DiMarco

I took the plunge some months ago and bought my first Ampeg - a used market SVT4-pro for about 700 euro.
Thing turned out to be in NOS shape, not a speck of dust on the inside or outside of it.

Long story short I have stopped using my nineties Trace Elliot amps this one swipes the floor with those except for the full valve "Hexa Valve".
Lots of warmth with clarity and heft it makes my basses come to life and feel more powerful.

So that's my vote. Used market SVT-4 pro. Now my go-to amp.

11 minutes ago, Sarah5string said:

Had my audition. The guy who was doing mine was lovely, but of course as soon as he started recording my performance piece I went into panic mode and started sweating all over lol.

Apparently there was a bit of lag but he said he could tell that what I was playing was right from my hand positions as he knew the track well honestly himself.

In the end he only got need to do the one piece and didn't ask me to do a separate piece to show groove, timing etc as said he was really happy with what I played and that I did really well.

Long story short, I got in!

Looks like the next couple of years are going to be a fast track to bass awesomeness

Great! congrats and WELL DONE!

The instrument is only half the equation. Some great sounding tracks were recorded with Stingrays for instance. I have to cut both lows and treb on my Ray to make it sound good. My Warwick Thumb needs some help in the bottom end from an amp or external pre in order to shine.

Make it work. Every bass can sound proper.

DSLR pic.

Cleaned, oiled, waxed. Pic taken with Nikon DSLR. Oh boy...

24 minutes ago, triplebass said:

 But can't really risk getting one online as there's no guarantee it'll be one of the latest ones that are supposed to be better and have better QC?

There's a 60 day money back guarantee @ Thomann - no questions asked.
I think that allows you to take the plunge more easily. If you send it back, they will mail you a UPS packing slip.

Check the comments. Thoughts still seem to widely vary...
The bass reviewed sounds really good though.

8 hours ago, TheGreek said:

I use Lemon oil (how long have I had the same bottle??) on dark wood fretboards ONLY when I change strings and clean the fretboard (together) or if the fretboard looks/ feels dry.

I've had basses that really benefitted from being oiled - never known one to have any negative outcome by being oiled.

^
What he said.

Oh why Brexit. That is one awesome playing and sounding bass.

24 minutes ago, NickA said:

 

Oh yes indeed.  Pick up a thumb or a dolphin and feel that wood.  Some poor sod had to carve that! ( Though my own dolphin is cnc ).  Need big hands for a 6 mind, doubt I could reach the B string.

My hands aren't big and the neck on a Thumb NT6 isn't very wide either. Look at my Yamaha.
It is simply a matter of correct hand positioning. No left hand thumb dangling over the edge of the neck! 🙂

12 minutes ago, Lfalex v1.1 said:

Aren't they all CNC routed? Maybe the Masterbuilts aren't, but I reckon the rest are. 

They used to be hand carved back in the day. Nowadays all the rough work is done by CNC. I do believe they sand by hand and to some other fine work in the custom shop.

They were just too grimey. It's an old bass so I don't want the pickup covers to look like brand new...
So I just tried this trick and was amazed by the result

Before:

After:

How? Using toothpaste and a microfiber cloth.

Neat no?

Just oiled my fretboard because it needed it. Dunlop 65 lemon oil as ever.
Maple and ebony don't need oiling. Wengé does.

Also waxed the Bubinga. Because it needed it.

Still needs cleaning and polishing. Picked up this baby today. @Kev might dig it. It's a 1990.

5.4kg on the bathroom scale. Not the lightest ever bass. The Yamaha weighs in at 4.8kg.
 

Will make decent pics with a DSLR once I cleaned and waxed it, and replaced those awful strings.
Battery compartment showed a leaking 9v has been in there. I think the bass has been stowed away unused for a very long time.

I like old Warwicks over the newer ones  though. I have no real reason why.

The neck is asymmetrical on the back which is really nice ergonomically. I wonder what I should use to remove all the grime before waxing it. Common soap?

3 hours ago, Paulhauser said:

@DiMarco how are you liking the Thumb? Any pics of it? I recently got my Thumb NT6, a fairly recent one and that piqued my interest in earlier NT6's. 

Picked it up today. Truss rod works, but contra: Lefty tighty righty loosy. Neck is awesome. Stringspacing tighter then the Yam. Strings on it are at least a decade old though... A new pack of Fodera strings arrives on wednesday.

Loving my jp1 as well @Cairobill. Think I know which bass you bought. It was up on this forum, right?

I just bought my 2nd six string. A Warwick Thumb NT from 1990 with Bartolini pickups.
Cheers! Marco

Unfollowed. Too much cow poop going on.

25 minutes ago, BoomTing said:

Amen to This. Enjoy Your lovely Yamaha DiMarco, don't listen to the detractors & bass police they can do what they want.

No worries, I have been going my own way for 30+ years on bass now.. Starting off on a fretless 4 string in 1990, playing hardcore metal on it.
Even back then the stuff I did made people raise a brow. Whatever you guys do be authentic to yourself BUT keep an open mind towards others. Me I want to keep learning and exploring so there's no telling what I will be playing next year, maybe a fan fret monster of some sort? Or even an upright or a balalaika bass.... There really is no limit and it is such fun!

This morning I have been jamming on my 8 string (4 with octaves) and even that now plays more easily and faster then ever before.
I do blame my six string. It forces me to improve my hand positioning and this pays off on all my other basses as well. For this reason alone I would encourage every bassist to play a six for a while even if only at home. It also expands your fretboard knowledge since when you include some chords - it makes the fretboard boxes tick (LOL!).

Ah you're still here... The six string works and sounds great.
But the five string Fodera has been regaining its ground a bit again. I prefer its character.
Life is good. It doesn't matter how many strings a bass has. Love them all.

Still, playing a six is intriguing and I do reach for it every day.

That said, I use valve and hybrid valve/class AB amps mostly. They just pack more punch.

But then Andertons are selling TC RH750 for 349 quid!

https://www.andertons.co.uk/bass-dept/bass-amps/bass-amp-heads/tc-electronic-rh750-bass-amp-head

I have owned both the VT500 and RH750 and the TC to me is a much better sounding and more flexible amp.
The VT500 D.I. out responds to the master volume on the amp, rendering that D.I. useless.

Sounds really nice and tight. I went for the Yamaha JP 1 (34", 19mm spacing) signature instead so no longer in the market for a six string.
Still, have a free bump on me Will!