GarethFlatlands

Got to gig this bass for the first time on Saturday. Love it! Sounds huge, nice beefy output compared to my previous workhorse Ibanez SGR300. The neck took very little getting used to and the fatter than usual strings were fine as I could get away with a lighter touch than usual because of the extra signal. It didn't stop me from completely forgetting the verse part to Moonage Daydream but I can't really blame the bass for that. I spent years wondering why everyone played Strats and P's and now I own one of each, I completely get it.

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1498200360' post='3323046'] Sound good to me! Let us know how you get on! [/quote] Arrived today, initial impressions are very good! Just a quick home noodle so far though. I've got one of those leather Levy's straps with the horizontal cuts in it and the clip sits very nicely in them which should keep it out of the way enough not to worry about anything getting knocked. Output wise, I think the B3 might be louder but the sound quality of the EHX is excellent. Handles bass very well and my P sounded like a P should. Whether it's loud enough for live use with my cheap cans (I'm using a very unsubltle pair of Panasonic HTX7's at the moment but I'm wondering if my Soundmagic E10 buds would help me hear the rest of the band better) I'll find out next month, but as we're playing a venue where I never get a monitor and don't use an amp, it's going to be better than nothing anyway.

I'd guess they're a split mono output, they're really just headphone amps to plug and instrument cable straight into but that suits my purposes fine. As long as the output is a little better than my Zoom B3 and it's reasonably transparent, it's a winner for me.

In my ongoing attempt to go fully ampless but on the cheap, I've just pulled the trigger on an EHX headphone amp. Not overly keen on the downward facing input jack but I might just have to run the cable under my strap to keep it under from popping out. I'll post my thoughts once it arrives and if I remember! [url="http://www.ehx.com/products/headphone-amp"]http://www.ehx.com/products/headphone-amp[/url]

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1498067397' post='3322345'] I'm just not sold on bass multi- effects processors for gigging. For me they're too complicated, too many features and functions I'd never use. And I still say they don't have the "mojo" of the high end dedicated pedals. Blue [/quote] I mostly agree but they have their uses. I've been exhausted constantly for almost a year now and struggle to carry an amp any distance so being able to gig with just my bass and Zoom B3 has kept me being able to play live. The sound is very 2nd rate but I doubt the audience is too fussed. I'd rather be gigging with a nice amp and carefully put together pedal board but that's not really an option at the moment.

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1497600478' post='3319318'] Been on there for 2 and a half years? I have heard both very good and very bad stuff about Gordon Smith guitars. I think the wonky bridge post is indicative of it. I have a wrap around bridge on my Patrick Eggle, and its great once set up, but boy is it a faff restringing it without getting a kink in the strings. [/quote] Yeah, I'm really lazy about selling stuff! Overall it's a great instrument but the bridge is a possible issue. The neck pickup also stopped working and there's no backplate to access the wiring (I guess you'd see it through the f hole) and it's these issues that made me retire it as my main instrument. I'm tempted to take the hit and sell it off cheap to get it into the hands of someone who can fix the pickup and enjoy it.

Shameless plug but my Gordon Smith Gypsy is still kicking around the for sale section somewhere!

If your audio interface has a switch to go between 'Line' and 'Instrument' on the inputs you might not need one. If you want to get one anyway for whatever reason, what's your budget and does it need to be portable? Should help narrow down the suggestions.

Did Ultimate Bowie play Sheffield in the last year or so? A few of the people from the Bowie covers band I play in went to see another tribute band and the name sounds familiar.

I have to be in the right mood to listen to him and don't manage to make it through more than about half an album, but he's definitely got his own thing going in which I have a lot of respect for. I'll always give time to someone trying something interesting.

Yeah, for me jazzes have to be sunburst/rosewood and Ps have to be black/maple. I'll see how I get on with the Duncan's before I make any decisions. The neck will take some getting used to, it's pretty fat compared to other basses I've had but the overall feel is so good I'll persevere. And this thing is clean, the neck feels barely played and the fretboard still has that shine to it.

Usually as it's stopped being fun and feels like a chore. If it's costing me time and money it needs to be at least fun, if not then there's not much point.

A couple of terrible pictures. The shop had it in stock for a while so they rang the seller and he went to £400! Bargain. Thinking about swapping the Duncans out for something else, possibly Hot Rods (formerly Wizard pickups). Worth it or not really?

Can't work out how to share pics on mobile but I'll put some up when I get home!

[quote name='Geek99' timestamp='1495463408' post='3303913'] i wouldn't worry about it being a badass bridge, its a straight replacement if you ever wanted to put the OE one back on, and they're nothing special.I'd buy it, if it were me. [/quote] Well I'm me, and I did buy it Bit of a rattle coming from somewhere but otherwise can't fault it. My first P!

Welcome to Basschat Matthias!

I guess it could be a bitsa bass with a CIJ neck, but you could go mad worrying about that with every 2nd hand Fender you come across.

Any way of telling if it's not legit? The neck heel said it was CIJ but that's the only thing I know to look for.

Yeah, I have a spot on Japanese Jazzmaster that (apart from the stock pickups) holds it's own against any other I've tried and for 1/3 of the cost but my overall knowledge of CIJ stuff is limited. I didn't want to take the plunge only to find that the basses were made in a different factory and were all garbage. An extreme worry I know. I have no idea of the model number unfortunately but £450 on ebay seems like the lower end of the 50's/60's reissues so it seems reasonable, although the non stock components would arguably dent the resale value.

Hopped off the bus yesterday and saw a nice Fender P in a shop. I went in today for a look at it and it's a CIJ (forgot to make a mental note of the serial number for dating purposes), one chip to the paintwork but otherwise in excellent condition. Black body and pickguard and maple neck, pickups look like upgrades as they're Bass Lines branded and the bridge is a Badass 2 so definitely not stock. It played really nice but I didn't plug it in. They're asking £400-450 for it as it's a commission sale. Is this a reasonable amount? And how are the CIJ instruments regarded generally? Any pointers appreciated.

No RRP on their website (I guess it's a discontinued model) but the cheapest GS on there is £715 so £600 seems reasonable depending on the condition. I'd put that as the asking price, note you're open to offers and pick a lowest acceptable price for haggle room.

Greetings from someone who grew up in Chester! The bass sounds awful, like someone slapped some strings and frets onto a tree so good luck with the restoration and I look forward to seeing what it's like when you're through with it.

New or old? The original was a fuzz/octave up but there seems to be a new version that seems to be a more flexible overdrive.

[quote name='PaulGibsonBass' timestamp='1494452403' post='3296201'] I have no time for political correctness in it's extremes, but my opinion is that using this phrase isn't acceptable. Am I offended by it? Not really, but I feel that corrupting a word that descibes mental handicaps or learning difficulties to use as a 'humorous' but ultimately derogatory term is out of order, and no more acceptable than calling someone 'spazz', or some other unintentionally cruel playground jibe. I'm sure nobody means to cause offence, but all the same I'm uncomfortable with it. [/quote] This is my take on it as well.

[quote name='ratman' timestamp='1493890188' post='3291514'] The Andy Summers pedals that made 'that sound' were the Echoplex and Electric Mistress. [/quote] Well then, time to check ebay for a vintage Electric Mistress!