Leaderboard

1) Cetera - Spector NS2 & Legend 4X, Dingwall NG2, Epiphone Vintage Pro Thunderbird, Yamaha BB3000, GK800RB head, Genz Benz Neox212 cab, Tech-21 Dug DP3X preamp/pedal 2) Ezbass - Maruszczyk Elwood L 4 string fretted (J pickups), Maruszczyk Elwood L 4 string fretless (MM pickup), Rickenbacker 4003s, Rob Allen MB2 fretless, Phil Jones Flightcase + PB300 3) Happy Jack - AliKat DB #004, Mike Lull 54P, all I need to play a doubling gig (that evening) on those two instruments 4) BlueJay - Eminence Upright (left-handed), loads of camera equipment 5) obbm - Fender Precisions, Sadowsky HPJ, Bergantino NV115, Handbox WB100 and if room Quilter BB800 + BF One10 + Nate Mendel for sale/trade  6) Nancy Johnson (Paul) - The Big One, rack (GED/poweramp), possibly the dUg DP3x. A bass. 7) MacDaddy - Shuker bass(es), Snapdragon Folding bass, Flattley Bass Poison Ivy. 8 ) prowla (Paul) - Maybe a Ric or two and fakers, maybe a couple of Statii, maybe J- & P-basses. Probably a Markbass amp & cab and a pedalboard with some FX. 9) Stingray5 - Old faithful Stingray5; Tune SWV4-BB bass; Eden EC180 1x15 combo. (I also have a gig that evening so may leave the Eden in the car but happy to bring it in if anyone asks). 10) TrevorR - Wal Pro II E, Wal Mk 1 Custom, Aria SB700, MarkBass LMII and Traveler 2x10, pedalboard. 11) TheGreek - Mesa M Pulse 600 head/ Powerhouse 1x15 cab and The Psilos bass built by Andyjr1515 12) JapanAxe (Graeme) - most of the stuff in my signature! 13) Wolverinebass (Andy) - Maybe some Wounded Paw effects/signature preamp and a bass. 14) Silverfoxnik (Nik) - Roscoe Beck 5, Gibson Thunderbird, BC Rich Eagle, plus my Ampeg V4BH Rig 15) Paul The Drums of the Junkyard Dogs, with kit. 16) Frank Blank (Frankè Blanké) Rob Allen Mouse, AER Basic Performer, Fender Modern Player with modded fretless neck, Ibanez SRC6/SR500, cake. 17) Ordep - Noble Preamp, Modulus Jazz, Fodera Monarch New Std, Amp, pedalboard depending on the day’s mood. 18) ChunkyMunky - Yamaha BB1025X, SWR Redhead combo Hey Folks I hope that this is an over-sight by many who plan to attend but haven't put their name down yet, but if there are going to be less than 20 attendees I fear for future events. Not sure how the Organisers of the event feel (Colin and Nik really) but I'm a bit concerned about the apparent limited level of enthusiasm for this years event. I appreciate that many people can't make the event for a variety of genuine reasons but if these events don't generate enough interest or money to make them viable then we run the risk of losing them. We didn't even try to put on the Herts Bash this year after the lack of interest in last years and nobody asked why. Historically the SE Bash has been a great day out, access to lots of high end gear you don't find in shops, interesting seminars, lots of like minded musicians and a chance to put faces to avatars of people we speak to regularly but rarely meet. Check the feedback from previous events, no negative feedback (well, maybe a bit about the saga the raffles turn into) and everybody has a good day out. These events don't just happen, there's far more work involved than you'd think, and as I said, if they aren't financially viable they won't happen again. We rely on your support to keep these going. I, for one, will be sad if these events cease to exist. It's one of the few times in the year that I get to talk to people who are actually interested in my instrument of choice. Come on folks, let's make this event another great day out and let the Organisers know that we appreciate their efforts!! Bass Bashes - IF YOU DON'T USE THEM, EXPECT TO LOSE THEM!!

So, as I'm building two of these and I like the 800mm (31.5" scale) I could do with a fret scale template to use in the StewMac fret slotting mitre block I bought off Basschat a while ago. As the scale I've chosen is non-standard I can get a ready made template but a while ago I got some clear Perspex off FreeCycle I thought might be handy for templates. Well, that day has come!! I used StewMac's fret calculator tool https://www.stewmac.com/FretCalculator to calculate the fret positions - makes life easy. I trimmed the Perspex on my router table to get one straight edge to work from then measured (twice...), marked up the fret positions and scored them with a scalpel. I then drilled a hole at the edge of each fret mark and used a nut file to finish the slot. This slot was made the same size as the locator pin in the mitre box. I then trimmed the Perspex to the same width as the mitre box. It looks okay - the slots line up with my marks and it fits snuggly in the mitre box. Just need to try it now and see how it works!!

Yesterday I travelled to Belgium to trade my AVRI (clearly adding some cash) 57 P against @Hellzero‘s Status Electro. After spending an evening with it I can honestly say it is one of the best fretless basses I have ever owned, mwah for days and a piezo system that does not sound harsh in the slightest. A very happy man indeed..... back to 4 graphite necked instruments too which I think is the right amount of graphite you need in your life Re-using original pics.

OK, I've finally had the confirmation I was waiting for! I'm pleased to confirm that the fantastic Richard Searle of seminal Acid Jazz group 'Corduroy' will be popping down to have a chat about his career, gear choices, life on the road, technique, influences etc and hopefully give a demo or two too.....! If you're unfamiliar with his bass work then check out some of his best known grooves on their debut album Dad Man Cat here: Corduroy - Dad Man Cat Think funky 70's instrumental theme tunes and you're somewhere near their style.... 😉 Corduroy Wiki Corduroy on Facebook

A friend was trying to give away a pretty good sofa on Gumtree. Free but collection only of course. Guy comes round to look at it. Likes it. Says he'll think about it. He's only got a Punto. Friend gets a call from the buyer to say he wants it. Lovely. Then says it won't fit in his Punto... so he needs to get a van. He the actually asks if my friend will pay to hire the van!!! When this generous opportunity is refused he goes off on one, swearing and hurling insults! It was FREE!!!! Tosser.

I do bass and vocals in a country trio (if Motorhead played county) , I'd previously done up to half the lead vocals but becoming the sole vocalist was quite a step up, lots of words to learn , at first I found the increased use of my voice taxing + front man duties make it quite a responsibility. You are (in a trio) the major portion of the band. Having complete trust in the other two helps, I'm not really able to consciously interact with the rest of the band , I just have to stand at the front and assume that everything is going well behind me. The singing bass player is the next step in human evolution.

Just a quick note for anyone thinking about attending any of the Bass Bashes listed in this section - go! The Bass Bashes are informal get togethers of all things bass with people of all abilities with all types of gear. Don't be put off going if you think that they will be dominated by exceptionally talented folk continually slapping on boutique basses as that isn't the case (there will be boutique basses and a bit of slapping but there is more to the bashes). Folk turn up will all sorts of gear and its a great opportunity to try different kit and put faces to the names seen on here. I've met some great folks of all abilities at these and picked up lots of useful info. I've tried lots of basses I wouldn't normally get the opportunity to try and discovered I dislike some I've previously drooled over and really liked others I've dismissed!! For info, I don't play in a band, I'm not a particularly good bassist, I can't read music, I can't slap but I have a pretty decent amp and I make my own basses. If you're thinking about it, try to come along to one if you can. It's great that someone organises these and attendance will reward their efforts and ensure these events keep going. Hope to see you there! And there's usually cake too.....

The AA yellow spray paint came out very orangey so I've bought some Sun Yellow instead which looks a lot better and I've used tinted Danish oil on the neck as I thought it would be a nice contrast with the yellow, I'm also doing a matching headstock I'll post pics tomorrow 😀

Great thread - I’ve also been on a BB journey over the last year... it started with a 1024 which blew me away, one of the best P tones I’ve heard and so much bass with the tone rolled off! Then I saw an ‘84 BB3000 for sale and curiosity got the better of me. I immediately preferred the slimmer (front to back) neck profile of the 3000 however the p’up output and tonal range wasn’t a match for the 1024 p’up. So I ordered a 1024 p’up from Yamaha and installed it in the 3000. This is now my most played bass and the 1024 has gone. The 3000 has a lovely resonance and feel of an older bass, and that powerful 1024 p’up seems to compliment it well. My BB needs are well met for now!

I love P-basses!!!

Binding acoustics is probably amongst my least favourite tasks of anything to do with building guitars and basses. It's a lot of faff and my confidence of getting a fully successful outcome is slim. Nevertheless, it has to be done - so to prepare the binding channel I used a chisel, a scraper and also made a mini sanding block: Having double and triple checked the body itself for continuity, squareness and clear corners, it was ready to start to bend the binding over the bending iron. Again, like the sides, I used the body mould to clamp the bindings in while they dried: Then checked the fit again and set about gluing the first set. This is where it has to be firm against the guitar top AND the sides. And it has to be square. And the dry binding is springy and quite stiff. So, it requires at least two extra techniques to try to achieve that for the hour or so before the glue is set. First, fibre-glass reinforced tape - pulling the binding into place pretty much as hard as you can. Masking tape or similar would simply rip under the strain: Then, after running round another couple of times pressing the binding very firmly to ensure full contact at the edge and the bottom of the binding, out come the bicycle inner tubes - and really it needs more than this... ...but the next door neighbour's kids might get suspicious if I steal any more wheels off their bikes...

Yep, the humble P-Bass, does its` job so well, and certainly a huge factor in many of the great bass-lines from the punk movement when bass seemed to become more audible and a bit more up-front musically too, rather than as a backing instrument.

In a few days it's my 50th birthday party (not 50 though until 12th sept) and I have reformed my old band for one set. We haven't all played together for nearly 17 years now but the magic was still there. We quickly put together a set off 11 numbers. I decided to pickup my old '73 P bass which I bought when we formed the band in 1990 but I haven't played the the past 3 years. OMG, what a bass. It literally does, just play itself. It's just unbelievable how good it is. Here's a gratuitous picture of it

Yes and No. Being literate in standard notation is essential for certain situations, such as reading gigs, academic music study, arrangement and scoring. Being literate in standard notation gives access to a huge amount of written music. Being literate in standard notation will absolutely not grant automatic benefits towards timekeeping or groove (I've played with lots of amateur classical musicians who have decades of reading experience but whose ability to maintain pulse or lock with other musicians is pretty terrible, and let's be honest, not all drummers have good time/groove even though all their learning materials use standard notation) Being literate in standard notation will not grant you the ability to write good songs, improvise, memorise parts, hustle gigs, improve your aural skills, give you the practical nouse to survive life on the road, equip you for negotiation with promoters/venue owners/agents/labels, give you any sort of personality on stage, make you easy to be around etc etc etc Musicianship is a multifaceted skillset, and what's most important varies from one musical situation to another - I would argue that good time and ear training are the skills that cross to every practical situation without exception. That being said learning to read has enriched my musical experience and opened new oportunities, so it is definately worthwhile, but it is important to remember that you can still bring a great deal of value as a musician without that ability, so it is a mistake to assume that you are automatically a lesser musician if you can't read standard notation.

In my early years of being interested in music, and with my naiive ear, the sound of a p bass really stood out like a Welsh baritone voice. It's the first instrument that I could identify by ear thanks to Sting with The Police, and more so Thin Lizzy with the live and dangerous album. I love the sound because it's so unassuming. It doesn't seek attention, and yet it's presence is so powerful. And the playing experience, the simplicity, the neck that you need to engage with and the pickup puts your fingers in the perfect playing position. I've had countless other basses over the years.... You name it, I've probably had one and yet I keep coming back to the trusty precision.

I don't often post on here but wanted to publically credit a bass manufacturer, since it's always good to hear good news. Long story short, I have a Sandberg California TMII 5 string bass, which I absolutely love which I bought 18 months ago second hand from Bass Direct. Unfortunately, a few weeks ago, it just stopped working, took it to a local guitar repairer I trust and he basically said the electrics are buggered, a circuit has gone, not a lot he could do without direct contacts in Sandberg etc. I emailed Sandberg directly (only hoping they might recommend someone I could pay to fix it etc.) But instead, I got an email from Mike, one of the service engineers, who asked me to remove the entire circuitry and send it over to Germany for immediate free repair. I did this, he sent back the newly repaired circuit (1 part on the circuit board replaced), with lots of good communication along the way and last night I put it back in. And it is now as good as new! I just wanted to commend Sandberg for their amazing customer service, all done (including free tracked postage back to the UK) for absolutely free, there was no obligation from their side, they could have just sent me back to the second hand dealer I bought it from. I wouldn't imagine you would get the same level of service from one of the other big guitar manufactures (although I've never tried)! So hats off to Sandberg....not just great quality guitars but a top notch company with amazing customer service too!

Anyone who has played live will have dealt with, at best nervous energy, or, at worst crippling nerves. Thankfully for me the nerves have never got the best of me where I can't play, and the majority of the time now I just have a nervous energy. Anyway, I thought it would be useful to go over the things I do to help deal with the nerves. 1. Be happy with your setup. I'm usually happy when I can play my own setup, but unfortunately as a bass player you are asked to play through house amps, or they take a d.i signal from the bass rather than your amp. During soundcheck make sure you are happy with the sound. 2. Warm up. There's nothing worse going on completely 'cold' - particularly if the first track is fast/complex. 3. Know the material. The better I know it the more at ease I am. 4. Make eye contact with audience. When the nerves have been at their worst I tend to look down at what I am playing and want the ground to swallow me up. Often it's worse in your head compared to the reality of what is happening. I find that if I look up and see the reaction of the audience, it makes me feel so much better. Anyway, I just thought I'd share this as it might help someone out. Alternatively feel free to share anything you guys do to deal with nerves. cheers Alex

I'm generally more nervous and anxious about meeting whoever I'm playing with, that's down to my Asperger's though. I've done a lot of solo gigs over the last two years or so, both solo bass and more recently piano/electronics. My first one was pretty terrifying, since then though I've been absolutely fine, with exception of a bass day one I was doing with Steve Lawson, that was really scary. I find meditation and being fully prepared mentally generally helps. I always try and arrive early, I leave home a lot earlier than I need to, and my journey is planned; I know which train I'm catching and where from etc. Avoid too much caffeine, I'm a caffeine addict, it's my one single vice, but I limit my intake before a gig.

We are grateful for your selfless sacrifice 🙂

Yes, ordered via a company called Sontec that supply Yamaha parts in the UK... not the best customer service but the p’up arrived eventually.

What do you think? The only mother of pearl inlay blocks I have been able to find are for guitars, so they're smaller than blocks would normally be for bass. I've cut the fret slots and just laid the MOP on top to see what you think... As opposed to normal jazz bass blocks which look like this... Alternatively, I could use a sheet of celluloid and cut it down down to size. Something like this.. Now I know this is well and truly a matter of little to no importance, but if anyone has an opinion, let me know. I'm leaning towards the celluloid. I'm just not sure I like the look of the smaller blocks, which are Les Paul size. Finally, here's some lovely contours!

I avoided p basses for years because I thought they were boring. Then , like a lot of others, one day I tried one just to find out if I could see why there's so much love for them and I finally got it. I still prefer my P basses with an extra J though.

I have played Precisions pretty much constantly since 1984. I read somewhere that budding bassists would play what their idols played. Thats pretty much true for me. Bruce Foxton, JJ Burnel , Phil Lynott ,Horace Panter , Mark Bedford, Sid Vicious...(Only kidding) 😂 I love the simple plug and play of a P Bass. No mucking about, plug in and it sounds gr8 from the off. The Transit Van of bass guitars.

Good job you did the exchange before Brexit, otherwise you’d be paying duty in both directions and the Status would have to have spent 6 months in quarantine! 😂

The analogy that I like to use when I am teaching is that music is a language that everyone understands. When you play you are speaking that language, but you can learn more if you learn to read it as well.

I couldn`t have written that better Alex, I think you`re spot on there with the above as I tend to follow those to the letter and similarly never have nerves get the better of me. Being of a certain age my only addition would be to make sure to have a pre-match pee before going on.

Just playing devils advocate here. I sometimes think when selling we forget that we are also asking someone that doesn't know us to trust us. Trust has to work both ways. Buyers and sellers can be scammed. Yes, the guy seems to be a bit of a time waster, but maybe he has the same feeling as the OP, in that it might be a scam. Tricky situation. I much prefer to only deal face to face for more expensive items, and if i place an ad saying that i stick to it.

I love P basses. I've had a few over the years, and currently just own one - my first, and oldest one. They are just right - I love the superior definition of jazz basses and the versatile range of sounds from active basses, but for me a P bass is always the one I come back to as it just sounds so right to me for the kind of music I grew up listening to. To me thats what a bass sounds like. With a pick and roundwounds, mine has a real boing and snarl; with flatwounds and fingers, its smooth and deep. I'm not a heroic bassist, just hopefully a tasteful, thoughtful player who does the job well, and an old P is just the right tool for me.

just sits in the mix so well, turn it all the way up and good to go..

Mega!! Wicked!! I'm a big Corduroy fan and Richard's work, great technique and groove. I'll be bringing some CDs along to get signed...

#12 thou shalt only treasure thy bass, whence forth thou hast vouchsafed thine drum groove. The rimshot is mine, sayeth the Lord

1000s - early to mid 80s? 1100s - mid 80s? 1200s - 82-85ish? 1100s has unpainted bolt on neck with rosewood fretboard and dot markers. Some were made in Japan, some in Taiwan. There were two different kinds of bridges and two different regular p/j pickup sets. The first version had the smooth plastic surround on the p pickup like a bb450. The bridge pickup was like a fender jazz bass pickup. The second version had no surround on the p pickup and the bridge pickup had a unique shape There is no bb1100 and the bb1000 doesn’t really relate to the bb1000s. The bb1200s is the same as a bb1200 with active preamp. The easiest way to see differences is to just google the model numbers and look at the images that result.

1200s is active, single reverse p pickup with 5 piece maple mahogany neck through, ebony fretboard and oval markers colors were deep green and burgundy. 1000s is passive, reverse pj with 3 ply maple mahogany neck through, rosewood fretboard and dot markers. colors were brown stain and persimmon red.

This is how I still roll. The occasional bad description/nutter maybe, but all you risk is your time and a bit of fuel. I am getting more reluctant to give out my full address much before the arranged time of collection when selling something too. Most buyers are friendly and just want to chat about themselves/ their band/ their instruments etc but have had the occasional dodgy type who I’ve wondered is casing the joint. Actually prefer meeting up somewhere or local delivery for this reason. Getting a bit paranoid in my old age perhaps😕

I did a dep for a pub gig once where everybody on stage apart from the singer was a dep! A few weeks later, they did a gig where even the singer couldn't make it and the whole band comprised of deps without a single actual member on the bandstand...

No problem - I found the Marcus article very enlightening to be honest. Im with you on the issue of those P bass sounds - a bugbear Ive had since the 70s in a live setting (with a few notable exceptions - who I also class as genius players!!). And the reason I don't play such a beasty!!

Today was a day of experimenting, largely unsuccessful😮 First up, bindings. As I feared, bending 1.5mm plastic round a 6mm radius curve (on a scrap neck) is really hard..... I've tried both hot water and a heat gun, and while I can get pretty close, I just can't get it accurate enough so that I'm confident it will stay on long term. If you have gaps they act as a lever when you press on them, lifting up the binding elsewhere. Fender necks have a curved neck heel which increases the radius of the curve. So, I've ordered some 1mm binding which I'm pretty sure I'll be able to bend ok, but that's getting really thin. I'll see what it looks like. Binding may have to wait till the next one. Blocks. I tried @Christine's method on some scrap and it is great. What is less great is the condition of my chisels😲 If only there was a thread dedicated to sharpening......(he he thanks Christine!)

It's been a bit of a weird day, I worked quite hard but there isn't much to show for it. First job was to rout out the two slots for the carbon rods, I'm using quite thin rods 4 x 4mm rather than 4 x 8mm, I sank these down to 9mm and glued them in place with CA then used a filler on top to bed them in. After that I turned to fitting the truss rods, I'm using a traditional rod, I got some with the spoke wheel adjuster from StewMac, I'm not over impressed with the anchor, being a drilled rod it sets the truss itself a little low for my taste but it is still good. I didn't have a jig so much of the day went into making that. Once I'd made it I routed the slots but had to stop there, so first job tomorrow will be to fit the anchor and spoke wheel before setting them in permanently although I might actually leave that but until later on after veneering the body section

Belfast Primark latest: Fire has so far destroyed stock worth £24.99.

I reckon you'll be on your own there, mate! Walk away and don't look back.

It's because it has heavy side handles! Apparently the 15" cab goes very well with the 2x10 combo. Not tried it myself though. Another combo would make for a killer rig. You could have two levels of EQ, have effects on one combo, etc...

Not a bass but I was buying something from FB and had a wierdo to contend with. I work in Plymouth and the item was in the city somewhere but he wouldn't tell me where he lived. Lots of bizarre messages later he tells me to message him when I'm nearly there and he'll give me the address, NEARLY WHERE?! Long story short, I get the address out of him but he will be out, his parents will be home though. I arrive at a very rough area and his mum answers and invites me in, the place is filled with boxes of stuff and she's yapping to me like she's never seen another person, telling me about all the stuff they buy and sell, I can't get away. Her husband arrives home and looks surprised to see someone in his house, she explains I'm buying a VCR, he hands me the box, puts his hand on my shoulder and ushers me firmly out the front door. The VCR didn't work properly but I wasn't about to go back and tell him, they were like the McGuires in Shameless. I'll put that one down to experience

I think the first one was held in 2005 in the Life Cafe in manchester. Used to be quite a relaxed affair where we could chat with the performers over a beer or two - I've made a couple of lifelong friendships with one or two. Was also the first chance most of us got to see Nigel Clutterbuck 😃 Stevie Williams usually closed out the show with his band.Sadly it was a victim of it's own success and lost a certain charm when it moved to the RNCM. Moved from being a great day out for bassists to a commercial enterprise although they did get some huge names in - Billy Sheehan, TM stevens, Hadrien Feraud, Jeff Berlin and so on. I think, because the RNCM was perceived as being a bigger venue, a lot of the stands allowed the volumes to creep into unpleasant territories. I can remember trying to hear a performance by Richard Bona in the concert auditorium that was almost drowned out by Yolanda Charles hammering away on (I think) the Matamp or yamaha stand.

Your going to be skinning it alive!!!

Hahaha, I'm not sure there was CCTV then, certainly not in dark, dank Wigan!

For me the R500H looks cool and sounds awesome onstage, I use it through through 2 R410 cabs 😎

And to go back to the list, Peter Cetera of Chicago. 🙂