GreeneKing

Discussed and ordered new P bass electrics one day and they arrived the next. Pretty impressive Peter

[quote name='Colonel36' timestamp='1392729290' post='2371999'] One of the points is Peter that there was no caffeine in the jar he thought was caffeine and he reacted to it. So, no "chemical" but folk react as if there is because it's in the mind. [/quote] Yes but when I got palpitations from coffee the 1st time I didn't expect it. I didn't even know that coffee could do this. Likewise, I suffered pins and needles recently and it was likely due to too much sugar (I've a serious sugar problem). I didn't expect it and now I've cut down the problem has gone away. I think the whole point is that the body can influence the mind and the mind can then influence the body. But this path isn't without influence Peter

I have 12 basses (now how did that happen?) My band is presently 'ticking over' - no singer. I look to which basses I should sell and can easily justify all of them. When I practice I get the taste for something different and it's there. So not one for me then Peter

[quote name='Colonel36' timestamp='1392728652' post='2371986'] It's all in the mind. Caffeine for example...when people think it gives them a buzz in the morning with their coffee they believe it. I've done it with a mate of mine and other people where this mate said he gets severe palpitations with coffee/caffeine, so when he's at my house, I give him the coffee with caffeine in it and he's o.k but....I replaced it in the jar with decaff ! and he sees this as I brew it. Another time I gave him a decaff one but I'd put the decaff in the ordinary coffee jar and he said he had palpitations because of the caffeine. Sugar rush...that's another one whereby it's all in the mind. People do get rather aggressive about this though as they like to believe in stuff. [/quote] If you use chemicals to upset the body chemistry and this leads to various manifestations I think it's a little brave to say it's all imagined. It is indeed all in the mind though, literally Not at all angry or aggressive, just saying. Peter

I really enjoyed that. A diverse exploration of 'the placebo effect'. I do think that 'The Placebo Effect' is a bit of a misnomer. Surely a placebo is just a tool, one of many, used to stimulate the mind's control of the body. The effect is more the conditioning of the mind to enhance, reduce, ignore, minimise or focus the physical controls, coordination, senses and feelings? As an ex elite runner (yes, a long time ago) and more recently a club cyclist I am very aware of the difference in performance when the mind is attuned to ignoring suffering. A placebo may be one way of achieving this but it's not the only way. Peter

[quote name='skelf' timestamp='1392663781' post='2371328'] Jazzy you need to try the latest version of the pre-amp the 03 which has been further refined to produce much more control over the all important mids. The push/pull low mid and hid mid controls make a big difference as does the reduced range on the lowpass filters. Having spent years trying to be all things to all men I have had a rethink in order to produce a more focused pre-amp to use with the MC Series of pickups. If you get to London please drop by to hear the new pre-amp. This obviously applies to anyone interested and down at the show. [/quote] I was about to say something similar in relation to the hi and lo mid boosts but Alan beat me to it. Owning a newer ACG filter pre and having owned the earlier model I can appreciate how Alan has improved on an already good filter pre amp. Peter

Quite an old thread eh:) What I find interesting is that, aurally at least, if someone thinks for whatever reason that A will sound better than B then the brain actually hears differently e.g. There's a theory that says that thoughts can actually change our senses in a sort of positive feedback way. There's a video of an experiment that attempts to prove this. I'll see if I can find it. This will link in with the placebo I suspect. Otherwise I'd go with a lot of what's said here. Also if I learn some good bass lines with a certain bass and play them well in a band setting the bass earns my love. Peter

[quote name='Woodinblack' timestamp='1392557886' post='2369977'] The harmonic frequencies, not sub harmonics, there are a whole load of harmonic frequencies which change the characterisation of the sound, so a smooth tone would have a lot more even harmonics like a flute, whereas something like a brass instrument would have more odd harmonics. Although there is a difference by different woods it is much smaller than you would think, and absolutely dwarfed by the perceived tone change achieved by spending a lot more money on the bass! [/quote] Absolutely. I did mean harmonics not sub harmonics. It's been a lot of years since I explored waves at Uni Peter

I believe that the tone or timbre of a particular note originates from the sub harmonic frequencies? Otherwise a piano playing a middle C would sound just like any other instrument playing the same note. I'd love to analyse the different sub harmonics that different basses produce in order to establish what different woods/bridges/nuts do to the tone vs the human ear that can be preprogrammed by expectations. Peter

I'll catch you Chris The placebo effect is very interesting. The importance of the mind over the body. As a long retired athlete I'll be very interested. What is the placebo effect of a manufacturer's name on an instrument then?

John East Marcus Retro helps

You clearly stated that I was the first to ask to buy the item and that you sold it to someone else to save postage. You managed to negotiate with other buyers while ignoring myself. I was very disappointed but now I'm over it but I think that my -ve feedback is justified. Peter

I'm from South Cumbria and if it happened to me Dave would be my 1st choice

Not positive feedback I'm afraid. Seller provisionally agreed a sale on the usual 1st come 1st served basis and then stopped communicating. He sold item to another seller because they wanted multiple items and he thought he'd save on postage costs. No fault of the other buyer I must add. It wouldn't have been so bad imo if the seller had of explained this at the time instead of ignoring me and hoping I'd go away. Peter

Mids have a wide range and within that range they can sound very different. The sweep allows you to select exactly where you add or take away. Having fixed mids in the 'wrong' position is a little pointless imo and I'd always opt for sweepable.

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1392218812' post='2366086'] Can we please keep this thread going until someone forks out the pittance I am asking for my Fender 8250's? I really cannot believe my luck at this spontaneous outpouring of pro- Fender string propaganda. I don't really need £9, but I have to find a buyer now just to save face. [/quote] Go on then, an you pm me with the details. Peter

[quote name='doctorbass' timestamp='1392200681' post='2365793'] I used to like the 9050M flats. I believe they're now made by D'Addario, which make them Chromes more or less..... [/quote] There's a thread on TB suggesting that Fender have recently switched to D'Addario for their strings. New Fender strings have coloured ball ends. I love D'Addario nickels and have just ordered some 7250s to see what gives. Quite fancy 7150s too.

That's an interesting journey Chris and a great post in response to some mildy cynical replies My own 'road to ruin' has been very different and I suppose that active basses have been predominant. All electric basses are amplified, some onboard some outboard. I'd agree that onboard amplification has it's own 'characteristics'. I have got through one huge number of basses in the 20 years I've been playing. I'm too embarassed to try to count. My No1 bass is definately my stunning ACG Uber spec Finn with multi coil pickups and filter based pre. This is for good reason. It's hand made and I specified the woods and contruction. It plays beautifully and sounds immence with great clarity and a huge range of tones that no passive bass could hope to emulate. It's the bass that I feel I have finished 'a' journey with. I know that to some people a beautiful bass like the Finn is no more that a piece of pretty furniture with a preamp they can't 'get their head around' and a tone that isn't to their taste. But given that I have my perfect bass, I can still pleasantly dabble elsewhere because life's like that and it's okay (unlike my perfect woman where I've no such disloyal inclinations). Most of my basses are active and in a live environment, playing the sort of stuff we do I like a 'heavy on the low mids' tone that drives the song and cuts through the mix. With my active basses I prefer a 3EQ and even better is a sweepable mid. In terms of playability I'm versatile. Image isn't important for me. Actually that's a lie as I'd not want to gig a Squier or an Epiphone and that's pure snobbery. Most of them play better than I can. I love my 90 Thumb NT as much as my Sterling (Rita) or my Gibson EB. The RBIV doesn't really 'do' the P bass thing you are right Chris, no real surprise there. I do really appreciate the P bass tone and always have. It's vital and earthy, quite unique. But my immediate reaction on hearing and appreciating it is 'how can I add just a little more mids' The RBIV with the neck pup solo'd and in series does something else quite good too:) I have a 'cheap as chips' Vintage Tony Butler signature with a Kiogon circuit, a decent nut and £100 worth of fret dressing that produces a great P bass tone from it's Wilkinson hardware and it plays like butter. It's worth nowt, looks and sounds lovely and if times were hard would probably do everything I need but I'd always know it's 'only' a Vintage and that makes little sense. As of last week I popped into a local music shoppe (Promenade Music) to buy some new strings and the bass guitar sales man who is a pretty impressive bassist and fine bloke showed me his CIJ 70's reissue Fender P bass that he's looking to move on. It's got a Bare Knuckle pickup (I'd guess a 65) and a Badass II fitted and to be honest it blew me a way a bit. I sat with it a while and the tone, neck, playability and pure 'Fenderishness' really grew on me. I walked out with new D'Addario Nickels 40 - 100 for the RBIV and a P bass! It's a beauiful 3T Sunburst with a maple neck, black block inlays and a black pickguard that's currently with Howard who's crafting a red tort celluloid plate for it. I'll post a RBIV and a P bass photo. A bit of a rambling post as I sit with a couple of glasses of red wine and a knackered laptop but what's my point? My point is that we are fickle beasts and as bassists we wend our weary way through life moving around tones, instruments, styles, urges, makes, inspirations, mistakes, infatuations and opinions but it's all okay and a part of the rich tapestry of life. It makes the whole experience what it is, simply wonderful. Peter

With reference the volume increase, I may be missing something but there is an output control.

Good news Chris and I hope that she becomes remains 'The Special One' It is a very peculiar thing though this GAS malarkey. I'm loving the Roscoe Beck. The versatility of the beast is amazing, again a passive bass with a whole lot of tone. A great jazz, it works really well with series coil too for that extra something. Series coil and neck pickup does all the 70's rock stuff so well. So, me not being a Fender dude, now has a 3TS Fender with a red tort plate and I love it. A couple of days ago I had a play of a 3TS CIJ Fender 70's re-issue P with a Bare Knuckle 65 and a Badass II and there goes another story....... Glad it's working out Chris, I'm equally happy. Peter