dannybuoy

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='487631' date='May 14 2009, 10:09 AM']There have got to be literally hundreds of good precision copies. The SX range were dead popular cheapies, but now the exchange rate is sucking, not so cheap, unless you can find one over here.[/quote] These are the same as SX - Jim Deacon. Make sure you get the 20 fret jobbies and not the cheaper 21 fret ones that come in the packs with the amp. Jim Deacon / SX FPB62 in vintage white... available for [url="http://www.hartnollguitars.co.uk/products.asp?id=4714"]£109 delivered[/url] including strap/lead/bag etc, and comparable to genuine Fenders according to Talkbass hype. I was thinking of buying one myself... I have the white VM P and it's fantastic (pots are crap though but cheap to replace), but if I was shopping for a bass right now I would try out this one for less than half the dosh.

Telling us where you're from would help too - if it's Land's End or John o'Groats then count me out. Just add it to your profile and it'll show next to all your posts.

I'll definitely be in touch, I have a load of pedals I want to build. Won't be straight away as I'm still at the acquiring parts and experimenting with breadboards stage!

May I ask why you want really loose strings? Just asking because I'm thinking of going in the opposite direction, getting tighter ones so that I can dig in with a reasonably low action and get less fret buzz.

A different topic maybe, but I've always wondered why vintage / vintage-style basses have the thumbrest in that position? Surely it would make more sense to have it on the other side of the strings where your thumb goes?!

Gimme one of these beauties: Jim Deacon / SX FPB62 in vintage white... available for [url="http://www.hartnollguitars.co.uk/products.asp?id=4714"]£109 delivered[/url] including strap/lead/bag etc, and comparable to genuine Fenders according to Talkbass hype. I want to get one and put flats on it so I can keep my grindy SS rounds on my main P!

Most London gig venues cram on 4-6 bands per night and don't pay them anything unless they bring with them over a certain number of people, eg after 20 people you get paid £1 per person turning up to see your band (and they ask everyone on the door who they're here to see). In fact, playing The Comedy, we had to PAY £5 each for the privilege of being able to use the backline amps! Makes me want to join a covers band so at least my costs get covered! Maybe that's why they're called cover bands...

[quote name='bozzbass' post='482847' date='May 8 2009, 12:10 PM']Sorry, do you mean 7th fret on a low string tuned to E or B? Either way it sounds pretty good as that area of the neck sounds the best for using an octaver to my ear. I also notice on the Sonus website there's a few folk asking about using it on bass to which Sonus replied 'Watch this space' so I guess they are planning a bass version. For 80 quid, I think I'll get one for my microKorg and VSTi synths in Ableton. Adam[/quote] For using with VSTi synths, there is a plugin that basically does what the G2M does (converts incoming audio to MIDI) but it's name escapes me. Whether it works any better or not, I do not know. Should be able to find it or something similar over at the KVR forums though!

Trouble is, you're not going to find many people who have played more than one or two out of that list. I've only used the EBS and Diamond so it wouldn't fair for me to comment on the BBE and Demeter!

[quote name='Sugden' post='482581' date='May 7 2009, 11:24 PM']I'm looking for a compressor at the moment from some pretty heavy reading the major contenders for the up to £200 price bracket are: Demeter Compulator EBS MultiComp Maxon CP9Pro+[/quote] Add the Diamond Compressor to that list - Bongo hasn't reviewed it yet on the ovnilab site, but it's definitely worthy to rank among those 3. I have one and prefer it to the Multicomp I had beforehand. Thing is, I'm not sure compression is for me at the moment, not sure if I want to keep it... I need to use it some more in a band situation before making my mind up!

[quote name='mathewsanchez' post='480300' date='May 5 2009, 07:43 PM']This may sound a bit mental but could you use an octave up pedal running into that and then an octave down pedal after it. Does that make any sense?[/quote] The octave up (e.g. a MicroPOG) would help with the tracking if you insist on playing down the bass end of the neck, but you wouldn't need the octave down as any decent synth would be able to adjust the octave range anyway. This way you could play up high on the neck without an octave pedal, or even use a guitar, but pump out pure sub bass from the synth module.

It works a lot like the tone control on a passive bass. I think the knob controls the frequency at which point a steep rolloff occurs, but don't quote me on that!

[quote name='Twigman' post='481262' date='May 6 2009, 06:03 PM']I had an 80s Brown Boss Bass Chorus pedal (mono - not stereo) which I loved. Sadly I have lost it.[/quote] I've got one of these, they're great. It's very subtle and doesn't get deep and swirly like many others can. But for warm subtle analog chorus that leaves your low end intact that you can leave always on to thicken your sound, it's hard to beat! Check out the Boss CE-2B reviews on Harmony Central.

Best way to start playing with a Markbass is to turn the EQ flat but have both the VLE and VPF off. Then dial in a smudge of VLE if you want to take away some treble zing. The midscooping VPF might sound ok by itself but will bury your tone in a band mix, so go easy on it - I can't believe somebody earlier suggested you get the best sound by turning it up to full! A lot of people try these amps out with all knobs including the filters at noon, which isn't getting the best sound out of the amp.

It's not that hard to make a PCB on the cheap. You can use a special pen to draw the traces, or iron on a piece of transfer paper (glossy magazine paper in a laser printer works wonders apparently), then get some etching fluid and you're set! I will be going down this road once I've got a few fuzz circuits built up on breadboard...