Dingus

I use two kitchen scales, an old fashioned analogue one and a digital one, and if the weight tallies on both of them then I know it is probably accurate. The digital one tends to not want to settle on a final figure but fluctuates between about an ounce lighter and heavier, but it still helps me verify the reading on the analogue scale .

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1401896693' post='2468024'] Stand on a bathroom scales holding the bass and note the weight A. Put the bass down and weigh yourself without it. Note the weight B. Take B from A and you have the weight of the bass. Alternatively, buy one of these. [url="http://www.google.co.uk/shopping/product/18134415226041566479?q=luggage+weigher&hl=en-GB&gbv=2&prmd=ivns&sa=X&ei=0j6PU9itO8KL7AaRvID4Dw&ved=0CCwQ8wIwAg"]http://www.google.co...ved=0CCwQ8wIwAg[/url] [/quote] The standing on a bathroom scale method is also way too imprecise to be much real use if you seriously want to know what a bass weighs, not least of all because bathroom scales are not calibrated precisely enough for you to see what the difference is . Also, the mechanisms in bathroom scales usually rely on springs and the inertia of holding the bass in your arms has an effect on how the spring reacts , giving an even more unreliable reading. Bare in mind that if the weight of a bass is really important to you, in most instances you need to know the true and accurate weight of the bass to within a couple of ounces in order for it to be properly useful to you . So when you are buying a bass from a shop or from an individual , bear in mind the weight they give you may well be fairly inaccurate, unless they have been lucky or unusually diligent in how they have gone about weighing it. The best thing for weighing a bass is a proper industrial postal scale , but they are expensive to buy .

[quote name='richardd' timestamp='1401896029' post='2468012'] T K MAX Luggage scales £2.99 must be one near GG [/quote] I've never used that particular scale, but the chances are that it is nowhere near precise enough to get a properly accurate weight for a bass. Most of the inexpensive domestic luggage scales have been up to half a pound out.

[quote name='hiram.k.hackenbacker' timestamp='1401894732' post='2467988'] There must be some way of finding out how much the particular model weighs without them doing it, even if you have to go to the manufacturer. [/quote] As others have pointed out already, there can be a considerable difference in weight between different individual examples of the same model of bass, quite often as much as a pound or even more.Even two planks from the same log can have drastically different weights.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1401893561' post='2467954'] Do they not need to weigh items when they post them out to customers? [/quote] In most cases, no they don't. They use a contract carrier and the prices for different sizes and weights are pre-agreed within certain parameters, i.e big packages ( a bass, for example) ), very big packages ( a cab) , small packages ( fx pedal) ,ect

[quote name='Jellyfish' timestamp='1401481503' post='2464168'] If only they did an official Myung signature... [/quote] I think the very tight string spacing might put off most potential customers. Six strings on a five string neck would be a struggle for most folks, I expect.

Another big fan of the Bongo here. I've said this before, but I struggle to see why so many people dislike the look of these basses. I think they are really beautiful, with an arch top and all kinds of chamfered contours and curves.( I often wish Mrs Dingus was so shapely, especially since she discovered the joy of scoffing Arctic Roll in front of the Jeremy Kyle Show. I've tried to get her interested in talking up a sport to get back into shape, but to be honest with you, it's looking like some form of no-holds-barred wrestling is the only really practical option at the moment) I love the look of the Bongo It perfectly matches the unapologetically modern and individualistic sound of those basses, and what a great sound it is. I honestly prefer the tone and overall vibe of the Bongo to boutique basses coasting three times as much. Just a really great design that is very practical and incredibly potent.

Single coils seem to have a naturally extended treble response which gives a sense of detail and nuance to the overall tone of the bass. However, on some designs of single coil introducing hum-cancelling features can reduce that sense of airiness and "presence" and compromise the overall tone. Also, quite a few single coil pickups are overwound nowadays to beef them up a bit and make them louder , but the more wire you put on a pickup the more you decrease the upper frequency response, so it is a compromise between output and bandwidth in that respect. .

There are indeed loads of replacement pickups you could choose for you P Bass, and some have a more aggressive and up-front tone than others. You could try looking at the Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder and SPB-2 , or , the Di Marzio Model P and Will Power as a starting point. However, you may well find that just changing the pickup might not make your Roadworn P sound like your USA Fender did. There are so many factors as to what makes a bass sound the way it does, and the pickup is just one of them. The type of body wood and its' relative weight and density can have a big effect on the sound to, as can the type of finish on the bass. Most likely your heavyweight USA Fender had a relatively thick poly/acrylic finish on , whereas your Roadworn is relatively light and has a mostly sanded-off thin nitro finish, and that will undoubtedly make the tone a little bit softer and warmer by comparison. That said, you should still be able to get a tone like the one you are after with your stock Roadworn bass , even with the existing pickup, you probably just need to experiment with how you E.Q it maybe. That bass is a fine sounding P Bass just as it is and maybe you could just process its' natural tone a bit to get the results you want. The sound on that Queensrych track is probably far more to do with the sound processing than any particularly aggressive natural tone to that particular Precision Bass. Something like a Sansamp will get you into that sonic territory.

I know that Tim Commerford of RATM has got some custom Fender Jazz Basses and Lakland Joe Osborn basses with a Precision- width neck on them. I'm sure that if someone made a production version of that option, it would suit quite a few bass players.

In my idle moments ( there are many) I quite often think about what features I would have on my own signature bass, and which manufacturer I would allow to approach me about such a venture. That sounds quite egotistical doesn't it? Now that U2 are pulling the strings at Fender ( no pun intended) , that means they are no longer an option, that is for sure. At the moment in my twilight fantasy world , I am favouring the idea of a Musicman Bongo HH with a graphite neck and maybe series/parallel switching and / or selectable coils . That would do nicely. I would certainly want it to be sufficiently expensive enough to ensure that most ordinary people couldn't have one. Also, we wouldn't sell them to fat people.

I know that La Bella definitely make those strings for F Bass.

[quote name='JazzBassfreak' timestamp='1401218215' post='2461407'] So I just bought a banjo, it's a Barnes and Mullins Jasmine, at the minute I feel really intimidated. But even just twiddling about playing duelling banjos on it is awesome. It's so addictive to play! Any other banjo enthusiasts on here? [/quote] It's all fun and games until some hillbilly tells you that you've got a pretty mouth...

This one seems pretty feasible: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQLySgRW6y8

What about something by Beyonce: [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQ9BWndKEgs"]http://www.youtube....h?v=RQ9BWndKEgs[/url] [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwtNLUqkMY"]http://www.youtube....h?v=ViwtNLUqkMY[/url]

I am presuming that you specifically want suggestions of songs from very recently, like the Bruno Mars track, in which case I can't really think of any , because most recent chart music seems to just pass me by, to be honest with you. However, let me chance my arm and suggest this number: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PslEFsn3KaY[/media] It might be 45 years old, but it is still a crowd- pleaser, even for for a younger audience, and is likely to be fresh in people's minds this summer as I have it on good authority that it will feature in the television coverage of the World Cup in Brazil. It has to rank as one of the funkiest records ever, it's got a great bassline , and not a lot of bands can do it because it relies on having a brass section.

[quote name='leroydiamond' timestamp='1400981840' post='2458852'] Same story with me. I reckon the crappy straps I used in the past have as much to do with screwing up my shoulder as the heavy basses. Totally agree the nine and half pounds is a perfectly acceptable weight for a bass. The last bass I pulled the trigger on was a beautiful Fender CS custom classic. A real beauty it was and only 9 lb weight. However despite my best efforts I found it too heavy and it left me in considerable pain after gigs so I had to sell it on. I still think about it [/quote] I have found that a good strap helps quite a bit, and by far the best I have found is this one : http://www.levysleathers.com/product;cat,818;item,545;Bass-Guitar-Straps-MSS2-4 They are expensive, but they really are much better that anything else I have tried. It's the only strap I have found that really helps with a heavier bass. I know that Geddy Lee uses a similar extra- wide Levy's leather strap on his Jazz Basses nowadays , so he must be feeling the weight more with the advancing years, too .

What is for certain is that you can get some amazing bargains on this site, as well as peruse a very wide selection of basses, usually at realistic asking prices. Every day I see basses that are well worth the asking price and that someone could get great use out of, so Basschat is a fabulous resource in that respect. But every time someone buys a brand new bass from a retailer or builder and sells their old bass on this site, that is one less punter looking to buy and one more looking to sell, if you see what I mean. The pool of basses is constantly growing as people buy new ones, but the amount of people looking to buy basses is probably fairly static , so the result is a glut of unsold basses in the marketplace.

For me the most pertinent question is what the bleedin' hell is going on with Pat Metheney's hair? It's like his hairdresser has been playing a joke on him for the last forty years and no one dare tell him. Big Hair Metal has come and gone ( and come back again), but Big Hair Jazz ? Was the world ever ready for that?

[quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1401129264' post='2460406'] I don't see anyone having a problem selling a WAL, Travis Bean, 60s-70s Fenders & early Japanese Squiers at a good price. [/quote] [quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1401131626' post='2460446'] Yes i see. Thanks. It still amazes me what old Fenders go for even in these times. I bought a 1974 Fender Jazz for £400 c1990 which was the going rate at the time. In fact it stood in the shop unsold for months before i bought it. in the same shop was a new Japanese made Tune Bass Maniac for £800. Now i'd probably get around 2k for the Jazz while i picked up a Tune Bass Maniac recently for £200! [/quote] Well, here, my friend, you have hit on the crux of the matter. The reason basses either aren't selling at all or else are going for poor prices is that no one wants them enough . If a bass is desirable enough, like a Wal or a vintage Fender is at the moment , hard times or not, people will find the money to buy it for a decent price, often a high price if, as is often the case with such basses, supply is limited. However, the harsh truth is that most of the basses on offer in the Basschat marketplace are much of a muchness, and there are a lot of them. People may well have a very fine and functional instrument to sell and are usually asking a perfectly reasonable price, but there are more people offering such basses than there are punters in the market for them. If there are more people looking to move basses on than there are people looking to buy them, and the law of supply and demand ( can I claim my prize for being the first person to mention that in this thread?) means that as a result, prices will only go one way , and that is down. If your bass doesn't have a high desirability factor and capture people's imagination ( because that is where the compulsion to buy stems from) then you will struggle to sell it.

[quote name='leroydiamond' timestamp='1400952364' post='2458540'] The one good thing about having a screwed up shoulder is the it seriously limits GAS for basses. FFS I am having to use a Gruvegear duo strap with my 7lb Sadowsky! [/quote] I too have got a seriously knackered shoulder Leroy , probably mainly due to strapping on properly heavy basses like Ibanez Musicians and Wals from the age of twelve , but the hard facts are that some basses are, by necessity, on the slightly heavier side. For most ordinary guys, anything under nine and half pounds is usually O.K and not excessive .