RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE

I think I've mentioned my experience and thoughts previously . However ... Took me sometime to even learn a 4 string. Once I was gigging on a fairly regular basis, all good. I read long topics in the old Bassplayer mag 🇺🇸 Back in the early '90s . Treating the 4 stringers with baby steps . Very informative , and the thoight of ' if I get really good , maybe I should get one ' . Fast forward to around 2005 , friend said ' let's go to sound control .' ( new shop at the time in Totttenham ct Rd. So, I fell in love with a Schecter 5 string Stilletto Elite and purchased it . Cue the remarks from band mates in rehearsal ' you don't need a 5 string ' etc. I received sneering and snide remarks They didn't like its sound either . I managed to get to grips with it: quite easily. However working long hrs and being in 2 bands at the time , I was not confident of avoiding Les Dawson impressions so it stayed at home . This was due to me moving around on stage energetically . I just play at home now . I have a fretless which I took to a tech to tune B--E -A-D . I dabble in it now and again. I also have a Digitech Bass whammy which I use for effects . TBh, I think 5 strings are great ,and handy if you're confident on stage and less energetic . Having said that, if I were gigging now I'd just use the Bass Whammy and have done with it ! This is if you're not a regular in recording studios , and playing the Dog And Duck where most of the crowd wouldn't be bothered .

Well, I was going to play one of the albums yesterday to start with. Alas , there was a scraping noise on my turntable ! New belt ordered , and received this morning . I'll fit it on tomorrow , and give it a spin . I have all the Rush releases. The album which I like the least , seems to be Snakes And Arrows. Far Cry is brilliant though ! I like Vapour Trails . I have to be in the mood for clockwork Angels , but a good album nonetheless . I find Test For Echo,patchy . Starts off great . As for Presto , Alex Lifeson went a bit too much U2 in the solos imho . Roll The Bones to a while to grow on me . I do wonder how Rush can improve the thin production of those 2 albums 🤔. I don't think I'd buy the remastered versions if they released them , as I have the various remastered Cd's . I have a Japanese copy of Presto on cd which is the best of the bunch of those imho . Enough for now ..

Good thinking Batman ! Just done that 🤦‍♂️😬

Counterparts would be my recommendation! 😼

I don't believe they are . Thee vinyl is weighty and heavy though. Just checked Rhino website 🦏,and still available if anyone's interested . Agree about Presto . I will give it a spin later . The album that is most popular in this boxset is of course Counterparts ! That apparently , was their first album to be marketed heavily for cd release . That album on vinyl is not cheap , so I'm glad to eventually get it .

Finally ..

**feet courtesy of ET **

It was too early this morning to do an unboxing type of video . It was 8.15am and I was just about to have a shower., and this turned up via DHL! Times are tough , but on 5th of November I had to make a somewhat rash decision while in bed . 🛏️ . I couldn't see UK currency , so had to ask Rhino 🦏what the chances of this being available in the UK. This was after trawling the internet with no success . I didn't have to pay import duties or anything like that thankfully . It's now sold out as it's ltd edition of 3,000 copies . Tbh it shouldn't really be unavailable in this country , and I don't know why it isn't . I feel sorry for those who didn't get one. That may change . Who knows ? Anyway thought I'd share 🙂

Great stuff! Don't miss Testament or Kreator on the same bill ! 😼👍

The Moog Minitaur is great . Especially if you want a small desktop synth . Lots of presets if you're into that kind of thing . You need a midi / usb keyboard though which may or may not be what you want . I'd avoid the Korg ms-20 mini ,as the build quality is very poor. Like the moog grandmother ( which is big and chunky) , it is semi modular which may be off putting for some .

Mmmm... I did consider getting one of these a while back . Everyone's views may vary on tone etc, but to me it sounds a cross between a Warwick and a Hohner headless cricket bat that I had . I had heard of and seen Washburn Force ..but never a headless one ! Thanks for that info and pic. It looks like it would fall into the full body Hohner Jack Bass category imho . It sounds to me that the sound that would suit your requirements headless wise, is the Washburn Status . You may have had one but anyway , compared to the sounds I've heard from the Artisan the Washburn status is like a slap in the face You would be noticed for sure ! I have one . On my headless journey , I had a Steinberger XM2 . Pricey now , and the sound was great also . I decided to sell , because it was great for pick playing but not much else for my needs . Possibly the string spacing was too narrow for me . It replaced my Hohner professional which a friend told me it sounded like a tuba ! Action and feel were good , but I didn't think replacing th3 EMG Select pickups would be worthwhile and too much of a gamble . My Jack Daniel's Bass feels like the Hohner , but has a bit more bite to it . I have a fretless made by mybass , and got it set to B-E-A-D . The feel is great and the Bassline Humbuckers sound good . I think sometimes about getting a 5 string , but I have a Digitech Bass Whammy which is bulky ! I play at home only ,so not too big a deal . I did think about the Ibanez healdless basses. Cheapest one is made of Basswood Body . It seems like Cort manufacture the same type of necks ( and possibly the rest ) in Indonesia . The sound seems similar to the Cort in places . I've heard demos from Nate Navarro and Low End Lobster . Some Basschatters changed the pickups on the Ibanez for Aguilar ones and raved about the improvements . Have you considered changing your amp ? ( A bit extreme ) Or possibly get something like a Zoom B3 or similar ? If there is a shop near you to tryout your bass in different amps , that may be something to consider, Times are hard right now , but just ideas that came to me while typing .

Wow ! Just stumbled across this NOT QUITE DELETED thread 🙂 Okay , I did infact post here infact about the Waldorf 2Polle . I was going to tell you how amazing it is . Then I realised , I may have posted it in the wrong section .🤦‍♂️ Oh well here it is .. can be used by djs , guitarists , bass guitarist and much more . Well you did ask 😬

If I never had a moog I'd be on this . Cheers for the heads up . Some ebayers will be a bit disappointed . This topic may be moved to other instruments section though 🤔

Speaking of EVRI ; I purchased something small on eBay 2 weeks ago . I ( wrongly ) assumed it would be delivered by Royal Mail. Unfortunately I didn't do my basic homework and it was indeed sent by EVRI . If I knew that, I would have pyrchased the item from a different seller . Why? Well I left instructions to stick the small box into the letterbox. That was too challenging for them ,and I found the item outside the door at about 8.30 pm ! 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️ I did not leave any feedback . I did not receive any either . Some sellers don't bother leaving any . Fair enough. The other thing with EVRI , is that their deliveries are always " between 6pm -10pm" in my experience . I do have a Sodastream , and unfortunately they use EVRI also . The slight exception there is that I have had bottles delivered around 4pm. If that changes in my next order, I will sadly have to cancel and hope that I can get glass bottles of fizzy water from either Waitrose or Ocado . The amount of times I got plastic bottles sent as a substitution forced me into going down the sodastream route. mini rant over ..

I got him to sign that video back in the Wapping bass centre back in the day . It smudged unfortunately ,and is long gone . On that video he did make me laugh about rocking at the bar 🙂