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Still 1/3 the price of a vintage one.

Well a black Hipshot popped up on kijiji for a good price. and I think it will look good on the V.

Add another mid twenty something …

I’m happy whenever someone tells me they have over 30 basses or guitars. It makes me fell better about only having twenty something.

Yes, I’ve got a little Phil Jones C2 under one practice head and an Ampeg 210AV under another. I have a pair of Bergantino cabs by the patio door for gigs , although for many I only need a single cab. And an ancient GK MB150 combo to drag out for rehearsals. I drag stuff out the door for rehearsals or gigs every week and keep the practice rigs completely separate and self contained. That way I don’t forget cables or tuners , or whatever when I head out. And I do have a cheap little headphone amp I can plug a tablet into as well.

I keep gig rigs completely separate from practice , or rehearsal amps. That looks like a nice home practice amp to me.

I always thought Leo’s bent metal bridge was genius simplicity. High mass bridges promised sustain , but I didn’t necessarily see that as a good thing. I sometimes palm mute. Last week I replaced two bridges on basses. I have a Danelectro shortscale DC bass that has the metal adjustable bridge and replaced that with a wooden popsicle stick bridge to get more of a woodier thump. And it worked. And I replaced a 3point bridge on a Gibson DC Jr bass with a high mass Hipshot. To be honest I don’t notice much of a change , but it looks a heck of a lot better.

Herself once dragged me off to a Shaggy concert. I think I was the only guy there.

My VI was the first Squier I’ve ever purchased. No complaints. I’m happy Fender made it available as an inexpensive import. Vintage and Custom Shop would be beyond my discretionary budget. I spend more time on it than I ever expected to.

It appears that Rickenbacker is about to do just that !

I sold a blackface Bassman to a guitar playing friend about 40 years ago, he was back for a visit last week and telling me it still sounds gorgeous.

Danelectro with Masonite construction.

My strings fall into three categories . Dead rounds , flats , and fresh rounds. Most basses have flats . Most 34 scales have TIs. I keep fresh rounds on an old Ray. Slinkies, of course. I have ancient dead rounds on an old Pbass. It thumps. I have Black Beauties on a Riverhead Unicorn. They were on when I bought it , and I’ll eventually put another set on it. Most have TI Jazz flats , some sets have been on forever. I prefer short scales now and with a 30 in scale I like a stiffer string than the TI Jazz flats I loved. And after trying a bunch I seem to be settling on LaBellas. For fresh shortscale rounds I’ve been buying Gibson Britewires. Nice string. Most shortscales have flats , but I do keep fresh rounds on a couple. And ancient rounds on some for that old school thump. My Longhorn has the factory strings , it was made in 98. All it can do is thump , but it really does that. I have Thunderguts on an Ashbory and a uke bass . And Thomastiks on my upright.

I suspect that after being restored , and tweaked for bass , it would be a lovely home rig with a small modern cab.

I prefer shortscales , and there’s no shortage of short scale hollow bodies. That said I’ve come * that close to buying one on several occasions. They sound good, and I don’t hear complaints about build quality. I prefer shortscales. I have too much stuff already , but if they did a shorty I’d probably break down and buy one.

Darkglass … get some hoodies back in the merch section … I really wanna buy one. And add tome Tremolo to the Darkglass Suite software. And maybe an octave pedal too. Gibson … there are more elegant solutions than the 3point. And maybe an Epi Pro shortscale Tbird. Might be nice to put a finer finish on the DC Jr. And don’t frig with Mesa. That train is right on track. Rickenbacker … that 4005 XC was a wonderful thing , how about another short scale hollow body based on the 350 body. Black of course , and maybe with an included Vox Python strap. Yamaha… overdue for another whack at the Flying Samurai , short scale this time. Danelectro … reissue the Commando amp for the harp players. Hand wire it , make it right. A six string Longhorn bass would be a funky thing to see again. More colours again , please. Fender… maybe a short scale upper end Squier Jagstang bass ? Something cheap and trashy for the kids.(and me) Bergantino … maybe a bookshelf speaker for home practise. If anybody could make a great one it would be Jim.

Mostly playing shortscales these days , but for rounds I’ve been buying Gibson Britewires. Nice strings. And I still put Slinkys on my Ray. I keep flats on most basses.

Over the years I’ve acquired a bunch of classic basses , but these days I prefer shortscales. This is easily my favourite one to play , although I usually gig with a Longhorn simply because of the way it sits in the mix. But this Jr is the favourite.

It’s the stock pickup , but with a chrome cover and surround. I like the pickup a lot , it’s placed in the classic sweet spot , so despite being a short scale set neck , it works like a Pbass. I saw a photo of a Jr with the chrome cover and surround and loved the look. I’m not normally one to mod instruments , but I’ve gone to tea on the Jr. They really are wonderful little basses.

When I first received my Gibson DC Jr I considered replacing the stock 3 point bridge. Now to be fair , I have several basses with 3 point bridges and I’ve always been able to place things exactly where I want without any drama. They are a bit of a misery to adjust. And the Hipshot is a sexy looking thing. And I finally managed to snag one for a good price. I love that little Jr bass , it’s probably my favourite thing to play. The transplant was easy, and it was dead simple to adjust and intonate. To be perfectly honest , I can’t see any huge tonal change. It is much easier to adjust, and I like the look a lot better. And if I see another for the right price I might put one on the SG.

I went looking for a bag to put my little Darkglass head in , and discovered it sits perfectly in a little Billingham bag that hasn’t seen much recent use. Perfect!

Twenty something.

I’m not using any of the factory presets , although they give you a fair sampling of what’s in the Suite. I just dove in and eventually became familiar with where the buttons are, and can make a preset fairly quickly. And it’s fun to spend some time with individual pedals to get a feel for what they do. Spin every knob. Bounce between the reverb units to get a feel for them. I miss having a tremolo, I wish they’d include that in the next update. Whenever that might be. It’s faster to switch between effects on an actual pedalboard. But it’s nice being able to load five presets and have any number stored for easy access. And being able to change the knob functions to suit a preset is genius. Darkglass have promised a controller that will use that 7 pin connector. No idea when that might be.

Some say that Class D amps can’t be repaired , but as long as you can find a good qualified tech you’re fine. Good to hear it’s running normally and wasn’t an expensive fix.

I found the heavier FenderVI string set made a big difference.