Lfalex v1.1

Most of "They Might be Giants" output.

It was recently out of warranty and I couldn't prove that the lacquer cracks weren't my fault, so I didn't approach them. It had gone out of warranty by this point and I wasn't prepared to face the possibility of spending more money on it, so I sold it on.

It was a joke alright. I wasn't laughing, though. Use of the past tense deliberate. Bought from new. Sold on at a massive loss. Wouldn't have another. Shame it wasn't the one bass in Leicester Square incident. I'd have simply given it to them.

Gosh. That's a choice. Must go and listen to "Animation" again at some point. Guitar "combinations" I like; Stuart Adamson/Bruce Watson - Big Country, especially the old "bagpipe" style sounds. Eric Peterson/Alex Skolnick - Testament Raging Slab - the ever- changing mixture of rhythm/lead/picking/slide from the 3 guitarists.

My Streamline was a disaster. De- laminating fretboard, cracking lacquer, issues with the string clamp when not using DBE strings, poor implementation of series/ parallel switching. Also the only bass I've owned that had a batttery leak in it. /tangent

Looks like he has the same reliability issues with Status as I did... and even mine did a few gigs on its own before it started to dismantle itself. Still only ever used one bass at a gig. The venues that I played at meant it was just one more item to keep an eye on. If I'd had two on the evening that two large less-than-gentle men wanted to relieve me of my Warwick, I'd not have been quick enough to lose them across Leicester Square... Ah, those were the days!

I struggle with the fact that (as with almost everything in life) the theory is considerably less interesting than the practice. My fear is that it will erode my enjoyment of playing, and that's been in enough jeopardy before without theory pushing it over the cliff. I read about stuff and just think; "Er... what?" I think I'd probably get it if it wasn't so one- directional. Bouncing a few questions off of someone knowledgeable would probably resolve it. I guess I'm a prime candidate for lessons, but I struggle dramatically with tuition. Teachers only ever want to teach you what they want or think is best rather than what you actually want to investigate; "...We'll cover that in lesson #438"

Do I even dare? I'm trying to learn to play slap. I've looked at Youtube until my brain hurts and am getting nowhere. The frustration is compounded by two factors; I'm a reasonable (two) finger-style player (ear and technique > theory) an injury to my middle finger on my right (plucking) hand has turned me into James Jamerson- index or nothing. Online videos and tuition do precisely nothing to address useful basic questions to which I have no answers, so here goes... I hope also that this may give others a starting point or at least a basis for comparison. Instrument choice- 4 or 5? Active or passive? Single or twin pickups? String spacing- narrow or wide? Strings- Age, condition, material, gauge, design... does it even matter? Gain Architecture- Instrument volume up full? High gain and lower master volume? Or less aggressive gain settings? EQ- On the instrument and on the amp. Do pedals/ fx help? Which leads nicely to... Compression- None? A little? Or a lot? Technique- Where does the motion originate; the elbow or the wrist? What even is thumb up and thumb down? What direction am I striking the string in; downwards or inwards so it hits the last fret? Where should I hit it? Up by the neck, over the pickup? How hard!? Which digit should I pop with? Index, middle or either? How much finger should I by using to pop with? the best sound I can get is by using so much it won't fit between the strings! Less, and it deteriorates into nothing. Thanks in advance for any and all input. Now all I have to do is find somewhere in the house that neither cats nor humans will roll their eyes as soon as I put thumb to string!

Only experience that mirrors yours with a 1990 Fretless SR5. Excellent bass. Why not just go back to a single H SR5?

Definitely go used. £1k goes a long way. If it has to look Fender-ish; G&L, Sandberg, Lakland, Sire and (naturally) Fender all qualify. If you only need the J/J configuration, Warwick, Ibanez and others enter the fray

I might not run away. Just walk quickly away. Just the way the bridge is strung tells you everything you need to know about this instrument.

That's a great idea.. but it'd only work if they didn't use it on any other body style; Can't be having a Jazz in "P" Green.. 😆

Can't you just slide one pickup off of one and put it on the other? Or does a 2 pickup Rail defeat the object? 🤣

Agreed. I've a Warwick with a good Low B, plus the Vigier and 2 Ibanez. All are 34" scale. String Choice (type/gauge/manufacturer) also plays a part.

Welcome to the forum. If I may be so bold, have a look at the basses for sale on here. Ebay can be a bit hit-and-miss. If I were selling to you as someone (presumably) new to playing bass, I'd make sure you were getting a tidy, well set-up bass that'd hopefully be all you'd need for at least a couple of years. I'd second any suggestions of Squier Vintage Modified or Classic Vibes. Something more contemporary? Keep an eye out for Cort or Ibanez basses.