uk_lefty

I still have the manual for an amp I sold on a few years ago. Might be good for an owner of one of these amps should they also be looking to sell on. I'll post it to whoever wants it, no charges at all, I hate throwing things away! PM me if you want it

General ass-holery... Like the guy "leading" a band with two female singers (one former pro) recruiting rock players like myself, but insisting on playing mostly stereophonics songs. With two female singers. Who sing 80s ballads beautifully. Who don't sound right singing stereophonics songs. The strength of that band was the singers, all we needed was to play songs within a genre that suited them and it could have been very good. Constant chopping and changing of set list to the point you never get a settled list of what to play. Arguing over new songs to play all the time. Not having a consistent "theme" in the songs... With covers bands I always find an audience needs to know what they're getting otherwise "vague witty band name" playing jailhouse rock and then Adele just confuses people and prevents them sticking around. Not respecting other peoples opinions is a big one too. If I suggest a song I think will work it's ok to disagree, I'm fine with that, but to be abusive time and time again is just not worth my time. Having a singer who walks around spitting and a guitarist who cannot play in time was my reason to leave a biker band years back. No regrets there Guitarist and singer turning up drunk for rehearsal and getting more and more pissed while you've paid for the room was also a factor in one swift exit!

The active circuit isn't the best and I've found it benefits from some additional eq through my hartke vxl... Which defeats the point of the active somewhat but in combination I've found some happy mid ground and a good clanky funky tone. I can recommend GHS bass Boomer strings. For what could be considered quite naff looking I'm actually finding it incredibly playable, better for slap than my fender jazz. I'd love body wings on a headless but wouldn't want to retro fit. Mine came with an original vinyl/ fake leather hard case which has zips instead of latches, which raises the game considerably when it comes to coolness. My band love it too, which is odd because I thought they'd kick my ass for bringing this bass!

I have heard that the behringer plastic cases are ABS and not standard plastic, so much tougher. The tuner pedal I used for four years or so is still in one piece with no signs of cracks or anything. I really don't think the casing is anything to worry about. Put the behringer guts in a metal case and you'll still have the same effect.

I have had three of their bass chorus pedals, each one has failed after less than two hours use. I have used for about four or five years their tuner pedal though and found that did it's job admirably. However, now I have enough pedals to warrant a board I've only replaced it for something smaller, no quality issue.

I bought this cheap and cheerful distortion/ fuzz and took it straight to rehearsal. I've seen recommendations to stay away from this pedal on this forum but never a review... So here comes a review! Yes, better pedals will exist. However my criteria were cheap without being "too cheap" and using as little space as possible. I wanted a distortion of some sort as my band has gigs where I may be using a provided backline so can't rely on my amps built in overdrive. I had heard that this pedal is a clone of the ehx bass blogger, which I used to own, so I had a good idea what I was getting tonewise but with a fraction of the pedal board footprint. The distortion and fuzz... Not massively distinguishable from each other I'm afraid, but I keep the gain low for a gritty sound rather than a full buzz saw effect. I used this with both a p bass and a headless hohner in to the rehearsal spaces Orange amp. The sound was what I was looking for, not the warmest and most natural sounding but effective under two guitars for adding the grittiness I wanted. I can't see me playing around too much with the settings. Running an envelope filter before the distortion combined the two effects well, and despite its tiny size it was easy to find with the sole of my boot. If you love heavy distortion and it's an integral part of your sound invest in a different pedal, you'll appreciate it more. However if you only need the odd touch of distortion now and then you won't go wrong with this one as a live and rehearsal tool, for recording you may want something more lavish to get a warmer sound from. For less than fifty quid I think this is good value. Having had cheap bass overdrives before this is definitely a step above the bottom of the range guff you can get, but there are many many more upward steps if that's your style of play. The case seems durable and the tiny size is a blessing.

[quote name='Roger2611' timestamp='1462987431' post='3047637'] They may be worth a go on my fretless, I love the sound of rounds on a fretless but not the damage they do to the fret board, I will give some a go [/quote] Me too! Got standard Ernie ball flats at the moment but a but more of a roundwound tone would suit me better

I have the Steve Harris Sig. Pickup in my MIJ P bass and the sound is HUGE. It's a big, open clear bass tone. I also have the Steve Harris sig. Strings. They're heavy and take some getting used to but it is such a big and clear tone, can't think how else to describe it. I'm not a Steve Harris fan either, but I will be keeping the pickup and strings as long as possible.

If it happened to me I wouldn't find it funny... But thank you for sharing, it made me chuckle a bit. Hope your bass appears soon!

I have the toneman 300 combo. Very good value.

Massively under played song that is unmistakably RHCP!

These look amazing!! Anybody have a rough idea of how much a lefty conversion would cost... And whether it would be effective?

Went for less than 150????!!!

Not a musician but I once asked Tracey Emin for directions to the bass centre (??) Near Liverpool street station. She didn't know. I realised it was her the next day. I also stood on her friends foot by accident.

Hi Phin, love the ambition and hope you make it!! You certainly know a good bass player and good bass music already so now it's just about finding something comfortable for you. A PJ bass sounds like good solid advice, as you start playing with more musicians they may not always appreciate your Larry Graham repetoire so having a multi functional bass where you can just whack on the P pickup and play 90% of all rock music with a solid tone that cuts through. Have a tickle on a few basses and see what feels best to start you off. Best of luck

Hi. I had a Brice six string about nine years ago. It was HEAVY, really really heavy. I found the neck manageable but the pickups and overall tone were poor. The top was a very thin laminate on a very thick body. I sold it on quickly. Had it been a four stringer I'd have said it was no more than a nice looking beginner bass. Having said that I would consider their jazz bass style six stringer but would ideally want to try first. It looks pretty and the pickups would be easier to replace. No experience of Ibanez but from reputation I would expect it to be far superior.

The Boss bass limiter enhancer has a recommended setting for slap playing... These are quite cheap second hand or for really cheap I think that Behringer (and possibly Harley Benton?) Do a "clone" of this pedal. TBH the pedal helps but technique is probably the best solution.

[quote name='Chownybass' timestamp='1462092984' post='3040130'] I don't think the game has changed either. People like Scott and I are never going to be able to make - for instance - a jazz bass and compete with Squire. They make a solid instrument at an economy of scale that we could never HOPE to compete with. What we can do - is fill up the niches with well thought out and soundly constructed instruments. When making stuff in smaller runs, the things you'd cut to save money when manufacturing thousands, don't really matter. Want a bone nut? Sure why not. Doesn't affect my bottom line particularly much. So with no distributors taking a margin, and doing our own distribution, it's perfectly feasible to make a musician friendly instrument at a good price and of good quality - as long as we work in the niches. That's not to say we're not going to try stray outside them from time to time. It's not for the faint hearted though There is a gap in the market for us at the moment to get stock into independent stores, as a few don't want to deal with the major brands at the moment. Agile brands like us, that can be flexible on stock levels, price and so on will always find a way to wiggle into the gaps. I've often considered blogging about what it takes and took to get Chowny off the ground. But then I think I'd be the only one interested in reading it. [/quote] I'd read it!! Would love to hear about the journey. Something I often dream of (in another hobby) but am not brave enough to do.

[quote name='Jebo1' timestamp='1461662536' post='3036473'] I'd suggest buying a genuine vintage instrument, not a limited edition reissue. Personally, I have about the same amount of money in my instrument collection as I do in my personal pension (work one is slightly different). [/quote] My point was I could buy, for arguments sake, this year's limited run fender or Gibson or other whatever that may be, solely for the purpose of investment and not to consider playing it, just leave it in the case. Agreed a reissue won't have the value of the original, but what of a 2016 original limited run instrument? What would that be worth in mint condition in 20yrs time? It's a gamble but probably better than +1% year on year

Because of the awful rate of interest from banks I have toyed with the idea of buying (even a right handed) limited edition Fender or Gibson and just locking it in its case for twenty years to sell on in future or pass on to my kids if I have any... Bit of a gamble, the vintage guitar market may be dead in twenty years, or I may need to "relic" it to make it sellable. Not the worst financial idea...

Thank you both... Off to b&q today

I have B&Q's cheapest drill. It's ok for putting holes in walls but not sure for delicate works like this... Would I need a hand-drill rather than electric, or a better quality drill?

So my 90s MIM Jazz came second hand with nice light Schaller tuners. I wanted a more authentic look so bought some gotoh machine heads. Come to fitting them and the pilot holes for the screws don't align. I don't have a small enough drill bit (anyone know the size needed?) So have tried to pilot with a tack and a hammer but reluctant to do this. Straight screwing in to wood with no pilot only gets half the screw length in. So the question is what is the best way? Drill pilot holes? Anyone know what size drill bit and where I could buy? Thank you