BigRedX

Post in The Netherlands seems to be very slow for imports from the Uk at the moment. My GF sent something to a friend there just before Christmas and it only arrived at the end of last week!

It appears the seller of this one has included a screen grab of my original listing which states the weight of mine as 4.6kg

I'm sorry but I'm going to have to let @Maude down, partly due to the amount of paying work I have on at the moment (I'm a free-lancer so if I have work I really need to be doing it), and partly because my current 3D programme of choice doesn't have the correct function required to make this logo properly in 3D which is the ability to extrapolate between two shapes whilst extruding. Because all my current 3D work is for 2D images, I could have fudged it for my normal use, but that won't produce a printable 3D model, so I'm going to have to admit defeat. I have been able to create the two shapes needed for the extrapolation which I'll attach to this post if anyone else needs to make use of them. Hofner Top.eps Hofner Bottom.eps

No. The body is hollow. Mine was filled with flight-case foam sheets.

Thanks. I might not have it done until tomorrow. I'll send you back the .stl file. @Maude how long and what diameter do you need the locating pins?

I've got highly specialised requirements in terms of both looks and functionality when it come to my musical equipment and unfortunately neither of those things come cheap.

I don't own a 3D printer - all my 3D work is done to produce 2D graphical product images, but applying a taper to the logo in most 3D applications is part of the extrusion process. If I was creating this I would simply take a vector version of the Hofner logo (there's one available for free at Brands Of The World), size to 46mm length and extrude about 2-3mm applying a slight positive or negative taper depending on whether the full width of the "strokes" is at the top or bottom of the object.

IIRC the original version of these pickups as fitted to the early Enfield basses worked in conjunction with a special pre-amp in order to match the output of the different coil configurations. Under those circumstances an instrument with three of these pickups wouldn't be possible.

Personally I'd have removed the potentially slanderous posts (and given those that post them a warning) and kept the thread open, but I don't own Basschat and I'm not a moderator, so it's not my call.

There isn't any way to do this. These "active" pickups are just a standard coil around a magnet (albeit at a different impedance to "passive" pickups) wired directly to a pre-amp/impedance matching circuitry all encased in epoxy. What you are actually measuring is the impedance of the output side of the "active" electronics and gives no indication of what the coils are doing. In fact the problem is far more likely to be a failure of one of the pre-amp components, rather than a problem with the coils. I think if it really is dead you'll probably have to bin and replace.

One of my bands uses this for the drummer's click track. Works a treat and with the right headphone it has plenty of volume.

Looking at the the badge in the OP, I think the 3D model needs a slight bevel to the edges, also it looks bit thicker than the original. Otherwise that's a brilliant example of what Basschat does best! Personally I wouldn't bother trying to match up the pins to the existing holes. Fill them in, and drill new ones or simply glue the logo onto the headstock faceplate.

BTW when you take it to bits post some photos of what's inside. It would be interesting to see what is under the pickup covers.

This. My choice would be a four-string set based on their Axion Bass VI strings.

That headstock plate looks fabulous!

In that case I'd very surprised if what is lurking beneath the pickup covers bears much resemblance to what is fitted to a Gibson EB3.

The thing is the changes need to be in place plenty of time before the Covid restrictions are lifted, so that everyone knows exactly what is required once gigging anywhere is possible again. Right now what I am being told is that given the current situation (pandemic restrictions not withstanding) it's simply too much effort to bring the support band as well as the headliner over from the UK. @Al Krow I admire your optimism, but right now I see a opportunity which we have spent the last 3 years working towards by delivering at the UK gigs in serious danger of slipping away.

Fair enough regarding the gain for your set up. Although you could always consider a clean boost pedal (or similar that will boost the volume without doing anything else) before the Spectradrive. Check the dimensions of the original pickups carefully before assuming that any modern replacement will be a straight drop in. I learned to my cost when I wanted to "upgrade" the Maxon pickups on my 74 Ibanez Firebird. The SD mini-humbuckers which are an exact replacement for the pickups that would be in a 70s Gibson Firebird didn't fit the pickup surrounds on the guitar, and surrounds the right size for the SDs didn't cover the existing pickup routs. I learnt the expensive way after spending £150 on pickups that couldn't be used without a lot of additional work. Also bear in mind that the choke used in the Varitone circuit is supposed to be tuned to the neck pickup. Changing to pickup to something different might require a new choke to maintain the correct tone.

The current import situation harking back to the bad old days of the 70s has left me wondering two things: 1. Will there be a return of "grey imports" for items from big-name musical instrument manufacturers? 2. What will the 20s equivalent be of all those shops selling "import" records - the ones with a corner cut off the sleeve and an extra hole punched through the centre?

No. I said that last year it was postponed (obviously due to the pandemic) and this year if it is possible to go ahead we'll probably get over-looked in favour of a band that doesn't need multiple visas and work permits as well as carnets for all our equipment and merchandise.

Yes very short sighted. Our support tour already postponed from last year when it would still have been simply a question of sticking us and our gear in the van and heading across the channel to play the gigs that had been booked, looks increasingly like too much work to organise. The promoter has already hinted that even if it does go ahead at the end of this year it might be simpler for him to book an EU-based band as support, unless we can guarantee to have all the relevant paperwork in place for us to do it.

BTW if you do go for a replacement pickup check that it is the same size as the one you are replacing. The Maxon "mini-humbucker" pickups on my Ibanez Firebird guitar are sufficiently different enough in size for the standard replacements not to fit the surrounds, and for surrounds that match the replacement pickups not to quite cover the pickup routs.

Some things: 1. You can't accurately measure the resistance of a single item while it is still in a circuit, you need to remove it completely from the circuit to do this. When you select just one pickup the resistance is in parallel with the volume pot. It's also in parallel with the tone pot and the tone capacitor. Even with these set to their maximum values they will have an influence on the values observed. 2. The size of the cover and the number of pole-pieces visible on a 70s Japanese pickup (especially on a copy instrument) give absolutely no indication of what is actually going on physically and electrically underneath. 3. There is no guarantee that a rewind will not change the sound. I would only go for this option if the pickup was actually dead or by comparing it with another identical pickup you could show that there must be a short within the windings. If you like the tone but there just isn't enough output, why not just turn up the gain on your amp?

That's basically 30 years worth of buying CDs - it averages out at a bit over 1 a week, so not an unfeasible amount considering that many of them were second hand or discounted. They now occupy about 2TB space on a 4TB hard drive and fill a number of large boxes in the attic. BTW none of the other band members appear to have photos of our old cellar recording/rehearsal space from the 80s which is a pity so you'll simply have to take my word for its minuscule size. I do recall that our tallest band member could only stand in a couple of places without having to stoop to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling!

Why is the lack of Bluetooth perplexing? IME Bluetooth adds a very noticeable amount of latency to the audio, which will make watching videos a seriously uncomfortable experience. If you need to synchronise audio with video or audio from multiple sources, Bluetooth is to be avoided.