BassBod

Levy's are great..but very hard to get in the UK (and then very expensive) one of mine came from walbassist (thank you!) and its been earning its keep for at least 5 years now! Its the posher version, but I would think the Sadowsky would be a very good bag with proper dense foam padding rather than the cosmetic stuff used in cheaper bags (Warwick being the worst I've seen).

The first Ampeg product I'd think about buying....

Conan - I'm very tempted by yours, even though I don't need it!

Pretty much the best I've ever seen..although last time I could hardly hear him (not his fault, just a bad venue for bass sound). Very nice chap too..

I'd be cautious - maybe email them. I've had Pyramid Golds break (often in the case!) near the tuner and at the bridge saddle, which would make me think twice about thru body. Lovely strings......

The front end is pretty much the same as the Vtype - just try one anyway..you'll probably like it!

Get advice from someone who knows the full tech...but there will be Eminence drivers available that will work perfectly well in your cab. Try and isolate the problem first (as above) as it could be a fairly basic mechanical issue in one driver. Look at re-cone or repair options (I've heard Wembley speakers are good) then look at replacement for all four. I recently had to replace the 8" Bag End speakers in a Baby Blue combo, and found good Eminence replacements (although it did drop the internal impedance to 4 ohms). First thing the tech said was the original Bag End drivers looked to be made by Eminence.. The sound of the amp did change, but it was pretty subtle and I suspect better.

Once upon a time I did wonder what JayDee pickups and Wal electronics would sound like together....anyone tried that?! Thanks to GILLY for the info..great to hear the story.

And yes, the pickups and electronics look to be early 80's Wal from memory, including the twin outputs and knobs.

Thats very interesting - a Manson/Wal with a hint of Jaydee styling...

Thanks Brother...the WT300 is a lovely thing...I'm pretty much back to SWR these days, not so different.

From memory, they are mini pots...quite a lot smaller than standard. I've put EMG's in a few Brandoni/Japanese bodies and although a bit tight, its always worked fine. Worst case is getting the cavity deepened a mm or two, which wouldn't cost much to have done. You may also find that if you ask a luthier to supply and fit, he doesn't really charge for the fitting. There are also some very good passive humbucker versions around..Aguilar, Nordstrand etc which don't need a battery and would be pretty quiet in use.

DiMarzios are a very good cheaper option - the older Model J's come up at good prices. Humbuckers, so a bit darker than true single could designs, but they have plenty of wallop. My personal experience has been that cheaper J pickups (Kent Armstrong/WD or Squier etc) tend to sound a bit clanky when compared to more expensive versions. The Seymour Duncan passive/vintage style are probably the best I've used for vintage sound and affordability. A bit late, but let us know how it works out...

The hex-board stuff isn't heavy - worth talking to a maker or looking around. There are also fibre-board cases (as used for lighting and old drum cases) - not as durable but still pretty good. My old bits box was a fibre-type lighting case and its still fine after about 20 years of van travel...although the foam inside has rotted badly.

Bravewood Pbass..maple neck. Every now and then I get Pbass envy....and that was the best I've owned (including the sunburst fretless that has been around here a few times). Maybe also a '98 Warwick Thumb, but it was a bit of a weird one...very odd balance standing up. Maybe I should've given it a bit longer.

Look at Orchid Electronics - Jon made a two input/switching DI for me ( for similar reasons). Must have an input gain for each instrument...then it had a footswitch (with lights) to select and a mute/tune footswitch. Very easy to use. Not cheap but Jon's stuff sounds great and you get a quality DI output for both instruments already balanced for the PA to use.

Important question - what was the green box on Dave Swift's amp? Not a DI or preamp??

I did a session at a very well appointed private studio last week (money no object...vintage stuff everywhere) and they were using the Radial Pro's for pretty much everything - I was a bit surprised, but they clearly thought they were plenty good enough as simple passive boxes. I took an Avalon but they didn't even plug into it...in two days..

Assuming you will always be using an amp, (and don't use radical eq) then Radial ProI (passive) run from the effects send or line output. No hum, no hiss and no nasty overloads. And engineers will recognise and use it. Orchid (active) boxes are great if you want a flat and faithful sound of your instrument, but they can be overloaded by line level sends from an amp and the distortion is harsh (yes, I've done it). Again they will be recognised and respected by engineers..always a good thing.