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I know a drummer who can do this for you too ...

There is no "best bass builder", just the luthier who can make the bass that suits the individual musician. At the level that the OP is taking about, a feature that is must-have for one musician, might make the instrument completely unsuitable for another. Also at this level aesthetics will have a lot to do with it and that is completely subjective.

Last few pictures from this build. First up is the shielding of the control cavity, I've found the self adhesive copper sheet easy enough to work with. I have found two distinct thicknesses of it but both seem to stick equally well. You can also see from this picture how it would be very difficult to drill frim the control cavity to the battery box at this point - much easier to pre-drill holes before assembling the two halves of the body. I've fitted an EMG 35 DC pickup and EMG 2 band preamp. Will see how it performs before I decide if they are staying. EMG active pickups do not need a grounding wire to the bridge - there is a wire connected to the bridge but it does not connect to anything. It is just there if I decide to change to a different type of pickup at a later date. I bought a cheap box of crimp connectors so I can make up my own interconnects to suit the EMG parts. It's fairly tight in there to work - the plug together parts have made this a bit easier! I had to route a small recess into the neck pocket for the wire off the pickup. This is an older EMG pickup that does not have quick connect plugs; it has a wire out of the back of it that just needed a little more depth. With the exception of the screws to hold the control cavity cover in place, all of the assembly is complete. It does need a bit of setting up and fret levelling but it is not too far off the mark at this point. Only frustration is that I haven't really got opportunity to play it through an amp at the moment - that will have to wait until the weekend. I'm also still trying to finish another bass for the weekend but that still has lots to be done!!

NBD: Vintage VJ74 Jazz - Refurbished! I’ve had low-level GAS for a Vintage brand V4 P Bass for some years, but for whatever reason had never considered their Jazz offerings. But when I saw a Vintage VJ74 Reissue Jazz for sale here on BC at a very reasonable price, I took a punt - on a whim. However, the bass had one or two problems: Firstly, it was black - and secondly, it didn’t have its original ‘Vintage VJ74’ decal, which had been replaced with a ‘Moon Bass’ decal (see pics). The pickguard is tort, but considering it’s not what I call ‘proper’ tort, it’s actually not too bad. These are the ‘before’ pics: I refinished the bass in Heritage White, with matching headstock. Then I made a ‘Vintage VJ74’ decal in PhotoShop and printed it onto inkjet waterslide decal paper - my first DIY decal. The rosewood fretboard was a bit chalky and quite dry, so I treated it to a drop of oil, which made it much darker. Result. Other modifications were minimal, as I’m perfectly happy with the electrics, pickups and hardware which are all Wilkinson as standard, Vintage being one of Trevor Wilkinson’s brands. The 'refurbishment' isn't absolutely to stock - as far as I know Vintage don't produce a matching-headstock Jazz in their range, so I allowed myself a little leeway - it's a bit 'custom'... It plays really nicely and sound-wise it’s right up there with the competition. I’ve owned and played Fender Jazzes and various Jazz clones from other makers and the VJ74 absolutely holds its own. The Wilkinson pickups are strong and clear with a big, yet tight and controlled low end, punchy mids and a ringing, almost piano-like tone with a new set of rounds. Very intoxicating and quite addictive. My original intention was to titivate the bass and move it on, but it has immediately become my number one go-to instrument. Obviously 'Vintage' brand basses are way underrated! I’m totally chuffed with it, and it will have its first outing at rehearsal this evening. I’m also chuffed with the cost. As I already had the paint, the amber tint and the waterslide decal paper, and as it wasn’t necessary to upgrade the pickups, tuners or bridge, all it took to get this where I wanted it was a little time and effort. Well worth it - and I’m now a happy bunny. Well... until P-Bass GAS comes around again of course, but as usual I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it. Note - the tort guard looks red on black; and much darker on white. Juxtaposition! It's the same guard. Anyway in conclusion, it's obviously possible to pick up a bass for little money that's already a decent, solid player and have it become your main squeeze with a bit of cosmetic work. Result. These are the ‘after’ pics: I thank you! And many thanks to Basschatter Aidan63.

Gosh, JPJ is rather good isn't he?

Ha ha, don’t we all know it 😄. I remember the pre bass forums days, when I was happy with my gear and I spent more time practicing than looking up what bass I needed next.

Took the bass to rehearsal this evening, it absolutely rocks. The epitome of what a Jazz Bass should sound like and it plays very nicely. Even got comments from the band, who usually wouldn't notice if I turned up with a bright pink ukulele. I'm really surprised at how good this is. On the strength of it I'll definitely be looking at a Vintage brand P Bass at some point (a white one, so I don't have to paint it). You really don't need to spend a lot of money to get a very playable, good-sounding instrument these days. What a great time it is to be a bass player!

I got given some money for my birthday (I'm 44 bit weird) so decided to spend it real quick on a J bass body from Guitar Build 2 piece Alder 2kg I'm going to join it with a neck I have laying around from an aborted project Painting with nitro and doing a matching headstock. Now to decide on colour. I've got a few Jazz bits laying around that I'll asses for suitability (all off a Squier VM Jazz). It might be a case of getting it up and running with the electrics I have and upgrading at a later date. If I remember correctly the control plate is awful so I'll order one of those and a scratchplate (once paint colour decided).

I've said it before V4s are great basses & as stated not just for the money they stand on their own as great basses. I have 3, here's 2 of them, a slightly customised Tony Butler sig model & the new model in Firenza Red. The other being a sunburst model. Can't beat them in my opinion.

Pickguard - Jean-Luc Scratchplate would be a silly name

I quizzed Joe about this bass back in July at a bass workshop he held at Sligo Jazz, Its a prototype, its a Sterling 34" scale, its passive, it has Ernie Ball cobalt flats, and He loves it! a fair coup for Musicman as Joe is the best player of his generation in my opinion.

But at the kind of level I hope you are talking about, it really is all about the subjectivity. Most of what you are paying for at the top end of the market are not features that make the bass any better sounding or playing to the average musician. Because when it comes down to it the majority of bass guitars are merely some bits of wood and metal glued and screwed together. They are essentially fairly simple things. After all the classic Fender designs were all about being able to make them with a relatively unskilled workforce to a budget that undercut their competitors. A modern cheap bass with a decent fret job, new nut and a suitable set up for the player who owns it will be very, very close the most expensive of expensive custom jobs in terms of producing a good sound in the context of a band mix live or recorded. There are luthiers who make (or have made) the majority of the parts on their basses specifically for their basses and are not put together from standard off the self parts. Have a look at Atlansia, Gus, Overwater and Wal to name but four. However that alone doesn't make them any better than a Squier that's had a bit of extra attention from a decent luthier.

I’ve recently acquired three pointy headstock basses from the late 80’s and early 90’s: a Charvel 1B from 1987, a late-80’s Fernandes PJ-45 32” scale and tonight I picked up a 1992 Jackson Professional Concert XL in metallic black. All were made in Japan and I am blown away by the build quality and playability. As mentioned in another thread, when these were all the rage I was way too cool to own one. Fast-forward the best part of 30 years and I’m even cooler and now no longer care! From the research I’ve done, at the time a price for these new was comparable to a Fender American Standard Bass. I was able to pick up all three for a combined price of just under £500. There are a few knocks and dings in them but considering they’re 30-odd years old, it’s absolutely to be expected. I appreciate they’re not many people’s cup of tea but I’m smitten. And who who says there’s no accounting for taste... EDIT: well, I couldn’t resist a 1988 Charvel 2B that came up for sale recently. Apart from a few chips and minor dings, it’s fantastic. It needed a good clean and a set up but it plays beautifully and I’ve not seen many in metallic red (Looks a bit CAR to me).

Supporting and yet doing his own thing.

Offer of 2 free Peavey cabs was not to be missed. Trouble was cabs weigh 156lbs each and I live on top floor 🙂 Problem now solved,one step at a time 👍

Thread revival. I've just picked up the ARW Blu-Ray thingy and it's bloody great. The performances, visuals and mix are marvellous. That is all.

Wasn't me...it was my OCD

I think you can objectively measure some aspects of technicality. Fretting accuracy, intonation, rhythm and timing, for instance, could all be objectively (ie. scientifically) measured and compared. Problem is, ‘technicality’ blends with ‘artistry’ when it comes to musicianship; and you can’t put an objective score on art. So I think the answer is “yes and no”

Agreed, but what about the other side of the coin. The guy that joins the band that rehearses 3 times a week, but finds there's no touring, no recording and no fesitivals , no gigs. Blue

" I doubt your average punter, listening in a club, could tell the difference" This has never, ever been (and will never ever be) a consideration for me in choosing a bass. Do I feel good playing a bass? Does it "fit" me? Does it do all the things I want it to do and produce the sounds I want it to make? Do I love the sound it makes? Does it feel great to play? Do I like how it looks? Do I LOVE playing that bass? Those are my considerations. Whether its one of my Wals or the Aria and customised Squier Jazz I used to play back in my folk rock band back in university. Oh, and this was my gigging rig from "beer swilling pubs full of ravers" to stately homes (full of drunk ravers) to theatres to clubs... so Yes! Yes I would.

TNT called me this morning to tell me they were going to deliver the second parcel that wasn't delivered Friday. In fact, I had to receive 112 kilos in two parcels (my new hi-fi speakers ordered directly at the factory as there is no dealer over here in Belgium). Friday I only got one speaker, the driver saying I will get the remaining missing part on Monday. I just kindly made him notice that the delivered part is exactly the half weight of what I was supposed to get. How could he forget to take the second half is a mystery to me. Ok, I can wait, even if I hate when parcels stay in warehouses over the weekend. So, as it was supposed to arrive during the day according to the phone call, I waited all day long, until a bit before 6 in the evening, when I checked the tracking I saw that it had not been delivered because the store was closed !?! Hey guys, I'm no store at all... I gave a phone call to the local TNT warehouse (30 minutes from home) and waited something like 10 minutes before someone answered. I explained that I had been waiting all day long for a ghost deliverer and the answer was as simple as "Sorry, he didn't have the time to deliver your parcel". I asked the girl on the phone if she finds it acceptable to tell people to stay home all day long to wait for a parcel that a lazy driver decided not to deliver without even giving a phone call to tell that he was unable to do it for any reason. No, I'm the culprit as he checked the "Store closed" box without even passing by. I was really upset and asked for a delivery tomorrow with a narrower schedule time. Sorry, but TNT procedure is between 9 in the morning and 6 in the evening... and our drivers don't have company cell phones to call the clients. That's what I call a great service. We take your money, thanks for that you fool. So who is the best at being dumb : UPS or TNT ? We are living in a really strange world where nobody gives a sh*t about anything and certainly not doing their job.

The acronym I used to use for DPD was “Double Penetration Disco” as they seemed to f*ck up twice before they got it right.

At work I’ve dealt with DHL (“Dispatch It, Hide It, Lose It”), UPS (we all know the acronym @Dood came up with!), TNT (“Totally Not Trustworthy”), DPD, DX, Tufnell, Parcelfarce..... blah blah. They all have good days and bad. Parcelfarce once delivered £10k worth of bespoke equipment to a front garden. UPS went through a phase of not collecting. DX couldn’t find a customer with whom we’d been dealing for 30 years. Everyone is human and it sounds in the OP’s case the the driver has apologised which is good, but sometimes the customer service can feel exasperating. It’d be nice if all these courier woes needed happily really!

I quite enjoyed this, and Mary can really play well

Updated Gear For Sale List: 01. Mesa Boogie Big Block 750 Amp, Footswitch & Rack Case, £550 o.n.o. - Silverfoxnik 02. Schecter Diamond P5, 5 String Bass & Gig Bag, £350 o.n.o. - Silverfoxnik 03. Behringer 5 Band parametric 19" Rack Unit, £25 - Silverfoxnik 04. Fender Nate Mendel Precision, £575 - obbm 05. USA built 4 string in a 'glo' finish, £1300 - ezbass 06. EBS Compressor, Chorus & Octave, Dr Green Bass reverb & Joyo D-Seed echo and a small Pedaltrain board & bag (Mini I think), £TBA - WalMan 07. Heavy duty flight case for fenderish jazz, couple of 4u cases 1 new 1 not, Vanderkley 212. Mesa M pulse 360 talk price/trades on the day 08. 3 Pin (female) DI plugs - The Greek 09. New Chinese Rosewood/Maple Jazz neck, £35 - obbm 10. Slightly used jack, XLR and other connectors - 50p each - obbm 11. Fender Jazz (Mex), in a very fetching blue, strung with flats - £450 12. Harley Benton Progressive 5 Fretless - £100 13. G&L USA SB2 £850 14. (Possibly) Mark Bass Little Mark 3 (will be tight for space so will only bring if anyone messages 'rodfunnell' beforehand) - £300 - rodfunnell 15. Mark Bass New York 121, 8ohm (will be tight for space so will only bring if anyone messages 'rodfunnell' beforehand) - £320 - rodfunnell 16. Mark Bass Traveller 151, 8 ohm (will be tight for space so will only bring if anyone messages 'rodfunnell' beforehand) - £350 - rodfunnell 17. Mark Bass Standard 102, 8 ohm (will be tight for space so will only bring if anyone messages 'rodfunnell' beforehand) - £400 - rodfunnell 18. Ampeg 4x10 B410HLF (will be tight for space so will only bring if anyone messages 'rodfunnell' beforehand) - £175 - rodfunnell 19. Takemine Jumbo Electro Acoustic bass EG512C, 34" scale, spruce top, mahogany back and sides, rosewood board, gloss natural finish - (will be tight for space so will only bring if anyone messages 'rodfunnell' beforehand) - £350 - rodfunnell 20. Boss BR600 Multitrack (boxed) - £95 (NancyJohnson/Paul) - Paypal is fine. 21. Fender/Squier Badtz Maru Hybrid - £210 ( (NancyJohnson/Paul) - Paypal is fine.) 22. Heavy duty flight case for fenderish jazz, couple of 4u cases 1 new 1 not, Vanderkley 212. Mesa M pulse 360 talk price/trades on the day Well spotted TheGreek - i have updated my listings to include name but some were up before me...

You need a joiner not a luthier!

Having having extensively gigged both a Mark Bass Little Mark 2 amp and a TC RH450, through my Tecamp 2x12 cab, I found that they are both warm and punchy amps. As others have said, the MB has a great tone with everything set flat, great as in it works well in the mix but isn't very exciting in isolation. The trouble I had with it though - and the reason that I moved it on after 2 or 3 years - was the centre frequencies of the pre-amp. Set flat everything was fine, but when it came to EQ'ing it for a room with difficult acoustics I found there wasn't any control where I wanted it - the bass EQ is voiced at 40 Hz which is handy for cutting low end rumble on wooden floors but there was no control over the audible bass at around 100-200 Hz ish, and I missed that. Likewise at the high end, the treble is voiced at 10Khz which is just too high to be usable in my opinion, for me control over the 4-6 Khz band is much more useful and usable in a live environment. All in my opinion and experience of course. The MB was replaced by a TC RH450. Someone is bound to wade in and mention the whole wattage fiasco sooner or later, if they do ignore it, the amp has plenty of power and volume. Moving on... I much preferred the EQ voicing of the TC, it has a 4 band semi-parametric which gives me tons of control right were I wanted it. Sure, you don't have control over the subby lows, but they weren't there obliterating the mix when I used mine. The drive circuit too is very good and adds a great dirty edge to the tone without getting fizzy. Oh, and the built in Spectracomp simply sprinkled fairy dust over everything and made my bass sound great! Both great amps, but as a sweeping generalisation I'd say that the MB EQ is more voiced towards studio work and isn't quite so usable on the average pub gig whereas the TC amp has all the control right where you need it down the Kebab & Calculator on a sweaty Saturday night. If you're veering towards the TC rig, I'd say you already have your answer

I like the analogy. I tend to think of Fenders as a VW thinking it's a Porsche. It does was it does well, but while it's stood still admiring itself, every other brand has come up alongside and overtaken them.

I Have been using TC stuff for years, first i had just the RS212 cab and the RH450 head, that was great. Then i added a RS210 and it got better. Then i got the RH750 and it got even better. Then i swapped my RH750 and RS212 for a Blacksmith and a RS410 so the rig was 6x10 with the RS210. recently sold the RS210 and i also purchased 2 x Mark Bass 104HF cabs so was using the blacksmith with the 2 markbass cabs..........result bloody awful, not enough warmth and too clanky for me if that makes sense. So sold them and now have the blacksmith and just the RS410 and i am not changing anytime soon, yes its heavy but its well worth it. If i change at all it will only be to another RS / Blacksmith configuration.

Agreed. Unless you're hung up about having an F-decal on your headstock there's really no need to spend Fender money on a Fender-type bass.

As has been mentioned, there is no 'best', just lots of excellent artisans who achieve the end result in different ways. Other than that, you'll simply get a lot of members here putting forth brands that they themselves own, which is fine, but it's purely subjective. Si

Hey Steve, I think you do need new ears, or if not you soon will. Seriously as a friend you need to think about this. The 310's claim 127dB @ 1metre, that's in the over inflated peak values that PA cabs usually use but they will still consistently produce levels of around 120dB+. These are the WHO figures for what sort of exposure is 'safe' ie unlikely to cause permanent damage to your hearing. 'Normal' levels for a rock band are around 100dB for everyone except the drummer. People here won't know that I know your band, an excitingly loud three piece rock band with a full blooded, head down, showman lead guitarist. I know you've had trouble blowing speakers in the past too. You seriously need to consider using in ears. I don't play at anything like your volumes and I thought I was invulnerable but I now have tinnitus and struggle to follow conversations in noisy environments. Something is wrong if you can't hear those 310's flat out they will cause permanent damage in (checks chart below) ….7secs. Maximum Recommended Noise Dose Exposure Levels Noise Level (dBA) Maximum Exposure Time per 24 Hours 85 8 hours 88 4 hours 91 2 hours 94 1 hour 97 30 minutes 100 15 minutes 103 7.5 minutes 106 3.7 minutes 109 112 seconds 112 56 seconds 115 28 seconds 118 14 seconds 121 7 seconds 124 3 seconds 127 1 second 130–140 less than 1 second 140 NO EXPOSURE

I got into a couple of fights at primary school. One of those ended suddenly when I chucked a kid against the tall cupboard where the ink was stored. Yes, we were taught penmanship with real ink wells and pens. It was the late sixties. We stopped and stared while the cupboard swayed, as if in slow motion, in response to the impact. It then fell over onto the parquet floor of the class room. In the fall, all of the ink bottles fell off their shelves and some of them spilt as the cupboard landed face down in front of us both. A dark stain emerged from beneath the cupboard. Navy blue and bright red inks mixed in a random pattern that would make ACG jealous. The teacher, Mr Spridgeon, grabbed both our scruffs and had us on our tiptoes while he assessed the situation. He was an imposing figure. To us nippers he looked like a giant. We anticipated our punishment. Instead of sending us to the Headmaster for a caning he made us wipe up the mess. It was an impossible job. The ink was already creeping beneath the worn out varnish and it followed the grain of the wood as we worked. In our childish minds we both though that we were expected to leave the floor as clean as it was before. It reduced us both to tears because everything we did just made the stain worse! Eventually we were let off with a reprimand. I'm so glad that there is a modern method for staining wood these days. It isn't nearly as traumatic as when I tried it.

Playing a naked bass has to be better than playing bass naked (in my case, anyway!)

I use both scratchplate and pickguard, just to confuse myself. I always say 'pick' though, 'plectrum' just sounds a bit grand for a small plastic triangle.

The thing that I find most gets in the way of me spending quality time on the fretboard is spending far too much time on the keyboard discussing gear on Basschat! GAS is without doubt the biggest enemy of the good when it comes to practising 😀

S'not bad; certainly not as bad as your rather dire warning. To my ears, it falls a bit short of of reaching the escape velocity needed to be entirely rid of the 'formulistic punkish stuff', whilst admitting more than a glimmer of hope for final release from that gravitational pull. I'm not fond of the 'repeat four times then change' method; even less enamoured by the unintelligible vocals (be warned in turn, though, that I'm an 'old school fuddy-duddy finding it hard to pick out the lyrics of many, or even most, stuff these days ; you're certainly not helping by burying the lot in a smother of Fx...). There is a positive side, however, with an interesting take on the sonic landscape. Again, the danger of turning pure gold into mush is always present, and you skim darned close to that fine line, but it's healthy experimentation, and shows promise. The overall effect I took from this pair of tracks was a sentiment that I'd like to see/hear stuff like this played live more than I would be tempted to listen to it at home. There is energy in there; I'd like a bit more quality risk-taking in the initial composition, more daring, more 'out' than that, without going completely bananas (well, just a little bit, then...). Good work, then, encouraging, worth pursuing, so push on, taking greater strides still. There's a wide margin left before I'll really need the seat-belts, so you can up the ante, we're not in the danger zone at all yet. Light the fuse; you've more to give than that, I'm confident. Just my tuppence-worth; hope this helps.

Oki doki, never knew that. Glad you like the sound.

I rarely play a bass for long, without tweaking the set-up I think by tweaking the truss-rod and / or bridge bit by bit - you get to learn how much you can adjust individual basses And sometimes, what sounds or feels better on each bass. But maybe that's just me? lol EDIT: I don't think I have ever looked up the Factory settings, and then tried to set a bass up the same....

After suffering GAS for some time over a semi acoustic I ended up with an epiphone 339 which is a small body version of the 335. Had it for a year or so now and its great. It really does sond different from a solid body. I'd struggle to justify spending the money on a gibbo.

This is useful we are going to do this at our next gig.

@Cuzzie fairy snuff He also said his goal was a tone that is "warm, rounded with a little bit of definition/character". If that's not the definition of the Markbass sound, I don't know what is! If an EQ pedal gets him there then, great, but otherwise a BF cab, or a VK 210 as a couple of us have suggested (or TKS / Tecamp / Bergantino etc) with his LM3 head could well be just the ticket. I've played my LM3 head through a variety of cabs and frankly it matches up well to some highly regarded D class heads (e.g. DG M900 and Genzler Magellan 800); the LM3 is a quality piece of kit and very well built. It's only real flaw IMO is its EQ centre points (hence my suggesting an EQ pedal to fix). (For what its worth none of the D class heads I've played quite have the magic fairy dust of my Mesa M6 but that's a whole different discussion! )

@Al Krow nope, I use pedals, you know I do, but could go happily Bass - Amp - Cab, use em because I like em. Just sounds to me like an EQ pedal is chasing the tail, yep you could bump the frequency, and it may remove the sheet from infront the speakers, but there will still be a massive blanket and duvet sitting over the rest of the rig you have to fight through. Just going bybthe OP’s words - they have said it’s functional, but not inspiring, a load of opinions will flood, but they nailed a sound with a certain rig, and TC gear works. Thats about it really.

What a great story! I also remember the desks with the inkwells to take the little glass jars of ink! The perfect footnote to your tale would be something like “and later, Brian May built his famous guitar from the wood in that floor and that’s why it has that deep red colour.” 😀

I kinda like it, and if it makes me play like Joe (that's what signature models do right) I'm all in!

Yep - this experience has showed me I should probably have used darker wood, or plastic. Filled the tear-outs with dust and SG, but they're showing as a very different colour. Hopefully they'll take on the oil and settle to the same as the FB. First coat of tru-oil slurry sanding was very disappointing - it seems I should have been more careful with the maple inserts, as some of them have taken on a much darker hue from the slurry, so I have an uneven finish to the fret markers, which is a shame given the effort. I may just get my lad's colouring pens and even them out! On the upside, the FB feels silky smooth after 1200 grit and first slurry sand. I'm sure it'll be perfectly functional, just not quite as nice looking as I'd have hoped. After 240 grit: Up to 600 grit after wiping the dust off: (not sure why pics are showing upside down...

Re my last post, the finished article....

If I do it will I get a like, like? (not that I'm needy, like....)😟

Like the idea, but I'm rarely on here - so it's unlikely I'll be contributing to any record-breaking number attempt.