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Bass Centre Guy Pratt "Betsy" jazz bass


Grassie

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Without getting the scales out it feels around the 8.5lbs mark compared to other basses I own. I'm very impressed with it from in regards to playability. The neck is very slim which I really like. Plugged into a pre-amp for recording I'd describe it as 'hi-fi' sounding and I suppose it will come down to how you feel about EMG's which divide some people. I'm very pleased with it.

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  • 2 months later...

Had a chat with Barry at the Bass Centre and I'm headed out tomorrow to have a play...hopefully buy the Betsy Bass. Funny, I randomly purchased Guy Pratt's new book (which is fantastic....great writer) and finally realised HE was the jumpy guy playing bass for Gilmour in the Live from Gdansk movie. He has some great stories in his book. Made me have a look at the Bass Centre Betsy bass and realised they are right down the road from where I work. No brainer.

 

I'll keep you all posted on how it goes.

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2 hours ago, Defo said:

Very positive review in this month's BGM - looks like an absolute steal at that money 

Thank you and well worthy of the praise. One thing that has come to light today, courtesy of my mate Steve Rickwood, is that we've discovered the EMGs are active, not passive as stated in the review...a battery is hidden inside the cavity underneath the control plate. Without tools when conducting the review at the Bass Show, in September, it appeared that the bass was fully passive. I've even used my bass for the past few months assuming that was the case. But no, the pickups are active. Most active basses these days have passive pickups and an active circuit when described as being 'active'. But there you go, you live and learn. Doesn't make for the easiest battery change though. Nevertheless, a great bass and a steal at the price.

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On 24/09/2019 at 10:21, BigRedX said:

Looks like just another J-bass copy to me.

What makes it special/different to all the other J-basses?

It is.

It doesn't have to be "special" just good at a good price and if someone likes it, that's all it needs.

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16 hours ago, Mike Brooks said:

Doesn't make for the easiest battery change though. Nevertheless, a great bass and a steal at the price.
 

From memory, EMG battery life is measured in years rather than months, so it shouldn't be too frequent a chore! :D 

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Headed out to see Barry at the Bass Centre today (Chris the tech too...who is a wealth of knowledge). And came home with the Betsy Bass! Barry couldn't of been nicer and although busy with NAMM next week he still had time to tell John Entwistle stories and also interested in the band I'm in, carnabyarmy.com.

I've really gone in a totally new direction with this bass as I've been playing mostly a Hofner for the last year and a Ric copy. I'm looking for more punch and clarity and hopefully I'll get it with this. Now, to just convince the band that "Burgandy Mist" is a killer colour!

20200110_142925.jpg

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On 09/01/2020 at 14:28, Studio GC said:

Had a chat with Barry at the Bass Centre and I'm headed out tomorrow to have a play...hopefully buy the Betsy Bass. Funny, I randomly purchased Guy Pratt's new book (which is fantastic....great writer) and finally realised HE was the jumpy guy playing bass for Gilmour in the Live from Gdansk movie. He has some great stories in his book. Made me have a look at the Bass Centre Betsy bass and realised they are right down the road from where I work. No brainer.

 

I'll keep you all posted on how it goes.

Had a very brief conversation (on here?) with him when I realised he’d played Murrayfield with Icehouse as they backed Bowie in the early 80s.

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5 minutes ago, Studio GC said:

Yes, Chris (The Bass Centre tech) did say about 5 years life expectancy for the 9v battery.

Out of interest I looked it up and EMG quote circa 1500 hours for a 2-pickup bass. Equates to 1h/day for 300 days a year for 5 years, so that probably isn't far off for a moderate amount of playing - and assuming the bass isn't left plugged in 😉

Not much of a chore if you remember to swap the battery every now and then when doing other maintenance.

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20 hours ago, Studio GC said:

Headed out to see Barry at the Bass Centre today (Chris the tech too...who is a wealth of knowledge). And came home with the Betsy Bass! Barry couldn't of been nicer and although busy with NAMM next week he still had time to tell John Entwistle stories and also interested in the band I'm in, carnabyarmy.com.

I've really gone in a totally new direction with this bass as I've been playing mostly a Hofner for the last year and a Ric copy. I'm looking for more punch and clarity and hopefully I'll get it with this. Now, to just convince the band that "Burgandy Mist" is a killer colour!

20200110_142925.jpg

It’s a fantastic colour! 

I don’t get on with Jazzes and still want one.😂

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