BillyBass

5 hours ago, dub_junkie said:

What happened to your J/J five string?

 

Lovely bass btw. I'm hoping to buy the pearl platinum P/J five string as a back up/alternative to my J/J five at some point

 

 

I've still got it; I just use it at home at the moment.  The band I used it for folded a few months ago and the current band I'm in doesn't go below E, so I'm just using 4 strings at the moment.  I'm sure I'll need a fiver again in the future so I'll keep it.  I just love the look of these Charvels.

I haven't seen/played the platinum pearl Charvels but the photos on the internet look good.

I'm 60 on Tuesday, so wifey gave permission:

I've already got a metallic blue Charvel PJ4 and its my favourite bass.  The neck is just perfect and it looks and sounds great too. I wanted a back up bass that had the same string spacing and nut width, and as I hadn't got any metallic lime green basses in my collection, I thought, why not buy another Charvel.

I had to spend two afternoons working on it to get it playable:  fret sprout filing, removal of supplied pre amp, shielding, installation of John East pre amp, replacement of strings and then set up.  Worth the time spent, it feels great.  And I love the colour; this will probably be my first choice over the metallic blue.

GAK in Brighton have several heads in stock, including the MarkBass and the Aguilar heads mentioned above.  GAK must be very close to you.

On 25/02/2023 at 20:05, lidl e said:

Anyone im missing?

 

I know ampeg and ashodwn had some cool looking ones a few years back.

 

That handbox looks killer, but at 1/2 the power would be perfect.

 

Not a hybrid, but actually tube power to drive a 1x12 at home.

 

 

 

 

Ashdown still make these:

https://ashdownmusic.com/products/ctm-30-little-stubby

Electrician here.

Be aware, people, those plug in socket testers have their limits, they are not an alternative to a proper test by an electrician.  I use them to indicate whether a socket is on or off and for testing polarity (whether the conductors are wired the right way around).  In the UK, the potential difference between the line and neutral and line and earth is supposed to be 230v +10%-6%.  If there is a poor earth and there is some earth leakage, and say the potential difference between line and earth is e.g. 120 volts, those socket testers won't pick that up.

They are useful as indicators of issues, just don't rely on them. 

The Bergantino Forte D is pretty small and that is rated at 800 watts into 4 ohms, I believe.  There may be smaller kit around, I'm no expert.

Beat Buddy sold

Beat Buddy on hold

On 25/02/2023 at 10:28, Gareth Hughes said:

Is that a maple fingerboard on a Tidepool bass? If so, any chance of a full length pic? Loving the black pickguard - it’s tempting me to change from my white one.

Apologies for derailing the thread OP but, I have a tidepool player jazz.  I'm not keen on the white pick guard but have struggled to think of another colour for a new pickguard; tide pool doesn't really match with the colours pickguards generally come in.

I was thinking of a gold one but I might try black now.

I had a chat with John East this morning, enquiring about his filter pre amp.  He basically told me that if I didn't get it, it probably wouldn't be for me.  In his experience, people buying them to try them out are not normally happy with the results.  If, however, you really know that this is the sort of thing you are after, as you seem to be Ely, then it can be perfect.

So I just ordered another one of his standard frequency altering pre amps.

But thanks for the input.

3 hours ago, KingBollock said:

Thank you!

 

I thought I’d get well and truly roasted… All the additions are removable. I made the scratch plate and truss rod cover myself, so I still have the original parts. Just in case anyone is worried…

I'm sure some people would be offended but I doubt they would turn up to one of your gigs.  Fantastic job mate.

7 hours ago, lidl e said:

So i used to own a wal, and the thing i really loved aboutnit was the electronics.  It never occured to me that there were other vendors making the same style which turned out to be a folter based preamp. I suppose i never made the connection.  I figured it was just Wal's thing. 

 

So i deep dove into the idea of getting one. 

 

Went with the lusithand as they had the dropin plate. JTEX makes a cool looking one out of canada.

 

Woth the lusithand, i went with the single NFP for my jazz as the double you need to rout.

 

It dropped in perfectly and the sound is, to me, perfect.

 

As opposed to preamps which basically just boost your tone, i find this preamp actually helps you dial in a smoothness and thickness otherwise unattainable in an active pre.

 

My recent switch to flats also seems to have really taken to this preamp. In 25years of playing i have never turned up the tone knob past 20-30%. I was easily at 80-90% last night punching through and sounding incredible.

 

I honestly can't believe it.

I've just watched a couple of Low End Lobster's videos about the Lusithand pre amp and I'm still not sure how it would make my PJ sound.  You mentioned you usually keep the tone knob to about 20-30%, I'm the opposite; with fingers, the tone knob is always full on, with a pick I will cut it a bit, perhaps 30%.  I imagine that would be too harsh for you.

I'm not a fan of flats either, though the Charvel I bought today came with them, Rotosound, I think, and I may keep them on it.

With a standard pre amp I understand; if you boost certain frequencies the end result will be predictable.  With this Lusithand, I believe you are cutting the top end, gradually but can also boost the gain along with that, so I couldn't predict the end result without trying it out.

Hi Ely,

Thanks for this.  I have seen mentions of filter pre amps here and there but never really paid much attention to them.  John East sells one and I must admit it went very much over my head.  I didn't get it.

I've just watched the 'Wetter Bass' you tube tutorial about the Lusithand pre amp and I am intrigued.  The Charvels are PJs but I generally use either or, not a blend of both; in fact, with my band (pick only) I have it just on the split coil P pup at the neck and I boost the low mids.  I add treble for cabinets without tweeters (or dead strings!). Maybe with one of these filter pre amps I could make use of the blend knob a bit more (as long as I can avoid a mid scoop).

More research required!

I'm about to buy a second Charvel 4 string PJ as a back up (and because I want a lime green bass).  I have put a John East pre amp in my metallic blue Charvel and I think it's brilliant: active/passive push-pull and an independent passive tone knob, parametric mid range and a treble boost.  

After having three of these Charvels, I'm pretty sure I will be swapping the pre amp of my new one out.  My first thought was to just get another John east pre amp and have an identical back up (except for the strings) but then I thought I could try something new.

I have a Nordstrand pre amp in my fiver and its fine, perhaps a little polite, so I won't get another of those.  Has anyone got any other ideas re pre amps available over here?  The Aguilar OB3 is readily available and seems to be an option if you want a bit of oomph, though I'm not sure I can't get anything the Aguilar offers from the John East?

Any ideas or suggestions anyone?

Here's a bump.

I have one of these in red.  The bit in the OP's ad about it being 'STUNNING' is true; they are.  Its one of those basses that you just want to play it because it looks so good.  The neck feels lovely in your hand too; rolled fingerboard, luminlay dots and its beautiful.

I bought mine to play in a previous band as our singer had us drop the key of several songs by a semi tone or two.  That band is no more and with my current band I only need a 4 string.  But I'm not selling mine, its a keeper.

The bassist on the Sam Ryder New Years eve thing on the telly had one of these, in the green.  He swapped basses a few times but he used his Charvel for several songs.

7 minutes ago, neepheid said:

 

Isn't technology wonderful?

Yeah.  I blame the mods and admins, they're all just a bunch of flipping onanists nasty pasties & Mr and Mrs Silly Billy.

Do you see that?  Its done it again

2 hours ago, neepheid said:

 

Not guilty, Your Honour, I have had my Triad since August last year.

 

BTW it's Korina Burst - named after the wood type.

I did write Korina but the predictive spell checking thing thought it knew best.  Now changed

1 hour ago, sPiKi said:

I see Reverend has released some new colours for the Decision P today. Nothing new yet for the Triad or Mercalli. Bit disappointed no new models were released but pleased none of the new colours call out to me

 

 

 

That yellow is calling out to me.  'Venetian Pearl'. I don't know what all the pearls in Venice look like but lemon burst fits.

The other one is called 'Periwinkle'.  Winkle is a word I haven't heard in a while and I certainly won't buy a bass called one.

My parents had very little interest in music.  

The first music I liked as a primary school kid was glam rock; Slade, Sweet, Alice Cooper etc.  This was followed by Status Quo and then punk rock.  I left school as a 16 year old in 1979 and being lucky enough to be from London and having a job, I could go to loads of gigs, which I did; starting with Buzzcocks and Joy Division at the Rainbow in November 1979.

My tastes have broadened considerably now but I still love Glam rock, Quo, Punk and (what later became known as) Post Punk.

Most people I meet that are into music still like the stuff they liked as a teenager.

5 hours ago, neepheid said:

 

I tried both in store and plumped for the Triad.  I preferred the sound of the Triad as had a bit more character to it - I found the Mercalli too smooth for my tastes.  But it's just my opinion - the Mercalli is a fine bass too.  Plus the Triad is a three pickup bass - which historically I've been a sucker for also

The Triad looks very tempting.  They had twin stock, a green one and a 'Korina burst' one.  The green Triad has disappeared from their Ebay page, would that be your doing by any chance?

I just happen to be driving up to Northumberland next week, I'm tempted to come back to London via Glasgow; Peach Guitars in Essex doesn't have any Triads.

58 minutes ago, 40hz said:

Merchant City in Glasgow.

Did you try the 'Triad' while you were there?

20 minutes ago, 40hz said:

How weird this topic should come back up. I just purchased a Mercalli 4 (in Gunmetal) on Friday and Gigged it Saturday. It's genuinely one of the nicest sounding and playing basses I've ever owned.

 

The proprietary pickups are *excellent* I'd go as far as to say probably the best I've used on a bass. It has this ability to sound both very clear and refined and very 'deep' - with real body to each plucked note, but with zero mud. It's a very strong sounding instrument that doesn't crap out the harder you play, it just gets louder (or quieter) depending on your playing style.

 

A lot of the Rev demos and marketing seem to pitch it to rock and indie styles (fair enough given the retro-future styling), but I play in a couple of soul/funk bands and it absolutely excels at this type of music.

Where did you get it?  Essex or Glasgow?

Hi @sPiKi  Have your views on the Mercalli and Decision P changed over time?  My 60th is approaching and Peach guitars in Essex has both the Mercalli 4 and the Decision P in stock and I am very tempted.  My current band plays punk, so its P bass and pick at the moment but I always like the added versatility of something else down nearer the bridge.  Do you still prefer the Mercalli?

On 08/02/2023 at 17:44, mario_buoninfante said:

Interesting you get noise with P basses. Have you got to the bottom of it? Any noise source in your place? eg neon lights

Basses with split coils or humbuckers can have noise.  It could be RFI or from the amp.  Poor earthing/shielding is a common cause.  I have picked up radio stations from really bad instrument cables.

On 05/02/2023 at 13:48, mario_buoninfante said:

 

Are they P basses?

Mexican standard P bass (2013). Fender Player Jazz, Charvel Pro-Mod San Dimas PJ 4string and a Charvel Pro-Mod San Dimas  5 string J bass (2xsingle coils).

Since I posted the above comment about the lack of shielding needed with my Squier, I have been noticing noise, but not much, not enough for me to spend an afternoon shielding it.

Everything is in its right place