Brother Jones

I was wondering who'd bought that Zawinul...

I was awakened from my slumbers this morning by a gent delivering this: http://www.acguitars.co.uk/acg_admin/wordpress/portfolio/0220-recurve-4-fretless/ Now I have to admit that buying a bass at this level without playing it first is a risk. I've been looking for a really good fretless for a few years to replace the Zon Sonus that I should never have sold. And I'd been thinking of asking Alan to build me one - although I wasn't sure I could be patient enough, plus I was a bit worried about weight, as well as how I'd get on with the asymetric neck and zero radius board. So my SGC Bass Collection fretless had to soldier on for a while. When this bass popped up in the 'for sale' section of the ACG website, it just screamed 'buy me!'. And I did. Alan was a delight to deal with; very straightforward, and very helpfully arranged delivery on a Saturday. Whenever I buy a new bass, there are an uncomfortable few days when I need to set it up with preferred strings, lower action, etc. Straight out of its (very nice) Fusion gig bag, it was obvious that just wasn't going to be an issue with this ACG. I honestly don't need to even think about doing anything to it. It is light - 3.1kg. It's not quite as light as the Bass Collection, but feels a little more solid as a result. It looks absolutely beautiful (I'm having trouble taking my eyes off it) and the luthiering is flawless. It also has a quite distinctive smell... The flat board and asymetric neck work perfectly. My intonation seems to be a lot better than usual on it. Yes, the preamp is going to take some time to master, but the tonal palette is clearly huge, and offers things that conventional ones can't. The pickups are seriously powerful and (unless I go nuts with the preamp settings), very quiet for single coils. All in all, while buying this was an impulse, the result isn't just the best fretless I've ever played, but the best bass I've ever owned.

GK MB150E. The little, supposedly 150w combo (do they still make them?). I only bought it because it was cute and supposedly portable. In reality, while it was small, it was also extremely heavy and a nightmare to carry on the tube.Plus the cab rattled something awful. Replaced with my Eden rig which was a revelation.The older Eden heads remain my favourites.

I owned a TKO75 (as my first decent combo), then a TNT150, then a Databass. The TNT150 had a biamp out option, and Peavey made a powered 2x8 cab for it. Still remember that rig with great affection...

I'm willing to bet it's heavily string-related. When I bought my 2012 US Standard, it had very obviously been in the shop for a while, the strings were dead, etc, so they knocked down the price and threw in some Rotos. Horrible, scratchy, tinny sounding things. Replaced with DR Sunbeams and EMGs, and now I think it's the best Jazz I've ever owned. I do think US Jazzes sound brighter than they used to though.

Really impressed by the standard (active) EMGs I put on my fretted US Standard at the end of last year. I thought they might be a bit too crispy and hi-fi, but I was wrong. The added bonus is, once you've installed the circuit (very easy - assuming you can accommodate the battery), you can always just swap out for the several other EMG Jazz flavours (JV-X etc).

1985 - Hohner Jazz copy, black, tort, maple board 1990- Fender Jap Jazz, black, rosewood board. Later modded with MECs and a Badass 1993 - Fender Jap Jazz, sunburst, tort, rosewood 1995 - Fender Jap Jazz, seafoam,tort, rosewood 1998 - Fender US Jazz, 1970, black, rosewood 2001 - Fender US Jazz Deluxe, seethrough red, pearl, rosewood 2003 - Fender US Jazz 1978, black, rosewood 2004 - Fender US Jazz 1973, sunburst, tort, rosewood 2006 - Sadowsky UV70, ash, maple 2007 - Sadowsky MV5, sunburst, tort, rosewood 2009 - Fender US Jazz Deluxe 5, sunburst, tort, rosewood (and Nordstrand pups) 2014 - Fender US Jazz 2012, modded with standard EMGs. Guess I like Jazz basses

Horn break from Sir Duke, or perhaps Rhythm Stick, a bit of a slappy thing (usually Run for Cover or a variation on that theme), and a bit of a harmonic thing. The latter is important for me, as while Jazzes are not normally a problem, Ps and Musicmen are a bit variable on that front.

This has been discussed in the past, mainly with a view to string tension. I think the consensus was that difference was marginal at best. I've played Jazz basses of one sort or another for 30 years (from Hohners and Tokais to NYC Sadowskys), and string-through Fenders since 2001 when I bought my first US Jazz Deluxe. So, having a Sunday afternoon string changeover, I decided to do a little A/B test on my 2012 US Jazz Standard, using a nearly-new set of DR Sunbeams (45-105). In theory, there should be little if any difference in tension, because the strings are free to move at the saddles. There is a potential, if slight difference to tone, as the strings are coupled more directly to the resonant mass of the body when strung through it. There is room for quite a bit of optimism bias here. But the difference seems quite marked.The string tension is palpably lower when strung through the bridge, while the sound is slightly, but noticeably more like a traditional Jazz - a bit more hollowed out and clanky. The string to string balance has changed slightly as well, for the worse. I'm not sure which I ultimately prefer, but have left it strung through the bridge for now... If I'd had the wherewithal, I'd have recorded the difference, as it certainly seems noticeable.

Sounds good, thanks. PM'd!

Seems to me there's a minor YT industry of attractive women who are also pretty good bass players. Some of them are better than others (and some of them play on their physicality a little too much). Isn't it time we stopped finding the idea of female bassists novel? She could have saved herself a lot of work by dropping her tuning a semitone on this, like Nate Watts did when he played it.

I'm looking for someone to supply, fit and lightly relic a Jazz body for my US '78. I asked a local tech to have a try a few years ago, but he couldn't even find an undrilled or three bolt body (the former might be preferable for a good fit). The original body is a near-write off. It weighs a ton, and the finish is completely knackered. Do Limelight or anyone similar provide such a service? The neck and pups are lovely, and I don't want to write the bass off. Thanks.

The drummer is amazing. I'd like to like it above and beyond that, but after a while it sounds like Focus with a horn section...