Kiwi

SWR were the brand that left Trace Elliot behind in the late 80's. Very coloured, scooped tone marketed as the 'LA Sound' at the time which was complete opposite of Trace's focussed, bright sound. I found my Basic 350 made scoopy basses like Smiths hard to hear on stage, the amps made bright sounding basses like Modulus or Alembic sound great. In terms of connectivity, the SM400 was a swiss army knife.

[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][size=3] £[/size][/font][/color]6000 for my Alembic but it only takes a custom colour preCBS Jazz with matching headstock (or a Fodera AJ Presentation @[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][size=3] £[/size][/font][/color]14,000) to knock that out of the ball park.

I found a Nautilus for sale on Sunday but it was in an auction that was on June 17.

Late 90's Status Empathy 5 headless with 15mm string spacing. FEA Labs dual band bass compressor (luckily on the waiting list)

I'm a fan of the Deep Impact/Future Impact pedal because it emulates many old school analogue synth sounds. All you need is a touch of chorus, phaser or delay and it's the 70's and 80's all over again. Not sure whether it'll do Snarky Puppy, I'm not into their music but the Future Impact has a USB editor which gives indecent access to control parameters so something might be possible. You can also get software which doesn't require any kind of pickup or pedal. Just plug your bass into the USB sound module and go. [url="http://www.jamorigin.com/products/midi-guitar/"]http://www.jamorigin...ts/midi-guitar/[/url] I've tried the demo - it tracks as well as the Future Impact.

cheers

Great story

Not a user yet, but it's on my shortlist along with an Effectrode PC2A, and Keeley Bassist Compressor. The Effectrode is slightly ahead because I can use it for guitar as well but will be interesting to see what people suggest.

I keep mulling over the idea of replacing the pickups in my Yammie MSG but am nagged by a doubt. What if the replacements don't sound all that better than the originals...? Plus the pickup surrounds will need custom replacements...a complete ballache altogether.

OK, also have a think about the HAZ Lab single pot tone control. It's frequency centres are absolutely bang on for a fatter, warmer sound. I'm not sure if they have a passive by pass through.

Have a go through an active Mackie SRM series PA wedge, you might be pleasantly surprised.

I've used the 3 band parametric circuit exclusively and they're great although a little on the quiet side. Klaus is great to deal with and has even provided some modified circuits with input buffers, extra gain and modified range for each band. Which circuit are you going for?

I've heard good things about the new 'reissue' JC40. I've always liked the sound of them even when I wasn't a guitarist. Maybe one day I'll get one.

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1388312472' post='2320573'] In other sections of Chinese industry the workers are beginning to demand higher pay, so the costs will inevitably move up too. Times, they are a-changin'. [/quote] I'd be very surprised if this is true. There is no loyalty between employers and their staff in China and private companies operate a 6 day working week. The moment one of them has an issue, they both part company. [quote name='Roger2611' timestamp='1388613499' post='2324126'] a lot of so called budget makers turn out some high end stuff as well, [/quote] Convincing people to buy cheaper versions of a well known and popular expensive brand (e.g. Fender, Warwick, Ernie Ball, Overwater, Steinberger etc.) is much easier persuade them to buyer more expensive versions of a budget brand though. Would actually be better to set up a separate brand and have it know the instruments are built in the same way as the expensive ones (which is pretty much what Fender and Ernie Ball have done).

[quote name='paul h' timestamp='1465193215' post='3065897'] Did you see the episode of That Pedal Show with Simon Neil? Very interesting [/quote] On Youtube? Not yet, but I will!

Well done Alex, I remember you first starting out with just an idea and messing about at home with designs and a theory. You've come a very long way from humble beginnings. It's a shame back then your enthusiasm and passion on here were misinterpreted. I hope you feel very proud of what you've accomplished and the best is probably yet to come!

Had major issues with getting a moses jazz neck shipped by Allparts many years ago. It repeatedly missed containers and took about 4 months to arrive. It was the head company who were the problem, their UK distributor were extremely apologetic and great to deal with.

[quote name='Muppet' timestamp='1465142247' post='3065560'] Spooky you say that, that's exactly what I've been doing for a while and you're spot on! [/quote] Yeah the Blues Driver appears to have become a vital component in the gain paths of so many pedal boards with tube screamers! The Metal Zone fattens up strats very nicely as well if you're looking for OTT gain. Simon Neill in Biffy Clyro uses it as an essential part of his set up.

I couldn't handle being a full time musician. How they cope with the financial insecurity, meglomania, game playing and rejection without a reliable gig is beyond me.