Count Bassie

[quote name='Ghost_Bass' post='1092210' date='Jan 17 2011, 05:10 AM']Never forget to turn the cell phone off when on stage! [/quote] Ha! I just 'got' this! Uncle Sam... me a yankee...

No, not at all. That 3D was on my old Peavey Dyna-Bass Unity also, in the attractive "Black Chrome" color (I think that was Peavey's name for it). I think if I do a build this year (Fender-Bird type deal, likely) I'll be putting one of those 3Ds on it. Keep the weight down! I do remember playing a 2-Tek-loaded Hamer Cruise, the newer one, in a store and it was a little on the hefty side alright. Anyway I'm all yakked-out about my bass (and dodging the occasional bullets) so I appreciate the diversion! And thanks to all for the remarks. Lacquer next...

[quote name='Bassassin' post='1106929' date='Jan 28 2011, 08:55 PM']That bridge is a Schaller 3D. Jon.[/quote] I was referring to the Hamer 2-Tek that BottomE mentioned- quite a massive piece. But you're right, I actually emailed Schaller for a new saddle piece for my bridge a few months ago- after 30 years it's still the same! Pretty cool.

[quote name='BottomE' post='1106424' date='Jan 28 2011, 11:52 AM']As an aside how much are Hamer Cruises with 2 Tek selling for in the US these days?[/quote] At a glance they look around $500-$800 US. [quote name='BottomE' post='1106424' date='Jan 28 2011, 11:52 AM']They are like rocking horse sh*t over here - almost impossible to find. I am lucky enough to own one and it is one of the finest basses i have ever played. Truly amazing build quality. I'd buy another one in a flash if i could find one.[/quote] I agree that Hamer has put up some real nice work over the years. That bridge is quite a piece of hardware. Ever look in the US craigslist? Might be a longshot for shipping, etc., but it's out there. I ran into mine just by chance- and the mod idea came quite a bit later, after gigging with it a while. [quote name='BottomE' post='1106424' date='Jan 28 2011, 11:52 AM']btw - I love your project. Its a bit mad but appealing.[/quote] "Mad"! I can deal with that- thanks! Hope to get it finished soon...

[quote name='cheddatom' post='1106214' date='Jan 28 2011, 08:59 AM']I like the new shape, nice![/quote] Thanks! What I actually like about it is that it's a little weird-looking in real-life/when playing it, and that you can't tell what it is. Kinda like me...

Here's the total poop so far... Before: After: Amazing?! Well, thanks. The only major difference is the horns. The upper is mostly gone, the lower has been shortened to 'match'. The rest is musing and sandpaper. I haven't had the cojones to post it on Talkbass yet... I bought it from a kid from off that site. He wanted to get it back from me shortly afterward, but had nothing that I wanted to trade for it, and no bread. I'm afraid it might bum him out! Never mind the bashing I'll get for it! Might after it's lacquered. Then it's just plain done, and will be itself.

[quote name='Gust0o' post='1106015' date='Jan 28 2011, 06:16 AM']Looking good, Bassie. So when are we onto the lacquer?[/quote] Thanks. I do think it looks a little "unexpected"- almost a little bit of a challenge to the mainline sensibility. The lines of the horns are sort of a surprise to look at, I find. But the language of "play it for a while" is really a way of saying "need a paycheck"... probably a couple weeks.

So here's where I'm at so far... time and resources are a challenge, but really the fact that it's taking so long is fine. I'd just come up with something less than I'd like if it had been done by now! I'm waiting on lacquer, and I'm not even sure if I'm done with the shape yet. Have a look-see (pardon the laundry, etc.): I may take a little more scoop out of the upper horn's hollow, being thoughtful to leave plenty of 'beef' by the neck joint. Those are Rotosound 'True-Bass' strings on there, which I like a lot. LaBella makes a set like it as well, which I used to have on a Peavey Dyna-Bass Unity. Great strings- I got Rotos this time because they were cheep! Got 'em through a friend on clearance. Anyway, I'm going to play it this way for a while, see some pix of it, see how I like what I'm getting out of it for comfort, sound, etc. Thanks for having a look...

Yes indeed, thanks for the good words there. Too many plates spinning, I can count on dropping one or two in the course of a day! That's a relief, anyhow...

Hmmm... seems it might be my cell phone that I believe was in my pocket at the time. Duh...

I've got a Trace Elliot AH250SMX plugged into a Trace 1048 4x10 cab. With either of my 2 basses, both passive, I'm getting a low-volume, slow, 'tick... tick... tick...' noise. I only have one head until I get the other out of the shop this week, so I can't really test it A/B. But I wonder if anyone here might know what that is? There is a hf tweeter in the cab, and I wonder if that's it. But I hear it from the speakers, I believe, also. Hope it's not the amp, I just got it back from the shop as well, and don't want to spend another small sum on it. My amp guy says that although the SMX Trace heads are well engineered, their manufacturing was apparently not very well executed. He's servied my amp before, and other Trace rigs also. Anyway, any insight is welcome, thanks.

[quote name='mikhay77' post='1090683' date='Jan 15 2011, 12:48 PM']It is a mkiv,I have one exactly the same! Grrreeaaatttt[/quote] So it is... alright then! Thanks Mikhay77. It's just gotten repaired, but I have to wait 'till nes\xt week to get it out of the shop. Weather has made it a slow work week, so I'm busted! Something to look forward to anyway. I'll post when it comes home and goes back to work!

[quote name='lettsguitars' post='1086344' date='Jan 12 2011, 01:22 AM']green is good. hasn't nasa just found a green blob somewhere out there? bass rig heaven no doubt. i wonder if my old rig is up there. i like to think so.[/quote] Oh yeah- there's a quasar nearby that is no longer- only the light is still running through that cloud. Likely pushing gas around and forming planets, I'm hearing. Planets where life will form, evolve, and eventually build bass amps with UV-lit green-lettered front panels... unless it's Rock n' Roll Heaven... where your rig is keeping company with my old SVT.

Very sorry to hear this... hope all is well asap. Nice bass.

I've been mistakenly calling my AH250 a "MK IV". It doesn't say MK IV on it, and I'd never heard of one before. I made it up! But there doesn't seem to be any other model name beyond AH250, and there are a lot of those. And I think it's an earlier model than the MK V. Anyway, pardon my confusion...

[quote name='Delberthot' post='675626' date='Dec 6 2009, 08:03 AM']I have a second rig that i haven't used yet as I bought it intending to use it with the Rock band but we aren't due to play until boxing night. Its a 1984 1110 combo that was modded by Trace to allow an 8ohm cab to be used with it and you can also connect a speaker lead to another input to use it as a 4x10" cab [/quote] This is the same head I have- coming back from the shop at the end of the week. Do you know the model# of it as a standalone head? Is it just an AH250 GP-11? Mine (been posted before around here to the point of obnoxious redundancy):

[quote name='NoirBass' post='1081483' date='Jan 7 2011, 03:16 PM']Don't know if it helps but I have an early 70's V4-B and I love the valve tone it produces. That said you need a big cab to get the best from it, its very grindy even at half volume. Its huge and it weighs a tonne! Certainly not the most practical amp ever. As for the Trace, Its a very different animal - if you like the sound of it keep it.[/quote] Well it comes back this week, and although I did get to play it some before the shop visit I'll be curious to plug it in again. I've foregone the V4-B, I'm really not having an issue with anything gear-oriented. Just like my old Ampeg sound! But I'm resigned to waiting... I use the SMX head quite a lot, and I'm presuming this will be a fine backup, maybe even a solid head for regular use. I am interested in finding out more about this head though. I don't find much on this generation, in fact it's difficult to find any very complete thread of information on the line anywhere. Sources seem to have become a diaspora of links once-involved with the Trace Elliot family tree, and it's no help that the name has passed through several sets of hands. To anyone who's got first-hand or otherwise reliable info on this particular amp, and its immediate relatives, I'd love to hear from you! Thanks.

Here's a general idea of the color scheme, more of a burst-like idea than this probably... it's the orangey-burnished look on the edge that'll make it. Almost like well-kept old furniture.

Almost done re-shaping. It's going very slow, but hey. We "have a life" here! I'll finish today, and get the primer back on the sanded spots. Ordering a spray can of color this week, and then it's off the the furniture guy. I think I'm going to get a little bolder with the beveled edges. I like where it's going, but it's too subtle. I know this isn't very interesting yet, but I'm just posting to keep myself enthused... and yes, the Westone thing is come forward alright. Don't mind that.

The Hartke combos are very good. Even the small ones can throw right out to the back of a decent-sized room without PA. Don't know how they do it, but it's a solid sound and reliable gear. If I owned a music store I'd buy one and bring it to gigs for demo purposes.

[quote name='MoonBassAlpha' post='1080619' date='Jan 6 2011, 07:04 PM']It's looking a little like a Westone Thunder now. Trans cherry like a Guild or Gibbo would look smart over that mahogany.[/quote] Wait and see...

Well I used to have a 'Blue-Line' SVT years ago, and I realize, from that blurry guide for comparison, that there will be a difference. I also had a Sunn 300T that was pretty hi-fi compared to the SVT... but yeah I know it's a different animal. Thanks for the reality check though!

I'm getting my Trace AH250GP-11 head, I believe it's a Mark IV, out of the shop next week. I've run into an Ampeg V4-B, a 'Classic' version, for $400 US, and I'd like to score it. I can only do it if I lose the Trace head... I have an SMX which I use regularly for all my gigs, and like it quite a lot. Sound-people who do our FOH tend to be pretty enthusiastic about it, but I realize it's a different animal than the older Trace head. I also realize the older one is kind of a vintage piece, as it were, and it's still a solid, serviceable amp. But, the prospect of nailing an all-tube Ampeg is too much, and I have to at least look into it. Any thoughts on this? Should I really keep the Trace, or maybe hold out and use proceeds from a sale for an SVT? Is the Trace head worth that much? Or am I simply a fool?...

A little update, holidays are over... I've shaved a tad more out of the upper bout scallop, and have decided on a color scheme. There's a local guy I've been referred to who does a lot of nitro work on furniture. We've talked it over and have decided to spray an Ivory-Blonde lacquer on it, then rub a little stain into that after it dries to get some of the wood texture into the picture. If that works out, we'll clear-coat it and then do a subtle 'dusting ' of darker, more reddish color around the edge. I'm not seeing it completely yet, I'll have to walk along with the process and decide when I'm there. The pick guard will be clear acrylic, possibly a different shape- and lifted up above the body of the bass rather than screwed right onto it: This way the new finish will all age/discolor at the same rate. The 'guard will get an etching or something done to the back of it, and that'll be filled with the same color as the outer edge of the body (an idea anyway). I'm thinking a 'Fawn' type creature playing his flute, or maybe an angle, satyr, something mythical, sort of suggesting the influence of 'the subtler world'. Maybe even a little breast-action would be fun- like a mermaid arched on the bowsprit of a ship. The Universal Mother thing, right?... Anyway I'd like it to speak of a medieval reference, more or less. And I need a logo for the headstock. Maybe it should be the Hamer sig, or maybe a custom one I come up with. There's another dude around who does custom decals... Pix when we get started. I'm pretty psyched.

This is the newest addition to the rig... found a 1048 localy for $100. Needs a few screws for attaching the grille properly and I had to reset one of the port tubes with some construction adhesive. Loaded with Celestions, this with the 1153 is a very nice, clear, punchy sound. The soundman at our gig last night was very happy with it- which makes life easier at any large production! Unfortunately the 715-S combo is gone... life forces pragmatism. AH250SMX; 1153-T; 1048... Coming soon, the old MK IV comes out of the shop in a week or so. I found a kid in Providence (neaby) who loves old amps, fixes and mods them. He was pretty psyched to see the beastie, so I'm looking forward to plugging it in. I originally got that for $100 too, last spring. And that one's got a UV light, so it'll be fun for the Portuguese trad gigs... there's an audience that loves a little glitz in their night out...