Marty Forrer

The Ashdown branded speaker that it came with is labelled 4 ohms and 150 watts. Strange considering it's supposedly 300w at 4ohms. It now runs an 8 ohm speaker and is much louder and fatter than the Ashdown labelled speaker. By my reckoning 8ohm + 8ohms in parallel = 4 ohms, the same impedance as the original speaker.

TI Jazz Flats on mine.

Further to my previous thread about putting a much better speaker (Eminence DeltaLite 8 ohms) in my Studio 15, and the amazing improvement it made, I've just wired in an extension speaker socket mounted on the chassis. Plugged an 8 ohm extension cab in and boom! There it is... grunt to Africa. Still light and portable for club gigs and with the extra cab great for outdoor or big gigs. I also glued a couple of rubber bumpers to the chassis each side of the on/off switch to protect it as it protrudes. I can see it being damaged easily if someone laid it down on its back.

Um, just the standard one suitable for Fenders. I think it's called a 1/2".

OK. I installed the DiMarzio DP147 hum-cancelling pickups I had in my stash, also a new blend pot with a stronger detent (the original pot had nearly no detent) and reversed the pickup wires for a more logical blend. As I suspected, the DiMarzios are darker and have eliminated the need for the VTC mod. Still has the Sadowsky sound but without the nasty excessive treble of the chinese pickups, plus it's totally quiet. Another benefit is the volume difference between active and passive is not nearly so pronounced. It's now a keeper!

Next step is to see how my DiMarzio hum-cancelling pickups work in this bass. Might tame the inherent treble excess of this preamp without having to install a VTC.

I just purchased a mint condition Metro Express. Going by the serial number I think it's an early one. I'm a tinkerer and am totally out of control, so I've installed Dunlop straplocks, TI Jazz Flats, Hipshot USA Ultralite tuners including a Detuner, and I dressed the fret ends and rolled the edge of the fingerboard. It weighs 8.3 lbs and plays like a dream. I may install a VTC but don't seem to need it at the moment. I'll see after a few gigs.

I shipped mine from New Zealand to Australia and back again in its gig bag. I packed towels around the bridge and under the extension and wrapped the whole bass in about 20 metres of bubble wrap, put it in the gig bag, then wrapped about 10 metres of bubble wrap around the whole thing. At the airport I asked for someone to carry it in to baggage rather than put it on the conveyor. However, both trips it came out on the carousel, but it survived totally unscathed much to my relief.

The modified Ashdown in back.

I don't care about that. The combo is now 500% better than before. I don't understand why Ashdown build a great sounding amp and stick a crappy speaker in it.

I did nothing to the port. As Skinny said, I don't think 15"s are fussy.

I purchased a new Ashdown Studio15 which is very light and supposedly 300 watts. It has no provision for an extension cab. Tried it out and was underwhelmed, especially when comparing to a Fender Rumble V3. Being the incorrigible tinkerer I am, I opened it up to have a looksee. The Ashdown labelled neo speaker was VERY light and is labelled 4 ohms (I checked it on a multimeter) and 150 watts!! No acoustic batting in the cab either. I lined it and tried it out again. Still underwhelming. Replaced the speaker with an Eminence Deltalite 2515 (the older model, not the Deltalite II 2515) which is rated at 300w RMS and is 8 ohms. I got it on special. Holy cow!! All of a sudden this is a very usable combo. Fat and grunty, it's turned into a tone monster. Also, I now have the option of installing an extension speaker socket, but I can't see me needing that. The Eminence added about 3 lbs to the weight but still a light combo and easy to schlep..

I'm English by birth, escaped to the penal colonies aged six.

I play in a jazz standards trio and a 50s rock n roll band, both regularly working. I have used a Deuce since they first came out and have never once had anyone tell me it's an ugly bridge, not even in purist jazz club situations. In fact I sometimes get bassists coming up to me after a gig and asking to look at it, and asking where I got it from. I get that some bassists may not like the look of them, but to openly diss them when they have obviously not tried one is pretty small-minded, in my opinion. I never thought this place would display the same pettiness that frequently occurs on TalkBass.

My string heights are 5mm under the G and 8mm under the E, measured at the end of the fingerboard.

I play in 3 bands with completely different genres, plus two of them (jazz and 50s rock n roll/rockabilly) I use double bass, and I sub for another couple of bands. I use the same GK MBF500 with a GK CX2x10 cab for everything. For the double bass gigs I will often add a single no name 1x10 loaded with an Eminence Legend BP102 angled up at my ears so I can hear my intonation.

I've played acoustic upright for 32 years, still got the one I started with. In that time I've bought and sold several EUBs (including an Eminence) and was always dissatisfied with them. They just never sound right. I spent a small fortune on strings trying to improve them, to no avail, so I have given up and now stick with the real thing. Feedback? What feedback? I use a Krivo magnetic pickup and can hold my bass right in front of my amp without feedback. I have tried many types and brands of piezo pickups over the years (Shadow, Fishman, Barbera, Underwood, Bassmax, Zac Victor) and while the Zac is the best sounding, none sound as good as the Krivo, no matter what genre I'm playing. If it matters I play a German solid top with Eurosonics and no preamp. Just my experience, hope it helps.

Since I changed to a Krivo magnetic pickup I've never had a single squeak of feedback. The only drawback is I can't use gut strings anymore, but the Eurosonic Lights are nylon with a steel rope core and get me close. These days I'm playing a lot of jazz as well as rockabilly, and the Krivo is fine for that too. In fact of all the piezo pickups I've owned (Shadow, Fishman, Barbera, BassMax and Vic's) I prefer the Krivo for it's very nice highs. I can lay my bass right in front of my amp and it will not feedback. Just my experience.

I use a Deuce bridge and it's marvelous. I will never go back. It is way more stable than a maple bridge, it has adjustable pressure on the wing pickup(s) to get the best sound, the wooden part is easily replaceable should the need arise, and it just looks so darn cool. It will never fall over if you're an energetic rockabilly player with very low tension strings.

Pay attention to the left hand. Thumb should be anchored in the back of the neck and the elbow should be high enough that the fingers are pretty much at 90 degrees to the stings. Less than right-angles can cause dodgy intonation and damage to the finger joints down the track. Ask me how I know.....

I no longer have my BB605, but I've just bought a mint used BB435 in sunburst. Hope it arrives in time for my gig on Friday.

This 2013 Chinese made Squier with DiMarzio UltraJazz pickups and Hipshot Ultralite tuners is my #1. I have owned over the decades, US Fenders, Yamaha TRBs and BBNs, a Wal (hated it), a Pedulla Rapture (got stolen), a Manne, several Stingrays and a Bacchus, but this lowly old Squier just has a magic feel to it that only the Pedulla had.

After decades of playing basses of every shape I have come to the conclusion the Fender Jazz shape is absolutely the best for me. It snuggles into my body like a comfy old slipper. No matter how far I stray away I inevitably come back to the Jazz body shape.

I did the same, marked the frets on the rule then ground them out. Works a treat and cost me nothing as I already had the rule.

There's one of those for sale here at the moment. I'd look at it, but the seller won't ship it. Plus I need another amp like a hole in the head.