Skybone

It's a real shame that they couldn't have sorted out their contractual issues with Bill Ward. Saw the original lineup on the "Reunion" shows at the NEC (the day they recorded it and released as the "Reunion" Live album). I'd waited 20-odd years to see them all together, and they didn't disappoint. Saying that, I wish I'd seen them with RJD as well. Geezer's still one of my bass playing "hero's".

The HD doesn't have as many amp or cab sims on it certainly, but the overall quality of the amp & cab sims far outweighs the PODxt. TBH, I was really concerned about the apparent "lack" of different amp & cab sims on the HD, I stuck with my old PODxt Live for a good while when I was researching a potential replacement. I figured that buying a second hand HD would be best, as if I didn't get on with it, I could turn it around and not be out of pocket. Anyway, I'm glad I went with the HD, it far outweighs the old XT by a long shot. I'm amazed that they've kept the old v2.0 (and it's various offspring - Pocket POD etc.) running as long as they have, instead of running with the XT, which was better than the v2.0. It would appear that the HD, the Firehawk and the Amplifi TT all sit in the same bracket, and the new "do it all" device is the Helix. Maybe Line6 should rethink their product range a bit more than they do. I have heard rumblings that the HD line is no longer being developed further (real shame).

Don't Carl Martin make something like that? There's also the SansAmp multi pedal. You mention you're not interested in a multi FX, but have you looked at the Zoom B3 or the Line6 M5/M9? The B3 is good, dead easy to use, and can be used like 3 individual pedals. The M5/M9 is AFAIK a bit more complex, but has a good reputation.

[quote name='Tripehound' timestamp='1485549355' post='3224931'] Thanks for the replies folks. Sounds like any will do a decent job and Sansamp appears to be a bit of an industry standard. I dabble on guitar and wondered about the Line 6 HD500X which models a few bass rigs - I wonder if this is an alternative? [/quote] On reading the first post, I thought about suggesting the HD500x. I bought one second hand last year, added the HD Bass pack, and never looked back, The amp sims are superb (good job, as there's only 4 or 5 bass specific sims), the effects sound great, and it's a good price (especially now that a lot of folk are selling up to upgrade to the Helix). It not only has standard output jack sockets, but XLR output sockets. I upgraded from a PODxt Live, the sims were good, but I found the effects to be a bit disappointing. Had a Zoom B3 before that. The HD sounds far better than either of them.

Fair enough, sounds like I'll be leaving it alone. The amp is a Hartke HA4000 (400w@ 4ohm), and the cab is a Gear4Music "RedSub" 2x10 (250w @ 4ohm). I'll not be using the pre-amp, as I'm running a HD500x, so I'll be using the "Return Post" socket on the rear panel & using the volume on the HD.

Something of a (very) minor quandary here... I bought a 2nd hand unmatched amp & cab a while ago, because they sounded superb together IMO. However, the amp's rated at 400w, and the cab at 250w (both at 4 ohms). It still sounds great, but, I'm a bit concerned about the speakers when the volume gets turned up, so I've been looking into alternative speakers at around 200w each, but not wanting to spend too much on them either. The Celestion BL10-200x is the most likely candidate. Anyone ever used them?

Good old 45-105 7350M Fender Stainless for me. Reasonably priced, hard wearing and sound good. Used Warwick Red Label's for a while (45-105 Stainless), they were about £10 from Thomann (plus £10 postage). Buy 4 packs and they were still cheaper than anything you could get in the UK. They were a bit rough though. Bought a batch of the Fender's from Thomann, until I found somewhere in the UK that did them at a better price & free postage. Result.

I'm in a similar situation to AdamWoodBass, as in I'm seriously considering a custom built bass by a UK luthier. I've even been in contact with my preferred maker, to mention specs etc. I'm kind of torn between getting a production bass from a low output producer (either new or second hand). I know they work, they work for me, and I like the sounds. Thing is though, for very similar money, I could own a one-off bass, with some gorgeous figured timbers, built to my specs etc. Either option would be superb, but can't decide between one or the orther. Good job I'm skint really.

Local Gumtee, loca Facebook musicians pages, adverts in local Music Shops. Oh, and lots of perserverance.

For me it's about the sound. My first few basses were passive. They sounded alright at the time, but I traded up. My first active, a Westone Thunder 1a, really did sound good and played really well (weighed a ton though!). So I started working my way through numerous active basses, including a couple of StingRay's. The last 3 or 4 active's I owned played really well, looked great, [i]but[/i], try as I might, I couldn't get a sound I liked out of them. I played with the EQ's, changed strings, tweaked pre-amp settings etc., etc. I could not find a sound I was happy with. They sounded OK in the shop when I tried them out, but were a massive let down when I got them home. After getting more frustrated, I tried someone's passive bass. Loved it, got a great sound out of it with my gear, so, went out to the local music shop, tried a number of different basses out, cam away with an MIM Jazz. Kept that for a few years until I got my hands on a 4003. I don't think I'll be in a hurry to go back to active's.

A very nice looking bass indeed. The grain of the fretboard is seriously nice. Not jealous, nope, not one jot...

Pots can be cleaned (Servisol is your friend here), but it sounds like you will need to spend a fair amount of time just doing maintenance on it to get it into a usable state. Offer £250-£300, if he accepts, buy it, clean it up, set it up, and sell it on. If he wants more, tell him you're not interested because of the condition and the time you'd have to spend on it to get it into a playable condition.

Thomann do a decent bag, it's the same size as the HD500(x), X3 and xt Live. Try using the HIWatt DR103 amp model, used that a lot on my old PODxt for bass.

The HD500x wasn't designed to be "off", so true bypass is kind of irrelevant. If you just want to use the effects, then the HD500 not the right unit for you. Though if you did use it for just effects, then it's still rather good without true bypass. Don't know much about the Firehawk.

If it sounds good, use it.

Before I started playing bass, I wanted a 4001. It took me another 20 years before I finally bought myself a 4003, and was gutted when I had to sell it on.

I managed to pick one up in those exact circumstances. Just keep an eye on eBay, the right one will come up. The guitar amp sims are pretty darn good too if you dabble with 6 strings. The effects are really good too.

AFAIK, the Line6 M9 & M13 are very good options, don't think they're using the HD model's, but they get very good reviews.

I'm using one as my main rig, I think it's a great piece of kit, and will certainly give you lots of options for home practice & home recording. The Bass Model pack is essential, and also very good. Good headphones are a good investment, either good quality Hi-Fi, or Pro Music headphones, I'm using a pair of Sennheiser HD200's and they're pretty good, I also plug it into my home stereo. For band use, I plug it into the rehearsal room's amp setup, using the Power Amp In or Effect Return, bypassing the amp's pre-amp. I got mine second hand, and you can get a nearly new, well looked after example with the original boxes for £250-300. Money well spent IMO.

A lot depends on whether you want modelling or not. The B3 is a great unit, but limited to 'only' 3 effects at once. I'm currently using a Pod HD 500x, I do use the modelling, but the effects are great as well. You can pick up one second hand for around £250. Factor in buying the bass amp models (it is well worth it!). It's a really good piece of kit. There's the Boss GT6 or 10B which are supposed to be better effects units, never tried either, so can't comment on them. The newer units like the Axe-fx, Kemper or Helix are big bucks, you'd have to be serious about multi-fx and modelling to go with any of them.

They used to, the BT 5 IIRC (or was it the BT6?)