Kiwi

BTW, I'm not Modulus bashing, I'm making the point that I don't think ANY current manufacturer has yet managed to exploit the full potential of these necks to deliver the velvet glove experience. All that firmness in the mids, the growl and lows without the upper end rawness. The Status Stealth and the older graphite necked Vigier Passions are closest though But anyway, thats getting a bit OT. Let me rattle the cage of the guys on the status forum and Steve Lawson to see if they have anything to add.

[quote name='fullrangebass' post='175417' date='Apr 12 2008, 08:54 PM']I think that a bubinga bodied graphite necked bass would sound too "spunky".[/quote] Wots spunky?! My Smith 6 had a walnut body and tbh, my Smith 5 with a mahogany body sounded growlier and warmer. I've owned a few instruments with large proportions of mahogany in them (and played both MacDaddy's old Shuker and Urb's Chapman fretless) and they've all sounded warm and growly. If there was some way of pairing that to a graphite neck I think I'd probably be content.

[quote name='SMART' post='175114' date='Apr 12 2008, 12:25 PM']It's interesting to read your comments above regarding Modulus necks. Can you shed any further light on the background to such occurrences as in the last 10 years of working closely with Modulus as their exclusive UK distributor we have never experienced this with any of our customers here in the UK and Europe. Granadillo has always been an option that customers have opted for more for aesthethic reasons that anything else as we also have not experienced any issues with the composite fingerboards either. We have many Quantum and Flea instrument owners with the standard Modulus composite fingerboard who are and have been extremely chuffed at the quality and sonic performance of their necks. The most usual feedback we receive is that the intonation produced by a Modulus neck is nothing short of superb and almost synthesizer like in its precision and definition.[/quote] Hi Ian I'm sure many your customers ARE satisfied, I'd imagine a lot of what they hear on stage has been affected to a greater or lesser degree by their choice of backline and their expectations. This '97 (IIRC) fretless had a neck shaped like a banana I'm sorry to say. Its an old one so no truss rod either. It had a medium weight alder body and actually sounded quite nice with the Bartolini electronics - the first time I've ever felt Bartolini's actually made a bass sound better! This is the '94 fretted version It had a good neck although it lacked warmth because the alder body was too light and had an EMG pick up. It sounded quite nice through an SWR amp too but I didn't actually discover that until I'd taken the bass into the shop to sell on commission . On reflection, I wish I'd tried an Aguilar OBP-1 preamp with it, I think it would have enhanced and shaped the natural sound of the bass nicely. The '96 Sonic Hammer I imported had an ash body and was fearsome. Sounded better with Seymore Duncan pickup and pre than the Bartolini pick up it came with though. It made carnal and filthy love to any amp powered by valves and had a neck which was as straight as an arrow. Its now the stuff of Basschat legend I sold it because it was too aggressive for the music I played but it did set a standard of sorts. Hopefully Modulus will have sorted the phenolic recipe by now, I know that Status have. Still, in my experience wooden fingerboards do have less clatter and on some phenolic necks too but not all by any means. I wouldn't say the analogy of being like a synth applies in my own experience, the characteristic Modulus sound that I recognise from both my own instruments and also listening to bands like the Dave Matthews Band is one which lacks lower mid grunt on the E and A strings (despite the B string sending the power indicator on my multiplug off the scale) but has plenty of growl. However the character I've described varies according to the kind of wood used in the body (also, in my experience of owning about 8 graphite necked instruments and having played countless more including Vigier, Status, Steinberger, Zon and Basslab). [quote name='fullrangebass' post='175401' date='Apr 12 2008, 08:11 PM']The method of making the necks is different between the two companies.[/quote] This is interesting. Care to shed any more light on these differences? I have an idea of how the necks on my own basses were made and I've been to see Rob Green and how the latest batch of Status necks are made (the ones with the foam core). They seem pretty similar to me. [quote name='fullrangebass' post='175401' date='Apr 12 2008, 08:11 PM']The neck part (contribution) can only be judged when coupled with a body[/quote] I couldn't agree more, as you can probably guess from my comment earlier in this post. When coupled to a graphite neck, I've found the tonal characteristics of the body become that much more influential on the overall basic sound of the instrument. FWIW, I don't think enough manufacturers are exploring other wood options apart from the standard ash which can tend to sound too brittle to my ears. I wouldn't mind seeing someone trialling a graphite necked bass with a body from a soft or heavy sounding wood like bubinga. Something that tames the highs and preserves/enhances the lows and mids a bit more. In short I guess I've been a bit frustrated in one way or another with pretty much every graphite necked bass I've ever played, with the exception of the '79 Alembic I own (which has an ebony fingerboard). If it hasn't been the necks bowing then the bass concerned has had a sterile sound. If my Cutlass basses had dead straight necks and came in a 5 string version I'd be very content. However that's a saga in itself where EB/MM are concerned, its not like they haven't been petitioned already. I really wish someone would produce an affordable graphite necked 5 string bass that sounded warm and had a dead straight straight neck! (Something headless, wide bodied and lightweight too, while I'm day dreaming away here).

Ummm if anyone NEEDS some... [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=4618"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=4618[/url]

i left my Jaydee on the floor, being too afraid to leave it up against a chair in case it slid over... ...and promptly tripped over the lead I'd left in it ripping the jack socket out of the front of the bass plus a healthy chunk of wood. I turned the air blue with my ranting and self contempt for half an hour afterwards.

Do you mean the string mutes? Yes, all three bridges have mutes on them I usually keep them wound down tightly. The Cutlass II still has the original sponge bits on although they're a bit stiff now. They were gooey, sticky black lumps on the other two.

[quote name='WishICouldWalk' post='175217' date='Apr 12 2008, 03:27 PM']I started thinking about the hassle of a girlfriend and all of a sudden I became gripped by the need for a 70s jazz.[/quote] LMAO Thankyou. I've just coated my keyboard in South African Chenin Blanc. The way your mind works is very disturbing but I like it a lot.

[quote name='Bullet-Rule' post='175167' date='Apr 12 2008, 01:51 PM']Lovely collection you got there kiwi![/quote] Thank you very much Sir, very kind of you.

[quote name='BassManKev' post='175097' date='Apr 12 2008, 12:05 PM']whats different about that bridge on the white cutlass?[/quote] Its chunkier, more like G&L bridges.

[quote name='NickThomas' post='175136' date='Apr 12 2008, 01:05 PM']Ok OK I'm in denial .... I still walk funny when I think about the beautiful SKB3005 Mark has at bassdirect lol edit: just checked the website and it's sold .. now I'm stumped lol[/quote] Sounds like a merciful release to me! There I am, thinking I've got everything I need - and I have. Then I spot the Cutlass 2 one day out of the blue and I've made my mind up that I'm going to have it (although not beyond a reasonable price)... ...I'm a slave to my own impulses sometimes. If I don't make a decision to sell some of this stuff at some point I'll probably end up amassing a series of examples that tell the story of early graphite neck design and manufacture in bass guitars (ie. Steinberger L2, a Strata bass (pre Status), another Alembic with a graphite neck etc.)

Here's one I took this morning - a trio of pre-EB Musicmans (men?)

Duracell Procells have been recommended to me and seem to be an industry standard. You can find good deals from bulk suppliers on Ebay. Before I was running rechargables and getting into all sorts of strife as they lost charge very suddenly.

[quote name='lowdown' post='174756' date='Apr 11 2008, 05:57 PM']Not seem them before kw..... Garry[/quote] Yeah, well you know how I like to spring this sh*t on people to surprise them.

[quote name='NancyJohnson' post='174647' date='Apr 11 2008, 04:07 PM']I like MM Cutlass basses. Post a pic. P[/quote] Like I need any encouragement. Forgot to mention my Alembic is ex-name Canadian band too:

Yes they are deliberately arranged in alphabetical order to make them easier to access, rather than by date order for the casual browser. How is it difficult to pick up, the reviews are on one page per section at the moment. Why don't you subscribe to the forum? That way if anything new pops up you'll be notified via email. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showforum=59"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showforum=59[/url] Look for it in the top right hand corner under "Forum Options" pull down menu

[quote name='BigBeefChief' post='174451' date='Apr 11 2008, 12:00 PM']Very few non-bass players actually care or notice.[/quote] I'm inclined to agree with you in the context of covers gig work and I'm also inclined to agree with you on it being a bit self indulgent, again in the context of a cynical and overcritical perspective. I say so what if someone brings 5 basses to a gig? There's nothing wrong with them caring about their craft and getting satisfaction out of the job they do or how they approach the creative endeavours they undertake. I think you're making a few sweeping generalisations there. You're taking your set of values and judging unspecified others on how they match up to them.

[quote name='Musky' post='174390' date='Apr 11 2008, 10:34 AM']My Status Matrix used to belong to Guy Pratt - it appears to be a prototype. Didn't get to meet him though.[/quote] I did and I didn't like him very much. He was trying to be too funny and telling borderline rascist (IMO) jokes for one thing.

[quote name='alexclaber' post='174357' date='Apr 11 2008, 09:30 AM']I really like the signal buffering and impedance matching that a good onboard preamp provides and also the clarity and transparent reproduction of a good active pickup (Alembic, EMG, etc).[/quote] Alex, I've been told that Alembic pickups aren't active (at least according to John East who has had a play with my Activators). Apparently they're designed passive but very low impedance.

I was thinking that if you were using a tweeter in your rig, there was a chance it might actually be centred close to the clattering frequencies on your fingerboard. The other thing is that if your engineer was putting your track through a compressor, that might have also tamed your bass a little.

Lets try to keep a handle on the levels of excitement on this one guys, huh? We know what you lot are like when you start talking speaker specs.

And another thing, a wooden fingerboard removes the risk of the neck warping if the phenolic resin recipe isn't stiff enough. So you really DO get the best of both worlds. [quote name='Lfalex v1.1' post='174342' date='Apr 11 2008, 09:11 AM']When it came out of the desk, it just wasn't there at all. No studio jiggery-pokery, just clean and clear!?[/quote] Does your rig have a tweeter or HF horn?

Looks like Mr Prince got it then? I think that bass has been on Ebay before, I definitely remember that amazing back wood. Last Strata I played was a fretless in the Bass Centre which had a badly warped neck. Nice piece of history though