bassmayhem

Do you need a hardcase or can you manage with a sturdy gigbag and a wheel like this? http://www.contrabass.co.uk/basswheel.htm

[quote name='spencer.b' timestamp='1407588044' post='2522069'] wow that is a long string length, I've played a few longer scale basses recentley and it does seem to help the tone. I did a gig in denmark last month and the bass was owned by the wilson pickup guy and he apologised that it was 7/8 not 3/4 but it sounded great and I barely noticed on the left hand, a friend has a 7/8 ply with guts an that sounds great too. [/quote] It has a really strong and powerful, yet nice tone. Like my li'l missus said: "It sounds like you..."

[quote name='Fran Diaz' timestamp='1407394858' post='2520010'] great story! congrats on your new bass; it looks very nice. Isn't it a great feeling when you get to play an intrument that feels and sounds great from the very first note you play? [/quote] Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!

[quote name='spencer.b' timestamp='1407318831' post='2519366'] Great story mate and a lovely looking bass, what's the string length? [/quote] The string length is 110 cm (=43 1/3"). A little bit more stretching, but I have big hands. The setup is very nice, not too low action, but enough to dig in and get the growl. Not for NHÖP type of playing, though. Eb neck.

My newly acquired "Miss Nikolova"... Bulgarian master built, circa 15 years old...

A couple of weeks ago the little wife and I were in Copenhagen for vacation. All of a sudden I saw THE music store: Marno Sörensen, established 1925. A place filled with acoustic instruments and a lot of sheet music. (They also had some EUB:s..) They had kwo windows with acoustic upright basses; I couldn't resist. We went into the shop, I tried some different basses, among them a Wilfer bass just like the one I had back in the 80's. It had the same issues as my old one: a fingerboard that was uneven and buzzing... But - there it was! A peculiar bass with some odd dimensions. I took it in my hands and we - to quote the movie Avatar - bonded. Just like that. My wife said: It sounds like you. The next day we went back and had a second glance. From that moment I couldnt let the bass go. It was in my head the whole time. A master built instrument, made for a Danish bassist who all of a sudden had given it up. It felt like it was made for me. Peculiar dimensions... Well, a 3/4 body and a 4/4 scale solid tone wood instrument, and a tone to die/kill for. This bass can do acoustic gigs with a drummer with no problem. And the TONE... Well, to make a long story short: yesterday I went back to Copenhagen and took it home. An 1100 km road trip just over the day. Now it is mine. I kinda like it... Two weeks ago in Copenhagen... Today at home...

The best cab is the one best suited to your playing. Mine are the TKS 2126 cabs with 2x12" and 1x6" elements. Light, low, clean and powerful, like studio monitors on steroids...

I've ordered one after returning my TC Flashback X4 to the store. The TC has some serious bugs making it lose memory when switching on/off if you use anything else than their original wall wart. I have a Pedal Power Mondo that is supposed to work with just anything, but the X4 isn't compatible with anything else than the wall wart, obviously... Anyhow, I'm anxiously waiting for the H9 to arrive...

I've never had problems with a bass neck due to hanging. Most likely the neck itself is the problem, not the hanging. A neck warping that easy sounds like a bad neck...

I've played one, and it is really good. The fret work wasn't the best, but the tone and feel in the bass was nice. Frets can be properly done for a reasonable cost. Remember, this is a really cheap highend bass... Btw, single cut basses tend to be rather ugly, but Chris Benavente makes some good design:

I'd say: if you like the Ibanez bass you've found a good bass. The most awkward thing when getting into six string is getting used to the string spacing. I prefer all my basses have 3/4" spacing at the bridge, just like a J- or P-bass. That makes the selection more narrow. Basses with closer spacing are more common and mostly less expensive too. I had a Matt Pulcinella Level 6 before, and now a Yamaha TRB JP2 - both 3/4" (19 mm) spacing...

In fact, I didn't keep her. Another item came up. Also, the string spacing was not really to my liking, so a young music student bought it from me. I got the six string I've been looking for the whole time at last, at a VERY reasonable price too... Yamaha TRB John Patitucci II... A Jazz Bass on steroids... I sold the Tobias and the Tacoma T-Cfief to get this odd carachter: [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd169/bassmayhem/20140119_103043_zps987b8319.jpg[/IMG] A 10 string MIDI equipped Chapman Stick...

A nice bass all in all. The colour isn't CAR, but more kind of metallic flake. Looks nice from close distance too. And the neck... Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!

1952...? But then it is old fasioned...! No, no, no! Get a new one instead!

I just got my hands on a bass that proved to be a real find, a keeper for sure: a second hand sparkle red American made Peavey Millennium. The things I like: - 35" scale on a four string bass makes this a real funk machine - The very nice oiled maple neck with well seated and dimensioned frets - The fabulous balance and low weight - The tone!!! All in all, this is a bass nearly comparable with my US Laklands but at a VERY low price. These basses are vastly (Was that a correct word?) underrated. If you find one: get it! If you have one: keep it!

Or - simple as that - the bass is a signature model. Jonas Hellborg's signature model. Not yours. They won't change his specs for you. Maybe that simple.

How to make a sexy, good and expensive bass look cheap: Henman-Bevilacqua!!!

Here is a nice power amp: the QSC PLX series. I got the PLX 3402 myself, a really powerful and lightweight amp capable to manage 2 ohms load on each side and 4 ohms bridged at massive 3400 Watts RMS. The weight is 9 kg and the effect is overkill. I got it at a very good price, that's why I have such a big amp, it has lots of features like switchable lowpass filter at 30Hz, 50Hz and straight. I always set the filter to 30 Hz just to save the speakers I use. There is no real audible difference with lows cut, but a significant difference in cone movement on the speakers. I never run it hot, just two or maybe three clicks on the volume. If you have a preamp with a single output you'll need a split Y-cable so you can send to both inputs on the power amp. I use it for stereo rig konfiguration. [IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd169/bassmayhem/3_zpsb81cac18.jpg[/IMG]

Cheap is cheap. Expensive is expensive. Good is good and bad is bad. The rest is a matter of taste. One thing to be sure about: bad will fail in the end. Unfortunately bad and cheap seem to walk hand in hand most of the time...

I use my Genz Benz Streamliner 900 when I want slightly overdriven tone just by adjusting the gain and preamp volume so the amp stays clean when played with modest attack, and breaks up nicely when digging in. No pedals or compressors needed; the tone compared to my old ShuttleMax is much rounder and cushier...

A nice overdrive that won't scoop out your low end is the EBS MultiDrive; it can be found second hand at a reasonable cost. I use tha to get some "hair" in my tone from time to time. The EBS MetalDrive [b]may [/b]also be an option, but I've never encountered it... Don't forget the guy is using a Dingwall bass with 37" scale B-string that [b]REALLY [/b]has an impact on his tone!

It is a bit "awkward" compared to all my other amps. They're all kind of "transparent" (I hate that word) and non-colouring, but this beast definitely puts its footprint in the tone, for good and for worse. But - that was the plan: get another type of amp to get another tone for another type of gigs than I usually have. So far I like it best with my fretless bass; the TE Pre Shape suits the fretless very well, scooping out some harshness and adding the highs and low mids needed to really fill up the tone. I had to change the preamp tubes, and this is where this amp proves to be British - real British - for real: I had to unscrew 26(!!!) screws to get inside the amp. First the 8 fastening screws that hold the amp in its cabinet, then 8 screws to remove the corner fittings to be able to get the amp out of the cabinet, and finally 10 SMALL screws to remove the top plate. The thing is FILLED with electronics, so I presume the massive "screwery" also is to insure that meddlesome blockheads should not venture into the amp out of sheer curiosity. (And safety, of course...) Its 22 kg does not make handling easier when coming to removal and remounting the amp in the cabinet. I found some loose screws inside that needed fastening too, so It was good I did the operation. Now it works as expected. I forgot to take a pic of its entrails, but next time...

Yep! A ton! Or two! All my other gear is Class D, so one anchor is alright. Here is the setup in the livingroom: I put a TC Chorus in the stereo loop and then went full stereo through my TKS cabs and then played my fretless Lakie five string. "[i]Wherever I lay my hat...[/i]"

I got myself a nice second hand Trace Elliot AH1000 today. This amp has never really interested me, but when I got the opportunity to buy it I couldn't resist. I am more of a "set everything flat" kind of guy, who dislikes tweaking tone on amps. The natural tone of my bass and my hands is my signum. But... This amp is really nice, even if it colours the tone a LOT, it colours nicely. I haven't tried it with the band yet, but it'll surely do what it is supposed to. The price was ok - I paid £444 for it with the six button pedal and all. Just like this one: I really would appreciate some input from others using this amp, since it is rather uncommon here in Sweden. This will not be my primary amp, but for what I have in mind it will be perfect. I used to have a gazillion of preamps and connect them to a power amp through a 1U line mixer, all in a rack, but I got fed up with it - too bl**dy heavy! I sold the preamps, all except for one, and got some nice amp heads instead. My "menagerie" now contains: - Genz Benz Streamliner 900 (First call light weight amp) - Euphonic Audio iAmp 800 (The tonal favourite) - Eden Navigator+QSC PLX 3402 (The big mofo rig...) - Trace Elliot AH1000-12 (Stand-in for the big mofo rig...) and soon - Acoustic Image Coda combo (For the small occasions...) Still, I only have two cabinets: the TKS 2126 cabs that work with all the amps. (One for the S900 and two for all the others.)

I got myself a nice British Racing Green one: Joe Meek FloorQ. Impressive little piece of gear...