Clarky

[quote name='3below' timestamp='1353014434' post='1870622'] Is there anything you can do to prevent same again, cable ties? break away lead / connector? looped cable to give 'safety margin'? Glad to hear all is good though. [/quote] The two things I can do are (1) use a pair of pliers to tighten the jack mounting on the string after-lengths and (2) not be a dumbass and move the bass with the lead plugged in!

Well gents I am a bit ashamed to say that re-fitting the bridge (which I can see now I am not on a darkened stage was wrenched too, so that the E foot was at an angle to the adjuster wheel) has solved the problem. The good news is it is fixed. I am, however, embarrassed to have solicited your advice when I should have waited to try some bridge adjustment first. Still all's well that ends well :-)

[quote name='marvin spangles' timestamp='1353003331' post='1870425'] HI Clarky A few years ago my FC packed up , I sent it to Fishman who generously fixed it. You could sound them out for the cost of repair in the meantime. It might still be under warranty. [/quote] Thanks Peter, the FC came on the bass when I bought it from BC'er Emlyn at the start of this year. I think its several years old so I doubt its under warranty. Also I guess I would have to replace the bridge if I sent the FC off for repair to the US - and that would also require a luthier to fit either replacement adjuster wheels or a temporary bridge. Whichever way I look at it, its going to cost! The other issue I have is there are no DB luthiers near me any more, now that Malcolm Healey has semi-retired and moved down south of the M25. My best hope is playing with the bridge and the wheels and hoping the FC returns Lazarus-like from the dead!

Thank you gents I will have a play around with the bridge and its siting tonight and see if it makes any difference - I will also check which vrsuion of the FC I have, Keith If its b*ggered, I am tempted for cost reasons to just snip the wire, use the wheels as pure bridge adjusters, and whack on a 'normal' wing piezo (I have a spare BassMax)

Thanks. It is indeed a piezo (with a painfully thin bit of wire leading from the piezo element, which is hidden within a circular bridge adjuster, to the jack socket). Because of the design I wouldn't know how to re-build and I have a horrible suspicion that to get it repaired would cost nearly as much as a new one [attachment=123820:420_medium.jpg]

Hi all, I was just about to soundcheck at our gig last night and accidentally snagged my pickup lead on an amp, wrenching the jack socket of my FC pickup off my 3/4 bass quite forcibly. After reinstalling the jack socket on the string after-length I had a major problem - notes on the A string were quacking and making a nasty electronic clank and the E was totally muffled. I tried the FC through my Headway as a DI, sidestepping my Acoustic Image amp, and the problem was identical - basically it was unusable (thankfully the gig was near my home and my lovely wife came to the rescue in a taxi with my Kolstein bass) I assume I have jerked the pickup wire and that this has damaged the FC. Any suggestions about what I should do here, folks? Have I killed it, which makes it an expensive accident?

As I already have the only P bass I want, I would go for a 1962 reissue Jazz in sunburst with proper clay dots in a very dark rosewood board and insist on the CS finding real celluloid for the tort scratchplate. Nothing too outlandish, just a quality copy of the classic 62 Jazz, lightly relic'd so I didn't worry about treating it with kid gloves. Actually I would rather - for the same money - own an early 70s Jazz in the same livery (obviously without clay dots and blocks instead), such as wateroftyne's lovely example that was briefly FS on the forum

Cheers Silvia, Ad and Jack! Now to the small matter of fixing my expensive double bass pickup ... grrrr!

Thanks so much for the lovely words, Nige. I think you got to see why I replied to your thread about being really happy with my band :-) The blooper referred to was an inadvertent ripping out of the pickup on my DB (caught the lead on an amp that one of the other band's soundchecking had placed in front of my amp). It then packed up. So Mrs C came to the rescue and delivered my other DB (the Kolstein travel bass) although it meant I went onstage not having sound- or even line-checked. Anyway we had an absolute blast and the audience were fabulous - one of those gigs where you go away thinking, this is one I will never forget Cheers to Happy Jack, Sylvia Bluejay and Ad Low End Bee for coming along too!

No worries Al and Pete, another time! Final call as I'm jumping in the car now

I bought some Spirocore Weichs a week or two ago, partly because some of the most active posters on the DB forums on TalkBass are almost zealous in their support for these. I popped them on my Kolstein and I have to say I wasn't blown away. I think I prefer Kolstein Heritage steels on this particular bass (which has a slightly shorter scale length and down-sized body). For my 'full-on' 3/4 DB, both the downtuned Spiro Solos I mentioned above and Kolstein Heritage are a lovely mixture of playability and tone. Update: I swapped the Spiro Weichs on to my 3/4 flat back and they are fantastic on that bass, lovely tension and growl. Just shows that generalising about strings based on one specific double bass is a potentially meaningless exercise, especially where different neck dimensions are involved.

John just bought a rare EA iamp "white face" amp from me. Deal went exceptionally smoothly and we had a brief but good chat in a dingy side road in Hammersmith! Maybe catch you at the next Bass Show in Olympia, John? Hope you enjoy the amp in between times. Another good guy to do biz with

Weighs 20 pounds too. I would need a surgical harness and a road crew just to get it onto the stage

Very impressive bit of luthiery there. Enjoy!

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1352817337' post='1867775'] They don't call me Seaman Staines for nothing. [/quote] Is that how you came by the monicker Happy Jack?

Readying the sperm whale - tomorrow night's the night!

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1352815763' post='1867740'] Danny must have bloody small handwriting ... [/quote] [attachment=123686:frank-carson-215x300.jpg]

I don't think they are available yet - see second post here [url="http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f17/danny-thompson-signature-strings-930199/#post13412949"]http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f17/danny-thompson-signature-strings-930199/#post13412949[/url]