Paolo85

I had a non-straightforward issue with eBay and they were unable/unwilling to deal with it. I would not go through them again unless it is a slam dunk

I have happily done one in, one out for the most part last year but now it gets tricky. I could do that for upgrades, as you did. Sell a P for a "better" P. But say I wanted a J, which I don't have, am I ready to sell for example one of my Ps for that? They have flats, rounds, tapes so I would argue they are completely different basses, not interchangeable. Maybe I could let one with tapes go? That would be an excruciating decision to make!

On that, you may interested in buying Simandl's book, volume 1. As you use three fingers, different finger patterns for your scales may be easier, and they are thought through the book. I started going through the book but then I realised that 90% of what I play is based on pentatonics for which the change is less of an issue so I just got lazy and dropped it

The Simandl techniquebis absolutely amazing. It makes a massive difference in terms of resistance and ability to cope with longer scales and large fretboards. It is used by doublebass players as OFPF would just kill their hands. In general, making quick shifts left and right with the left hand instead of trying to extend the fingers is less straining. Even if you use OFPF. With Simandl you do a lot of shifting. You can still use OFPF on that one fast passage where it is needed. Another thing that doublebass players do is to use the weigh of the shoulder to fret instead of the fingers. The idea is that instead of squeezing the string between your thumb and the other finger you are using, you just hold your fretting hanf in position and then pull with the strenght of your arm. I recommend this video on the subject Does that apply to electric bass? Well, that may be controversial but when I practice sitting down I do use this approach a bit. My plucking harm keeps the bass still, the shoulder keeps the fretting fingers on the fretboard. And the thumb does not do much. Just when using the shoulders I need not to be careful not to overdoit. Above all, the body needs to be relaxed. The problem with that is that it is not good posture for the plucking hand and that when you stand up you necessarily use different muscles. But I find that alternating this and standing is the best way for me to practice for a good amount of time without straining any specific muscle too much. Maybe think of using the shoulder as time to learn new songs or something like that. Another interesting tip I heard it recently in an interview to Kiko Lureiro (a guitar player). When I fret, I tend to use more energy than necessary, which wears my muscles unnecessarily. Apparently he used to practice scales just touching the string, not fretting them, as if to make a ghost note but with just the tip of one finger. Then he would progressively increase the pressure, until he would get to the point where pressure would be just sufficient for the note to ring, nothing more. I try to be very careful about all this stuff. I effectively stopped playing the bass at 18-19 because of tlrecurring tendinitis. And that was not long after I had decided I would try to make a living out of it. Later on I tried again a few times but tendinitis would come back. This time it is going better. Part because of better research into how not to strain my muscles (eg the discovery of Simandl), part because I take it very easy. If I get pain i rest a few days, no stress, no anxiety. If and when I hands get in good shape, I'll join a band, time permitting. Else I'll just enjoy it as it is.

Thinking again, I probably am in a pickle. Do straps count? I have long delayed the purchase of a wide leather strap. I quite value my back so if they count I may not last long (although who knows how long I can continue to delay that... ). In any case, I'll try to avoid going "oh well, I bought the strap, I may as well buy a bass"😁

True! Good idea

Maybe he would like online resources, but a bit more structured - a paid-for online course. I love this website for online lessons https://members.talkingbass.net/shop/ and they sell gift cards so your son could decide what sort of course he's interested in. Because all these people selling online courses also make free youtube videos, chances are he knows the website already so it may be good to find a way of checking if he loves it or hates it.

May I ask out of pure curiosity what is the J-MM bass you are working on?

Thanks! Yes it's exactly how you say. Basically I either EQ for the bridge or for the neck. I see the bridge as a nice-to-have so I have not made massive efforts to get a great tone out of it in isolation. With preamp flat or treble boosted a bit, it does not remind me of a Stingray much to be honest (though I never owned one). It has a dirty sound which I would see well in some rock contexts. That's why I suspect it may be series. I always found the bridge pickup in the Js I had too thin for my taste, unless I was trying to pretend to be Jaco. I was hoping a J-MM would be the best of both worlds. Maybe I failed to appreciate how well the JJ work together. Still, I have hopes that a different MM, in parallel could do the trick! Maybe I'll change the pickup one day!

Hi all. So I have this bass with a MM type pickup at the bridge which I wish was a bit brighter, had a bit more clarity. I really don't knob much about pickups, I wonder if it is possible to tell from just a few pictures if it is wired in series or parallel, and whether this could be changed by a non expert with good will. My guess would be that it is wired in series, and maybe if it was parallel I would lose some mids but a more stingray-esque sound (at least that's how I understand it). There is just one cable coming out of the pickups which brings two wires to the pickup-blend pot. The white wire goes to the lug, the yellow to the side of the pot. The bass is active with 2 band preamp (the stacked knobs) also a (good) J pickup at the neck. I have no idea how the preamp fits into the picture in terms of wires Thanks!

as a person that does not really know how pickups work, the way I understand it is that at the end of the day you do not chose the pickup based on that. You want pickups that you like the sound of, or people say you'd like the sound of. That's all 😁

I am not very good at this! I guess that's why lawyers exist😁

What is Basschat'opinion on this: in December I managed to bring home an old Cort bought when I was 18. Until this week I could only play it in a practice amp but now I find that I really do not like the preamp. I did not like it when I was 18 either but now I suspect it may not even be in great shape (volume goes down when I switch to active, which is a bit unusual). Eventually I'll treat myself to a preamp replacement but in the mean time I was thinking I could just get a KiOgon loom, take the preamp off and play passive. While this is not an upgrade technically, it would however introduce a passive tone control that is not there. Is this "new gear"?😁

Ha! My 2yo gives me just a few seconds before she demands that I put the bass away. It could be because she wants my full attention but there is a chance she just finds I am not very good😁 I can negotiate ten minute slots sometimes

Just want to quickly mention that, while an onboard preamp is very convenient, especially for adjustments on the fly on stage, in terms of sound I think they are no different than a preamp pedal. So for playing at home (if that's what you want to do) you could just use any bass you like (maybe those you have already) and a preamp pedal. Please somebody correct me if that's not right

If that helps, I had a Cort B4fl from 2013. That was the generation before the Element. It was a great quality build, great hardware. But I was not so keen on the preamp, to the point that I had a passive tone control installed and I would always play passive. Pickups are not the famous Bartolini that cost a fortune, they are a cheap licensed version. I think they were ok, not great. I also have a Cort GB54 with M-J and I find a similar situation: great build quality for the price, ok pickups, preamp meh. I tried in a shop the new Cort B5 element (the 5 string). Again, great build. They have introduced a neck shape thay is thinner back to front at the bottom and feel super easy to play. I would not comment on the sound as the amp used was clearly not great. Probably similar though. I had a Sire V5 and a V7fl (the latter is active, but I only had it for a few days before returning it). Contrary to reputation, I had terrible QC experiences. Unlike the Cort basses, the Sires were heavy. I did not particularly like the pickups in both cases but the preamp was brilliant and I think the V3 has the same preamp (in favt, I think all Sires have the same preamp but maybe I am wrong). I had two Ibanez in my life. A cheap GSR205b as well as an an Ergodyne many, many years ago. Extremely comfortable instruments, great build for the price, and a tight string spacing which I would imagine would be good for a guitar player. SR-shaped basses (which includes the Cort Bs) tend to be light. The GSR did not sound great but at that price what can I say. I think the Harley Benton MM has a reputation of being heavy. I had two HB (a Jazz fretless and an HBZ2005fl). Overall, while they were certainly great value for the money, so far I have not fallen in love with HB largely because of weigh issues. Plus one should be aware of other things such as the fact that in many cases necks could be chunkier back-to front than one might expect (eg compared to Squire equivalents) and tuners may need replacing although that's often the case for cheap basses.

From March 18 until the end of last year on average I bought a new bass every 32 days. After a fair bit of thinkering, selling and returning, I was left a month ago with the three beauties in the first picture - all cheap but modded, very different necks, and with flats-rounds-tapes. After swapping some pickups, I remember thinking that, honestly, I had all I needed and some. Then two days later GAS was back and for some reason I was thinking that for as much as I love Ps I should also have something more funky, maybe a Stingray copy or a J. Then the blue Cort in the second picture literally popped back into my life and now I have that as well. I have only managed to try the Cort through a small practice amp so far, and already for some reason I find myself thinking about possible pickup or preamp replacements. So, yes, maybe I do need a good period of abstinence However, I have decided to make it into a slightly different game for myself. After I -1) learn, well for my skill level, 30 new songs - a random and meaningless number as not all songs are equal but better than nothing 2) finish (with exercises and everything) at least one of the two courses I started on Talkingbass, either walking bass or chords for bass 3) Try to do a full fret dressing - not hoping to be a pro but I'd like to get to the point that fretwork is not really a worry anymore when I buy my next cheap bass 4) get myself to find the right drill bit and finally replace the tuners of the PJ and one of the Ps with some Hipshot Licensed Ultralight I have already 5) lacquer the neck of the PJ ...after that, I consider myself free to buy something

I had a similar situation, funny enough it was in a famous shop in London, except the bass was much cheaper and repairs on paper were much simpler. It was so bad that I decided from them on that if works are doable I will always do it myself, even if tools cost more than the luthier doing it. And that if at some point I will need a tech I'll definitely go out of London, to people that need returning customers

I think they have different string spacing. Not 100% sure which is which. I think the oldest of the two is 17.5 and the newest is [edit 19mm]. Also, nowadays B4 have that smart neck shaoe that is thinner back to front on the treble side, while older ones have more of a traditional skinny jazz neck

That was actually meant as a compliment as they seem to be winning in the low-cost segment of the market

Totally agree. The difference is not much in how you "cope", but in how the neck gives a subtle nudge to what you do. That's why I love a P neck. I can play simple, fat, slow parts and feel fully satisfied. With a thinner neck the slightly more bent muscles of my fingers seem to tell me that if I played a bit faster it would be more fun

You make a good argument but that's like the usual reminder that in a pub nobody can tell the difference between a Squier and a Fodera. If bass players were only intetested in "coping", Basschat would not exist and Harley Benton would soon become the onky bass maker in the world. Different necks feel different to most people, and that just boils down to some 2-4mm at the nut, and probably similar differences back to front. In my case, this mostly means that I get more satisfaction from a wider neck. But it can be different depending on what I am playing. How do I cope at the dusty end? It depends, I am not a good player

Too bad I don't like the design. HB seems to have done everything right with those!

I own two basses with 40mm nut width. As it happens, neither is still in production. I love a ~42mm P neck, but I am starting to think that if I have to look for a "faster" neck, thinner at the nut, 40mm is right for me, I probably prefer it to the widely popular 38mm. Just I am not aware of any 40mm bass currently under production except for the Yamaha BB. Any other bass you are aware of? Especially low-cost basses? I am not looking to purchase one right now but I'd love this thread to become a great reference for people that feel like me Thanks

This is a Newly Found Bass Day. I actually bought this one in or shortly after 2003. But... I now had not played it for around 10 years and I thought it was lost! Yes, lost. I am at my parent's flat in Italy, visiting for Christmas (I have been living in the UK for a while now) and they found it somehow. Since buying the bass I stopped playing music because of a tendinitis that continued to come back, moved city and then country, and the bass was just abandoned. I looked for it last summer as I had started playing again in January and thanks to Basschat I have developed an unhealthy obsession for cheap basses. But I could not find it. Nobody could, until a few weeks ago. I now have put some D'Addario ProSteels on (taken off a P bass, cut a bit short for this) and given it a full setup. There's a slightly bumpy fret that will need to be addressed. The neck will need a good clean as it was hanging for years and it has black stains there (not top quality hanger I guess..). Apart from that, all seem to be working great, from what I can hear from the old practice amp also abandoned at my parents'. Funny enough I never bonded much with this bass. The colour and shape were unexciting for the purpose of my metal band at the time. Still, I felt that for the price it was a great bass (I believe it cost some 275 Euros, although I may be wrong). I was always playing passive and it would sit in the mix much better than the Ibanez Ergodyne I had before (although I imagine more knowledgeable people would have been able to eq the Ibanez just right). The wider string spacing gave me more satisfaction than the Ibanez's. It feels really good to play, the ergonomics work great for me. I can totally see why I chose this bass in that shop back in 2003 or so. This is coming back to the UK with me!