uncle psychosis

If I were you I'd start by replacing all of the electronics except the pickups. Putting decent quality electronics in certainly won't do any harm. Once you get it working again you can decide if you want to mess around with the pickups. You might also want to do some basic electronic mods like shielding the controls (this is really cheap and easy to do).

Hi guys I play in a 3 piece rock band and every so often I think it would be pretty cool to play baritone instead of a more traditional bass. My reasoning is that it would be possible to cover most bass lines using the baritone but also play full chords every so often, which could help flesh out the sound of a 3 piece a bit. Anyone ever tried it, or have any thoughts?

I've never sold a bass and regretted it. There's a few pedals that I really miss---main ones being a Monsterpiece Fuzz and an Earthquaker Devices Disaster Transport---and a 12 string Schecter electric that I'd have back in a second. All sold through financial necessity!

[quote name='mcnach' post='1137141' date='Feb 22 2011, 02:38 PM']PM-me when you have more local gigs, would love to come along.[/quote] Short notice I know but we're on tomorrow (Saturday) at Cabaret Voltaire: [url="http://www.thecabaretvoltaire.com/view_event.php?id=1776"]http://www.thecabaretvoltaire.com/view_event.php?id=1776[/url] I think its £6 on the door but if you contact us (through the website---www.supermarionation.co.uk) I think Steve has some cheaper ones. Sam

I have musical instrument insurance through Allianz. Their website sucks though so maybe better to phone them. If I remember correctly music guard wont cover you for theft from an unattended vehicle. Thats a big no-no for me. I looked into just getting my guitars added to my home insurance but too often theres lots of hidden clauses---no cover if its stolen from a gig, no cover if its stolen from a car, etc. For the price of a couple of beers a month I know that I'm (relatively) safe for every situation...

[quote name='mcnach' post='1133819' date='Feb 19 2011, 09:33 PM']I once owned a Jazz bass copy by Vintage that I had modified with a metal scratchplate (helped screening, it was very quiet) and a series/parallel switch. It was very nice. But I sold it. Moved on. Fast forward a couple of years, and I'm in the same situation you describe. We're the last band to play, I agreed to provide bas amplification. One of the bands was ok, the other one was overall better and as I do, I pay attention to the bass. It sounded very good. Then I realised... it was the guy I sold the bass to, that was my old bass indeed!!! I didn't imagine that bass sounded as good as that!!! I told him if he ever wanted to sell it, to call me. He said he doubts it'll happen any time soon. So there i was, playing my Stingray (which I love and won't change for anything, I must add!) thinking "damn, that Vintage sounded great! And I sold it for peanuts!" [/quote] If it makes you feel better, I give that bass a lot of love I've had a few other compliments on the sound of the Vintage---the very first gig we did had a bass playing soundman who raved about it. I really, really like the added switching you add to it---makes it really punchy. To be fair, your stingray sounded damn good that night too! Cheers

On my jazz bass I have one of the pots modded to be push/push that switches between the pickups in series/parallel. The extra option is pretty beefy

I once got in the back of a black cab with two double basses. Neither of them was in a case. That was "fun"...

Howdy folks I'm a long time lurker, but I don't post all that much so thought I should introduce myself. I'm the bass player in Supermarionation, a 3-piece rock/punk/pop band based in Edinburgh. We started out as an (obscure) covers band but we've been gigging our own material for a year or so. We recently released a five track EP called "On the Fly" which is available on spotify or on download/cd if anyone would like to check it out. [url="http://open.spotify.com/album/1WrL0NuA1kMThDUfKXwPDT"]http://open.spotify.com/album/1WrL0NuA1kMThDUfKXwPDT[/url] [url="http://www.supermarionation.co.uk/on-the-fly"]http://www.supermarionation.co.uk/on-the-fly[/url] The Metro described us as "one of the hottest up and coming acts in Scotland" last month, so I hope you like what you hear!!! Cheers Sam

[quote name='pete.young' post='1059457' date='Dec 15 2010, 12:31 PM']Thanks for that. In that case the Zvex clone is probably the one I'll go for. I also found these guys: [url="http://www.diypedalkits.com/"]http://www.diypedalkits.com/[/url] . Has anyone here had anything to do with them?[/quote] They're run by one of the regulars over at the musicradar.com forum. I haven't built any of the kits myself but a few of the guys over there have done so and all seem happy with the results. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cN_ouc6GZCE"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cN_ouc6GZCE[/url]

Thanks for the replies guys. Decided to stick with the NYC Muff/LS2 combination for just now---its mainly for live use so I'm not *too* fussy about the tone. So long as it rocks

I've found that Behringer pedals are a bit hit and miss. Some of them sound great, others---not so much. I reckon for £25 you won't get much better. If you can find a second hand one you can probably sell it for what you pay for it anyway. What I never understood though is all the complaints about the cases. Who cares if they're made of plastic? They're absolutely rock solid. My EHX Big Muff is made of metal and it feels flimsier than Behringer pedals I've owned. I can understand worries about the quality of the electronic parts---they are cheap parts, presumably---but you'll be doing pretty damn well to break the outside. I mean, just watch [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QL-6eTHSHQ"]this![/url]

Hi guys I've got a quick question about fuzz/OD on bass. I play in [url="http://www.supermarionation.co.uk/"]a band[/url] and until recently I've just been a bass-lead-amp guy. Hpwever, we're only a three piece and every so often I think the bass parts could do with some dirt to fill out the sound (and also to make the rocking numbers rock more!!). I started out by trying my USA Big Muff and my Proco RAT (I'm also a guitarist) on the bass. They sound good on their own, but disappear in the mix (classic problem). So I acquired a Boss LS2 for blending in clean signal (I am NOT going down the two amp route). I've been relatively happy with the results, but having to carry around two pedals and multiple patch cables is a bit irritating. I'd rather just take one pedal with me, so I've been eyeing up bass specific distortions---mainly the Tech21 Bass XXL and the EHX Bass Big Muff. I guess the question is---will I get much out of these pedals other than convenience? Is it worth splashing out for bass specific pedals or will I get much the same result from LS2 + guitar pedal? Cheers Sam

A friend of mine has a 5-string Sadowsky Jazz. I'm actually really regretting trying it because now I'm seriously GASing after the 4-string version... One day, one day

Hi guys I've been thinking about getting a compressor for use on both my bass and electric six strings too. I'm skint at the moment so have pretty much narrowed it down to two: Aphex Punch Factory or BBE Optostomp. The DI functions on the PF sound really useful, and it also seems to be a bit easier to get hold of in the UK---but having said that the Optostomp has got some great reviews and seems to be built like a tank. In the last half hour or so the T-rex comp nova has also caught my eye... I'm not really looking for compression as an effect, more as a way of rounding out the sound a bit and helping my telecaster cut through the mix a bit more. What are your opinions on these three?