUB's that the previous owner had upgraded with a nice set of Corelli strings. I 'upgraded' the pickup and she became a lovely playable fun thing to own. Then I was offered money I needed at the time and she went off to a new owner. I now find myself wanting to get another EUB (I don't have the space for a full double) and I also have the cash to go a bit more upmarket, so what do you knowledgeable lot recommend? Style-wise, it will be used with an acoustic blues rock type thing, played pizz, although I would like to experiment with arco playing in the future.

Thanks to Phil (and Alex, and Bill) and the other contributors. It's threads like this one that keep me coming back to Basschat, and as the saying goes, your never too old to learn. I have in the past fried speakers and its an expensive hobby. Mine was not understanding how the amp shared its load across two cabs, meaning I fried two cones in my 500w cab whilst my 700w escaped unharmed. After that, I have been a lot more careful matching watts and ohms. Oh and I have a Microthumpinator on order to act as the first line of defense ;-)

[quote name='Dan Dare' timestamp='1484742752' post='3217961'] Only if it's posh Birch ply... [/quote] Er posh 'voidless' birch ply

So I read the comments on here about the TC SpectraComp pedal and was seduced by its diminutive size so I ordered one. First impressions are really favourable, and the extent of the TonePrint editor software is phenomenal. Only had limited time to play with this so far, but I'm liking the Nathan East TonePrint a lot and this will probably be my 'go to' until I get to grips with the editor.