Dom in Dorset

I've seen a few basses with a two precision pickups, one in the usual place , one as a bridge pickup. I think BC Rich do them. What are they like? How do they compare to a P/J combo? I'm thinking of recycling some spare parts as a double P.

[quote name='pietruszka' timestamp='1337252563' post='1657782'] Is this festival the one in June at Monmouth? Dan [/quote] No. The discussion was good natured, no harm done.

I had a short discussion with the band member who was negotiating this gig last night, he saw sense and unless we get a radically different offer we're out.

The story: I get an email saying that the X festival would like us to play there, no money but free ticket + some food. We played it a couple of years back and it was fun. Although I am available my wife is working so I'll have the kids that weekend so everything is going to be a bit more complex. The gig is in South wales so I'll be paying to cross the bridge and probably won't be able to stay over , so I won't get to use my free ticket. Our lead guitarist can't make it but we might be able to get a really good electric fiddle player in as a dep, she knows most of our stuff anyway. At this point I'm still happy to do the gig. Then I get an email saying that one of the festival organizers wants to play "two or three" numbers with us on ...tea chest bass. This is a 45 min slot (it probably incudes the sound check) , it's getting to a point where I have no interest in playing the gig. I told them that as it's not the full band anyway and my attendance is tricky that weekend how about they do it as a smaller acoustic lineup and I'll sit it out. the others think it will get us brownie points but I just think it's a naff idea that I just can't cooperate with. I think I'm being fairly diplomatic here ( some I've told about this said "if they said that to me I'd tell them to F#CK @FF!")

"X would really like to play tea chest bass on two or three of our songs, I think it could sound great."

It's the feel under the fretting hand that's all wrong. I play a 12 string for writing songs, pairs of strings feel much more comfortable to me.

I've used aluminium with no problems. My fretless jazz has a plywood one.

Have you tried taking your rig round to a friend's house? I get mains hum if I use my amp in the workshop, it's new wiring but at the end of a long spur. It's not as bad as your sample.

" <nothing> " - when what he should have said was " I can't rehearse this week so don't come round to my house with all of your gear because I wont be in. I told the drummer after a gig I played with him on Saturday but the rest of you are telepathic ,ok?"

I've not heard of using baking powder before but I've super glued bit's of paper into over filed slots before. After you've trimmed off any excess with a razor blade the repair is invisible (use a permanent marker to colour the paper for black nuts) It seems to last for ages. I once saw a double bass bridge that was heavily cut into by the strings , the owner ( a crazy old woman) used it for baroque music , apparently this requires lots of re-tuning and eats bridges. She used "araldite mixed with silver dust and baby powder" and was under the impression that this was the only way to do it. It hadn't worked. A friend of mine glued ebony inserts into the bridge to give a more permanent repair and hopefuly more resistance to ware.

I wanted one last year but there weren't any around (2nd hand) once I saved up the money. I tried one in Guitar Guitar in Brum (nice helpful people in the shop BTW) my only criticism was that the set up was awful , but then only the US delux models were set up nicely. Set up can fixed without too much trouble. Nice bass.

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1335126674' post='1626180'] You reckon the street lights dim when he turns that lot on? [/quote] No, the Sun dims when he turns that lot on.

[quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1335212850' post='1627473'] I didn't know they were still doing the road worns. [/quote] How else are they going to sell the basses that get scratched or dinked in the factory?

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1335102484' post='1625734'] Ah I'm just a bit adverse to squirting petrol about since my ASBO... [/quote] It's only a problem if the petrol is in a bottle with a burning rag in the top. But seriously ...I suspect that I've always used lighter fluid because you can get it from most news agents and petrol stations. I have also done the same job with meths, a bit more of a faff to apply it worked.

I'll email them later, you never know.. "Wow thanks for pointing that out, you've saved us thousands of $ in lost sales, legal action etc, have a free bass of your choice." Do you get much use out of the individual tone controls?

According to their website the neck pickup in this bass is a "Vintage Precision Bass® Single-Coil Pickup" They don't show any pictures without the cover on and an image search only turns up basses with what look like standard jazz pickups. What's going on under that cover?

I spotted it soon after it was posted (before anyone had replied) , my attention was drawn to the word BATH because it's near me.

Actually it's £4.39 for six of those! (I haven't bought any for a while and quickly looked up the price but didn't look at the results that carefuly) [url="http://www.shortersclub.co.uk/products/29557-swan-lighter-fluid-extra-refined-100ml-pack-of-6.aspx"]http://www.shortersc...-pack-of-6.aspx[/url] I've always had it in the workshop for cleaning and de-greasing. So..one of those is £2.30 cheaper than propper switch clearner... bargain!

It does say (BATH) in the title. How often do you play? How far do you travel? How much £££? Some idea of repertoire would be helpful.

I've always used this stuff:Works a treat,nice directional nozzle, leaves no residue and costs about £5. Squirt it into the pot through the slot and turn the knob back and forth a few times as it evaporates.

My thinking on this sort of thing is that unless it's for a cause I'm particularly passionate about "everybody gets one freeby" beyond that I want something (what that is depends on the exact circumstances).

Go to a few and copy the format of your favorite! It's also a good way of publicizing your own.

[quote name='seashell' timestamp='1333457047' post='1601925'] I saw Rockette Morton (Magic Band) do that once, so you are in good company! [/quote] He'd probably been instructed to do it as an important part of the composition by the Captain.

I've loaned a bass to a player who'd forgotten to bring their own. Played with someone who after two years discovered that their digital tuner was set to A 442. I know of (another forum member) who drove home 50miles from a gig only to realize that he'd left his bass behind. I'm so paranoid about forgetting stuff at gigs that I too am a list maker, I also have a suitcase of leads etc that includes a spare everything + kitchen sink. My personal schoolboy error is to stand on my lead and unplug myself mid song.

I was including the human cost of hand winding plutonium cored pickups.