simesf

[quote name='owen' timestamp='1494660248' post='3297615'] You swapped a perfectly good bass just for how it looked? I would totally do that as well. I salute you [/quote] Oh thank you! I thought I was the only one here who was superficial. It comes from playing a 6 string (you know, the squeaky type) for many years.

Just took delivery of my second one yesterday. A California VM5 in natural finish with black scratchplate. Actually I part exchanged it for my other VM5 at Bass Direct. The old one was very nice indeed but I'm shallow and I couldn't get round the fact that I didn't like the tobacco sunburst and tortoise shell finish. But I spent 3 years being very happy with the sound and build quality. I made the swap by courier - I was happy to do so because of Sandbergs reputation for consistency in the QA department. So now I have a bass that I love looking at as well as playing.

Well thanks to one and all for the replies. In the end I plumped for a G&L L2000 tribute which should arrive tomorrow. Family commitments mean that I can't make it down to Bass Direct so I rolled the dice with a brand I'm more familiar with. I have a cheap Yamaha 5 string which I hardly ever use but tbh the B string was messing with my 'the lowest string is an E' mentality. But today, after over 30 years of 6 strings I finally saw the light - big time. I loaded up a few drum loops and just played a few simple bass lines over the top. And an hour later I was still there, improvising & developing the groove, trying out a few novice thumb slaps on the neck, seeing how the melody could alter and morph around the beat, getting ragged fingers (on my right hand? Mad!) and more to the point, connecting with the rhythm and feeling it all in my gut in a way I have never done with a lead guitar. Don't get me wrong; I love my - what do bassists call a lead/rhythm guitar? But lead guitar connects with the bit of me that wants to sing. That bass I'd ignored for so long connected with the bit of me that wants to dance. So, at the weekend the old Yamaha goes back to the person I'd bought it from to help them out with cashflow. But tomorrow the G&L is due to arrive. Tomorrow is going to be a good, good day. Oh; and the time I've spent recently on the Bass Direct website, leering in wonder at the things you all already knew so well...

Hello everyone, first time poster here so for any and all stupid things I write my apologies. After much googling and reading reviews about possible mods I'm caught between buying a G&L tribute L2500 (and getting a single coil mod for it straight away) and an MTD KZ5 and maybe swapping out the stock pickups for a pair of Nordstrands at some point. One of the first things I'll be doing with either is putting on some flatwounds since I need some 70s disco bass for a project. To that end, my main consideration is how much either guitar can sound like a Precision/Jazz bass. After that it's about versatility. I have a soft spot for G&L since I've had a Comanche for many a year that I've been happy with. From what I read the G&L will do a Precision sound and with a coil split mod can do a Jazz as well. But being shallow and seduced by how things look (been playing 6 stringers a long time) I've been cooing over a KZ5 at Bass Direct which also look to be very versatile tonally. I've read many good things about both but a users opinion would be most welcome. ...and if your opinion is to tell me to go away and stop presenting this embarrasment of rich choices as a dilemma then fair enough.