Happy Jack

I have to assume that all the real bargains got snapped up quickly - what's there now is a set of reductions so modest that they barely qualify as a SALE SALE SALE GET YER CHEAP PA KIT HERE event. It's more a WE'VE KNOCKED 5% OFF THESE OVER-PRICED & SLOW-SELLING ITEMS.

The thing that makes the most obvious difference to the playing experience is the presence of the centre-block. Apart from affecting the sound (although not by as much as some claim) it obviously increases the weight of the bass noticeably, and has a marked effect on balance. If at all possible, try a genuine German-made Hofner in a shop first to get a better understanding of what you're looking for. Then try the hollow-body Chinese made, and only after that the one with the centre-block.

They still are, yes. Andrea's number is in the post (above). I'm just depping for them on keys.

I've been using Xvive U2 wireless for a few years now and the battery packs are beginning to fade; they used to be perfectly happy to play 3-set gigs on consecutive nights without charging, now they struggle to reach the end of a single 3-set gig. Given how (relatively) expensive they are, I'm not happy and I won't be replacing like with like. My Joyo JW-3 bugs cost just a third of the Xvive price (at the time I bought them - I see they're a fair bit dearer these days) and have delivered a very similar perfomance level to the Xvive U2. I like the look of that charging-case system a lot. I play two gigs most weekends, sometimes three (hell, occasionally four), so having the bugs starting to recharge the second I put them in the case at the end of the gig works for me. Amazon today have a better deal on the Lekato equivalent so I've ordered one of those.

"The Neoprene padding is guaranteed not to react with any lacquer/finish" That turned out to not be the case when I first started putting nitro-finished basses on neoprene stands/hangers. Has something changed or improved?

I've not played both so can't really compare for you, but I followed this thread with interest. I got very close to pressing the button on the Squier VI until I fell down the YouTube rabbit hole of just how dreadful the bridge is and the amount of work needed to make a brand new instrument playable. So last week I bought https://www.thomann.co.uk/harley_benton_guitarbass_vs_vintage_series.htm It arrived yesterday and the first thing I needed to do was to tune it. Then ... well, I played it. That was it. Straight out of the box it was exactly what you want from a new instrument, everything as it should be, set-up perfect, intonation perfect, no dodgy fretwork or crackly pots, very nice sunburst and very nice tort for the p/g. It feels light (actually 7.5 lbs but it feels lighter somehow), hangs well on a strap, and in the hands of a good player - not me, the guy in my soul band played it all last night - it's a very competent bass as well as an excellent baritone guitar thingy with all due allowance for the tuning options. And it cost £185

Aha! An excuse to re-post one of my all-time fave YouTubes ...

I'm always on the lookout for interesting side-projects so I check JMB / Gumtree / FB every day in case something crops up. Looking at a singe page of JMB this afternoon offered me ALL of those tags above in the space of about 30/40 listings and I realised that the whole lot was simply washing over me.

Disco in 6/8 time ... the outcome is inevitable:

I have literally no idea what most of these mean, what sort of songs they are, what sort of bass-playing they require ... indeed, whether or not they actually need any bass. I suspect that many of the people using them have wildly different definitions from each other anyway. Am I missing something? Should I invest hours/days/weeks going down the wastepipe rabbit-hole of trying to understand all these things, or is it safe to carry on ignoring them?

Bass needs more strings ...

Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!

And here's the long-awaited debut gig ...

Sounds a bit pointy to me. 😆

The usual lack of any helpful information about the bass. I'd only consider buying it if I could spend 15 mins with it first.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/166933130243