Musky

16again's bass looks like one of those Wesley Europas to me.

"this pedal is cosmetically very good... the top on this is nearly perfect, while the back has only a few small chips." LOL! What is this guy on! I wouldn't like to see something he doesn't think is in good condition.

Hmmm... See what you mean about the Cardinal. Why on earth the guy replaced the bridge is beyond me. The stock bridge is actually a heavier build than a badass, so it's not an improvement at all. And the polepieces on the pickup seem to have disappeared in the rewind as well. He's being extremely optimistic asking for £250, methinks.

They were known as 'tic tac' basses in the sixties, which pretty much clues you in what kind of sound to expect. I think Entwhistle used early on in The Who. I've never played one, but always had a bit of a hankering to try - I'm just not prepared to shell out for the kind of money they usually change hands for on a bit of a whim. I remember Bassist did give the DC favourable review though, saying the distinctive tones might make it worth having as a second bass. But then I don't think Bassist actually gave anything a bad review!

There's already a thread on this in the Ebay forum. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=2807&st=0&#entry30110"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...amp;#entry30110[/url]

Myspace is fantastic for finding gig promoters, including ones that only put on irregular gigs, as they all seem to have a myspace now. Try looking at listings for gigs in the area you want, and then look up the venues myspace. The promoters are usually listed in the top friends. Check the comments as well - promoters will often plug their events there, as will other local promoters at other venues. Then repeat the process on every promising promoter and venue you find. Be sure to check their music policy before hassling them - there's no point wasting everyone's time if they aren't likely to put on the type of music you do. To kick you off try taking a look at [url="http://groups.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=groups.groupProfile&groupID=103829548&Mytoken=7ED6F78D-9D28-45D7-8A537F148A6849D14778330"]http://groups.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseac...8A6849D14778330[/url] The Drowned in Sound music board is quite good (if very indie-centric), as its populated with quite a few promoters and bands. A recent thread by the guy who started the myspace West Midlands Gigs group. [url="http://www.drownedinsound.com/articles/2153721"]http://www.drownedinsound.com/articles/2153721[/url] Oh yeah, you do really need to get a demo sorted before contacting promoters. You'll find some won't give you the time of day if you don't.

Yeah, there was a real rash of Bass Worlders buying the Beatbass at the end of last year and raving about how great they were.

[quote name='BassManKev' post='28524' date='Jul 8 2007, 10:33 AM']josh klinghoffer (cant spell) friend of johns and the band, him and john write music together outside the chili peppers and thers no way flea could use them both at the same time, it would be far too distorted[/quote] Well there are bassists that use 2 (or more!) distortions at the same time, but they're usually after a more industrial, almost synthy sound. Which doesn't sound like Flea's usual tone.

[quote name='Buzz' post='28544' date='Jul 8 2007, 11:39 AM']*Edit: Also, I'll hasten to add, you knew the pedal was broken, yet you've got no idea of the basics for at least checking it and fault finding? What possessed you apart from maybe grabbing a bargin?*[/quote] Sometimes you never know. I bought an old EH Dr. Q from a shop very cheaply, on the basis that it didn't work properly. I got it home, changed the battery and voila! Working pedal.

That does indeed help. I'd agree with Paul about an active bass being a good choice, and add the MusicMan SUB to the list. It's basically the cheaper version of what Flea uses and is a great bass in it's own right. It has recently been discontinued (and probably slightly above your price limit anyway), but should be easy to pick one up used. These were also available passive, so check what you're getting before shelling out.

If anyone wants a detailed look at management, recording, publishing and producer contracts that goes into typical rates and clauses I suggest they take a look at [url="http://www.leeandthompson.com/documents.php"]this online guide.[/url] It goes into the sort of detail you'd probably only need if you were about to sign, but at least you'd know what the lawyers were talking about. Edited to update link.

He's got this on Ebay as well - it's a Highway. There's a short thread about it [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=2592"]here.[/url]

[quote name='nixonuk' post='28309' date='Jul 7 2007, 02:34 PM']Many thanks Musky. I am at that stage as a beginner where I dont know whether to go back to fingers, or plod on with the plectrum. I am better with fingers but I know for the music I want to play most Bassists use a plectrum. decisions decisions lol![/quote] It's horses for courses really, and a pick is pretty much the only way to get that aggressive attack (unless you're John Enthwistle . There are benefits to using fingers, but it largely depends on the style you play and for what you want I'd stick with a pick. There can be some snobbery about pick vs fingers (usually from the fingers style players), but at the end of the day it's the results you get that count. There are amazing players of both styles that sound incredible.

Hmm. No experience of the Deans at all I'm afraid, though a quick google reveals they've got the body shapes and and headstock to suggest that neck dive could be a problem. Aside from that most of the Metal Man models have pickups right next to the bridge, which is the prime picking area for an aggressive punk/rock sound - though if you're considering one maybe you play a little further up the strings anyway. The simple answer is give it a try and see how it sounds and feels to you. For comparison try a Vintage modified Precision - the Precision is pretty much the yardstick for punk/rock type stuff, and the VMs have been getting very well received by all who've tried them. You can pick them up for £175 delivered from Thomann.de, so you could use that to haggle with your local shop.

[quote name='Bloodaxe' post='27656' date='Jul 5 2007, 10:53 PM']Next... [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro-II-RS-The-Cat-Bass-Matsumoku_W0QQitemZ330142478982QQihZ014QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"][b]The CAT[/b][/url] This has been knocking about for a couple of weeks now &, oddly, attracting no interest - no PayPal the reason? Anyway £80 seems a steal.[/quote] £80 is a good price. Though not as good as the £26 odd he paid for it (I did a completed items search when he first listed it). Maybe people were figuring it's comparatively overpriced if such bargains were to be had.

$500-600 should get you a Fender Japan precision or jazz, or maybe a US made Highway. I'd probably be inclined to go for a japanese one as they can eclipse the US made basses in terms of quality. You've got a lot of choice at that price, but both the Jazz and Precision are classics that should hold their price well. Be sure to try both though, as they're very different in both sound and feel. Who are your favourite players/bands by the way? I usually find people starting out are happiest with something similar to what their heros play.

Seems like it's a highway so £375 isn't a bad price, but not a huge bargain.

[quote name='Clunge' post='25837' date='Jul 2 2007, 12:00 AM']Hehe, sorry to contradict but I'm 99.99% certain he doesn't use a Micro Synth (being something of a Wolstenholme fanboy n'all ). + I'd like to try and get that sound using just one unit if possible, mainly to keep my board nice and compact.[/quote] Don't be sorry - you've just set me straight! In a weird bit of synchronicity, its seems he does also use the Bassballs though. [url="http://www.bassplayer.com/story.asp?storycode=15875"]http://www.bassplayer.com/story.asp?storycode=15875[/url]

[quote name='Clunge' post='25730' date='Jul 1 2007, 08:17 PM']Well the Museier the sound, the better. The Flying Tomato sounds like a fairly good bet as does the GI Fuzz, do they sound good with bass? Also, anyone who's owned/tried either, which offers the smoothest tone? - the GI or the FT? Cheers, I'm really not that knowledgeable about all this stuff .[/quote] Sorry Clunge - I had a totally different sound in mind and yeah, unless you get lucky secondhand its above your price limit. Though oddly enough Chris Wolstenholme does use a micro synth, inline with a Big Muff. A Bassballs and big muff might do the trick. I could make a few more suggestions, but I doubt your wallet would appreciate them.

[quote name='Clunge' post='25677' date='Jul 1 2007, 06:08 PM']Instead of making a new thread, I'll shove what I'm looking for here. Basically, I'm looking for a really smooth, synthy bazz fuzz which gives tonnes of sustain and maintains as much of the lows as possible. I have a throaty, gravelly bass sound covered but I'm looking for the other end of the spectrum. Any unit/pedal suggestions are welcome, prefs not about £125 if possible, though I might be able to stretch.[/quote] Above your budget, but the EH Bass Micro Synth will give you some nice synthy distortion, and a whole lot more as well.

Yeah, Mark King is a first rate bass player. But when he really lets fly I think he can on occasions let his virtuosity get in the way of a song.

To be fair, most of those suggestions are just simple basslines - which doesn't make them crap per se. A crap bassline IMHO is one that actually detracts from a song. Something that Mark King has been guilty of at times.

I'm not sure about about neck width, but Rickenbacker have certainly messed about with the neck profile over the years, which might make it feel like a wider neck. 60's necks were very slim (and breakable) and were strengthened at the end of the decade with a bigger volute at the headstock and a chuckier profile. Rickenbacker seem to have changed the neck profile almost on a whim since the beginning of the eighties, though nothing major. Ricks are still handmade (or should that be hand crafted) so it may be that they deliberately allow differences in neck profiling. I know Gordon Smith guitars are made like this to give the player a bit of choice according to their personal preferences.

Bassassin - It sounds like the Precision copy you've got is pretty similar to the Kay I learnt on. Natural finish, body made from 6 pieces of wood (3 pieces top and bottom), six bolt neck (although it appeared to be one piece) and weighed a ton. The pickups had no top end whatsoever though, and as the neck was glued as well there was nothing I could do to improve the fairly dire action at the dusty end. Oh, happy memories.