Kiwi

On 06/10/2022 at 01:34, obi 2 kenobi said:

Yes, I agree. Not often on eBay in UK. £3400 is a pretty good price when you compare with 2nd values of Wals and Alembics 

Unfortunately it's less good when you compare against the prices of used Smiths 6 years ago.  Inflation doesn't account for all the rise, as it doesn't with Wal's either.  Alembics have been chronically undervalued for decades, if you believe their new price is any basis for their used price.  In 2008 I could afford three BSRGN Smiths.   Three!  Such decadence would be the stuff of bucketlist fantasy now.  Just imagine if salaries had gone up by the same rate as boutique bass guitars.

58 minutes ago, Nick H. said:

I was a  friend of Chris who bought the lost TB. Unfortunately he fell ill a few months back and passed away. It was a big shock. I too am a bass player and remember talking Travis Beans with him and he eventually pulled the trigger. Chris had a small collection of around six rotating basses and bought and sold them for the experience of playing them more than anything else. Maybe some restoration work. His wife contacted me today with the news it had been found. Hopefully it can be sorted out in the near future. That could be another mission though. Who knows? 

Many thanks to Fluid druid who got in touch. 

Cheers. 

If it ownership can be proven, it might be best to sell it through the pawn shop, on Reverb or have it sent somewhere to sell on consignment.  Beans are fetching respectable money these days. 

4 hours ago, Fluid Druid said:

Hey there! We are a pawn shop in SE Portland, Oregon. I think we have your Travis Bean bass!

Can you put it aside until the OP gets back to you?

On 01/04/2022 at 15:12, Passinwind said:

I live an hour outside of Portland (Oregon, 

Salem?

Gnnnnnn...binary solo!!!!!

On 23/10/2022 at 02:26, Downunderwonder said:

Got some examples?

MM Stingray : Mesa Boogie Bass 400+/Warwick Pro Tube with EBS Neo212 (even though the Warwick amps are coloured for Warwick basses,  they suit stingrays too) 

Fender Jazz: SWR400 and SWR Goliath 4x10 (slappy stuff)/Mark Bass Little Mark + MB 104HF(fingerstyle) 

Fender Precision: Ampeg SVT Classic +8x10 (sounds horrible with any other bass apart from a jazz with flats) 

Status Empathy or Modulus Quantum or Zon Legacy :SWR400 and SWR Goliath 4x10/Hughes & Kettner Bassbase 600 + EBS Neo212 (these amps do a great job of making graphite necked basses sound thicker and fuller) 

Jaydee Supernatural / Status Series 2000: Trace Elliot MkIV or V + 1048 cab (probably needs no explanation but...that eighties burp). 

 Warwick Thumb or any kind or Warwick Bass really) : Warwick ProFet plus 2x12 or 4x10.  

I hope it's a fun day out.  Wish I was there. 

On 14/10/2022 at 05:34, Phil Starr said:

So is it better to know all this stuff, seek the 'truth' and hunt the perfect rig or to live in blissful ignorance and just max out the tone controls until it's time to trade your gear for new in the eternal quest for sound nirvana. What do you think?

 

You're describing what nearly 20 years of playing experience has led me to discover for myself.  I'm also a great believe in matching basses to amps (and speakers) for this reason.  Ultimately all three components (bass, amp and speakers) are part of the recipe and we choose flavours that compliment and enhance.  You described the amps in your OP in exactly the terms I expected after playing through them which was affirming.

1 hour ago, skankdelvar said:

You're both right.

 

The double-bound but otherwise normal Tele (1959-1972) was sold as a Custom Telecaster. That's the one for sale here and a lovely example it is too. The one with the so-called 'Wide Range Humbucker' was the Telecaster Custom (1972-1981). 

You're back?

8 hours ago, joe_geezer said:

Apparently John Diggins made 5-6 basses for Jaco but he died before receiving them...

Yes, someone on here admitted to having one in their collection a few years back.  They were basically black, Jaydee-made jazz basses, nothing special. 

And we bumped it up just this week...

Not in a blog format, I'm sorry.  But you can set up a thread along fairly similar lines.  Oldman has done this.

I'm going to remind everyone on this thread about our policy to take action if the tone starts getting too personal or antagonistic.  Feel free to disagree but please keep the exchanges civilised.

Thanks in advance. 

Lets see how long this takes to go.

For the boffins amongst you, we needed to upgrade from Php7.4 to 8.0.  It affected the BC theme for some unknown reason.

On 21/09/2022 at 04:47, Woody1957 said:

In the words of Jim Bowen.....Super, Smashing, Great!

"Look wot y'coulda won!"

Wow!

17 hours ago, Beedster said:

 

Yep. One of the few apparently positive (but in real terms negative) aspects of gambling addiction compared to drug addiction is that it's not so obvious socially; plenty of addicted gamblers appear to live normal healthy lives even when in the midst of a serious long-term addiction, which is rarely the case with drugs; the signs of drug addiction are often quite clear to the naked eye.

 

So yes, a thread on social media about your actions - which may or may not be the result of gambling of course but I'm assuming from the above might be - is indicative that its got very bad indeed 

This seems like more than a gambling addiction,  there's compulsive risk taking, a total lack of remorse or empathy plus both shameless and cunning dishonesty.  I don't think he's doing this because he needs to survive.  

17 hours ago, Chris2112 said:

 Status were, I believe, the pioneer in carbon fibre monocoque design

 

Geoff Gould pioneered monocoque design for Alembic in 1976. 

17 hours ago, Chris2112 said:

used a thin wood frame with layers of carbon fibre cloth laid up on top to form the 'skin' prior to curing and finishing.

This is a different mode of construction, known as wrapping.  Status used this in the body wings for their Series 2000 and Stealth 1 models.  Their necks were still monocoque.

17 hours ago, Chris2112 said:

Basslab took things even further since they use some carbon fibre in their builds but most of the instrument is made of a 'tuned composite material', effectively a resin that allows for even more unusual shapes. 

This was the approach the Status took in their Stealth II model.  They used epoxy foam injected into the hollow space left over after monocoque construction.

It's been unlocked for you. If the title has withdrawn or sold in it, it'll automatically lock.  This is to save some time in moderating.

Based on my experience with their jazz necks, I'd probably avoid it.  But I wouldn't stop someone else from pulling the trigger.

4 hours ago, Drax said:

Fair point. Gen X definitely, and of course some Millennials are now in their 40’s .. 

I have to admit turning down the opportunity to buy a 1965 Jazz about 15 years ago for £3500 for two reasons:
1) It was light but fragile. I was paranoid about something breaking, even as innocuous as a solder joint, and losing value on it.
2) I didn't like the idea of thousands of quid being tied up in an asset that was so easy to carry.  It would never be gigged because I would be in sentry mode the whole time and that would undermine the satisfaction of owning it to a large degree.

Ironically, another one of my basses has surpassed that in value by some margin so I find myself in that situation regardless.

9 hours ago, drTStingray said:

Bursts are the only guitars with the top joint down the middle - stripped gold tops do not have the joint down the middle. 

Yes, and there are some goldtops-refinished-as-bursts out there that have maple caps with an off centre glue line.  It wasn't so important back then.  They probably just wanted something that looked like a burst from the audience.

4 hours ago, Adey said:

The 59 Les Paul is only going to get comparatively cheaper over time.

 

Of the 600 or so made in 1959, there are only about 3000 remaining. And that number continues to rise...

2 hours ago, ezbass said:

 

A number of those ‘59 Les Pauls are refinished Gold Tops, still possibly a ‘59, just not an original ‘burst.

Cough. 
 

5 hours ago, Kiwi said:

Funnily enough, it's estimated that over a thousand 59 Les Paul sunburst flame tops are left out of a total production volume of about 643 (according to burstserial.com).  Mainly because in the late 60's it wasn't unknown for some players started to get 58 goldtops stripped and recapped with a quilted top.  Or sometimes just refinished with a sunburst.  Ed Roman was infamous for doing this and then flogging the modded instruments as original sunbursts with a refinish.

2 hours ago, FDC484950 said:

The one on Reverb? I get the impression that many sellers on there are in dreamland about what their bass is worth. It was a steal but I picked up a Dingwall AB2 6 that started up there at £3,500. I paid just under £1800 for it in the end!

Burners, especially a 6, are a bit tricky to price. They’re not the boutique US elite quality, but I’ve heard great things about playability. Still wouldn’t pay a penny more than £1500 for it

 

It's actually a strategy to test interest out.  They can monitor the number of watchers and, if they're serious about selling, they'll lower the price for a quick sale.  Alternatively they will hang on an outrageous price to hook someone who is desperate and willing to pay above the odds...thereby setting a new precedent for others to use as the basis for yet an even more outrageous price.  It worked for Wal basses.

2 hours ago, Chiliwailer said:

Not sure where the prices are at now, but I remember one hitting £250k about 15ish years ago. That gap of Gibson not producing LP’s for a period during the 60s being to blame. 

About a million dollars for the best, particularly if it has celebrity provenance.  Kirk Hammet  paid US$2 million for Peter Green/Gary Moore's 59 sunburst LP.  They've started to acquire nicknames now, like stradivarius violins which just adds to the mythical associations. 

Peter Green/Gary Moore LP = "Greeny" FKA "Collectors Choice No. 1" or "Magic"
Jimmy Page's LP = "Number Two"

Jimmy Page/Joe Walsh's LP = "Number One"
Billy Gibbon's LP = "Pearly Gates"

George Harrison/Eric Clapton's LP = "Lucy"

Eric Clapton = "Beano Burst"
Steve Lukather = "Rosanna Burst" 

etc.  

Of course this helps Gibson immensely because they can, like Fender, release limited edition replicas or reissues of legendary models at significant margin over the production line versions with minimal extra production costs. Funnily enough, it's estimated that over a thousand 59 Les Paul sunburst flame tops are left out of a total production volume of about 643 (according to burstserial.com).  Mainly because in the late 60's it wasn't unknown for some players started to get 58 goldtops stripped and recapped with a quilted top.  Or sometimes just refinished with a sunburst.  Ed Roman was infamous for doing this and then flogging the modded instruments as original sunbursts with a refinish.