Happy Jack

In all fairness Mick they're both listed as SB301s but those are still excellent VFM.

I'm stunned. Shocked and stunned. A 4-piece power-pop trio? What were you thinking?

I've been faffing about with different types of valve amp for a few years, no sort of expert but a reasonably experienced faffer. You'll need very good ears indeed to hear much change between various types of output valve. Once you get above the lowest-quality units, a valve is a valve, IMHO. Input valves are different. Like wines, they attract all sorts of fanciful adjectives (smooth, creamy, crunchy, sparkling) which actually tell you very little until you've heard that particular valve used in your amp, with your bass played through it, by you. There's a shedload of information about pre-amp valves on the Net but be warned, most of it is aimed fair & square at guitarists rather than at bass players. The ECC83 is the most widely-used pre-amp valve, and it's also commonly known as the AX7. If that's too high-gain (i.e. breaks up easily into distortion) for your tastes, try the next step down which is the AT7. That's a roughly 40% drop in gain level leading to a much later break-up. Watford Valves have attracted mixed reviews on Basschat. I really like them and have had nothing but good service from them, but I am aware that others have had different experiences.

Have you ever been to Kelso in Scotland? Didn't think so. Well I have. People use old sidecars for coffee tables down there.

I think the real problem is that "[i]the bass neck has been deferred[/i]". Never de-fret to tomorrow what can be de-fretted until the day after ...

They are there for raisin the signal level ...

Is this competition still running? I've managed to avoid it completely for maybe 20 years. Can't say that my life has been the poorer as a result ...

[quote name='steve-bbb' timestamp='1393921818' post='2385737'] i think that i always used to play this as if i was 'reacting' to the tempo, the mental mindset leaves you feeling like you are constantly just behind the beat and always putting in that extra effort to stay up there on the beat - i do think that i have changed my perception of the timing slightly so that now my thinking part of my brain is trying to be ready in anticipation before the beat so that im there on the beat with minimal effort - i know this sounds a bit vague and tenuous but for me this is the main improvement i have made as my physical playing style hasnt really changed a great deal in the last two years apart from growing slightly more economic [/quote] Not vague at all - I can see exactly where you're coming from on that.

But I'm not convinced it's really the look for me: [URL=http://s1128.photobucket.com/user/h4ppyjack/media/Performance/120915%20Rocky%20Mountain%20Elvis/RockyMountainElvisinWindsor7.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m496/h4ppyjack/Performance/120915%20Rocky%20Mountain%20Elvis/RockyMountainElvisinWindsor7.jpg[/IMG][/URL] I'm thinking of changing the hat-band for a spandex one in day-glo pink. What do you reckon?

That control plate alone would halve its value as far as I'm concerned.

Depends on where you'll be playing and what pickup configuration you choose. In my (limited) experience most DB gigs are backline-provided, so all you need is something like a Fishman Platinum Pro as a pre-amp pedal [i]cum [/i]DI. If you're supplying your own backline, then you could be starting a long and very expensive journey in search of "your" sound. A number of Basschatters have already made this journey and are better-placed than me to offer advice. In particular, I've seen/heard the rigs used by Clarky and PTB and they're seriously impressive (and clever) pieces of kit. If you're not that fussed about getting the perfect tone, then a PlatPro works in front of a lot of different rigs. I've used mine with Gallien Krueger heads and Barefaced cabs without issues. I don't recommend playing a DB through an Orange Terror Bass ... but it will still work.

Who? The late Vic Maile?

This was more-or-less required listening in 75/76. That first number still rustles the hairs on the back of me neck ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWTcTNwiT60

I don't normally wax lyrical about tortoiseshell pickguards, but for this sort of quality and impact I'm prepared to make an exception.

It's not just basses, of course. If your lock-up has power, you could do much worse than to invest in some insulation and then use a greenhouse heater or similar, and keep temperature & humidity within reasonable bands.

[quote name='cytania' timestamp='1393716468' post='2383761'] What's with the Deadhead bass? More knobs than can possibly of use and then a bridge anchor that is made from dribbled solder... [/quote] It's known as "Alembic build quality" actually.

[quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1393697920' post='2383524'] That clip doesn't do them justice. Here's Jenny and Babe Ruth at probably their finest. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyPKee16zdY[/media] [/quote] That's the finest Hammond sound ever to be produced on a grand piano ...

There's never a Clutterbuck when you need one ...

Hmmmmm. Sounds suspiciously like the incidental music for a 70s American cop show. I kept expecting the name Lalo Schifrin to waft across the screen ...

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1393655984' post='2382999'] You must play some real posh areas if the easiest ready cash for the landlord to grab from the till is 4 £50 notes. [/quote] Bwahahaha!!! The areas we are most frequently paid with £50 notes are those where there's the greatest need for money laundering. In posh areas, people buy their Pinot Grigio with credit cards, dontcherknow. The place that has given us by far the most £50 notes was a big, empty Irish pub in a large, well-known Irish area of London. There was never any possible legal explanation for why a pub which never had more than a dozen punters in it could possibly have five shiny new £50 notes in the till every Saturday night ...

Really annoyed that I can't make this one ... going to The Nutcracker Suite at Richmond Theatre instead. You don't do any Tchaikovsky do you?

[color=#666666][font=verdana, arial, sans-serif][size=3]Experienced rhythm section fancies getting back into laid-back, groove-style music ... think Booker T, Wilson Pickett, Eddie Floyd, The Meters, maybe some Motown, maybe some Northern Soul. [/size][/font][/color] [color=#666666][font=verdana, arial, sans-serif][size=3]We both love this stuff because we're old enough to remember it from first time around. We want to play it properly, not "have a go at it". [/size][/font][/color] [color=#666666][font=verdana, arial, sans-serif][size=3]We're aiming for a 4-piece band, maybe plus a singer if necessary, but this sort of music has to be built around the [/size][/font][/color][color=#ff0000][font=verdana, arial, sans-serif][size=3][u][b]keyboard player[/b][/u][/size][/font][/color][color=#666666][font=verdana, arial, sans-serif][size=3] so that's where we're starting. [/size][/font][/color] [color=#666666][font=verdana, arial, sans-serif][size=3]What we're looking for is someone who can achieve a decent Hammond sound and a decent piano sound, preferably without needing a team of roadies to move his/her kit. This is less-is-more music so knowing when to hold back is essential. Gigging experience would obviously be very helpful, but not absolutely essential - we all have to start somewhere. [/size][/font][/color] [color=#666666][font=verdana, arial, sans-serif][size=3]We have all the kit a band needs (except a keyboard!), our own transport, and our own rehearsal space in Acton. Neither of us drags a huge ego around. Both of us play in other bands but we have no problems avoiding diary clashes. [/size][/font][/color] [color=#666666][font=verdana, arial, sans-serif][size=3]Please note that this will not be a hobby band or an excuse to get together at rehearsals and have a few beers. We're both gigging musicians and we'd be looking to get paid gigs by this summer.[/size][/font][/color]

Everything? No ... There's no DI out, no built-in tuner, there must have been room for an AX7 somewhere if only they'd looked, and it has no flick switches at all ... got to have those flick switches. Failing which, there's always room for some more knobs: [URL=http://s1128.photobucket.com/user/h4ppyjack/media/Just%20Stuff/Music%20and%20Musicians/WallOfSoundGuildAlembic.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m496/h4ppyjack/Just%20Stuff/Music%20and%20Musicians/WallOfSoundGuildAlembic.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

Depends whether or not you can get by all days on Oranges ...

In the future, all bands will be paid in Bitcoins ...