Stub Mandrel

That is a guitar I've had for over 36 years...

Very glad I took Stews recommendation for this. You can get some amazing sounds with the modulation, just a shame you can't vary the speed of it, from Mellotron to Theremin (think old Dr Who theme). With just the sub-octave it's very old school, with the octave up its getting into Royal Blood territory. Polyphonic too, even copes with polyphonic harmonics.

I've played quite a few different basses in a few different shops over the last year. From the great to the horrific. One memorable experience was trying a £1,400 Warwick which had a horribly feel, poor fret ends and you could feel the unevenness of the neck laminations, then tried a £220 Squier Jag with a spotless neck, smooth as silk with beautifully rolled edges. This wasn't a case of setup, but rather poor QC by a high-end manufacturer. That said, I think the setup and fret finish probably make the biggest difference to your perceptions of an instrument, along with whether you can get the sound you want. It's pretty obvious from a cursory examination whether a shop is setup one or a 'don't touch them' one, and shops that fail to do at least a rudimentary check of the action give me an impression of probably not having any regard for their customers. I suspect some shops are terrified of dropping the action so far that they get fret buzz, others may assume if they set up the cheap guitars they will show up the better more expensive ones. In my experience, the best shops for setting up guitar are actually the ones that have guitar techs in house; rather than looking to make an extra buck I think they realise well set up guitars can lead to impulse purchases! I tried out lots of acoustic basses, most had awful setups, the worst were always the Tanglewoods. I think shops are more reluctant to adjust plain saddles because it's irreversible. The irony is that Tanglewoods are shipped with shimmed saddles, but I reckon most need 1-2mm shaving off the saddle. One shop I mentioned this in took it off me and brought it back ten minutes later set up much better, I think it was just truss rod. I ended up buying a s/h Tanglewood for £70, the action was awful but after rather more than ten minutes on the nut and saddle as well as Truss rod, it was also set up nicely (how did some poor soul cope with it being like that for 13 years?) In another shop, I commented on the sound I wanted and they swapped the amp I was using for one more like my own, which made a big difference. A s/h Squier Jazz bass was quite nice in the shop, but after a few weeks the action had become far too high; this one needed a washer on the truss rod which had run out adjustment. A reminder that guitars set up nicely might not stay that way if they are on the rack for months. My Flea Jazz felt good, but after a week I did drop the action a touch and tweak the truss rod, but that was about personal preference.

A good hard brass is harder, and possibly stronger, than mild steel, should be a good bridge material.

Papa Was a Rolling Stone 🙂

There are some really simple guides out there, but for most pedals you have no more than three or four knobs to twirl, and use your ears. If there's a mistake it's setting the controls to what you THINK should work rather than focusing on what it sounds like. Do that and SOME people will decide it sounds better without (I click mine off when I want to sound raw with lots of dynamics).

The Labour Party tried that, with poor results.

I haven't read all 9 pages, but... I used a compressor almost from when I started gigging in '87 until I stopped at the end of '96. Now I'm back, I'm using a compressor as a 'better knob'*. *Just to clarify, I twiddle the knobs and turn it on and off while listening to the results. This way I can be confident that using the pedal gives me a sound closer to what i want to hear than not using it**, which seems a pretty sensible approach, if subjective. **I've been starting to use harmonics more and I think I might need to up the compression a tad, as they get a bit lost unless I use a distortion pedal.

I saw that. The future is so cloudy now I'm thinking of alternative routes. It might be a lightweight class D head (Maybe TE Elf) and a lightweight 10" or 12" cab. That way I get an easily portable backup amp that I could also use with my 2 2x12s or 1x15.

Could you ask him about the pickup arrangement? Or even a photo beneath the scratchplate!

Well it's becoming a bit more academic. Turns out there's a decent PA, the guitarist will be using a Marshall combo, and a drummer is on the horizon (allegedly). The cafe bar gig has been pulled (for a reason I don't entirely agree with), but there's a paid pub gig in month which gives us five rehearsals, which we will need with 15 songs on the setlist some of which only got agreed last night. We've agreed I'll use the Trace for that, but keep the volume down... It's all feeling a bit ambitious, but to be fair the musicianship is there and the singer is very good. So I've decided just to do what I'm asked and let the BL do his way. On the plus side the songs are being heavily re-arranged so it's a mix of original basslines and fitting ones into songs that never had one originally or need it to fill more space (like Nina Simone's Feeling Fine). Turns out they were planning the Marvin Gaye version of Wherever I Lay My Hat, but I must have done OK as they want to do the Paul Young version now! If it goes pear shaped, I will still have learned whole lot of songs I wouldn't otherwise have played, and most of it will be on fretless which I only ever used for one or two songs in a set in the past.

One can only hope for the best 😈

Well it's helping me expand my French vocabulary: "" un flop total." Actually very interesting, I could get the general sense of it because of my knowledge of the subject, I then got word to translate it, and ended up with something requiring almost as much effort to understand! But yes, an interesting document, thanks.

@Chownybass want to shake up the world of bass playing? Get some Tutmarc replicas made!

I don't think anyone's arguing; electric, solid or fretted basses weren't new. Tutmarc was the first person to make what we would now recognise as an electric bass guitar. Fender got the marketing right and had the enthusiasm for mass production. It seems Leo knew about Tutmarc and may even have owned one of his six strings. You can also say Fender had simpler pickups (Tutmarc's were apparently big, and hidden internally, soemtimes with pole pieces poking out of scratchplates) and clearly got things like jack plug placement right.

Was that the Session 60?

I forgot to share a pic of this awesome and guaranteed unique (he prepared the artwork) Christmas present from my brother. Less awesome was a pair of boxer shorts with 16 pictures of my face on them...

https://orangeamps.com/o-bass/

Tell that to Sandberg?

Chapman Stick? Hold my beer...

Piqued my interest. You may find this useful.

I've always been someone who prioritises getting the best out of what they have got, and I agree the limiting factor, especially with playing a musical instrument, is personal skill. Unlike many areas, you can't buy success at playing an instrument*. But part of this is, after time pushing the boundaries of what you have, better understanding what can help you take the next step. As an example, I bought a huge TE combo because that guaranteed a sound I have always wanted - bonus is that it was silly cheap. That doesn't mean you might not get something just because its fun to use or nice to have. *Many years ago the partner of a sister in law had a Trace rig and Jaydee custom bass, I never heard him play it once although he did once let me have a go.

What's interesting is that everyone says how Leo got it right first time, yet that bass is pretty much there. The odd position for the lead coming out, relatively few frets and no strap buttons. Neither Tutmarc nor Fender put in a truss rod, but the Tutmarc neck looks more substantial (and the body is thicker). Otherwise, it's a short scale, through-neck bass with a pretty modern body shape...

There should be nothing simpler than Elvis Presley's 'That's Allright' (especially as the original doesn't have bass in it). I've finally drummed into my head that he only spends one bar on the IV when he does the final scat verse. What's the betting that when we practice tonight I play it like that and the guitarist doesn't...