Bass-Thing

[quote name='seashell' timestamp='1339607994' post='1691452'] Oh, and another thing! I think the above is a really good question. In my experience, you don't want your teacher to be playing too much in your valuable lesson time. My teacher really stretches me by making me do most of the playing on my own. If he sees I'm struggling he'll say 'Would you like me to play it with you?' which is a real help in the appropriate place. Only very occasionally have I seen him really 'take flight' and demonstrate something quite jaw dropping! But mostly he makes me do all the work! [/quote] Definitely. The truly awful teacher I once had, apart from popping outside for at least 4 cigarette breaks during the hours lesson, would randomly start playing tunes that had no relevance to what we were doing. He was a very good player but couldn't teach or even put a lesson together properly. My teacher will sometimes have me laying down the groove along to a drum machine and he'll play over it and it feels like I'm the bass player in a band.

[quote name='Bass-Thing' timestamp='1335311263' post='1629255'] Just got exactly the same on Ebay for £450. Flabbergasted to be honest but very happy. [/quote] I just wanted to share this with you. Loving this bass, though I thought a small hardware change was appropriate. [attachment=110879:IMG_0154.JPG] [attachment=110880:IMG_0156.JPG] [attachment=110881:IMG_0158.JPG]

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1340017704' post='1697581'] The HE has a tweeter, the HLF doesn`t. [/quote] Another important difference is that the HEs are flip tops you can keep your amp in. The HLFs are newer and designed to supplement an HE rig.

I have the PF500 with the 210. I tried both and the simple answer is that the 210 is best for coping with the depth of a 5 string (low B gets a bit lost in a single 15 speaker). If you are only a 4 string player the 115 is lovely, but I think the few extra quid for the 210 is worth it. I'm not a big 5 string fan but I have to use one sometimes and all my basses sound brilliant through this rig. Good choice of amp my friend. I recommend getting the 210 but it seems you are mainly a 4 string player and either would do you proud.

[quote name='4000' timestamp='1339745653' post='1693524'] Always tough to pick 10 (certainly not all "virtuosos"" though, regardless). Here are 10 that spring to mind without too much thought (I'll keep it to electric bassists to avoid taxing my simple brain too much); there are plenty of others who could join this list: Chris Squire Lemmy John Entwistle Leigh "Leroy" Gorman of Bow Wow Wow - yes I do remember him and he's one of my absolute favourites. Never heard anyone else like him (although Flea sometimes appears to channel him and I know Flea's a fan of BWW). I love the band too! Going to see them for the second time in August (last time was '82 or '83, when poor old Matthew was still with us...) Jean Jacques Burnel Stanley Clarke Richard Bona Stuart Zender John McVie Rutger Gunnarson [/quote] I has no idea BWW were still going and I assume you mean Matthew Ashman. Has he passed away then? Shame. Where are they playing cos I might try to come if its not too far away. I always wondered why Leigh Gorman never achieved similar dizzy heights to folks like Tony Levin or Stanley Clarke or Victor Wooten or Marcus Miller etc. Even Adam Ant used to say he was the best bassist in the world and probably still does. Good call on JJ Burnel. He was my 1st bass hero.

It's delightfully obscene! I love it! deeply envious. It looks like it's Heaven to play and I'm sure it is.

I honestly believe having a good teacher is as essential as having a good bass and a good amp (and possibly a regular gig). You will know after one lesson if it's going to work or not. You know if you have hit the jackpot if the lesson seems to go quickly and you can't wait until the next one. In the same way you will know if it's not working if you are bored and can't wait for it to end. It is not worth persevering with a bad teacher so if it doesn't go well you should move on straight away. It's only happened to me a couple of times. If it's awkward not to book another lesson at the time, you can always call or text and cancel the next day. Bad teachers can be very good players but being able to teach is something special. I've been very lucky with teachers. If this one doesn't work out (fingers crossed he does), I recommend asking your nearest music college if any of their bass faculty teach privately. I asked BIMM Brighton about this and I got referred to their head of bass who has been my teacher now for the last 3 years and become a good friend too. Very best of luck with this

Herbie Flowers, Franc O'Shea, Tony Levin, Jaco Pastorius, Gail Anne Dorsey, Lee Gorman (The Ants/Bow Wow Wow - anyone remember him? Phenomenal player. Shame about the band), Bernard Edwards, Guy Pratt, John Entwistle and Norman Watt-Roy

Hi I'm Bass-Thing Sorry about that. I started using the forum and chipping into things without introducing myself first. Anyway delighted to be on Basschat where I've already found everybody to be really helpful and indeed knowledgable. Started playing when I was 16 (1978!) after seeing the Clash! Then at 19 I stopped and had a 25 year haitus. My career didn't really leave time for much else but I was always intending to take it up again, like you do. Then when I was 44 I was seriously ill and realised that I shouldn't really wait anymore to do anything that I still wanted to do. I bought a bass (Squier black and chrome p-bass special which I still have) and started having lessons with my local Rock God (Herbie Flowers - a truly wonderful human being and a legendary bass player). Since that time I've played in a few bands and started a collection of basses. The latter leads to a certain amount of marital conflict but I don't really care. My teenage bass playing was spoiled by the fact that I could only afford a somewhat sh*tty Avon SG bass that has chronic fret buzz and was short scale (I'm 6'4) and I'm buggered if I'm going to compromise now! My lovely wife still has more pairs of shoes and handbags than I have basses... at the moment. I now have regular lessons with the head of bass at BIMM Brighton, Franc O'Shea who is utterly brilliant, both as a teacher and indeed a bassist. He's a very modest man who just happens to be one of the greatest players in the World. Anyway I turn 50 in October and as a present to myself, I'm taking a year off to study at BIMM for my pro bass players diploma. I don't know what it will lead to but I seriously cannot wait to get started. The idea of doing nothing apart from playing bass all day is sheer heaven. My moment of Rock'n'roll Nirvana, probably never to be bettered, was when Herbie Flowers invited me to join him onstage for a gig to play Walk on the Wild Side with him. He played the double bass and I played his prototype 1960 Fender Jazz Bass..... (Lou Reed wasn't there by the way). A bit of an out of body experience really. I was christened Bass-Thing by my friend Dunc who was the guitarist in my last band. I also occasionally supply the low end for Tom Staniford who is a young up and coming singer songwriter (though I do raise the average age of the band to 30 so I have to be careful). My avatar is me rehearsing with Tom in the toilets of the venue where we played our last gig. That is a man standing behind me having a wee. I have yet to take decent pix of my bass collection but here are the ones I keep in the office: [attachment=110253:IMG_0150.JPG] From left to right we have Sada (SBMM Ray35), Rusty (Fender Jazz Bass 24 with jazz humbucker) and Gilda (Yamaha TRB4 fretless). I also have an Ampeg PF500 in a PF210 as my main rig. [attachment=110254:IMG_0153.JPG] I tend to find if I don't keep basses handy, I don't practice enough. I'll post more pix later. Anyway that's me folks. I'm delighted to be joining you all and I'm looking forward to sharing with you interesting anecdotes like how I blew up my brand new amp when I switched it on for the first time and also how I seem to get the most ridiculous bargains on Ebay. Until next time

[quote name='Leec' timestamp='1339435176' post='1688437'] Thanks Bass-Thing, Don't mind a little haggling, could you get a free set up or would they do that anyway ? Lee. [/quote] Any bass you buy from a shop should be set up properly first. That's one of the advantages of buying from a shop as opposed to online. Make sure it's tuned properly when you try it (buy a snark and do it yourself - they are amazing tuners) and if there is anything you don't like (fretbuzz etc) tell them you need it sorted before buying it. Try it both through an amp and acoustically. You won't always be able to plug in and if it feels right acoustically, it probably is. I prefer passive as they are less complicated, but as long as you have a spare 9v battery about an active is ok if you like it.

[quote name='Leec' timestamp='1339433020' post='1688404'] Thanks again for all the responses. Basstractor, Have been looking at a lot of customer reviews on many sites, and the vintage modified does look a good option...all the reviews look positive. Managed to find one not too far away from me that I will try and have a look at in the next few days. Liam, Have a Dawsons in Liverpool, going to try and get over there on Friday afternoon, will look into the Ibanez, sounds exactly the thing I'm looking for. Bass-Thing, Never thought about asking the shops about second hand ones....nice idea! [/quote] If you find a nice second hand bass in a shop, don't forget to haggle. If they own it they will have bought it for a lot cheaper than they are selling it and if they are selling for commission they will have a margin to drop the price a little. You can sometimes get a gigbag or strap or lead thrown in too. Once you have found a bass you like, it is worth checking both ebay and gumtree, though if it's in your hands and you can afford it, just buy it. Let us know how you get on.

Hi Sound advice from everybody. My first decent bass was a Squier P bass special which was great... until I found a 2nd hand Ibanez SRX300 which I bought for £100. Basically though you should buy what you like playing the most. You'll need an amp too. A small practice combo is probably ok to start with (unless you already have gigs lined up). Another thing I'd recommend is finding a good teacher (if you don't have one already). If you are anywhere near a music college, call them and ask if any of their faculty teach privately. My teacher is the head of bass at BIMM (Brighton) and he's brilliant. I don't know what your budget is but I honestly recommend buying the best kit you can currently afford. It's a great incentive to give it your best shot. After the Ibanez I got a Fender Geddy Lee Jazz Bass from the USA on Ebay (£250 for a used second + £45 postage and NO TAX! This was 4 years ago) and it's still the best bass I've ever played and I haven't looked back since. I sold the Ibanez but I still have the Squier (only it's seriously upgraded). I don't recommend buying your first bass on Ebay however. Try one in a shop with a good range in stock. Always ask a shop if they have any second hand basses. Hope it all goes well.

[quote name='Lfalex v1.1' timestamp='1339327447' post='1686800'] FWIW, Musicman don't. [/quote] Neither do Fender. There's a 6 bolt plate on my Korean Fender Jazz 24 and it's exactly the same size as the one on my SBMM Ray35.

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1339266564' post='1686181'] If you can scan or photo it next to a ruler and give an idea of thickness, I can get a quote. [/quote] OK really appreciative of the neck plate input folks but moving swiftly on... Now I really appreciate you getting back to me about the neck plate, but I've just heard from a little bird that you also do custom scratch plates that is far more to the point. Any chance of you duplicating my OLP MM22 scratchplate in mirror? Stingray measurements completely different. Happy to post you the original as a template. Thanks

[quote name='Big_Stu' timestamp='1339244178' post='1685787'] They're pennies from Screwfix. The trick with fitting them is to use a new drill bit and have the drill (preferably a hand-drill) turning backwards with a masking tape layer to prevent wood splitting. Making the assumption too that the OP is talking about a bigger plate than a normal 4 hole job. [/quote] In all honesty the standard 4 hole plate that is the same size on the OLP as it is on a Fender, isn't much smaller than the six hole on the Stingray. A friend has a pre Ernie Ball Stingray with a 3 hole plate that is actually smaller but does the job perfectly. I was hoping somebody would say 'oh you get them online from whatever.co.uk but if it is going to either be a big palaver or ridiculously expensive, I will just use the spare blank 4 hole plate I already have. Thanks folks.

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1339235806' post='1685631'] Can make one if you provide measurements. Won't be cheap like an ebay 4 bolt though. [/quote] Basiclly I'm after one the same size as my SUB/Stingray neckplate. It's more an aesthetic thing than a practical necessity, especially as the original Stingrays came with 3 and then 4 hole plates until they introduced the 6 hole plates in the 90s I think. When you say 'not cheap' I appreciate obviously that this will be a hand crafted plate, but how much are we talking about?

Can anybody help me find a 6 bolt neck plate? I want to replace the neck on my OLP MM22 with a status graphite stingray neck and I really don't fancy using a 4 bolt. I've searched the net in vain. Any ideas? Seems weird they are so hard to come by.

Just got exactly the same on Ebay for £450. Flabbergasted to be honest but very happy.