BassBod

Love it...£450?! Nice one Doc....

I did it several years ago - my advice is simply, [b]do it[/b]. But go careful carving the neck...I got a bit carried away and its way too thin for me these days! There are some photos of mine somewhere on here, so have a search.

I've recently got some Picato's for my 30" Clifton. They are very nice indeed, although that set is custom made to fit the Clifton Cherry bass, with a bit of extra length for thru body stringing. Might be worth emailing Picato to see if they can supply something you'd like?

I'd say no...but the differences aren't always as great as the price would suggest. My favourite all rounder is DR Sunbeams, sound good, feel good, last ages. I also rate Picato nickel rounds - sound almost as good, feel good but stiffer, don't sound good for as long...but plenty long enough. The Picato's are about half the best price I can get on the Drs..and a third of the worst prices I've seen. I'm happy to pay more less often and luckily Its been a good few years since I got over the need to always sound bright and twangy. I probably rate strings as much by tension/feel as I do by sound.

The CE2 is very good - I've got the Amdek version from the early 80s (same circuit, different box) and it sounds very good...I like it a lot more now than I did back then!

cliftonbasses.co.uk should tell you a lot....if not PM me? My thought on that bass are: solid zebrawood body looks lovely but may weigh a fair bit. Mo generally likes to keep his basses light, but I'd expect that to be a good solid piece of timber. The combination of headless and 36" scale takes a bit of getting used to, but really helps the B string...its a trade of sound against left hand stretch at the lower end (past the first five frets you really don't notice it). Neck profiles can vary, (depends what the original customer wanted) but are easy to modify one way (i.e. shave down) as the oil finish is pretty simple to re-apply.

Always good to see a happy ending.....I've kept my SWR 220 because I know it will probably outlive my tiny Euphonic Audio Micro and remain servicable for a long, long time.

Two I've worked with - Innes Sibun (blues rock) and Alex Hutchings (shredder...and much more, if you ask him nicely). Very different players, but both have got it.

Great find WoT! I always fancied the fiver...but the overall size and weight put me off (and now they're long gone). Roscoe made Fender earn their money on that one...a players bass indeed.

Wow..I'm sure it used to be a lot cheaper than that (I almost bought one from him a year or two ago and $40 shipping sounds familiar?) . Worth sending him an email? As a guide, the only ones I've seen advertised over here have been £120-150 new. Its also worth a look at the Harvest Leather canvas bag - its a bit bigger and heavier than the Levys but its also tougher. They've also gone up in price quite a lot!

I got mine here..all used, but you'd hardly know it. There is a USA Ebay shop (Doc1rock?) who can supply them much cheaper than you'd expect...but the import costs add up.

Start by changing the preamp valve...pretty easy to do yourself. Any decent 12AXY/Ecc83 should do (Sovtek or Electro Harmonix are usually the easiest/cheapest?).

There's a few of us around these parts (I'm 30 mins from Chippenham...or 'nam as I've heard it referred to) so welcome along and enjoy the ride. Just stay away from the shiny old tat in the For Sales....its just a bad habit.

Thanks for the photos - never seen one up close. Interesting to see a laminated bridge....was that an original fitting? Have you ever been tempted to try a more modern pickup?

Very sorry to hear the news. I met him a few times, and he was always a pleasure to talk with...and he did a great renovation job on an older Pro bass for me (something many other companies wouldn't bother with). Best wishes to Paul and the new Wal enterprise...that's some good news, at least. Edit for crap spelling....

Why not try the newer EMG X series? I'd be tempted to go for the JVX bridge and PAX combo....EMG's but with a touch more class? I put the older EMG's into a SS1 a few years ago and thought it was an improvement, but not a drastic one. I also swapped out the MEC circuit for an Aguilar 2 band - that really was better, and simpler (I never used the mid range). If I did it again it would probably be EMG JVX/PAX with a John East MM 2 band circuit.

I'd be more interested in the Zon fretless.....but at half the price!

There's only two things to go wrong. Either the groove in the inset is worn and not holding, or the little ball bearings in the the strap part are not moving as they should. Might be worth a small squirt of WD40 or light oil into the bearings on the strap attachment - that may be enough to get them locking again (sparingly..and remove as much oil as you can before re-attaching or trying out the lock). Plugging the holes and fitting other standard buttons isn't that complicated, its worth seeing if there's a local repairer who could do it in a hurry? Long term I'd go for the Dunlop "dual" version that has a more standard button, with the hole for the strap lock mechanism. If you forget your strap (or have problems) you can use any strap without having to re-fit the locks.

Recently bought an old GK combo from David. He was very understanding while i tried to scratch the money together, and it arrived very well packaged and protected. Condition was exactly as expected (amazingly good for its age) and it performs exactly as its supposed to (none of that "yes , its all works, mate...but you just have to push the button a certain way" you often get with older amps). Communication was very good throughout, and always in good time. Pleasure to deal with, and I wouldn't hesitate to buy again

I only realised a while ago that he uses a filter/wah type effect a lot in the later Brand X/Wal stuff - but its blended with his direct sound so it doesn't give the effect of turning a pedal on...as we were all used to back in those days! Its much more subtle. My favourite sound is the Wal - with the Pbass coming a close second. I saw him years ago with a re-formed Brand X and the Ibanez just didn't sound like him..boom and scratch, not much warble. Mind you, the guitarist was trying to deafen everyone, so I'm sure that didn't help. Still love the sound, if not the music.

I never heard any difference at all when changing the valve in an Eden WT400...I mean nothing. I could hear a difference in other amps/preamps, but not the Eden. I even put a nasty Groove Tube in (very brittle and hard in SWR and Alembic) but it sounded fine. No idea why... Edit - back to topic: I got a GE 5751 from Watford several years ago, and its the cleanest clearest preamp sound I've ever got (out SWR/Alembic). Not sure it would qualify as HiFi but its certainly clean and almost impossible to drive hard.

Congratulations on the deal, I've never owned an Overwater, but I've liked the few I've picked up..also met Chris at the workshop a few years ago. Seemed like a very decent person and not at all phased by the presence of my (6 months old?) son. Sounds like a 32" scale PJ would fit nicely, with those discreet and musical active electronics. No one seems to mind active basses, if they look like they could be passive? I wouldn't ask your manager's opinion, except for the colour...maybe. Hope it works out well