MoJoKe

I just bought the new Markbass Vintage preamp, it has exactly the same preamp as the Vintage head but no limiter knob, so the warmth and breakup is gorgeous! Trust me you'll want both!!! Imagine being able to rehearse with headphones and have exactly the same tones! Also, I've never really been into drives, but the Preamp has two different drives, one of which I can really see myself using.

Now, for disclosure, many here know I'm a long term Markbass user (my main rig is currently a Casa head into 2 x STD121HR cabs) and I do the odd bit of work for MSL, the UK distributor, but as we haven't had many guitar shows to do, thats been a bit sparse this year... 😞 However, they sent me one of the new Vintage preamps to have a look at before it went to Bass Guitar Review for them to look at. Anyway BGR are not going to get their grubby little hands on this one because I've only been and gone and bloody bought it!! Its got some pretty clever tricks, which set it aside from other preamp/drive pedals. The preamp is based on the Little Mark Vintage head, so it has Gain, Master, 4 x tone knobs set with the same frequencies as the head and, instead of filters, a three way flat/scooped/old switch, which works along with the tone controls to give huge tonal variety. There's no clip light, so loading in a boot full of gain doesn't cause any issues, it just introduces a lovely warm tube gain. It also has a boost switch, giving +6dB headroom. Pressing and holding the drive button for 2 secs switches between two different drives, one modern rocky, the other a more organic old school drive, which can be blended with the clean tone. I've never used drive pedals, but I can definitely see myself using the old school drive, both can be ferocious or very very subtle. It has input/output, a transformer DI out and an effects loop. Then it gets clever... It has a Digital out, both RCA and Toslink, s/pdif switchable between 44.10, 48 and 96KHz. This evening I have been playing with it using an optical cable, directly into my Audient ID44, and it sounds fabulous. The aux in and headphone jacks are sensibly on the top of the box, making it a great practice amp, its going to work well for silent stage, in-ear gigs, and I'm looking forward to doing some recording with it. I'm a happy bunny and gonna enjoy my early Christmas present to myself, because I'm not gigging until NYE, and even that is looking less likely by the minute.

Yeah! That one is a bit odd, because I think the flats actually feel very soft to the touch, but maybe it means they are just not as bendy!

I've used and recorded with all types, with the exception of the Balanced strings... They are referring to the feel of the strings. Although they use exactly the same type of wire, the Ultimates and Advanced are wound differently and that gives them a softer and more bendy feel under the fingers compared to the Energy/Groove, which are great strings but more like yer average steels and nickels. Sorry, thats not very scientific, but I'm not sure I can explain any better!

...and each to their own on this one. I love the music but I'm happy to park the church bit... but just so you know, most of the current young upcoming bass players and musicians I work with have either come through gospel or see the form as a fundamental root and influence to their playing style, so you're pretty much gonna be guaranteed disappointed with what they can come up with!

Yeah, I'd say that was really quite harsh. Nobody is selling his music or talent for you to even think about putting your hands in your pockets and spending your precious money yet as far as I know, so let's not just slap it down, shall we? While he'd definitely be advised to reign in the gurning a bit, he is clearly a very talented youngster who will hopefully stick with learning the bass and become an exceedingly talented adult player. I bloody love that thought. And, in case you didn't notice, we live in a Youtube/Tiktok age. Kids don't watch much, if any conventional TV these days. I don't like it much either but for goodness sake deal with it! I am (and I suspect you are too) of an age where we strove to get ourselves seen and get into bands and get a deal so that we could be famous, sell records and make our fortune. It didn't work for most, but at least there was a known pathway. In case the largely +50 demographic here hasn't actually noticed yet, it don't work like that any more. Releasing albums and singles won't pay the rent, with Spotify and the like needing tens of thousands of listens to even cover minimum wage. I suspect most young bass players who visit this site to do anything other than look at ads for second hand gear see posts like yours and think there's not much to be learned from this forum. I personally find that deeply disappointing. 😩

He can keep up with the grown ups too.... (yes there is another bass player on stage, but check out at 8.50.....)

This little dude is already a Markbass endorsee!!

me too!

Make sure you are linking them with a speaker cable, not a guitar cable. Set all EQs at 12 o'clock and filters off, turn the gain up slowly until the clip light starts to flash when you dig in, then back it off until it rarely flashes. Turn up the volume, and you will now sound awesome! Most Markbass users will not move the tone controls much more than +/- 1 or 2, preferring to use a combination of the VLE (vintage loudspeaker emulation, knocks the high frequencies back to sound more old school) and VPF (variable preshape filter, scoops the mids and boosts the bass/top to give a more modern tone) to get the perfect tone...

I regularly gig 4 basses, Elixir usually give me 7-8 months with the way I play and amount of gigs, so that could be 6 packs of strings a year... happy I might save £60....

Me too re- Elixir I've used them exclusively on all my basses for years now, except for a 5 minute trial of some NYXL coated, which I hated... True that, re-longevity. Mind you, for around a tenner less for a set, its potentially less of an issue... proof is in the pudding!

why do you say that? why should they?

Jealousy warning alert - I am thoroughly blessed to have just come back lat night from a 4 gig mini tour in Cyprus, it was very touch and go as to whether we'd even get there, what with waiting for Covid test results and stuff, but we made it. Instruments were provided, and I was given an MIM Precision to use so I took a set of LongEvo Steels with me and restrung it (it had some nice flats on it, but flats just aren't my thing!) and it sounded like this:

My Gig Last night.... VID-20200926-WA0002.mp4

Maybe Markbass think these are more resilient and durable than the competition so not even an issue? 😜 Being a massive and long time Elixir fan this didn't go unnoticed for me either, as I always feel Elixirs need to be handled with kid gloves until fully restrung... Maybe they are more resilient, I guess the proof is in the longevity. I'm not with you on your "underwhelming" comment, but then it's what it sounds like when the bass is plugged into something which matters to me. My Precision sounded fat and jangly when recorded through my Audient ID44, and having gigged it, full and punchy through an amp and PA. I can honestly say the stainless steels also sound great on my Lakland 55-02. I seriously need very good reasons to switch from Elixir, because I'm so comfortable with them, but at the moment my feeling is I will switch to these. However, early days still.

Dave, the LongEvo 45-105s went onto my JV precision, which replaced a set of Elixir 45-105s without any changes to setup. The coating is far less obvious on them compared to Elixir, which in my experience is much thicker, where the LongEvo feel much more like regular strings...

I said I'd give a post-gig update... I used my JV precision with its new set of LongEvo strings. 2 x 1 hour shows (Warners Norton Grange on the Isle of Wight. The way they are working around the regulations is for the bands to do two slots with a completely different audience each time, and the venue cleaned down in between). To be honest, I wasn't even aware I was playing different strings to my usual Elixir Nanoweb Mediums, which I have used on all my basses (including my fretless) for about as long as they've been available. The LongEvo were comfortable to play, they felt ever so slightly less "slippy" than Elixir and feel a bit softer maybe, and they sounded great. I would have suggested that I need to see how well they are going to last before I can truly compare, but given that they are the same price as the Advanced/Ultimate strings, which sell for around £28 elsewhere, and are therefore about £10 less than the equivalent Elixir, this is less of a consideration. So... If you've not tried them before, some advice to those who are trying coated strings for the first time... 😉 I interestingly just watched an Elixir "how to change your strings" youtube, but I am absolutely not going to share it here, because the guy committed the mortal sin for coated strings (clearly they want you to buy them more often than you actually need!!). The coatings on all brands of coated strings is very thin, but while it's also quite tough, it can easily be damaged. So you need to feed the strings gently and carefully through the bridge, body ferrules and string trees, anywhere its metal on metal. Having spent your hard earned dosh on a new pack, the last thing you want to do is pre-strip the coatings by effectively attacking them with a cheese grater!!! In the early days of Elixir strings people often complained they started going "fuzzy" very quickly, with the coating peeling off. This was almost entirely explained by people yanking them thorough the bridge in the way they always had before, and they'd already "pre-damaged" them without realising! Also, as with all bass strings, ALWAYS bend/kink the end before cutting to length. It helps stop the windings loosening from the core. IMHO this is the biggest reason why people experience "dead" strings.

I've used Line6 for years now. I have a rack mounted G55, and have just picked up a used G50 for £80. IMHO you can't beat Line 6 (unless you go Sennheiser maybe)... that said, the guitarist in my band uses an Xvive, and I've never noticed him drop out... well priced and rechargeable.

I already have some of these! 😁 A couple of months ago, before these were released, MSL asked me to do a YouTube comparison of the different series of strings. When the LongEvos landed in the UK I was sent a set of each (steels and nickels), with the intention of adding them to the video. When the additional tracks had been done, the tonal difference between these and the Energy and Groove series was imperceivable, so it was decided it wasn't worth changing the video as it just made it longer for no real gain! I have been an exclusive user of Elixirs for the last 6-7 years or so (by choice, not endorsment! Chance would be a fine thing!). I love the feel of them and have always felt that, and long life is well worth the extra expense. My love for them is now on hold until I see how long the LongEvo's last, because they feel/play great and the street price is going to be about £10 less for a comparable set of Elixir! I have set of Steels on one of my JVs, which I have recorded with, but not gigged yet (we're out tomorrow so will update if I have further to report!), and a set of Nickels on my Lakland 55-02. If you want to hear the LongEvo Nickels in action, wind your ears around this:

Yeah, I don't trust a man jack of them to do the job properly!!! 🤣😂

I did 3 proper gigs (holiday parks) in August, and I have 5 in September, including 4 dates in Cyprus. It goes a bit quieter in October, but I still have work in November/December. They're all a bit "strange and different" and audiences are socially distanced with no dancefloor antics (just dancing on tables in your family bubbles!) but thank heavens some venues/businesses are finding a way...

Here's my cable case before a gig: And here's what it looks like after a gig: All in a Peli (iecs and Speakons live elsewhere), all twist wrapped and with those elastic ties (MUCH better than velcro!). I have always done this, I usually put away all band cables at the end of each gig (there are about 24 XLRs in there, it takes me no more than 10 minutes, I don't trust anyone else to do them properly), and I have several 40 year old cables in my collection which are still perfectly serviceable. Look ofter your equipment and it wont let you down.... And carry spares of anything you reasonably can.