fatback

Impressive repair. You must be so relieved.

My only amp for the last three years gigging. Superb for upright in that it's totally transparent - what goes in comes out. Also has phase shifting and notch filter, so you don't need a preamp with those. Stupidly small and light, but i've found it 100% reliable. Very well built. You hear people say it's underpowered, but with a Midget 1X12 I've found it seriously loud. I suspect it can seem quiet because it's so clean. For electric I use a DHA VT to dirty it up and it sounds great. Usefully, the eq mid band is placed differently on each of the channels, one suited a bit more for upright. As BassBod says, the DI out needs you to have a little adapter cable, but you just get one made up and carry it with you. My only criticism is that it doesn't have illuminated positions on the knobs. It would look awful, i guess, but i spend too much time squinting at settings in the semi dark. Having said that, I love mine.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1385232837' post='2285960'] You dont need any talent to buy one, as I found out! [/quote] Me too. Enough talent to answer an ad and get cash out of an atm.

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1384786305' post='2280674'] Nah. That's the answerphone of the beast. [/quote]

Except the real number of the beast is 616,and he was a fiddle player. [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_of_the_beast#616"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_of_the_beast#616[/url]

[quote name='timbass' timestamp='1384681829' post='2279331'] Scott LaFaro = amazing, thanks. I do love Raymond Matthews Brown - such cool. Thanks for sharing folks. Is it just my ignorance, but don't jazz bass solo pieces played above the octave mostly sound like a demented bee caught in a jam jar? Even Niels Henning Orsted-Pedersen brilliance up there leaves me cold. [/quote] Have to agree (puts tin hat on). Occasionally I do enjoy a solo, and I've asked myself why. I think it's when the soloist works off the melody or melodies. Otherwise it's just finger wiggling, and not a very nice sound (pizz) either.

[quote name='TheRev' timestamp='1384620116' post='2278843'] Sort of - baby Rev will be arriving in 4 weeks, so its my last chance to buy something before all my money is spent on nappies... [/quote] Last chance for 25 years, arguably.

[quote name='TheRev' timestamp='1384601635' post='2278536'] Just about to go pick up a 3/4 fully carved Romanian bass that I got for a bit of a bargain on fleabay. One careful owner, bought new in 1982 and free of any cracks or major dinks. I'm quite excited! [/quote] Happiness! Early xmas pressie to self?

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTJhHn-TuDY[/media] Ray Brown all the way for me. I heard on one recording Peterson introducing him as a genius. I ask you; how good do you have to be for [i]Oscar Peterson[/i] to call you a genius? Not short of confidence is Mr. Brown. Would you indulge in a little casual percussion over the great man's solo piano? Most would hesitate, but not our Ray. Bass comes in at 2.30.

[quote name='oggiesnr' timestamp='1384551457' post='2278207'] As far as mats are concerned, yoga mats rule! Dirt cheap (under a fiver) non slip both sides, bright colours so idjits can see them and roll up easily for storage. Steve [/quote] I like this idea. Would relax the bass nicely, too.

Ouch!

[quote name='thisnameistaken' timestamp='1384388742' post='2276249'] I don't lay my bass down by dragging it across tarmac by the peghead - seems to be a reasonable approach. SRSLY though I get my bass horizontal in my hands and put it down flat, there's no potential for damage. I never leave it unattended lying on the floor, I always prop it up in a corner if I'm going to be away from it, so at least passing numpties can see it. [/quote] A fair few of the numpties passing my bass are so drunk they couldn't see it if were luminous green and dancing a can-can.

[quote name='tinyd' timestamp='1384357394' post='2275650'] +100. The fingerboard can seem huge and featureless when the pressure's on or when you can't hear yourself properly! [/quote] A nasty boomy stage or a screaming guitar and I need all the help I can get in the shape of a few stick on paper dots. Most importantly (for our kind of band) it means I don't have to stand there all uptight panicking over intonation; i can just get on and have fun. I take them off after gigs so as not to get dependent on the visuals, and that works fine.

Nice one. I only discovered Mezzo lately. What a great channel.

Thanks for the suggestions. Definitely no room for a stand on most of these stages (if you could call them that). I do use the furniture pads, but the only ones I could get hold of are grey felt, and they're ugly as hell. The cable solution definitely looks worth a try.

[quote name='KiOgon' timestamp='1384171554' post='2273432'] Get a stand [/quote] Absolutely no room for a stand on most of the gigs we do. Usually you have to lie the bass down in front of the stage at some point, then squeeze on when the rest of the band are in place. I've got a stand at home, but even then I find if I want to change the pin length, say, I have to lie the bass down. And that's on stone flags, hence the pads.

I'm wondering how you folks protect the edges of your bass from abrasion caused by lying it down on its side. I've stuck on some felt furniture feet protecting pads, but they're ugly grey things. Since my bass is well battered, I probably shouldn't even bother, but I don't like to see it getting any worse. I dread to think of what it must feel like to damage a quality instrument. I read somewhere of someone using shaped black piano keys as 'skids'. Sounded good; anyone try that? I can't imagine that just taking care would be enough. Nor can I see how you could avoid lying the bass down on bad surfaces if you're gigging the usual dives. Ideas?

I've no experience with upright other than my EA Doubler and 1X12 Midget with a Full Circle. I find the EA flawless. I don't need to mess about with a preamp, and the notch filter + phase shift sorted feedback problems. And the thing is the size of a paperback. I do carry a DHA DI in case of problems, but I've never been forced to use it. Ditto with a Kent Armstrong mag pickup fitted. Never had to use that either, but belt and braces is a good feeling. The Midget is amazing. Light, compact, seriously loud and uncoloured. Raising it up more than a couple of feet loses some loudness (boundary reinforcement stuff), but even that's still OK when using it only as a stage monitor. This cab can easily keep up with a loud drummer. Overall, the bass sounds like itself through this rig, (a lot to do with the Full Circle, I think). I just plug and play, maybe tweaking the mids a little. The only improvement i can think of is adding another Midget or maybe a compact, but that's pure GAS.

The wonderful Rabbath [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpp8kAG9TSc"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpp8kAG9TSc[/url]

Yew wa lucky... our school bass was the fish they used to slap us round the chops with when we asked for more gruel...

[quote name='TPJ' timestamp='1383911142' post='2270662'] Hi, [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3-4-double-bass-with-Ritter-case-and-bow-/161145113862?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Sting_Instruments&hash=item2584ff4d06"]This might be worth looking[/url] at if you can determine the origin of the bass. Not too far from you either. [/quote] That does look good, although the seller says more about the case than the bass. A few questions are in order, but the seller sounds genuine enough.

Agree with Moos3h. You'd get a combo with the series 6 head and GP7 graphic for that price.

Might be a good idea to get a lesson before you buy a bass. I found doing that very helpful when it came to buying second hand. Also, the teacher may know some instruments for sale. I'd go for a bass sold on here by a known seller, if I were you. Buying new, the consensus seems to be for Gedo. Best of luck with the search.

I wonder how much has to do with the time of life you happen to be in. I used to loathe jazz and found jazzers mostly arrogant, intolerant and terrible dancers. Now Jazz is almost all I listen to; everything else bores me.

A dealer tipped off in advance? Just envy, I know.