rumour6

A Dan Armstrong sliding pickup medium scale bass... from purchase to return as trade-in: 6hrs (including one each way on the bus...). Don't know why I ever took it out the shop never mind parting with cash...

I recently picked up a Jazz5 from hillbilly deluxe: Howard body, Jim neck: best Jazz I've owned. [attachment=132170:IMAG0057.jpg]

Funny you should mention it but... I've never used Gibson basses (apart from a small shot of a week or so to convince myself it was against nature...) BUT, recently I keep looking at a Flying V bass on these very pages... I'm 56 and should know better... or should I

As per Mr F above.. an 80's Hiwatt 200 or 400 is BEYOOONNNDDD!!! Less said about M'ground the better. OR and early (up to series V)Trace. More recent but still in the past, the Marshall DBS 400W head was superb sounding (I agree Marshall are often overlooked as doing good bass amps). Up to date I'd love to hear a Laney Nexus tube head but never even seen one in the flesh.

Hi there, welcome aboard!! All of the basses you've listed are good quality instruments as are the Classic vibe Fenders. Things that I have found make a big difference are:[list] [*]Scale length: are they all 34" or are any 35". Personally I find 35" just too much. [*]String spacing: Standard 19mm is fine on 4's but on 5's sometimes a little less 18mm or even 17.5mm may make the bass less of a handfull. [*]Active or passive: your list contains a mix and depending on your amp some may work better. [/list] All the basses you list should be OK for both live and studio use in general. Good pickups and electrics should make for 'quieter' operation into a desk but not so much live. Of the three you list I'd probably go with the Yamaha (as they are so consistent and well made) or a Classic Vibe Jazz. If you can you should definitely try them and if at all possible with your own amp.

I've used Seiko tuners for 20yrs... current one (not floor mount) is a SAT800 Heavy duty one.. does the job on 5's and 6's no problem... I think you can get them from Amazon for about £17!! which is less than half what I paid a year ago.

Deffo go down buying a more powerful unit second hand... if only there was a nearby place selling lots of used bass gear.... hmmmm. The older Trace gear is starting to be no money for what you get (as suggested above).

Definitely sounds like a pre-amp tube acting up... should be relatively easy to check out and if no-one you know has a spare a new tube is only around £10. 'course you might prefer 'burst' after awhile...

A 410 moves roughly as much air as a 215 so any single 15 would have to be pretty efficient.. that aside I've been using 10s/15s mixed for yonks and have just gone back (shows age) to a standard 215 (Trace 1524) with my SVT Classic... just more ooommmfff, Seems to be plenty of top for me (no tweeter). Probably summed up as more 'room filling' less 'punchy' so depends on what you want. Currently *all rattling is winning...

Shows age... I had a Selmer T&B 50 (new: 70's) and decided to 'upgrade' to the new 100W tranny head (Bass 100 (Norlin idea/design))... weighed way less, was louder, sounded OK... but only for about 10 mins then it cut off and was too hot to touch: back to shop: repeat... Having done this SEVEN times with DIFFERENT units I went with the 100W tube head. Turns out they (Norlin) got it wrong and all units suffered from thermal runaway; never seen one since... luckily. Offending beast [attachment=132095:Selmer Bass 100.jpeg]

0116 Recurve Classic 5 fretless Can't believe I've not done this so far... picked the bass up last summer and still get overawed every time I pick it up. It's the easiest to play fretless I've ever owned and the new circuit ensures it's also the most versatile sounding. Alan and I have reasonably similar taste is bass sounds and playability options but here he's read my mind (OK, short read). The pix... [attachment=132079:Full F.jpg] [attachment=132080:Full R.jpg] [attachment=132081:Body F.jpg] [attachment=132082:Body R.jpg]

I recently got the 'not pink' jazz from hillbilly deluxe; I'd not come across the Howard/Jim Cairnes combo before... It's the best 'Jazz' I've played, the feel is just perfect. I know it was a big deal to let it go but just to say I do appreciate it. Having this bass i just can't believe there are not more big names playing work by these guys.