Musky

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='11722' date='Jun 4 2007, 10:54 AM']Bearing in mind there's diamonds in every rough, quality-wise there's light years between your average TV-logo '71 Fender and your average s-serial '79 (for example). The earlier TV-logo basses have rocketed in recent years, although there's still bargains to be had.[/quote] Yeah, there's a general perception that Fender quality gradually got worse ever since CBS took over, and is bourn out buy subtle changes to the contouring and neck pocket routs (on teles at least) that made production cheaper. So might be expected that on average 71's might be better than 79's. But conversely, an 83 is also more likely to be a decent instrument than a 73. Certainly eighties Fenders seem to be considerably lighter than most seventies ones.

Yeah that's a 3000 that Mani's playing - it's got a notch in the pickguard just below the neck. The guy from the Arctics is playing a 3001, where the pickguard follows the line in one smooth curve.

It's not the perceived value of the instruments I'm questioning so much as the logic behind it. '75 Fenders seem to go for more than '77's, for instance. Yet as far as I'm aware the only differences were the serial used and finish options. So there seems to be a logic that dictates that the earlier the bass the better it is - I mean, surely people can't be buying these instruments purely for investment? Although 80's Fenders will surely climb in value, I wondering whether people are eventually going to twig that, on average, they were in fact higher quality than 70's ones.

Like it says - where's the logic in the pricing of older Fenders? 70's models can go for a lot of money nowadays, yet they're universally recognised as probably the lowest point in Fender production. Three bolt necks on Jazzes, ridiculously heavy bodies and some really terrible quality control abounded throughout the decade. Yet people are prepared to shell out based apparently purely on the age of the instrument. Pre 'S' serial models seem to go for more than an equivalent 'S' series model, even though there may be only months between the two models and as far as I know the only difference was the actual serial. When Bill Schultz took over in '81, he started addressing the quality problems Fender had been having. Yet these instruments are a snip compared to, say, a '79. There have been other landmarks in Fenders history, like the introduction of the Corona factory, and a complete rejigging and expansion of the factory in '98, but people seem to ignore the things that affect the actual production of the instruments in favour of an older date. Anyone else think that, on the whole, 70's Fenders are over priced? And do you think the bottom will ever fall out of the market?

A quick google reveals that Chris Wolstenholme still uses a Marshall B150 when he can get away with it, so one of those is an option. He also uses Pedulla basses, so maybe a Jazz bass (Squier?) might be in order. It's not a short scale, but you get a very different sound with short scale basses anyway, due to the lower string tension.

Mani used to play a paint spattered thing, which as far as I remember was a 4005. The bass he's got in that picture is a 3000, identifiable by the notch in the pickguard below the strings.

It's a Ricky 3001 - only produced for 10 years or so as a budget model. I think Mani used a 4005.

For Jam nights check out [url="http://www.electricbluesclub.co.uk/blues_jams.html"]http://www.electricbluesclub.co.uk/blues_jams.html[/url] Not sure how up to date it is, so a call to the venue might be in order, but there are links to other listings as well.

Sticking guitars in the wrong category is something I've seen more obvious scammers do - it makes bidders think 'wow, the guy's screwed up and the bidding's low because no-one else has seen it'. Of course people do make mistakes, but the guy has also got a Gretsch sitting in the Accessories>Strings section. Maybe he's kosher, but to my mind the wrong category + private auction + 3 day listing = cash on pick up only.

I've had a lot of trouble finding simple male to male connectors as well. You'd think that you could pick them up all over the place, but I've only ever found daisy chain types. I've considered OBBM before but, though undoubtedly quality, they do work out quite expensive.

£800 isn't really much of a bargain, considering it's age and condition. Another Rick auction for a '73 just ended with a final price of £795 - better condition as well. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Rickenbacker-4001-Bass-Guitar-1973_W0QQitemZ190115339668QQihZ009QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Rickenbacker-4001-Ba...1QQcmdZViewItem[/url]

+1 Where else is BargyBass going to post about Roberts strings?

Chipboard? No idea what they're made of nowadays, but I've seen enough battered old ones to know that they were definitely ply. Maybe just the rear baffle is chipboard, which is a practice that Marshall uses.

I think Chris is right that high value instruments that are out of reach of many young bass players will always reach a premium after 20 odd years, but also I think it's almost impossible to second what the market will be doing in 20 years time, as so much of it is down to high profile players. Looking back, Beck's association with Danelectro, Johnny Ramone's with Mosrite, and Kobain's with Musicmasters have all pushed up the price of what were cheap instruments. It's nothing to do with quality per se, just peoples' perception of that quality (and of course fashion). So if a high profile player started using, say a Gibson Victory, we could expect the price to rocket. So yeah, Aria Pros and Westones might shoot up in value, but only if they gets that celebrity endorsement. Having said that, I'm amazed at how comparatively cheap vintage Ricks are - high profile classic basses that are in vogue with many bands at the moment. Their fashionable status only seems to have benefitted the Jap copies at the moment.

No plans for you, but the dimensions are W26 x H48 x D16. The slanted bits at the back are 12" from the front and are 5.75" long. 3/4" ply is used. You should be able to draw up your own plans from that. I took the dimensions from a friends cab when I was half considering building one, but I didn't get round to opening it up to measure the distance between the internal partitions, though I'd imagine that they equally divided the cab. It's equally possible that the top and bottom partitions were slightly wider spaced so that each compartment had identical internal volumes.

Not meaning to step on The Funk's toes here, but Time Out has just landed on my doormat. Gaga Four + James Stelling Quartet + E.R.Q. feat Big G + the Soulquarians - Jazz Soldiers at Notting Hill Arts Club (£5, free before 8pm). [i]Musician run night of funky jazz and soul, featuring members of Soweto Kinch's band.[/i] Ian Shaw and Friends - 606 Club, SW10. (8.30pm, £8) [i]Our fave British male jazz singer is always at his best in the intimate environs of the 606 or Vortex, so expect brilliant, seat-of-his-pants improv, soulful reconstructions of pop and jazz standards and lots of new material from his forthcoming, self-penned album, plus guests and a breathtaking Joni Mitchell cover.[/i] John Williams/John Etheridge - Pizza Express Jazz Club, W1. (7.30pm, £20) [i]Classy duo of virtuosic Etheridge and noted classical composer Williams. Expect jazz, classical, West African and Latin American music as heard on their album, 'Places Between'.[/i] Pip Pyles Bash - Vortex Dalston, N16. (8pm, £8) [i]Former band mates (joined here by fine drummer Mark Fletcher) pay tribute to the late drummer of Pyle, on eof the key members of the Canterbury scene.[/i]

So do you reckon the bass in that auction might be an El Maya, or maybe another brand? It's kind of a shame that there's no identifying marks on the bass, as it might have added another piece to the jigsaw that is IDing Rickenfakers.

That looks like it's one of those Bach copies that Bassasin posted about on BT. Almost certain to pulled in no time. Incidentally, that Ibanez that went up on ebay having 'sold' a week earlier has just sold again for £311. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300110680309&ssPageName=MERC_VIC_RCRX_Pr3_PcY_BID_IT&refitem=300104436587&itemcount=3&refwidgetloc=closed_view_item&usedrule1=CrossSell_LogicX&refwidgettype=cross_promot_widget"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...s_promot_widget[/url]

The top one is quite interesting - I didn't know any jap copies were made with twin truss rods. In fact I always thought the lack of the double TR was a foolproof way of identifying a copy.

There are good and bad sounding plywoods as much as there are good and bad sounding solid woods, so it doesn't automatically follow that a solid wood bodied guitar will sound better. If you compare in the same price range, you'd probably be hard pushed to tell one from another just by the sound. Which of course is why there are always so many owners of Squires from the early nineties trying to figure out if their guitar is ply or wood on Fender forums.

I spoke to Bruce Foxton about his Ricks once, and he said that he switched to Precisions in the early eighties. He'd apparently tried changing the pickups and sticking a badass on, but nothing would get the bottom end he wanted. I'm not so sure about rarely playing a Rick live either - I saw The Jam 3 times in the seventies, and each time he was playing a Rick.

I'm not sure that using a guitar amp would create any problems, providing you are using an amp with the headroom. I've used a bog standard Marshall 4x12 guitar cab for 23 years without any problems, so the speakers should be able to stand up to it. I think (and I stand to be corrected) that bass frequencies make greater demands on the power supply, so if you're pushing the amp hard you might run into problems there. Having said that, I've done a gig with a 100w guitar combo before, which didn't seem to suffer from any ill effects. Maybe rolling off the bottom end could be an alternative to a full blown crossover though.

*Looks round* Nothing a lick of paint wouldn't sort out. Well done all round chaps!