Cato

There are these. http://swisspicks.com/ Not sure if they have a UK distributor though.

I used to read Guitarist magazine in the early 90s. One month they interviewed Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine, one of whom caused a riot in the next months letters page by saying he vastly preferred his Tokai Les Paul to the genuine Gibsons he'd tried. We're talking full on flaming torches and farm implements. I've found it interesting in recent years that opinion seems to have swung round to agree with him that early 90s Japanese Tokais were indeed better instruments than US Gibsons of the same era.

Even if the worst comes to the worst, the Gibson brand will survive, although it may take a while to unravel it from it's various subsidiaries and partners. Under US bankruptcy laws I'm fairly sure that once bankruptcy is declared it's possible to sell on the brand without the new owners taking on any of the associated debt. How much of Gibson's manufacturing heritage would survive such a move is a different matter entirely, although personally I find it difficult to imagine that the new management wouldn't want to keep at least some manufacturing in the US and preferably at one of traditional sites.

Again?

Agreed. I can't see Ibanez being too happy about one of their retailers casually undermining their hard won reputation as a quality guitar/bass manufacturer. 'The fit and finish of Ibanez guitars at this price point and even higher is never perfect. They have crammed a lot of features in to the guitar for the price.'. I'm pretty sure Ibanez would have something to say about that statement.

My fretless V7 is bob on 9lbs, which I reckon is pretty decent for a jazz. There's no reason why they have to be boat anchors, although admittedly a lot of them are.

The crack in the heel of the neck would be enough for me to ask for a replacement. It might not represent a huge structural problem, but it's not good enough on a brand new bass from a maker of Ibanez's repute.

I had a similar experience. As a youngster I used to lust after Les Pauls, SGs and 335s. In my 20s I had a girlfriend who's dad had an extensive collection of Gibsons. The only one I actually got on with playing wise was the Firebird, all the others just felt 'wrong' to me, either the necks felt too flimsy (335 and es175) or the balance felt wrong (SG) , or in the case of the Les Pauls they were just all round uncomfortable. My loss I reckon. I'd have a Firebird in a second though.

No idea. Looks a lot nicer than Pau Ferro though.

Personally I never say never anymore. There are just too many basses and guitars that I despised for years, only to end up lusting after them.

First mass produced solid bodied fretted bass guitar? I can't imagine that there are many bass players who wouldn't be interested in that slice of history.

Personally I'll take new and shiny over vintage with mojo everyday of the week. I wouldn't turn down an original 51 p bass, mind, but I'd happily have it refinished if it wasn't in mint condition.

All my bass needs are covered for the moment. My GAS seems to be focused on skinny stringers right now. I've got a hankering for a really spikey guitar, despite not listening to metal in years and having no desire to play heavy music. Who says you can't play funk on a Jackson Kelly?

There were a few stories about David Beckham a while ago which suggested that you generally don't get a knighthood for services outside of politics or government just by sitting on your backside waiting to be awarded one. There's a fair bit of lobbying the appropriate comittees involved.

I'm guessing that an ironic thread was in danger of losing its irony.

I can see why i remembered that Maruscyck. Stunning finish.

If memory serves @mcnach has or had a couple of precision type basses that were fitted with Jazz pickups.

Obviously her Madge feels the same way. Every year that the standard ex Prime Ministerial honours are withheld from Blair is like a personal slap in the face from the Queen. Long may it continue.

Reading about his career it seems fair enough. Just about every big name in UK hip hop credits Wiley with either giving them their big break or helping them out early in their careers. He seems very highly respected within that community and no less deserving than anyone else who's been key in the development of. given music genre.

The honours list can tell you quite a lot, especially when you look at those people who haven't got one. When a long serving Prime Minister such as Tony Blair is repeatedly snubbed for a basic knighthood, let alone the more esoteric awards such as the 'Order of the Garter' which ex PMs normally get as a matter of routine (even John Major is a member) it tells you that he his very much on HM's naughty list.

The conventional wisdom is to use flats, as much because they do less damage to a fretless board than rounds. That being said a lot of really famous fretless work from the likes of Jaco and Pino was all done with rounds.

That's for FMIC to decide. You can't bring an IP case to court on someone else's behalf.

Exactly. I can't believe that anyone genuinely believes that Fender does not know about people rebadging instruments as 'Fenders' or adding logos to replicas. There an absolutely shedload of online sellers offering fake Fender water slide decals for a start, that would be a logical place to start any legal crackdown. For whatever reason they are choosing not to take action, either against individuals or companies. The idea that joe public should have to stand up for them to stop them being taken advantage of is, quite frankly, bizarre.

I seem to recall that there was another level of weirdness to that one, along the lines of because the owner had acquired the bass in a private sale rather than though an approved dealer, John Hall was so e how implying that he may not be the legitimate owner of the bass, or something along those lines.

She stormed off during the 'should I use compression in conjunction with my Bare Faced cabs?' unpleasantness a few years back. We've not heard from her since.