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The last of my little run of 6 dep gigs with the Stones trib band. It was a lovely one to go out on. Played at a local music festival. Last band on, outside in a pub car park. Nice little stage and pretty good facilities. Load in a bit awkward, but luckily I had a friend along to help me with all that. It was a really fun set. Everything went well, I felt pretty good about it all. Loads of people up dancing toward the end and storm of applause plus cries for more. What was really lovely and unexpected was that afterwards, the rest of the band thanked me profusely for all my hard work and presented me with a bottle of Jura whisky!! That was totally unexpected! I was really touched. I then recalled how last week one of them had struck up a conversation about favourite tipples, and I had mentioned Jura whisky. I really had no idea a the time that he was 'fishing' - he did it very subtly. It's been a brilliant opportunity for me. I think my playing has improved quite dramatically in a few short weeks and I've had a really good experience of playing at a variety of venues - all quite different in their own way. And now, back to normality... for the time being! 🙂

I played (drums) with CreepJoint on Friday. It was our first gig for over 2 years and it felt so good. Our new material is IMHO brilliant. Hopefully plenty of people will check out our new album off the back of it I then played bass and made weird noises for my crazy heavy band Heavy As Balls. I don't know what it is about this band but it always goes down so well. We're basically a jam band but we've just put an album out. The idea is that we jam until one of us plays a riff that makes us all go AEEEUUUUUUGH, due to it's heaviness. Then we base a "song" around that, the idea being that we have to either come up with a heavier riff that fits with the first idea, or somehow make the first idea heavier. It's supposed to be so ridiculously heavy that it's funny. It's heavy as balls. Oh, and we wear masks and robes and have lights on our guitars and on the sides of our faces. We gave out a load of masks before we played and most of the people I could see from stage were wearing them and either head banging, or laughing, which is the desired reaction. It's a shame our drummer's going away travelling for 9 months as it'd be ace to do a run of gigs.

Guys - hope you don't mind, but I've amended the thread title, as this seems to have become a general Yamaha BB thread a long while back and has moved on from being an announcement of the "new" BB X34 and X35 series. This has been an expensive thread for me. I've bought and sold a total of FIVE Yamahas since this thread started! I've literally been hoist by my own petard thread haven't I? 🤣

When I was invited (by the singer) to join my Tex/Mex band the BL (call him Rik) was not keen initially because I already played in another band. After a couple of months I discovered that Rik also played guitar in a Country band. And that his Country band was looking for a bass player. So I put myself forward for the slot. Rik liked the idea of me playing bass in the Country band, but advised me not to mention the Tex/Mex band to the BL of the Country band because "he doesn't like it when people play in more than one band". You couldn't make it up ...

OK - major scary bit number 1. Routing the body binding channels. Why is it scary? Well, as far as I'm concerned - because it is using a router - because it is using a router on a pretty much finished body with all that work already done and a top and a back pretty thin and pretty much thinned to within 0.1mm of it's final size - the above, then remembering that the top is dished, and varying radii to the dish centre all the way round - the above and noting that the binding channel is as deep as the sides are thick - the above and then remembering that it is the BOTTOM of the routed slot that has to be accurate all the way round the body Other than that, it's a walk in the park There is a rig that the multi-acoustic builders sometimes invest in which is a large, complicated and quite expensive rig for a Bosh trimmer router - but I don't build many acoustics so can't really justify the cost and, besides, it's too big for my tiny workspace and storage area. Then there's this from Stewmac to fit onto a Dremel: Hmmm...the general view of this amongst builders I know is that it is rubbish. I've used one before - and I got away with it. But the risks of serious eyesore digs and unevenness in the binding joints is high to very high. And when I used it, there was quite a bit of judicious gap filling needed. The problem is that the top is dished. So the front edge of the jig doesn't (mustn't!) run along the edge of the guitar body - instead the back edge of the jig must. The Dremel - top heavy and while hitting the hard wood of the sides at 40,000 hits a minute - must be kept vertical (assuming the top is the other way up to the photo above - which is pretty impossible to use as photo'd) MANUALLY in both planes. When it tilts - even a smidgen, it digs in and that affects the depth and you get wavy lines at both join lines. So I had a think about it last night. And got a couple of strips of binding and some super glue out and stuck it on (honestly!) Could this act as a visual guide that the rig is parallel to the sides? Would it stay on long enough to prove the concept and then, if it helped, how would I stick it on properly? Well - and here you could knock me down with a feather. Because the concept worked: And it's even stayed glued for the full multi-pass rout of the back!!! And, it is even and wavy line free with only the very slightest amount of tidying up. OK - now it's time to wreck the top!

If I've got enough room, I could bring my Elf...

Say yes to every opportunity that presents itself, never assume you won't be good enough. If it isn't want you want you can walk away but you'll never know if you don't try.,

Please forgive the ostentatious title, some of you will remember a discussion a while ago regarding tool sharpening and my insistence that sharpening jigs are not needed; well I was asked to write this about how edge tools are sharpened in a professional cabinet making shop. Now please don't try and compare how a jobbing chippy sharpens his or her tools on site that is a different story but cabinetry and Luthiery have a similar need for tools that are precisely sharp as opposed to being sharp enough. I will honestly say the one machine/power tool I would not do without is a wet grinder, I would rather rip boards up with a ripsaw and plane them flat and to size by hand than do without that and have done in the past. Why you may ask? Well when you are trying to do fine work in wood the single most important thing you need is control and with cutting tools the only way you can get that control is with very sharp tools, not almost sharp or even sharp enough, to get precise cuts first time and every time they need to be sharper than that razor you shave with each morning and kept that way. It is a job that can be tedious if you let it be, the trick is to let it not be and to do that it needs to be quick and easy then it can be seen as a way of releiving your mind from the concentration levels of doing careful work for long periods. Lets have a look at my sharpening area What you see is a wetstone grinder, a tub of water and two Japanese water stones which a are wedged into wooden blocks to keep them from sliding in use; they are then kept in the tub of water when not being used. Above these I have a variety of gadgets that are associated with sharpening various tools but there is only one of note, the grinding angle gauge The wetstone grinder is used to give a hollow grind to the edge on a the cutting tool at a set angle which is determined by a little gauge. Mine is a 25 degree gauge which is a good all round angle for many tools giving a nice balance between durability and sharpness. The blade is clamped into a sliding carriage at the correct angle like this Then it is simply a matter of switching on and moving the blade from side to side until you have a fully ground hollow edge that is square. I've tried to illustrate that with these photos as best I can You can just make it out but notice that ragged burr on the edge. All we have done is to prepare our blade for the real sharpening: In days gone by various types of oilstones were the way to go, when I was an apprentice I had a prized set of Arkansas stones but things thankfully have moved on some since then, we have the waterstones, diamond impregnated tiles, ceramic stones.... My own favourites are the waterstones and I'll explain why. Waterstones are a man made brick for want of a better term, made of precisely graded grits, they are bound together quite loosely so they actually wear quite quickly in comparison to other types but that to me is an advantage. When you sharpen a tool you abbraide it's surface so tiny particles are removed, these can become embedded quite firmly in the stone and cause something called glazing which reduces it's efficiency. Waterstones on the other hand break up very slowly so the particles are freed stopping that glazing. The downside of that of course is that the stone can quickly wear out of true, thankfully it is so easy to flatten unlike the old Arkansas stones that needed taking to a stone mason. To flatten a waterstone just get a strip of 80 grit sandpaper taped to a flat surface and give the stone half a dozen rubs on that and the job is done, easy. Another great advantage is that water is used a s a lubricant so rather than having oily hands after sharpening they are merely wet and the stones can just be put back in the tub with not further cleaning or drying needed. I have two stones, the large red one which is a 1000 grit stone and the yellow one which is a 6000 grit, I use one at a time, they are both out above just for illustration. I don't have photos of the actual procedure but it is easy to understand. To start sharpening you stand in front of the stone (1000 grit), one foot in front of the other (important). You take the blade in both hands with some fingers from each hand on top of the blade to give it full support. Place the blade on the stone and feel for that hollow grind, there is a point where it sits flat and stable. Now you can either sharpen at that or as I do lift the blade a tiny amount so I only grind the front edge. Lock your elbows tight into your rib cage to lock your arms rigid, then rock backwards using your legs, so weight shifting from the front foot to the back foot, that stops the blade rocking. Do that four times and you should be left with a tiny shiny flat across the whole front edge of your blade. If you look closely mine isn't even, my stone needs flattening (OOPS!) but looking closely notice the burr Change the stone to the 6000 grit and do the same again, remember this must only be done backwards never forwards, the stones are too soft. So four times then flip the blade over and place it flat on the stone, slide the blade over the stone backwards four times. Repeat that two or three more times until when you examine the edge there is absolutely no sign of any burr and the back face should be almost a mirror finish. That should give you a wholly flat edge, for a bench plane you may want to give that edge a slight curve, to do this I use an extra pass over the 6000 stone with pressure on one outside edge then the other and that will be enough to give you a nice edge for a plane And that is it, just give the blade a quick dry on a towel along with your hands and back to work but be careful, that blade will be sharp and i mean sharp. The grinding procedure isn't done every time, just when the sharpening procedure starts taking longer as the flats get bigger; typically I sharpen four times then regrind. Even with regrinding a single blade can be processed within a couple of minutes. I keep four to six plane blades above my bench and sharpen all of them at once, that way I am less likely to be tempted to use a dulling iron when it is so easy to quickly change and it is quicker to sharpen six once then one six times. I hope you can see the logic in that method, every cabinet shop I have been into uses that exact method so I assume that it is probably the best and easiest way of doing it, being quick and easy you are more likely to want to do it and the more likely your work will improve. One last thing and this is actually the very first thing with any flat blade. The back face of a cutting tool needs to be flat, when you buy it it won't be, not even close. The first job with any new chisel or plane blade is to flatten it; how depends on how bad it is. Sometimes 10 minutes on a 1000 grit stone will do it flattening the stone a couple of times, if it is really bad then some 80 grit carborundum powder and a piece of glass it the way to go. Once it's flat then it will stay flat as long as you keep your stones flat but that back face MUST be flat to get the best out of your tools. Very briefly the reason why: A chisel is used mostly but supporting the back edge on work that has previously been cut, either to the side or behind the cutting edge. The back of the chisel is used as a rest and as a guide for progression, if your blade isn't flat then it will either dig in (blade concave) or ride up (blade convex) and that will never ever let you produce good work. Plane blades Other than you wont be able to sharpen properly a bade that is hollow along it's length one of the most important pasts of a bench plane is the cap iron, unless that is in intimate contact with the blade face it will clog up and even with the sharpest blade in the world that plane will not work or certainly won't be capable of quality work but more on that again.

Just taken a punt on one of the RD kits on offer from Pit Bull, always wanted a Gibson RD but can`t afford one so i`m going to build my own, not too sure about having it with jazz pickups on as per kit so I might see what I can come up with. I might yet see my friend Wilf and get something custom made, anyway I got the email this morning to let me know it`s on it`s way. Can`t wait!

Just had notification that there is 20% off all D'Addario strings at Strings Direct, until midnight on 30th August.* Code for the checkout is DADD20. Cheers, Pete. * Offer extended to midnight Friday 31st August

AND IT'S STAYING HERE! I'm still astounded how much quality is in that bass for the money I paid for it. Had it not been a totally different animal, I reckon it would've easily rivaled my Modulus 5SS.

I have decent gear, a car that starts, I turn up on time having learned the parts, I don't drink or take drugs and I'm not excessively grumpy. My ability is entirely mediocre!

+1. There is a 200 watt job currently for sale on here for £200 which would see you fine for most gigs ( and also lightweight and sound brill.)

Sorry to resurrect this thread, but I just found this photo of the St Moritz on an old phone back up. It was about this full when we played there as well.

Yup this is the "S" version i.e. BB1000S Think about cars back in the day and adding an "S". It was only ever a more desirable model, right?

But is it? Jens might have hand picked all the sections that go to make up that body and glued each of them perfectly to the others, But that's essentially the only difference between that multi-laminate body and the one on the Baz Extravaganza Bass. Tone wood makes sense on an acoustic instrument where the vibrations of the strings are being amplified and enhanced by being transferred through the top back and sides, and where each is made up of a single piece of wood, optimally chosen and shaped, and glued to the others with just enough glue and contact to hold the instrument together. Compare that with the typical solid bodied electric instrument where huge slabs of wood are slathered in glue and assembled in way that priorities getting the largest number of bodies out of the fewest number of planks. "Tone Wood" in solid electric instruments is a myth, perpetuated by those with a vested interest in preserving the mystique.

1. Listen to Bootsy 2. Have a good time, all of the time

Something else to look out for : If you look at the terminal on your volume pot, where the white cable comes from the pickup; there appears to be a length of cable that could come in contact with the pot-body. If this touches, all you signal will disappear. It's good practice to cut these ends short. To save you burning out more pots and capacitors; practice soldering. It's a useful skill to have. When you start, always touch some solder on the tip of the iron to make sure it will melt it quickly. When working with wires to connect up a pot, always "tin" the ends of the wires. To do this, bare the wires, twist them together and then coat the strands in solder. It'll make them easier to solder to the component - reducing the time you need to keep heat on the component. When working, keep a pair of pliars handy to hold the shaft of the pot with, or even better, clamp the pot shaft in a pair of mole-grips. The added chunk of metal acts as a good heat-sink; taking the heat away, so the components don't get wrecked. Good luck next time round.

It doesn't take a lot of keyboard technique to be able to play most synth bass lines with more accuracy and reliability on a keyboard synth than you can using a bass guitar and pedals. Most of the bassists I see doing this sort of stuff have some serious bass guitar chops and a massive pedal board to hold all the effects they require, but I know I can do a much better job, in terms of accuracy of playing, and consistency of sound, with something like a Nord Lead and my decidedly 3rd rate keyboard technique.

The only things you will regret are when you were a Richard to someone.

The best thing is to transcribe lines yourself, use them along with the chords in the lead sheets. That’s how I learned anyway. It is an art form, one of my tutors at uni showed us a formula for creating walking lines, it sounded like a formula too, there was very little beauty in it. A good album to transcribe from is Bill Evans live at the village vanguard. The way it’s mixed puts the bass on it’s own in one channel. Scot LaFaro is the bassist, wonderful lines.

As with most things in life, it depends. Trying to play in three busy bands would be a nightmare, in two busy bands would be challenging. But I find playing in one busy band, plus two which only gig once a month each, plus two more which are one-off project bands for specific gigs (things like Swanage Blues Festival) is actually very easy to arrange. That's five bands. Deciding that One Band = Good and More Than One Band = Bad is a mite simplistic, if everyone will forgive me saying so.

Being slightly obsessive about these things, I've been working on a new technique for getting the neck pocket and neck to fit together perfectly, which if anyone is interested I'll describe here. (I'm not suggesting anything here is new, it's all been well and truly stolen from elsewhere!) First I get some 18mm mdf and 3 straight edges. I clamp the neck down (which isn't shown here) and make sure it's immovable. I then use double sided tape to stick down the straight edges so that they are up against the side of the neck.... I then remove the clamp and the neck, and take the straight edges/mdf to the router table where I use a guided bit to rout out the template... The next stage is to use a 1/4" radius roundover bit to round the ends of the neck so that they fit (almost) exactly into the template. The key here is to make sure that the bearing you used to cut out the template was also a 1/4" radius bit. The neck is put on its side and I rout just the ends of the neck so they are rounded. Probably if you've never used a router table before, this isn't the first thing you want to do, it is a bit nerve-wracking. However, I've done this a few times now and never had any issues and I'm very cautious about routing. Obviously make sure you aren't holding the neck down with you fingers near the cutter (I always use plastic handle push stick type things). I take it very slow and take many passes. It's then just a matter of clearing up the corner a bit with sandpaper and you should find the neck fits perfectly into the template. One thing that takes a bit of playing around with is making sure that the template is cut slightly oversize, so that the neck falls in, but doesn't have any visual gaps. I use 3 layers of (pink TESA) sensitive masking tape around the sides of the neck. That's for a neck that will have a tru-oil (so very thin) finish. If I was going to spray polyurethane you'd probably want to have at least 2 more layers. Or one layer of thicker tape. The key though is that once the neck pocket is cut, the neck should fall into the hole with no resistance. Forums seem to be full of people bragging about how tight their neck pocket is, without realising that once finish is applied, the neck will be impossible to insert. Hopefully someone found that useful😀

Creating music using programming is as much art as is anything else. What's so special about stuff being 'art', anyway..?

OK - so far so good. One of the things I've done before a few times is, in adding a couple of strips to bind the fretboard, I've used acoustic banding - rosewood with a b/w/b feature strip. This gives me a couple of advantages as well as the binding itself. It gives me a faux veneer feature demarcation line - which I always find to be a pain to do without any wavy lines using three pieces of actual veneer: The other advantage is that, before I trim it to the fretboard radius, it gives me a flat surface to use for the Dremel router base when I do the pair of 12th fret swift inlays (a job for this showery afternoon) The second thing is one I've never done before and might not work. Because the neck is an offcut, it isn't as deep a blank as I would usually use. As such, the heel needs three pieces to extend from the top of the body to the bottom. Three sections of maple stacked up is, at best going to catch the eye. At worst - eg with a tiny bit of offset of one of the walnut centre splice positions - it could look awful! So I'm trying with a section of decorative wood sandwiched in the middle: To make it look like I meant it to be there, I added an angle to that and the adjoining bottom block. I won't know if it really works until I rout the tenon and shape the heel - and there are a few things I need to do before I tackle those jobs - but it will be an interesting experiment

Don't spend 10 years and many tens of thousands of pounds building a studio in your house and filling it with expensive recording equipment. You'll never make a recording that your are really happy with and that sounds as good your favourite records, and you'll end up selling all the recording equipment for a fraction of what you spent on it. If you really want to make a great sounding album, save your money and hire a producer with a proven track record in your band's genre and 3-4 weeks lock in at a decent recording studio and concentrate on the performance not the technical details.

It's not plywood - it's a carefully built alternating-grain laminate of painstakingly chosen tone woods.

I'll be thinking I must remember what I'm thinking so I can post my thoughts to this thread.

Just responded to an ad looking for a low end pluckerer ... ten minutes into phone call... oh we’d rather you not be in any other bands 1 advertise the fact in the first instance 2 stop being so fkn precious 3 who tf do you think you are dictating terms and conditions of what i can and cant do in my own fkn time ..... and breeeeeathe......

They put bass through the FOH??!! Thats news to me!

Strengths - accounts Weaknesses - eczema

They really were...... no really.....

Lightweight!

Sounds like a job for the Line 6 Studio 110...

Bartolini do the same option too (dual in-line coils, hum cancelling): https://www.bartolini.net/product-category/bass-pickup/4-string-bass-pickup/j-bass/ Si

With free junk and good people to jam with, I'm surprised at the re-admission rate!

I'm going to set some time aside to read this properly! Hmmm...whetstone grinder...not got one...always wondered...

As the above, nothing wrong with a bit of plywood if it sounds good (it even rhymes). It has similar connotations as basswood, often associated with cheap and crap basses, but Ernie Ball uses it for their Bongo's which are neither crap nor cheap.

It`s not your imagination, 90% of lead singers really are tossers!

I can wholeheartedly recommend the Yamaha BB series, as well as anything made by Sandberg. Special mention goes to Lakland who make really lovely P basses too.

I try to not think whilst playing. Otherwise I think "is this the 3rd verse or the last?" Better to learn the songs and let auto-pilot take over

"I wonder if Arsenal are going to equalise"

Thank you; these seem to be well-rated on eBay/Amazon: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BOSS-PSA-240-NOISE-FREE-REPLACEMENT-POWER-SUPPLY-ADAPTER-9V-500mA/262792227746 9V 500mA, regulated (which I understand counters the hum issue on lesser variants).

The Lollar ones are Top banana as well - Bumnote has one in his Precision