gjones

[quote name='Ghost_Bass' timestamp='1390491390' post='2345992'] Only 410 and 115 cabs though... Would be great a 112 combo with the 500W head and a 112 ext cab, just like the Promethean, but with GB quality and reliability and Fender vintage sexy looks [/quote] The speakers are 4 ohm so no extension cabs possible unfortunately. Bit dumb that

Why oh why didn't they do this a long time ago. I'm sure their rumble amps are fine but they looked like anonymous, boring, black boxes and nothing like the vintage stuff. I bought a Fender TV15 a couple of years ago, mainly because of it's drop dead vintage looks. It sounded good too, but I sold it because it was stupidly heavy with just one plastic handle on the top. The 500 watt version is only 36lbs (but then they said the TV15 would have a neo speaker in it......the one I bought didn't and weighed about the same as a small planet). Now somebody go out and buy one and write a great review, so I can justify buying one

Allparts USA sell a set of four vintage screws and saddles for $18 plus postage to the UK. http://www.allparts.com/BP-2125-001-Bass-Saddles_p_1057.html

Is this guy straight up.......or is he double bluffing? 62 date on base of the neck but he thinks it's a reissue. It's definitely been about a bit or been artfully distressed by somebody trying to make it look 50 years old. All I know is the guy has had 17 different IDs since 2007. Who needs 17 different IDs unless they're a bit dodgy? [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/321302754652?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649"]http://www.ebay.co.u...984.m1438.l2649[/url]

I've owned Charvels, Yamahas, Stingrays, Precisions and lots of Jazz Basses. Although I did like them all, they became superfluous once I figured out that a Jazz Bass, with a John East retro pre amp, can do everything I (and probably most other bassists) need a bass to do. Although I do have a soft spot for my scruffy old P bass.

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1390239497' post='2343016'] Try putting your hands together and splaying out your thumb and fingers as far as they'll go without pain. Even after only a few months, you'll see that your fretting hand can stretch further than your plucking hand. By the time you've played for two or three years, you should see a difference of maybe a centimetre. IME that's pretty much where the process stops, i.e. your fretting hand doesn't continue to stretch until you turn into something out of The Fantastic Four, but then (hard to believe) but I'm on the wrong side of ... ahem ... 30. [/quote] Hey I checked, and you're right. My left hand has a stretch about an inch wider than my right. I doubt that happened overnight.

This is a very handy comparison between the [color=#000000][font=arial, sans-serif]SansAmp Bass Driver DI and the Behringer BDI 21. The cheapo Behringer sounds great at a fraction of the price of the sansamp. I'm impressed. [/font][/color] [b] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SD0CN4rs8p8[/b]

It looks gorgeous. I'm sure it'll sound as good as it looks. Remember to put some sound files up once you've finished it.

Different strokes for different folks. I don't really get sentimental over gear. I loved my big old Fender TV15, but after less than a year of ownership realised that it was far too big and cumbersome to shift up 3 flights of stairs after every gig, so sold it to finance a lighter weight amp. I still do pine after it but realise it was the sensible thing to do. Over the last 5 years 9 basses and 4 amps have come and gone and I don't regret selling any of them. They were all sold to purchase other gear I needed at the time. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3Kvu6Kgp88

I like it. Those orchestral samples are incredibly realistic. As sampling has got better, the chances of employment for orchestral musicians must be few and far between.

Bin it and buy a new one.

[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]A venue where I gig regularly has the bass amp going through a really nice Ampeg Classic Series SVT 410he. They started off pairing it with an Ampeg PF- 500, which broke, the replacement was an Ashdown Mag 300 which also broke, and now they've hired an ancient Peavey firebass 700 with a broken input (you have to use the effects return thereby bypassing the preamp completely). [/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]The amazing thing is, whatever amp they use, the sound out of that cab is always great! The 410he cabs are not cheap.They typically sell for around £700. Which leads me to the conclusion that you're much better off spending your cash on the best cab you can afford and economising on the amplifier rather than the other way around.[/font][/color]

[quote name='tommania' timestamp='1390093746' post='2341492'] My local music shop doesn't have that much variety of stuff other than Ashdown so it's a shame I can't try different cabs out myself. I really liked the Ampeg set up I used though, so I'll keep an eye out for any ampeg cabs. Do you think my head is worth keeping or is there better I could be using? T [/quote] If you liked the Ampeg sound, the PF-500 and PF-800 get good write ups on here by people who know what an Ampeg should sound like. I liked the PF-500 when I used it with the Ampeg 410. Ampegs have got a great rock sound if that's what you want. In my experience it's the cabinet you play through that ensures a decent sound, as however good your amp is, it will sound crap if your speakers aren't up to scratch. The Ashdown amp you have is pretty good but those Ashdown Mag speakers you have are bottom of the range. A venue I play at regularly used a Mag 300 Ashdown head and a Mag 410. When they changed the cab to a Ampeg SVT 410he the improvement in the sound was HUGE!. If you want a better sound I would recommend you start with a change of speaker cabs. Here's the review of the Ampeg PF-500 [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/136339-ampeg-pf-500/"]http://basschat.co.u...9-ampeg-pf-500/[/url]

An Ashdown through a Ampeg Classic SVT 410he is a great sound. I know because I played through that setup recently. The Ashdown cabs are not my cup of tea. The Ampeg PF-500 is a nice amp and sounds good through a Classic SVT 410he as well (I tried that combination too). It's bears up well against a tube SVT head I tried recently. In fact if I was to recommend anything I would recommend that Classic SVT 410he cab. Everything I used sounded great through it.

I assume they're knackered and for sticking on the walls in bars etc.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1390053280' post='2340925'] .... and if it's hired, and broken, why wasn't it replaced? [/quote] Because they're a cheapskate bunch of bastards! But saying that, they must have got a bloody good deal on that Ampeg cab, cos they ain't cheap. Edit: How did the word 'bastards' get through the profanity filter?

You can't go wrong with DR Hi Beams. Same kind of tension as Roto swing bass. A clean sound and keeps their high end longer than the Rotos do. Here's Ed Friedlands review, with sound samples. http://bassemporium.com/?p=4444

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1388583378' post='2323604'] Do you know of any other similar bands worth checking out? [/quote] If you like this you'll like Snarky Puppy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZBlRkF0-to

[quote name='NJE' timestamp='1390059303' post='2341033'] Just curious as to what the quality is like on Ashdown now? I know people give them a bit of a knocking compared to some of the other specialist brands like MarkBass and Aguilar etc, but I was just wondering is the build quality good, has the sound changed at all over the evolution of the ABM range? I used to own a old ABM 300 which was pretty good, never had any issues, and have suddenly started looking at them again as an option to possibly change my amp. I have been using a Class D small amps for a while and just find them lacking somehow, they just don't seem to have the low end grunt and power that I used to get from my old trace and ABM heads. I also played a big old Peavey head recently and it just seemed to have more presence. I figure a lot of players use the Ashdown kit and if its good enough for the main man Pino, surely its worth considering? Are the ABM still made in the UK? [/quote] I've used and owned lots of Ashdown stuff, from an Electric Blue combo to a ABM 500. Right now I use a 550 Mibass head. They're all excellent but I don't recommend their cabs. An Ashdown head with an Ampeg, Barefaced, or GK cab is a better combination in my opinion.

I heard a young guy playing one down at Whighams in Edinburgh. He was in the house band at the 'Blues Tuesday' open mic night. It was a reasonable sound but didn't sound like a Stingray. As soon as he got the chance he swopped it with with a very grungy 70's Jazz Bass, with a horrible action, that a jammer had brought along. So I assume it's not his first love, just a bass that he could afford. I recommend you play one, if you can, before you fork any money out.

[quote name='Hugh971' timestamp='1390045131' post='2340794'] HI, I'm after a cheap fretless bass. This will be my first fretless so a big part of this is so I can see if I like fretless and stick to it. My main influence in fretless playing is Jaco's more groove oriented stuff (not so much the soloing) but I'm not trying to be Jaco but I am specifically after a jazz due to the the bridge J pickup though I will consider other suggestions. At the moment I'm looking primarily at these 2 options[list] [*][b]Vintage Fretless Icon [/b]([url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/vintage_vj96mrjp_fretless.htm"]http://www.thomann.d...jp_fretless.htm[/url]) - This seems to be regarded quite well around here. [*][b]Cheap Harley Benton Fretless Jazz [/b]([url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_jb_40fl_sb.htm"]http://www.thomann.d..._jb_40fl_sb.htm[/url]) - I've found next to nothing about this online. It looks very good for the price but it's a bit of a risk. Has anyone ever played a Harley Benton bass and if so was it any good? [/list] Can anyone help here? I'm leaning towards the Vintage at the moment. Thanks Hugh [/quote] There's one on ebay at the moment http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fender-Squier-Jazz-Vintage-Modified-Active-Pick-ups-Bass-guitar-/291058945956?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item43c4770fa4

These are good too. You can pick them up for £200 or under secondhand http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVP7EEl8HfE

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1390045370' post='2340797'] For Hifi they used to advise spending 50% of your budget on the speakers. As Liam says a bad cab won't make anything sound good. I'd take your own amp to this gig. [/quote] I will next time

My advice is to pick some songs you like which have simple bass parts and play along. Eventually you'll pick up the bass lines. Repeat this process until you find it easy to pick up simple bass parts by ear. This process does take time but everything worth doing takes some effort. I'm sure there's beginner lessons for free on youtube. Once you've learned a few songs start going to local jams and meeting musicians and like minded people. They'll probably encourage you to get up for a jam.This will give you the motivation to spend more time practicing and eventually it will be you who gets up and joins the guys on stage. After I got my bass It took me about a year before I played my first proper gig.

A venue where I gig regularly has the bass amp going through a really nice Ampeg Classic Series SVT 410he. They started off pairing it with an Ampeg PF- 500, which broke, the replacement was an Ashdown Mag 300 which also broke, and now they've hired an ancient Peavey firebass 700 with a broken input (you have to use the effects return thereby bypassing the preamp completely). The amazing thing is, whatever amp they use, the sound out of that cab is always great! The 410he cabs are not cheap.They typically sell for around £700. Which leads me to the conclusion that you're much better off spending your cash on the best cab you can afford and economising on the amplifier rather than the other way around. I wonder if there's any other Basschattters out there who have had a similar experience of playing a cheap and cheerful amp through a high end cab and getting a great sound?