Blink

+1 for the MU.

Don't forget the Tokai Hard Puncher. I imported one from Japan via Ebay, Put an Aero pickup on it and it sounds fab. All for less than £500. N

Get some protection!!! I got mine from Specsavers, who also run hearing centres. The plugs were custom made to fit my ears and cost about £250 but I use them for every gig and every rehearsal where there is an acoustic drum kit. Believe me it is the best £250 I have ever spent. After the gig I can still hear normal conversation, I go to bed without my ears ringing. Bliss. N

Try a Tokai Hard Puncher. I imported and old one from Japan via Ebay and it's great!

I have a GS410 and use a MarkBass Little Mark and it sounds great. I regularly gig in a 6 piece band, with no pa support, and the combination is plenty loud enough with the volume at 4!!!!!!! I have used the Little Mark with the GS412 in a Shop (Bass Merchant) and it sounded good but I could not crank up the volume. Nick

Hi all I use gallistrings on all my basses and I think they are great. Not very expensive, they last a good long time and give a sound that I like. I use the nickel strings on the 4 and 5 and stainless steel on the 6. They are not widely available but the Bass Merchant stocks them as does (I think) the Gallery. N

If your drummer needs 20 takes to get a basic track down. Get a new drummer!!!!!! Problem sorted. Nick

Hi I'll be there on the Friday helping Mike Walsh on his stand (C2). Come and say hello. Nick

Hi I purchased and rather fine Tokai Hard Puncher from chingo123. The transaction was fast, the packaging was good and the shipping was fast. The guy is a dealer so is set up to trade all over the world. Go fo it. Nick

Hi I have 3 Zoot's and they are great basses. The heavy reputation comes from one bass which was a custom build for a player who specified a very heavy bass in the quest for great tone and sustain. While this was more or less achieved the bass was too heavy to gig regularly. It has therefore changed hands regularly. The "standard" Chaser is made from swamp ash which is a light wood and the bass weighs in at a little under normal weight. Mike Walsh will be at the London Guitar show sharing a stand with Basson. He will be showing a new range of super lightweight cabs. 2 of my basses will be there as will I on the Friday. Nick

If you want to take this further I suggest that you talk to a guitar maker. When I was discussing having a bass built by Mike Walsh my requirement was for a bright cleen sounding general purpose bass. Mike's solution was 50% Mahogany for the brightness. 40% Swamp Ash to add some warmth with a 10% flame maple cap to add interest to the finish. The end result is fantastic and is excatly what I wanted. My previous bass was all swamp ash and has a warm but woolly tone. Choice of wood makes a big difference especially if you don't use effects and just plug in and play. N

+1 for Zoot and the Bass Merchant. I have 3 Zoots and they are fantastic basses. Well worth a visit but you might want to leave your credit card in the car!! N

My advice is to marry a musician. Instant understanding and support. N

We are a 4 piece band (Guitar, Bass Drums and Vocals) covering classic rock from bands including Hendrix, Ozzy, Dream Theatre, and many other artists. We are playing our first gig with our new drummer this Saturday at the Wagon at Wix which is near Harwich in Essex. If you can get there please introduce yourself. I'll be the one with a bass hanging round my neck. Nick

Chris My comment should have said easier rather than easy. I'm sure that many subscribers to this site play more than 1 instrument and we all made that leap into the unknown on the first day we picked up the Guitar, keybpard or cello or bass, and with persistance and practice we get to a standard where we are happy to share our music with others for the enjoyment of all. Sounds very deep. I must drink more beer. Still in a state of euphoria after a very good 3 hour rehearsal this afternoon in preparation for our first gig with the new drummer next Saturday at the Wagion at Wix (near Harwich, Essex). Did you look at the Youtube clips. I still amazed they use real wooden cello's rather than carbon fibre electic ones. Nick

Hi all I am a cellist and roughly divide my playing 50:50 between cello and Bass Guitar. The most difficult instrument to learn is always the first because you have to learn all the theory and musician stuff at the same time. After that, learning new instruments only requires you to learn the mechanics of playing that instrument. Give it a go and when you feel confident join a local orchestra. Your playing and general musicianship will be all the better for it. Has anybody seen the band Apocolityca. try these links. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbTozgoj9OQ&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbTozgoj9OQ...feature=related[/url] [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGigthgbpDI"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGigthgbpDI[/url] Enjoy Nick

If you liked the TRB but want something physically smaller try the RBX JM2. I purchased one of the first few in the UK (thanks to Terry at PMT). I wanted a standard production bass for playing pub gigs that I would not cry over if it was damaged or stolen. I find it easy to play and the band thinks it sounds great (not just for Dream Theatre covers). Plus points - its a Yamaha, not very exciting but works very well. Cost about £550. Negatives - choice of colours is limited to silver or plum (mine is plum). Give it a try, you might like it. N

My vote would be for a second hand Yamaha RBX. I had one for a number of years and it played and recorded very well. After that it's practice, practice and more practice. I use 4's 5's and now a 6. Just take a different bass to each rehearsal to force yourself to get used to each one. Once you feel the force of the low B and can play in D with down tuning your E string, and can play in Eb with a horn section, it will all make sense. N

Played at the Wagon in Wix (North Essex) last night. It was the first outing for my new Yamaha RBX JM2 and all went well despite the band members having colds (me and the guitarist) or recovering from (real) flu (Drummer) or nursing a very sore throat (singer). The crowd enjoyed it as did the Landlord who has rebooked us for next year. Result!!!!! N

Hi All I will be playing The Waggon at Wix (near Harwich) on Saturday (1st December). Kick off about 8:30. The band is called Shadowking and were playing a variety of rock covers. It should be a good fun night providing the singer gets rid of his cold!!!!!! If you can make it come and say hello. Nick

If you want to meet bassists in Essex head for Iceini Zoot in Witham on a Saturday morning. There's normally 3 or 4 of us with nothing better to do!!!!!

Bass Merchant in Witham, Essex. Bit of a trek for you but Mike Walsh does have a good variety of stock.

For a function band (I think) you need a bright clean sounding bass with active pickups, preferably a 5 string. Armed with this you can do a passable impression of just about anybody by adjusting the pick up blend, the EQ and your playing style. I have a Zoot Boudica which does everything from jazz to rock and my old Yamaha was also pretty good. In between these two basses I had a Warwick Corvette Standard which had a woolley tone and got totally lost in the mix of a 7 piece band and didn't last very long. Be different! I regularly get people asking about my bass after gigs probably because it isn't a Fender Clone, and so far the all the comments are GOOOOOOOD. PS if you do want a Fender clone dont forget Tokai. I have recently imported a Tokai Hard Puncher from a ebay seller in Japan. For the money (£380 including transport) it's very good. Much better than new Fender offerings in the £700 range!