4 Strings

Not sure Milty was just saying 'less is more', but that played well sounds great. The likes of Duck Dunn are not going to teach you many new licks but really love to hear him play, can usually tell it's him even if anonymous. Not found anything from Duck that I can't physically play, but I never sound as good as him.

Jamerson gets his punch and effective 'loudness' from string dampening. No dampening lets the notes ring, everyone tells you to turn down. Dampen with your palm (or sponge if you're Jamerson) and you can give an enormous punch but it's not perceived as loud. Great for definition. I too am a big fan of his, studied him for a Motown tribute band, changed my playing for life.

[quote name='kurosawa' timestamp='1404297216' post='2491206'] Had to sell everything to feed the kids during this divorce. Just picked up a used $80 Peavey Milestone II, 8 lb, 2.8 oz (alder body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard) . It's better than most, but still not as loud as I'd like. Loudness seems to indicate wide dynamic range, so I think loudness tops my list of desiderata. [/quote] If you mean the unplugged loudness, I would say the opposite. It's the body resonating to the strings you can hear. The resonance absorbs the string vibration, i.e. one big dead spot. The perfect bass may be a granite cliff, no sympathetic vibration of the body, very quiet acoustic sound, long sustain, no dead spots.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1404222459' post='2490449'] Works for Jens Ritter: [/quote] hmm, certainly makes a point!

Use plywood, much stiffer and lighter, what could be better?

Thing is Lozz, it doesn't even need to do what the combination does, I'm just using the Midget on it's own for almost all gigs (I've used the Compact on it's own too - the only time I've used both was for the hell of it not because I needed them). Would like to know if there's been anyone has experience of the Midget and Super Midget.

Get a handle (and the all important instructions) from Alex for £8. Thanks Rev, thinking rather too hard about swapping my Midget (and maybe Compact as well) for a Super Midget.

Having rested smuggly with gas completely released and in total satisfaction in my BF Midget T and Compact, my peaceful world has been disturbed by the BF Gen 3 cabs. I rarely use the Compact, the Midget being up to virtually anything I can throw it at. If the new Super Midget goes deeper and louder, I could get away with just that for absolutely everything I'm likely do in the foreseeable. Any experiences? Is it a big upgrade? Is it noticeable? Is it an upgrade at all?

[quote name='bassist_lewis' timestamp='1403471019' post='2483055'] I play a lot of big hotel function rooms without PA support - our PA is guff - so I need to fill a lot of space! I do fine but it'd be good to have the headroom. The reason I'm thinking of a double midget (gen 2) stack is for the footprint on stage. [/quote] In which case the Compact is the same footprint as the Midget on its side (and only a little bigger than it standing up) and would be a great stack and give you a few options to boot. Midget+Midget great too (only one needs to have the 'T') but, for me, the Compact gives some more options.

[quote name='bassist_lewis' timestamp='1403218427' post='2480976'] I'm based in Edinburgh, and not aware of any midget users nearby. Tbh I never have trouble hearing myself at gigs but I am almost always running the amp near full. [/quote] With the STL900 its the rig as me. I never have it anywhere near half and I've put a softer V1 valve in. You must have a really loud band! With two of them you'll virtually double the output of your amp too. No doubt, you have to drive a Midget hard, it's not for feint-hearted amps. However, I get complaints, from the drummer mostly, when I'm pushing it. The [font="helvetica, arial, sans-serif"][color="#282828"]'one trip from the car lug' is life changing![/color][/font]

Midget T + Compact here. Used them together only a couple of times as, tbh, the Midget does all I need on its own. Was thinking of selling them both to buy a new Super Midget and have done with it. The Midget T+Compact stack sounds incredible and is way louder than anything I've ever needed (especially using both virtually doubles to the output of the amp too). I used to use the Compact for bigger gigs, but I've braved it enough times with just the Midget and not once been left wanting so just use the Midget all the time. I use pretty dud strings on a Stingray (or Ruach with Stingray pups) and play Motown/soul mostly and it pours out the bottom end no problem. Needs a powerful amp to get the best from it. I know the Gen 3 BF cabs are supposed to be even better, but these older cabs are still incredible.

[quote name='lojo' timestamp='1401892264' post='2467923'] Do you remember a guy called Zac , think he had a PK50 Scooter? Think a big fella called Alan with a flat top , also worked there ? [/quote] (Bizarre - my youngest has a middle name Isaac and called himself Zac for a short while, and rode a PK50! In fact it's still here, good runner, anyone want to buy it?)

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1401887468' post='2467852'] [i]Musowear..?[/i] Is that a thing? [/quote] Ha! Hope not, just made it up as in the bike shop clothes were referred to as 'cyclewear'!

[quote name='Lw.' timestamp='1401886449' post='2467833'] It's already happened to music shops; remember when HMV used to have row after row of records on shelves? Now you have to fight past games, DVDs, silly plastic headphones and clothes before you can look at the meager supple of music. [/quote] True, but then that's because fewer and fewer people buy cds nowadays. Just glad they're still hanging on.

Roqsolid for me!

[quote name='bassman344' timestamp='1401886832' post='2467837'] Starbucks is getting the same. It isn't even called Starbucks coffee anymore - it's just Starbucks so they can sell tea, and hot chocolate, and porridge, and crisps, and other stuff that has nothing to do with coffee. Bit like premiership football, looks like it, smells like it but when you pay close attention it's just a prima-donna haircut and fake pirouette party to cheat your way to three points. [/quote] Ha! Maybe that's why I always meet my friends in a local greasy spoon before Leyton Orient games!

Walking to Newcastle Station, passed a shop with three nice looking dutch style bicycles in the window. Surrounded by clothes, I thought them props in a clothes shop. I was surprised to see it was "Start Cycles", a bike shop! The more I looked the more I saw racks of helmets, gloves, shoes, more and more clothes and, yes, there was a display of some new bikes, and then more and more racks of clothes. Only a few years ago the shop would have been showing off racks of bikes and then, somewhere, the clothes and shoes etc displayed. I wondered if it wouldn't be long before music shops selling predominately muso clothes (I don't know, pork pie hats, jolly roger heavy metal tee-shirts, Dr Marten boots, key rings for belt loops etc) with some musical instruments for sale in the corner would replace those with racks of guitars and piles of amps to which we have become used. I suppose when the turnover becomes 1/3 musical instruments and 2/3 musowear it's easy to see which display will become prominent. With more and more musical instruments being bought on-line I don't suppose it will be long.

Funny isn't it? totally different experiences from a similar product. I'm looking at my covers right now, my BF Midget cover has been thrown into the back of the car at least twice a week, mostly 2-3 times that for most weeks including being bundled around with pa and drum gear, and, apart from some white marks picked up from somewhere and the green piping looking a little grubbier in places, it's as new. Cab is unmarked, the cover fits perfectly (including the slightly off-centred handle) and looks set for an eternity of use. My experiences of own manufacture covers has been poor (and, admittedly limited), with them generally splitting up the seams and V shaped tears from sharp digs.

Only ever taken one bass. Always have a spare set of strings, screwdriver, fuses and goodness knows what else in the case pockets. Needed strings a couple of times in my life, never anything else though. Had an amp go down twice (yes, same one) in rehearsals but never suffered any other problem in over 30 years playing. The risk is low, not high enough to warrant spare basses/amps. I'm sure if I was a touring professional I would, but I'm not and appreciate travelling very light.

[quote name='bakerster135' timestamp='1401019489' post='2459148'] Not quite, the pre-amp's slightly different on the Classic, based on a pre-eb 78 'ray. There's quite a difference in the treble sound between the two. Also the Classic has through body stringing, though the jury's still out on whether that makes any difference... [/quote] Certainly regarding tone, but it's a better engineering solution. Don't the Classics have the slab bodies of the earlier 'Rays too?

Looks incredible!

[quote name='Mikey R' timestamp='1400433537' post='2453810'] No-one else has mentioned this - when I tried out a Ray, I found that you get the same sound whether you play soft or really dig in. I can see how this would be useful, but I didnt get on with it, I like to vary my sound by varying technique, which the Ray didnt respond to. But the Sterling really is a nice beast. [/quote] Maybe no-one mentioned it because they don't find this.

Just by a Midget. Almost all I ever use regardless of gig size

It's a cultural thing, isn't it? One that would stand some interesting investigation. That Ibanez isn't a bad looking bass and I'm sure plays and sounds great. But, there will be few people interested in a Stingray who would be also interested in an Ibanez. Could hardly say the Ibanez is bland but has no more than a passing interest for me. Is there something brutal, crude yet elegant about the 'Ray (and, indeed, most of Leo's creations) which the luxury of the Ibanez misses? Certainly the Ibanez might try to mimic the 'Ray's sounds etc, but never the other way round. Why is this?

[quote name='bh2' timestamp='1399728849' post='2447087'] I had to move on my 78... still brings a tear to the eye... I loved her... oh well. Some fellow in Spain plays it in a disco/funk band now. [/quote] Oh, yeh, .. the bass, mmm, yeh....