Chris2112

When I was an 18 year old I wanted nothing more than an Alembic Stanley Clark with Series electronics. I still do want one. I was at the Gallery in London last January and they had one in with quite an unobtrusive rosewood top in stock. It seemed far better value at about £6999 than the fretless Wal parked next to it for nearly double the price! 

Impressive work for a young lad.

4 hours ago, squire5 said:

Who was the guy years ago who played a Zon bass and had at least 47 different D-Tuners on his headstock?Curly headed dudeDid a lot of melodic solos.Well like him,it was pleasant to listen to - for a while.CB is talented no doubt and a nice guy to boot but I could only listen to him for a short while.

The funny thing about Michael Manring is he wasn't and isn't primarily a solo bassist. He was the house bassist for the Windham Hill record label for many years and has cut far more records with bands and ensembles than he has on his own. 

I love his solo work but his playing with other musicians is just on another level. His arrangement of 'Bright Size Life' from his instructional DVD is IMO the best performance of that piece that I've ever heard and the 'Equilibre' record he cut with David Cullen is one of the finest jazz records I've ever heard. 

Michael did things backwards compared to how it works these days, he cut his teeth in the traditional setting with other players and then moved to solo work. 

I do enjoy some of Charles' playing, clearly the practice he has put in has paid off. I don't really dig most of the covers he does but I can see why he does them, he wouldn't get a million clicks posting a solo bass piece of his own and he wouldn't have a presence at all if he hadn't found a niche to exploit.

I do rather wish he could get into a decent band; like so many of these YouTube virtuosos he has so much to offer but none of them seem to play together. Music is best when it's a team effort IMO, when different players interact and make more than the sum of their parts. 

I've had Cort Rithimic pictured below since 2016, I think. I've got that picture saved as 'bass collection 2017', which would be about right. 

I'd actually sold all my bass gear and had bought some guitars that I was messing on with. In about 2013 or so I found myself in a funk with bass and decided to shift over to guitar. It was fun, but the desire to play bass again came back big time and I suddenly found myself absolutely hooked on Jeff Berlin's my music and playing. I found the Rithimic listed for sale here by the well-known British rock bassist Neil Murray in the summer of 2016. I also bought a Markbass Jeff Berlin combo amp and a TC Electronic Corona chorus pedal to make the right noises.

I've played countless hours on it since and it now has Jeff's signature on the back of the headstock. I still own the Pedulla too, which I must have bought around September 2016.

12 hours ago, Henrythe8 said:

Wow. Nice Dolphin, and Nice BassLab too 🙂 

What year is this one ? Looks a bit too red for a Ovangkol, did you have the luck to score a Boiré one ? (although if it's lightweight it might not be). It seems weird to have a Tedur nut, too. 

How is the neck ? 

It's a 2009, it is indeed ovangkol though the body has a light, almost blonde tint to it. It looks completely different in different rooms of my house due to the different coloured lighting. I really need to get it outside on a sunny day for some photographs but the weather has mainly been dismal lately. 

The neck is a pleasant surprise, being a 'D' shape but somewhat thinner some some of the Warwicks I remember from the ovangkol-neck period. The fret ends are absolutely perfect and it is extremely fast and smooth. I'd almost forgotten how good 'raw' wood like this could feel. It's a total delight in every position, have a bit of a 'scruff' to hold onto in first position and being extremely wieldy further up. Having 26 frets to play with is great fun and the intonation for chords up at the dusty end is almost spooky. They're so clean and clearly intonated. No dead spots either. I've previously played Warwicks where the neck was maybe something I'd live with for the sound of the bass, rather than something I loved outright. This one just feels right to me.

But don't take my word for any of this! I often say that I can get used to anything. I'm particular about what I like but I'm extremely flexible about specs; I couldn't tell you the nut width by mm on any of my basses because I can adjust quickly to most things. I guess it I told you this sounds and feels a bit like a jazz bass and a Thumb merged into one, you might understand where I'm coming from. 

Perhaps I should have gotten round to posting this thread sooner. Indeed, just having a Warwick Dolphin in my collection at home is grounds for celebration. I had waited, however, to get it set up and get used to it. More on that in a bit...

Now, I wouldn't normally preface every NBD thread with a backstory. Or would I? Perhaps I would, because these days I don't really buy a bass unless it's something I really, really want or have wanted for years. Maybe this leads to less 'wildcard' revelations but all the same, I have never been disappointed by taking a more selective approach to buying. I keep saying I'll get back to selling or trading but so far, I keep getting things I can't bear to let go.

I've wanted a Dolphin since I was about 15. I've long been a Warwick fan and I've had Thumbs and Streamers in the past. There is room in my collection for a few more, I dare say, so watch this space. My affection for Warwick goes back to the turn of the millennium, when I was first getting into Talkbass and discovering the world of boutique basses along with a world outside of rock and metal. However, I was very familiar with that world at the time and Warwick were very visible in that field. If you were anyone in the nu metal game, you probably had a Warwick bass and a great tone to go with it. I remember the Dana B. Goods Warwick website (indeed, I'm sure that they owned 'www.warwick.com' and enquiries would take you to their site rather than Warwick.de). In short, Warwick were everywhere and I loved them. Nothing sounded like a Warwick, particularly the 'dark' wood models (bubinga Corvettes, ovankgol and walnut Thumbs, boire and ovankgol Dolphins etc). 

I had consigned myself to never seeing a Dolphin in person, never mind owning one. The one I ended up buying was in fact, the first I've ever laid eyes on. The moment of seeing those unique and unusual proportions in person will stay with me forever, a bit like seeing the leaning tower of Pisa or whatever - you know them innately, by exposure, but seeing them in person is an experience on another level. 

So there I was at work in late March on a night shift, idling away. I'd seen the advert here for the Dolphin in the classifieds and considered it but thought restraint was more satisfying than indulgence. In that moment though, I decided that spending a little dough on something I'd wanted for two decades was a fair trade. Communications were made and a deal was done. 

The bass came looking, plainly speaking, like a new instrument, save for the frets. Like most Warwick bell brass frets, they need occasional attention to polish them up. But the wood was as smooth and satin as any Warwick I've touched and the gold hardware completely unblemished. The action was sky high and the strings were absolutely dead so despite getting the bass in my hands, there wasn't much to report on getting it home. I played it for about ten minutes and felt it had a huge potential, then put it back in the Warwick flight case and put it away. On another note, should nuclear war ever start I'll be hiding inside that case. I trapped my fingers between it and the car's B pillar when I brought it home and howled in pain. I accidentally stubbed my toe on it putting it into my car once and felt like I'd kicked a boulder. Built to last, it is. 

A visit to the greatly-esteemed Bass Doc, Howard Satterly, finally had the Dolphin ready to play. Strung with some EBMM stainless steels in .45 and with frets polished and the action brought down to a realistic level. An instrument of this level deserves a professional setup and will receive any necessary tweaks by my own fair hand in future. But man, does it play nicely now. Getting it home and plugging it in, I could finally give the full appraisal. 

The weight is surprisingly light. This is no Thumb and whilst I have no means of measuring it, it is lighter than my Spector NS-5CR and my Pedulla Pentabuzz. The rhomboid body gives it an offset position over the body, such that the bridge is almost offset from your midriff. It doesn't quite hang in a jazz bass position but it's not far off. If the central position and long reach to first inherent in the Warwick Thumb is not to your taste, you would probably prefer this. Seated, it's a joy to play in a classical position over the left knee. I never do this with my other basses but I could find some mileage here, since it seems to encourage a very right hand position that produces a very clean and articulate sound. 

The sound is absolutely classic Warwick, hi-fi and crisp with a distinct growl in the low midrange. The humbucker back pickup sounds absolutely great and so far, I've been running it solo. With both pickups on full, the sound is so rich with bottom end that my neighbours have been banging on the wall in a show of appreciation. There is little to none of the 'tone suck' that some basses experience when running both pickups on full. The coil tap for the back pickup is also super cool, as running both coils gives a big, juicy sound. Splitting them gives a more classic jazz bass style honk, and you fan further accentuate this by pulling the other pot up to run the bass in passive. 

I've mainly been playing it through my Markbass Jeff Berlin CMD-151P so far, occasionally running it through a Samsamp GED-2112. However, I've found it most satisfying just running straight into the Markbass and getting some very sweet hi-fi sounds as a result. 

Well, all I can do now is put the miles on it and see how my opinion of it moves. So far, it has been absolutely and unwaveringly positive and I've been having a total blast with it. A Thumb or Streamer could yet find it's way into my collection, but I feel as though the crown jewel has already been located. 

Wow, that is absolutely wretched! In fairness, it's the vocals doing the most damage to the whole affair as Mohini is a fantastic bassist. The more I hear from Will Smith and his talentless kids, the more I think he was a mistake. 

Seriously though, those vocals, urgh. Channeling the Yoko Ono vibes. 

I'll have to do a proper thread for this soon, my recently acquired 2009 Dolphin Pro-I. I've wanted one of these since I was about 15, when I was first getting on Talkbass and seeing all the lovely boutique basses that were at the height of their popularity at the time. I've owned a few Warwicks over the years and played even more and this one is an absolute 10/10. More gushing praise will follow when I give it a full write-up. 

9 hours ago, Baloney Balderdash said:

 

Damn 🤣🤣🤣

Funnily enough I was just speaking to my brother about this very video the other day (as well as another one where he has another extremely ostentatious Warwick custom, a seven string Corvette IIRC). It's an excruciating watch really, to the point where I almost feel bad for the guy. You can see he just wants to hold the bass and bask in it's implied credibility and the nervousness in him is entirely apparent as it becomes clear he's going to be asked to play it on camera. The interviewer almost seems sheepishly reluctant to ask him to play it and the results are... woeful. I suppose it's a bit like turning up to a track day in a Le Mans car only to find your skills are Miata Cup level (if that). 

Given that his two basses are probably commissions both well in excess of £12,000 (at a guess), I was interested in seeing who the guy is as he's not a name you see discussed in bass circles. I note his online biography mentions a host of other, more-lucrative pursuits before stating that he is a musician, which may explain that. Outside of Alembic, I can think of a custom shop more expensive than Warwick. Maybe Fodera, but their builds are maybe less 'jewel-like' these days. 

On 21/04/2024 at 04:39, Musicman666 said:

well of course you can always remove or reinstall training wheels but fretlines are permanent .. I think of them more like the diagram on top of a gear stick, essential at first but once you get the hang of it then not so much, however its good to know that they are there to fall back on when required. I have heard some reasons to not want fretlines such as they put some people off or others like the look of a plain board, but I suspect some just like to flex in front of an audience. If you want that no fretlines experience then you can always turn off the lights, ..so far I never felt the urge. Fretlines look pretty much like frets to me and I'm very comfortable with that particular look.

It's a neverending debate. I prefer fretlines myself as we all have positions where we're less fluid and accurate and the lines are a useful reference to compliment muscle memory, and particularly in any venues where the absolute clarity of the note you're may be compromised! Funnily enough, most lined fretless players don't look at the lines at all once they're playing, I don't think, because even the line on the side of the board is offset from where your fingers will be due to the angle of the neck and fretboard relative to your body. 

FWIW I have two fretless basses, one lined and one unlined and I like them both. There is definitely a 'flex' to playing an unlined board but unless you're Alain Caron it may be good to keep your ego in check. I've seen and heard a couple of guys playing fretless bass on unlined boards over the years who were probably not quite as in-tune as they thought 😂

Promoting your own originals band online must be painful. On the flip side, it amuses me that most listeners would rather go and hear some mediocre covers than something original (good, bad or somewhere in between). 

I used to have one of these, they're absolutely great. Fantastic neck profile and excellent ergonomics..

I've purchased a Warwick Dolphin from Stephen today and I'm pleased to give great feedback on the whole thing. 

Stephen was responsive to my messages and used a bit of a initiative to suggest a good mutual meeting point which saved any faffing on with a courier. The bass is exactly as described and in quite remarkable condition. Payment was handled by PayPal with no issues at the meeting point. 

I can recommend Stephen as a genuine seller and his long history at Basschat reflects that. Do business with confidence! 

On 01/10/2022 at 15:26, stu_g said:

I have one its a really nice bass,Bartolini pickups/electronics,hipshot bridge and schaller tuners with a wenge fret board and flame maple top.

It plays really nice i have never had to touch the setup.

Very cool! Love that. 

It is an absolutely dreadful as a piece of music but interesting to see what AI can do now. Not that that is necessarily a good thing or bad thing, but because the Basschat song sounds so generic and reminiscent of many an advert, one wonders if AI hasn't been churning out these jingles for years 🤣

The Sims Super Quad pickups sort of reminded me of this video:

This Lakland video has always stuck in my mind because I thought it was a brave move for the brand to break away from their longstanding relationship with Bartolini to develop their own pickups and preamp. However, whilst I could see the utility in having one bass that can mimic the sound of a few classics, it doesn't do any of the sounds as well as the basses it seems to emulate (with the exception of the P bass, but really that's neither here nor there, I don't much care for the sound of a Precision anyway).

When I heard the Sims pickups I didn't think they sounded like anything particularly special or great. I would tend to agree with the speculation that most players will tend to find a couple of sounds they like from a bass and settle with them. Certainly for a live situation, I can't imagine many soundmen wanting a bass tone and EQ that is constantly changing at the player-side, as they'll probably just try to squash out the changes at the board if they're at all paying attention. When Mark at Talking Bass moved to his Enfield with the Super Quads in it I was struck at how much more I preferred the sound of the Ibanez SR he used to use. I tend to be a player that wants a bass to do one or two sounds really well and I use each instrument in specific situations where it'll perform well. 

In my own semi-related experience, I used to have an ACG with the absolutely amazing ACG EQ-01 preamp in it. The tones it could produce were just astounding but I was forever fiddling with it. A lot of the time I should have been practicing was just spent noodling and faffing around with the tone controls! These days I value something I can just plug in and get a great sound from immediately. 

I've heard people say that their bass is the exception to the norm and that it has a thunderous low B with less than 34" scale. I've heard some 33" scales pull it off to a degree but at less than that, I remain unconvinced.

That said, when I think of the best low B strings I've heard in my life they were all on 34" scale basses! 

On 10/02/2024 at 16:19, Russ said:

I recall that his signature Status had crazy 36V electronics, with four batteries! I loved the design, with the downsized body - shame it was during Status' wooden neck phase (which they appear to have gone back to), would have loved to have seen one with a graphite neck. 

I'm sure he could have had one with a graphite neck if he had wanted. It must be the case that he preferred wooden necks, although that odd semi-hollow six string he had made had a graphite neck and he never seemed to do much with it. That one ended up on sale on this forum and was around for a while before it sold. There were a few Hellborg basses made with graphite necks in later years although none with the 36v preamp as far as I know.

Indeed I'd never heard anything about his Status signature bass being designed to sound like a Wal. Surely, multicoil pickups and a filter preamp would be needed for that. The famed 36v preamp was inspired by his love of a Neve desk with a boatload of headroom. The Status pickups were very clear and rich sounding. Even though his Warwick signature sounded fantastic, his tone with the Status basses when he was playing live with Shawn Lane and Jeff Super in the mid 90's was by far his best. Some of the best bass tone ever put to record, I think. 

On 05/01/2024 at 13:50, dmccombe7 said:

Oohh sparkly..............i like that. Would be good in my Glam covers band.

Dave

It's too nice a bass to put it through that 😂

Sick of all this cool gear turning up for sale in Newcastle 🤣

Thank you for the detailed replies! Very interesting and I'm glad to share this music on the forum. 

I definitely think it's a Clavinet and I'm glad you do too because that makes me a little more certain. One of those sounds, a bit like a Rhodes, that is great in a contemporary setting but you couldn't really use it everywhere. 

I often listen to this piece from Yoshihiro Naruse's 1981 'Mythique' album. At 00:11 seconds the keys player comes in with a really funky sound that reminds me of the Hohner Clavinet Model C, as used by Stevie Wonder on 'Superstition'. I don't profess to be an expert on that variety of instruments from that era and I'd like to know exactly what they used here on the track so I thought the seasoned listeners here could say whether or not in right in my guess (as your keys playing friends too, if you like). 

For us bass lads, you may be interested to know that the bass track was recorded on a fretless Alembic Distillate bass, and surely must be one of the first recorded instances of slapping on a fretless bass. 

Sad news. John will be remembered as a legend of the industry, not just for making a splash with his own enduring designs at a time when the bass world was really taking off, but for continuing to work at the highest level for decades after. I was only just saying the other day that Jaydee remained surprisingly affordable for a handmade British instrument, constructed to the highest standards. 

My thoughts are with his family, who I hope will find some comfort in knowing how well thought of John was.