BillyBass

Nice one!

I think a tort pick guard would really improve the low mids and help it sit in the mix just right.

23 hours ago, Duroc17 said:

Blind test I picked the noble blind won’t say which it is but the Radial JDI at a quarter the price sounded good too

 

 

Thanks for posting that.

My personal preferences were: 1) Noble. 2) Zod 3) RedDi 4) Radial JDI. and I wasn't keen on the other three.  If the Ampeg and Colourbox had been dialled in differently I might have liked them but I wasn't keen on the sounds from the clips above.

I can't justify the expense of the noble, particularly with how the £ has been doing in this last week!  But, the Radial JDI would be very convenient on a board with required pedals and EQ (or an active bass).  The Zod and Reddi sound great but they are far too big.

Update:

Since I last posted on this thread, the drummer fell in love with the lead singer, was rejected and left the band.  We got a new drummer quickly but it wasn't the same without my mate the drummer.  The second band I joined has progressed well, we are nearly ready to gig and all 4 of us are on the same page.  It just helped me put my first band into perspective.

Yesterday, I spoke to the guitarist and singer about knocking it on the head and no one complained, though the guitarist did suggest he leave and we carry on with a new guitarist!  I feel quite sad as I have put a lot of effort into this over the last couple of years but, on a positive note, I have learnt how to play with others, have gained skill, confidence and have learnt about 60 songs in the process.  

Time to move on.

Thanks for all the advice!

Fingers crossed fella

The 10" drivers output over 6KHz, which is enough for many of us.  The 12" drivers frequency range only goes up to 4KHz (probably a bit higher) so tweeters are more useful there.  I prefer my Super Midget to my Super Compact, though they sound great together.

Sort of new.  I'm guessing the One10T has been a success so Alex is now putting out 'T' versions of all his tweeterless cabs.  The Super Midget has now been renamed the 'Super Mini T'

https://barefacedaudio.com/pages/which-to-choose

There isn't a link to buy any yet, nor is there an indication of the price but I'm guessing all it takes is a phone call.

I like the idea of a Supertwin with a tweeter.  That was a bit of a gap in his range, from tweeterless Supertwin to Big Twin 2 (now 3).

On 02/09/2022 at 19:47, Frank Blank said:

 

Recently  I have been making a list of my favourite (and formative) albums in chronological order, I am surprised that so many of them fall between 1978-81. One of the very best imho is Dirk Wears White Sox, to my ears it still sounds as fresh as a daisy.

This should have been their second album.  They had so much unreleased stuff which which we heard live, on John peel sessions or on bootlegs, like Puerto Rican, Beat My Guest, Rubber People, Press darlings, Song for Ruth Ellis, Fat Fun.  Some of it got put out as B sides of their pop crap, with Marco Pironi on guitar but those versions weren't as good as the Matthew Ashman/Andy Warren era versions.

I occasionally practise through a Barefaced One10 and my Elf.  They really are a good pairing.  I bet your Two10 and the new 1200w Trace are going to sound sublime.

@Merton  you lucky boy!  I am really looking forward to the video review you will be uploading here shortly 😉

I pulled the trigger on a GK Legacy 800 this afternoon so I'm not as green with envy as I should be.  Actually no, I am green with envy.

3 minutes ago, Leonard Smalls said:

Indeed it does! But playing any song exactly as written doesn't require much creativity - making the song your own does.

I have this argument with my mother a lot - she's only into covers and thinks nothing really good has been written since Beethoven's 9th 😉. I've pointed her in the direction of Jacques Loussier's covers of Bach's Italian Concerto, which I contend is how it should be played and JS himself would be proud, but she thinks it's blasphemy to mess with someone's choon!

Your mum could buy 5 different versions of Beethoven's 9th and they would all be different.  We have the sheet music but no original recordings, of course; I would imagine it's impossible to play a long piece of instrumental and choral music, such as Beethoven's 9th, the same as another orchestra led by a different conductor.  

We aren't trained to follow a conductor but we do have to improvise and create (within parameters) when covering songs in a band

7 minutes ago, Leonard Smalls said:

That's an argument against any covers at all!

😁

No, its an argument against playing along to songs on Spotify but playing covers in a band requires many of the skills @TheLowDown mentioned

When our drummer was struggling with 'Everlong' by the Foo Fighters, our lead singer produced a YouTube clip on her mobile of a 9 year old girl playing it with the Foo Fighters at a gig.  He went bright red!

I have a cousin who started playing the organ at about 4 or 5.  His parents weren't pushy, he was just keen.  He is pitch perfect so his talent doesn't only come through hard work, though he put a lot of that in too.  When he left school he joined a band and they tried to get signed but, though his musical ability was outstanding (and still is) he (and the rest of the band) lacked the creativity necessary to make it.  So it didn't happen.  

14 hours ago, Ricky Rioli said:

 

If you avoid picking up a bass, ever, then you won't even have to shell out on a set of flats. 

When I put a set of flats on my P bass I noticed I avoided picking it up

This was a lockdown purchase.  It's in perfect condition; since buying it (new from Andertons) it's never left my house.  I've only ever used it as a practice amp.

It sounds fantastic, the EQ is extremely versatile, it has a great form factor (fits nicely on a Barefaced one10) and it looks great, someone on here once referred to it as the 'Iron man amp'. 

I have a Gallien Krueger head incoming so, to appease Mrs BillyBass, this has to go.

Some of the gumph from MarkBass (more details are available on their website)
EQ1

ULTRALOW: Level ±16 dB (Freq. 65Hz)

LOW: Level ±16 dB (Freq. 180Hz)

MID: Level ±16 dB (Freq. 500 Hz)

HIGH MID: Level ±16 dB (Freq. 1.4 KHz)

HIGH: Level ±16 dB (Freq. 3.8 KHz)

EQ2

OLD SCHOOL: Variable LOW PASS From 20KHz to 200Hz

PARAMETRIC EQ: from 500Hz to 12KHz (Level -16dB /+16 dB)

WEIGHT: 5.51 lbs / 2.5 Kg

WIDTH: 10.87 in. / 27.6 cm

DEPTH: 9.84 in. / 25 cm

HEIGHT: 3.27 in. / 8.3 cm

OUTPUT POWER: 500W RMS @ 4 ohms / 300W RMS @ 8 ohms

Free collection from Barnet (which is close to where the A1 meets the M25.  I can courier it if collection is difficult (I still have the box that it came in) the cost of postage will be met by the purchaser.

I have both the red 5er and a blue 4 string.  The 4 string is probably my favourite bass. Let me know how you get on with it.

Never mind about the gig bag, tell us about the..

45 minutes ago, ReeV0 said:

I bought a new and significantly more expensive bass! I definitely don't want to be carrying it around in the Stagg gig bag.

And congrats on joining a new band🤘

I spy the Sumo 1200 watt power amp on top of the cab.  How are you finding it?

I'm tempted to get the Baby Sumo to pair with my GED 2112 pre amp.

If anyone is looking for a bargain 5 string, PMT are selling the above mentioned bass for £570

https://www.pmtonline.co.uk/charvel-pro-mod-san-dimas-bass-guitar-jj-v-mn-cy-apple-red?gclid=Cj0KCQjwpeaYBhDXARIsAEzItbFXOS-j31Xx5huCpT46i5GY3YFh-kSKCE887uc4MlB9NBXtXxKPgjcaAnNrEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

I own one.  It was my first fiver so the only comparisons I had was with the Sire Jazz 5 string in Andertons.  It is a bit neck divey, but with a good strap its fine.  The shielding wasn't done well and it is a bit noisy, so I need to get that done.  The 120 gauge B string improved when swapped with a 135 but its still a bit 'flubby'.  It looks and sounds great though, its got a lovely caramalised maple neck, with Luminlay dots and isn't too heavy (about the same weight as my Fender MIM 4 string jazz).

My experience with PMT is that they sometimes sell B stock kit cheaply and neglect to mention the item is B stock, so if anyone is interested in this bass, I'd call them up about it first.

£570 for this is a bloody bargain.

10 hours ago, Tokalo said:

The pickguard arrived today. The original wasn’t shielded; I presume that’s normal (because it doesn’t sit over any wiring?).

Correct.  P bass pickguards (should) have shielding over the control bit but Jazzes don't need it, swapping them is straightforward.

And congrats on you first Fender!

On 09/08/2022 at 00:36, Pirellithecat said:

=    And an suggestion that a Genzler 4 On The Floor Pedal might be a good idea.    Of course I can't justify a clever drive pedal ... but it is my birthday in 1 month's time ..............!!  

Spoken like a true addict!

Personally, having GAS issues like many on here, I love to think up of justification for a bass related purchase. 

Many moons ago I was a Pali scholar.  Pali is the language of the Theravada Buddhist scriptures and is not spoken by anyone living.  I took Sanskrit at university solely to improve my understanding of Pali (a bit like learning Latin to help with Italian studies).

Using my experience of language study as a younger man I thought learning to play other instruments would help my bass playing, and it has.  I started learning the guitar, through the Justin Guitar online lessons and started to gain an understanding of chords, of course.  This was the main thing I wanted to learn.  Something else has helped my bass playing though.  I bought a 5 string in the Spring and spent quite a lot of time getting used to it, and swapping back and forth between my 4s and the fiver.  The narrower string spacing of the fiver meant that I would fluff the fretting on occasions.  To overcome this I have started fretting my fiver more like I fret my guitar: with the tops of my fingers not the pads and this has really improved my accuracy, particularly when playing across, say, three strings, as in-root, octave, fifth, root etc.  Perhaps this would be obvious to many people but it wasn't to me; I'm self taught (with help from Scotts bass lessons).

Does anyone else have experience of study of/proficiency in another instrument being helpful for their bass skills?

I'll come along to this too.  

1. MacDaddy - Custom Shukers / Rob Allen Mouse / Peavey Vypyr VIP III
2. Binky Bass - Binky 10 string, USA Conklin 8 string, ACG 9 string, 3 x ACG 6 strings, Reiver 7 string (geeeetar), GR Bass Dual 1400 & GR Bass AT410+, Helix LT, Pinegrove straps, Richter straps etc.
3. Cetera - Spector (USA NS2 & NS2X, Euro Classic, Euro LX (w/Haz),Euro 'Rachel Bolan', Pulse II ) Wal Mk1 'Geddy Lee', Fender FSR PJ with East pre, Hamer Impact, Pedulla Buzz 4 fretless and maybe Jackson TBird, GK400RB, GK Legacy 800 & Tech21 VT500 Heads, Genz Benz Neox212 cab.
4. Frank Blank - Jabba short scale fretted, ACG SS Recurve, Ibanez SRC6, QSC K12.2, HX Stomp.
5. Merton - various ACGs, Zoots, Conway Instruments basses, Glockenklang Blue Rock, Barefaced Two10/One10
6. Eude - ACG Finn SC Classic 6 string, ACG RetroB 5, ACG TKO Modern 4, ACG ChubstRR Mikro 6 string, 2 X ACG Mule 4 strings (on loan from ACG), GK Legacy 500, 1 or 2 Barefaced One10 Cabs, Dod 250(r) modded with @Sibob
7. Stingray5 - MusicMan Stingray5, Tune TWB6, Tune SWV4-BB, Boss GT-6B, Eden EC15 combo OR Trace Elliot GP12SMX combo.
8.  NancyJohnson - NS Design NXT5a EUB, Lull JAXT4, Darkglass A/O900, Darkglass 112 cab, Tech 21 dUg.  

9. prowla: Obligatory Rickenbackers, a Warwick or two, maybe a Kramer aluminium necked bass, some pedals, Ampeg & Tech 21 preamps (subject to change), maybe the Minitaur & MIDI bass pedals.

10. Lozz196: US Precision, Ashdown ABM600 & Ashdown ABM PRO NEO 210s x2

Ampeg SCR-DI, Sansamp BDDI v2

11. Silverfoxnik: G&L SB1, BC Rich Eagle, Godin Shifter Classic 5, Sprackenbacker Ricky copy, Mesa Walkabout 15 combo, or Handbox R400 + Vanderkley 1156 MT.

12. Happy Jack: an assortment of weird 5h1t that I can guarantee nobody else will bring

13. WalMan (hopefully!): Wal, Status S1 & S2 & Zon Legacy Elite. One of the rigs (probably Mesa D800 & BF One10 or BBII as there's already One10's on the list) or Helix & Headrush. SkarBassOne pedal. May have an old case & 2U rack to sell/raffle

14. Steve Browning: Mesa TT-800 and Mesa Subway 1x15 cabs. SVL basses.

15. OrangeFriday: Latest homebuild items - Tubular Bass and Basscape effects plus maybe Jellybean Bass (the one with a few LEDs in the neck)

16. BillyBass: Charvel Pro-Mod San Dimas V (J) and IV (reverse PJ) , Balaguer select series Goliath (HH), Tech21 GED 2112 pre amp, Barefaced Midget, maybe a super compact too.  Not sure about which head yet.  Jam pedals Lucy dreamer, Hamstead Subspace, Jam Pedals Ripply Fall.

I am looking forward to trying out some of the basses you good people will be bringing along.

Green with envy 🤢

I have had several bad experiences buying stuff from PMT.  I only order stuff from them if no one else gets near on the price.

They are always fine on the phone, apologising and promising to sort it out etc but it shouldn’t be sent out like that in the first place.

I personally have never had bad experiences with Guitarguitar, Andertons or GAK.  There is a first time for everything I suppose.

That Shavo amp is mow out of stock ☹️