noisedude

[quote name='sixshooter' post='264695' date='Aug 18 2008, 04:27 PM']Now for something completly different!

Went into langley guitar centre last week for the first time! what great service. The owner made me a cup of coffee and I tried out a number of guitars and basses including some interesting 70's fenders!

This shop has been going for a long time and I had never been there before even though I work about 5 miles away!

It may be just down to the fact that I am on the older side and had me suit on, but there was no pressure to buy, and I will be going back there even if they are slightly more expensive than the good old interweb!

It was service just like it used to be when I were a lad......

[url="http://www.langleyguitarcentre.co.uk"]Langley Guitar Centre[/url][/quote]
So did you buy anything interesting?

[quote name='barry44' post='264553' date='Aug 18 2008, 01:42 PM']guys, i have been doing some research on the vari mid control on the K5 and also where frequencies sit in the mix.

from my problems i think i need to boost the high mids, going towards the treble ranges along with the treble control.

i understand that the upper mids are generally between the 600Hz - 3 KHz range, which can be easily found on the varimid control as this tops out at 5KHz.

therefore by boosting this, i should be able to cut through the mix better?

i have downloaded the ibanez catalogue and attach the freq response curves for anyone who can help translate this for me.

my understanding is that the K5 mid fully boosted at 5KHz provides a 5dB boost, which from the attached, appears to be exactly the same boost as the treble control provides????

Can anyone decipher these curves for me to help me understand?

i am actually enjoying these problems as it is helping me understand my bass a lot better.

cheers,

Barry[/quote]
Don't do it with the graphs. Use your ears. In fact, go through the instructions I put earlier in the thread:
- Boost the mid all the way up
- Sweep it to find the sound you want easily. That will be in the higher end of the range by the sounds of it
- Back off the boost so you don't sound too hyped or un-natural (unless that's the sound you like)

Let us know how you find that.

[quote name='lowhand_mike' post='264466' date='Aug 18 2008, 12:26 PM']they are always trying to flog the crap strings in the bass cellar, though go knows why, i went in for some new strings and thought i'd try them and see what they recommended, though i already knew what i wanted. they tried flogging me some sh*te £15 rotos or something, the pack looked like they had been in there for years.
weird as they had the expensive DR's and elixirs etc, maybe they look at you (i don't have to dress smart for work) and judge you on that, he cant afford the good ones, sell i'm the crap ones.
didn't buy the elixirs i wanted in the end, got em else where.
but yeah they are just plain f***in lazy, especially the twat with the curtains[/quote]
Bloomin good margins on Rotosounds if you buy them in the right quantities .... much better than on D'addys and Ernies.

[quote name='CHRISDABASS' post='264316' date='Aug 18 2008, 07:09 AM']i have had exactly the same problem at music ground in leeds!!

they were like "sorry if your not going to buy it then you cant try it out"

bunch of idiots missed out! i went and bought a bass from sound control instead!

there's just no excuse for poor service like this![/quote]
Yes, this happened to me many times when I was unfortunate enough to encounter the Harrison family's legendary 'customer service'.

I could also tell you some inside stories from the trade about what goes on in their shops .......... I won't, but I would very strongly advice that you check EVERY tiny detail before buying anything 'vintage' or 'rare' from one of their shops. And that includes amplifiers.

[quote name='neilb' post='264482' date='Aug 18 2008, 12:44 PM']Is this thread going anywhere now?[/quote]
It's hurtling towards page four.

Dear The OP,

So you were disappointed on a couple of sales. There were a couple of things you really wanted, and you didn't get them.

I'm sorry to hear that.

I guess when you deal with real people rather than a mechanical selling platform, things don't always follow a set pattern. I never expected to sell a pedal to a stranger in a social club full of other bass playing loons (and loony instruments, Argh!) and I never expected to send a friend on an expedition to deepest Surbiton to buy me a cab off another complete stranger. But they both happened, because we're people here. Good luck negotiating those terms with an Ebay seller.

Anyway, I hope you turn up whatever it is you're looking for and at the right price for you. Good luck. And if you don't like that, I'd kindly refer you to the post immediately after yours.

Nik

Hiya,

I picked up a second-hand Zoot 112 (the Neo one) and am interested in contacting this chap regarding getting a second one without a tweeter, or maybe a 15". Can anyone give me an email (preferably) or phone number for him?

I really like the 112T neo, by the way. It's not quite got enough bottom end for my ideal sound, but a little tweak in the lower mids on my amp makes up for that. It shifts some air though, and I'm hoping that running two of them together will help me shift more air and have my EQ set like that without cranking the master volume so much.

The reason I like it so much is that I have a chronic wrist problem and need light, light gear. This is the lightest cab I've come across in this price range and has convinced me I can manage without Markbass cabs for the time being!

[quote name='Bassassin' post='263944' date='Aug 17 2008, 01:52 PM']If you'll indulge me a bit here in Pedant's Corner - the whole "lawsuit" thing is a misnomer - no court cases ever happened. This was because by the time Norlin (70s parent company of Gibson) got around to threatening legal action against Elger/Hoshino (Ibanez brand owner) they had already changed the design of the "infringing" element of their Gibbo copies, which was the headstock. This acted as an incentive though, for other manufacturers & importers of Jap copies to pack it in & concentrate on original designs. The eventual result of this was really that pretty much everyone - pro or amateur - by the late 70s/early 80s played, and often endorsed, Japanese instruments.

Interesting to note that the Japanese factories only stopped [i]exporting[/i] copies; they never actually stopped making them.

Which leads onto interesting fact number two: the American companies - who had been rapidly losing market share based on overpriced & inferior product - decided "if you can't beat 'em - join 'em" and started outsourcing production to Japan. Fender chose Fujigen Gakki as manufacturer of MIJ Squiers, and later, Fenders - the same factory which built 70s and 80s Ibanez. Fender Japan is run by Kanda Shokai - owner of the Greco "lawsuit" brand, and currently many CIJ Fenders are built by Tokai!

Anyway, I have an unashamedly massive hardon for 70s & 80s Japanese instruments, predominantly because many of them are so damn good. One of my favourite basses at the moment is a 1982 Ibanez RS924 Roadster - which sounds [i]phenomenally[/i] good & plays like a dream. Weighs a ton, though!

Jon.[/quote]
You are, of course, absolutely right on the details of this era. The headstock thing is also the reason why most copies look like copies ... e.g. if the Vintage LPs didn't have such rubbish looking headstocks, I'd probably get one. In fact, the only really good one I can think of is the G&L design.

As another aside, I have a 1983 Westone Prestige 150 which was my first guitar and still my favourite. Very, very rare, only seen one on Ebay in almost a decade of trying to pick up a backup one ........ and it went for over £300!

[quote name='geilerbass' post='263922' date='Aug 17 2008, 12:46 PM']Yeah, I read all about the lawsuit busines on the Ibanez Wikipedia page. One thing I wasn't sure about is if the copies were any good - sounds as though they are! So now I see the appeal. Though I think I'll stick with my Soundgears for the time being...[/quote]
Me too!!

[quote name='geilerbass' post='263893' date='Aug 17 2008, 11:55 AM']So what's the deal with older Ibanez basses that look like other manufactuers' instruments? Like the Blazers etc? Do they sound/play like Fenders? Same materials?

I'm only familiar with the Soundgear range, of which I'm a huge fan, but there appears to be this whole other world of pre-90s classic looking instruments.[/quote]
Like Aria and many of the other Japanese brands, Ibanez made their name making high-quality, low-price copies of American guitars in the 70s. When the sales started rising high enough to affect the big boys, they took them to court to stop it happening. This is why you hear people refer to 'lawsuit' era guitars, which can refer to different times and guitars for different makers. Obviously you can tell which guitars those Blazers were 'inspired by'.

Funny thing is that these companies made their best and most popular instruments (Ibanez Artist, Yamaha SG2000, any Westone or Aria with a thru neck ) after they had been stopped making straight copies .... with the ongoing exception of Tokai, of course.

My RB9 hasn't let me down...... admittedly I don't gig heavily but it rehearses most weeks and it's been perfect. Got a VC15 guitar amp that's fine too.

My guess is this situation had some reason to make it an anomaly.

[quote name='wotnwhy' post='261996' date='Aug 13 2008, 10:27 PM']thanks for the replies

MananaMan, i'll spend as much as is necesarry to get the right desk. the yamahas look good, but waay to big for my needs i'm afraid

whynot, i'd avoid Behringer aswell. and i think in this case i'll continue to, i want the absolute best in every respect but again, thanks for the reply.

i've been looking at the soundcraft stuff but can't find smaller than 8 channels, do they do a micro mixer?[/quote]
Only the old Spirit Notepad thing and that's probably too big for you.

The Mackie is probably the one to go with but for stuff like this I wouldn't be against Behringer and Peavey's little things. It's only when you stack up hundreds of pots etc that the sound quality and reliability really becomes an issue. If you only have £40 then I wouldn't worry about using one, but if you have more to spend then the tiny Mackie is likely your best bet IMO.

[quote name='geilerbass' post='261468' date='Aug 13 2008, 12:00 PM']

Hopefully it won't come to that. The rarity of such instruments means that I doubt I'd even be put in the position where I could get one for the price of committing foul deeds.[/quote]
That's actually a really interesting point because it gets into the realms of instruments that 'money can't buy'. I can't aspire to getting one because I'll probably never come across one.

[quote name='geilerbass' post='261052' date='Aug 12 2008, 05:51 PM']Completely forgot about this one... the SR7005MH-OL.



Very similar to the SR5005, but possibly a custom model? I would commit horrific acts to get my hands on one of these. More photos here...

[url="http://www.ibanezregister.com/Gallery/basses/j-custom/gal-sr7005mh.htm"]SR7005[/url][/quote]
OK you commit those acts and then when you're banged up in jail I'll mind the SR20th for you.

[quote name='geilerbass' post='260671' date='Aug 12 2008, 10:48 AM']On another note, I don't suppose anyone out there has an SR5005? Those really were the absolute nuts. The creme-de-la-creme of the Ibanez SR range.[/quote]
Just googled .............. wow. Me want.

As others have said, if you scoop the mid out it will sound impressive at home but rubbish in a busy band. It works for him because Korn leave him lots of space in the mix for the boomy sound. For my favourite sound I'd boost the lower mids slightly but would experiment by boosting quite a bit and then rolling the frequency sweep to find what I liked, and then backing the boost off a bit to keep it fairly subtle.

I'm intrigued by these five-strings myself as I like the SR505 neck a lot.

[quote name='geilerbass' post='260123' date='Aug 11 2008, 04:48 PM']Likewise, I've probably mentioned my SR20th way to many times. My perfect bass right now - a little over-priced, but worth it for the sounds and playability.

I never associated Ibanez basses with quality, in my formative (and clearly naive) years of bass playing, but then again I hadn't been turned on to their Japanese-made high-end range.

Faithless - you really are the Ibanez champion on this forum. We can always rely on you to start some pro-Ibanez rallying

Barry44 - does your K5 have a Wenge/Bubinga neck? That's what the new K5 model is missing...[/quote]
That SR20th fiver looks like the only non-Spector/non-Wimbish five string that I might fall in love with. Can I have it please? I'll give you a fiver. Like, an actual crisp green fiver.

No? Ok.

I'll confess that I'm not crazy about the shape (SRX series) or colour (tango'd) but my Ibanez DWB-3 is my ideal four-string. I'm not great at describing bass tones but to me it feels responsive, dynamic, articulate and defined. I love the tight, controlled sound ........ although it can roar if you crank the bass or hit the boost circuit.

If I could find a five-string I loved as much I'd be sorted for life. My G&L Tribby is versatile but just sounds messier and punkier - not a bad thing but not always what I'm looking for!

BTW - As a guy with short, stubby fingers - Ibanez Soundgear necks are the mutt's nuts.

I don't think the basses will be with that sort of money for a couple of decades yet because they're just not that desirable. I think it might be to do with how much more progressive bass players are than guitar players. For bass players, mecca/nirvana/heaven is just as likely to be a new boutique Fender-style or even one of the myriad of modern designs. For guitar players, unless you're one of the shred dorks you basically idolise an ancient Strat, Tele or Les Paul. So the demand for and the regard in which they are held is that much higher.

[quote name='backwater' post='259745' date='Aug 11 2008, 10:16 AM']As an added bonus, if you try to go to their website (which you'd expect someone selling guitar at these prices to have) - it runs an "anti-virus" scanner that tells you that you have lots of viruses and malware and you need to buy their anti virus.

It amused me as it was "scanning" all of these windows .dll files when I'm on an OS X mac!

Not sure I'd trust them as far as I could throw them!

Andy [/quote]
I'm glad I wasn't the only one who noticed that!!

[quote name='joe_bass' post='259713' date='Aug 11 2008, 09:02 AM']£21,500!?!

I thought a 60's jazz goes for say £3000 to £6000 depending on condition?


What justifies £21,500 though?![/quote]
It's the same as Music Ground do ..... they list guitars for £20k and £30k with rubbish pictures and poor descriptions, not because they expect it to sell but because it drives up price expectations in their shops. It makes it easier for them to stick a £10k price tag on something like this bass, for example.

The side effect is that it means every muppet with a twenty year-old modified Squier things they should be getting a grand or two for their 'vintage' pieces.

When I say "cash waiting" I should point out that I'm totally skint and will be re-mortgaging my family to buy one ... or extending my overdraft, whichever's easier. Can't let them pass at this price though!

[quote name='thedontcarebear' post='257569' date='Aug 7 2008, 08:44 PM']Birmingham sent me a list earlier too and they had loads left, have you e-mailed them all?[/quote]
Of fives? No, I was going on what I could glean from other people. I'll crack on again in the morning. Cheers dude.

As far as I can tell the five-strings are all gone now ............ so can I call some sort of dibs on the first Rebop or Euro 5? First person to decide they don't like it is welcome to call me, cash waiting, operators standing by ... !

[quote name='chris_b' post='256598' date='Aug 6 2008, 06:55 PM']I didn't subscribe and didn't get a free bass mag through the post and I'm not happy.... how many other magazines that I haven't subscribed to haven't I got!![/quote]
So what you don't know CAN hurt you?!