mike257

The guitarist in my band is a sworn Gordon Smith user - he's got a pre-production prototype guitar that looks very much like Shaggy's bass above, and it's lovely lovely. I've never heard a bad word about them from anybody, by all accounts they're fantastic, especially consdering the dollar you have to lay out for one.

[quote name='liamcapleton' post='527421' date='Jun 29 2009, 08:18 AM']I've seen a load of live footage from Bucharest and I did definitely see Freddie tearing things up with his Smith. Or maybe not... you've got me thinking otherwise now![/quote] I've got the Bucharest DVD, it's definitely not Freddie Washington on that! Didn't know about David Williams, that's awful. Real talented guitarist, the stuff on Off The Wall is pure disco magic.

Freddie Washington wasn't in the '92 band, was he? Dangerous tour was Don Boyette. Greg Phillinganes was on keys, David Williams (who played on most of Off The Wall/Thriller) and Jennifer Batten on guitar, and Ricky Lawson on drums. Oh, and another keyboard player, can't remember who though. Absolutely awesome sounding band though, couldn't have gone wrong bringing them back.

Sorry to hear this didn't work out. I've been off on my hols and only got through this thread today, but I've been waiting with baited breath. Better things will come along. It sounds like they didn't deserve you, from the messing around you've had with them.

I've upgraded two cheapo basses, one with a pre-grooved Badass 2, and the other with a Gotoh 201. I wouldn't say I can pick out a huge difference between the two bridges in terms of sound improvement, but they both made a big difference to the tone of each bass. I'd maybe say the Gotoh is a better shout for you as it's cheaper, and (if it's for the bass in your avatar) will retain the 'look' of the bass, whereas the Badass is freakin' huge!

Holy smoke! I paid more than that for a second hand one a couple of months ago!

I traded a Stingray 4 2005 Ltd Ed for mine last July, but it was offered for sale at £650, and the others I've seen here have gone around that price too. Be a shame if you have to part with it, they're absolutely brilliant basses.

I picked up my Sandberg in a trade for a Stingray 2005 Ltd Ed. It's a huge step up from a standard US jazz (in my opinion, of course). If it's a trade you're after, it's worth waiting for something you really fancy, everything pops up on here sooner or later!

The League For Fighting Chartered Accountancy needs your support!

Only just spotted this today, but I'll be checking back regularly, this is fantastic. Great to see a 'proper' live room being put together. I suppose Brum isn't really too far away for us noisy scousers to come recording either, time to start saving up!

I bought a Musicman bass in Australia and took it home with me in the standard MM hard case - I just slackened off the strings, laid plenty of bubble wrap inside the case, and wrapped the outside too. If it's in a decent hardcase, with decent padding inside, you'll be fine - mine got from Adelaide to Manchester via Melbourne, Hong Kong and Heathrow without a scratch on it!

You might have a job finding a good set for that to be honest. I haven't been monitor shopping for a few years, but from what I remember there wasn't much to choose from under £200. I might be wrong though! GAK is always worth a look for these things, I'd go check them out. Saying that, I know a few people got a set of those Behringer Truth active monitors and gave them rave reviews. Haven't heard them in action, but apparently they're better than the brand name would have you think. I'm sure I've seen them for about £150. If you're going to be doing a lot of recording, I reckon it's well worth saving for as good a set of monitors as your budget allows!

The likes of WD Music will sort your pickguard problem out, I'm sure. There's a few places that will cut you a custom one, so you could spec an extra hole and get all mirrored up! Not sure about the pre - looking at the cavity in my P, I don't know where the hell I'd fit a battery in without making bigger holes in the thing

I share mine with Verdine White, awesome!!

[quote name='ped' post='508203' date='Jun 8 2009, 01:59 PM']Pah, just admit it - you want a new toy!! :0)[/quote] Haha, it's true, I'm missing all the twinkly lights since I stopped using my pedalboard! You've seen right through me

Your listening position will make an enormous difference to what you hear as well. When I'm standing close to my 610 (especially in practice) I hear loads of top and high mid, and only really feel the bass, but the further away I wander, the more I hear the bottom end develop. Have you got a long lead, a wireless, or a willing volunteer to play your bass for you so you can take a walk and hear it from the crowds perspective?

I've got a set of Webstrings Detroit Flats on my main bass, and they're a revelation. Is there much of a step up in quality from the Webstrings to the likes of TI's D'addario, etc getting mentioned above?

[quote name='ped' post='505904' date='Jun 4 2009, 10:21 PM']You got volume knobs on the basses? ;0)[/quote] Haha, I knew that was going to turn up sooner or later! I have, of course, but they get used already during the set, so getting back to the 'right' level every time isn't going to be particularly reliable. I need something idiot-proof that I don't have to fiddle with in the dark on stage. Cheers for all the good suggestions, the LS2 would be a handy thing to have around for all kinds of reasons. The Bassbone is lovely, but like you said, a bank buster, and possibly more features than I need. I was mooching around Radial's website though, and saw the Bigshot I/O, which looks just the ticket (and a whole load cheaper!). Two inputs, one with a level control to attenuate the louder bass, and a switchable tuner output. Hmmmm.

Like it says on the tin. I've got my Sandberg strung up with flats, and it sounds the absolute business, but I'd occasionally fancy the extra bit of bite of rounds on a couple of songs. I'm planning on employing my uber-modded Squire P (BadAss/Wizards etc), but the active Sandberg kicks out a much higher level. I'd like to be able to switch between them without having to screw around with my amp to compensate, particularly as I'm usually DI'd straight from the bass for gigs. Anybody got any suggestions for solving this dilemma? Preferably ones that don't break the bank, I've just moved house

I always used EB 105's on my Stingray, I used to change them every 6 weeks-ish though. I was doing a lot of heavy plec playing in my old band, and loved that new string sound, cut through like a dream! Roto's never really did it for me, I used Elites before I went Slinky.