chris_b

Good luck with your next chapter. I'll stop when the phone stops ringing, they take away my driving licence or I peg out. . . . whichever comes first!!

I wouldn't accept a brand new custom made bass with any of these issues. As the builder is pushing back and making excuses I'd name and shame.

I was using D'Addario NYXL's and I was changing them yearly. What with Covid and a few other things the current set has been on my Jazz bass since 2019. They still have a little top end left but have mellowed into a really nice full, warm almost flats-like tone.

Tommy Tedesco was a bit of a lad. There are different versions, I read that he didn't touch the guitar but just changed his playing position. It's a similar story to the "producer" switch on Lee Sklar's bass. It's not connected to anything, but if he's asked to change his sound he flips the switch and the producer is happy!!

I spent years with DR LoRiders and HiBeams. I'm not a fan of "zinggg"and after they "settled in" each set lasted at least a year.

If your Precision has a "dullish" low mid thump you need a different bass. The better Precisions have a lively and resonant low mid thump.

Unless you are very lucky, when someone is paying you to play the sound in their head is the one they want. It's pointless going into someone else's session with your sound. The real pro's know that and start by giving the producer what he wants. The focus is then on the real objective of a session players day, playing faultlessly and coming up with memorable lines. The sound in your head only becomes important when its your project.

I do. In fact I don't see many bass pedals on local gigs at all.

. . . also check out Renaud Garcia-Fons. He's an amazing bass player and even got his own Tiny Desk concert.

Check out Francois Rabbath The Sound Of A Bass I bought this album in the late 60's. As a bass player it stopped me dead in my tracks.

There was nothing "curt" in my post. The guy "in the shop" might be a better judge, which is why I put "seems to me", as an indicator that this is my opinion and I could be wrong. The fact remains, in this thread several people have taken their business elsewhere "due to poor communications". He may know his business, his business might be thriving, but it still seems to me, clients going elsewhere because they simply didn't get a reply, is not good thing for a business.

I've bought from the Bass Gallery, Bass Direct, Andertons and most of the shops in the West London, but so far not BB's but it seems to me that, no matter what the form of communication, ignoring your clientele is not a sensible way to do business.

Try again. . . . this bass is now for sale in Reverb, via the Guitar Broker, Ft Lauderdale Florida.

To answer the OP's question, bank transfers have no safety net, so there is always a risk. You have to judge the person you are dealing with. So with homework and a dose of intuition, you can be as safe as you can be. I had a guy in Europe wanting to buy my bass, but he kept messing me about, several times trying to renegotiate the price and juggling the postage and price. This went on for over a week. In the end it didn't feel right and I backed out of the sale. You always have to be prepared to walk away if alarm bells ring. I only buy and sell from proper shops or Basschat members with a track record. I've used bank transfers, for buying and selling in the UK and Europe, cash and meet up within a 100mile radius, I've also bought and sold on the way to far flung gigs, and once I sold a bass on instalments! So far (touch wood) I've not had any issues, with Basschat members or with carriers. I always use Interparcel and whichever carrier on their list has the best terms. I insure myself, ie I'll stand any losses. I pack basses in a gig bag or case, place in heavy duty bicycle boxes and pack with polystyrene sheeting for extra protection. As I say, so far I've been fortunate and had no bad experiences.

Wow! Gut punch! If the fundamental technique isn't right the gear doesn't matter a jot.

In the early 70's I was on the dole. I told them I was a bass player looking for a band, and one of the Dole Office guys called me up and offered me a gig!! I wasn't sure how that would affect my payouts. They might have kicked me off the dole, so I told him I was busy that night!

Very few session players at our level are being hired for their sound. We are being hired because they like how we play. A studio will have more EQ and "features" than the rest of us put together, so you start with a Precision bass and let the studio sort the rest out. In interviews I've read, A List session guys usually turn up with 5 or 6 basses, Precisions, with flats and with rounds, a Jazz, a Hofner style semi acoustic and maybe a couple of modern basses. The general feed back is, 99% of the time they are asked to play the Precision with flats. Your own band recordings are different. You get to use everything you bought, but sessions want meat and potatoes players, like Sean Hurley, Nathan East and Lee Sklar etc.

I know a drummer who has used a stage name since the70's, for tax purposes, he says. I'm the shy, retiring type, but I'm happy enough to be introduced at the end of the gig. I do prefer anonymity on the internet though.

I've had TI flats on my PJ5 for about 8 years. They're still sounding great. I have an old set of GHS flats on a cheap jazz, and they improved the sound 100%. If I bought another set of flats I'd be looking at Labella this time.

The question is how many basses do I need. I have a one in, one out policy, so no collection here. My basses are tools, so the answer is two #1's (each is a backup for the other) and maybe one more for variety. YMMV

This. My version is, every gig is the Albert hall. Several times I've been asked to join bands because the band leader liked what he saw, and one of them was the proverbial man and a dog gig. Every time you have a bass on your shoulder you should be giving 110%.

And the 70's. I used to go up to Denmark Street on a Wednesday afternoon, to buy the early edition and get to the good adverts before the rest of the country.

No. . . . if the audience doesn't turn up you are playing to the promoter and trying to prove to him that you are worth booking again. . . . on a better night or in a better venue.

We were on a wedding and the singer was playing his usual, blues/soul set and not going down well at all. He kept complaining about the disinterested audience. In the interval I took him aside and pointed out they were not an audience, but wedding guests and his second set should reflect that! Talk about the bleedin obvious!! He dug out some proper songs and the second set got a much better response from the guests.