thodrik

In my opinion the pre shape needs to be re-balanced by adding some of the mids back in via the graphic EQ (say around 300-600HZ) and then taming the ultra lows (40HZ) and ultra highs to get rid of some of the built in subiness and glassiness. Once you do that you can get a number of really usable sounds. Basically I find the pre shape useful as a basis on which to sculpt a sound, rather than a sound in itself. In terms of of the compressor, I am afraid I have not had much experience with that amp, though I did have a similar experience to you when using the compression on the SMX 300 unit I had for a 6-7 years. After the smallest turn of the control there was already too much compression. Too much compression, not matter how good the compressor will kill the sound though so I generally don't use compression that much.

That really does not mean much to me I am afraid. I just play bass and know when smoke appears from the amp or when there is no sound then something is wrong! If an amp manufacturer makes an amp that works on 2 ohm or 4 ohm loads an includes impedance selectors and inputs to provide for this on the back of the amp, then it should work on 2 and 4 ohm loads. The Ampeg SVT II has this so should be stable at 2 ohms. If it doesn't then the amp is not doing what it is designed to do or what the manufacturer claims it can do. With valve amps though, when things go wrong, things get expensive to fix so it best to be cautious. For that reason I would be more wary of using the amp with a single 8 ohm than two 4 ohm cabs. Two eight ohm cabs giving a four ohm load would be fine, but then I would feel obligated to bring both cabs to every gig or rehearsal, which would defeat the purpose of having the flexibility of two cabs. Most non valve amps are 4 ohm minimum, so I wouldn't ever use a 2 ohm load on an amp that isn't capable of doing it.

Just checking the price, very reasonable indeed!

Good choice. The Ampeg SVT II is a tone monster. I believe that the SVT II runs on 2 ohm or 4 ohm load, so you should ideally be looking for a single 4 ohm cabinet or two compact cabinets . Since your amp can handle a 2 ohm load, it might be fun to get two lightweight 4 ohm 2x10s. This would give you a light weight 4x10 set up but it would be much more easy to move than a single 4x10. If you are used to a 6x10 I think that moving to a 1x12 set up would be a bit extreme. Plus the cab would be so much smaller than your amp. If you want to keep a similar sound to your 6x10, I would get either a 4 ohm 4x10 or 4 ohm 2x10. If money is no object, then the new Mesa Subway cabs are very powerful and very lightweight (and very very expensive). Barefaced, Vanderkley, Aguilar, Bergantino, EBS (Neoline for weight saving), Matamp and Darkglass would be in my thoughts for 'top shelf' bass cab considerations. You really can't go wrong with any of them. The Ampeg speakers are not the most efficient so you might find that moving to a modern design 4x10 provides far more volume than you current set up.

I love that being 'Punk' is a reason by itself.

I have sinnned sinned and sinned again this year: In: Mesa Big Block 750 Mesa Rectoverb 1x12 guitar combo Darkglass Alpha Omega Out: Mesa M6 EBS Billy Sheehan Drive pedal Catalinbread Sabracadabra pedal Trace Elliot 1x15 Bass Cab Fender American Special Toronado guitar On the positive side it is technically more out than in and my net spend has only been about £300. I am also down to one guitar now, but now at least I actually own a guitar amp!

Back when I was younger (circa 1998) you could buy a 1970s Fender Jazz or Precision for less than a 'new' American Standard equivalent. This was on the basis that 1970s were not that desirable as the quality control varied greatly from bass to bass. Now the same basses are going for much more than than American 'Professional' equivalent. So my 'non-desirable' late 70s Precision has probably doubled in value, despite actually being in worse condition than when I bought it given I have been playing it every day for twenty years. Same with my 1974 Gibson EB3, which is a great investment but generally sounds like mud. It is difficult to anticipate what will be a 'great' investment. Given what happened to me by accident, buying Fenders and Gibsons which are about 25-30 years old (so late 80s to early 1990s) might be a good investment over the long term as: (a) they don't command 'vintage' prices but in a few years they will be classed as 'vintage' Fender as they will be 35 years old and will be a good entry point for people who want a vintage Fender but have been priced out of the 1960s and 1970s markets. The returns here though will not be immediate, not be guaranteed and in will not be that great compared to buying an 1970s Les Paul, putting it in a case for ten years and then selling it on. However the big returns are from buy something for relatively cheap which in the future becomes highly desirable. My other query is whether a lot of the 'boutique' bass builders' creations will result in the instruments becoming highly valuable. So for example, will the value of NYC Sadowsky/Fodera/Vigier/insert custom builder be more valuable when the head luthiers retire? Or will these boutique companies actually become less desirable as other 'new' boutique builders take their place? My bet would be on them being more valuable (look at the price of old Wals!) but you never know. If I was a serious 'for profit' collector I would probably focus more on vintage guitars (Les Pauls and Teles) and guitar amps (1970s Fenders and Marshalls) rather than basses which is always going to be more of a niche market.

Oh no, someone is scooping the mids! Someone call the bass guitar forum police! One should always run the EQ on an amp 'flat' and should only play through a FRFR cab and only adjust the EQ the suit the particular ambience of the room. Seriously though, I would agree with the post above. I would also add that a lot of amps have an inbuilt 'character/pre shape' settings which when engaged result in a mid cut. On a three band gig with one shared bass amp (probably belonging to the headlining act) the other bass players may not want to mess with the settings. Bass EQ and overdrive pedals such as the Sansamp Bass Driver also have an inherent mid cut. Two pick up basses like a jazz bass also have a gentle mid cut when both pick ups are engaged. Active basses also often have Bass and Treble settings but no mid setting. So a rig could feature a bassist: 1. playing an active Jazz bass with bass and treble boosted; running into; 2. a Sansamp Bass Driver with bass and treble boosted; running into 3. A Trace Elliot amp with the pre shape engaged and a smiley face EQ; through 4. An old 4x10 that has an inherently scooped built in sound; and 4. A sound engineer who is cutting mids 'to give a bigger sound'. All of the gear I have detailed above can be used to generate a great sound with tonnes of mids. However once you start stacking EQs on top of each other it is easy to lose any interpretation as to what a 'flat sound' actually is. In a gigging situation when the bassist isn't using their own gear, the soundman doesn't know the band and the inherent time constraints of set ups, I'm not surprised that there is a lot of scooping going on.

The are brilliant at staying in tune. My Excess once went through a week long tour in the winter and I barely had to tune it from gig to gig.

My current 'bit of dirt' is the Darkglass B3K which is run almost at clean levels to mimic a Tech 21 Sansamp Bass Driver but without the inbuilt speaker emulation. I don't particularly 'love' the B3K but I started recording an album with a band in October and used the B3K on the first three tracks. I now feel obliged to record the rest of the album with the same pedal! After the album is done I will probably replace it as it was second hand when I bought it and the pots are and inputs are getting a bit scratchy and loose. I bought an Alpha Omega on here a while back but 'hush hush' I don't really think that the pedal is worth the 'OMG!' hype it received on release. I got a good deal and it is a good pedal, but there is no way I would pay full retail price. I will keep it for a year to see if I find a way of fitting it in. Best dirt sound I have at the moment is the OD channel on the Mesa Big Block I bought recently. It isn't perfect (it could do with a separate three band control from the 'clean channel' EQ settings) however at the correct setting I far prefer the tone compared to either of the two Darkglass effects, mainly as it doesn't sound so much like an effect as a 'really loud amp being pushed into overdrive' (which it is!). My favourite ever bit of dirt pedal was an Aguilar Agro. Used that on every gig for about 6 years but ended up blowing a capacitor after a random power surge in a toilet venue somewhere on tour (either Aberdeen or Basingstoke). I got it repaired but it just isn't the same and the 'Engage' button is a bit sticky. Also, while it had a great tone, it lack a blend control or a basic EQ. I used to run the Aguilar with a Sansamp Bass Driver with the blend off and but adding in a bit off Bass on the Sansamp EQ. However the Sansamp I have is pretty much wrecked becaused it was used for even more gigs than the Agro! Least favourite was probably the EBS Billy Sheehan original. It clean and overdrive settings were out of phase so the sound was always lacking bottom end. Considering it was marketed as 'the bass overdrive that didn't lose low end' I felt it was a bit of rip off. Boss ODB3 is still working after 20 years as well!

Keeley Bassist for me since it was pretty much announced in circa 2014. It can be very transparent if you want it to be. If you want to dial it up to 'slapville' it can do that as well. Also you can turn the compression off completely and use it as a volume boost/cut. Works great on guitars too. There are probably better/more flexible compressors available than the Keeley now. However, I don't get excited by compressors, tuners or power supplies. Not even a big shiny Darkglass compressor advert with dramatic and epic background music and copious amounts of backlight HD camera work gets me excited. When it comes to compressors, tuners and power supplies I just use what I have until it breaks. For example I had a Boss TU 2 for 18 years. It broke in February, upon which I immediately bought the Boss TU 3. Bass overdrives though? I average one every 18 months.

I haven't quite spent that amount of money, but I think on the second hand market in the there is quite a lot of 'Hmmm, I haven't played a 'Bass X' but that looks like a nice bass and the price is much cheaper than buying it new. I will buy it blind and if it doesn't work out I will just list it for sale for the same/slightly reduced price.' In the £3k+ second hand market you are pretty much looking at vintage Fenders, Wals, Foderas, Celinder, Ritters or Sadowsky NYCs with ridiculous amounts of flame or fancy finishes. The price of these basses are beyond most people's buying blind list. The seller (as is their right) is not wanting to take a massive loss on a bass, so the price will remain the same until someone buys it (and someone eventually will). I own 6 basses and just realised that I only played two of them before I bought them. Three have been bought blind and one was bought by somebody else on my behalf on the basis that they were sure I would like it (it was a Fender Precision so not exactly a big jump into the unknown!). I played the Sadowsky Metro before I bought it when I was 23. I have seen some horror stories of buying blind but I have obviously been very lucky as there were no issues with any of the basses I have bought blind. I played my 1974 Gibson EB3 before I bought it in 2000. 15 year old me loved it but 32 year old me somewhat wonders what I was thinking at the time when I could have bought a Fender Jazz or Musicman Stingray, which I didn't like at the time but would bloody well prefer now... (probably 'Free and Cream are awesome!').

Just checking their site and yes they are made in the UK, which will explain the price.

I have never bought an Ashdown product. I actually really rate the amps highly, however the footprint of their pedals have always been far too big compared to the features the pedal actually delivers. I remember the massive double sized tuner they marketed for ages. The Lomenzo Hyperdrive or whatever it was called was massive as well. I can't see there being a demand for three different bass large size compressors. When it comes to a compressor, I just want something that works and takes up the minimum of space on a pedal board. The Keeley Bassist I bought serves both purposes and is much cheaper. The controls on the Tripe Shot Drive Pedal look a bit incomprehensible at first glance ('Dark = bass, 'Light' = Treble, 'Roast' = ?), however it looks like a fun mess around pedal. As an aside, I find the Andertons guitar demos to be a lot more in depth than the bass demos. The bass demos are fine but I never leave them going 'hmm, I think I want that'.

I would keep the amp and get a lighter 4x10 cab. If you love the sound that you have already I would be hesitant of changing the amp just for a bit of weight. From experience though, lugging an old school 6x10 around by yourself is really difficult (in my case a Mesa 6x10). Lugging around a hefty 25kg valve amp is easy in comparison! If you got a modern lighter cab like a Barefaced or Bergantino, you could still get your current sound but in a more portable set up. You could perhaps consider something like a Tech 21 VT500. A lightweight 'Ampeg in a box' type design. No valves, but would definitely deliver a bit of grit. But when you actually own the amp that the Tech 21 is trying to emulate, then I would definitely want to try before you buy. If you have the cash, then the new Mesa WD-800 looks like a serious piece of kit as well. There are so many incredible lightweight bass amps available these days (none of which I own), that it is really quite difficult to go wrong.

Best present I have received in the last few years was a basic Stagg rack for six instruments. It means I can play any of my basses immediately. It also acts as a GAS barrier, as my wife is forbidding me from buying more instruments than can fit in the rack (it was a bit of a double-edged gift). The process of taking the instrument out of a case, putting the case out of the way and then the process of putting the bass back in the case and storing the case away was constantly taking away from my time of actually playing bass. Also the cases take up a lot of space, so I store them in the attic. I also have stand to temporarily store the instrument I am in the process of playing. With a baby on the way though I will probably have to cut back to 'gigging bass' and guitar on a stand and everything else in a case. I never prop an instrument against a wall or an amp though (unless I'm at a gig and totally forgot to take a stand...which happens more often than it should).

I am partial to Mesa, however the fact that the Bergantino looks vaguely like a downsized mid 1990s Hi-fi amplifier is really cool. I would love to pair it with the Ashdown vertical 3x10 for no other reason other than it would look cool.

I have basically a more used version of that bass. Same finish though I always thought it was just 'cherry sunburst'. The neck should be the same profile as mine. The neck on my Precision is my favourite neck of all of my basses, which includes two Sadowskys. Not too clubby or wide but substantial enough. The pick up appears to have been changed, though that will probably improve the bass. The original pick up on mine is frankly a bit 'so so' and could do with having a bit more output.

CC Music in the West End area of Glasgow had a couple of cracking Precisions in when I was in about three weeks ago: S9 Precision. I would guess it should go for £1200-£1500(it shouldn't cost any more than that as it isn't from the desirable period). Could be awesome like mine, could be a dog. http://www.ccmusicshop.co.uk/product/fender-usa-precision-bass-1979-sienna-burst/ USA 1997 60s Precision for £1200: http://www.ccmusicshop.co.uk/product/fender-1997-usa-60s-precision-bass-in-vintage-sunburst/ Also a 2001 US Standard on the site for about £800. Would be a fun morning/afternoon before or after wading through the options at Guitar Guitar.

Someone is selling a V6 on ebay (chrome knob version)... £999 collection from Liverpool.

I have seen ex-demo discounts for sure. But nothing comparable to the usual massive Gibson discount of the previous year's Les Paul models!

In Mesa's defence the price of the WD-800 and D800 series is a lot lower than the 'new' prices of the original Walkabout (circa £1500 a few years ago) or amps such as the Big Block 750, M6 and M9 that were about £1800 or above to be purchased 'as new' when they were on the market. In that sense, I was honestly expecting the price point of the WD-800 to be in the £1,500 - £2,000 region given its 'newness' and the feature set. For me, I can live with the price of the WD-800, in the sense that Mesa new premium bass head is £1300 rather than £2,000. However the cost of the new line cabs (£2,175 for the 2x15 and 4x10, £1,575 for the 2x12) is really prohibitive for potential purchasers in the UK, no matter how good the cabs are (I have no doubt that they are exceptional, but so is a lot of the competition).

In his defence though, there is a legitimate medical reason for his wearing of gloves. He explains why in one of his better videos.

Yes, he certainly gets my goat at times. Most of the time I go out of my way to not watch his videos. Such as this, a video titled 'Aguilar Bass Pedals Review'. It is not a review. It is a promo for a giveaway for some free stuff he was sent directly by Aguilar. In his defence though, if I was in his position and was offered a bunch of free stuff to try out, including a £4k Yamaha, I'm not going to say no. However, if I want to see an honest review of a product, I find his videos to be generally verging on useless. He is far from the only one on Youtube guilty of this.Also, I am only making this comment in relation to his Youtube videos. I cannot comment on his Bass Lessons service, which sounds like a great service and community and I am really happy that he has developed a successful business. You can argue that Youtube videos are a necessary evil of the way he needs to develop his brand/business. However, his Youtube videos really discourage me from wanting to sign up, because half of the time I can't take anything he says with any degree of credibility owing to the amount of product placement, 'giveaways' and other 'adverts' disguised as reviews or honest critiques of gear. I doubt my absence from his service gives him sleepless nights though! Also, I would also like to say that I generally find the Andertons videos to be useful, honest and generally not all OMG, check this AWESOME new stuff from Brand X'. The classic video was the Gibson 2015 launch video with the automatic tuners. Poor 'Captain' and 'Chappers' were basically going 'ummm, yeah... this is what Gibson sent us this year...If you want to get rid of the robot tuners we can do that for you...'. Or even recently when they demoed the Orange Pedal Baby and were clearly unimpressed, which was refreshing considering that the shop was actually selling them so it was in their interest to deliver a 'wow, this is awesome' product video. Yes, they promote items, but they are a shop actively trying to sell gear so I give them a pass for that. However I find their promotional demos to be a lot more in depth than a lot of 'reviews' on Youtube.

My main annoyance at Youtube reviews is that a lot of them are basically adverts disguised as reviews. I can take a slap fest if what follows is an honest review of what a piece of equipment can and can't do, rather than the usual 'WOW THIS IS THE BEST PIECE OF GEAR I HAVE EVER SEEN (since last week's video)'. I love it when a reviewer tries a setting on an amp, instrument or pedal and actually says something along the lines of 'hmmm that setting isn't for me, lets try something else.' Dood's reviews are great, Premier Guitar are usually very good and while not a bass player I like the Andy guy at Pro Guitar Shop in terms of demos/reviews of guitar products. Bass Whisperer too. Other that that I really don't explore Youtube reviews that much.