bassmayhem

https://www.notreble.com/buzz/2024/01/08/bass-of-the-week-brooks-eb-tb-iv/?fbclid=IwAR3-y0X6Q1P6GplCoyGjBmVvo6RFmq5ymsoxzTeD4NHFRuA_MGyqiyuNjbY

I've never owned a Gibson bass. The closest I've been was when I missed the deal on a Memphis Les Paul, the hollowbody shortscale bass. This is not a Gibson, but it shares a lot of the DNA with some classic Gibson basses, but with the Dutch twist.  I've almost never had a bass with neck thru body, except the old Aria SB1000 fretless I bought this summer. (It is for sale, if someone is interested...) And some other obscure instruments way back in the past. I am a Fender type bass guy, so now a new chapter begins...  

She is done!
 

Here is my pedalboard as of today...
All ins and outs are connected to the patchbay in the front of the pedalboard, so no pulling cables from units...  

On 03/06/2023 at 20:34, BassmanPaul said:

Thank you for taking the time and effort to do this review though I'm sure you only did it to please your cat!!

 

Yep, he was pleased. Unfortunately he passed away November 8th. The home is not the same anymore...  

My very good friend Erik Arkö bought the Super P from me, check his Youtube channel if you haven't already. 
Now only my Super J4 /Super JP4 is available.

The painting process is in progress...

Update!
We changed my order to an EB-TB-IV, i.e. with two pickups. The build is progressing...
Here is a computer rendition of my bass-to-be:

...and a picture of the actual neck during carving...

On 21/10/2023 at 19:05, Paddy777 said:

I am seriously looking the BP1 compact version of this, I was actually thinking of running another tone shaping preamp like the Goliath light in the effects loop along with the compressor - would that be overkill/unnecessary do you think? I’m not sure if I am looking at it wrong, or if it’s just the lack of EQ options scaring me 😆 

The reason I didn't go for the Compact is that it cannot switch out the loop. You can surely add some flavour to your liking in the loop. The new compressor is NOT in the loop; it is post BP1. 

23 hours ago, Paddy777 said:

Would you be alright running another preamp like, say a Capo or a Goliath if you wanted EQ options or a different flavour or is that using it wrong do you think? I suppose in that example it’d be almost used like a traditional DI, I’m wondering if it’s something you’d think unnecessary as the BP1 preamp is enough - hope that makes sense!

I've had the Goliath and the Monique. And a lot of different preamps. I also had a crush for rack preamps some years ago. Had a lot of the classic ones, but I ended up selling everything. You can see some of it in the picture below. My all time favourite of these in the rack was the old Yamaha BP1(!!!). The same with all the pedal preamps and my two (!) Moniques. I have always practiced without amp, just the bass unplugged, so my tone ideal is the tone of the bass and my hands, just louder. Any amp or preamp I use, I tend to tweak them so they sound like me. The same with all preamps. That's why I find the BP1 right down my alley...

On 17/10/2023 at 22:05, krispn said:

We all wanna hear about that Caveman Audio gear!

Well, the preamp has high quality top notch components, straight forward. Makes the bass sound better. The compressor is more or less a studio unit in pedal form factor. I set it to "act without being noticed", always on. The boost function is smart; at the very end of the signal chain. The units are linked together via XLR balanced in/out. I want a preamp that magnifies the tone of me and my bass - not alter it. For me it is perfect.

On 21/10/2023 at 18:53, Paddy777 said:

Do you run all the back row through the BP1 effects loop? 

Yep!
Short answer.  

On 17/10/2023 at 22:05, krispn said:

We all wanna hear about that Caveman Audio gear!

Well, the preamp is a POTENT S.O.B. Just gain and volume, no tone tweaking. It just enhances your tone. Everything is transformer isolated, so dead silent. Having the loop out of the way is also neat. I have connected the two units according to Caveman's/Skrydstrup's recommendations so the BC1 acts as a master compressor. DI from BP1 into BC1, then DI send from compressor. Clean power!

My latest pedalboard...

On 01/10/2023 at 16:50, Rayman said:

Yolanda Charles was a big advocate of these…. they didn’t seem to be around long though ?

Nope!
"Basstards" seem to be more conservative than expected. If it is a Fender but ain't no P or J, it is all wrong.  

Anyway, I like this bass in the same way I like a P-bass: with its one and only pickup it has one tone. You can't tweak yourself off the road, so to speak. Just dig and gig! The three band eq only enhances the singular tone - or destroys it, depending on how tweak-happy you are. I am not, just roll of the top end...

I have always liked the Dimension, but never been "first on the ball" when such bass has been on the second hand market.  Last Saturday I got one for a very good price. A fantastic bass that Fender set out of production way too early. I've made the first gig with it, tomorrow two more gigs with the bass. It really is of another dimension this one...  

6 hours ago, smithy said:

Wow -That´s an eye opener. What about some details? Looks like short scale?!

I did miss that Grabbird thread , and although I´m not really into the thunderbird design, I´m deeply impressed by that workmanship.

It is a 34" scale bass with a T-bird construction in an EB0/ LP Special shape. 19 mm / 3/4" string spacing at bridge. The body is a bit bigger and wider than you think; it fools the eye.

A week ago this little one man enterprise in the Netherlands caught my eye: Brooks Bass Guitars. https://www.brooksbassguitars.com/

The guy is truly into Gibson basses, which has never been my cup of tea. He even wrote a book about Gibson basses.

Anyway, Rob builds his own versions of Gibson bass models, but with a twist. I totally fell in love with his EB-TB bass, a fusion of the first model EB0 (like a Les Paul Special) and the Thunderbird.

Absolutely gorgeous! I just had to order one, based on the design alone. So - now it is ordered.  It will look like this:

Classic but yet not. Classy!

31 minutes ago, Hellzero said:

Try DB Schenker in Sweden or even EuroSender as we, as BC members, have a discount there.

 

Calling @ped to assess it's still available.

Eurosender insures to £1000 or 1000€ - I don't remember which - unless you can verify the value of the item with a certain document. I shut down the page so I didn't read it too carefully...  

On 10/08/2023 at 17:56, wintoid said:

That's a shame.  Both lovely basses.

 

I already have a Super P, but would love to hear about the Stellartone thing, and what you didn't like about the original electronics.  I never turn it into the scooped area.

 

Sorry if it's a sale derail!

Check this:

Unfortunately it seeems impossible to ship second hand goods from Sweden with insured freight. Postnord says no-no. DHL says no-no. They can ship uninsured goods, but that is out of the question. I won't use UPS: they suck. They suck B.I.G. I keep the ad up as a teaser...  

I didn't think this day would come...

After using Dingwall basses some years I have decided to part from these two gems. Why? Are they bad? No! Not at all! The opposite, actually. 
I have owned Prima 6, Sklar, Super J5, Super P5, a beautiful Afterburner 5, A super P4 and this jewel, the Super J4 that can be converted to a Super JP4 in a matter of minutes. I find myself grabbing my five string Payson Supercharger P/J or my precious custom made Unicorn Purist 5 at least 99 % of the time.

Also, I get older and feel the urge or need to clear the storage. I use mostly my five strings, and occasionally my Jazz bass and Peavey T40, who are yearlings. (1979)

About the bass:

The Super J is light with an alder body.  The bridge pickup is placed close to the bridge, like a 70's Jazz Bass. 

It has a very versatile J Retro Deluxe preamp, but I have never used the eq. I prefer it flat. The tone is the same, active or passive. 

The passive tone control works in both active and passive mode. I  use that tone control, never the active eq. 

The neck is to die for. It feels like it has been played since the 60's. The fingerboard edges are rolled and kind of "worn in".
The bass is refinished, a guy in Stockholm started the job in January 2020. Then suddenly Covid struck and the world closed down.

I rushed and got it back half made, and did the rest of the job myself with cellulose lacquer, but honestly, I haven't buffed or polished it at all. I'd call it matte. 

The bass has 32" G string, 32,75" D string, 33,5" A string and 34,25" E string, making the string-to-string balance and tension very even.

You don't need to use Dingwall strings on the bass; I often use regular D'Addario strings. They work well, actually better balance than on a traditional bass.

The original Super J electronics was malfunctioning, either the pot or the treble part of the preamp. I put that in the package too, mounted on the original bell plate.

The Super J has ordinary D'Addario strings.

No trades, unless you give me an offer I can't refuse...  

LOTS of pictures on request!

The price is £2300 or 2540€ plus cost of shipping.

My Caveman Audio BP1 preamp is a gem. Now I have pre-ordered the new BC1 compressor. I have a place reserved for it on my pedalboard already.  

Take a peek at the video...

20 minutes ago, BassBunny said:

That is over the three components. When broken down it's a lot more manageable.

Yep!

Still, the format ain't that big, so two of them will fit in my car with my bass gear and lighting rig...

Our band is planning to buy a new smaller and lighter PA system, and we have thoughts about the LD Systems MAUI 44 G2, or rather a pair of them. I haven't had the opportunity to try one, but wonder if anyone here at BassChat has experience with this system. We are a five piece band playing some serious venues with PA in house, but for smaller places and stages, it would be neat with a small footprint rig. Will a rig like this work for a blues/rock band?

https://www.ld-systems.com/en/series/maui-series/20656/maui-44-g2

I'd be glad for input...