lemmywinks

Those wax sticks from cheap DIY stores (basically wax crayons but in wood shades) are great for touching up basses, I used some on my old Aria (think Foxen has it now) which was absolutely hammered and they worked miracles. You can rub them in with a fingertip and blend different colours, also if you use them on open grained wood it will show through a little so it doesn't look odd. I've filled tuner holes and then matched them afterwards, also handy for removing dot markers when defretting.

Probably cheaper to buy a used Streamer Standard BO (about £250) and use the neck off that, they have a proper German wenge/ovangkol Warwick neck. Can swap the TRC over too so it has the correct model. EDIT: Like this - [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Warwick-Streamer-STD-Standard-Natural-finish-Made-in-Germany-/111642678081?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item19fe6c1341&nma=true&si=K2%252FyWff15%252FzcYOQc1KWvkVBx0kE%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557"]http://www.ebay.co.u...=p2047675.l2557[/url]

A one knob compressor is pretty limited though (no pun), besides the LM3 shell can house plenty of controls: The thing I like about the LM heads is that they aren't lacking anything in terms of sound shaping. I would expect the same level of control with any extras.

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1434411504' post='2799390'] The 'gutless' thing may also be down to eq. Our ears are more sensitive to the frequency extremes at high sound levels, so you need a bit more bass added as you turn the volume down. This is a function of how our ears work and nothing to do with particular amps or speakers [url="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fletcher%E2%80%93Munson_curves."]https://en.wikipedia...3Munson_curves.[/url] Reset the eq when you turn down. [/quote] This would be the first thing I would do. Dial the "missing" frequencies back in, it will sound a lot less gutless!

Have a look at bassic bits / Rockwire. You can also get the same components they use in cables on eBay, just make sure you spec decent jacks (Neutrik) and quality cable (Klotz, Van Damme). One here, 5m/15ft with an angled jack for £15.49 delivered: [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Klotz-Cable-Guitar-Lead-Neutrik-1-4-Straight-to-Right-Angle-Jack-Plugs-AC106-/251907868797?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&var=&hash=item3aa6e1087d"]http://www.ebay.co.u...=item3aa6e1087d[/url]

I can beat £150 - my Cort C5P was £90! It's the model with the Fishman piezo bridge too.

Thanks for the mini-review, that was very thorough! I agree about the build quality and excellent parts Cort use, my C5P feels like a very expensive bass, the neck is solid and it stays in tune better than any bass I've had before (Warwicks, Zoot, Gibson). Not sure if they've goofed the electrics on these though as the Cort I have doesn't need anything replacing IMO, this is why I'm interested in taking the C5P along to compare. I think the slap switch will be a smiley eq preset, my Cort Curbow 5 had one and it was always in the off position, might be an idea to change it to a series/parallel switch for the MM pickup. The treble thing isn't an issue for me as I can just turn the tweeters down on my cabs and put the VLE to use on my amp (a variable low pass filter), I never have to do this currently though as the high freqs sound very solid and musical with my current rig. I think I'm leaning towards giving this one a miss tbh, still interested in trying them at some point with a view to buying one (or a GB5 and possibly a Skyline) but the one I have seen looks to have a wonky MM pickup which really puts me off.

There's a new one on eBay for £390 posted so the used one at Bass Direct is slightly on the expensive side! I believe at one point these and the Skyline basses were made alongside each other at the same factory so the resemblance is probably not coincidental. I'm stil going to check it out at some point, if the MM pickup is as wonky as it looks in the photos it's off the list though.

Also just noticed what looks like some off centre pickup routing on the bass, looks like the MM pickup is way off and the G string barely over the poles:

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1434057936' post='2796416'] Considered a Yamaha BB425? They are on sale at the moment: [url="http://www.gak.co.uk/en/yamaha-bb425-standard-bb-vintage-white/48076"]http://www.gak.co.uk...age-white/48076[/url] [/quote] I've never liked the look of those Yamahas, the styling really puts me off tbh even though I know loads of people like them and last time I played one it had a ridged surface to the end of the pickup which was uncomfortable on my thumb. Have no idea if they are stil like that. Also I'm looking at cheaper brands which are known to have good low B strings, the cheaper Yamahas I've tried have been a bit floppy and indistinct which I'm looking to avoid. Haven't tried that model in a 5 though and I've liked the more expensive Yamahas, In fact one of the best basses I've played was a TRB 6er (so it should be for over £2k!). I think the choice is between a Cort or one of the Sires. The Sires are an unknown quantity but have been reviewed so well across the board [quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1434059987' post='2796430'] The preamp... I felt the bass control added too much "boom" without fattening the sound enough. I guess I'd want more low mids. The treble control I rarely touch on a bass. [/quote] Hmmmm, that sounds like the opposite of what I want! The pre on my existing Cort has a very useful Bass voicing, no idea what frequency it is but it's higher than the bass knob on my LMII (which is 40hz IIRC?) and fattens up the sound without getting boomy which makes dialing in low end really easy. I'm really not a fan of boomy bass eqs on preamps, one of the reasons I sold my last 5 string was because of this. The one I was looking at is this one: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251989764877?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT It's the 3 band eq version with what I'm guessing is the slap switch. Maybe it has different electrics and will sound different, who knows! Comes with a case though which I could sell on for around £20 as I only use gigbags.

[quote name='dincz' timestamp='1434043170' post='2796233'] There's a dealer over here (Czech Republic) offering them for the equivalent of 236GBP. Almost worth popping over for a beer. [url="http://www.music-city.cz/cort-gb75-opn-rosewood-fingerboard-open-pore-natural-32344.html?utm_source=heureka.cz&utm_medium=pricenidexer&utm_campaign=feed"]http://www.music-cit...m_campaign=feed[/url] [/quote] Thanks for that link, it's the natural one too which I prefer to the white. I wonder if they ship to the UK....

Thanks again, a bit worrying about the preamp mcnach. The Mighty Mite and stock pre in my current Cort are actually capable of some great sounds so when I go and look I'll take it along for comparison. I like a very clean sound so your idea of too polite might be my ideal tone! Thanks for the views, it's very much appreciated. I knew that Cort make basses for just about everyone including Lakland, in fact I have an old Hohner made by them. I'm pretty sure everyone owns a Cort bass, they just don't know it!

Just out of interest there seems to be two different control setups on these - one with 3 pots, a stacked pot and a switch while the other is two pots, a stacked pot and two switches. What's the difference with these?

Thanks guys, I can get a new one for about £390 and one of the Sires for £310 so it's kinda low enough but not amazingly well priced IMO. It didn't sell on eBay last time around (no bids at £280. I think I'll bob round next week and try it out and take my current Cort for comparison. I was really impressed when I got my C5P, an amazing amount of bass for the money. I think Cort are one of the few makers that can actually do a cheap bass with a good low B.

On the hunt for a budget but good 5 string and this has cropped up locally, the guy is after £250 cash. Looks smart and I'm pretty impressed with the Cort I have (a C5P) which has a good low B and sounds great in general for the motown, disco and funk which I play so I'd be expecting this to be a better all round bass. What are the house brand pickups/pre like, how is the B string on these and how do they stack up in general? The choice is between this and a Sire 5 string when they are available.

Nah it's an Aria Sinsonido with bog standard tuners benind the bridge.

Ah I'll try that, thanks. I don't think the ball end idea would work on this bass though, it's a headless and they're at the other end of the bass!

Just thought for a quick and dirty fix I could just run a wire along the top of the bridge underneath the strings, should do until I can get something better sorted?

It's soldered on the sleeve lug along with the preamp ground, the hot and switch wires coming from the pre are soldered to the tip and ring.

It's wired exactly like this, only I've disconnected the two tabs from the blend pot and wired them directly to the pickup. It's supplied with a long wire soldered to the body of the volume pot (and connected to the 3rd lug like usual), I soldered this to the jack ground whereas on a different bass it is soldered to the bridge ground. Apart from that they are wired identically and the other is quiet as a mouse. There's not much to go wrong with these as they're premade, you just have to solder the pickup, battery clip and jack in and you're away so I think it definitely needs a bridge ground which unfortunately means more modding for me. Been looking at tune-o-matic style bridge pieces, I think mounting that on a thin strip of soft wood over the piezo would do the trick and also get me better intonation. Just gotta find a cheap one which is the right size and preferably black!

Incorrectly listed as a Fortress One, maybe a polite message would encourage the seller to reduce shipping. [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Warwick-Fortress-One-bass-with-hard-case/331569362765?_trksid=p2047675.c100009.m1982&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140328180637%26meid%3D65b36539866848af978608e6ac795094%26pid%3D100009%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D291459474969"]http://www.ebay.co.u...%3D291459474969[/url] EDIT: TRC says Fortress One so looks like it has the wrong one on. Definitely has the MM pickup and pre.

Ok so I wired it up and there's hum - lots of it! There is a strong hum present which only disappears when I touch one of the pots (volume or stacked bass/treble) and a quiter, higher pitched hum which disappears when I touch the strings. I have fitted a pretty much identical pre (the 4 knob version, SE2) to a different bass which just has a bridge ground and shielding on the control cavity cover so I guess this needs the supplied cable grounding at the bridge. Good news is that it sounds extremely good and I now have a (sort of) functioning Sinsonido. I'm thinking it might be easier to rig something up behing the bridge to make contact with the strings and feeding this through the existing hole for the piezo. Either that or trying to find small metal saddles to seat on top of the wooden bridge (with the piezo underneath). Also am I best wiring the piezos in series or parallel? There are two in there, had to get mandolin ones as the Sinsonido bridge mount is difficult to work around with a standard bass strip.

No, that's a good point! The strings anchor at the bridge end via the tuners, would involve drilling a very long hole though.

There's two thumb screws which can be used to raise/lower the bridge, they might be an option if I get hum although I'm concerned about drilling holes as at the point where I'd have to drill the body gets quite thin. It's a Sinsonio stick bass and the large cavity is just in front of the bridge, there's an alarming lack of wood there compared to the rest of the bass!

http://www.gak.co.uk/en/hughes-and-kettner-red-box-5-cab-emulated-di-box/86123?gclid=CjwKEAjwkcWrBRDg5u6SuPS11C0SJAChLLAH1oXWjyePJAIrwr5aYSh3Orgq5cvYz6EFQVVTmLXdBRoCXlDw_wcB