ingmar808

The Ibanez IEBS4C are about half the price of Elixirs. I have four basses in need of strings, and obvs would rather spend €90 than nearly €200. But who knows if they're rubbish, or really good... Any opinions?

I've recently gotten into flats, and am about to return to gigging. The last gig I played (a few years ago) so incredibly hot and sweaty I had trouble holding down some notes. And that was with roundwound strings! I'm assuming it'd be even worse with flats - but I've never heard anyone else mentioning this as a problem. Is this combination a recipe for disaster, or am I overthinking it? What are your experiences?

Thanks for the replies... The spikiness is way beyond solving with a bit of EQ - also that would just be trying to hide the problem rather than find the cause. Turning down the gain on the desk wouldn't help, as the spikes are caused earlier in the chain. I think it's down to something over-sensitive in the pre-amp design. It sounds great played with fingers, but with a plec it seems to only work with modest gain before getting nasty.

I love the tone and practicality of this amp, but it appears to have a major defect. When using the head as a pre for recording, playing a P-bass with a pick, there are lots of nasty pops on the attack transients. Backing off the gain to below 12 o'clock gets rid of the problem - but also gets rid of the saturated sound I wanted in the first place. The clicks and pops aren't noticeable through the cab - maybe the power amp and/or the 15" speaker aren't fast enough to catch them? Anyone else notice this, and do you have a solution short of miking up the cab? I've tried all the output options: XLR out, pre amp out, fx send - same result each time. Is this a fault with the Ampeg, or do all Class D amps do this to some extent?

Thomann Premium bag is 35 euro. I have one and it's really good. 30mm padding, loads of pocket storage - can easily take a few pedals, leads etc. Originally for my Precision, it also fits a big hollow body bass like my Hagstrom Viking. https://www.thomann.de/ie/thomann_e_bass_gigbag_premium.htm

If anyone's still following this topic... Can't believe no one has mentioned these - they do the job really well. I got it for a Precision, but it also fits my Hagstrom Viking. If it fits the Viking, it'll fit an Epi JC. It's Thomann's top of the line, 30mm padding, loads of pocket storage, straps etc - really good product. https://www.thomann.de/ie/thomann_e_bass_gigbag_premium.htm

Are they good and solid, or in any way flimsy? Also, I've heard that the fake 'tweed' covering is a bit meh? Apparently the Epiphone Jack Casady case fits the Viking perfectly, and is around the same price. I already have an Epiphone case for a Viola bass, and it's truly excellent. While it would be 'nice' to get the matching brand case for my bass, it wouldn't be if it's rubbish... These things are 150 quid. So does anyone know if the Hagstrom case matches Epiphone's standards? Or should I just get the Epi JC case? TIA

I think I've found the TB thread to which you allude... Seems that this tone control weirdness is a consequence of the PUs being wired in series, and that parallel wiring would cure this, but not sound as good when the PUs are used together. Maybe the PUs were in parallel when the thing was designed, with the two tone controls working independently as they should. Then someone discovered it sounded better when wired in series, but it was too late to change the tone control configuration?

PS I don't think my bass is faulty, as I've seen a few mentions of this issue elsewhere. No cure or explanations though...

Yes, there is a PU selector switch. It's quite busy, as it allows for each pickup individually as either single coil or humbucker (so total of 4 positions), plus another two positions with both pickups in either SC or humbucking mode. They all sound good - the only bummer being a fair bit of buzz/hum in SC mode. I'd love to be able to eliminate (or greatly reduce) this noise, as having both PUs on in SC mode sounds great, just like a P-bass. Because of the SC noise, I generally use the BOTH Humbucker position, which thankfully is pretty great too. Anyway... here's the schematic for this particular bass. You'd think the tone controls would be independent - otherwise what's the point of having two of them? https://www.hagstromguitars.com/fileadmin/_hagstrom/downloads/wiring-diagrams/Viking-Bass-Wiring.pdf

I recently got a Hagstrom Viking Bass, and am very happy with it - sounds great, very playable, looks cool. It has two pickups, each with its own volume and tone controls. The volume controls work as they should. HOWEVER... adjusting the bridge tone control also affects the neck pickup tone. Similarly, adjusting the neck tone control also affects the bridge pickup tone. So EACH tone control works as a master tone i.e. one of the tone controls is totally redundant. Surely it would be simpler, cheaper, and less confusing for Hagstrom to make this bass with a single master tone (as on a Jazz or Tele). Why didn't they? Or am I missing something?

I recently got a Revelation 67 Jazz, designed by Alan Entwistle. It has Entwistle JBXNs and they are fantastic - loud, clear and punchy, with plenty of bottom end. They are so good I'm going to get the PBXN for my Precision (your post about them influenced me too). I'm up the road (in Bray) if you ever wanna do an A/B test.

I recently stuck the super-slim Jazz neck from my Fender Modern Player onto a Squier Precision. Total success. Dead easy job, straight swap – it's now my no1 bass. So I'm left with a Modern Player Jazz body, and a Squier Precision neck... I may as well put them together, and have a usable second instrument. Do they fit? Do they f**k! The neck slots in OK, but the fingerboard is way too high, with the strings pressed against it – and raising the bridge saddles won't be enough to compensate. How can this be? How can it work one way and not the other? Head wrecked.

Is there anything other than the pickups that contributes significantly to the sound of Precision compared with a Jazz? I have a Modern Player Jazz, with which I'm very happy - love the neck, balance, feel etc. But I wouldn't mind more of a Precision-ish sound, if possible. Could this be achieved by simply adding/replacing with a Precision pickup? If so, would this work in the bridge pickup position – or does the Precision pickup absolutely have to be in the mid/neck position? On my MP, the neck pickup is pretty good (lots of warm bottom end) while I hate the bridge pickup – it's bass-light and honky – so ideally the Precision pickup would go there: but would it be too close to the bridge to sound any good? Thanks for any advice...

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1462123121' post='3040452'] It is - I use Fender 9050ML flats which are 50, 65, 85 and 100. [/quote] Cool, that makes sense. Thanks for the tip.

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1462111650' post='3040336'] this has always troubled me, only I prefer the A string to the E string, the A string always sounds punchier and clearer to me, cuts through the mix better, whenever possible I avoid using the E string, I'm not a fan of fivers as you can imagine [/quote] Yeah, know what you mean: the A can be clearer. It depends on the type of sound you're after – I used to like a brighter, clearer 80s sound with new strings etc, but I now prefer a darker, weightier tone. And would love to have that across the bottom two strings at least.

Hi. Every bass I've owned (all Fenders/Squiers) has had great bottom end on the E string, with much less thump on the A string, even when playing the same note. For example, a B played on fret 7 of the E string has more weight than a B played on fret 2 of the A string. I suppose this is down to the physics of the string thickness and tension. it's not a big deal when playing live, and compression helps when recording – but is there any way to minimise this difference in tonality between strings? I'm thinking maybe a heavier-than-usual A, and a lighter E? Or can anyone recommend a bass (pref P or J style) with a more uniform bottom end thump across the strings? TIA for any advice/suggestions.

[quote name='mike257' timestamp='1371544095' post='2115154'] I've found the forum at tdpri.com to be a great resource. ... It's the nearest I've found to BC in terms of friendliness, usefulness and general lack of divvys. [/quote] I agree - tdpri.com is the best of the bunch. I thought I was missing something when looking for a UK-based guiar equivalent of Basschat. Seems not... Reckon Guitarchat.co.uk could be a good thing: good luck with it guys.

As the title says, can anyone recommend a guitar forum with a vibe similar to Basschat? I like the way Basschat hosts intelligent, useful and occasionally funny discussions, and has a For Sale section. There must be a guitar equivalent (or maybe not)? Preferably UK- rather than US-based, as I prefer to minimize my exposure to words like 'dude', 'totally awesome' and 'sucks'.