Kiwi

[quote name='Mr Cougar' post='39620' date='Jul 31 2007, 05:17 PM']Mind you didn't you once say that the neck on that Cutlass was like a bannana?[/quote] I did and it was. But one man's banana is another mans... ...umm, lets just say its a question of player preference.

[quote name='Wil' post='39587' date='Jul 31 2007, 04:26 PM']Cass Lewis nearly bought your bass?! [/quote] Yeah, he was offered the bass but turned it down because he was more interested in buying Harleys at the time apparently. He's a Cutlass collector, so the Bass Centre tell me. Dave Swift from Jools Holland's band also gave me a call about it, but he wanted to refinish it! I never ended up finding out who it eventually went to.

oh blimey Al, is that a 1 piece body on your sterling?! Phwoaaar. [quote name='Wil' post='39573' date='Jul 31 2007, 04:02 PM']I thought you sold your Cutlass Kiwi? I remember it was too expensive for me, but the Cass Lewis fan in me wants it so much! wub.gif[/quote] I did sell it (funnily enough, Cass Lewis almost bought it) but then I found one that was even rarer than a normal cutlass - one with a 3 bolt neck and there's only about 5 of them known plus mine is ex AC/DC

[quote name='Alpha-Dave' post='39571' date='Jul 31 2007, 04:00 PM']In a similar vein, it occurred to me that I don't go into SC as I did my local music shops when I was younger because they don't do lessons. Seriously, if they had 'Local Academies' or whatever that taught too then they'd have a lot more people through their doors, which eventually means more sales.[/quote] One of my regular music stores in Christchurch, New Zealand has done exactly this for exactly those reasons.

Well if Dave's gonna name drop then I will too COUGHCOUGHCLIFFWILLIAMSCOUGH! AND its black Plus my 77/78 slapper. If you can find a graphite necked cutlass, or even a status necked NAMM Stingray you might find they bridge the gap in sound between your statii and the stingray. A Status Groove Bass might also help keep you faithful while letting you play around a little.

[quote name='G-bitch' post='39519' date='Jul 31 2007, 02:06 PM']I have to agree, it's mostly talkbass - I don't think that valve amps for bass have ever caught on here for a number of reasons, my personal biggest gripe being that the bass amp never gets mic'd up! I swear to god, if a sound engineer looks at my (Ampeg) V4 and hands me a DI box without putting a mic on it will be garrotted with the mains cable whilst having a spare set of 7027A's inserted in their rectum.[/quote] There are a few valve users on this forum too, but the amps are a bit of a hassle to lug about. Especially for those of us in London with the lack of parking around some of central London venues, and we can forget about taking an amp on public transport. But I don't think there's anything that can beat the sound of a stingray (or any other warm sounding bass for that matter) through an all valve amp (and I play through a solid state GK combo almost all of the time.) It's aural chocolate.

pm returned my dear fellow.

[quote name='JPJ' post='38823' date='Jul 30 2007, 10:39 AM']I think you'd better get the number of Ped's surgeon, that amp and cab look great but getting them UPSTAIRS![/quote] Yeah Kev, I really need to find somewhere with either a lift or on the ground floor.

[quote name='G-bitch' post='38904' date='Jul 30 2007, 12:24 PM']Reliability seems to be the only other problem after rarity! I suspect that it's just the case of a few duff units but I do know one person who had to have the same job done to both a V4 and V6 - nothing major but still a good £100 worth of bench time. It's cheaper to get Ampeg valve amps now, and I actually prefer that sound; not better or worse just different.[/quote] The only significant criticism of the amp construction that I'm aware of is here (http://storm.ca/~rheslip/ampmods.htm). Some heater circuit wiring that isn't designed to take the voltages that are being put through it. Phyrexian had a biasing issue with his V8 (http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=291451&page=11). Tony, who was the previous owner of mine, didn't have any issues as far as I am aware so I have no reason to believe the amp is going to be anything other than reliable. You're right about them sounding different to Ampegs matey . Its horses for courses innit? [quote name='G-bitch' post='38904' date='Jul 30 2007, 12:24 PM']A lot of people rave about their amps and it's only the V series' rarity that has built up the cult following for these amps - they're damn good, but they weren't a gift from god so try before you buy rather than taking the hype as word enough.[/quote] You mean a lot of people rave about them on Talkbass? I don't think people such as your good self are going to start getting as excited about them in the UK somehow.

Yeah this Trace 1248H cab would be pretty sweet but the only places that have them online these days are rental companies and studios. This cab is also rated at 8ohms where the V8 is rated at 4 or 2 ohms specifically so I'd have to see if I could rewire it to give 2 or 4 ohms instead.

Looks like its a Series 3 with the smaller body. Looks also like it might have a through neck rather than the glue-in but its hard to tell with the photos. It might well be a glue-in with the same laminates used all the way through. There was a Series 2 MK and a GA24 that finished early last week too, both sold for about £850.

I'm not aware of any valve stereo poweramps being made these days. Was it stereo you were specifically looking for? The Strategy 400 was the only example of a stereo valve power amp I could actually find. I didn't discover until after I bought it, that it weighed about 30kg unracked! US Ebay is probably the most likely place you'll find one, but the shipping charges for anything other than surface shipping are likely to be horrific. The bloke I bought mine off had done the importing himself. Burman did a 2 piece, 100w 60's/70's valve powered PA called the powerpak which had a valve preamp capable of driving more than one valve power amp. You could get a couple of the power amps for relatively little money (maybe £250 each?) off Ebay but each will probably weigh the same as one Strategy 400. Same situation with an [url="http://www.aguilaramp.com/products_vintage_db728.htm"]400w Aguilar DB728[/url] too (and they'll be more expensive). Probably the most practical solution would be to get an Alembic F-1X preamp and a 1 unit Class D power amp like those made by powersoft, BK electronics or peavey perhaps.

[quote name='bnt' post='38649' date='Jul 29 2007, 10:00 PM']They don't ship Ernie Balls outside the US... so does that mean I can't have that MM Bongo, Teal Pearl w/ Moonstone pickguard, then? Dang...[/quote] They can if they're second hand.

Probably the only Mesa Boogie power amp worth using with bass is one of these: Not many around and they weigh a tonne but I use one as my hi-fi amp

Thanks for your comments guys. The closest thing I can compare the amp to is an old Burman, funnily enough. Im hoping for a pair of Acme B2's but a Trace 4x12 would be equally welcome (assuming I can get it up the stairs!) [quote name='ped' post='38466' date='Jul 29 2007, 01:34 PM']I will have to come and see the V8 soon kiwi. it must be sodding loud - I suppose at home/practice you can switch it to V4 configuration.[/quote] If/when I get cabs for it, sure. There's a half power switch on the back of it which would come in handy for rehearsals I guess.

i used to own one of those cabs - I loved the sound coming from it but at 125lbs it was no easy lift. I believe Lukeward got in contact with Larry Hartke to astke if they were planning to release a light weight version of the XL cabs at a higher spec than the TP series. I can't remember what the response was though.

[quote name='ped' post='38316' date='Jul 29 2007, 12:21 AM']Kiwi has a v8 now.....[/quote] Aye its true enough, Tonyf and I reached a deal over his. Its a gorgeous sounding amp - less grindy than an Ampeg, clearer than the Bass400+ (although that is a nice amp), warmer than an Aguilar. In short full, clear, well balanced and sweet. I just need to get some cabs for it and hopefully that'll happen in a few weeks. [quote name='TheRinser' post='38340' date='Jul 29 2007, 03:48 AM']Kiwi! I want a V8 [/quote] Phyrexian has his for sale up on Talkbass IIRC. I don't know if he's sold it yet.

Solid state (GK) heads, plectrum, jj/jp bass with ash body and maple neck.

Leylandii should be classed as weeds OK, lets get back on topic now ppl, maple vs wenge. If people would like to talk more generally about the influence of materials on sound, we can split the topic up into two threads so they carry on independently.

[quote name='ARGH' post='37535' date='Jul 26 2007, 09:12 PM']If (INSERT FAVE BASSMAKER HERE) insisted that Tapioca rice lam'd between Gnatwood was the new tonal nirvana,Im sure a quantity of people on here would be insisting of having it installed asap. Its taste,but then Reality kicks in,when the next 'tonal craze' comes along.[/quote] Thats a bit insulting to those who think wood does make a difference and particularly to those who are interested in exploring other alternatives to ash/maple. The way I see it, you can't rule out the influence of wood, any more than you can include the effect of all the other elements you've mentioned. As I stated before, its a balancing act and each part contributes to the overall whole. In any event I happen to own two basses that are, for all intents and purposes, identical apart from their neck material. Any bass player doing an A/B of these instruments would hear and feel for themselves that neck material has a substantial influence on the sound of an instrument. I think it's a no brainer.

[quote name='ARGH' post='37534' date='Jul 26 2007, 09:05 PM']Do you like maple as a neckwood..ok,good,do you prefer Wenge? Well great. But discussing it beyond what is stable,and looks/feels nice is kinda...[/quote] ...still valid. I think some input from people who have more experience - ie. luthiers, would be quite helpful at this point.

What one person thinks is good may not appeal to another person. However the purpose of this thread is to seek where the general consensus of opinion lies. Its all good and I think variations in perception will occur according to the number and variety of basses each individual has tried and/or built. There's also a tremendous variation in wood but I think its ultimately all a balancing act. That point of balance varies for everyone and... ...there are a multitude of approaches to achieving that balance, depending on what is most important to a player. Are you a planes, boats or smiley-creepy-crawlies man? Oh wait, its about maple and wenge isn't it?

I think a maple neck with a couple of laminates of wenge is aural nirvana. Growl, warmth, brightness... ...its all there.