molan

[quote name='The Dark Lord' timestamp='1383658313' post='2267133'] That well-known bass player called who? I've been playing Precisions probably just as long as he has. What makes his thoughts on the sound of a Precision any better than mine? [/quote] You must send us a link to your Bass Player Magazine cover article: [color=#4D4D4D][font=Gudea][size=5] And other interviews of course: "Juan Alderete is a name that requires little introduction...[/size][/font][/color][color=#4D4D4D][font=Gudea][size=5] [center][/center][/size][/font][/color][color=#4D4D4D][font=Gudea][size=5] Long time effects champion and bass player with Big Sir, Racer X & The Mars Volta to name but a few, Juan has scored his name among the bass elite during his varied career. His approach to using effects to create textures within music has been the subject of more discussion than almost any other bass player, with forums literally covered in threads dedicated to his set up. Thankfully Juan is more than happy to share his knowledge with everyone, recently starting his own website and forum dedicated to discussing pedals and how to use them."[/size][/font][/color]

[quote name='The Dark Lord' timestamp='1383657721' post='2267113'] Laugh it up. How can you tell that the old bass you are holding sounds better than it did 40 years ago? You and your present ears weren't around then. So you don't actually know. If you are saying that old basses generally sound better - then I say there will be plenty more old basses that sound terrible than good. If you are being specific to the bass you are holding at any one time ...... "this old bass sounds great and has matured over the years" then you are being subjective to [i]that[/i] bass alone. How do you know that the bass you are holding didn't sound that good all those years before? In short, you don't. If you go to a shop with a load of Precisions, and play them all, you'll find they are all more or less the same but subtly different. There will be a consistency of tone in a way, but you will find one you're not so keen on and you may well find one which makes you grin. It has that certain something. A glueing accident? A particular piece of wood with good resonant properties. I think THAT is what you're noticing when you say an old bass sounds good. That one probably ALWAYS sounded good - and that's why it is still around as someone thought it worth keeping. Experts shmexperts. There is no reason to pay more for a bass than the current list price of a new one. In my opinion. [/quote] I'm actually still chuckling. I genuinely can't believe that you think the hundreds of experts on guitar ageing and tone are all universally wrong and that you are right. I guess it takes all sorts. . . So I assume you are saying that a highly respected player like Juan Alderete who has specifically said his bass sounds better now than when he bought it in 1994 is also wrong? This is a guy who can actually go back to his master tapes of recording and hear the differences (or maybe he's hearing different recording techniques?).

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1383656387' post='2267075'] But he's got a point. I would have thought that for a solid electric instrument there is more chance that your hearing changes more than anything caused by the "ageing" of the wood. Pickups though do go through significant changes as the magnets in them become weaker with age. Of course whether any of these changes make the instrument better is entirely subjective, but I can't help but feel that a good deal of these "improvements" with age are being viewed with rose and mojo tinted glasses (and hearing aids). [/quote] Working in a music shop from time to time allows me to hear lots and lots of different basses of all ages. Older ones sound different to newer ones. This is an inescapable fact. Obviously this could be because of different construction methods and materials but people like Fender have spent a fortune trying to replicate the tone of a vintage instrument and they simply can't do it. The best aged Custom Shop bass does not sound like a real early 60's bass however much Fender try to use artificially aged wood and original hand-wound, and then 'aged' pickup construction methods. Wood, that isn't entirely enclosed in a thick poly coat, will react to changes in temperature and basic stuff like playing time. The resonant tones of the body and neck will adjust over time and change the core sound of the bass. Pickup winding degradation also has a huge effect in how a bass sounds from when it was first made. A simple demonstration of this would be to hear an original '60's pickup and then listen to it after it's been re-wound using, as close as possible, vintage style hand winding. To say that old instruments don't change with age is going against pretty much everything that's been said by experts for many years - I'd have to include some astonishingly good musicians amongst these. I find it hard to accept that every single one of these people have said it for some sort of personal gain or because they are all wearing the same rose-tinted specs. Here's a view from someone who should know - Juan Alderete: [size=4][font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]"[color=#000000]Now that I look back at many of the basses I’ve owned – from expensive Wal basses to Tobias 5 stringers; from Lakland USA models to Fenders, I’ve pretty much come to the conclusion that I’m a vintage bass player, most of the time. I own a handful of vintage Fenders and they all sound better than all the basses I have owned over the years, but the question remains…do they sound better because they are old? Does time have anything to do with the sound from these instruments?[/color][/font][/size] [size=4][font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif][color=#000000]There may be some truth to the idea that the wood dries out over time, making the bass sound more pronounced and have more focussed clarity. This could be the result that the wood also hardens and reflects the sound waves from the string with more resonance. I have also heard that time affects the relationship of the wood with the neck and body. The two, separate pieces of wood become more harmonious from all the years of vibrations going through them. I’ve also read that that relationship has good years and bad, so a vintage bass can sound great one year and but not so much the next.[/color][/font][/size] [size=4][font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif][color=#000000][b]From my personal experience, [/b]I can tell you is that my vintage basses sound great, and[b] my 1964 Jazz bass sounds better than it did when I first acquired it in 1994[/b]. I’ve used it on multiple recordings (as you can hear from my bass solo on [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2C0F7eFxhXM"]Day Of The Baphomets[/url]) and I’m always amazed at how much more defined the notes sound, and how the overall low end delivers such a deep and expressive tone. I can say, without question, that it’s my favorite bass."[/color][/font][/size]

[quote name='bluesparky' timestamp='1383654493' post='2267015'] Yolanda Charles has today written a very interesting post on her wall on Facebook about people / pretty / girls playing along to covers on YouTube and has opened up a rather interesting debate on the subject. I'm sure it's a coincidence an unrelated to this thread but it makes interesting reading. I would copy and paste the post here but although its on a social network site I'm not sure if its up to me for me to distribute the comments elsewhere. [/quote] It's a public FaceBook page and anyone can see the thread so i don't think it's a problem to re-post: "[color=#37404E]Dunno what to make of musicians uploading video of themselves playing covers along with the original tracks in background... The vids with the most hits are usually of pretty (?) girls playing competently enough I guess.... but what is the point?? If it was an original, self-penned riff or soloing I'd understand after all us musicians are self promoting to sell our music aren't we? Or for some is [/color][color=#37404E]it about just promoting themselves? I can tell you this about me, if I didn't have an album and gigs to talk about I wouldn't be using FB in the way I do. For me it's about the music I write, play and promote for others. Otherwise I guess I could just upload some vids playing some Jaco in a bikini.... hmmm... lol No wise cracks!!"[/color]

[quote name='The Dark Lord' timestamp='1383653764' post='2267000'] I just don't agree with this point of view. There is no way of measuring this unless you have recorded the sound years ago on comparable equipment and compare it to today's sound. Where can the proof be? If someone claims that their instrument has changed and improved in sound over the years .......... they are forgetting that their own ears will change as they get older. I just don't believe it. It's a myth to me which people go along with for all sorts of reasons. Poppycock for other people - I think. But you are untitled to your view just as much as me. [/quote] This genuinely made me laugh out loud, and very little on BassChat does that. I'm sure the zillions of threads about what happens to a guitar and its electronic components as they age and change tonally must all be incorrect but I guess all those experts in the business just have a different opinion to you.

[quote name='The Dark Lord' timestamp='1383642952' post='2266817'] Does a guitar or bass [i]really[/i] get better or sound better with age? You may get more accustomed to it and it might "fit" you better, the more you get used to it. You might also get to hone the set up of it to your taste over time. But I very much doubt if it ever sounds "better" the older it gets. I suspect it will sound the same for most of its life until the components malfunction and it then will sound worse - or different when you have to change the bits. So, in my book, it should never be worth more than the money you paid for it in the first place. [/quote] I think the answer to this is a fairly simple yes. Instruments definitely change in tone as they age, whether this change has a tangible value depends on what someone is looking for. E.G. One person's mellow is another's dull or someone's clean and crisp is another's harsh. Anything vintage, and of decent quality, will eventually rise to a value greater than when it was first purchased. That's just the simple economics of inflation.

The parents of a friend of mine were staying in a ritzy LA hotel once and heading down for dinner in the lift. The doors opened on the floor below them and this large American guy flounced in and proclaimed "Hi, I'm Meatloaf". The parents shrank into a corner and rushed out of the lift when it reached the lobby and immediately reported the 'madman' to hotel security

He had some 66P pickups that were ludicrously overpriced as well recently.

I'd definitely agree that Fenders are much cheaper now than they used to be. My first Fender was £110 brand new and I was earning £2,500 a year at the time. That's a pretty high percentage of my annual salary. If I'd kept it it would be worth about £750 today so definitely not an investment bass. As it happens I traded it for a Precision plus about £25. The same P would be worth maybe £1,750 today. A better price increase but still not much of an investment. I'm not sure there are any basses that are really solid investments when compared to many other mainstream investments out there. However, choose wisely and you can get something that's fun to own that shouldn't lose much value (even taking inflation into account).

[quote name='Rasta' timestamp='1383602904' post='2266574'] If your talking about mine then the rack bag is an SKB 2U, great case...even has an internal pocket too Also the BX1500 is 10lbs according to the manual. Hey Molan, I like the family company ethos and I'd quite like an 18" cab if Carvin can get them over [/quote] Cabs are tricky because of the high shipping cost relative to the cab value I hear some good things about the cabs but whenever we've looked at bringing them in it hasn't really been viable. I guess if we ordered a bulk number it might work but it's unlikely to be this year.

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1383573000' post='2265970'] Crazy low price. That is mental. 10lbs?!?!? Now I want one. [/quote] The 2000w is only 14lbs & the little baby 500 is just 5lbs! In fact the real 'baby' of the bunch, the 250w is only a shade over 3lbs

[quote name='NJE' timestamp='1383559573' post='2265730'] I think I am going to have to bite the bullet and go to Bass Gear or Bass Direct and actually look, lift and play some of these cabs to see what will be manageable. My only issue is wasting shop staff time, I don't want to drive all the way there play for a couple of hours and leave with nothing, I always feel like I am wasting their time if there is nothing I really like. Oh well might just have to get over that and go to Bass Gear, they have a lovely selection of Bergantino and Aguilar as a first port of call. Vanderkley are very much on my radar, they look great and get good reviews. Not too sure about Barefaced, I am sure they are superb and I don't want to offend anyone but I just don't like how they look and if I am going to spend a huge chunk of cash I want to like what I am buying (vain I know). After looking around and reading everyones comments, on reflection it is amazing that there are so many good quality products we can choose from, when I started it seemed there were only a handful but I feel very well catered for. [/quote] I think both places are pretty cool about people coming in to try stuff, that's what retailers are all about. I've been at BG when someone has come in for 4 hours+ to try different amps and cabs

And, as if by magic, we've heard from Carvin already Apparently the BX500 has undergone a few power supply changes throughout the years to address issues of performance with the 90-240 volt switching power supply. The most recent models have had very few reported problems and there's not been a single issue with UK sold ones in 2013.

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1383569917' post='2265912'] I'm pretty sure the one in the window was £17something which made me think it was a 63 reissue as opposed to the refin (although I was [i]very[/i] hungover so reading the price was a bit difficult)... cracking looking bass regardless of what it actually was. [/quote] Ah, sorry, I thought it was this one you meant: http://www.wunjoguitars.com/shop/bass-guitars/fender-precision-1976 NB Interesting to see the URL says '76 and the text says '63!

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1383519067' post='2265496'] Once again though , what I can't understand is why as soon as a moderately attractive woman picks up a bass she is immidiately feted as a sex symbol . I am genuinely interested if people would be so enamoured if she worked on the fish counter at Tescos. Do men[i] really [/i]crave someone who shares the same interests as themselves? Maybe I have high standards, but I wouldn't look twice at this girl . It is a very nice bass, though, so plenty of eye candy there. . [/quote] I recently posted a few vids of really good people playing bass live and the one with a pretty girl playing got three times as many views (about 1,700) than any of the ones with guys. This is the vid in question: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggPooXtzUD0[/media] She does the solo YT thing as well (oddly reversed so it looks like she's a lefty): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTBiLWl1734

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1383561649' post='2265762'] After looking into it I'm a bit confused... Their website says its the refinished one, although the price tends to suggest its the 63 reissue (which is the image I've posted here) I don't remember enough about the headstock or how old the neck looked to confirm which it was... think it might require another visit... maybe I'll sweep by after work today. It just looked to me like a very pleasing combination of colour and shape. [/quote] Price is right for a refin '63 depending on quality of the finish. In fact, given that it's had a couple of other things done to it then it may be a trifle high (but that's just Denmark Street prices). There seems to be a bit of a myth, mostly perpetuated by a few of the higher end vintage dealers, that refin early 60's P's are cracking the £3,500 mark but they really aren't selling at this sort of price. The quality of the refin makes a huge difference. if it's not a very good nitro then you're looking much closer to £2,500 than £3,000.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1383520340' post='2265519'] Barrie - looking on TB there were a few reports of BX500s cutting out. Has this been sorted, do you know? They look like nice heads for a back-up... [/quote] I heard some stories about ribbon connectors that needed cleaning regularly but we haven't had any issues with any sold over here. I'll ask the Carvin guys and see if they've done anything. They are super helpful and efficient. Proper 'family' company. Founded by Lowell Keisel in 1946. His eldest son Carson is president and runs electronic design and production and another son, Mark, is VP and manages guitar and bass design & production. Grandsons Jeff & Joel head up US sales and International sales respectively. Joel is the guy we deal with and he really couldn't be more helpful - a real grade A supplier

[quote name='RandomBass' timestamp='1383408338' post='2264174'] Cool. Do you have a link to that thread for me to have a nose through? [/quote] Found it - it was on his FaceBook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Barefaced-Bass-speaker-cabs/130257677703 [color=#333333]"We've heard that Genz Benz is probably being killed off my Fender (who've owned it for some time). This is a shame because many of our customers use their amps with Barefaced cabs with great success. However, I hope that they resurrect the [/color][color=#333333]line successfully under new brand - though history does not bode well... On the plus side, I recently discovered that you can get Carvin amps in the UK now - their B1500 and B2000 (great preamp!) are ideal for getting HUGE SPL out of our cabs:[url="http://www.bassgear.co.uk/product-category/bass-amps-and-cabs/carvin-amps/"]http://www.bassgear....bs/carvin-amps/[/url]"[/color]

[quote name='Rasta' timestamp='1383497013' post='2265046'] Astounding! Loved it, really cut through well. Also really like the 2x10's stacked sideways - great idea . In comparison to my Orange Terror this amp is much more modern & hifi sounding so i may get a sansamp or similar to warm it up a bit but other than that, brilliant. I'll try it with my other cabs to see how it pans out with them too and see if that adds any more warmth. The headroom is also amazing, I didn't go past 3 on the vol all night and that was competing with a 7 piece band with horn section....and i actually thought i was too loud. Anyhow i got some good compliments for a change and our drummer was annoyed that i can drown him out now . Would i swap it for an amp costing twice as much...er nope! She's a keeper (for now ). [/quote] You can warm up a BX if you play with the basic onboard tone and then use the graphic for broader tone shaping. We spent a while in the showroom with a BX500 sitting next to an Aguilar TH500 and we managed to get a pretty good warm Aggie sound from the Carvin with a bit of work If you call the shop and have a chat with Vic I think he'll remember the rough settings he used on the BX.

[quote name='skej21' timestamp='1383513364' post='2265407'] Barrie, would you agree that for the difference in price and the fact that it's Class D (so no valve maintenance hassle), the TH500 gives a close enough tone and offers reliability, portability and volumes that would be great for gigging musicians? I've always viewed most +500w heads as a 'touring' head, intended to be used for much larger venues and feel that while it would be nice (possibly a luxury) to regularly gig a DB head, the impact that regular use would have on the valves (and my back!) does not warrant it being viewed as the 'must-have' amp, despite its lack of competition on the tone front. I also find that in most bigger venues, I end up using the PA for the FOH volume and my TH preamp offers a lovely tone via the DI, meaning most of the time, my rig is for monitoring purposes for me in these situations and 500w head is loud enough. In smaller venues, 500w also seems to be loud enough and offers a nice source of sound. I've been thinking about getting a new head and just wondering whether you think its worth going with the 'work horse' TH500 or just go full throttle and get a DB751? [/quote] I think it really depends on the type of gigs you're doing. I know of at least two pretty heavyweight touring pros who use a DB751 with a single or pair of 410's for large stage gigs and then a TH500 and a pair of SL112s for club gigs. Personally I'd think that a TH500 running into high sensitivity cabs along with good FOH support would handle most gigs. The TH is never quite going to capture the depth the DB has but it can certainly cover a lot of bases

[quote name='PauBass' timestamp='1383510952' post='2265357'] So to clarify, is it voice kinda like the DB750? Or at least can provide that tone? Not sure there's any places close to Brighton were I can try one. [/quote] Yes, absolutely. It was designed to be a 'baby' version of the DB The place I work now & then is about 2 hours from you Guitar Guitar in Epsom generally have a Th in stock but I'm not sure what their demo facilities are like. If you go there then ask for Wes. He's not always in the bass section but he's a great guy and a good player (he also builds a mean bass from time to time!).

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1383510990' post='2265358'] Awesome shirt! [/quote] That's my gig shirt - I deliberately left it in shot to see if anyone would notice

[quote name='JapanAxe' timestamp='1383491645' post='2264970'] No pics? Didn't happen! [/quote] Best I can offer is this crappy iphone pic!

[quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1383504562' post='2265201'] Just this one then? [/quote] Yep - that's what I was trying to say originally. "[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Usually I quite like mixes without vocals but his one leaves me a bit cold"[/font][/color]

[quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1383504136' post='2265193'] .... a bit like every other instrumental version of a song that originally had vocals? [/quote] No, not at all.