Funky Dunky

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1425869423'] Buzzing from frets 1 to 7 indicate too little relief, buzzing in the higher frets indicate to low an action, buzzing all over might indicate just that your playing too hard for the setup. [/quote] Would buzzing in the higher frets be eliminated by giving the saddles a wee tweak to raise the action?

Twincam, that's an excellent post, one of the most comprehensive yet easy to understand guides to adjusting action I have seen. That should be stickied at the top of the page and left there for all to see as I'm sure dozens of us would benefit from it.

Yeahitwasthebatterypleasedon'tshoutatme. thankyou. *scurries away embarrassed*

Haha no worries, first active bass, thanks guys, will change the battery. If it doesn't work, I'll be back.

About a month ago I took delivery of a brand spanking new Sterling Sub Ray 4. I have only plugged it in a few times, never for any more than half an hour, and I have never left it plugged in. I have kid gloved this bass since the day I got it, it has never been bumped or dropped and I haven't touched a thing other than the standard volume/tone and EQ controls. Just plugged into my amp there and it's dead. Not a sound. It's not the lead, nor is it the amp. I have tried both with another bass and they are fine. I wouldn't have the thought it would be the battery - like I said, it's a month old and hardly been used. Any ideas? I bought it from Thomann and I don't want to have to incur the cost and inconvenience of sending it back to Germany til they look at it (although I will if I have to). I will nip out and buy another battery and try that, but this has me concerned on such a new bass. I should add: when I slap a string, there is a suggestion of life through the amp. Not exactly what you'd call a note, but a 'response'.

I swear I thought the title of this thread said "Bent Wang".

Thanks for your reply. I'm happy with the inlay stickers - on closer inspection you can see they're not inbuilt but they look quite good nonetheless. As for the binding, yeah, I'd have no problem with the painted number. Simply a case of identifying the right colour, type of paint and clear coat for the job. Stuff buying a new neck, that'd be half the price of the freakin' bass!

I have a Squier VM Precision PJ and have swapped the dot inlays for blocks. It's looking proper bo' but it needs fretbinding to really complete the retro look I'm after. I know you can buy the binding, but how hard is it to apply? I imagine it's pretty tricky! Other than that, does anybody know of a place (in Scotland, preferably Glasgow) that does it, and how much it would set me back? thanks :-)

[quote name='SingleMalt' timestamp='1424960044' post='2702335'] That's honestly one of the nicest basses I've ever seen. You lucky duck. [/quote] This. I agree with this. Congratulations, that bass is simply beautiful!

I am doing pretty well with the vertical vibrato but the horizontal one is way off. I've tried different approaches but I just feel like I can't get it smooth enough because of fretwire impedeing the back-and-forth motion. I watched MarloweDK's video on vibrato and it helped with the vertical technique. I will persevere with the horizontal and hopefully get it eventually!

[quote name='stubass' timestamp='1424811762' post='2700809'] I dream of the kids moving out so I can knock down the dividing wall between their bedrooms and fill the whole of the upstairs with basses, amps and a beer fridge. Does this make me a bad person? [/quote] No, it makes you awesome. Or it will when you've done it.

[quote name='planer' timestamp='1424811794' post='2700812'] I can see a time in your future where you are found under a mound of basses, giggling like an excited child. [/quote] I swear I thought that said "gigging like an excited child" and I laughed as I imagined it!

And Sadowsky, and Alleva Coppolo, and Ritter, and Zon.....G&L....if I had 100 basses I would still want more.

Any of you been like this, or still like this? I've been playing bass for two years and I have three basses. My most recent acquistion was only a few weeks ago, but it has done nothing to extinguish the GAS. I crave basses. I want P basses. Lots of them. I want Jazzes. Warwicks. Spectors. Sterlings. MMs. Gibson. Wals. I just need basses. I need them like a thirsty addict. I have problems. I want Ibanez. I want MTD. Lakland. You name it, if I see it, I want it. And not one. I want several. I want it in blue. I want it in green. I want it in black. Blonde. Natural wood finish. I want one with that pickup configuration, but one with this configuration too. I want one with a black pickguard, one with a white pickguard and one with pearl. I want one with a roseboard and one with maple. I'm sick. I'm unwell and hopelessly addicted. Only a lottery win can save me. No rehab on the planet can fix me. I need basses. Lots of them. Now.

Stunning. I'm really feeling it with the black pickguard too. Nice one mate, nice one :-)

It's difficult. I just took my time and guessed, with the result that a couple of them are a tiny bit off but it's not glaringly obvious. Unfortunately if you're a total perfectionist, that ain't gonna cut it. But like I say, it doesn't look great without neck binding, and I can buy binding cheap but there is no way in Hull I can fit that myself. I may ask a shop how much they would take, but I imagine it'd be silly money. Let us know how you get on attaching your new inlays mate.

My blocks arrived today, they look the part and really easy to apply but tricky to position properly. Buuuut......blocks really don't look as good without neck binding.

Yeah, the horizontal approach seems to be the most popular from what I've seen but I can't seem to do it fast enough or smoothly enough. Do you use one finger or two together?

I find the best method for triplets is not perfect alternate picking in terms of down-up-down, up-down-up, down-up-down, up-down-up. Rather, I have most joy with down-up-down, down-up-down, down-up-down. It takes a little getting used to because you have two downstrokes back to back, but it seems (to me anyway) to be the best method of getting a consistent sound to triplets. I'm sure a more veteran bassist will have a far better method than this, though!

I don't have one. I've seen various different methods used on guitar; horizontal, vertical and even circular, but what is correct or best on bass? I'm looking for any tips at all. I have experimented with a few approaches but nothing sounds 'pro'. Can anyone recommend a comprehensive resource for learning how to apply great vibrato on bass guitar? It's something I have struggled to develop on my own; I hear bassists use beautiful wide vibrato frequently and want that soulful feel in my playing. Thanks guys

Addis couldn't help me with fret binding sadly. I see allparts.com do it but I dunno how easy or hard it is to apply, I will mosey over to youtube and see if there are any vids on the subject.

[quote name='Painy' timestamp='1424288427' post='2694840'] Another shot of the flame inlays on my old bass in all its glory These came from ccinlays.com (creative cuts inlays) and were actually a custom order as the design was available for guitar but not bass so I got them to scale it up for 24 fret /34" scale for me. Addis , the guy who runs the company, is really helpful and if you wanted a long thin length to use for neck binding I should think they could help you out. The also do white and black MOP too. . [/quote] I'm going to email this chap. That sounds like the solution, thanks a mil! :-)

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1424274549' post='2694632'] Can't you find someone who could retro block and bind the neck...? [/quote] I dare say I could, but I'd wager at a price higher than I wish to pay to tart up a Squier bass.

Wow, that's very impressive. If only they did fretboard binding too.

Hmmm. Interesting. Thank you for this advice gentlemen, I shall be most careful in my preparation/application.