Jonesy

There is something nice about having an axe from new and you causing all the dings on it throughout it's lifetime. But at the same time I appreciate the quandary you're in, I passed on a vintage fender about 20 years ago and decided to buy a new Ric instead. I don't regret the decision at all, I just wish I had both basses 😁 All valid points above about making sure you try loads before you buy and making money on a vintage as opposed to losing it on a new one. Depends on how susceptible you are to GAS too, if you reckon the Pbass will be a keeper then depreciation won't be so much of a factor. Just to throw a curve ball out there, you could go for a halfway house and look at a MIJ 70s reissue from the 90s. They're fantastic instruments.

Would make sense as the 2 areas aren't a million miles apart ☺️

And this is why BC is such a wonderful place. I'll pm ya 😁

Hahahaha, this is a lot more economical and has the added bonus of giving me a hiding place for a chunk of sponge!

That, and having a go at a setup, is on my to do list for this weekend. I'll probably soon be posting pictures of a neck that looks like its been butchered with a bread knife and asking for help 😃

There is a drop in output when soloing the bridge pup, but it's not that noisey in the whole grand scheme of things, the drop is also less than I hear in my G&L JB Tribute (which has the Fender 74 vintage pups in it). I wouldn't typically play with just the bridge pup, so I can't say it impacts me and the pups are pretty hot, so are already sending a chunky signal to the amp too. This vid is a pretty fair review of it and it might be useful to you I'm only in Enfield, so if you're thinking about buying one and want to try it out first, then you're more than welcome to pop over

I don't suppose anyone knows somewhere that can sell me a lovely chunk of chrome to fit over the 3 point bridge? I've tried All Parts/NW Guitars and Axerus, but with no luck, so thought I'd check with the hive mind before I start looking at getting one from the US. Ta!

The Ric is a weird one, generally I like thinner necks, but the Ric is one of my favourite necks to play. I think the combination of the shorter scale length and it being fairly shallow front to back make up for the width.

I'm living in Enfield and we have..... Chas N Dave - I could stop here, because I can't better this Adele Dave Murray - Iron Maiden guitarist Amy Winehouse

So, I've just had a look and my basses read as follows for width at the nut and 12th fret........ Gibson SG - 40mm/54mm G&L SB2 Tribute - 38mm/54mm G&L JB Tribute - 38mm/54mm Fender MIJ P - 40mm/56mm Ric - 44mm/54mm Not sure if that helps?

I was wondering the same thing recently and it's surprising how much of a difference a few mm makes when you get up the dusty end. From what I understand, there's basically a couple of reasons why necks get wider. Neck stability - a neck that's wider at the body and tapers toward the nut will have a more even strain on the neck all the way along its length, whereas a straighter neck will put more strain on the neck where it joins the body. The amount of space strings need at different points of the neck - strings move/vibrate less nearer the nut/where they're fretted than they do further toward your plucking hand. If necks didn't get wider then strings may clatter together when you play them. I'm not sure if any bass has a parallel neck, but my Ric is the closest I've seen to it. I can't remember the exact measurements, but I think it only widens by about a cm from nut to 12th fret.

Hahahaha, I did think that after taking the pic, but laziness prevailed. You're more than welcome to nab it next time you're around these parts if you fancy a loan 😃

Here's what it looks like in a more natural, although still fairly dull, day light.......

It is, yes. To my disgust! It's usually the first thing I take off a bass once I know I'm keeping it, but I grabbed these snaps quickly between jobs and didn't really notice until you mentioned it.

Oh yeah, they're my round wound of choice and are on my JB. Gotta love that zing! I think I'll play with these (some sort of D'Addario I think?) for a bit first though just because it feels weird replacing brand new strings. I may have a go at setting it up too. Wish me luck!

Well........a few days ago I had a knock at the door and a rather lovely box from guitaguitar arrived with my new SB2 tribute in it! My first thought, just as the delivery guy handed it over, was......gutted, they've sent me out a guitar by mistake. A box this light can't contain a bass. To my delight, I was wrong! The neck on it is lovely, feels really smooth and is easy to get around, with no sharp fret ends. The fret board is a touch dry, but that's easily sorted. My only niggle is the nut isn't quite cut properly and there's a bit poking out on the top of the neck. I can't say I've felt it when playing and I may have a go at removing it. Finish wise, the matte black looks great and is really smooth. When I'm playing with a pick on some basses I have to use a wristband so I don't get stuck to the bass. Not with this though. With the smooth neck, finish and monsterous pups, this bass wants to be played with a pick. Speaking of pups, the MFDs are a beast! Think P bass on steroids, then give it 9 pints of Stella and a flick knife. That's how aggy they are. The lack of a tone control doesn't bother me, it's plenty versatile without it. I've always been a bit unsure about PJs in the past, thinking they don't really know what they want to be, but both pups on this are great and it sounds huge. Here's some pics. The room light makes everything a lot more amber looking than it is in reality.....

It looks really great and if the neck isn't as chunky as the L2k then that's a good thing (for me anyway). I think that colour/neck/plate combo is definitely the nicest of the new finishes.

A lot of Orange Goblin has good bass lines too, their earlier stuff is slower with a more if a groove that might be friendlier to your hands. Karma to Burn, Church of Misery, Fu Manchu, Nebula & Red Fang will all have songs that fit the bill too

Sticking with the Down family, how about Albatross, or any other corrosion of conformity? Mike Dean's a good bassist but their stuff isn't too speedy.

This was the first new year's with a new addition to the family (a 3 month old newborn, not a new bass), so I was in bed by about 10. I kicked off the new year with this while making breakfast......

I'll 4th the recommendations for Wunjo, they're really great in there and a nice bunch to deal with. If you fancy nipping on a train for 45mins or so then there's GAK and a load of independent shops down in Brighton that are worth a look too.

Well, it's a good job G&L are in the business of making fantastic basses rather than running websites or measuring distances 😂 Thanks for that!

That looks absolutely lovely, the finish and the blocks really set it apart for me. Are you going to keep the tort on it? How are you getting on with the neck? Different sites seem to spec it differently (handy 😒), but I think the general consensus is that it's 44mm at the nut and a modern c, rather than baseball bat? When you get a sec would you mind letting me know what the width is at the 12th fret please? Glad to hear you're happy with it!!

Come and play with us. Forever........and ever.......and ever........ Maybe I should wear them every time I'm playing the bass. I may need a few more pairs 😃

That's a really good price on a great little bass, if I hadn't just bought a new bass I'd be all over this. I had a blue one from Bax earlier in the year and thought it was fantastic, the neck is lovely and it sounds pretty great too. The only reason I returned it is that my brain couldn't justify having a Gibson as a back up.