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This, ladies and gentlemen, is clearly 80’s icon Max Headroom who, having finally escaped his digital prison, is enjoying the warm r-r-r-r-r-rays of the sun on his face.

On concrete! We played a gig once after 6 pints and a tab of acid and that was bad enough!

Don't think it's Tim Finn either but don't recognise him. I do however recognise Alf Garnett in the second photo, bottom-left.

If you really want to get noticed, try the Jetco 50. Not as expensive as you may think and certainly makes a difference on stage.

I thought that. Is there anyone lives near BC'er arthurhenry that could nip round and check his pulse? 😂😂😂😂

I once told a mate that a random long haired bloke I'm Scarborough Weahterspoons was Nick Menza, the drummer in Megadeth... Once he stumbled over for a handshake and a photo the bloke got quite a line of people wanting to talk to him. He wasn't Nick Menza.

As the great David Ellefson says in a Facebook post from yesterday, The cancer has no hope!

Don't get too excited - the bridge isn't fixed yet and I haven't started on the back cover or the frets tidy-up, but with most of the rest done, thought it was worth a quick mock-up. I know I say this about all of @TheGreek 's builds and saves, but this is one of my favourites :

Burn him for he is a witch.

Some words after a day with the new bass, the Payson Supercharger PJ... Those hidden fret tangs are very, very... smooth. This is the first bass ever I didn't have to do a setup on, other than lower the bridge pickup's treble side a tad. It was almost completely in tune after the trip over the Atlantic. Perfect action, neck relief, intonation! I want the neck to be as straight as possible: it was! I want the saddle to be just a tiny little bit higher than the frets: it was! (Why should it be any other way?) The outer strings line perfect along the edge of the neck, with enough margin, no more, no less. That makes a very comfortable neck that ain't too big. No dead spots! No string buzz, unless I dig in and really make it buzz. Comfortable asymmetrical shape of the neck, nice width at the nut! No big ugly Mickey Mouse ears, but smooth "mini mouse" ears that match the somewhat smaller but very sturdy headstock. It is designed not to be broken when you club an ox... The body shape feels familiar and place the bass in the right position. Maybe the belly cut could have been a bit more generous for seasoned and mature players, but that's no big deal. ;) Big, chunky knobs made for walk... sorry, grabbing and twisting! They could even have been a tad bigger with that old bakelite phone feel... The tone, then... Big, full, clean, whatever you play comes out. My wife said yesterday evening, that it sounds like a classical instrument in the way it responds to touch. She is a seasoned piano player with a good ear. Want J-bass? Got it! Want P-bass? Got it! Want BASS? H*ll yeah! That low B really fills the room, clear and articulate. This is no Ferrari or Lamborghini; more of a Subaru: poent, comtetent and gets the job done I got some other basses for sale now...

Honestly, 10 years in August I’ll have been here. Always amazes me how cool the regulars are.

It can’t be. I’M Spartacus 😀

Have to yet do the final fit, but I reckon mission accomplished, @TheGreek ?

Bass hand over day. Here's Martin this morning collecting his new Zoot Funkmeister 32" custom build.

How about this fella? Just don't mention Brit Rock to him. He hates it. Bigly. But he is cool and handsome. So there.

Cure it, by buying wrecks of basses and doing them up. It is enjoyable, cheap and you end up with a new bass out of it as a consequence at the end!

I assume you are talking about selling the Ampeg rig? Good move. IMO there really is no point owning stuff and not using it. The gear you load into the car is obviously more appropriate than the stuff you leave sitting in the corner. So while it might be the "best amp in the world" to someone, it's plainly not the best amp for you anymore. Always look forwards, not back, and sell the gear you no longer use.

That's a very disappointing attitude and one that I feel unable to endorse (and have zero chance of imitating)

While on holiday in Italy i ventured into a second hand shop, and hanging off a shelf was an Ibanez 2030, a short scale jazz bass copy from 1969-1973. It was one of those "loft finds", but of much lower value than a pristine fender jazz of the same era. Some guy inherited a flat from his uncle who used to play, and that was under the bed. Anyway I bought it for eur 130, including its period correct gigbag, three spiral leads, and one period-correct fender shoulder strap. As you can see the conditions are good, although the bass has been played, and it bears a few scars, especially on the sides of the body. Ohm it still had on a set of semi-round strings from god knows when! After a small amount of TLC it turns out that the neck stays in shape quite well, the very primitive bridge is doing the job admirably for such a simple piece of kit, and the neck pickup is loud and strong, with a throaty voice that relly appeals to me. Unfortunately the bridge pickup is dead, scoring zero ohms when measured. Another problem is that the E string is ultra floppy, and makes playign at the low end quite unpleasant both in feel and in sound. Perhaps it was tuned to A? So, questions: - What are the odds of finding a replacement pickup for the thing? Would it be worth it to have the pickup rewound? They are super primitive affairs, with just a lot of wire wrapped around a magnet (screws are for show, they just touch the magnet and don't really adjust) - What can I do for the floppiness of the the E string? Buy heavier gauge strings?

On BBC World service, presented by Nick Mason https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3csz42d

https://www.joinmyband.co.uk/classifieds/im-handsome-like-phoenix-and-play-all-instruments-t1171847.html I'm getting really good vibes off this guy!

I rarely go to a guitar shop, but when I do, I spend the evening before the visit rehearsing exactly what I'm gunna do. It may not seem like it, but every last thing is choreographed, from the tuning up - to the harmonics - to the seamlessly dropping into a bassline from (what would appear to be), an aimless noodle... even the moments of eye contact and conversation are planned and rehearsed to perfection... it's like a Superbowl half-time show. Sometimes it goes well, sometimes there's a problem, sometimes I don't try a guitar so nothing happens.

Yup. Mogue. Or Mowg or Moge. Rhymes as has been said with vogue. Or the first syllable of Terry Wogan's surname. Unless you pronounce it Wo-gan. In which case a bad example

In the first clip, Rinat is playing with an "authentic" Baroque bow, which has much less weight in the frog and so balances differently, hence the different hold. Gary Karr was indeed given Koussevitsky's bass by his widow. She claimed to have seen Koussevitsky's ghost standing beside Gary on stage and took that as a sign that he should have the bass. I played it - briefly - and it was properly strange. Nothing really happened until I followed instructions and played with a very slow bow and a LOT of weight, then suddenly this HUGE sound appeared. Must have had a very particular set-up for his style.....

It’s cool mate thank you - Frank is passing the guy tomorrow and we’ve ironed out the details. much appreciated x

No you're not.....

Going well....started with a get together a few weeks ago for a jam just Vocals, Guitar and Bass we now have a drummer lined up so fingers crossed hopefully get the odd cancelation gig this year and a few next year....really pleased to be back in a band.

Magnificent Seven - The Clash

Joined BC??

'Fever' by Peggy Lee (with Joe Mondragon playing a mesmerising Bass line).

Well done you 👏👏👏 It’s only when their real bread and butter (the exhibitors) start to kick off that anything really happens. We thank you.

I've given them a nudge today to say that there are "no announced artist rumblings", which as an exhibitor doesn't thrill me either. Response was : "We will be beginning artist announcements at the end of this week, hopefully the names we will be getting will sway any negative comments the other way."

My gig journey: Wedeges plus amp/cab for FOH IEMs for monitoring and amp/cab for FOH IEMs amp/cab for monitoring and DI out from amp to PA for FOH IEMs for monitoring and modelling out from amp to PA for FOH IEMs for monitoring and built-in modelling in the PA mixer for FOH Sometimes miss the physical aspect of cab onstage but happy that set-up, soundcheck and strip down for entire band now takes just minutes and my ears are a lot happier.

He sounds like he's trying really hard not to let slip that a) he lives in his mom's basement and b) he's an Incel.

I was at Download Friday Saturday Sunday, had an awesome time, but wasn't camping. We stayed in town, and shuttle bussed in and out each day. I have been to a few festivals in the past with camping, but this one was by far the largest (90,000) and arguably the most enjoyable. The mud situation was fine for me - I was never so out of it that I was falling over. My wellies were filthy below the shin, but I stayed completely clean otherwise. The rain was a bit crap when it came (I think the worst was during Slash) but a cheap poncho over my rain jacket and I stayed totally dry. The vibe was relatively healthy in my opinion - I didn't see any aggro of any description from crowd or staff, olds and kids were always allowed through, and it wasn't too claustrophobic (we were only about 30 m back from the stage). Some drugs floating around so I can understand that putting people off, but I found them easily ignorable. The crush to leave was bearable - from being close to the stage to queuing for the bus was about an hour, but it would have taken at least 20 minutes even if you had a free run at it. No one pushed or shoved or complained - it was more of a stoic smiley shuffle. The shuttle buses were regular, and staff were buoyant - we were three and the ticket was £14 return for the whole group! On site prices were slightly inflated, but a fiver for a pint isn't the end of the world, and acts as a bit of a buffer against getting too wrecked. Never took more than 10 or 15 mins to get served either, apart from maybe once on the Friday. Free fresh water stations all over the place too. The toilets were pretty gross, but I can't see how that can be avoided. All in all, and speaking as someone who typically feels pretty uncomfortable in crowds, I was impressed by how user friendly the whole thing was. I had a blast and would go again. I think the not camping was the trick... The only negative point was the sound - so kick heavy, followed by horrible snare bonk, and then everything else sitting somewhere underneath. I suppose it was better the further back you were, but we hoped by being close to the sound desk tower we might stand a chance... Nope. Tool still blew my mind though 🤘

@HalfManHalfBass you have excellent bass taste! The start of a journey when I saw that ebay auction for the body. I finally got some passive elctronics in it and copper taped the cavities. It really sings to me now - has a lovely deep tone on the E that hits a spot between P & Ray that I really like. Next step is to get a John East preamp in it - though I really like how it sounds passive I'm not feeling the passive tone controls - might have time today to fool with the resistor values again.

Except that Helix is derived from Greek rather than Latin...

I went to loads when I was young and pretty well enjoyed every one of them. I wouldn't now, because now I need comfort and luxury, but back then I didn't. Yep, there are lots of aspects (especially loos) that are no pleasant, but if you are there with your mates or a girlfriend and you are young and responsibilityless, you can look past that and have a blast. With the average age of people on basschat you can't expect them to be that popular here!

Surely Once in a Lifetime. It’s refusal to shift, no matter what, is remarkable.

On the other hand, I quite like going naked sometimes (oo-er missus!) . So, not meaning to change the subject of the topic, but what about the 'no pickguard at all' option? As in my Tokai Jazz Sound: And my fretless 'Ray (as above): And this is one I used to own:

Napoleon's UNCLE, surely?

I shared one of his on Facebook a few days ago, he is amazing isn't he?

I was scratching my walnut when i read the thread title. Who the hell is al solo and why would anyone call ya that ..

Festivals - bit of a lottery. The best ones i went too were the free ones. Watchfield , Windsor , but even the one pay festival i went too, Knebworth, was a hoot. A less famous free one i attended compared to the above, was a MAG festival. For those that dont know who MAG is, they're the Motorcycle Action Group. If you didnt know, you'd expect there to be appalling condition, bikers batting the shyte out of each other, riding their bikes over tents etc. Not so. The place was spotless, no litter to speak of, and any small amounts were cleared up, the toilets were the cleanest of any festival id been to, and didnt reek. I never saw one fight, and everyone was as pleasant as hell.

Public Image Ltd - Public Image Ltd. The easiest but still great!

Make yourself a simple jig to test the pickup positions and combinations in the same way that Leo Fender did, and listen to the sound they make rather than other peoples opinions.

It’s why I love the Rebellion Festival - 200+ punk/Oi bands over 4 days, INDOORS! All stages have decent loos and the drinks/food in there whilst not cheap is ok, and being smack in the middle of Blackpool town centre all your regular fast-food establishments are within easy walking distance. And they say us punks/skins are the stoopid ones!

This is my current fave - anyone on the forum ?! RevDrGlover (Coventry) Sunday 24 Mar 2019, 7:26pm I'll turn-up to every practice, won't do tiresome bass solos, will syncopate between lead guitar and the kick-drum, fattening-up your sound, and will have no opinion about 'musical direction', just like bass players should. I've been playing with bands that are 'nearly ready to gig' for four years, without playing an actual gig. I bloody love making music with other people. Happy to carry-on doing that; thoroughly enjoying practice sessions, or actually practice to the point of actually playing an actual gig. I'm in my 50's with a mental age of 14 or so, and love what bass guitar can do to glue a band together. If that's what you're missing; I'm your man*. [*Or your gender-neutral bass-person who's cosplaying a fat lazy old bloke.] Blip me a DM, and I'll WhatsApp you on Instagram, or fax you a Telex at your Reddit PO Box number. Erm, bro.