ZenBasses

Well I certainly stand corrected.. My limited knowledge getting the better of me there. Interesting to find out other makers use this technique as I've never heard of this before. I assumed Parker fly basses were pretty much status and the like. Jon has said he has hand made the neck himself. I wouldn't doubt this as his craftsmanship is second to none. But it wouldn't be beyond the realms of possibilities that he has help in perfecting this under the guidance of someone like Gus guitars. Having player a JJ before its going to be interesting to compare. They are such a wonderful instrument that you wonder why you need anything from else. A P bass for everything. Hehe.. It's times like these you wish makers have Jon have the time to produce a build diary for their latest creations. Some do and I love reading about them.

I hope Jon doesn't mind me posting this (it'll soon be in the public domain) So I asked him how it was going with my build and what other stuff he had been working on This is his reply I’ve just finished the latest creation for J J Burnel, a carbon fibre necked bass, very complicated build and I’ve handmade the neck. A far better construction than your typical status and the like, they are a carbon fibre moulding, composite board then filled with filler foam. Mine is a lightweight neck (top secret wood) skinned in carbon fibre, truss rod, carbon graphite rods then a birdseye f/board and head veneer. Quite a complicated build but tonally superior to the other method, warm and very immediate sounding. Should be testing it out with JJ on thursday then it will be up on the site for a quite high price tag, I’m just going to do a limited run of 25 as they are very time consuming to build, the body too is a serious bit of woodwork, two types of core wood then chambered upper and lower bouts, the upper bout tapers in depth so you can still have the ribcage contour, all sprayed black of course so it looks simple, but it isn't Sounds immense and the wooden core carbon fibre skinned neck could be a game changer.. Can't wait to see it and he's promised to let me have a go on one if it's still around when I collect mine.

I just tried weighing my bass on my kitchen scales and got a very accurate reading of ERROR 3 I have no idea what this particular set of scales is trying to tell me... But it would explain why that pastry kept breaking up.. lol Seriously though, if it's common make of bass odds are somewhere online will be weight. Or someone on BC might have one... They might be so kind as to weigh theirs And maybe make a tasty pie

[quote name='cclowend' timestamp='1402057784' post='2469607'] I'm not sure what RTFM actually means [/quote] Read That Factual Manual Is the polite version more like Read The Effing Manual This is what toy sat to someone who says that don't know how it works yet there is a instruction manual to go with it Lol Personally there aren't many situations that require more than just one 4x10..but the 8x10 setup is immense and this what I have used in the past. Although there is much to be said about the Trace Elliot 4x10 + 1x15 setup in had when I started gigging.. Even with a mammoth bottom end it can all get lost in a room with the wrong dynamics..

All totally agree with... A rock solid player with some classic lines. It's only when you really take the time to deconstruct a song that you realise just how complex his arrangements were. There's pick playing, slap playing, chordal work, harmonic progressions, tapping, use of fx. All bang tidy and always appropriate. Also seems that out of all of Queen he was the most 'gentlemanly' of the lot. Personally, his work on Made in Heaven is some of my favourite. Superb fretless playing. Plus he wrote 2 of the most iconic bass lines of all time... You know the ones..

The deposit was made to Jon in October and hopefully we are looking at June sort of time.. Cross fingers.... As Jon and me decided to keep it 'simple' it does reduce the time.

[quote name='BOD2' timestamp='1399647461' post='2446291'] How to make a bass go "woof"... clean it with naptha and hold a match close to it, lol !! [/quote] I hear BC Rich supply Naphtha for such an event... Mid gig... Hehe

Wouldn't some simple light fluid (naphtha) do the job... Even brasso I've heard has been used. But I always find, disgusting as this might be. A bit of good old spit and a microfiber cloth should do the trick also.

My EBS fafner after not being used for what seems like years was brought to life the other day. Scratchy pots galore. Cleaned with switch cleaner but still some of the pots need some attention. Broken xlr output.. This must of happen when I moved house as I've found the bits inside the rack case.. It's just the clip on the top that's broken off. Still a fantastic amp and I would love for it to have a service as I haven't the time or the inclination to start messing with it. I live near Leeds, West Yorkshire... Does anyone know of anyone who might be able to help. Found quite a few hifi repair specialist near by and wonder if they might be able to assist. Many thanks from a guilty owner. Ben

I think we met in passing as I was leaving from checking out the neck and fingerboard. Can't wait and seeing your all completed make it even more exciting. If it's anyway near as nice as yours it'll be a real treat.

Saw this hanging in Jons workshop.. What an amazing bass I was very jealous to say the least. Luckily my Gas will be cured soon. I am sure you will be very happy together.. All the best Ben

Oh..... I see what you mean now when I look at the thread page. Started by zenbassuk That's odd.. I wonder if a mod can shine a light on this as the accounts seem to be linked. I have no idea what I've managed to do lol...

I've only just realisedthat when I signed up as Zenbasses I must of signed up before and totally forgotten. It must have been when my very old Hotmail got hacked I moved everything to Gmail. As the Hotmail one was shut down and therefore I couldn't receive the 'forgotten password' email. So I signed up again using Zenbasses with my Gmail email address. No confusion meant...

So I've just got home to my 2 dogs fussing over me as I smell of Ruby Ruby Ruby... Just had a nice drive over Penistone to see Jon.. Bass is shaping up to be amazing.. The body is proper gorgeous with lovely figuring. Slightly darker than in the pictures. This was being buffed.. Unfortunately it was attached to the bench in Jons back room. So photos didn't work. However the neck was in the day light and what a fretboard. It's definitely going to be noticed that for sure.. T minus not a lot of weeks... Gas fix for today but it's all worth the wait in the end. Next time we go down Jon told me to bring my dogs over for a good run... They will be excited.... Lovely countryside over yonder.. And as you can see not always a handful..

[quote name='Myke' timestamp='1398796168' post='2437724'] So you had control over pretty much everything then! Nice [/quote] Ahh.... But could it make a brew?....

[quote name='Myke' timestamp='1398791283' post='2437650'] Soo many knobs! [/quote] Is that including the one who sold it?.. Lol... New one should have 1 less knobs.. Unbelievably that bass also had 5 dip switches inside and a overall eq gain pot as well.

My original build was a 5 string elite and didn't have the carbon fiber truss rods but was still stable. The 4 string Horn bass I owner did and that was unbelievably stable. Never moved an inch. Proof maybe the strength of the neck starts in the middle. Your basses look amazing.. The singlecut is what I wanted but at nearly 700 quid more than my build I just couldn't justify it. What's the facing on that one? Looks like splated maple or some strange sycamore. It's lovely.. Your 5 string is also lovely. Looks very similar to my original build with the facing which was madrone burl (see pics). This was the first bass (sticking my neck out here) that Jon made where the control knobs follow the curve of the body in a line. Something I really liked from Elrick at the time I was choosing the spec. Jon has used this again a numerous occasions. If anyone knows where this ended up I want it back..... But it's probably lost forever more. Popping down to see Jon tommorw at his workshop to see the bass before basically the final push. Headstock veneers have been glued in place and it's nearly ready for fretting. Should be an exciting trip out even if it is a 4 hour round trip.

[quote name='BassBus' timestamp='1398524331' post='2434975'] It's a bit like asking the length of a piece of string[size=4] [/size] [/quote] That's easy Twice the distance from the middle to the end Sorry I couldn't resist... My GB has a battery indicators so I am all right Mainly as mentioned you get a distorted edge to your sound.. A drop off in eq and overall volume. I change my batteries every time I change my strings (about every 3 months) I don't spend stupid money on duracells just whatever is on offer.. I keep the old ones for a while and then recycle them at work. I have had the unnerving experience at a gig once that resulted in 'roulette' praying it didn't die before the end of the gig. It didn't and the result was. "I like when you added a bit off distortion to your sound part way through the gig" Pah shows I nothing about sound.

Spoke to Jon last night and we have agreed to go with the cocobolo. The plank looks light but as the wood oxidises with the air it's turning a lovely orangey / redy hue with lovely markings. Jon says any shrinkage will be minimal and if in the future it's needs the fret ends doing he will do it free of charge. It'll be a one off as it's rare as hens teeth is cocobolo sapwood. We've also decided on some low profile flat top Schaller control knobs as well the uberhorn below has some of the same on but mine will be all black hardware.