JapanAxe

NBM = New Bass Month. Yes it's over a month since I acquired my latest bass. I prefer to post after I've done at least one gig, which in this case was last night.

I bought a Dingwall Super PZ5 through BC some 4½ years ago and really enjoyed it. Earlier this year I got a D-Roc 4 and the longer scale was a revelation, which got me thinking about other Dingwall 5s. As luck would have it, another member was selling his NG2, was interested in the PZ5, and happened to live along my route to a gig. A meet took place and a deal was done - we each love what we got from the deal, so smiles all round. This is the third 5-er I've owned (the first being a G&L L1505) but I finally feel comfortable on a 5. The narrower neck (by 2mm) and longer and firmer low strings make it a joy to play, and the active electronics are another game-changer.

By way of context, I had settled on Precisions as my bass 'home', which is one of the reasons that I went for the PZ5. You can do a lot with a Precision, but maybe not everything. I had also settled on passive electronics, so until recently this NG2 would not have got a second glance from me on the wall of a music shop - too many knobs, and not just one PP3 battery but two of the buggers!

The plus points:

• Plays like a dream - if the action were any lower it would play itself.
• The Darkglass Tone Capsule - instead of a treble control it has high mids (2.8kHz) which is into the presence band - turn it up for MM-style sizzle. The mids control adds punch without too much honk, or you can dial it back for a more old-school sound.
• Emergency escape switch - if the batteries die, finish the gig in passive mode.
• Loads of excellent sounds to be had - a very modern-sounding bass on the whole.
• Plays in tune all the way up the neck on every string - not something I could depend on from a Fender.
• The white/tort colour combo is lush (originally came with a black scratchplate).

The (lesser) minus points:

• No tone control in passive mode. At all.
• The jack socket doesn't like right-angle jacks, they tend to pop themselves out. However, the location is perfect for a wireless transmitter dongle.
• No Elixir strings is long enough for the low B position (please correct me if I'm wrong).

Last week I rehearsed with a band playing a mix of pop, R'n'B, soul, electro-funk, and Afro-beat. Last night's gig with them was at Thatcham Festival. The guy in charge of the stage insisted that I put my amp stage right to 'balance' with the guitar amp stage left, but with no fewer than 4 vocal mics at the front, I had to stand back so that I was no further forward than the baffle of my Super Twin. Miraculously, I could still hear myself ok and I can report that the NG2 100% did the business. Never before have I played 10ths on a bass at the 16th fret, let alone live!

Although you can get a kit to convert an NG2 to an NG3, I don't feel any need to do so, as the 4 pickup combinations already give me everything I need. And if I really want 3 pickups I can get my D-Roc out.

Schecter Rob DeLeo PJ. Probably the last thing I bought on the basis of ‘This will do’ rather than ‘Hell yeah!’. Soon got fed up with it, and put off PJ basses for life. Couldn’t get what I wanted for it on eBay so left it with Hank’s in Denmark Street. They sold it but their cheque bounced and then they went into some arrangement with creditors that meant that I got nothing. At least I was able to write it off against tax.

1 hour ago, dmccombe7 said:

Tribute thing is good fun with the right people but there's never a guarantee with any band. Sounds like you've had enough tho.

How long has new guitarist been with the band. ? Maybe just needs a bit more time to  bed in ?

Unless the guitarist is an experienced electrician or electrical background i'd be very wary of anything they've hobbled together for mains supply.

You know the old saying :-

"Red to green, black to brown and blue to F**k." 

Dave

 

It’s not the guitarist, it’s a lot of things about (a) that band, (b) playing in pubs.

And yes, it doesn’t matter how good the band is if the people are a-holes.

I’ve heard it said more than once that there are three important things in a band: the music, the money, the craic. All three and you’re golden; any two is fine; just one and you’ll never be happy.

I am a very experienced and competent guitarist and bass player with decent backing vocals and some lead vocal ability. I am comfortable in most styles (particularly Pop, Soul, Rock, Indie, Country), a sight-reader on bass, a fast learner, and I have a good ear.

I am looking for quality gigs where a high standard of musicianship, organisation and presentation is called for, with fees to match - typically this would be in a function or tribute band (I am well acquainted with both).

I have excellent gear and reliable transport.

Area covered: M4 corridor, South coast to Birmingham; further afield for the right gig.

https://guitarist4hire.wixsite.com/graeme-scott
https://soundcloud.com/guitargraeme

I am a very experienced and competent guitarist and bass player with decent backing vocals and some lead vocal ability. I am comfortable in most styles (particularly Pop, Soul, Rock, Indie, Country), a sight-reader on bass, a fast learner, and I have a good ear.

I am looking for quality gigs where a high standard of musicianship, organisation and presentation is called for, with fees to match - typically this would be in a function or tribute band (I am well acquainted with both).

I have excellent gear and reliable transport.

Area covered: M4 corridor, South coast to Birmingham; further afield for the right gig.

https://guitarist4hire.wixsite.com/graeme-scott
https://soundcloud.com/guitargraeme

Played a sea-front bar in Weston-super-Mare with a rock’n’roll band that I often work with.

The positives:

Nice location opposite the pier.

Felt like I played well.

My rig sounded great (‘73 P > Demeter amp > BF Super Twin).

Paid gig.

Second gig with Boss WL20 wireless setup - loving it!

The negatives:

60 miles each way plus parking to pay for.

Loading area near the venue full of parked cars - owners obviously read ‘LOADING ONLY’ to mean ‘FREE PARKING’. Never mind, just blocked them in while I loaded out.

Guitarist’s DIY extension lead kept tripping the circuit breaker while we were setting up until I identified it as the cause.

Very few customers in the bar.

(New) lead guitarist hadn’t quite got his poop together.

I’m fed up with pub gigs and looking for some better quality work next year i.e. function band or tribute act.

19 minutes ago, Leonard Smalls said:

That's my understanding too...

I spoke to PRS about this a few years ago when we started playing music in our shop. I asked if I should submit our playlist to ensure that the right artists got the money, but they said it didn't work like that - basically the artists received money as a percentage of how much they'd previously made. So if I played, say Sugar Minott or the Monochrome Set, then Paul McCartney or Ed Sheeran would get the majority. Which I feel is a bit appalling!

I was playing on a rock’n’roll gig when a guy from PRS visited. He introduced himself to the landlord and then to us. We gave him a copy of the set list and he sat and worked on his laptop and scoffed a bar meal while we played the first set. So I got the impression that people other than Ed Sheeran and Paul McCartney might  benefit from that.

Ben bought a pedal form me. He paid promptly and let me know when it arrived safely.

I'd be happy to deal again.

Played rhythm guitar with a rock’n’roll band at a social club. It was the bass player’s last gig with them following some unspecified falling-out with the BL and you could have cut the atmosphere with a knife. When it came time to load out I had to dodge the pavement pizzas in the car park - how delightful!

I used this in my country trio just to handle vocals and it worked a treat. I held onto it on the grounds that it was too useful to get rid of, but I realise I've only used it a couple of times at home since, and if I sell it I won't have to sell my Jazzmaster!

Briefly, it's a line array PA system which is ideal for solo or duo acts, or vocals at rehearsal. The spread of sound is such that I used to use it without extra monitors, positioned to one side of the stage and facing the diagonally opposite corner of the room. I used it at an outdoor gig a couple of times and the vocals could be clearly heard at the far end of the field.

The ToneMax mixer takes its power from the main unit and provides 3 mono and 1 stereo channels, each with its own assignable EQ and effects. You can save your settings for a given band or whatever. Alternatively you can use your own mixer and plug it into the jack input on the base unit (controlled by a master volume knob on the latter).

The whole thing can be set up in under 5 minutes!

The full spec is here, and the owner's guide here.

The system comprises:

• L1 base unit and line array column (in 2 sections)
• 2x bass bins
• ToneMatch mixer
• All necessary cables to connect the elements
• Spare ethernet cable
• All cases and covers
• Paperwork
• A man bag for transporting the ToneMatch
• Original boxes if you want them (not shown - currently in the loft but easy enough to fetch down)

Condition I would describe as 'gigged but good'. There is some scuffing to the 'foot' sides of the bass bins (see photos), and the 3 rubberised encoder knobs on the ToneMatch have become a little tacky to the touch (which I have improved somewhat by cleaning them up!). Everything works as it should.

I am looking for £1,250 £1,100 by collection or meet-up. If collecting, I am happy to show you how to set up and operate it. The system weighs 50kg, which is light for an all-in-one PA, but too heavy to be sending at reasonable cost. NO TRADES THANKS.

10 hours ago, Downunderwonder said:

Doubful. If 15dB attenuation can make you deaf to the music you have bigger problems. 

I thought about this and realised that the one time I used my ACS in both ears I was playing outdoors under a gazebo, and that was the bigger problem.

Although I do have some hearing loss in the upper frequencies, I think the real issue is volume wars - if I turn my amp up to hear my guitar over the singer’s monitor, it will be too loud out front. And yes I have my amp up on a stand, not firing at my knees. IEMs would be the ideal solution - I have a good set but I can’t see the band splashing out on them (and I’m a dep so I don’t really get a vote).

On 19/09/2023 at 22:41, chris_b said:

 

You need to play Dingwall basses.

FTFY!

Also it’s interesting how many posts in this thread are qualified by reference to the contributor’s own experience and preferences - which is exactly as it should be. If we want a barney we can always go to TalkBass…

15 hours ago, chris_b said:

 

Get proper moulded ACS plugs and save your hearing.

The trouble is, I won't be able to hear anything then - not through deafness, but because the earplugs are so effective.

I have been using hearing protection at gigs for the last 20 years. I’ve mainly used Doc’s Pro Plugs which provide some attenuation without losing the definition (which for me is the big problem with foam plugs). I recently got a pair of non-fitted 16dB ACS. Earlier this year I realised I had tinnitus, which for me manifests as a high-pitched whistling. Fortunately it’s only really noticeable in quiet environments, and doesn’t cause me any bother.

The on-stage sound level varies a lot depending on the band I’m playing with. I dep with a tribute band where no-one uses an amp on stage and although it has taken me a while to adjust to IEMs, this means much lower sound levels in my ears. At the other end of the scale is a pub band where the main vocalist’s wedge monitor is excruciatingly loud. I can cope with this by putting an ACS in my more sensitive ear and a Doc loosely in the other. I still need to hear my guitar amp without it being too loud for the room and the rest of the band. If we can’t come up with a workable solution then I’m minded to stop working with them, which would be a shame because it’s steady work and they’re nice folks.

17 minutes ago, Owen said:

You cannot spell Bass without a B. Outside now, 4 string people. I will fight you all. 

I’ll hold your coat.

I’m on my third 5-string and I feel like I’ve finally found one that I can get comfortable with - but I’ll save all that for a proper NBD post. I probably would stick with 4s but there are songs that really need the range of a 5. However, to me a 5-string is almost like a different instrument from a 4 - it needs to be addressed differently, eg you can play further up the neck and across the strings.

Welcome aboard Jess. We consider ourselves a friendly bunch, and we've all 'only been playing bass for about...' some period of time or other!

SOLD pending

If you fancy one of the boss RE pedals but find yourself strapped for cash, this is for you!

With 7 delay combinations form 3 virtual playback heads, plus tap tempo and a looper, this pedal is hard to beat for value. If you want to edit the settings and bring in the onboard reverb, you can connect the pedal to your computer and download the free editor software.

One small scratch on the base, hook velcro already fitted for installing on your pedalboard. Boxed with manual.

Yours for £40 delivered in UK.

Priority in my guitar rack tends to go to those guitars that earn their keep on gigs, and although I have gigged this one a fair bit, it's more for fun at home these days. I will particularly miss the nice wide neck above the 12th fret that makes the Mr Brightside intro at least somewhat feasible for my sausage fingers...

This is a 2015 Mexican Fender 60s Jazzmaster in the short-lived light 'lacquer' finish, in luscious Surf Green. It has had the following upgrades:

• Mastery vibrato and bridge
• Mojo pickups
• New wiring harness
• Cavities screened with copper tape

The Mastery vibrato is the earlier model, which can be prone to adjusting itself downwards as you play. I have locked the adjustment threads in the two posts with a dab of glue, at optimum height. This is easy to remove if you like, and you still have full height adjustment on the bridge saddle pieces.

Weight is a well-balanced 3.6kg (7lb 15oz in old money).

There is some light dinging to the body and neck but that was part of the idea of the lacquer finish and it certainly didn't put me off when I bought it. I have set it up to play easily, with a nice set of Elixir 10s fitted.

These offset guitars are often too big for standard cases and gig bags, but this one comes complete with a light-weight fitted Rockbag semi-hard case.

Price is £950 by collection or meetup. I'm in Swindon but quite often gig around Bristol and Gloucestershire. If I can obtain suitable packaging then I will add delivery as an option.

No trades on this one thanks.

And replied.

Still available.

Anyone playing in or around Dudley tonight? Staying in Kingswinford and Mrs Axe fancies a look out.

On 24/08/2023 at 14:19, JapanAxe said:

I'm playing (mainly) rhythm guitar with excellent Bowie tribute Rebel Heroes at the Old Court in Windsor on 9th September - tickets still available here.

 

 

It's tonight! And it's going to be HOT...

Bargain programmable digital delay anyone?

In no particular order:

Albert Lee: Albert Lee

U2: The Unforgettable Fire

Television: Marquee Moon

Lionel Richie: Can’t Slow Down

Roxy Music: Avalon

The Dixie Dregs: Dregs of the Earth 

Oscar Peterson: We Get Requests