carlsim

I’m bought some rosewood veneer off eBay which arrived today so I’m going to pull a couple of frets out and test how the veneer matches to the existing rosewood.

I will give the neck a bit of wire wool first and see how the match looks… 

possibly add an ebony stain - looks like this could be the best option…

if I only pull a few frets out, I can still use the existing ones to get some heat in there if I decide to do a fretboard swap…

to be honest, I bought the overwater for this purpose so would rather not try and butcher two things together.

the key thing is, can I disguise a defret so it looks like an unlined board??

50 minutes ago, BreadBin said:

Just buy a Harley Benton Progressive 5 fretless. Plenty left in the budget for tweaking.

Yeah I did look at those, but already have the overwater aspiration not doing very much… plus I like something to tinker with!

I was hoping to see what other people had done in these situation and whether any amateur ‘luthiers’ had attempted a fingerboard swap…

Hi all...

My quest seems to be a fruitless one... I have been looking for an unlined 5 string fretless bass for some time now - not something I would gig a lot so I had a budget of around £300 in my head. What can i get for that?

Bu**er all basically! So... what are my options?

For a true unlined board, buy a cheaper fretted bass and swap the fingerboard. Or, buy a fretted bass, buy some veneer which is the same wood rather than contrasting and glue in and finish. Then, possibly add a stain with oil to finish for a bit more uniformity.

so... 2 options.

1 - swap the fingerboard for an ebony board.

2 - defret and fill with matching veneer and stain a bit darker to look like ebony (it is a rosewood board).

Option 1 raises many questions.

1 - can I achieve a good finish? I am pretty confident and meticulous when it comes to woodworking although sometimes my patience runs out. Main concerns are getting a flush finish around the edges when the ebony would meet the maple of the neck. Plus, also there is the issue of the radius on the board. Flat is an option (thank you to @Andyjr1515 for talking me through a few options...) or possibly a very subtle 15/17 degree radius which shouldn't be too much hassle (would need to get radius blocks as needed). I do have most of the tools to do the job and I don't mind buying tools needed... who doesn't like a nice new tool here and there!

Do I have the time to do this? Could be moving house soon to a renovation property and that is going to give me plenty to do!

Option 2 is obviously an easier option and something I have done before. However, I haven't tried to hide the lines before by using a matching veneer.

The question is can I make it look like an unlined board? Anyone tried this route before? Feel free to post pics...

So my question to you BCers is - option 1 or 2?

Anyone with personal experience of either method? Time frames? Links to build threads? Pictures of finished projects?

I have picked up a trans red Overwater aspiration 5 string fretted bass recently which is going to the project bass. It doesn't have dot markers on the fingerboard so if a go the defret route, I only have to worry about filling the fret lines and changing dot markers on the side.

Any comments would be most welcome - am I putting myself in a world of hurt here trying to change a fingerboard? I'm no luthier by any means, never built an instrument but after my recent success in re-finishing my Xotic bass (feel free to view the build thread), confidence in projects like this is high! @Andyjr1515 was very encouraging on the fingerboard swap idea...

I will post some pics of the bass when I can.

Carl.

Aah, sorry. Long gone I’m afraid. Forgot to amend this one!

Pete bought my Headrush speaker. No issues at all and was a gent throughout the transaction. Top bass chatter!

I suppose that’s the beauty of the used marketplace… with some luck you can buy and sell without losing too much (if any) money! Unlike buying new… 

Perfectly aware and perfectly happy!

I would have liked the stomp, but it’s one of those things where none were for sale, this pod go popped up and then Sod’s Law, a stomp pops up for sale…

So… finally got my rig of choice!

plumped for a boss GT1B but honestly, I found that the synth bass sounds didn’t track very well at all. So that has now moved on to greener pastures and I picked up an as new line 6 pod go from the bay… 

I haven’t tried it yet and I was looking for a hx stomp but this, I’m sure will meet my needs.

also… bought a QSC 10.2 which turned out to have a fault (this was a shame as it sounded amazing - kudos to @lemmywinks for a quick and easy solution. Saw a Headrush for sale locally, picked that up thinking - that will do… then 2 days later saw a QSC 12.2 for sale locally to me which I am now organising collection. 
so… that’s me sorted. Line 6 pod go into a QSC 12.2. Should be banging!

first outing won’t be for a while but I shall feedback on here with the outcome for anyone else considering it…

And replied…

Hi all…

selling my Headrush FRFR112 in pretty much as new condition. Still has the sticker on the front! 
I got this from a guitarist who bought it new, used it 3 times at home and realised he just loves his tube amp a bit too much to use it on gigs. So, I bought it about 2 weeks ago but in that time, a QSC k12.2 seems to be coming into my possession! So this needs to go to a new home. So… it hasn’t even had a bass player through it and only saw a bit of home use. 
pretty much as new, one or two tiny scuff marks where it was dragged across a hard floor (he told me swearing to himself!).

I bought a pa speaker case for it so in total, it owes me £230. Quite a reduction for an as new unit with a case. The case isn’t a snug fit, but the flaps to access the side handles line up well.
happy to post (I can muster up a box) but collection is preferred. Will probably be around the £15-£20 mark.

happy to answer any questions…

carl. 

 

Boss GT-1B, as new with case and PSU which are both normally extras.

I picked this up from @bassybill but I have got all wrapped up in this fx malarkey and pulled the trigger on a full fat line 6 so this is up for grabs. 
As new, some great stock presets, with a carry case and PSU - bassybill chucked in some batteries which I will include. 
runs off batteries as well which is a bonus. No manual I’m afraid but easily downloaded.

I'm only after what I paid, which is £111 plus postage - call it £116 delivered to your door.

stock picture - the unit is at my work and I won’t be back in until Monday now. 

No real budget in mind apart from under £500!

I’m not really an FX guy, never have been and most of the gigs I do require pretty standard sounds. However, I’m going FRFR and would like a good quality unit as a front end to this.

my needs would be:

- some good amp sims

- a nice chorus (I use fretless on some stuff)

- a decent synth bass sound for 80s stuff

- parallel processing if possible to run a standard bass sound under the synth bass sound…

- tuner (obvs)

- pc interface to build stuff

whatever else it comes with is a bonus.

I have been looking at the obvious - hx stomp, boss gt1000 core, zoom b2 four… but still none the wiser of what to buy!

the hx stomp was my initial plan… 

can anyone offer some solid advice?? The synth thing is quite important to me… and I hear mixed results with the stomp and gt core… I know cheaper end multi fx don’t have parallel processing… 

I know the zoom b2 four is quite new - anyone got any info??

thanks guys…

Just bought a Boss GT1B from Bill - excellent packaging and exactly as described with a couple of extras thrown in that I wasn't expecting!

Well recommended to all is Bill!

I have an Audient ID14 - 2 ins but has the optical for ADAT connection. Great units and defo a thumbs up from me.

I would imagine it would be a bit too far to travel! 
 

I can’t believe someone hasn’t snapped it up to be honest, especially at £300!  Oh well… 

I have a Magni 500 which I’m selling in the classifieds… it’s pretty much the same apart from neo speakers in the 502 and a bit lighter… 

they are great combos… I’m just finding I need a wedge setup more now, that’s the only reason I am selling. 
typical EBS sound, modern sounding and can do bright and zingy or dubby and mellow.

cannot recommend them enough.

pricey though… over a grand at bass direct. Ouch! 😁😁

6 minutes ago, Greg Edwards69 said:

I'm not sure I agree there. At 30.05 kg, that's the difference between a one hand carry and a two hand carry for me.  I can manage a single trip (over relatively short distances) with my 16.3 kg Headrush FRFR 112 in one hand, helix in the other and bass on my back.  That 30kg is more than some of us would want to lug around, regardless of the the number of hands or number of trips.

How do you find the Headrush? I have been looking at them but i find very much mixed reviews...

13 minutes ago, Baloney Balderdash said:

Looking at the specs the QSC K12.2 is not significantly lighter (only 7kg lighter), and got a low frequency response of 50Hz (-10B), vs the 45Hz (-3dB) (and I can attest that the low frequency response is impressive, but punchy and tight) of the 400% cheaper cabinet that I suggested (the active version that I mentioned that is, to compare apples to apples).

 

It does play louder though (1000W RMS/2000W peak vs. 300W RMS/1200W peak).

 

Also digital preamp vs. all analog.

 

But well, it's your money.

 

I am quite tempted by a https://www.thomann.de/gb/the_box_pro_dsx_112.htm - or possibly the 15" variant... for £266, you couldn't really complain! It isn't going to be an RCF or a QSC but the price is... well, a LOT cheaper. I did wonder about buying 2 - use one for small gigs - i do a fair bit of double bass jazz gigs and just need a tiny bit of reinforcement, and then for function gigs you could link 2 together to share the load... Something to consider...

Just now, Jack said:

I've been tempted by Thomann's own stuff once or twice. They do a few active pa cabinets that get there or thereabouts on specs with several forum faves and their prices are amazing. I own several Thomann own-brand products (including a speaker cabinet, the excellent Six Mix) and they tend to be really well received generally.

 

I haven't bought any yet though, because I bought a pair or QSC K12.2, which as you already know, is the real answer here.

The 12.2 would be my ideal choice, but at nearly a grand new, I can't believe how much they have gone up in price over the past couple of years. I had a 10.2 just before lockdown and paid around £600... now £200 dearer. Oh well... will see what I can get!

29 minutes ago, Ba55me15ter said:

Yamaha DXR12 (mk1) here. Works great!

The DXR12 had piqued my attention I must admit, a guitarist I know uses one with a kemper and it sounds immense!

Just now, lemmywinks said:

 

Yeah still have the original box so shouldn't be a problem. Also has the QSC carry bag and locking IEC cable etc.

Cool…. Let me know if you decide to!

42 minutes ago, jezzaboy said:

I use an RCF 715 mark 4. I have used it for monitoring on a large stage and use it in small pub gigs as my main bass amp. On these pub gigs, it keeps up with 2 Marshalls and a loud drummer.  Great bit of quality kit.

I was looking at one of these rather than it’s big 735 brother… I only intend to use it mainly as a bass monitor… so it would do a good job here??

30 minutes ago, lemmywinks said:

Crikey just seen the price of used K10.2, they were going for around £350-£400 on eBay not so long ago.

 

I'll be moving mine on in the not too distant future once I can sort a loaner cab out for the odd gig where I can't use IEMs.

Does that mean you might be selling 'very' soon??