Beedster

Absolutely, well put. This is why I build/use Fender-fit bitsas; I can simply source the bits that work best together at the same quality point but at a fraction of the price and risk of a CS instrument. The bass below cost less than £300 to build, but it sings, is extraordinarily versatile (helped by a Kiogon series/parallel circuit), and is a joy to play. It also allows me the non-Fender option of a Precision width neck on a Jazz Bass. Is it as good as a CS fretless jazz? I owned the(now ludicrously expensive) CS Jaco Relic, and this knocks the socks off it

Great outcome, hope it all works out, especially as it sounds like it's a great band

Ultimately it's why I now play Fender-alike bitsas that I put together by trial and error. I've played £5k basses by Fender that were crap and £250 basses by Fender (well Squier) that were outstanding. In the grand scheme of things, the most reliable of all Fender lines appear to be the old MIJ models. I've now got four basses, two Precisions and two Jazzes (fretted and fretless of each, although all four with Precision width necks), that cost in total about £1200 to put together and which I'd happily put up against most top-end Fenders, even CS and vintage. OK, I've had to hunt around for used Allparts/Warmoth bodies and necks, and have done a lot of trial and error - some neck/body combinations work, some don't, some PUPs seem to work on some basses, some don't - but I've got four great instruments. The reality is I think that you can't predict how well a bass is going to play and sound until you play it, and I guess there's not many QC departments in mass market manufacturers that get into that level of detail.

If every band/sports team who had one or more problematic members folded at the first sign of problems we'd be listening to Cliff & The Shadows and Match of the Day would be canceled every week. If it's worth working through, work through it. Having been in quite a few similar situations, the first step - one that it took me a long time to learn - is to really try to understand his point of view. We all tend to think that a band member who doesn't share our point of view is wrong. Likewise, a band member being being difficult tends to bring out equally challenging reactions in us. Doesn't make him wrong, just difficult. Also, I'll give you my gut response to the above. You're saying you can't reply to emails four evenings a week is not constructive, and in fact appears deliberately obstructive - I bet you'd reply quickly if one of them was offering you a '62 Strat for £300 Yep

For me it means knowing your drummer (and them knowing you) and both being able to feel and play to the same clock in any track. My old drummer was amazing, we'd sound as if we were playing to a click, but when we tried putting a click on tracks we'd recorded live, whilst we were both tight to each other, we would drift significantly ahead and behind a click at various points in songs. Took us a long time to get there however. Key for me was that he used to learn my parts and then play drum lines that complemented them, sometimes by filling the spaces I left, and kinda relieving the tension, and sometimes by leaving the same spaces and increasing it. Great when it works, but hard work and hours of playing were the key. It's certainly about more than timing.

SZ's lines were a big part of my getting back into bass in the early 2000's. I remember posting on here a few years back that he was a major influence (alongside Flea), and there being a few negative responses. OK, I get the derivative/plagiarism thing, but there was real musical novelty to both of them that IMO many people missed (and all music is derivative in one way or another). And anyway, derivative or not, Zender's timing and feel on many of the early Jamiroquai tracks were sublime

Yep, that's the easiest thing to do, it won;t change things that much. A few other things to think about. 1. Look at using EQ to address gain/volume, small cuts at certain frequencies can make a huge difference to the overall level. 2. What was your reference point for 'too loud'? You? A competent sound-guy? The audience? The guitarist/singer? All of these have different perspectives. Show me a guitarist who doesn't think the bass should turn down a little and I'll eat my trousers. Sound-guys/audience on the other hand tend to be more objective (although not always). Also 'too loud' can be a genre/taste thing as much as a statement of fact (bass is front and centre in some genres, background thump in others). Did you record the gig, might help you get an objective view? 3. In relation to the above, also think about where the rig was on the stage, specifically its proximity to other musicians/PA etc? The sound on stage can be very zonal, with some lucky audience/band members receiving viscera modifying bass tone with other getting none at all. 4. The Powerhouse 2x10 is also a very punchy cab, which IME cuts through way more than an equivalent 1x15. Bottom line however is that you need to rehearse with the same rig you're going to gig and get the balance in rehearsal to a point that the whole band are happy, otherwise you can waste whole gigs trying to get the right tone/volume. And just for the record, a bass cannot be too loud

As above, I've been lugging my Mesa rig, all-tube 200w head with two 2x10s to rehearsals for a while, and having got fed up of the leg work decided to use my Avalon into the PA. However, there was an Ashdown 15" combo that I thought I'd try first, and it sounded absolutely spot on from the moment I plugged in, punchy as hell and lovely sweet tone for a Precision with heavy flats. Having checked them on eBay they go for a couple of hundred quid? I asked the guy at the studio about it and he said that everyone tries to buy it off him but it's going nowhere! I just I don't get it? No idea why I posted really

Barracuda

That's what liked it for me, the ageing process, rock and roll got old an needed to pay the bills

I am going to talk to my band mates about that very song

Thanks Gary, just measured the neck and it's 46mm!!!!!!! It's always been on the chunky side, but that's quite impressive isn't it. Think I might need to get this to a luthier and get one made to measure

Many thanks will check now

Glorious

I couldn't even find a 43mm earlier, click on the links in a few places and it's 'sorry, we're currently out of stock'

Thanks Dunc, didn’t think of the US angle on imperial, might just have to suck up the wait for either UK luthier or US dealer so guess. Cheers. Chris

I bought a 1 21/32" Precision nut thinking it would be close enough, but it's not. Can I find any retailer who's got the 11/16th. No, despite the fact that plenty of Precision necks e.g., Warmoth are made in that size. I can probably get one from Warmoth of course, but it'll take weeks and cost about £30 total. I could also take it to a tech but for something as easy as a nut this seems like overkill, and I'll still end up doing quite a lot work myself (it's for a fretless and I am very exacting about slot depth with my fretlesses) I've looked in most of the obvious places PS needs to have a curved bottom edge also.

Warmoth Precision neck with ebony board, no idea about body wood, but it weighs marginally less than Gibraltar. Sustains for ever. Wizard '64s. Offered it for sale here, no one wanted it. In retrospect I'm rather happy about that

Fair enough, can't argue with the above. I've always assumed a back story that perhaps isn't the case.