rushscored4

12 minutes ago, NJE said:

Yeah I would, I mentioned earlier that I have played a superb example, actually two come to mention it. I thought it was an incredibly well made, very playable and resonant instrument. At £1000 it’s a brilliant bass especially if you get the case and all the case candy. Try it and inspect it though as we all know the big companies let a few Friday afternoon basses through the doors on occasion.

Cheers Nathan, it's a fair trek from me to Redditch and the country's gone to ratshit again with a bit of snow but it does come with a Fender case and all the candy. £700 off the new price does seem like a good deal but it's possibly too new and shiny for me as I prefer that natural 30-40 years roadworn heavy relic look that Sandberg and Fender Custom Shop have perfected over the years.

I bought a cheap ibanez for a few hundred quid off Facebook a few years ago with LED inlays and a psychedelic disco finish. I use it occasionally for functions in parts of Cheshire and Lancashire where people still stop and stare at bright lights...

I had the H|H IC100 in the late 70s / early 80s. Worked pretty well for me but then I was in a typical Liverpool band of that era where big hair and a ridiculous name was more important than the music! I think I only bought it for the green lights and because my initials are IC...

So I phoned Rich Tone today to check on my pre-ordered Rumble Stage 800 as their website was showing them in stock and it's on it's way to me - hopefully arriving tomorrow! 🤘🏻

On 27 February 2018 at 22:36, Wilco said:

It was no good - I couldn't take it any more! Messaged the seller to say it is a Jake. OCD relieved!! 😆

Ha, I was going to do the same! He lives near me in Sale and he has listed it around 6-7 times now. It started at £950, didn't sell so he tried it a few more times at that price, didn't sell again so he increased it it £1250 and guess what - it didn't sell!

Even after dropping it back down to £950 nobody has bitten perhaps because he's still describing it as an Elwood or maybe because he claims in his listing that the RRP is £1,700 but they only cost £1,299 new. In fact his Jake looks identical to the one that Bass Guitar magazine reviewed in January and they listed it as £1,299 too.

BY the way I'd buy it myself at say £750-£800 but the colour is just too similar to my Sandberg California II TM4.

23 minutes ago, rushscored4 said:

There's a fella not far away in Salford who does the same with Fender and Squier parts then relics them and flogs 'em on eBay for £350-£400. I bought a 60s style jazz bass from him last year and it really looks the part and actually sounds pretty good too.

If anybody wants to check him out he trades under the name materialguitars on eBay and he is currently selling a very similar J bass to mine - item number 222843853126.

3 minutes ago, wateroftyne said:

He might be, but I'm assuming he doesn't have a shop, and if he does it ain't in central London.

Andy Baxter's has the original guard and case. That's your £600 right there.

True but I'd take the guard off and nobody but me would ever see the case!

it seems nobody would go for either of the Fender AVRI '63 models then? The one for £1,150 is in a vape & pawnshop in Redditch and started £300 higher which was definitely too rich. He says he's turned offers of a grand down already but I reckon he'd let it go for a touch more and although these have been replaced by the very similar '60s Original model you still the Vintage sunburst versions advertised as new in a few stores for around £1,800.

3 minutes ago, 3below said:

And if you are not bothered about the Fender logo then you have a world of choice.  My term p bass is  a 1987 G&L SB1 (the precision mk3?) which I bought in 1990. 1980s models can be picked up for £650 or so, imo it is a better bass than the 77 p I bought new (which was pretty good).

Hadn't thought of G&L to be fair so I'll check some of the earlier stuff out. I'm not fussed about logos and the second hand P basses from Sandberg and  Maruszczyk look great value for money. Like I said in the OP, I own a Sandberg TM4 already and I love the tone and sustain it gives as well as the beautiful hardcore aged looks.

2 minutes ago, wateroftyne said:

Nah, it's way overpriced for a private sale. Repro pickguard? That's a few hundred quid off the asking price right there... not to mention non-original case.

(...assuming we'r talking about the same bass!)

 

 

 

I think we are talking about the same one (seller TV Junior in Bristol) but it looks like he might be a trader as he sells quite a few guitars and basses. Andy has a similar one in stock for about £600 more.

21 minutes ago, TheGreek said:

There's so much choice nowadays for a good P bass, and it doesn't need to have a "Fender" logo on the headstock.

If you're after an investment, you could do much worse than buy Gary Mac's P bass - there have been a few similar items available on eBay recently - all significantly more expensive than Gary's.

If you're after a player and don't want to take a big hit if/when you sell you really have to go down the used route. Lots of love seemingly for the Limelights, similarly Squiers and Laklands. Maruszczyk have gained a big following in a short time.

LBGS just a few days away...I'd want to be looking at everything that's available and you probably won't get a wider range of gear than at the show.

I'd love to go to the LBGS but got too many commitments this weekend plus a bit of snow has closed the country again!

There were a couple of Limelights for sale here but I assume the guy behind them (Mark?) can build one to spec? There's a fella not far away in Salford who does the same with Fender and Squier parts then relics them and flogs 'em on eBay for £350-£400. I bought a 60s style jazz bass from him last year and it really looks the part and actually sounds pretty good too.

1 hour ago, wateroftyne said:

That '73 is overpriced.

I've got a '73 which I love, a Maruszczyk which I love, and a Limelight P which I love. I've rarely played a new Fender that justifies the expense. 

If I was after a vintage vibe, I'd spec a Limelight or hold out for a decent, and decently-priced early 70s.

If I wanted something with a funkier spec, I'd go Maruszczyk.

 

The '73 seems about right looking at other examples although that includes a few from Andy Baxter who's definitely not cheap. It's got a lovely natural relic finish which looks pretty cool.

Funnily enough I'd watched your videos on YouTube before I (re)joined basschat and that was one of the main reasons I was thinking about a Maruszczyk!

44 minutes ago, NJE said:

I saw and incredible looking Maruszczyk precision somewhere secondhand for about £700, it was black with tort guard, very classy. They are seriously good and the necks and fretwork are amazing.

There was one like that on Facebook before Xmas for £675 from someone not too far from me in Wigan. Doesn't appear to have been sold and he posted a new profile pic a few weeks ago of him playing the bass so maybe he thought better of it!

I've got a serious GAS problem at the moment and have a few quid burning a hole in my pockets to buy a new P bass, ideally in sunburst, Fiesta red or Olympic white with a tortoise shell pick guard and rosewood fretboard or black with a maple neck and board. I've been surfing the usual sites like eBay and Gumtree and I'm torn between the following options :

• Fender American Vintage '63 Precision (my YOB) in sunburst on eBay pre-owned for £1,150
• Fender American Vintage '63 Precision in sunburst on eBay ex-demo for £1,567
• Fender Precision 1973 model in sunburst on eBay for £2,350
• Fender Precision Custom Shop '64 model in sunburst on eBay for £2,495 (heavy relic which I love)
• Fender Precision Custom Shop '64 model in Dakota red on eBay for £2,175

I've also been looking at Sandbergs (I own a TM4 already), Maruszczyks and Limelight Precisions which are all terrific value for money. There's also a stunning original 1966 model on here for £4,750 which is within budget but I'm not sure I can justify spending over four times as much for an original vintage P bass compared to a modern reissue!

By the way, tthese basses are spread across the UK so trying them before I buy would be almost impossible. So, what would you do in my position?!

Cheers guys - and bass culture that sounds like a great idea! 🤘🏻

Hi, my name's Iain and I'm a bassaholic. I started playing bass as a 14 year old in Liverpool in originals bands in the late 70s / early 80s era at the same venues as the Bunnymen, Teardrop Explodes, Pete Wylie, OMD, Flock of Seagulls, etc. Back then I played an all black Ibanez Roadster II with a H|H head and 4x10 cab. Completely self taught using a pick and inspired by the likes of Jean Jacques Brunel, Paul Simonon and Adam Clayton at the time.

Inevitably life, two wives (both mine but not at the same time), four kids and work got in the way and I stopped playing from my mid 20s until I put an old band together for my 40th birthday party. Since then I've regularly supported a singer guitarist on bass but for the past four years I've been gigging most weekends with a 5/6 piece covers band in the pubs and clubs of north west England. These days I'm more inspired by the likes of James Jamerson and love that vintage Motown bass groove.

My main weapon of choice now is a blue hardcore aged Sandberg California II TM4 (pic attached from PMT Manchester before I bought it) but I seem to have somehow acquired around 10 other basses over the past few years including a fabulous MIM Fender Precision Nate Mendel signature model. My go-to amp is an Ampeg PF-50T with matching fliptop PF-115HE cab but I've also got a PF-350 solid state head when I need more oomph plus a TC BG250-208 for smaller gigs and rehearsals and two Fender 100 Rumbles (original and V3) with a handful of different pedals I bought but rarely use. As I've put in another thread, I've just ordered the new Rumble 800 Stage which should arrive mid-March. Another GAS casualty here...

Since relearning the bass I play with my fingers not a pick but my right hand technique was pretty poor to begin with, using mainly my thumb and index finger. It's improved massively by gigging regularly but I should probably have some proper lessons even though I'm 54 now!

Anyway, thanks for the warm welcome so far. I look forward to being a regular contributor after years of lurking.

I've got one of these on order, due to arrive in March. Looking forward to gigging it in pubs and clubs around the north west. Still not much information available online however.

My hardcore aged TM4 beauty before I whisked her away from PMT in Manchester! 

Another long-time lurker here! For years I gigged with an original Fender Rumble 100 which I bought off eBay for £80. No matter how big the venue I rarely had to turn the volume above 3 or 4 and it sounded great with a variety of different basses from Fender Jazzes and Precisions to a Musicman Stingray.

More recently, after a bad bout of GAS, I've probably spent a couple of grand buying a TC BG250-208 with a 15" extension cab, a new V3 Fender Rumble 100, an Ampeg PF-350 and PF-5o0T tube amp, both of which I play through a PF-115HE Portaflex cab, and none of them sound anywhere near as good or are as loud as my original cheap as chips Rumble 100...

Mind you, I've just pre-ordered the new Fender Rumble 800 Stage combo so watch this space!