franzbassist

It will be a new custom bass, my third, from Franz Bassguitars in Germany.

Thanks, both, and ouch! 😩

Hello all I’m looking to buy my first bass from the EU since B#%?!* happened. It’s likely around 3k on euros. What sort of tax and duty and tax am I paying on top?

I took a long time to adjust to 5s, but I pretty much play them all the time now. The main advantage I see with a 5 is it makes some patterns easier to play (i.e. you don't have to shift up and down the neck as you do on a 4, you just play across instead). Some 5s have a poor low B tone, which can certainly give a bad impression to a new user. I've tried a 6 multiple times, but it's just too much for me. If I slapped a lot I'd probably stay on a 4, but I like the increased versatility of a 5 overall and won't go back.

What is the distance from the ball end to the tuner side of the nut? That will tell you the length you need. Lots of brands regular long scale strings are 37 or 37 1/4" long, so you may be okay.

Thanks chaps. Yes, one sub is the plan. Happy to stretch the budget for the right one, and also happy (and already looking) at used options. FYI tops are a pair of vintage Bose 802s.

My two fretted basses are active but can be switched to passive. I tend to leave them in active but hardly ever adjust the EQ as I get enough tone shaping during a gig through the blend knob. That said, the Sire PJ sounds amazing in passive with the neck pickup solo. My fretless is passive, but as the pickup has a coil tap there's a lot of variation to be had. In a live setting the amp is where the main EQ changes are made, and I am fortunate to have an amp with a very comprehensive EQ section, so I set it to sound good in the venue at the sound check and normally just run with that all night.

Just had a D string go pop as I was bringing up to tension on installation. It appears I am not alone. https://www.talkbass.com/threads/labella-super-polished.1650903/page-6 UPDATE: Bass Direct are sending me a new set.

Yes, nicely aged OTM finish. They did a FSR run of these a few years back.

Yep, he gave me all the specs that aren’t in the manual, including "amp feel", but as he also listed the bass and treble settings I mentioned above separately I presumed they are the EQ points for those two knobs. It sounds great whatever!

Nice work @Dood. Just to add the specs I got from Pete at Roland that I don't think you mention and aren't in the manual: bass = 70Hz treble = 6K shape (green) -12dB at 500Hz (red) +6dB at 4K (orange) both green and red combined

Just remember there are no effects banks to scroll through on this head. You can have three different effects (plus compression and drive, as they are controlled separately) on each preset, but if you do that it will also recall whatever the whole of the panel's settings were when you hit save (e.g. if you saved a preset with the bass EQ cranked it would recall that too, rather than what the front panel is actually showing). As such, for live work I have my three preferred effects saved via the "panel" setting and then tweak the eq etc. to taste according to venue. I have different combinations of effects set in each of the other three presets, so if the "panel" hasn't needed much EQ I can switch between them to give me a total of twelve effects. Does that make sense? It sounds more complicated than it is once you are using the unit!

Glad to be of help. I use the GA-FC and it's perfect for that. You can use it two ways, either to switch between "panel" (i.e. what is set on the front of the amp) or the three preset channels, or you switch it to control drive/comp/effect/mute on or off for one of the above.

@Bass Culture - hope you like it. Make sure you download the app so you can tweak to your liking. I love mine, and I would say £499 for such a versatile head is a great deal.

Rebel Rebel into Jean Genie into Blockbuster works really well. A couple of verses of the first two is all you need.

Hello folks I am fed up of storing and lugging two large Peavey 1x15 subs around to every gig, so my band are considering moving to a single powered sub. Budget ideally under £600 but we could go higher if needed. Can anyone recommend something fairly compact and light that would do the job? We don't play in very large venues, so it doesn't need to move a ton of air.

Wampler Mini EGO Compressor Pedal is small, and good.

Galli flats on the fretless, La Bella Super Polished groundwounds on my fretted basses.

Which one did you get? How long is the cable on it?

I got one. Man is it noisy

First gig with these last Friday and I am very happy with them. Really clear articulation and punch to each note, and the strings are a lovely tension even at this gauge. I never thought I'd like groundwounds after my experience with D'Addario half rounds strings, but these are terrific.

I'm very lucky to say already have it. My Franz Sirius DC, which features a chestnut top from a tree that came down in my parents garden.