Doctor J

The first wound always hurts but now it's unique. Once it plays ok, that's all that matters.

Aside from using chrome screws for the bridge and pickups, this is quite delicious

I like that. It's very much doing its own thing.

Every year is the year of The Ox. Be lucky 😎

I'll do it again with headphones on next time.

Don't feel too bad about it. I also play drums and beat alignment was my worst too. When recording drums, I really struggle to focus on high-pitched beep click tracks. I need a lower register instrument to focus on and usually record a very rhythmic guitar track and use that as my click. I just don't naturally register listening to high pitched instruments and I felt this test had the same issues for me.

It's common enough, especially on non-Fender clone Japanese basses, in my experience. L-R Godlyke, Ibanez, Bacchus The Ibanez is a 91 SB900 but my two 89 SRs have three piece necks too, though the black paint stops one seeing it 😁 Ibanez were doing it a long time before that, however.

I'd rather have no music than be subjected to music everywhere I go, be it in pubs, shops, etc. and I would say "being assaulted by it" is fair enough. I was in the office this week for the first time in months and in the canteen they're now pumping in some brain-melting radio station. Being forced to hear to music agitates me, even moreso when it's killing the potential of a conversation with someone. Silence is ok too. We shouldn't be trying to eradicate it. Anyway, back on topic, Cliff made a bigger impact in three and a half years than most ever do in their lives. A great man and a great player.

From Alembic's site And if you really enjoy cans of worms... http://www.alembic.com/info/wood_neck.html 😁

Any time you want to take a blind test, just let me know 😉 There are multuple trains of thought - that it's for CNC alignment, that it's for different painting jigs or that it's for easily identifying body models in a factory where several variations of the same model are made side-by-side. I'd go with CNC alignment, personally. As above. Note the one in the neck pocket, not the best place for a switch.

Nice. My 91 SS1 has the quick release back plate so they definitely had been out for quite a while, though mine is right-handed. It's interesting that it has the JAN1 too, I thought the JAN2 (never saw one which wasn't broken by the way 😂) was standard from the mid 90's at least. Could yours be some kind of retro spec edition instead of standard for the time?

The standard contemporary Fender body has this rather appalling route under the scratchplate. With this, you really just need a modified scratchplate as there is enough wood missing to comfortably drop a 51 pickup in there in the correct position. https://www.muziker.ie/fender-jazz-bass-body-vintage-bridge-brown-sunburst?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIu6a65uLe7gIVo-jtCh06nQ3JEAQYASABEgItufD_BwE Truth be told, though, there's not a huge difference between the 51 single coil and the regular Jazz single coil pickup. Another option would be to get a Jazz sized 4-pole neck pickup made. There are enough custom pickup makers out there who could make a 4 pole 51 spec pickup which fits in to a standard Jazz sized cover.

Well, that took longer than expected 😂 I had to get some penetrating oil to get a saddle screw and a knob locking screw moving. Never underestimate the power of old biocrud to get into every nook and sieze up things you would not believe. The pots also needed some cleaning but they're all smooth and scratch free now. Not an inconsiderable amount of work, but it's done now. General impressions, this is a really nice bass, a clever tweak of a great design. It's very comfortable with some nice features. The backplate has inserts for machine screws, a simple but tasteful touch which I wasn't expecting from the big F. The bridge is a decent unit which allows for quick string release. The Kubicki preamp is quirky, it must be said, but also quite practical and useful once you understand what it's doing. Knobs are vol + pickup blend, treble + bass and a four way rotary switch. In the cavity is a small mid boost control which, after some testing, I've set at about 80%. The four way switch is the key to the whole thing. 1st position is passive, where the volume and blend work as expected, but the bass control becomes a standard passive tone roll-off. Classic Jazz bass. Position two is active, so you get volume, blend, bass and treble. There are no detents in the bass and treble controls and, while they're labelled as cut and boost, it feels like there is a lot more boost than cut in both. They're quite musical, though and pleasingly subtle. Position three is active again but with the mid boost engaged. It undoes a lot of the natural J scoop and gives it a healthy growl. Nice. Fourth position is a kill switch which turns it off. No output at all. I'm sure, some day, I will find a use for that. I might try it with a wall of distortion and use it rhythmically. It all works well with the silver Lace Sensors. They're clean, with healthy but not outrageous output. I like the smaller headstock, it suits the smaller body well. And the tuners look like branded Schallers, I think? Overall, I like it a lot. I grew up with a J bass so it's homely, but it's a more comfortable shape. It sounds like a standard Jazz bass when you want it to, but also has Jazz-on-steroids on tap and neither gets in the way of the other. I put all the parts back together on Sunday evening with a quick setup and, now everything has settled down, will do a thorough setup later on. It's good but I think it has potential greatness when properly set up. Plus (no pun intended) I'm not scared to catch something nasty off it anymore 😂

Time flies. That one came out 18 years ago 😂

You were the one able to play in time with the drummer, then?

My bass playing is about the same but my DIY game is ready to go semi-pro.

Yeah, explore options where you're not screwing new holes into the wood. As someone who is prone to compulsive bass purchases (not as bad as others, but still prone 😁), additional thumb rests or gaping random holes for thumb rest screws are an absolute deal-breaker. If you think you might ever sell this instrument on, find a non-permanent way to do it.

Fake as a very fake thing. The logo is atrocious.

2071 perhaps and they have travelled back in time?

It's pretty weak, to be honest. If you've got his earlier albums, and I do, there's nothing new or notable here. It feels like quantity over quality.

Nice!

World Divide by Sentinels Neurosis by Sentinels Extinct by Instinct by Sentinels Idylls by Sentinels Coexist by Octavision While Time Disappears by Our Oceans The Striped Album by Cory Wong Live at First Ave by Cory Wong That'll do for today

I've got about 7 albums bookmarked for purchasing today. The new Our Oceans is top of the list, along with some other bands I've only discovered in the last couple of months, but will post the full list when I'm done.

Very cool.