Jonesy

I've never had a bass fail on me or broken a string (at a gig or otherwise) and have never seen that happen to anyone else, but if I was getting paid to do a longer set then I'd be a spare just in case. The closest I've ever come to something going wrong was at my last gig. I was playing along and digging in quite hard as usual when all of a sudden I just stopped hearing my bass. I had a couple of seconds of panicking and wondering what was causing the problem then noticed a screw in my bridge pickup had sprung, causing the pickup to make contact with the strings and deadening the notes. Had to play the rest of the song pushing the pickup down with my little finger so the strings could vibrate properly. Luckily I was playing with a metal pick and the tip had been fairly worn in, so I used it as a screwdriver and got the pup back in place.

Just the one, but I mostly play originals to an empty room. If I was getting paid to do a set of covers in a pub or something then I'd take 2 so I have a backup just in case. 

I saw a Pearl Jam tribute band a couple of years ago and they were great. The bassist must have played at least 5 different basses over the 1hr30m set. Jeff Ament played quite a wide range of basses over the course of their career so far and I really rated the bass player for going the extra mile to get it as spot on as possible. I was probably the only person in the venue who appreciated it though 😃

Andertons have them as arriving on July 4th........I'm looking forward to the NBD posts already 😃

On 03/06/2023 at 20:39, Jono Bolton said:

A guy I follow on Instagram posted that they were showing briefly on the Fender website, but weren't available anywhere and were taken down. Possibly a CME/Anderton's exclusive like the some of the Bass VI models were. I wouldn't get it myself; the "Shell Pink" used by Fender nowadays isn't pastel enough to be Shell Pink IMO

I hope it gets released somewhere, it'll go nicely with the Shell Pink limelight I have on order! I know what you mean about the shading though, I've seen a custom shop road worn J that is just perfect, but the Flea J is too mild and some of the other models are a little too vibrant.

Lobster has just posted a quick unboxing......
 

Have to say that it's not helping with the GAS and that green looks great too. Sounds like Squier are on to a winner with this one.

9 hours ago, Jono Bolton said:

There's also a shell pink one

 

Ohhh, have you seen that Shell Pink one anywhere online? Can't seem to find it on the Squier site or any other retailers. 

GAK have the Sherwood green one for £380 and that's mighty tempting!

Sorry to hear about the arthritis, hope you find a combo of pain killers that make it manageable for you.

If you're not sure if a short scale will help, then maybe it's worth picking up a cheap one to try out before trying to find 'the one' (well, one of many by the time GAS kicks in). You can pick up a Squier Bronco for less than £100 second hand. Take it home, play it for a few weeks and see if it does the trick, that way you're not losing out on anything.

If it does the trick then I'd be looking out for......

JMJ Mustang - haven't played one, but have heard only good things.

G&L Fallout. I've only played a Tribute, but I really liked it, the MFD pup sounded great.

Gibson SG. Sounds pretty dark and pretty massive, loads of fun to play and is pretty light because the body is so thin.

Guild Starfire 1. Am I right in saying you had/have a Jack Casady? Could be an option if you wanted a hollow body.

Was it one like this by any chance? 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Levys-Electric-Guitar-Gig-EM7PA/dp/B07W8SGVGF

Now that you mention it, the gig bag that came with the Gibson LP DC JNR was a similar sort of design and was a bit too big for the short scale of the LP, but might be good for the Ric.

Thanks!

Does anyone use a soft case for their Rics? If so, whatcha got?

I've seen over on TB that someone uses a Serek bag for theirs and it looks like a nice fit. Buying direct from them makes shipping almost as much as the bag itself though, so I'm hoping there's another answer?

Whatever you end up doing, just don't follow it in the set with Magic Bus by The Who.......that's another 8 minutes of A. Entwistle hated playing it and it'd likely finish you off 😁

Glad to see your friend came through on their promise to let you have the bass 😁

This reissue line from Fender Japan is just great and I haven't played a bad one, the necks are sublime and just feel great to me. Great choice on those mods too, bet it sounds killer. Enjoy your new bass!

59 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

But as I said in my first post they left the protective plastic on the pick guard which makes it look messy.

 

And which IMO looks horrible next to the plain wood of the sides and back. Yuck!

Yup, I don't think anyone has said otherwise about the plastic cover. It should have been removed prior to shooting or in post.

8 hours ago, Cosmo Valdemar said:

Gibson's now-legendary "Play Authentic" video featured a guitar with a misplaced headstock inlay and crooked pickup...

Trust Gibson to be the exception not the rule. Do you know where in the video? Couldn't spot it myself.

Just looking again and I think the headstock marks are just reflections. That teal model (what a finish btw!) has tortoise shell binding around the body and it looks to have it around the headstock too. Those 'chips' are just reflections from the yellowy part of the tort. To my eyes anyway, I can't imagine a manufacturer would use a model with a chipped headstock in their promo photos.

Did I mention that teal finish? Phwoar!

38 minutes ago, stewblack said:

Harley Benton. Doesn't matter which one they all come out of the box in tune and set up.

32 minutes ago, ezbass said:

A solid choice, but doesn't fit the brief due to the time scale...

 

 

What if the imaginary gig just happened to be part of Stew's European tour in Burgebrach and, because Stew is a loyal customer, they let him pick one up?

I really like it. I'm a fan of double cut designs and it looks the business. It'd be cool if you could select different pup combos and chuck some humbuckers in there instead of the pj set.

Shake your money maker - Fleetwood Mac

Yer blues - Dirty Mac

Holiday in Cambodia - Dead Kennedys

Waiting room - Fugazi

Monkey trick - Jesus Lizard

Detroit rock city - KISS

Pretty much anything by Clutch 

18 minutes ago, neepheid said:

 

No contest?  A G&L Tribute will kick any sub £300 Squier up the road and back down again.  Twice.

It'd do the same to the Player series too!

All day long, I'm looking at either a LB100 or Kiloton......

https://www.andertons.co.uk/bass-dept/bass-guitars/g-l-tribute-lb-100-bass-olympic-maple-fretboardic-white-maple-fretboard

https://www.andertons.co.uk/bass-dept/bass-guitars/b-stock-:-npr-g-l-tribute-kiloton-bass-candy-apple-red-maple-fretboard-surface-scracthes-on-front-back-of-body

I'm looking forward to your friends NBD thread! 😅

The Bass Japan Direct YT channel is worth a watch when you fancy going down a rabbit hole.......

https://youtube.com/@BassJapanDirect

He throws in loads of tidbits about Fender Japan and reckons it's not so clear cut on who does what in some cases. I think he mentioned Tokai made the Jazz Bass Specials even though FujiGen had the fender contract at the time, but they couldn't keep up with demand so outsourced to Tokai.

18 minutes ago, ossyrocks said:

What’s the nut width on a MIJ P reissue from the 80’s?

 

Asking for a friend…

 

https://bassbros.co.uk/product/1987-fender-japan-pb-62-precision-bass-reissue-mij-original-box/

The 57 and 62 reissues are both 42mm. They're fantastic basses, your friend would be happy with their new toy 😊

I was in a similar position a few months ago, my thoughts were.......

Vintera - loved it. I'm not usually a fan of wider necks, but it was thin front to back and not too much of a struggle to get around. The pups had a really lovely growl to them.

MIJ PB57 - nut width was a little smaller at around 42mm (I think), but was rounder in the hand. Not a baseball bat and still very comfy. I love MIJ basses, especially their reissue range and think they're great basses. Workmanship is 2nd to none. Didn't sound as growly as the Vintera, but had a lovely smooth tone.

Both of the above have gloss necks and thin frets which, for me, is why I thought they played so well. I don't find gloss necks sticky, but it's something to bear in mind as some people don't get on with them. They both have a radius of 7.25 ( I think), so have a nice curve to them. Might not be for you if you venture down the dusty end and like like bending.........but who does that on a precision anyway?!?

Player - lovely neck, felt thinner than a traditional P, but I thought the pups were a bit hi-fi sounding to me.

Also played a US pro 2, but I preferred the Vintera and MIJ.

Personally I'd go for a MIJ reissue. Which one really depends on if you have any preference on maple or rosewood for a board. Haven't seen the sienna burst models, but I don't think it's a reissue? BassBros have a lovely Candy Apple Red PB57 US in stock that was very tempting. 

In the end I went for a limelight and now just have to wait for it to be ready. 20 weeks is killing me!!

Going the Gibson TV yellow route is a great choice.

I saw this the other day of FB marketplace but the dude wouldn't post it. I'm now really tempted to do the same to my Jazz...

I have a SB2 and JB, both are from the Tribute series and both are fantastic with no QC issues. They really put the MiM Player series by Fender to the test and I'd much rather have a Tribute. My JB is sunburst on both sides, so hopefully the LB is too!

Jeeze - sorry to hear that, Clarky. Wishing you a speedy recovery and hope you're not out of action for too long.

4 hours ago, TimR said:

 

I don't see it as being nuanced at all. If we are to live in a civilised society, we need to try and follow the laws as they are, not set up our own imagined punishments for crimes that may (and often weren't) committed. That way lies madness, as @Greg Edwards69 points out.

 

This isn't about music and society changing and not being relevant. This is about the musician being targeted for something disparate from the music. And possibly in the OP's case a bunch of people controlling the music that the rest of the band find perfectly acceptable, and for actually no good reason other than what they've been told by the media. 

 

It's exactly the same as no platforming someone because you don't agree with their political views. I have no interest in seeing Billy Bragg or Paul Young, mainly because I imagine there's a fair chunk of their concerts that will be political speeches and statements. I'm happy to go and see U2, because the music is good, and while it has a message in most of the lyrics, the message doesn't seem to be divisive. But I'm not telling Billy Brag or the guys in my band, or my local radio station not to play his music.

Personally I reckon it's not quite as black and white as that, there's lots of grey areas to this. 

You're definitely right about it not being right for people to have their reputation dragged through the mud and lose jobs/careers over allegations that turn out to be untrue, but then there's also going to be times where allegations are made and people wrongly get away with it. That's life (or the result of powerful people with a lot of money having great lawyers and PR teams), but then it's down to an individual to make their own conclusion on how they judge the accused.

In this case it's a lot more serious than someone's political views too. There's loads of artists I don't agree with on the political front, or I think they come across as idiots in interviews, but I still listen to them and go see them live because everyone is different and allowed their own views in life. At this point it's easy enough to separate the art from the artist. It's very different to people committing crimes that are as serious as paedophilia.

An SB2 tribute fits most of your requirements, but has a J neck on it. They're cracking basses and those pups are like a P on steroids, so will be pretty different from the 62ri.