silverfoxnik

I have the NA650 as well and it's a very good sounding amp, with a lot of tonal flexibility and a good array of features.. Personally, I don't use the internal compression but i do use the 'edge' control to dirty up the very clean, almost hi-fi' tone of the amp. The enhance control is similar to the contour control on Gallien Krueger amps and is a bit like having a sweepable pre-shaping facility which is very cool. But having said that, it needs to be used with caution IMO because, although it makes the tone of your bass sound great in a solo context, if you over use it within a band setting, you will lose the presence of your bass in the mix because it effectively takes all the mids out of your sound. As already said, the DI out is great and personally, I've never had a problem with the gain/input stage; in fact, I find the 10db gain boost switch really useful when swapping between active and passive basses. Another very useful facility is the fact that the NA650 will work at 2 ohms, which allows me to run 2 x 4ohm cabs for bigger gigs and get the maximum output from the amp (though I'm not sure if other Nemesis heads do this). Well worth checking out I'd say, though do have a look around at some of the second-hand Eden gear currently on sale here because there's some good stuff around..

[quote name='Stingray5' post='532483' date='Jul 4 2009, 03:39 PM']Guess I was trying to make the point that, for me, Stevie Wonder is beyond just [i]mere[/i] genius... Cheers, Steve[/quote] +2 Possibly the most influential black artist of the past 40 years or so IMO, along with James Brown perhaps.. It was a superb show and the great songs just kept coming and coming! Agree with Josh re: Nathan Watts - he was a pleasure to listen to.. Funny that about him being the MD; I was watching Leonard Cohen on TV last week and Roscoe Beck was the bass playing MD as well...

Beedster's modified Sub 5 has been around a bit too; Chris, me, Walman, JoJo Bass, OBBM and a couple of others too IIRC..

Just bought a Boss LS-2 from Steve which arrived looking almost brand new and works really well! Pleasure to deal with and would definitely do so again! Thanks Steve! Nik

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='528449' date='Jun 30 2009, 11:10 AM']So, I've upped the action to about 3mm (it feels like a heck of a lot, but you really don't notice at a gig) and all the sudden my notes are ringing big and round, with plenty of growl in reserve when I dig in. Bliss. Why didn't I think of it before?? Don't be afraid to raise tha action a little more than you think, people... you might be suprised at how much difference it makes to your ears, but how little difference it makes to your hands! If this post helps one person, it'll have been worth typing. [/quote] +1 Most basses that I've played with really low action sound great in isolation but don't seem to have enough body in the tone to cut through in the way that I like to hear when I'm playing in a band setting.. Having said that, I think it totally depends on what music you're playing, what you like to hear when you're playing and also, the way that you play..I'm not sure there's a definitive 'right way' or 'wrong way' about it.

Great!

[quote name='NickThomas' post='529087' date='Jun 30 2009, 09:16 PM']My goodness. I didnt know him really, but he seemed a really cool level headed and knowledgeable fella. RIP , and my condolences to his family and friends. Nick.[/quote] +1 Well said Nick..happy to echo those sentiments!

I think it's really easy to get 'hooked' on the thrill of buying new basses.. I've definitely have been down that road before and had some hilarious times with bass playing mates swapping stories/ideas about the best way to sneak in yet another bass before the Mrs finds out! I think I've had most of the really well known makes over the years; Fender P, Fender J, Musicman, Warwick, Spector, Rickenbacker, Peavey etc, etc. Plus some high end stuff like Wal, early Tobias, MTD, Lakland and some other quirkier & cheaper basses too.. Bought lots and sold lots and there's just a few of them I really wish I'd kept.. Wierd thing is, though I've had some proper 'vintage' basses, they're not the ones I miss!! Anyway, about ten years ago, when I had 9 basses which was the most I've ever owned at one time, I remember thinking to myself how stupid it was that I had all these instruments sitting around gathering dust not being played! So slowly over the last few years, as I've started to gig more and more, I've got my collection down to 4 working basses that get used all the time: 2 x 5 strings 2 x 4 strings That pretty much keeps me happy and covers all angles when it comes to playing a wide cross-section of music, which is what we do in our covers band.. Now; if only I could get my rig sorted, I'd be really, really happy

Great set-up! Must post some pics of mine...

Just bought some strings from Marc and am happy to echo what''s been said already! Great bloke to deal with.. Thanks Nik

Love the look of your Musicmaster... I played one years ago and it was great!

[quote name='EssentialTension' post='525625' date='Jun 27 2009, 01:34 AM']I'm not interested in choosing between them. Two great players, both Jamerson and Kaye. It's not either one or the other. Stupid question - it's like being in primary school.[/quote] +3

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='525670' date='Jun 27 2009, 02:43 AM']Do they though? Yes there are some talented bassists about who can do loads of clever and difficult stuff, but ultimately everybody else with a bass is busy getting busy with a band, and there's no place for any of that. So has the role of the instrument been advanced at all through their innovation? Clearly a lot of bassists pay a lot of attention to people like Manring, Wooten, Marcus Miller, Jean Baudin, etc. but if nobody but bass players are listening to them, and bass players generally can't incorporate any of that stuff into what they do (which seems to be the case) then is all this boundary-testing ultimately a bit futile? Can we conclude that, while it's interesting for the individual involved at the time and other Bass Anoraks, it's pretty irrelevant for anybody else?[/quote] Yes!

[quote name='MuseMatt' post='524809' date='Jun 26 2009, 01:13 PM']I tried it out... and bought it Thank you all for your advice, it's a great amp![/quote] That's great! Enjoy...

Gorgeous looking thing! Always fancied a Ken Smith 5 string myself.. Look forward to hearing what you think of it after it arrives?

[quote name='deksawyer' post='519162' date='Jun 20 2009, 11:12 AM']One of the best amp ever made, regardless of price. I kind of miss mine!! D.[/quote] I'm still enjoying it Derek, as it happens... As Spartacus has already said, it's tonally very flexible, with the semi-parametric e.q really handy for making very quick tonal adjustments as it allows you to cut/boost anywhere from 40hz to 10khz! The enhance control allows you to dial in a very good 'scooped mids' tone which is instantly very pleasing to the ears, but IMO, takes too much away from the natural 'bite' in the sound that this amp has. The Edge control does provide a very useful valve simulation, which I like to use as it dirties up the sound of the amp, but in a good way. Some of the other features are very handy too; the mute button, DI out with adjustable level, gain boost which is great if you have basses that have very diffferent output levels ( which mine do) and the footswitch comes in handy too. Another great feature is that it will run comfortably at 2 ohms and give you the full 650 watts, which is terrific for someone like me who has two 4ohm cabs. The only crticism I have is that the NA 650 has a well-documented design flaw in that is not completely silent; it has a slight hum which can be quite annoying when using the amp at low volume levels.. I took it to my amp repairer and he tried to remedy it with some extra sheilding, but it didn't work at all! Otherwise - a great amp!

[quote name='Wil' post='521284' date='Jun 22 2009, 11:05 PM']I'm not even a bassist anymore but I want it![/quote] +1 It does look very cool indeed! Especially with the Celinder alongside it...

Some beautiful looking gear there; real quality! Looks like a lot to lug around though, so I hope you've got some roadies to help you out??

[quote name='Sean.Robinson' post='518387' date='Jun 19 2009, 01:51 PM']That is beautiful though i cant decide whether im more enviable of the bass or that it seems to have being completed on time, you are indeed a lucky man [/quote] +1 And indeed the fact that the bass is in part, a present from Mrs Clarky... How lucky can a man get? Gorgeous looking bass and one to keep for sure!

[quote name='Stingray5' post='519407' date='Jun 20 2009, 04:12 PM']That's one seriously good looking and sounding bass. Good clip too, showing nice tones for finger and slap styles. Tasty! Cheers, Steve[/quote] +1 Great bass and very impressive & enjoyable clip, thanks!