Machines

Yamaha RBX775 owned since new in 2004. Since defretted and refinished, also tuned E to C. Still sounds great. I regretted my modding however and have since bought one exactly like my first premodding.

1996 Musicman Stingray. Traded it for an Lakland 55-02 which was just a bit boring and didn't last long. With my band in 2007 (13 years ago suddenly makes me feel queasy).

What do you want from it that it can't already do? Sounds like you want to upgrade but have no actual target to aim for.

Sound Control Birmingham circa 2004. USA Gretsch Firebird 6131 Firebird new for £299, should have been £1699 but they marked it up as an Electomatic. Even asked them to check... Sold on ebay for a grand a few weeks later.

Yeah it looks decent. I've got a couple of 24 fret basses and never get that high, as long as I can get to the 21st easily i'm not bothered (really hard on Precisions and Jazzes). Perhaps they wanted to make it even more different to the standard Stingray copies to avoid any moaning from EBMM.

Looks like that's to accommodate the 24 fret neck without a really deep neck pocket.

A fair point. I tend to take the absolute minimum amount of stuff so I don't have to keep track of too many items as well as reduce the tedium of packing away at the end. I very much could take a spare bass/fx/cables etc. It's all weight to me. I hate nothing more than lugging stuff into the house at 1AM, one trip please.

Do you take a spare amp and cab ? Do you have a spare car in case you can't get to the gig at all ? I'm trying to work out how often it actually becomes a problem to gigging musicians. Lower quality gear should be more likely to fail than higher, however simpler gear should be less likely to fail than complex.

In years of gigging I've always taken one bass and never had technical difficulties. See lots of advice about taking a backup. Who actually has? This is a question specifically around failure and not just taking one because you want to swap out.

I go between 4, 5 and 6 strings with ease but that's with practise. When you first pick one up it will be different and the B string will get in your way, stick with it and that will get better with time, eventually you won't notice. Also, you can include the 5th string in your actual playing rather than pretend it isn't there.

Both or neck. Bridge alone can be a lot thinner but boost the bass and it's fine. Passive on the neck pickup is surprisingly P bass like.

Sounds like truss rod could be too tight and board too flat.

Mine is quite different, bridges are perfect (other than intonation). The biggest gripe I have, which was not obvious initially - is that the neck pickup appears to be glued in place, with the screws being decorative. I can remove the screws, and it does not budge one bit. I've tried wiggling, leverage, and even stern language. The height does not need to change, but it does appear to create me a problem should I ever wish to upgrade the pickups (very slim chance). I'm sure there is a way to move it, but there's a risk of damage to the top if not done with care.

Great catch. I got mine 2 months ago. I find dropping the bass to around 3, mids 3 and treble 7 gives the best rounded sound, it's quite good passive too. I definitely vote for you stripping the neck.

That photo is the day I got it 2 months ago. It was done very soon after.

No, it's still here and not going anywhere. Also the eBay one has a painted neck by the look of it, mine is natural.

I feel like he is doing such to get YouTube followers and create 'scandal'. In doing so, he is also sustaining the supply and demand principle that maintains their very existence. I would happily buy a 'copy' if the quality is there and the price is suitably lower. Yes that may have broken 'copyright law', but i'm trying to think of a big manufacturer that hasn't.

Watched bits of video. Seemed like the dude 'reporting' is a bit of a busy body.

In my last band they insisted on IEM only (no amps at all) and the PA to the audience. I struggled to hear the bass so used my 350w rig as a monitor after a couple of difficult gigs and the difference was worth the lugging.

Earth, air, fire, ice?! Sounds like Captain Planet intro.

Thanks for letting me know. Alas I haven't been a mod for well over 5 years 😁

I've got a nice Japanese Strat (1954 Reissue) built in 1994. It's nitro finish and wearing quite nicely. Playing it more than the basses at the moment since we're gifted with so much free time currently. I don't have the Hayden rig anymore, it was far too loud to use at home but sounded great.

I've got one of the RedSub Coliseum 6 strings. It is remarkably cheap but of course is not to the standard of the £1k+ instruments. That said, it achieves the intended goals of an extended/multiscale bass. Sounds great but did need some time on a good setup. I think if I replaced the pickups/preamp it would very much contend with the expensive more basses (but probably double the cost of the instrument). I had a Dingwall NG3 and whilst it was a better instrument (tonally), the cost difference wasn't justified (for me). If you want to experiment with the principle and then upgrade later, I can't see a better option unless you find a 2nd hand Ibanez at a good price. I put up a quick demo here, recorded on my phone unfortunately:

With swaps if I'm the 'seller' I insist on the traded bass (which is payment) received before reciprocating. Would you send a bass to someone in ebay before they paid?

A quick sound demo