Beer of the Bass

There seem to be two versions of the Ibanez TSA-5 combo, the older one with the 10" speaker and no reverb or the newer one in the video. I haven't tried them but they look like nice little amps, and I guess the choice between the two would be down to whether reverb or the bigger speaker was more important to you. The last time I tried out amps in this sort of range, I liked the Laney LC15 and Cub 10 too. Another amp that looks interesting in your budget is the Belcat Tube 20R (Also sold as SubZero). Again, I haven't seen these in the flesh, but from photos posted online they appear to be a very close copy of the Fender Blues Junior (right down to the PCB layout) and they use reasonable parts.

Is it a 2KHz upper-mid peak that people are hearing, or does the mid-forward character happen lower down? Could it be down to the cab having a relatively even response, where the lack of a bump around 100Hz and the relatively well controlled upper-mids make the content around 4-500Hz seem more noticeable than on most cabs? Not having heard it this is just a guess.

I had a nice Carlsbro 100 watt PA head which was exactly the right width for this, but it's not a model you'll come across often and the simple preamp wouldn't suit everyone. I think the old Selmer Treble n' Bass heads (both 50 and 100 watt versions) are a similar size too. Alternatively, something built for rack-mounting might be worth looking at, like one of the old Peavey Classic power amps with your choice of preamp.

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1437570354' post='2827132'] An interesting story. I think there is a lot of this that comes out of the Marsalis neo-classicist era. Marsalis LPs always carried the tag 'this LP was recorded without the dreaded bass direct'. The purist message was all but universal during that time and, since that was the ethos that added impetus to the Jazz scene that existed immediately followed that era, it has never really gone away. [/quote] I'm far from a purist, but I can sort of see where Marsalis was coming from with his backlash against that DI double bass sound. Ron Carter from about the mid 70s onwards was a particularly egregious example IMO - great playing but it's just about as far from the acoustic sound of a double bass as any electric bass could be, and that nasal, plasticky tone really grates. Live is a different matter, but I don't understand how that ever became a fashionable sound to record with.

A guitarist I played with tried an orange set and came to the same conclusion. They sounded like old, dead strings right out of the packet.

That probably is "new" condition, as that looks like a manufacturing blemish rather than something that happened to the bass after it left the factory.

There are a few out there. I've used an old BSS AR116 for this, with the 40dB pad and 4KHz lowpass switches engaged, or something like the Palmer PDI-09 would work.

Unusually for me, I've just had a weekend of two gigs with a little impromptu jazz quartet, one at the Allen Ramsay hotel in Carlops (about 20 miles south of Edinburgh) and the other at a rather sw***y wedding in Ayrshire for some relatives of a friend. I listen to a lot of jazz but rarely play it, and I never feel like I've put in enough study to really consider myself a proper jazz musician so I can't quite shake the feeling that I'm faking it when I play jazz. The quartet are friends I've played with for years, usually in a noisier, freer context so it's entertaining to try and play more conventional jazz standards with them. I spent quite a bit of time in the couple of weeks beforehand trying to get a bit familiar with the tunes and practicing. There were a couple of slightly hairy moments where me and the piano player stumbled over the form of some tunes, but we recovered from those OK. However, both gigs went down well and the hotel would like us back as a semi-regular thing a few times a year. It's your classic country pub/inn sort of place, and they're a friendly lot so it was a fun gig. This might be a good opportunity to work on my Jazz playing a bit - in particular I need to work on my walking lines and be better prepared to take a solo or two.

[quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1437075743' post='2823452'] True, your typical busker doesn't invest a lot of £££ in their equipment [/quote] Quite a few of the professional buskers who descend on Edinburgh for the Fringe use AER combos which are not cheap, so buskers willing to spend on gear do exist. Although I guess there may not be enough of them to make it a viable market.

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1437067861' post='2823361'] I`ve always worked on the theory that my bass doesn`t go as loud as my TV at regular listening volumes, found it`s a good way to minimise this. I`ve also got some thick foam under my practice amp, and lastly only play between the hours of 9am - 9pm. [/quote] People are weird about these things though; loud TV is often tolerated because TV is considered normal, yet practicing an instrument at the same or lesser volume tends to be noticed and complained about. I've had this happen a few times in past flats.

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1436972739' post='2822477'] Stevie's right. (I keep saying that) we started out talking about offering either a Celestion or the Eminence Beta 12A-2 as a cheap option with the Beyma as midprice and maybe the 3012HO as the deluxe version. Modelling showed the extra for the Beyma was worth the money and the 3012 was offering almost nothing for a lot extra. Which made life simpler for us. [/quote] It does look good for the price. I guess that the only reason for going for the Celestion or Eminence Beta (cost aside) would be if you weren't using a lot of amp power and specifically wanted that rising mid voicing?

[quote name='JwK94' timestamp='1436895621' post='2821852'] Thanks for the suggestions. May have forgotten to mention I don't have a great deal of cash but it isn't super urgent. Also thought it's worth mentioning i'm looking mainly for a cab not a combo. And would likely be pairing up with a Markbass traveller 151p for louder gigs. Cheers [/quote] As nice as the EA Wizzy 10 is, the 4 ohm impedance makes it less suitable for pairing with anything else unless your amp will run at 2 ohms (which Markbass don't IIRC).

[quote name='scalpy' timestamp='1436824669' post='2821245'] If anyone doesn't know, the Convent ain't your average dog n' duck gig, it's fully kitted out with db pa, in- ears, neve desks, multi camera subscription based net broadcasting. The restaurant is amazing, if you play there you're being paid to eat top quality grub! Quite right for the guy who's invested millions in the place, who lets bands borrow his matchless amps (Mr Quaye included by the looks of it) to insist on quality control! The other thread on here about Gibson slates the MD for taking advantage of customers, nice work this fella for leading from the front and looking after his customers. [/quote] Ah, I did wonder about the Matchless. It seemed odd to me that Quaye (who was declared bankrupt a couple of years ago and seems to have a fairly chaotic lifestyle) was using something so pricey, but that would explain it.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1436807443' post='2820982'] He's been self-destructing for years. The band look as embarrassed as you'd expect. Poor buggers. [/quote] From the beginning, even. I saw him at the Glasgow Barrowlands in his 90's heyday (IIRC I was actually a year or two too young to be in there). He strung out about three songs worth of material for the whole set, got stoned out of his nut and was pretty much carried by his band. Fortunately his band were older guys who'd been around for a few years and were good enough to just about salvage it by keeping a dubby vibe going for him to meander over the top of.

If you want to retain a bit of an acoustic vibe, I'd be tempted to check out an acoustic archtop with a neck pickup as these tend to be a bit more lightly built with a little more acoustic character than dedicated electric archtops. Something like some of the Loar models or a Godin 5th Avenue, for instance, or some vintage models if you can find one you like.

I think it may be because eBay feedback means very little now. The last couple of times I've had problems with sellers and left honestly worded, non-abusive negative feedback, they've managed to have it removed simply by asking eBay.

I've been through something similar, trying nickel rounds, D'Addario Chromes, Status Halfwounds and D'Addario Tapewounds on the same bass over several years. I've had Sadowsky flatwounds on since last August, but I haven't been gigging much in the meantime. I have some more gigs coming up in a few weeks, so I'll be able to figure out whether they're the right thing for me or not - it's hard to tell outside of a band context. They have a sound which I like, but sticking with a darker sounding flat on my main bass somehow feels like a bit of a commitment since the range of sounds available stops some time around 1972!

[quote name='leonardobass' timestamp='1436339493' post='2817127'] Ok,so I ordered the 5 string acoustic. I was waiting for a 4 string but since I can never seem to find it in time, I just went for it. I must say that that I'm suprised at how long it was available,until I made up my mind. Now all I have to do is wait for about a month or so...:| I hope it turns out ok. [/quote] Mine had a couple of minor finish blemishes and one high fret that made several notes on the G-string unplayable. Rather than doing a full fret dress, I just tapped it with a small hammer to check it was seated, then spent 10 minutes on that one fret with a couple of small files to get it level with the others.

[quote name='drTStingray' timestamp='1436350535' post='2817283'] Is that finish faux leather or built in finish cracking? [/quote] It's a crackle finish in some sort of thin matt paint. The dark bits in between are the body wood with just a thin sealer coat. Also, the pickguard is painted and the neck is stained to approximately the colour of earwax. The AXLs are really good sounding and playable instruments for the money, just the crazy finishes are a bit of an acquired taste.

When I first started playing I did it and got away with it, but it's worth pointing out this was using a 50 watt amp for low-volume rehearsals. I suspect many of the people who insist it is OK are guitarists using relatively low powered amps. Signal cables aren't built to handle much current, and as they heat up the resistance increases. Even if they don't catch fire, the increased resistance can be tough on a valve amp.

It looks like a Fishman BP100, but I think there were cheaper copies around too.

[quote name='KevB' timestamp='1436290508' post='2816809'] Sounds a bit approximate to me, and people go on about Florence... [/quote] It's quite a different thing she's going for though. Since Barnett has a semi-spoken vocal style, lyrics with some deadpan wit about them and an intentionally homespun, relaxed style I don't mind the unpolished delivery. She's not attempting some bombastic feat of "look-at-me" vocal gymnastics like Florence. All of this is of course IMO. I've been enjoying the songs they play on 6 music.

It could be worse; at least he didn't try to install a strat tremolo bridge on it to go with the pickguard. He does sound pretty good on the youtube demos though!

So far, none! That's mostly through lack of disposable income rather than any spectacular willpower though. I've sold an amp and bought and sold some smaller bits and pieces though.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1436255465' post='2816367'] I was thinking of something along these lines, but maybe a little more subtle... [/quote] I had the guitar version of one of these. It was a nice player, though the novelty of that finish wore off rather quickly.