Jono Bolton

I recently picked up a Squier CV Precision that was in mostly good nick but obviously hadn't been cleaned (or even used as the seller said) since it was bought. One of the height screws in has rusted inside the saddle as it sits below the top of the hole. The height is fine as it is so it doesn't need to be adjusted just now but it would be good if it could be tweaked if I need it to be. I tried soaking it in 3-in-1 over the weekend but it hasn't loosened it. Brute force has only resulted in me twisting my Allen key. Are there any other things I can try or is it game over?

I use an old Peavey solid state head that weighs more than either of my guitarist's valve heads. It sounds incredible though.

Picked up the amp today and all appears to be ok. I was surprised to see that the old cap was not far off the size of a Coke can, but it only cost a fiver for the replacement. It did make some weird buzzes at a couple of points but I'm putting that down to the input on my CV Precision as it was slightly rusted when I got it last week and I haven't had any problems with either of my other basses. Only time will tell if it's sorted or not but it all seems fine at the minute. Thanks for all your input. As you were gentlemen.

Having spoken to the amp techs this afternoon it appears it was a problem with a leg on one of the power supply caps; they've got a replacement in and will hopefully have it on the bench today to pick up tomorrow. As I've already paid for a service I'll only need to pay the cost of the new cap (about £8) and that should hopefully be the end of it; I'll keep you all posted.

I have a separate strap for each of my basses and set of Grolsch washers on each one. Once they're on, they're on so I've never had an issue with stretching them out. An old bass of mine had massive vintage-type strap buttons so the strap was going nowhere (although it's not going anywhere on regular buttons anyway). I only gig one bass and when I put it back in the case/gig bag the strap gets turned round so it's sitting on the strings and therefore isn't going to be damaged by the slider on the strap. I've tried those plastic ones as above and they were garbage. It doesn't have to be Grolsch either; I got some blue ones from a German beer I have never been able to find again, which is annoying as I've lost one of the washers.

That sounds like the case; when I took it back & showed the shop the video they said it was likely the power supply and the noise when I turned it off was a capacitor discharging. Is this an easy/expensive fix? I've already paid for a service, is this the sort of thing one would expect them to have picked up on during a standard service?

[quote name='cd_david' timestamp='1460795365' post='3028744'] My restored 406 [URL=http://s519.photobucket.com/user/cd_david/media/Bass%20Chat%20PA%20Stuff/0F056DCD-9EE2-41E4-B86C-81D81133EDE3_zps7qvtxthe.jpg.html][IMG]http://i519.photobucket.com/albums/u359/cd_david/Bass%20Chat%20PA%20Stuff/0F056DCD-9EE2-41E4-B86C-81D81133EDE3_zps7qvtxthe.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s519.photobucket.com/user/cd_david/media/Bass%20Chat%20PA%20Stuff/BB8BCD9F-DFCB-49D6-B7A5-5EC3446A83E6_zpsvaibvqmc.jpg.html][IMG]http://i519.photobucket.com/albums/u359/cd_david/Bass%20Chat%20PA%20Stuff/BB8BCD9F-DFCB-49D6-B7A5-5EC3446A83E6_zpsvaibvqmc.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s519.photobucket.com/user/cd_david/media/Bass%20Chat%20PA%20Stuff/A96BF328-B0A0-4378-B78B-28A61FBB77EE_zpsec181jby.jpg.html][IMG]http://i519.photobucket.com/albums/u359/cd_david/Bass%20Chat%20PA%20Stuff/A96BF328-B0A0-4378-B78B-28A61FBB77EE_zpsec181jby.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s519.photobucket.com/user/cd_david/media/Bass%20Chat%20PA%20Stuff/3BD9DFB8-3CF9-48F8-94FB-BB67AB75CE82_zpsmymxkcz8.jpg.html][IMG]http://i519.photobucket.com/albums/u359/cd_david/Bass%20Chat%20PA%20Stuff/3BD9DFB8-3CF9-48F8-94FB-BB67AB75CE82_zpsmymxkcz8.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [/quote] Those are some proper amps.

[quote name='3below' timestamp='1462313401' post='3042128'] You could try emailing Peavey support in USA. I have found them to be excellent, to give an example I enquired about the heater current available from a 1980s valve amplifier transformer. Answer (and other useful information) came back very quickly. You could also try the Peavey forums. If you were closer I would offer to take a look and see what might be awry. [/quote] Thanks, I spoke to the shop I took it to for a service and told them I still had the same issue and they said they'll look at it again. As the noise is intermittent it may well have seemed fine when they tested it out. I played through it this evening for about 15 minutes and it was fine, but I went back about 15 minutes later and it was making noise again. I filmed a 4-minute video of it to show them when I take it back, including a really weird high pitched noise (almost like a pitch shifter) when I turned it off. I turned it back on again and it was fine.

Schaller BMLs drop straight in, but the tuner stem is shorter.

I've got a Peavey Mark IV bass head that I've been having issues with recently. The sound cuts in and out and has a horrible distorted, oscillating sound. I've taken it for a service and it was supposed to have been sorted, but I used it today for the first time and it's still there. The issue is intermittent, so presumably when they tried it it was fine (it's working now). Here's a rubbish video I took on my phone earlier: https://youtu.be/vfifHubrIV4 Any ideas what it could be? I left a voicemail for the shop as they were shut when I went to practice, but it's not the cab, cables or bass as I used the same set up with the communal head in the studio and it was fine. Thanks!

I'd value it at the cost to replace it as well. My P Bass was an ebay bargain so I got it for less than £200, but to buy one new would cost me between £390 and £440. I put a price of £425 for it as I know I could find a replacement for that cost. My head was a bit more difficult as it's no longer in production. Again, mine cost me £100 but I've seen them go for more than that so I put down a value that I know would get me a replacement; finding one is the tricky bit!

New Moon looks good; to cover my bass and head for all my needs is a baffling £25 a year with no excess I gather this is due to the value of my gear, but that seems incredibly cheap to replace approx. £700-worth of stuff.

I have a small run of gigs next week and I'll be taking my P Bass and my head with me. Is it possible to get insurance just or the 4 days I need it for, or am I as well just getting a normal policy i.e. for the year? I've used Music Guard before but probably wouldn't go back to them as I've heard some stories about them being difficult to work with (although I never had to make a claim off them). I'd need something that covers theft, damage etc, including while it's in the car and venue. Any suggestions?

[quote name='Grand Wazoo' timestamp='1456561101' post='2990231'] I've had all the CV models they made. The Olympic white Jazz, the Fiesta Red Precision, even the blonde natural 50's Telecaster style one. The good thing about them is that they are probably made in one of the best factories in China, the woods used are good and the built and finish are excellent for the price. However corners are cut in two areas, the pickups and wiring are cheap, and the machine heads are also substandard, they'll do but, they are not for the long run the pegs slip and don't stay in tune that well. On the other end they come with some excellent bridges, which are as close as possible to a Fender high mass bridge. And if you got a bit of cash they make a great benchmark for modding. In all of my CV's I've changed pickups / pots and wiring, as well as original reverse tuning Fender machine heads and a proper bone nut because the plastic one that they come with, it's also a bit meh! After that you've got a bass that can be on par with both American and Japanese Fenders and miles better than all those Mexican Fender put together [/quote] I'd echo all the positives here, but disagree with the negatives. The pickups are (supposedly) made by Tonerider; apparently their pickups are made in the same factory. The pickup in my Matt Freeman (from the same factory) is great. The neck is cracking. The wiring and pots are cheap but perfectly usable. I bent a tuner and replaced them with a set of Schaller BMLs (which drop straight in), but found that originals held the tuning a lot better than the Schallers do, and were a lot more accurate. YMMV, but I've found that it was fine as stock. I wouldn't have replaced the tuners had I not bent one. A lot of reviews say the high end Squiers like the CVs are good "for the money" which I actually think does them a disservice; they're good instruments full stop.

[quote name='Bassassin' timestamp='1456176116' post='2986358'] If he'd left the originals on (these are an "upgrade") they'd have been a better fit. Pickup looks like a Dimarzio Model G. Probably doesn't justify the ambitious price tag though. J. [/quote] No doubt, he says he'll include them and I'd be inclined to put them back on if the price were a bit more reasonable.

Spotted this neat Gibson copy earlier, and it looks nice. I can't help but think that if he flipped the machine heads upside down they'd be a better fit. https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/172105239676

Bet you get some neck dive off that.

[quote name='Handwired' timestamp='1455308713' post='2978147'] I [i]was [/i]selling this but I've now decided it would be a grave error. [/quote] Good shout!

[quote name='Bassassin' timestamp='1455286241' post='2977820'] Same one. I do like that. J. [/quote] Me too. I've offered him a trade but he's got a cash buyer coming to look at it first. Hopefully they don't take it as I quite fancy one of these.

[quote name='Bassassin' timestamp='1454893896' post='2974009'] A Patriot (B/B/M) has just turned up on my local FB music gear group for £150. No room or money for another bass though. Arse. J. [/quote] Is it this one that's now on Gumtree? https://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/1987-us-peavey-patriot-bass-guitar/1154788520 I contacted the guy but think I might miss out on it.

[quote name='borntohang' timestamp='1454586081' post='2971020'] Ryan has a signature coming out too so I assume it's on the same basis as the matching Biffy Clyro sigs from a few years ago. The Cribs are pretty huge; it won't surprise me if they turn out to be quietly steady sellers. [/quote] That's horrid. Half Mustang, half Jazzmaster? Mustmaster?

Here's the original: http://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/272039573127