razze06

Nice fretless thunder. Did they used to do a fretless version of the previous variant (with the skunk stripe and split pickup)?

I've tried that ibanez in the shop, but couldn't afford the price tag. I've always loved the 4 string version, and that seemed like the low string was just an extension of the other, not a different beast. I will go to the shop on saturday with an open mind

I usually drop my ancient HH VS Bassamp in the back of the car. It's sturdy, loud, and relatively light and easy to carry, and very cheap to buy and repair. I have used that instead of my TC RH450 in particularly dodgy venues, where beer may be spilt, people fall down drunk over kit, or gear just disappears from stage during breaks...

Thanks for all the comments, I'll try stuff, check my bank balance and report back. I personally think that 5 string Fenders look wrong, but that's just me

Nice video, very informative. I've played the bass at band practice last night, and realised that I was struggling quite badly with the overall tone, not just from the B string. My preference is for a strong presence, with plenty of low mids and punch. I swapped the Yammy for my warwick corvette and the Westone (strung with flats), and the difference in tone was massive. I've decided to return the bass to the shop I bought it from, and pick another 5er. I need to like the overall tone before I can worry about the differences in timbre between strings

Thanks for the sound advice (see what I did there?) I know someone who's a 5 string enthusiast, maybe he can advise on the specific bass and sound. Different strings is a definite possibility, I may have a set lying about at home, see what gauge they are. The BB615 has a funny bridge that extends backwards in correspondence of the lowest string. This should give a scale close to 35 inch for that string only, as opposed to 34 for the rest of the strings. Perhaps a lighter gauge string could help...

I've recently purchased my first 5-string bass (Yamaha bb615) in a very long time. My reasons for the purchase are quite pragmatic: we often need to transpose songs down to a different key to suit our singer's range, and having a low B string would help with that. I have noticed that the difference in timbre and tone of the same note played on the B string and on the E string are very different. To be precise, I think that the low B sounds louder and shoutier in the higher register (above the F#), and hollow on the lower notes. I tried the bass using a variety of setups, including all my amps, through my cabs and a hartke 4x10. The tone changes, but the same differences apply. I believe the Yamaha is a good quality bass, with nice tension on the low B, and adequately low action. The sound on the other strings is perfectly agreeable, but the difference on the low B is quite clear. My question is: is there anything I should adjust on the eq, setup, playing technique to mitigate the effect? Is it something to do with the bass? Is it just the way things are?

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1404726434' post='2495007'] I think I'm one of those who is guilty of spending too much time trying to achieve a certain tone/rig. To be honest, I sound like me, and I probably like colour in my tone from amps/cabs and the occasional pedal. I really don't care so much what is flat, what is compressed/where compression is used, and whether my bass sounds 'natural', probably because I don't listen to any music that players who strive for those tones do. I've conciously taken less time worrying about it and more time trying to find more interesting musicians, playing, or seeing live bands. In all honesty, the best policy I can have as a customer is if it sounds great with a band rehearing and gigging, and at home, then it ticks the right boxes. There is just too much choice and almost like information overload with the amount of varying viewpoints. Most players outside of TB and BC have not heard the TC Elec way of having their amps 'loud'...and I bet they are happily playing all the time with plenty of power and plenty of tone. Same with all the brands, I guess. [/quote] I bought my TC amp before reading about their power management system, and I liked it (to the extent expressed above). I then read the article, thought it was a clever way of doing it, and kept playing the same rig

If you can afford it, get the one you really like. Otherwise you'll end up playing one thinking about the other... Appreciation and depreciation is not really a concern IMO, unless you're buying and selling them for a living

Others have commented that TC amps suck the life out of the tone, and I might agree to a certain extent. Truth is that the tone is in the ears of the listener, as also already mentioned before The RH450 has a certain set of tonal characteristics which will affect the sound of the bass, foremost of which to me is the quality of the high frequencies. My personal listener experience is that the tone I get for live work is perfectly acceptable, volume is more than sufficient, adaptability of the eq to the venue and position is good, and presence in the mix is good. I also see that this may not work for many people, as I don't love glassy highs, or deep deep lows. What does it for me is that it is a good, adaptable amp with lots of useful features. I do not LOVE it, but it's great for live work and I shall keep on using it

Because moar is moar. Moar wattz.

It's in my band's extended setlist. I don't particularly love or hate it, our singer makes an awesome version of it, but we don't play it at every gig. Works very well with an audience of 30-40 something year olds, especially ladies. Not a dance number I tune down to Eb for it, but i'll try with my new 5 string, see if that works better

I've just tried and rejected a LB30 in great condition on that very basis. Lovely tone (especially nice clear higher frequencies), but as you get it to band practice volume, all lows are overdriven and fuzzy. that can be good for some things, but not for everything. i hear it's got a nice DI output if you want to use it through a good PA.

Like any other amp, the RH450 has its own voicing. If you are trying to recreate the sound of a different amp, you'll have to use the shift. I found that you can do a lot for the sound by playing a little with the shift of the bass and low mids. Lowering the shift of the bass, perhaps increasing the shift of the low mids can help. Remember to to save the setting by keeping one of the preset button pressed, so you won;t have to do it again

I think the RH450 is what you need TBH. If you forget all the multiple settings, all you have is gain, 4 tone knobs, tube gain and volume. That's just two more knobs than you need... Frankly almost anything else you have mentioned so far is inferior to the RH450 IMO.

The Peavey T40 is always my first recommendation for many questions , but there are other very versatile and unusual basses to try out. Yamaha BB series are pretty useful, and I've got a thing for high-end Ibanez, like the SR1200 VNF.

[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1403564688' post='2484058'] There's not that much a peavey T40 can't do tonally... and that would stand out... [/quote] This.

fair enough, I'll see what it's like if and when I come along

Anyone been before? What happens if you've got a few things you are looking to trade or sell, do you just walk in with the basses under your arms and set up "shop" on the floor?