Jean-Luc Pickguard

I've variously used separate pedals and changed to multi fx for previous bands, but never mixed the two - ie when I used the Boss GT-6B or Zoom B3 I didn't add any separate pedals, however for my current band I'm using my VT bass which I prefer to anything similar in the B3 but I also need a compressor and a boost pedal. I don't own a separate boost pedal so I'm replacing the stand-alone compressor with my zoom B3. Its always struck me as odd that the input & output sockets an pedals are on the right & left sides respectively so chaining pedals means the signal goes right to left, however on the B3 the FX go left to right, so putting the B3 with the VT bass means the signal flow is not represented in an obvous way when looking down at the two pedals. Obviously this is not a massive issue, but it does seem a bit weird. So why do pedals have the input and output on the opposite sides to where they should be, and if it is the standard for pedals to feed the signal from right to left, why do multifx units chain their separate fx in the opposite direction?

Looks like they've been put back to later in the year - possibly due to the rosewood fingerboard. I expect the ones that come into the UK might have Pau Ferro fingerboards like the PJ mustangs. Looking at some of these on a google image search shows that the 'road worn' wear doesn't seem as grimey looking as the first images that were released

If there;s no phase issue, wiring in a series/parallel switch to be able to switch the pickups in series (like the Fender S1 switch) might help make it sound more beefy.

https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/electric-violence/1284068747

An iRig or similar interface will do the job on an iPad. An iPad 2 is quite old so make sure you can install the free version of the amplitube software on it first. http://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/irig2/ I don't tend to use my iPad for practice much as I'm wary of catching one of the the cables and yanking it onto the floor. I usually practice to music on itunes on my MacBook - either with my bass plugged into a focusrite scarlet solo interface with one of the IK multimedia amplitube ampeg bass amp emulations, or if I'm not using headphones I tend to plug into my Roland Microcube RX amp.

You could use it as a short scale by detuning it & putting on a capo at the second fret.

If a gigbag is an option, the Fender urban shortscale bass gigbag is nicely padded and very well made & no more expensive than a decent long scale gigbag at about £25. I used to take my mustang around in a jazz bass gigbag which was OK but not a snug fit, but this shortie-specific bag is perfect. https://www.thomann.de/gb/fender_urban_short_scalegig_bag_bk.htm

I've certainly never had to attack the saddles on a bass where they're not individually adjustable for height, but the option is there.

good for metal?

Not if you own nut slotting files or know anyone who does. Here's how a guitar's tunamatic bridge's saddles can be individually adjusted for height - I expect it'll be similar for bass saddles. http://www.stewmac.com/How-To/Online_Resources/Hardware_Installation/Are_you_supposed_to_slot_Tune-o-matic_bridge_saddles.html

That reminds me - The Rock Garden in Covent Garden, where the Apple store is now, sometime in 1989 when my favourite 'glow in the dark' curly cable went missing. I think someone in one of the other bands must have purloined it when my back was turned.

nope

Its always handy to have a jar of pickled turnips on stage

I think you know what to do. Ditch the current band and follow your heart - form the wurzels tribute act.

Are the lava ones better than others then? gear4music only seem to have weird pastel blue or weird pastel green ones in stock at the moment.

Even if it is all genuine, it looks like a real shoddy job. My first reaction was that the body didn't belong to the body & its been bodged resulting the dodgy hole spacing and poor fit of the guard. I wouldn't buy it unless I only wanted a neck + hardware.

I like coiled cables - I have a fairly cheap one which I've upgraded with better jacks. I only use it at home as it is quite short, and I want to buy a better one for gigs. There are a few alternative coiled cables available including a bullet cable from amazon which looks perfect, but nearly double the cost of an equivalent Vox one. The jacks look better on the bullet. I'd love to hear anyone's experiences of a bullet cable - Are they any good? Are they worth the additional cost over a cheaper one? Are there any other COILED cables with an angled jack at the bass end I should be looking at? I already have enough good quality non-coiled cables in perfect contition, so I'm not not looking for another of those.

CIJ Fender Mustang Bass -> Tech 21 VTBass -> Behringer BLE100 limiter -> Markbass Little Mark II -> Schroeder 1212L Alternatives basses include: NS-Design CR5M, Kala Ubass SMHG-FS, Danelectro Longhorn Also sometimes use a zoom B3 pedal TC Electronic polytune clip

A fine looking suit would normally be made of wool, tweed, cotton, linen, velvet etc. The line about the suit being made out of sack can only be interpreted as meaning that the suit is actually inferior to how it appears. Other lines in the lyric follow a similar pattern, including the one about parentage. Found the US version - I don't think the lyric change actually sounds as clumsy as I thought it might, so I think this is the solution.

I love playing the bass line for substitute and it is in the songlist for the band I've recently joined, but one line of the lyrics makes me cringe every time I hear it. I understand it was different times in 1966, but in 2018 it really stands out and ruins the song for me - particularly in the current political climate. I've read on Wikipedia that the line in question was substituted with "I try walking forward but my feet walk back" for the US release. Has anyone else cringed when playing or hearing this song? Would it ruin it if the US lyric was used instead of the line that makes me cringe?

Judging on how the five strings have been squeezed onto a 4 string headstock I doubt it. It wouldn't have taken much imagination to come up with a five-string specific headstock shape to make it look balanced whilst retaining the essence of 'rickness'

If I may go off on a tangent slightly, due to the thru-body stringing on a mustang, strings for a 32" scale are better than 30" scale strings (eg as used for a 70s musicmaster or danelectro longhorn) I've had Thomastik TI JF-324 flats on mine for about a decade but it was time to change them and I felt the urge to get something with a slightly higher tension. I was initially planning to track down a set of the flats LaBella make specifically for the mustang, but then I saw that the Justin Mendal Johnsen sig mustang comes with Fender 9050L stainless flats and I managed to get a set of these for £18. They've been on the bass for about a month now & I love the sound & feel, but I don't know whether they'll last as long as the TIs. 9050L is a long scale set & they don't make a short scale version, and this results in the E string having just over a full wind of the wound part of the string going around the tuner and the A has about half a wind, but they seem rock solid, so I'd imagine that any long scale rounds would similarly work well. It may be worth thinking about going up a guage if you have a favourite set for 34" basses.

Perhaps they could do a deluxe version of the guitar with a bone nut & saddle

The Orange Oaf across the pond would probably be interested in a Gorilla Fight case to maker up for not getting his Gorilla Fight TV channel. https://www.vox.com/2018/1/6/16856826/gorilla-channel-trump-fire-and-fury