rushbo

I call plagiarism, sir! That's (almost) my board! You've got a hell of a lot of options there, haven't you? And Warwick Rockboards are brilliant, aren't they? I love my B3 and unless it goes "bang," I can't see myself changing anytime soon. The BDI adds a bit of dirt for when I'm feeling saucy. I'd recommend the Ashbass B3 mod as it's fairly simple to do (as long as you've got a soldering iron...) and means that you can scroll through patches really quickly. The switches are housed in the orange pedal on my board. The other pedal is a page turner for my Ipad cheat sheet program. Not necessary, but very useful. What's the HB Wireless system like? I was considering that, until a Sennheiser one came up on here at a great price, so I went for that.

PM'd

Well, obviously this is the best advice that anyone is going to give in this thread. I once "went rogue" and ignored this sage proclamation and my Fender P bass turned into a two headed viper which ate my entire family. Or... There is some good advice on the Fender site: https://support.fender.com/en-us/knowledgebase/article/KA-01903 If I'm setting up a bass for someone else, this is what I use as it's a good, basic starting point. When I set up my own instruments, I drop the string height until it starts to rattle under normal playing conditions, then pull it back in tiny increments until it stops. Your mileage may vary, as they say on The Interweb.

I guess it depends on what you really want it to do... If all you're after is a way to put songs in order from a list, then Word or Excel should work. If you need cheat sheets as well, then I'd recommend forScore - easy to use on the fly, reliable and with loads of useful teatures. The only downside is, I think it's only available for Apple products. I've used it for years - it links seamlessly with DropBox, so importing files is a breeze. I use mine with this page turner. And this mic stand tablet holder - although that has been discontinued.

As a big fan of The Tubes, I was saddened to learn that Rick Anderson passed away on December 16th. He was a great player - solid, supportive and flashy only when he needed to be. https://ultimateclassicrock.com/the-tubes-rick-anderson-dead/

"The Dildo Trend" is the name of my Prog-Rock side project. But on a serious note... I've never been a fan of instruments with an image on. Or in this case, a bit of lovely, faux Jackson Pollock. They all look fantastic close up, but from any kind of distance longer than an arms length, the beautifully considered brushwork and elegance of line just end up looking like an amorphous grey splodge. "Amorphous Grey Splodge" is The Dildo Trend's new album, btw.

(Resucitating a Zombie thread...) I've just picked up a second-hand, 4 string JP-45OP in sunburst for silly money from FaceBook marketplace. Oh my... It plays beautifully and sounds gorgeous. With a bare minimum of tweakage, I was able to get a nice low action with no annoying rattles. Hardware is decent and even the no-brand tuners seem robust. There's no excuse not to have one, really. I bought it with a view to modding it, but having played it, I might just leave it as it is, with one exception - I might replace the dots on the edge of the fingerboard. The black dots look lovely, but in a sweaty club, under subdued lighting, they won't be much use, so I suspect the dremel will be coming out before too long. Other than that, it's a peach.

That surf green one looks lush. I hate this forum.

Hugo Largo. They made two brilliant albums in the late 80's.

I put up a "wanted" ad for a set of P Bass bridge and pick up covers - Pete replied promptly, the deal was done and a few days later (my wait time was lengthened by those pesky striking postmen...) they arrived chez Rushbo - beautifully packed, shiny and lovely. What a guy. Buy and sell with confidence.

Yes it was - a fantastically entertaining gig. I went with a mate who is a real hardcore Devo-tee and his jaw was on the floor for the entire performance. We'll be at the Brum show next year.

I saw We Are Not Devo play in Wolverhampton a little while ago and they were bloody great.

I'm currently the bassist in the UK's foremost/only Roxy Music tribute band, Roxy Magic. www.roxymagic.co.uk Do you have to be a fan of the original artist, or maybe you become one? Having played the songs for a few years have made me appreciate the original band even more. Growing up in the seventies, Roxy Music were everywhere, so it was hard to ignore them. I was a fan, but I never thought to join/start a tribute band until the opportunity arose. It helps if you (at the very least) like the band - I'd imagine it would be hell on earth to play in a tribute to a band you actively loathe. How important is it to be visually/musically identical? How much latitude are you allowed? As long as you don't take too many liberties and the "signature" parts of the song are kept intact, the punters don't seem to mind. However, if I hit the fuzz pedal for the intro to "Love is the Drug" it would signal the end of a long career. Do you ‘get into character’ or is it just a gig? Fortunately, everyone is looking at our singer, who is practically a doppelganger of Mr Ferry. The band dress as if we're off to a wedding reception a la the current version of the real band. To be honest, we could dress like bricklayers and I don't think most of the punters would mind as long as the singer was in a nice suit. Does it feel musically limiting, or is it fulfilling your needs? (Maybe you have a side band?) I'm really lucky as the musical palette of Roxy Music was so broad that it's challenging and fun to play. I get to play pop, prog, rock, disco and almost all points in between. And in terms of technique; fingerstyle, plectrum and slap. Do you have any qualms about tributes ‘stifling original music’? Nope. The "real" band are playing bigger venues and earning more money than we are. Have you ever met or been seen by a member of the ‘originals’? What did they say? A few members of Roxy Music have seen the band since its inception - none while I've been in the band though (make of that what you will...) Andy Mackay really liked the band and Paul Thompson was quite keen to play a gig or two with us. Bryan Ferry wished us luck in a very gracious manner, too. What is the overriding thing being in a tribute act has taught you? It's taught me that people love live music and are grateful that they have the opportunity to enjoy it in a moderately sized venue for a sensible price. It's also taught me that most Roxy Music fans have no idea who played bass in Roxy Music. And that suits me fine. Having done it once, would you do it again? If so, would the musical angle be very different? In a heartbeat, yep. As long as I like the band, the songs are fun to play and my fellow musicians are generally lovely human beings, then I'm happy. I can heartily recommend Absolute Bowie, Teenage Werewolves (a tribute to The Cramps and bizarrely, also Bauhaus) and We Are Not Devo. A good night is guaranteed for all.

I do like the look of basses that have a bit of "history," and I don't get triggered by the fact that the wear on an instrument might be artificial. The key is that it has to be done convincingly and sympathetically. A lump hammer and a cheese grater are not the tools for this sort of job. I'm always amused by shots of the backs of reliced basses that look as if they've been dragged behind a Land Rover since the mid-seventies. Until I discovered Basschat about eleven years ago, I had one (!) gigging bass which after about twenty years of heavy use, suffered a bit from buckle rash. This means I have a patch of wear about 20cm x 5cm on the back of the bass and a few associated dinks and chips elsewhere. In spite of having a long, hard life it does not resemble one of Noah's oars. Limelight do some pretty convincing relics, but some of their "heavy" relics can end up looking like the worst kind of car boot sale fire salvage.

It's not the ugliest bass I've seen... I'm slightly perturbed by the paintjob on the headstock. Was this a stylistic choice or was the paintbrush wielded by someone with the DT's?

Sold a Squier P bass neck to Andy. A textbook transaction with great communication. Buy and sell with confidence.

Sold a Harley Benton Jazz Bass body to Matt. A textbook transaction. Buy and sell with confidence.

I've always had fantastic customer service from Chris at Smooth Hound. Very helpful.

I’ve lost count of the number of bitsas I’ve bolted together. Some I’ve punted on for a modest profit - generally just enough to cover the cost of a Balti and a can or two of Root Beer- and some I’ve kept. It’s great fun. My advice to a prospective bitsabuilder would be: Don’t just look for parts - if a whole bass comes up for a good price and you need just a neck/body/hardware etc, get it anyway. Then you build up a store of useful spares. Facebook Marketplace is great for budget basses. I’ve scooped up all sorts of nice things (Squiers, Harley Bentons, Epiphones) for not much money. Get a Dremel (or similar). They’re brilliant for drilling, sanding details and ghetto routing. I have a Tachlife Dremel knockoff and it’s ace. Don't worry about getting hardware that’s an exact fit for the neck or body you’ve got. Use hardwood dowels or toothpicks to fill any existing holes and re-drill. More often than not, the old holes will be covered by the new hardware. The same goes for pickguards- even the cheapest Chinese P Bass plate can be bullied to fit a bass with some sandpaper and a bit of patience. If you’re stripping paint, get a heat gun. Getting a poly finish off a Squier bass is no fun at all with anything else. Tru Oil is great if you don’t want to paint a body. You can get a really deep gloss finish, or a lovely matt sheen. Don't worry too much if the neck isn’t a snug fit to the body. My main gigging bass of the last 8 years has a 1mm gap between the neck and the body and tuning and sustain are great. Entwistle pickups are cheap and utterly fantastic. Prewired looms are useful if you’re nervous about soldering. An alternative is to use heat shrink tubing over twisted wires. Wilkinson hardware is great and occasionally pops up on BC or eBay for good prices. Don't turn your nose up at budget basses- I’ve had great successes working on things like Encores. I’m not fussy about bodies- if they’re in decent condition and my hardware fits it, I’ll use it. I’m much fussier with necks. Welcome to the wonderful world of the lo-budget bitsa!

That's great, that is. The tuners are a wee bit sticky-outy (technical term) but I would seriously rock the snot out of that bad boy. The "inlays" look ace too. Even the rather idiosyncratic pseudo-headstock looks very cool, in situ. Have a cup of tea and a biscuit. That's a job well done sir.

Here's a pretty crappy pic of my lovely Precisions... Top left is my current main squeeze - two Squier basses bodged together with a a Kiogon loom (V/T/3 way toggle), Entwistle pups and a comedy decal. Next left is another FrankenSquier with a Wilkinson bridge and a gen-u-wine Fender P pup. Middle is Old Red - same as the white one (almost) but with a gorgeous, skinny, left handed, Jazz Bass Neck. Far right is a cruelly molested Fender Cowpoke. Active circuit removed, toggle switch and V/T loom installed, Entwistle pickups and a custom Tort plate. Front and centre is a Bass Centre Bruce Thomas Sig with Deep Talkin' flats fitted.

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