thodrik

[inserts ‘my current in ears/amp sim/FRFR speaker set up is superior to any traditional amp and cab set up I have owned’ comment]… Seriously, I have been using a Mesa Walkabout 1x15 combo for 90% of my gigs since 2009. This was bought as my ‘portable’ rig when I joined a signed band. I also had a EBS Fafner (bought at the same time as the Mesa) and Peavey era Trace Elliot cabs (couldn’t afford the Mesa or EBS cabs..) as my big rig but really it was overkill for most gigs and I rarely used it. The Walkabout has pretty much handled most of my gigging needs, particularly with the development of modern PAs and tendency for guitarists to no longer use 100 watt Marshall half stacks. I still love big amps and cabs but more as ‘cool luxury things’ than something that I actually need. I still own the Fafner and it is great even after 14 years of use. I also have a Trace Elliot V6 which I bought in 2013 to fix my ‘I need a valve amp’ wish. I also finally bought my 2009 dream setup of a Mesa Big Block 750 and Powerhouse 6x10 over the course of 2017-2018. Utterly impractical in every sense but a tremendous piece of gear. This was essentially a ‘bucket list’ purchase and I only bought them because I found both items on the used market for a great price. Going back to my first paragraph my next amp purchase will probably be a Helix or something similar. I can’t see myself needing another amp unless one of my main three amps break down.

Had to go for Thunderball on discovering that Tom Jones at the time had no votes. I love the Bond films, so I find it very difficult to choose my favourite. Sam Smith's insipid effort is probably my least favourite. However if the original Bond theme is included, on reflection that kinda has to be number one.

Happy Gigging!

Make Amps Great Again.

I am probably in the minority but my interest in old school bass amps from the 1970s through to the mid 2000s outweighs my interest in bass guitars. I am always far more likely to buy an amp or a cab than I am a bass guitar. My main interest areas are generally either heavy rock or old school blues where artists are generally sticking to the traditional amplification routes. Yes, with modern technology there is the ability to gig with in-ears and if I was gigging in a group that required me to use them then I definitely would and definitely would if I was in an international touring act, but I'm not. I am also aware that in a gigging scenario my amp is essentially just a personal monitor and the FOH is receiving a different signal altogether. However, in most scenarios I still prefer that to having in ears or using a EQ/DI pedal and using a wedge monitor. At this point I play music for pleasure and it brings me more pleasure to use an actual amp than in ears or amp modulations of the amps I already own. As a result I will generally use one unless requested otherwise. When I am paid for a gig though I generally do whatever is asked of me without fuss. For context I am 36 and still able to lift stuff and my hearing is still good, my answer in 20 years time might well be fairly different!

Yepp, I was aware that. No point trying to go as low as F on the bass with music that fast.

My five string Sadowsky is fitted with a strange range of 130, 95, 70, 50 and 32 strings. I tuned to Drop B (so B, F#, B, E, A), so it is technically 'tuning up' rather than tuning down. I have tried the same strings at standard B-G and found the strings to be a bit loose for my tastes. For standard tuning, generally I find that a 100-40 set is about right, however I have always fancied trying a 90-30 set from some slaptastic stuff.

Actually, just thinking, a two pickup model would be cool. You could space them apart for 60s and 70s Jazz Bass positions or move them together to create a dual JJ pickup like in a Warwick thumb. Even better if the body had indicative markings of '60s/70s/Musicman 'Sweet Spot' etc on the body.

Has potential but really needs a built in octave pedal, some go faster stripes to help you play faster and a suitcase handle on the flat edge to help with portability.

Hmm, I had something similar with my old Mesa combo. I think it ended up being a faulty driver. I eventually replaced the driver. If you could identify which speaker that the distortion is coming from then that would be a start.

Yep, definitely something wrong there. I have the same amp and it is loud as hell. Normally my passive Fender Precisions causes the Gain LED to start clipping just after 12 o'clock position. As Warwickhunt says above try other basses, cabs and cables to try and eliminate variables. From my understanding of the amp, I don't think that it will be a dodgey valve that will be causing all of the issues. The amp is designed in such a way that if the valve fails, then the amp should still operate but you will lose the drive function. Try turning the drive control to zero. Definitely needs a tech to have a look at it. However, it might be worth trying a new valve. The process of changing the valve is very easy. Simply buy a new 12AX7 valve, remove the top of the amp and remove the existing valve and place the new one in its place. If that doesn't solve the problem then you will at least have removed one of the variables.

It seems that even with the volume set at zero there is a signal coming through the speakers. If you are just plugging the amp into the interface then just disconnect the cab. The EBS heads do not need to be connected to a cab to be used as a preamp. Those cabinets are designed for loud stages and high volume applications. I don't think that making sure that the cabs are dead silent when the master volume is at zero and the stand by is turned off was a design consideration. So long as there is no audible distortion when the cab is connected and the volume is turned up then I would consider it to be an issue. Great set up!

I use a D’addario 120-50 set for D standard and drop C. The low D is no different in tension to a 110 tuned to E. Gives a tight low D. Personally I find a 115 gauge fine for D but too light for anything below that. However I find a 55 and 75 too tight for the F and C strings for my personal tastes. Edit: I also don’t use anything less than 130 gauge for a low B so I suppose it comes down to personal taste.

Pretty much as stated by @Baloney Balderdash above. Try a Musicman Stingray and Gibson EB3 one after another and the differences should appear fairly apparent!

Probably this. £229 at Andertons. Great upper fret access, lightweight and great looks.

Probably a neck through Warwick or Spector Forte five string. Maybe one of the older neck through Vigiers. Generally the list of bass related items I really want to try relates to amps and cabs though. Mesa 400+, Matamp GT200, Trace Elliot V8 and Bergantino NV 4x12 etc. I don’t need any of them I just kinda want to experience what they do in person.

12. Entered a local battle of the bands where the prize was the chance to open for Shed Seven or the Levellers or something like that (can’t remember exactly, but it was someone vaguely relevant in 1999). We won but couldn’t play the resulting gig because of our age. Started playing in pubs doing 3 hour sessions of classic rock covers shortly after that. Probably wasn’t legal but I was getting paid and it was a decent earner until after I left school. I actually made more money doing that than when I was in a ‘signed’ band in my twenties.

While you can, I would recommend trying a Vigier Excess. Massive rock beast that sits somewhere between a Rickenbacker, active Jazz bass and Precision. As of the end of the year there will also be no new Vigier basses. Also, you can't go wrong with a Spector or a Warwick Streamer. I would still like a Warwick Thumb. I don't think Fender actually do any 24 fret four strings at the moment.

I always liked the ‘install a jazz bass pickup in the bridge of a P bass’ mod I have been tempted over the years of adding a better bridge and hotter pickups but never got round to it.

In terms of the pickguard, it was like that when I got it as a 13 year old in 1999. From what I can remember, one of the previous owners had been having major problems with the jack socket and was getting really fed up of having to take the whole pickguard off every time he/she wanted to access the jack socket. So he/she must have got a luthier to cut the pick guard into two to make it easier to access the jack socket without having to take the rest of the pickguard out. It is actually a pretty neat job and was probably by some kind of luthier in the London area as that is where the bass was bought by me. As it is, the jack socket was a bit dodgy when I got it. My brother (then 15) re-soldered the connection soon after I got it and has worked perfectly ever since. There is a bit of a gap between the pickguard pieces, so there is probably a good bit of sweat and moisture which seeps through the gap though the various gigs and rehearsals and being lugged around the country. It also devalues the bass, but as it has been my 'go to' bass since 1999, it frankly will never get sold by me. When I got the bass, it also included a replacement pickguard which may or may not have been a period correct replacement Fender pickguard or it could be the 1980s equivalent of a Stagg replacement. It is somewhere in my parent's attic and I haven't looked for it since about 2001.

I think that they later changed their name to Kalium to avoid confusion.

When your bass is over 40 years old and you haven’t cleaned it properly for 15… Looking better now, though I probably should have taken a ‘before’ photo. Nitro finish on the neck is now disappearing faster than my hair…In both cases I have now taken a ‘let nature take its course’ approach. Plays great, sounds great. Tuned to C sharp standard. It hasn’t been tuned above D standard since 2010.

I tried Newtone for a custom low tuning set and was distinctly underwhelmed. I asked for a five string set that would work for a low A tuning (A D G C F). I got a ‘heavy core’ string set where the low A was about the size of a tapered 135 gauge B string that worked okay as for a low B wasn’t much use below that. The D string was also pretty much a standard E string that got pretty floppy even at E flat. The core tone at E standard tuning was really nice but that wasn’t what I ordered and I had provided them with plenty of information with regards to my tuning requirement and string tension preferences. I realise that my experience might be an exception considering other Basschatters give glowing reviews. However for the price I paid I wouldn’t use them again. I found that buying D’addario singles and creating my own set was cheaper and worked better in practice. I generally found the tapered 145 as working pretty well for a low A and A sharp. I experimented with the tapered 160 gauge but it was nearly overkill for a low A. Thankfully the lowest I tune to these days is drop C and D’addario have a 120-50 balanced tension set that works fine or I can make up a set of Elixir singles in similar gauges which last about 18 months!

Anything under £500 is a steal. Anything over £650 is pushing it unless it is in pristine condition with the matching Mesa rack case. Anything over £900 is the seller being aspirational rather than realistic with their pricing strategy.

A 14 year thread resurrection! Is that a Basschat record? As it is, I played a gig with one. It was alright, definitely a decent amp. Don't think it would be my first choice of call for a backup amp these days with really small class D amps being a lightweight alternative.