hubrad

Excellent.. well done! I love experimentation in such matters.. just because it was made in a particular way, are we all constrained to only ever use it like that? #bagofworms

Flanders and Swann.. 'People make an awful lot of fuss, anyway about the quality of the sound they listen to. Have you noticed; they spend all that time trying to get the exact effect of an orchestra actually playing in their sitting room. Personally, I can't think of anything I should hate more than an orchestra actually playing in my sitting room.' :-D http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_DptPvj7ts

Great description. . NOT! Well, I certainly wouldn't go there..

Black nylons on a fretless.. I use the Picato ones but most brands do them. Closest I've got to an amplified d.b.tone from an electric bass.

Here's a gig in which I don't even get to play bass! The bass duties are more than amply covered by Mal Siswick, so I'm on g88t'r and flute. Now with the addition of top-notch saxophonist Peadar Long, here's a snippet pre-sax: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpZo8A2xAHk and the Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/448589335268597/ Adlington Community Centre Railway Rd Adlington Chorley PR6 9RF Don't fear the dancing (although it can be quite energetic) as full instruction is given!

You have to take the tension off! I have one of these. . just think of the mechanics of it. . P.s. brilliant piece of kit.

Also, looking at your avatar list, don't go near the Zoom until you have your basic tone nailed! Think of it as icing on the cake. . you need a decent cake to make the icing worthwhile. A good starting point is a smiley eq if the amp is at all muddy. TE have presets built in, but only you will know when the tone is just right for you and your band.

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1389785505' post='2337793'] The last thing I would want to do with any song I was playing would be "drop in a bit of Muse". Why would anybody want to spoil a nice simple but tasty meal by stirring dog sh*t into it? [/quote] Aaand the Best Chortle Of The Day award goes to.. Decades ago, I used to loathe the idea of root-fifth on the 1 and 3. Then I got a Bluegrass gig.. it's the perfect bassline!

I currently drive a Fiesta, and besides a few years of a luxuriously large Xantia estate the previous cars were a Fiat Punto and Rover Metro. The record in the Punto was three of us (each safely seat-belted) plus the DB and amplification, plus the 3rd chap's guitar in hardcase! Split rear seats are really good for that kind of activity. The Punto tailgate was steep enough to allow the DB to stand on its side, whereas the Fiesta only allows mine to lay flat in the back.. max 2 people including driver!

I'd give it a try; the only thing that will make them really unusable is if they are slit coils with the split directly under one string (e.g. using a P-bass pickup on a 5-string). Going from 19mm to 17mm spacing, as long as string 3 is right in the middle of the pickup, the outer strings are shifted by 4mm. If you measure from the middle of the string 3 position on the pickup to string 1 or 5 it should be 38mm (19 x 2). As long as 34mm (17 x 2 ) still leaves the 1 and 5 strings over one of the poles it will work, albeit not perfect according to the manufacturers. If you have the pickups anyway, and you are making the bass, I'd try it - what's to lose? I've used non-ideal pickups myself with 17mm spacing on both 4- and 5-strings and it's been fine. Good luck!

[quote name='JazzBassfreak' timestamp='1389543289' post='2335286'] I do, but it never seems to progress towards that lovingly worn in feel [/quote] Use it more, then! ;-)

Surgical spirit for me. Seems to do the job on rosin deposits and no signs of finish damage. Added bonus. .the house smells like an old fashioned chemist's!

Well worth a visit if you're nearby anyway. Lots of nice gear, free parking and both guys easy to talk to. Can you go wrong?

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1389286558' post='2332409'] What you get for asking for the input jack to be fixed when it is in fact the OUTPUT jack. [/quote] Someone had to point this out! Still looks a shonky job without first saying 'we can strengthen this bit by doing this, or ideally you need a new pickguard if it starts causing you problems' Some people just can't string a bass!

I started playing in bands back in the days when self-preservation meant that the majority of people I played with would check their own gear, especially the occasional glance inside plugs for terminal screws coming loose (happens far more frequently than you might think!) and I still tend to do this. Another frighteningly common occurrence is the outer insulation of a mains cable no longer being held in the clamp in a plug.. usually leads to either wires pulling out of the terminals inside the plug or the inner insulation cracking leaving bare copper visible! Once or twice I've helpfully cut plugs off band cables if they've been told , told again and STILL left it!

[quote name='njr911' timestamp='1389257738' post='2331898'] I've just been asked this question by a village hall last night! Anyone know anywhere in Leeds for quick PAT testing ? [/quote] Factory Street Studios do a fixed-price whole band testing.. they're just next to Bradford ring road where Wakefield Rd comes up to the top. http://www.factorystreet.co.uk/contact-us/

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1389174430' post='2330794'] Just play it some more. [/quote] This. Every ding and scratch tells a story and contributes to the instrument's mojo.. 'relic' the bass as you go on.

[quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1389095924' post='2329763'] I can see them now. Hanging up with the Jedsons etc in the cheap section at Bell's Instruments in Surbition in the early 70s. [/quote] I had their catalogue way-back-when.. probably the finest guitar porn available at the time; contained many words which I'd never heard before! :-D

I'm not 100% sure, but I think VAT gets applied to the carriage charge, too.. if you're buying a DB I'd imagine P+P to be on the high side.

Trace Elliot. Especially the older English-made ones. I have a 250W one which does more than I need; from your description I'd look for the 500.. those Essex Watts were just bigger than most! Preamp gain setting depends on your bass output. Some combinations of pickups, wood and player are louder than others.

I have a few of those humbucker-to-single-coil pots from when I had a t-40 yonks back. I think I needed one for repair purposes but at the time Peavey only sold bags of ten. Something like that!

Keep trying to see what is there. If USA any Allen keys will be imperial; I think Mex can be either but I was once told metric to be the usual. I got a set of small size Allen keys yonks back. So close together in sizes it's almost immaterial, I just use whichever fits.

And now, teams, let's play Mornington Crescent!

He 'doesn't want to part with her'.. I think his wish may well be granted!