Marc S

[quote name='Rumple' timestamp='1424175431' post='2693415'] I bought a few of these electrical clips, they are meant for mains electricity but I'm hoping I can use them temporarily between the pick-up and the volume pot so I can easily test out different pick-ups without having to resolder each time. [attachment=184136:clip.JPG] [/quote] Yes indeed - a great idea! Let us know how well this works - could be really useful If you haven't started grinding out the holes on the headstock, or grinding the tuners I'd defo look around for some smaller tuners You can pick up Squier tuners quite cheap on ebay - or maybe someone on here? If you have oval holes in the headstock, I think you could end up with all sorts of tuning problems when the strings are under full tension Keep us posted on your progress I really must find time for my bitsa P bass project..... EDIT: Any holes left in the back of your headstock, due to the current tuners can be filled - by simply using PVA glue, and the end of toothpicks - as illustrated in the Haynes Fender Bass Manual (nice book that, if you haven't seen it) Best Marc

[quote name='philw' timestamp='1424170975' post='2693326'] "Allow yourself to follow your heart by trusting your head to deal with the consequences". There you are, sorted, go fretless. P [/quote] +++1 to this Love it

PS. (Me again! lol) I think it's the circular worn patch at the back I'm not hugely sold on (too even, maybe?) .... and the long scratches / paint splits.... Easy enough to paint out by hand, I'd say...

Looks fine to me. I too prefer the shape of a Jazz neck Particularly at the nut end. Even that seems to vary more than you think though My own fave is my Roadworn Jazz - love that bass The neck is slightly wider & deeper than my US '72 reissue Jazz and slimmer than a 90's US Jazz I used to own! lol I used to dislike the chunkier P necks of old But a lot of P necks in recent years seem to have a friendlier, narrower shape & profile I think this is referred to as the "C" shape ? Anyhow, are you keeping that neck for the bass? Or will you change? I'm amazed at how good the China-made Squier Classic Vibe basses are The P has a lovely shaped neck, and it feels old too.... I've got a bitsa P, with Mighty Mite neck, and that also has a similar neck.... Plays better than the old US P bass I used to have years back Re the back of the body - you could always try distressing it a tad more, or even a bit of a re-paint? (even by hand should be alright - it's a roadworn / relic) Applying stickers, as you suggest, is another option - but I think it looks OK No-one's going to see it anyway.... I've said it many times before, but not particularly being a fan of relics / roadworns initially since getting my own roadworn - there's just such a liberating feeling, not having to worry about whether someones going to knock a cymbal stand onto your bass or kick it over etc etc Keep us posted about this bass I'm interested to see what you do with it Nice one Was it a bargain? Marc

[quote name='SpaceChick' timestamp='1423766723' post='2688855'] This isn't the dark side.... This is those enlightened ones that have seen the light Welcome [/quote] Welcome indeed And as Spacechick says - it looks dark from over there, among the higher frequencies .... but it's actually the lighter side of the two My advice re a bass is, try as many as you can As you've played before, you'll have some idea of how to try a bass out Just go for something that is comfortable to play, and you'll enjoy playing more EDIT: You may be surprised at just how different they all play, feel & sound... I reckon you can't go wrong with either a Squier Vintage Modified series bass Or even better, a Squier Classic Vibe bass I've had both, and can't recommend the China-made Squier Classic VIbe 60's bass enough - awesome! Good luck in your new venture .... see, we don't bite after all

Hey that's pretty damn good considering you've only been playing 18 months Quite brave of you too, to be playing with other musicians who look like they've been playing a while Don't worry about the odd "slip" here and there They happen - the important thing is to keep the groove Heard the bass fine through some earphones - sounds fine in the mix nice & audible among drums & 2 guitars Nice colour purple Ibanez bass too

Saw them live in Newport several years ago I have to say again, great band, not my absolute favourite either but they put on an awesome show! I'm hoping to see them live again sometime in the near future EDIT: I remember being particularly blown away by "The Fix" Can't remember exactly why - but I remember thinking it sounded brilliant live

I've had a couple of Ibanez basses My first was a Roadstar 11 - which was a brilliant bass (my son now has it) I had an SR500 - which must be the best sounding, best value bass ever The electrics & Bartolini pickups produced a superb sound, which was really flexible & adaptable Build quality was second to none - the neck was super slim Bubinga Currently I have an Ibanez electro-acoustic which is a great instrument Though the E string is a tad quiet when amplified... I only sold the SR500 because although the neck was very slim & fast I tend to prefer wider necks at the bridge end - so I can "dig in" with my fingers and I found the strings a bit too close together for that... If you prefer a slimmer neck, then this is the bass for you You can get them for just over 200 quid second-hand and I'd say they out perform anything costing twice that Because it says "SDGR" on the headstock, and because it sounded so good I always had other musicians coming up to me and asking what make it was I did open mic with 2 bands once - the "main" bands bassist had a MusicMan and was really impressed with my SR500 Another guy loaned my bass for 2 tracks - something I don't normally like to do, but he reckoned it sounded way better than the MM - so I had to loan it to such a nice guy! Both he and the MM player made a note of what my bass was, so I take that as a compliment to its' sound I would never have sold it if it had a slightly wider neck, or I could justify having yet another bass around (I have a DB and an EUB also taking up domestic space!) I also played an SR1000 a few years back, and that was brilliant too In terms of build quality, you need to pay double the price of an Ibanez to get up to Ibby quality But you have to like slimmer necks... and buy a new Ibanez, and you'll lose money when you sell If you want a 2nd hand one though - you'll get a load of bass for your money EDIT: I meant to add, I don't think I've ever played a bad Ibanez - and I've tried quite a few... Even those produced alongside other "brands" - the cheaper models (i.e SR200) are pretty good and great value for money, if you're looking for an entry-level instrument

For me, I'd rather inlays, rather than filler Just a personal preference of course I think I'd be sweating during the process of taking the frets out I converted a Squier VM series PJ .... but I just bought a fretless neck (for about 50 quid inc P&P on here) Don't know what bass you have, but a change of neck might be the cheaper option? That way, you either flog your current neck, or keep it in case you want to change back... ... just a thought

I had an Ashbory (note the different spelling, with the "o"), like Sarah mentions I really didn't get on with mine though I didn't like the rubber strings The E used to pop out of the nut (so I wrapped an elastic band around it, just beyond the nut) But it went out of tune all too easily Never really got on with the intonation either - but maybe that's just me It did have a very big sound though, and was pretty DB-like If you go for one of those Ashburys for £199 - let us know how you get on I'd like something as a really small, porable travel bass - so I'd like to try one myself......

I like the thought of a rig you can vary I'm in a few bands / combos, and also play DB or double up (on BG & DB) so I need flexibility A Markbass combo will give you 350W on its' own and 500W when you use an 8 ohm extension Conan is quite right too, of course the amount of Watts doesn't necessarily indicate how loud a rig is But most modern, decent gear is pretty loud for its size these days My Markbass 210 certainly is, and with an extension cab..... whew I used to use a heavy old Traynor valve head, a big, very heavy 2x15 and a 4x12 This wasn't as loud as my 210 combo on its' own

I use a Markbass 210 combo That sounds a lot bigger than it is As an extension, for larger cabs, I use an additional cab - a Phil Jones 4x5 I know some would say 5" speakers and even 10" speakers can never sound truly "big" But honestly, they can, or at least are ample for the biggest of pubs or clubs I played open air, without going through the PA at a large park, a little while back The sound guys had to ask me to turn down!! You could try using your cab with a 1x12 combo, or a 2x10 combo to give you 500W Plenty of people on here seem to use a 1x12 combo and 1x 12 extension and seem perfectly happy with it I used to play in the 80's too So I know where you're coming from let us know what you opt for .... and look after that back

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and findings with us Painy Nice to know what others think of the sound - especially at gigs You can try instruments in a guitar shop but you don't really get a true idea of what it would sound like in a live situation.... Your thoughts on the pickups backup what I anticipated they would sound like.... Must try one out soon I'm getting GAS again!

In my 1st spell of playing, in the early 80's (before my 25 year absence!) There was a general feeling or ethos that you either played a Fender, Gibson or Rickenbacker .... or you played rubbish copies During this time, in any music shop you heard the derogatory term "Jap Cr@p" banded about to refer to anything that wasn't a "major brand" This may have been partly true - as there were an awful lot of terrible guitars about back then But some of the stuff coming out of Japan in particular was brilliant The musical snobs thought otherwise, of course But I can recall many incidents of them dissing Squiers as awful, cheap copies and wondering what Fender were doing, allowing this rubbish to be associated with the Fender brand.... Those early Japan Squiers are now highly collectible, and prized for their superb build quality I had a Japan-built Rick copy bass, marketed as a Shaftesbury, which was just a stunning instrument of the highest build quality, and produced a stunning sound Nowadays, the quality of so called "lesser brands" is of an incredibly high standard Particularly the Indonesian Squier Vintage Modified series, and the China made Classic Vibe series are awesome You'd think that the brand snobs would have learned their lesson with the Japan Squiers ...... but maybe that's expecting too much of them? Most of us would never watch a band thinking "my amp is better than his" or "his bass is just a copy of mine....." Don't concern yourself about those who are so petty, that's all they can do If you're happy and comfortable with your bass, and the sound you get and if the band are happy with your sound - then keep it that way If anyone questions you about it - just say your backup bass is a Fender / Rick / Gibson / MM / whatever ...... but it has let you down - so you left it homer and decided to stick with your more reliable instrument

.... And don't forget, Seasick Steve makes some fabulous music, and a very healthy wagepacket From playing a guitar that was worth $10...... about 15 years ago!

If your Sammick sounds good, play it I wouldn't worry about what anyone else thinks As someone else said, if you told people it was a custom built bass, they probably wouldn't know As a bonus, there's something quite liberating, about gigging with a bass you're not too precious about too....

Another convert here I used to use a 4x12, valve head and a 1x15 I now use several combinations (depending on what band I'm with) I've got a Markbass 210 combo, and a Phil Jones 4x5 Or I use the PJ cab with a PJ valve head The Markbass alone gives me 350W, and it's a great, well-defined sound Coupled with the PJ cab I get 500W, and find it's useful to sometimes be able to split the speaker positions... I can't believe how lightweight the Markbass stuff is, and how loud it sounds I too am of a "certain age" and don't think I'd ever gig again, if all I had was the option of the old gear I used to use.... Don't risk putting your back out Get some new lightweight gear PS. A few months back, I was staggered at just how light the new Fender Rumble amps are!