PaulKing

I'm seduced by that Perpetual thread too, or mainly by the phenomenal buttery tone on Rick Wolff's bass, and 'low tension and flexible' description here . I'm sure my vintage ply will sound exactly like Rick's with them on. 😁 I've got a Perpetual E and an Evah Pirazzi weich A heading my way as step 2 in my radical venture away from deeply-ingrained gut purism. I'll let you know which I prefer, or whether Spiros have enough thump to to the job. Or whether I go back to guts after all.

Underwood, Line6 G30 Relay, Fishman Plat Pro Bass mk2, Markbass CMD121P + extension cab 121H Nothing ground breaking there. The Line 6 squeezes a bit of sub out, but that gets EQd out anyway. It also balances signal, so I dont REALLY need the Fishman. Basically use it as EQ / phase / tuner / HPF unit. I'm increasingly convinced the Fishman DOES colour the sound too - certainly cuts the signal a bit. Hotter if I go direct into amp ... but I like its features.

Here is a thing, for anyone who's interested. Over the years I've become a gut purist. I've played nothing but gut G D, and various gut-like combinations on E and A for like, a decade. No mistake I love the tone, and I play lots of Willie Dixon / Larry Taylor (RIP) slappin blues. Even when not slapping, I've got a big plucking bouncing arm waving style that relies on yanking those strings to buggery with my whole arm. But truth be told, I often disappear in the live mix a bit. And I really never record... so pains me to acknowledge I'm probably not getting the best out of those strings, and my prefernce is largely based on principle. So, the other day, in a moment of madness, and in preparation for a BB King Live at the Regal type project, I decided to throw caution to the wind and sling some Spiro weichs on my back-up bass (B+H). I thought I should go for a more modern jazzy sound for a change. After a couple weeks they're just bedding in nicely now. And despite my bias, I'm really digging the novelty of having clarity and growl (acoustic at least). So I'm going to take the bass out for a blues gig this weekend, see how the spiros cut it live and amped. I know they're often accused of disappearing in the mix. And I worry I'll miss that big thump. But maybe I can dial that in with EQ anyway. And I can only imagine they'll cut through more than my trusty Lenzner/Lambert/EP Slap combo. And maybe, as much as it pains me to say, maybe I will actually like it, even in a blues / RnB setting? Hell, I might even get away with a little slapping here and there, if I can tame the clank? I'll let you know. It doesnt end there though. I listened to some clips of EP Weich, and the new Pirastro Perpetuals. And I imagined how they might sound on my vintage plys, Kay and Mortone. Plus, I played a Mortone wearing Innovation Honeys the other day - nice. So I bought a couple of test strings (Perpetual E and EPW A). Considered Velvets for a moment, but I think I'll go all the way. So here I go. OMG am I about to forgo my purist pretensions, and cross over to the bright side? If it means my pianist can actually hear what I'm playing, and I can still get something approaching a nice warm thump, and I dont sound like a car crash with the odd slap ... it makes sense right? Or will realise the madness and go back to guts? Place your bets... Love a bit of string GAS every few years. It's all worth it for the novelty alone. And I'm actually really excited to hear another side to my beloved Mortone and Kay... Carry on.

Thanks Miles - yep I've got a 950, it's pretty much identical to the Underwood, but not exactly. At least that's what my head tells me. I just find it easier to dial in tone with the Underwood. The KN-1 is surprisingly good too. I might give that another go at some point. Crystal clear and warm. Didnt really road test it fully before and I think I got it to feed back. Needs fiddling with.

Meanwhile I'm going to try cutting off an element, like what they tell you not to do ... but I got nothing to lose as ones giving up anyway.

Keep trying alternatives, never quite happy. Anyone got one they want to get rid of?

Never slapped Helicore or Obligatos, but the Innovation Braided orchestrals have good dark slap sound. Only trouble is the concert pitch set will be a bit high tension ... the solo set are much nicer for slapping - one of my preferred strings for slap in fact, they are comparable to the MUCH more expensive Evah slaps.

I want it

Another vote for Paul - picked up his used Line6 Relay G50 wireless set. Quick bank transfer, package arrived as fast as a fast thing, good as gold. Cheers!

I did a heap of reading. Almost unanimous support for the G30. (Incidentally UK-lefty, the G30 has cable tone switch too. It just seems to limit the top end a bit.) BUT, I did find a couple of references to exactly what I noticed, a loss of rich depth at the low end from G30 ... and in those references the G50 came out better, more faithful to cable tone. So, thanks to Basschatter bassfan I'm going to try out a G50 to see if its any better. I find the special cable irritating, but its a small price to pay if it works, I'm also hoping the G30 transmitter will be picked up by the G50 receiver, so I can keep the receiver on my electric bass for when I want to switch between the two. Update to follow after A/B test.

Today I am mostly mortified. I have sworn by Line6 G30 for many years. Indeed I have NEVER had any drop out. It sigids rigid behind tailpiece and withstands all manner of athletic upright bass antics. And it is so damned convenient: pick up bass, switch on, play ... I even use it at rehearsals. Its a long time since I had an opportunity to do a really serious AB test with it, but prompted by a recent and very rare gig where I played witha cable and thought my bass sounded particulalry lush ... I spent half an hour at home switching between wireless and cable. The verdict pains me terribly. Over the G30, there is a distinct loss of warmth and softness, loss of the lush airy tone that makes upright bounce. And there is a distinct boost to the hated upright honk, which is most noticeable when you play anything approaching percussive slap, like what I do. It is minimal, but apparent. There's still a bloody good tone, it just isn't 100% as good as through cable. For years I've claimed the diference was imperceptible. But I was wrong. Now what do I do??? I want to run around on stage. I also want two transmitters so I can swap between upright and electric in a flash.

I remember now ... forgot you had that. Mmmm.

Dribble. Still regret selling my S9, it was immaculate. Later than yours though ... 65 maybe. I held onto a '38 M2 instead because it has more stories to tell. But S9s do have a certain bling to them. And I couldnt justify having 2 Kays AND a Mortone ;o))) (not to my bank anyway...) More pics please!

Adam Ben Ezra. Don't bother trying to match him.

That. Good match. I got one of those set up too.

I made my own, years ago. Take care and they look just as good as those Ffits. Or save yourself the bother and shell out £65. I think thats a pretty decent price actually. Fist to do them was Doug'sPlugs in USA. They work. No doubt about it.

Yeah its a classic thing, bass bar isnt supporting the top plate quite enough. Its an annoyance more than anything. It probably wont get any worse for the next 50 years .... Ignore it.

I have a large scratch down the front of my Mortone from a similarly adventurous kitten.

Hi Mike - I got one .. great fun. E string is a bit quiet .... I switched the black scratchplate for white. I made one like Mo Fosters too, funky 60s feel, but went back to orig design in th eend.

Tried the KNA at rehearsal last night. Yeah, it's pretty good. Took some time dialling in EQ, as it had different character to Underwood. Mid is much more honky. I was losing the punch in the lower mid a bit ... but it fared pretty well. WIth bass boom dialled down and volume cranked, it cit through very well. Given I got it for £35 off Amazon I cant complain. I'll use Underwood as long as it lasts, bt KNA is good back up. Meanwhile Shadow - equally did me OK at a gig. I think a slightly harder sound than Undewood.. It cut through OK, but I was missing that pillowy boom that's so hard to dial in. As ever ... all of these comments are relevant only to the bass in use at the time (Shadow - 1937 King Mortone, KNA 1938 Kay) and the strings (Shadow Evah P Slap/Lenzner Gut, KNA Lamberts GT47/Lenzner Gut) .. and the venue (SHadow Ain't Nothing But the Blues, KNA Airplay STudios....) ;o)

Thomann 33 is the best spec ... someone else will have to chime in on quality. Looks very pretty. But EUR1200 new sounds very cheap for a brand new carved bass!!