Dan Dare

This. You can't be the only person taking instruments to NAMM that include CITES regulated materials.

That black headstock's a home bodge. Look at the overspray on the nut. Adds a certain charm, I suppose. Poor thing's been butchered. Oh and it's a Squier. Says "Made in Indonesia" on the back of the headstock.

Relisted at £300. Still a giltar...

Go on. Your wallet (and your back) will thank you 😈

Is anything shorting inside the body cavity? When I used a J Retro, it was quite deep and could short against the screening if it touched.

Difficult to answer. It's worth whatever a willing buyer is prepared to pay.

You'll need to check the minimum impedance external speaker yours can drive (especially if the existing speaker is 4 ohm). I'd suggest trying to match the existing driver as closely as possible for consistency (assuming you like the sound it makes and just want more of it). Would be worth taking it to a decent shop and trying a few with it, rather than buying on spec' or recommendation.

A 210 or 115 won't be a lot smaller than what you have and (in view of your comment about the VDK, which is bound to be recommended) may not weigh any or much less or take up very much less space. Why not invest in a decent trolley for the 212 so it's an easier carry and save some money?

Yep. Straightforward job. You can get self adhesive copper screening tape off Amazon or eBay quite cheaply. RS Components do a decent sized roll for not too much money, too, if you want a bit more. You just need to unscrew and lift the scratchplate and stick it all over the inside of the body cavity (one layer is fine - no need to use yards of the stuff). Make sure it doesn't short against the jack terminals or any of the wiring. Remove the pots from the scratchplate and put a layer over the inside of the plate where it covers the body cavity. Then poke a hole for the pots and replace them. That will earth the pot bodies to the screening tape. It sounds as if your bridge is grounded already if the hum quietens when you touch the strings

Through neck? And some quite decent woodwork and finishing from the look of it. Far too well built for my taste.

Mine too.

Leave the bridge ground wire in situ' and just add a ground wire to connect the shielding to one of the pot bodies. You only need to put tape over the underside of the p/g where it covers the body cavities.

Which is what most of us said, but he wouldn't have it.

14x10? Are you the bass player with Hotblack Desiato?

Yep. More fun for us.

If the existing one fits OK, Jack's Instrument Services (Google them) in Manchester will make you one using it as a template. Not cheap, but good quality and swift service.

You took the words out of my mouth, Tubster. My meter broke...

I just give mine a clip round the ear if it misbehaves.

They are rare. They were horrible and few people bought them, so there are virtually none about.

Phono sockets? Must be pro kit... I love that headstock, too. So elegant in its simplicity.

Quantity discounts, too. What more could you want?

The ears and the tail, sir. The world's gone to hell in a handcart. The only way is not to buy any of it.

There's a world of difference between achieving tone in a studio and doing so in a live setting. No offence to the OP, but you need a considerably more sophisticated rig than a Rumble 500 to do it at any sort of volume and even then it will be masked/affected by what else is happening when you play in a live band. You don't even hear the true onstage sound in live recordings such as those above - the multitrack will have been re-eq'd/tweaked before release/screening. T-Bay's comment above is very true - what sounds great soloed doesn't necessarily work in a band context. Trying for that holy grail tone is a hiding to nothing, I'm afraid. It always amuses me, for example, that people revere the Ampeg B15 "because Jamerson used one". He may have, but only as a monitor so the studio band could hear the bass. That lovely recorded tone of his was created via a custom built preamp running straight into the board (see various YouTube vid's on the topic).

We can only offer suggestions. It's up to you whether you accept them. The problem is that you don't have a sufficient level of understanding to appreciate good advice, such as that above from Richard. It's just going straight over your head. Perhaps you hope that if you keep asking, a different, possibly easier to understand, response that is more to your liking will materialise. Once again, you need either to get someone who knows what they are talking about to go through it with you. This is not difficult , despite your comment above, provided of course you are happy to pay someone for their time (perhaps that is the sticking point for you). Either that or read up on the topic. There are a plenty of books/online tutorials that will help - you'll have to do your own research about those, but Google is your first port of call. I fear we are wasting our time here. Did (perhaps this may be a possible answer to Richard's question above) those on the singing forum to which you refer lose patience with you?

I reckon it is, too. It's still cheaper than getting two additional C4s.