Conan

[quote name='Jack Cahalane' timestamp='1378575845' post='2202061']I'm not sure if it's common practice or what but it looks to me like they've routed out a pair of mystery holes on the body and neck socket, Surely they're not all like this?[/quote] I currently have a Mex J bass on loan from the guitarist in my band. It felt and played like a dog so I took it to pieces this morning... There was one of those "mystery holes" between the neck pickup and the bottom horn. But that was not all! There was a lot of strange waxy whitish powdery stuff between the scratchplate and the body, and also in the routed cavities. I assume it to be some sort of buffing compound or maybe very fine sawdust from the final finishing. Whatever it was, I don't think it should have been left there but cleaned off before final assembly. There was also a lot of another waxy compound on the four screws holding the neck into the body. As I withdrew the screws, little bits of this wax were falling off all over the place. I had to be careful, when re-assembling, not to get any bits between the neck plate and the body so that it would still fit snugly. Again, I am unsure why this stuff was there and why it was present in such quantity. I was rather disappointed to notice that the control cavity rout and the neck pickup rout were joined together. Obviously this saves time and makes manufacture easier, but it means that the bass can't be played with the scratchplate off. That is a bloody shame, as I really like that look . My CIJ Geddy Lee did not have this "body canal" and therefore I did play it without the plate. It looked very cool indeed (IMO). The bridge seems a bit naff, and the E and G strings seem a long way in from the edge of the fretboard. Obviously you don't want them hanging off the edge, but to far in is not great either. Also, the E and G strings do not seem to quite align properly with the pole pieces of the pickups. It is almost as if the bridge was designed for a different bass! Not massive problems, but taken all together they just make the bass feel a bit shonky. It is dated at 2009 on the neck and pocket (in case this is at all relevant!). I am yet to plug it in, as today has been a bit of a "spring-cleaning" day after the school holidays . Did manage to put a brand new set of RS66LDs on it though... clang-tastic!

Fish - A feast of consequences

He forgot to add "play bass like a man"

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1378464189' post='2200631'] I'm saying it's pointless speculation[/quote] Of course it is! This is an internet forum, after all.

[quote name='SteveK' timestamp='1378463814' post='2200626'] There I was, happily perusing this delightful thread, when suddenly I'm confronted with this nonsense... I mean, really![/quote] Why is it nonsense? I ask purely for information...

Throw away old strings. They sound sh*te.

[quote name='Matt P' timestamp='1378464577' post='2200641'] personally i'll be using the Redheugh bridge and along the tyne on the south side. [/quote] Or the A19 and Tyne Tunnel.

Don't eat yellow snow.

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1378454776' post='2200414'] I enjoyed your thread title very much [/quote] Me too!

Wise words - but not exactly news to our ears.... is it?

[quote name='Coilte' timestamp='1378458578' post='2200483'] For more or less the same money, a G&L Tribute beats any MIM Fender hands down anytime. [/quote] Possibly.... horrible headstocks though!

Hmmmm. I can't help feeling that there might be a smidgeon of racial superiority in some of the comparisons made between Mex, US and Jap Fenders. Maybe some people have a rather stereotypical image of Mexicans in mind when judging an MIM bass? Not only is this view insulting and racist in some cases, but it is ignorant as how many of us actually know the make-up of the staff in Fenders US factories? How many of the staff might be Hispanic or Mexican? Controversial maybe - but possibly a small part of the truth? Speaking from (my limited) experience, I have played a couple of good Mex basses and one terrible one (which ironically I currently have on loan and am having to sort out!). I have never played a US made Fender bass (although I have played a few US strats and teles - all were pretty good but nothing exceptional). The CIJ Geddy Lee jazz I used to own ( ) was outstanding in terms of its playability, tone and finish quality. Wish I still had it!

Not one of the more popular choices, but I was very happy with a GFS replacement pickup in my Squier P. The Bass Doc, who fitted for me, was very complimentary regarding it's quality. That's a pretty good recommendation! Great prices too! [url="http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-Bass-Guitar-Pickups_c_97.html"]http://www.guitarfet...ckups_c_97.html[/url]

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1377403675' post='2187129'] Different speakers sound different, that's as true of speakers today as it was in the 1070's [/quote] Yep. That William the Conqueror made some really great drivers in his day. That Norman can deny.

I always wanted a Peavey mk III... but had to make do with the ubiquitous Trace Elliot AH250, 1048 and 1518 stack - circa 1986! In fairness, it sounded great to me then and was loud as hell - but it did look silly in the pubs that made up most of my gigs! I used to hate the load-out...

This sounds like a classic case of an item being worth what someone is prepared to pay for it, but also how much the seller/owner wants to hold on to it. Ask yourself how much this particular bass is worth to you. Also, how much this friendship is worth to you. If you try to lowball your mate, will there be repercussions? Do you care? Does he know as much about basses and their values as you (now) do? All of these factors need to be taken into account, not just a series of estimates and book values.

[quote name='RandomBass' timestamp='1378006644' post='2194625'] Surely that's closer to the heart? [/quote]

Interesting track! Sounds a bit like the Darkness. The overall sound is kind of muffled - like some of the recordings I used to make on low quality cassette recorders from old vinyl! Can't disagree with what the posters above have said. Vocals need to be more to the fore (or at least the lead vocals do). Re-EQ the bass, drums and guitars. Oh and probably the strings too. It definitely has potential though!

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1377702467' post='2190568'] It means you liked it, and that's all that matters. [/quote] And that, of course!! Sod what anyone else says!

It lacks fullness in the bass and treble parts of the frequency spectrum? If that were the case (which I find hard to believe) then it would have a horrible, nasal, middly tone and be rather limited in usage. I have heard one (well, the four string version anyway) being used by Mariusz Duda of Polish Prog band Riverside - and I certainly wouldn't say that it lacked bass or treble!!

[quote name='Johngh' timestamp='1377691013' post='2190380']I got Geddy and Alex's solo albums and thought they were awful. [/quote] [quote name='xilddx' timestamp='1377693024' post='2190416'] Victor is a wikid album! Not heard Geddy's apart from the previews in iTunes, they didn't grab me. [/quote] Oh well! I think Geddy's "My Favorite (sic) Headache" is a really good album! I also think that some of the songs on there are far better than anything that has appeared on any Rush albums since! Ain't personal taste a great thing?

[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1377685332' post='2190253'] Thing is, exactly [i]which[/i] Rush would you like them to be? 80's synth rock? Excessive 70's Prog? They've changed so much over their career, and I think that's a good thing. How many people on here are writing the same style of stuff that they used to 30, 10 or even 2 years ago? People change, evolve and develop and their creative output reflects that. [/quote] That's cool, and it's certainly true. I think some people just think that they aren't as[b][i] creative[/i][/b] as they used to be.