FDC484950

I guess it was only a matter of time… must resist.

https://www.music-man.com/instruments/basses/darkray-5

Yes, great track. It does suffer a touch from from the “slam it in your face” style of mixing so prevalent over the last 10-15 years, and I’m guessing the drums are programmed (hard to tell nowadays) - just a bit more spice from the drums would really have elevated it for me. But I am being picky - I’ve never heard of her and more often than not with new (as in recently released rather than stuff I haven’t heard) music I listen for the first minute and give up. I enjoyed the whole track, right down to the quite touching and genuine laugh at the end

If importing and exporting outside the UK it’s recommended to detail wood species where possible. I had an instrument from a European music shop briefly stuck in UK customs last year. UPS rang me to ask me what woods made up the bass, presumably checking for Dalbergia Nigra (Brazilian Rosewood).

OK. Final price drop to £40 posted. If it doesn’t sell it’ll go in the cupboard

I had one last year and it was a great bass. The looks divide opinion but in the flesh it was cool - something isn’t quite right about the pickguard shape to my eyes, but it’s better than looking at yet another Fender clone! Comfortable neck and perfect fretwork like other MusicMan basses, real punch in the low end and a wide and distinct palette of sounds. It takes a little bit of time to explore the options but I found 4 favourite tones with a bit of shaping (the 4-band EQ is really versatile). Just because there are other options, doesn’t mean you have to use them!
If I were in the studio and wanted to take one bass not knowing what sound I’d need it would be the Big Al. I only moved it on because bass is just a hobby and I have a low boredom threshold 

Your other option is an interface with direct monitor which avoids the round trip though the interface, the software and back.

2 sets of new 6-string bass strings 

DR Hi-Beam 30-130 stainless steel - £28 posted to mainland UK SOLD

Ernie Ball Slinky 32-130 nickel plated - £20 posted to mainland UK

The one Bass Direct had was nicer looking (imho) and £550 cheaper to boot…

1 hour ago, SumOne said:

 

Er.... yes!

 

If you pluck vertically down (red line) then the G is being plucked relatively closer to it's bridge than the B. You'd need to pluck on the blue line to be plucking the same relative distances along each string (The fret fanning and pickup angles show the relative distance for each string e.g. Bridge to 24th fret being a quarter of the length along each string). 

Er… no?!

The blue line may be the same length of each string from the bridge but as a fraction of the length of the string it’s actually shorter with each string. It’s the whole length of the string, not just the bit from the bridge to where you pluck. Think about it…

There are some nice used Canadian Dingwalls at BassDirect at the moment. A couple are not far off Chinese NG prices too.

On 03/05/2022 at 14:12, SumOne said:

I like multiscale's, I've owned three.

 

One issue I have that I rarely see mentioned is if you pluck just in front of the pickup on the B and then pluck vertically down all the strings you'd be plucking the G relatively closer to the bridge. So you need to adjust plucking position to compensate and have even tone -  I don't find that ergonomic or intuitive. 

Er… no.

The strings get progressively shorter, so even though you’re plucking closer to a fixed point (the bridge) as you go up the strings, proportionally it’s pretty much the same distance along each string. 
I’ve made no adjustments to playing a fanned fret bass and it sounds perfectly even.

I’ve played probably a dozen Foderas over the years. You’re definitely paying for the name I’m sure many sales are made based on their roster of endorsing artists.

Both of the Anthony Jackson Presentations (v1) I tried were ordinary in sound and in feel. The Emperor 5 I tried new in a shop from the factory had wire wool swirls visible all over the top and the low B was poor (admittedly this was 14-15 years ago but I don’t think the standards should have been any lower then). Only one bass lived up to the name and price (an extraordinary Emperor 6 with a buckeye burl top) but I thought long and hard over whether this bass I quite liked at just under £10K was worth selling all my basses for. It wasn’t and I don’t regret it one bit. Still, I’m sure they‘ll continue to prosper.

The video is aimed at beginners. When I started out I knew none of this so it is helpful and it’s generally about live playing. Live tone and recorded tone are not the same thing - live you have acoustics, the room and other musicians (who are too loud or who have a crap sound that sucks up all of the bass frequency range). For a recorded bass tone, as BRX says it depends entirely on the song. And I’d go further and say that many isolated bass tracks sound terrible but work perfectly when in the mix

I quite like the shape of the AJ sig. This is hideous in every way. Plus the BS on the video is hilarious, for example “the angled headstock gives it a little more tightness in the low end”. No it flipping doesn’t! 

17 hours ago, Lfalex v1.1 said:

I seem to recall having played a fan- fretted bass at some point.  

 

There doesn't seem to be a very consistent approach in terms of scale length;

For example a 5 string Dingwall is 34-37",

whereas their Super P4 is 32-34.5".

 

Surely there's an approximately optimal length for any given string/pitch as determined by maths/ player consensus. 

The latter seems to favour about 32" for a G string and around 35" for a B string. 

 

I don't think I've seen a (5 string) design that seems to embrace a short scale approach for the higher pitched strings and a slightly longer than long scale (34") for the lower pitches.

 

Dingwall has 2 scale lengths on 5 strings:

DRoc/Afterburner/Z/Lee Sklar/Prima - 34”-37”

Super P/J - 32”-35”

Basically each lower string is 0.75” longer, regardless of model or scale. I presume there’s been some kind of physics/design testing around this (possibly originally by Gary Novak).

Proportionally they’re the same - 3” - but they explain the super series as having a shorter overall scale length for a more “traditional” tone (and I suspect look as the 37” B makes for a loooong neck). Having owner a super series before they’re a little softer in tone - the longer scale basses tend to have a “bigger” sound that to me is a little at odds with something like a P bass.

I don’t see these basses ever replacing a Fender or a Stingray because they don’t exactly replicate those sounds and on looks alone they’ll put off many bass players. It’s a shame that they seem to be labelled metal basses as they’re popular with players into downtuning. They’re a lot more versatile. 

I've not had a better, clearer, more even and consistent tone out of a bass than a Canadian Dingwall. The NG and Combustion basses are good but the Canadian models are a significant step up. I've got 3 and had more, and over the last 30 years or so I've played lots and lots of top end 5 and 6 string basses and nothing else comes close. Material, construction, strings etc. all make a difference but you cannot get away from simple physics. I owned an Overwater Progress 6 once - 36" scale with parallel frets. The low B was great but the high G and C sounded terrible (thin and twangy with no warmth - and this was obviously being caused by the scale length), ditto with a Fodera Anthony Jackson Presentation.

I guess in a band context many players don't notice or care so much. I've seen many 5 and 6 string players never venture above the 5th fret on the low B, where many basses sound OK (but still not tight or defined enough to my ears!)

As to whether they will replace a standard parallel fret bass? Well not on a 4-string as it's managed OK for the last 50 years! For basses with lower strings, unlikely given the wide range of choice, but the fact that other manufacturers are doing them (Warwick, Ibanez and now Spector to name 3) suggests the concept works. I still have a Stingray Special and a Sadowsky and tolerate them as they have a perfectly functional B string, mainly for a variety in tone (Dingwall have preset pickup combinations which are nice, but you cannot get a Stingray or a convincing Jazz bass tone).

Tort - it really makes the white pickup cover pop out.

15 hours ago, AndyTravis said:

Yeah. Shame it’s a dull colour, well…I say that. Just mean “regular” - needs to be luminous green or something 

Yes, they do seem to lend themselves to bright colours. It used to be mine once upon a time. I remember it had an incredible B string and I could get a pretty convincing J, P, Gibson EB2, double humbucker and a couple of other tones out of it, before even touching the active/passive (passive with it’s own tone control) or the 4-band EQ. Definitely a one bass to any gig proposition

I notice there’s an MM Big Al 5 SSS up for sale at Bass Direct

2 hours ago, drTStingray said:

Yeah it does to me as well (but without the hum!!) They cost less than a Fender CS team built Pino signature bass - which are relatively simple mass produced basses with selected materials - these are assembled in a similar way so arguably simply a high quality signature bass, albeit a quirky one (which matches the artist). 

 

More photos here showing more detail. One thing you can be sure of, it’ll be top quality. 
 

https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/463934-musicman-joe-dart-11-bass/
 

One other thought, I think 2 people on Talkbass have said they’ve ordered them - if that stays the same, it gives an indication of the level of general representation of all bass players on Talkbass (2% 😀😂). A lot of hot air going on over there as well!! 

I wonder why it has the older style tuners and not the lighter weight models that have been on most US MM basses in the last 4 years or so (Sterling USA excepted)?

Is it the same body shape as the Joe Dart 1? Something looks not quite right to my eyes, maybe individual taste.

Sounds like a jazz bass to me. Am I missing something?

Note - this is a second set for sale so pic is from previous set but they are identical in every way, including condition being unmarked
 

5x Hipshot Ultralite 1/2” diameter post chrome tuners with clover ears. Complete with ferrules, washers and screws. Currently arranged as a 4+1 but are reversible. Only 48g each on my kitchen scales. Superb condition. Price is including mainland UK, no offers please.

Sold Hipshot Tuners. Instant payment and great comms

I had my eyes opened the first time I saw a good covers bar band in the US. They were good. As in each musician had chops, taste, and feel and were rock solid. Really enjoyable gig, mainly note for note but when they stretched out a bit on outros, my goodness

The reason why I don’t gig anymore is that the majority of musicians are simply too lazy to learn the songs properly (or even to learn how to play half-decently). I have no snobbishness about reading vs not reading, so long as a musician knows their part and knows their instrument. In fact it’s a standing joke in jazz circles (other than big bands who play a book of specific charts) that if the musician has a chart/real book in front of them, they probably aren’t up to scratch - a solid repertoire of standards (and the alternative versions) is a must, and as with all music I’d prefer to play with someone who can play and really listens than someone with great reading skills who is oblivious to the rest of the band. 

£20 posted.