Belka

4 minutes ago, Doddy said:

I think a lot of people are being pretty unfair to the OP here.  The title might have been badly worded, but it's a legit question.

How many times do you see posts talking about drummers who keep dragging? If they drag, it's because they can't play the part and keep up with the tempo, and it's the same with bass players. What's going to happen if you're faced with a semiquaver pattern at 120 bpm or a fast walking line at 300 bpm and you can't keep up? You can play a nice semibreve, but it's not going to cut it and there's a chance that you probably won't get called again.  

Unlike what's been suggested earlier, no half decent player is going to play blazing fast lines over a mid tempo tune. Just because someone can play fast doesn't mean that they will do it all the time.

I agree with everyone that says a good player isn't measured by what bpm they can play at, but there are times when it is still important.

I kind of agree. I can also imagine that in certain genres (speed metal if that is still a thing) it's the kind of question you may be asked if auditioning for a band. Also, I remember reading an interview with Mike Pope when he was subbing for Patitucci on the Chick Corea Elektric band. They opened the set with 'Got a match', which is 16th notes moving at 150 BPM with a fairly complex fingering pattern, doubling the keyboard melody . I'm guessing that if he couldn't have done that, Mike Pope wouldn't have got the gig. I suppose that's a kind of extreme example though as it's pretty much the outer limit of what is possible to play. 

Thanks for sharing this. I always thought there was some kind of chorusing on this track and now I understand why. It’s really interesting the lengths people went to back then to get good sounds - it’s a lost art with plugins these days.

Mixed opinions - I took a bass up there to have an issue looked at with their tech. The email communication in advance of my visit was super efficient and friendly, but when I arrived I didn't feel welcome at all - was actually asked 'why are you here?'. The tech they had was friendly and dealt with the issues, and I enjoyed talking to Mark when I met him - he's certainly knowledgeable. When the bass was fixed, I asked if I could play it through an amp to make sure the issue was resolved for myself - was told 'why would you want to do that - I already checked it?', although in the end, begrudgingly, they let me do so. 

It's a great shop and despite the issues I would buy from them if they had something I wanted, but it was a weird experience. I always enjoy visiting the Gallery and have found everyone there extremely helpful and approachable, and Wunjo are also very good, and therefore I would always use them ahead of Bass Direct (unless it was something I couldn't find elsewhere). It's a shame they can't sort out their customer service  - I really want shops like that to succeed as they have such great stuff but I can see why some people would never use them again.   

https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/guitar-hard-case-for-bass-or-guitar-/1394881014

https://www.gumtree.com/profile/accounts/1b8724625a0e9b167460f7e15574815e

He's on Gumtree now. No Sansamp however.

11 minutes ago, ambient said:

I suspect the fat controller is loathe to do anything that allows people from other countries to have freer access to the U.K. Which is what would happen if he implemented what was previously proposed.

I doubt he cares to be honest, but he's terrified that Priti will shout at him if anything is done to allow freer movement.

8 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

I’ve never really followed Wal’s, but there’s certainly some stunners in a few other threads, how are they for holding their value?  What I’m thinking is , if I ordered one for example for 8k and it took 3 years to complete , if I really liked it I would keep it, but if for some reason It wasn’t for me, would I get my money back if I sold it on 

Can't say for sure but given the prices you see on Reverb they would probably at least hold their value - from that point of view they're a better bet than Ritter, Alembic, Smith, Fodera and MTD.

9 minutes ago, FDC484950 said:

Lead time is a combination of demand vs resource. I guess Wal has a very small amount of the latter and quite a lot of the former. When I bought mine from the factory (back when it was in High Wycombe) it took 7-8 months end to end, and that was kind of in their heyday when it was Pete and a few others (Paul appeared towards the end of that period and was rather young, but clearly knew his stuff, when I first met him!)

It’s hand building, one at a time, and I’d expect with an operation that small that they don’t order raw materials as the build goes on until they’re actually needed. If it’s 1-2 people with an order backlog of 50-100 basses then that would probably easily account for the lead time. Until they got a business manager, Fodera were quoting 2-3 years, with a much larger shop and staff.

Be honest, it’s not “working pros” buying them anymore - I was back in the late 80s/early 90s and there quite a few of us - it’s a collection piece for those with the money and/or desire to own them - and they are unique. 

I'd imagine some working pros still buy them but I know what you mean. I think they are also purchased by high end studios to offer for recording sessions, alongside vintage P basses, etc.

1 hour ago, skankdelvar said:

As a facetious postscript, one might suggest that doing things at a national level might be less time-restrictive than the (reportedly) proposed and rejected 90 day supranational EU window..

You could do 90 days in Germany and 90 days in France = 180 days in Europe. Stack all the countries up and you might be away for 12 months.

Nice idea but not true. 90 days in 180 is the rule for the whole Schengen area. If you tried to do that you would be deported. The only places you could try that are by going from a non-Schengen EU country to a Schengen one; Ireland, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia and Cyprus may allow entry even if you have just spent 90 days in the Schengen area. Apparently this loophole may not last long as these countries are looking to join the Schengen area. 

People in the UK (not singling you out - and certainly not looking to criticise as it's not surprising - British passports have generally given lots of visa free options) generally don't have much of an idea of visas, work permits and residency. I think for a lot of people the idea of getting a visa is as easy as turning up in Turkey or Thailand and getting your visa on the spot. Lots of people also think the 90 day visa run - popping over the border then popping back, as you sort of suggested above, is an option. It's generally always been illegal, but a lot of poorer countries would turn a blind eye as they liked the idea of westerners bringing hard currency into the country. Believe me, it will not work in a lot of places any more, and to try to actually get residency in countries such as the USA, Canada, Australia, and now the EU, is a complex, drawn out, expensive process with no guarantee of success at the end.  

Basically the ETIAS will not provide any more flexibility/freedom for Brits visiting the EU.

9 minutes ago, skankdelvar said:

OK, after a bit of digging, this seems to be the position as compiled by the Incorporated Society of Musicans (who they?):

* There is currently no supranational EU scheme covering UK musicians. It's now all at the national level.

* UK musicians will be permitted to perform in 30 EEA countries (EU27 plus Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein), and Switzerland, subject to each nation's specific requirements and laws. Some countries offer a fixed number of visa / permit free days (e.g. France). Others require a short term work permit (e.g. Netherlands). Some countries place more onerous conditions than others but these tend to be the smaller countries

* The total number of 'free' days varies from 14 days over 12 months (e.g., Norway, Latvia) up to 90 days over 12 months (e.g., France, Germany)

* Most countries seem to be agnostic about a musician's status whereas a few stipulate that the artist must be 'well renowned' and invited by a 'renowned' institution' (e.g. Italy). Iceland stipulates that musicians are welcome but there are different rules if you're performing in catering establishments (!)

* Due to the historic Common Travel Area, Ireland is completely open to UK musos.

Conclusion

UK musicians are not barred from Europe. For the next 12-18 months bands will have to piece their tours together at a national level. Some countries will be more difficult to get into than others. 

Future

Visas (as opposed to work permits) will only be an issue in the short term.

In 2022 the EU will introduce a new, supervening programme known as ETIAS. This will become the over-arching visa / entry scheme for the EU countries and replaces the national 'Schengen' visas. Citizens of 62 countries which previously enjoyed visa-free travel (e.g. USA, Australia, UK) will from next year be required to apply for an ETIAS before they will be permitted to enter the EU. 

The UK is already an approved member of the ETIAS programme. As citizens of a 'third country' UK travellers (whether for business or pleasure) must apply for an ETIAS. The proposed cost of an ETIAS is €7 versus the current €60 Schengen visa. An ETIAS  will be more flexible than the current Schengen visa. A Schengen visa is valid for a period of up to 90 days in any given 180 day period of time. An approved ETIAS, on the other hand, will be valid for three years or the date of passport expiry (whichever comes first), and can be used for stays of up to 90 days in a 180 day period.

National work permit requirements may still apply.

I don't think anyone was saying that UK musicians would be barred from Europe, but that it would harder and in some cases not financially viable for tours to take place. Also, no mention of the carnet/VAT issue which is separate to visas/work permits entirely.

The ETIAS is not a replacement for a Schengen visa. It's the EU's version of the current US ESTA - basically a visa waiver for tourist travel of 90 days and under. The ETIAS will only operate for countries which currently have 90 day visa free travel to the EU, countries like USA, Australia, Canada, NZ, Ukraine, and now UK. Countries which currently need a Schengen visa to visit the EU (China, Russia, pretty much all of Africa and Asia) will still need to apply for a Schengen visa. Any UK national who wants to work, study or live for longer than 90 days in an EU country will still need to apply for a visa (I may be wrong but I don't think this would be a Schengen visa - if you applied to work or live in France for example, you would get a French visa/work permit which would only allow you to work in France, not any of the other Schengen countries).

1 hour ago, Al Krow said:

I guess my question is - whether this musician visa is available to any musician from anywhere on the planet and therefore potentially available to itinerant Brits? And if so, have you just solved this?!!

Haha - that is nicely put! 

But as you say it's the used market (discussed elsewhere at length) and more specifically touring musicians that is the key point of this thread and more than happy to stick to that if the odd bit of "balance" is not needed 😉

But brilliant if Woody has just sorted it!

I'm sure that the visa would be available to Brits, but they have to be applied for, which would probably require the venues to issue invitation letters, and the applicants to show proof of savings. Also, they may only be issued for a certain country, which wouldn't help with multi-country tours (I may be wrong about this). Plus, I don't think this would solve the carnet issue. In the end, the hassle and cost of getting a visa will probably make lots of tours unviable; visas are available to tour the States and Canada but you don't see many smaller bands going over there.

13 minutes ago, Chris2112 said:

Although in this case, I think we can safely assume it the sound is neither undeniably ash or alder, or the question would not be asked!

To further muddy those waters, I've played ash basses that sounded quite muted and 'soft' and alder basses that were very bright and lively. If there were a Venn diagram showing the tonal characteristics the area of overlap would be quite large. 

Good points - light swamp ash is more likely to sound like alder whereas heavier northern ash has a brighter harsher tone. I agree with some of what BigRedX says - predicting sound based on body wood selection is nowhere near an exact science and it is just one part of the puzzle. In my opinion neck materials, and pickup type and location have a greater influence on sound. Then you also have nut, fret and bridge type/materials to consider. However, if the pickups/electronics have sufficient clarity, I'm sure that body material will make a difference, although it's debatable whether this is more to do with density/weight than the actual species. 

I n some cases I'm sure it makes little to no difference; a short scale mudbucker-equipped EB0 could have a brass nut, badass bridge, heavy ash body and ebony fretboard and would still sound like mud.  

Just now, BigRedX said:

Why? What difference will it make?

For some people none at all. Others may prefer the way one or the other looks. There will also be a slight difference with regard to sound. Of course, this is only one variable and there are a whole host of others, but you don't have to be so dismissive of it. 

If it's Japanese, it's probably their local type of ash, which is called 'Sen' apparently. Pretty sure it's not alder.

1 hour ago, Miggs said:

Everyone is talking about running passive only for a vintage tone. But he said he like Marcus Miller tone in particular. You don’t want to run passive. Marcus sadowsky bass that made him Marcus Miller had a passive active switch. Which is why his fender signature has it. Marcus always and i mean always runs it on active. I have professional musicians in the family. I’m a bassist. I’ve met Marcus. I’ve met his Chicago technician. The best preamp to get that Marcus Miller tone is a special order from bartolini. It’s the TCT-4.5TAPJ. It’s active passive vol blend set up. It’s a custom request. Hit up bartolini and they will tell you the same thing. It’ll be worth the wait if tone is what you are seeking. 

Yes - I wanted to say this too. Marcus may have a Sadowsky preamp in his bass now (if he still actually uses it now he's the Sire guy) but for most of his career the preamp in question was the Bartolini TCT. This was a forerunner to the NTMB and is simpler but will get the tone. Having said that I also think options like the East or the Pope Flexcore would be great - both are very transparent, have excellent options for flexibility/customization, and importantly have a passive tone which the Bartolini doesn't. 

Pickup wise I'd say the Aguilar or Seymour Duncan 5 string jazz pickups (it is a five string, right?) with '70s winds would be the ones to go for. Stay clear of anything overwound (I think a lot of Fralins fall into this category) or humcancelling.

Keep it as it is. Also, if you do it in green, then technically, from a vintage point of view, the tort guard will be incorrect. It was only sunburst, shell pink and olympic white that came with tort pickguards back then, so although I'm sure it would look good it in green, it wouldn't look like it did when it left the factory.

7 minutes ago, onehandclapping said:

The white one is an early 62 slab board

Yes, I saw it was a '62 so the unpainted headstock would be normal for that year. Flea's shell pink Jazz is an authentic custom colour and also doesn't have the matching headstock. 

24 minutes ago, bakerster135 said:

At that point in time a Fender custom colour was anything other than sunburst!

And there was see-through blonde, although I'm not sure if that was considered a standard or custom colour. They seem to be pretty rare on 1960s basses but they were the standard for Telecasters for a long time. 

42 minutes ago, ead said:

Special order I believe.

I used to think so too, but after being corrected by Fender experts it seems that actually the vast majority, if not all, of the custom colours Jazzes came with matching headstocks as standard, at least from 1963 until around 1969. The only exception is see-through blonde. So any time you see a 1963-1969 Jazz bass in a custom colour with an unpainted headstock, you can assume it to be a refinish. Again, I'm not that much of a vintage expert so happy to be corrected.

On 04/08/2020 at 13:24, LukeFRC said:

I’ve been amazed seeing the value and desirability of first early 70s and then late 70s Fender skyrocket over the last few years. 
 

i know what you mean; you used to see them for not much money at all back in the '90s when I started playing. I would add a couple of caveats though. Firstly, I don't think they were ever as bad as some say they were. Some exhibited poor routing/assembly but the vast majority didn't. Also, there is nothing inherently wrong with the three bolt neck construction or bullet truss rods, and yes, they were heavy, but a lot of things were back then. 

I would also say that '70s Jazz basses, and to a lesser extent the Precisions, have a very different sound to the '60s ones. If you want to get the Marcus Miller tone you have to forget about anything made prior to 1972, which could also be a factor in their increasing value. Of course, I'm sure that nostalgia and the fact they are now old are also reasons why they're going up in price, but the same would be true for the pre-CBS instruments as well.  

On 04/08/2020 at 08:22, Old Man Riva said:

For some bizarre reason, in terms of playing/trying vintage basses, the 1966 dot and bound Fenders are the ones I think I’ve played the most of. Any one I’ve ever played/tried has been a fabulous instrument - really consistent in their build and overall quality. I also love the look of the dot and bound necks and lollipop tuners.

So odd that they were only produced for such a short period of time - only serving to add to the Fender myth and legend!! 

I may be wrong but I think that Fender produced a relatively large amount of basses in 1966, which probably accounts for the large sample size of those you see. There are practically no 1967 and relatively fewer 1968 Fenders around; 1969 is when you start seeing larger numbers of instruments with the TV logos showing up, so I'd guess a lot of 1966 serial numbered stock was probably assembled/sold in the subsequent two years.  

I think the same thing happened in 1978. You hardly see any basses with '79, '80, '81 or '82 serial numbers, but there are loads of 'S8' basses around, with later neck pocket stamps/pot codes etc.

1 hour ago, Baloney Balderdash said:

 

Agree on all your points, except this:

 

Absolutely not true in any possible way!!!

... Well, as far as I am concerned at least.

To me this amp has a very full and meaty, yet really clear and punchy tone when set flat, and that goes for most of these old Trace Elliot amps really, in fact back when I owned this exact amp it was the absolute best bass tone I ever had (mind with some relatively insignificant minor adjustments of the build in graphic EQ, but essentially pretty much used flat), and I still regret selling it and ponder on getting another old Trace Elliot amp at some point.

Personally even prefer it over the Ampeg B-15S 60W tube amp I also owned at some point, even if that no doubt was an amazing sounding amp as well, just in a completely different way.

Also I for one absolutely hated the 2 terribly horrific and obnoxious sounding mid scooping pre-shape presets that you could activate on that Trace Elliot.

Might in fact be the only truly bad thing I have to say about this amp, well beside it's monstrous weight, but hey, just don't activate the pre-shapes ever and you'll have an absolutely truly amazing sounding amp.

No one ever sounded good with the mids scooped out of their tone, and that goes for both bass players and guitarists, in my opinion at least.

I agree though that this amp isn't exactly anywhere near transparent but does add quite a bit of coloration to your tone, though I have a hard time imagining anyone not liking what it does to your tone, but apparently people who don't does exist, as the above quote from your post should be proof of. 

I for one absolutely love it. 

Also kind of doesn't agree that it won't be worth more than 100£, I mean they do go for quite cheap these days, and it would definitely be stupid to pay much more than what they typically go for for sure, but to me at least these old Trace Elliot amps are really worth much more than what they typically go for, some of the absolute best amps ever made, and the only issue they really got, as far as I am concerned, compared to today's standards is their ridiculous heavy weight, in every other aspect they are superior to most more modern amps on the market today, and certainly compared to similar priced amps.

To be fair I did say 'in my opinion', although yours as a fellow user of the amp is just as valid. I still maintain that it sounded bland and nasal to me, but my 'bland and nasal' could be your 'clear and punchy'. You did actually say that you used the graphic EQ with some minor adjustments, so that wouldn't be the flat tone either. The tone with the graphic EQ engaged, even if the sliders were set flat, was still beefier than the tone with nothing engaged.

I wasn't the biggest fan of the presets myself; I would use the graphic EQ more for tonal adjustment, although I do think the presets could sound good if used in the right applications. Also, although the first preset was the classic Trace Elliot mid cut, the second one actually provided a low mid boost. 

I neither loved it nor hated it to be honest. I'm certainly glad I had it back then; there wasn't the choice you get now and it certainly served me well. However, I'm not going to let nostalgia for my lost youth make me think it's somehow the holy grail of amplification (not saying that about you, but I do think this phenomenon exists). If you love the Trace tone and nothing else will do, it may be for you, and that's great, but I would never consider that they are at all superior to modern amps. Amplification has come on a lot in the last 30 years and there is so much choice out there now. I still stand by my comment regarding price; it's a supply and demand thing - if the value of these goes up, which it might, then by all means pay what you think it's worth, but at present, if someone has a budget of more than £100, they would be better off going for a model with more power, or a separate head/speaker stack.  

I gigged one of these for years. It served me well for those years. I could say the following pluses and minuses with regard to it:

Pros

• Very well made, pretty much indestructible and never let me down on a gig.
• Loud considering its wattage (although it says 130, it would be what modern manufacturers consider to be 260/300 watts). It was basically fine for small-medium pub gigs - but struggled at larger venues, although this isn't really a criticism as the 250/400/500 model would cover those.
• Versatile EQ section with lots of tone shaping options - you should be able to make any bass cut through the mix.
• These days they're really cheap.

Cons

• Really heavy by modern standards. I could lift it by myself but it was pretty uncomfortable.
• It's a very coloured amp. If you love the sound of the Trace Elliot presets, then you'll love the the tone. If you want something transparent, this will not be for you.
• I guess connected to the last point is the issue that the flat tone of the amp without any presets/graphic EQ is really quite poor in my opinion. Thin, nasal, and bland would be words that spring to mind. It's almost like they designed it that way - to make you go 'wow, that's cool' when you engage the presets/graphic.

If you can get it for a decent price (don't pay more than £100), then go for it - it's worth a try for sure. 

16 hours ago, skankdelvar said:

For me, 5 and 6 string basses are useful as a lead indicator when attending gigs. It works like this:

• Arrive at pub
• Observe 5 or 6-er on instrument stand
• Observe man standing apart from others, a grave expression on his face and a pork-pie hat on his head
• Access memory banks, recall slot: 'immobile player, excessively busy bass lines'
• Leave pub, go to off-license, buy pack of 8 Ace, sit on park bench

Does yer missus let yer back in 'ouse when yer get 'ome or does she mek yer sleep in the ff...ff..fff'in shed?

That's a really nice example. The only thing I'd say is that it's not a 1984 model. The serial number puts it at 1986-87, and the bridge, pickups and paint job indicate more towards 1987. GLWTS.