bass_dinger

In this Challenge, the losers get a bass guitar, and those who win go without for a whole year. Congratulations on your new bass.

You should join anyway, and become the first person to fail before they signed up! Interestingly, cables are not listed in The Rules. So, perhaps they are indeed out of scope? So, the loyalty points were given to @SimonK without him asking for them. That's why I felt that they were a gift (or rather, a 'gift' - even I was doubtful of whether they were truly a gift of bass bits. Loyalty Points feel more like cash, albeit restricted to a single shop). I am loving this thread - it's like an episode of Crown Court, with lots of legal arguments, but nobody goes to prison if they are guilty!!

A good point - a true consumable has to replace something that is wearing out, or is already broken. If one has other items that would do the job (say, a blue 3m cable, even though a yellow 2m cable would be better suited), then perhaps one might use that instead? However, the decision seems to have been made regarding that particular cable, which was largely purchased with Loyalty Points (so, a 'gift'), earned in previous years (so, arguably not part of the 2025 challenge).

Hence the expression, originally "have a drum break, then have a kit-kat", but adapted and adopted by the Nestlé organisation.

My Yamaha AG03 no longer has a working bass guitar input ( channel 1). There is no sound via the mixer, although the peak level lights show that there is a signal going in. However, when I switch to channel 2/3 (stereo keyboard), the AG03 produces sound. I have tried swapping cables - channel 1 does not work, but plugging the bass into channel 2 gives me sound. This happened once before - no sound from channel 1, but it started working again, by itself. Any ideas? Maybe a factory reset? Buy another interface?

It's a Tier 10 fail.... but I needed to practice Self Control. And I needed the money too! And, if I got the speakers, then my wife could justify getting a new oven....

Using the principles of this thread, I managed to not buy a set of Mission 702e floor standing speakers - 40 quid in the Orpington Cash Converters. Great price, good condition, matched my furniture, would have fitted the space. But I simply didn't need them.

I have an audio interface - a Yamaha AG03, which looks like a mixer. No midi ports on the device, so I need either a specialist box such as the Sub Zero 4-way interface (https://www.gear4music.com/Recording-and-Computers/SubZero-4x4-MIDI-Interface/2KOA or the cable recommended by @BigRedXand @moley6knipe, which allows just one keyboard (which is all that I have). The cable looks the best option for my needs - but I am planning to upgrade my PC, to run Windows 11, and have more USB connections, and the ability to run two monitors. So, the upgrade may change things.

I want to connect my 5-pin DIN Midi piano to Cubase, which is installed on my PC. I am assuming that I need an add-on box to the PC, plugged into a USB socket. I want to be able to play something (a bass line) on the midi piano, and have the notes appear in Cubase, so that I can print out the sheet music for playing from. Can anyone advise?

AKG K240 headphones. Bought a set when I was 18. After 38 years they were broken, so I got another set. They work, they are comfortable, they are affordable (for me). @neepheid is right about the Boss TU-2 tuner (which also works as a mute switch and a 9v power distribution hub too). Solid, accurate enough for me, and reliable. Oooh - and my straplocks too. Solid construction, easy to operate, don't seem to wear out. I still have a 30 year old set on my Lowden, and every new bass guitar gets a set too, even if it means asking on Basschat for the older version. And Dunlop nylon .73 plectrums, for guitar.

My wife bought a new kitchen 19 years ago. It's already worn out, so, she's not getting another.

That is what I thought in 2023, until two of my "unicorn" basses came up in the same Facebook advert....

Just bought a new power supply for my Kurzweil SP76 piano. The old one is playing up, failing to make consistent contact with the power input socket. It works, but not reliably. So, £4.94 worth of preemptive repair/ replacement (rather than new gear). "Breakages. If something breaks through no unusual intervention of your own, and is unable to be repaired, you may replace it."

I want you back, by the Jackson 5. It was played on the bass guitar, by a saxophonist. Here, all the dots for you Take the same chord sequence and bassline, transpose it down a semitone, and it fits with Taylor Swift "we are never getting back together ". Two pop songs for the price of one! There used to be a mashup of both songs on YouTube, but no longer. This is the closest that I can find -

I agree with @Shockwave and @neepheid. It is a 2024 order with a 2024 estimated arrival date. However, circumstances mean that you may need to re-do the order - but that is not your fault, nor was it your intention to buy that item in 2025. You shouldn't be penalised for not receiving the item in-year, and having to re-order the item.

I must have seen that video previously - because it is the reason why I went for an edge-lined fretless. The edge-lines allow me to get into the right region, and my ears (ha ha) will allow me to make adjustments from an even-tempered scale.

So, I had a bass refinished last year, but when I received it, it was a bass in bits, and the body was without a finish (it had been fully removed by the previous owner), so the refinish was judged by Challenge Jurors to be a repair. There was some debate about whether my refinish was a frivolous and unnecessary vanity project, or necessary to bring it back to factory originality. However, the jury concluded that it was allowed. So, precedent seems to allow a refinish where it is a genuine repair.

A major purchase, you say? Is it a new set of cello strings?

There's always ebay.... You could go online while the singer is setting up the PA, and spot an original stack-knob Jazz bass in Burgundy Mist with a Buy It Now of 50 quid! Then, you would buy it, and be out, and everyone would laugh at you! 5 hours to go.

Spot On! For me, the biggest win of this Challenge is realising that a new effects pedal, or amplifier or bass won't necessarily help me play better. I am more focused on improving my skills, thanks to these yearly challenges. In which case, why do I have five bass guitars, but only two hands...

I am in - a too-small house ensures that I won't buy anything more, oh yes.

I have enjoyed @neepheid's custody of this year's Challenge - the right mix of mercy and scholarly application of the rules. Thank you for keeping the flame (other maple finishes are also available....) Robert

You are Spinal Tap, and I claim my £5.

Looking forward to the Future

Sorry. I made a joke so poor, that I now need to explain it. People will sometimes comment on a bass for sale, saying that it's lovely, but has the wrong number of strings for them, and wishing the vendor all the best with the sale. I took it to the next level - I saw a headstock for sale from a 4-string (in essence, a lump of wood with 4 holes in it), and wished that it was a lump of wood from a 5 string. I'll get my coat....