Twincam

Stripped the rear of the neck on mine. Thought it was very easy. Maple of course but not a select cut at all. From pics I've seen stripping the body and having it natural is not the best idea although results vary. Best either paint over the existing finish, and if keeping the textured effect will need little prep work and little finishing work. Or flatten or strip and paint a solid colour Its also debatable if these may go up in value somewhat. People seem to like these and they have a small following. I was going to fully refinish mine and do the headstock with mm stingray decal. However just in case they become some sort of collectable I will hold off.

I bought one for my now ex girlfriend. Good Hofner sound no sound block like some of the newer models. Needs decent strings, as ones they come with are cheap garbage! Versatility wise well it's a Hofner sounding, semi acoustic bass so obviously it's not anywhere near as versatile as other completely solid body bases. Personally I would say the versatility is poor if you consider the broad spectrum of music. However they can do a lot of genres such as any 50s a lot of 60s genres pop, blues, country, some classic rock, Motown, and of course most beetles stuff. After that it's maybe a bit more hit and miss ive seen them do punk and well! But thats woth alot of distortion. I mean obviously you can play any type of bass to any music but the hofner sound is very distinctive even with quality bright roundwounds they still sound like a hofner. Build wise they are ok. However my (ex) girlfriend's came delivered unplayable, frets all over the place! I sorted that instead of sending it back to the store. I'm sure mileage will vary on fret level quality and never heard anyone else having that issue, but it happened. And after a year or so the cheapo bridge collapsed. Other that they are built fine for the price and I'm sure would last a long time.

These seem pretty decent for the price. I wanted so much to like these. But the hot pickup issue really put me off. Apparently the new ones coming out with the headstock decal change have fixed the issue. £300 pounds will get you a pretty decent used bass something that was once £450+ to maybe even £600 if lucky. So a step up in quality.

Indeed. And I shall let him hack the compensated nut to nothing with a junior saw. "To aid fretting in the first few positions" as he would say. Actually nothing against the guy. But why doesn't he buy more suitable tools, And do more sensible modifications?

Now I did say fair play to him. And I have nothing against him personally as such and I think he has talent! I really mean that too. I will even say his video are well made and he has a talent for that production side too. I just don't appreciate his approach to the videos. The acting up to the camera I suppose like there made to get just silly likes and making money, they feel hollow to me despite the good production and his excellent imo playing.

Maybe buying a generic screw from eBay. If you Google all sorts of screws for instrument parts it can be difficult to find them. Say I googled pickup screws for a Yamaha xxxxx model no chance. However eBay is better at searching like that it seems to me and if still no luck you know the screw dimensions so buying a generic is easier.

It's ok I didn't take it any other way. I just thought might be useful for people to know the score on posting via parcelforce. As it's not easy to fully know what exactly is and isn't included. What I've found with posting many instrument related things in different areas Ive lived, that in each post office they will say a slightly different thing! The do have in common one thing.... That there are all adamant there correct haha. In any case i would of replied (very politely I may add) to the lady that this isnt a musical instrument but actually a bag.

Yes they do. They cover damage only up to £100 pounds which ismt great however losses are fully covered. Must be packaged in a hard case. There not covered for enhanced compensation but yes they are certainly are eligible for insurance. I believe max loss is £2500 I could be wrong there. When you book with them on certain sites like parcel2go they actually clarify this better than the parcelforce site. From parcelforce site Please note that musical instruments will only be covered up to the maximum amount of inclusive compensation included with the service and no enhanced compensation can be purchased on these items.

I get the insurance with them no matter what. It costs more but psychologically I think (or is that hope!) it's more likely to be treated with respect. Plus of course if something does go wrong then there more likely to help and you should be covered.

Dpd and amazingly Parcelforce have never let me down. Including a few heavier amps to other countries. No package really is 100% safe. No matter how good its packaged. They should have a fragile package service option. I would happily pay extra. Infact with the ever ongoing expansion of online shopping I would of thought such a service would be profitable.

I also do. I think it's the stupid acting up to the camera and production stuff. Also because without all the after production stuff he just will not sound like he does if you were stood in front of him. I read before he takes several days production work on the vids and sound. I would rather he just sat down and played normally without the bs. But I suppose then he might not get as many views. I suppose fair play to him if he can do all that though and he can actually play. So he has talent rather than other YouTube "stars" who have made money from having non, so to say.

I'm liking this a lot! I have just noticed the new bridge, which while I'm sure it does just as good a job and will be very slightly lighter, does look a bit less substantial without the mounting bolts at the sides. Which I think gave the old non mute bridge a solid look.

Yeah i agree i suppose. It just might not fit in with my refinishing plans. Iconic? Well they certainly seem to have a fan base and are well known for being a good quality bass. Actually just in case they become a collectable and prices sky rocket I best just leave it alone haha. Actually looking at it I like it as is. Or I could send it to the guitar improver guy on eBay for some mods. Have a mismatched artec hotrail placed cockeyed in the pu cavity and some sort of three string conversion 😉 Hahahaha.

Depends on the bass. Every bass sets up and plays slightly different. Thats even with the nut correctly adjusted. Level frets and correct amount of neck relief. So there can be slight variations. Plus different strings react differently to low, average or higher setups. My playing action is about average so 2.3mm - 1.9mm E to G. Approx .011 relief. Nut should be adjusted so when fretting at the 3rd fret, the gap between top of first fret to bottom of the strings is approx .004 (standard paper thickness) any lower and you risk back clank on fretted notes to the nut, which is horrible and wrong. I like the pickup set to just brush my finger tips and no higher i will then adjust for string balance. My dynamic playing isn't very good. I can play with a soft to average touch, after that I just snatch at the strings so I can't lower my action much. And ive noticed better players can make fret buzz musical, I can't. People I've did and still do setups for will normally like a lower action than my own preference I've noted. It's not always the case many are fine with manufactures specs. Fewer still want a higher setup. And some even want two basses setup different one lower/higher than the other. I do hear a tone difference in low to high setups neither one better or worse just different and I think they both have there place. Which is another good reason to have multiple basses 😁

I have a question. Here is my USA ebmm sub. I'm in the process of refinishing it. Ive sanded and oiled the neck (so so much better to play). Body is going to be a mint green. Pearl pg or aged pearl. Maybe change the pu cover to a white or cream one. But I have a dilemma. If or not I should sand the front of the headstock, and apply a musicman stingray decal and lacquer it over. I would leave the rear of headstock as is. Any thoughts on that?

Always wanted a rikenbacker. Seen them up close plenty of times. Still yet to actually play one. Never seen one played live either. But I still want one. Probably be a big mistake.

I think the new prices seem a touch steep. There's loads of used older models about I noticed. I have a USA made ebmm sub. It also has a very and i mean very slightly weak g even with pickup adjusted and properly setup etc. Im not sure why they have that issue. No deadspot at all had a vintage ray in recently too didn't hear a deadspot. They like most basses have some quirks but i think there very good quality, well made instruments. Confusing naming strategy however or non strategy. Sterling sub ray 4, ray 24, ray 34 ray 34ca, ebmm classic, ebmm sterling etc etc Which I think has slightly hurt the brand as not that long ago there was usa made instrumemts with similar names too the far east made ones. Not nearly as confusing as fenders line ups in the recent past (not in order) Squire p bass and jazz affinity, standard, vintage modified, classic vibe. Fender mim, hwy 1, USA standard, professional, reissues, deluxe, custom shop, elites and so on and on and not forgetting the not that long ago Japan models with similar names and the jdm ones. Confusing at first when old ones phased out and new models of similar names or spec are brought in. Its ok for people who keep up woth things such as bc members but the more casual observer would maybe think eh? Which one is the right one for me. And I don't want to get into an argument over which brands are better in qc or materials but as someone who's worked on many instruments you can certainly do a lot worse than any of the musicman or sterling range and for more money too. Imo. I do think most mass manufactured instruments are overpriced.

Ive built a few kits from various places. Normally easy and straight forward. It does help if you can set up a instrument properly. On some there were high frets, nuts cut incorrectly normally high which is better than too low. Easy for me to sort out but might cause issues for others. There were sometimes other minor issues. With cheaper kits sometimes you can find a part missing or screw holes not as they should be. If you want a cheap one but with good after sales Thomann have them and when I got a body that screw holes were not fully aligned for the bridge making the bridge off by a few degrees (nothing really) they kindly sent me a new body. There pretty good at sorting things quickly if your polite. Of course any cheap kit don't expect to much. But you should end up with a actual playable instrument that you can upgrade. Tuners are normally not great but serviceable and same with the bridge, cheapo pick guards, cheap control knobs. Electrics are simple and normally reliable but using the cheapest pots etc so probably won't stand up to a world tour lol. Lack of control cavity shielding so extra shielding recommended shielding paint is imo easier to apply than shielding tape, kitchen foil. Pickups are again cheap and cheerful some have slight microphonics but are a easy and simple first upgrade. Some are part finished so you can paint over them without much prep work. I recommend maybe just oiling the body and neck for a first time build tru oil etc keeping it simple. And of course you need to cut the headstock to shape, for simplicity you could just cut and round the corners if you don't fancy really getting into shaping it. I know I've said everything is cheap but it's actually surprising how decent they can sound, p basses and simpler designs turn out better than more ambitious ones. Unless you are paying more. Oh to add some p bass kits come with cricket bat necks, jazz ones are a better bet if your prefer a thinner neck.

I love the look of this bass. It has been through a few different hands it seems. Unfortunately not mine as I've always wanted it everytime it's popped up. If it was ever mine it would be hung on the wall like a piece of art.

There's also Jim Fleeting

I can probably help there. Will send you a pm.

Thats right people can pay what they like. But if your just getting a string change and setup which takes literally 5 or 10 min. Assuming there's no other issues then I'm sorry but that is extortionate! Just because your willing to pay doesn't mean everyone would want to or have the means to do so. A young musician just starting out might be put off getting his instrument setup correctly with those kinda prices. Of course If that 50 pounds includes some kind of fret work etc that's more reasonable. And i hope that your not suggesting I don't the job properly because i charge a lower and imo a fair price. I spend more time and effort then most "techs". And my work has been praised many times by bc members I shall add. Also your maths is out if I charge £40 and i work 4 hours that's £10 a hour and not £5.

£65 pounds is disgraceful. Even if the strings are added. I charge around £10 - £15 setup only with fret board oiling if needed i will adjust tje nut also if needed. £20 for a light fret dress and polishing Inc setup. And for £35 - £40 typically I will do a full fret level, recrown, 4 stage polish, fret board oiling. Including setting up of the bass typically a 3 to 4 hour job bass properly masked up using the right tools so not one mark is left. And i will spend time after with the person getting the setup as best I can for there individual preference. Of course those prices are not including new strings, I will boil your old set though if asked haha. No no £65 for a setup only just isn't right. If I charged more then I would feel I was ripping people off. I understand people in shops or whatever have over heads and will price things higher, but I'm strongly for fair prices for the correct amount of time put in. As for adjusting the truss rod yourself I think it depends on if your a handy, hands on sort of person. It is actually pretty easy to do a full basic setup. I even wrote a novices guide how to do it with only a set of Allen keys and a paper business card. I've seen basses and guitars that need a setup twice a year. And others that have stayed rock solid for years. I really think thats just the random nature of wood and the different environments people keep them in. A fret dress can be years inbetween and much much longer durations between a fret level, recrown etc. Oh and while I'm on a roll. So called techs who level frets without a hint of a proper recrown then charge for it really annoy me.