NHM

Do cartoons count? My first pic when I was in 'The Freak Bros', from a review in the Exeter 'Flying Post' following a gig in town in 1978, that's me next to the congas (good likeness too!). For the geeks, that's an Eros jazz copy.

I agree, these are great basses and while they should be marketed correctly this is a fairly minor issue and shouldn't give the impression that basses are in any way defective. The stock pickup sounds really good. And lots of people upgrade pickups, especially on cheap basses, so what's the big deal? Mine is sitting next to me on its stand and it gets played every day as my 'go to practice bass'. That video sticks in the craw.😏

still, good news if you prefer a single coil in your short scale.

To get back into playing in the '90s, I bought a Kustom KBA100 combo from Studiospares (thinking that would be an endorsement of good quality). At my first gig a punter kindly pointed out that I 'sounded sh*te'; this turned out to be its one and only gig under my ownership, so that punter did me a favour.

My speaker cab doubles as a shooting stick

Thanks. It's always interesting to hear about a new compressor (well, new to me) and its mysterious and mystic ways.

How are you finding this pedal? Can you explain the knobs and switches?

Given four string short scales are obviously the best, there should be a 'basses for sale' section and another for 'anything other than four string short scales'. What would be handy is being able to sort sales by location. I like to know what's available within a car ride of home.

I've played in a classic rock band with a similar set up to yours, and started to play with a pick to get greater speed, consistency and clarity required. I've tried a few types of pick and settled on a standard Dunlop 1mm - but I play closer to the neck, to offset the 'click' of the pick with more natural 'thump'.

Will you let us know how you find the Vong?

I give a vote to the Vong - I use it as an 'always on' pedal and I think it is terrific, it really cleans up the sound at the bottom end and the lpf allows you to 'squash' down the top end of the sound, and it gives you a volume boost facility as well as a di. Bare in mind it is a kit...

or one of these: Rafferty HPF Pre 2 Bass Preamp / Adjustable High Pass Filter / Phase Switch Custom Color | Rafferty Guitar Pedals | Reverb I haven't used one so can't vouch for it, but it is cheaper than the other two listed here.

your assistance is much appreciated - many thanks

Thanks for the suggestions. I've tried lifting the inner prong with a needle, this works to a certain extent but the worn shaft means the plug can still wiggle around and power still is intermittent. I've tried wedging in a bit of paper, but I can't risk this in a gig. So it looks like a replacement socket. The one in the pedal looks like the one in the picture above - Ian, do you have a link for where I can buy one?

The plug from the power supply is loose in the pedal's socket. It's weird, never experienced this before, it's as though the internal sleeve of the socket has become worn. Other power supply plugs that I've tried are also loose, suggesting the problem is the socket.

Hi BCers I've a much loved pedal where the 9v power supply socket has worn, meaning the plug occasionally disconnects (usually mid song). Unfortunately the socket is soldered onto a pcb and I don't fancy replacing it, that's beyond my soldering skills. Of course I can run the pedal on battery only, but I've never been a fan of this when gigging. Any ideas how to fix it?

Invoke 'bass law' - all gear manufacturers should be made to put some form of meter on every item of kit where there is variable gain, so you can assess the output of the device. You wouldn't cook a recipe just with a list of ingredients but no sense of quantities, are signal chains any different? Happy Christmas, by the way...

just read about the case in the Grauniad. He doesn't come across well Isn't it disappointing that all that fame and privilege can't instill a more humanitarian outlook? He's dealing with fans, after all. Imagine if Boris was a lead guitarist...

Are you having a bad morning? Anyway, she wouldn't want it as she knows it isn't expensive.

no-one has mentioned the blues! I'm Fender Fender Fender - Musicmaster, Downtown Express, Bassman 500 - all of which seems to do the job OK.

thanks for the helpful advice about where best to place the HPF. I've been running mine in the effects loop so I'll switch it around to come after the compressor - it will be interesting to hear the difference.

Is it more effective to put a HPF first in the chain, or last, (such as in the amp's effects loop)?