Leaderboard

Two whole decades after my last bass guitar purchase I've finally lashed out and increased my collection by 100%. But - you ask - what can it be? A classy Fodera? A Wal? An original stack-knob Jazz with OHSC?

Just spotted this. To add a little context - although it's not an excuse as such - you caught me on an exceedingly bad year, with my wife going through chemotherapy and me trying to run the company single handed I just could not keep on top of admin, especially when it fell outside the usual workflow. Yours is not the only case of this, I just didn't cope with keeping on top of this stuff. We are also REALLY struggling with backorders/stock so it'd be very difficult to switch it out without having anything physically in our hands to switch it out for. Our rep is rightfully taking a bit of a hit for this, with some orders having had to wait as long as from August 2018 ... Left handed bassists! Grrr 😉 Hopefully we'll see you back for a bass in the future, although if not - I'd totally understand.

OFC (harrumph) this list is useless because it doesn't break Metal down into it's 19 true sub-genres, 14 associated moods and 5 extra dark undiscovered corners. /tongue

Bass arrived today...sent to my office with the neck off, for safety reasons...wanted to put it together there and then but unfortunately the thing they pay me for got in the way...bl00dy work!!! They say "the camera never lies"...I say "poppycock"...no reflection on @Andyjr1515's ability to take photos but the bass is infinitely (well, "much better" anyway) in the flesh/timber than in the photos. Neck feels luvverly ...so smooth and playable. Along with the light (40-100) Warwick strings, it invites you to play it more...or is it playing itself??? I spent about a minute trying to feel where the veneer joins the body - pointless exercise - smooth as a newborn's backside. This really doesn't feel like a £200 bass with the @Andyjr1515 touch...it feels high end, as good as anything else I own or have owned (big claim there) - check the "a few of TheGreeks" thread for details of what's on the list (including my two previous builds by Andy). Not a secret how much I love the Nanyo SGC basses - IMO well balanced, great tonal palette, in fact still very under-rated even though they do have a big following. What Andy has done is take a plain looking bass and made it beautiful - has added a few per cent to the quality of what is already a good bass and pushed it into another league. I could go on...but, instead, I'm going to plug it in and bash out a few licks for the next hour or so. My thanks and appreciation to @Andyjr1515 for another fine job, well done. Has exceeded my expectations yet again...

Either of Richard Baker or Ted Rogers in a ginger wig would do. Skank's not that fussy...

I think we can rely on Skank to keep any adornments tasteful. A bit like this, perhaps....

Update: I've shimmed the neck to drop the action a touch, tweaked the relief and filed the nut a bit lower. It was already a nice easy player but now it's exactly how I want it. Sorting the intonation required the Telecaster compromise where one string is very slightly flat at the 12th and the other similarly sharp. Maybe a cent or two out and therefore not audibly a problem. IMO, 2-saddle bridges not a problem (for me). So half an hour's work and it's spot on for my purposes. Other things: immaculate paint job; really nice neck profile with a pleasant satin finish; smooth and tidy fret ends; supposedly 'cheapo' tuners actually feel perfectly solid. Minor issues: a bridge plate screw is slightly squint and the neck pocket's a bit rough. Slight fret buzz at 11 on the G but I won't often be going up the dusty end. That's the geometry sorted. Next step, the sonics, then bling it up. Still happy

And perhaps the best reply ever too! https://www.joinmyband.co.uk/classifieds/im-handsome-like-phoenix-and-play-all-instruments-t1171843.html

Such an article must surely have occurred after the following exchange at the office: Editor: 'Folks, we are on a tight deadline and we need some bass content urgently. Rob, can you just draw up some kind of list thingy based off your own preconceptions which requires no research whatsoever?' Rob: 'Sure thing boss, I will get right on it after I finish this Pot Noodle.'

I attach a recent photograph:

Well, NBBW really... And oh dear. I joined the bandwagon. I’d been gassing for a 5-string PJ and some of you recommended a BB. Of course, it was only a matter of time before a BB435 came along and I just couldn’t resist... Initially, I thought the neck and string spacing were too wide, but after a few days getting used to it, it seems like I can play a lot faster... it’s an odd sensation. The overall balance of the strings across the fretboard is OK. I wish the E and B stings were a bit snappier around the middle of the neck, but then I realise this is an entry-level bass. Overall I’m impressed by the quality at this price-point. It’s well-designed, with the right attention to detail. It plays great and the pickups sound brilliant. The bridge is the only thing about it that feels a little underwhelming. It’s not a deal-breaker, but anybody know of any drop-in replacements? Anyway, I didn’t like a few specific things about the 735 - plus there are some big changes happening in my life - so I decided not to go for a more expensive bass. Time will tell if that was the right thing to do. Until then at least it’s a lot of fun to play!

I'd happily see at least 16 of those, and there's far more to see than the ones on the poster.

Baker or Rogers??

There is much to admire about the 'explosion in a Swarovski crystal factory' approach but it would clash with my intention to pair the instrument with a stage costume comprising white tie and tails, this in keeping with my plans for a one man Fred Astaire tribute act. Tappa tappa!

This is broadly where we're headed...

Yay! Thanks Johnny. You win first prize -- a visit to Cearnafon castle (as long as it's free to get in!). 😀

It's that Chaka Khan song, isn't it? Can't remember the title but it's sampled from the Fatback Band's "Do the Bus Stop". Disclaimer: I'm currently camping in a field near Caernarfon so am unable to contribute a new clip. Edit: very nicely played too! 👍🏻

No. But I have some of these:

Me too, never had one then, and nature/middle age has decreed I can’t have one now!

The Repairs and Technical and Build Diaries sections of Basschat can be very useful.

Late addition to the bill...

Go for it* *He said, with no authority whatsoever

So, I was right, and this leads on to my next point. Do you have the falcon?

Cheers to @ped and @hiram.k.hackenbacker - top fellas as always 👍

Hah! No, sorry, didn't mean for it to come out like that. I'm a serial gear flipper but a (my) 1001ii is one of the very few things I regret selling and I wish I'd held onto it. There's enough out there that I'll just wait until I need an amp again before buying another one, but if I ever do see mine for sale I'm buying it back whether I need it or not.

Props for taking the time to reply. Hope your wife is on the mend now

Thanks DD Bit of spit n polish helped too. Looking good

I guess Lee didnt post the bits to me as promised, so in the end i scooted off to a local nut n bolt supplier only 1/2 mile away and not only did he have the corrrect allen key grub screws for saddle height and the intonations screws, he supplied the grub screws in stainless and the other screws in zinc plated, which is a bonus over the mild steel originals which were rusting. The only parts he couldnt find were the intonations springs, but i found a bass bridge in one of my chest of draws and robbed the springs from that, so its job done The SB 900 bridge is now buffed and refitted.

Who gets to play Ginger?

FM3has the equivalent of about 48 blocks I think. It is not a direct competitor to a Helix and is not just about how many footswitches something has, it’s more than that as inside it houses the whole Fractal full fat engine, the Axe FX III It sits slightly above a stomp, but below a Helix floor unit in both price and functions, but if you pair an FM3 with the FC-6 it comes in at a similar price to a Helix floor unit, is modular in that you can use it on its own, or with the floor unit, and with a very useable footprint, you can go for a larger floor controller if you wish. All in all a very decent alternative with its own abilities, but it is different. They are a smaller operation and I think Helix with yamaha power got theirs out in the market first. Fractal are a decent company as those that ordered the AX8 (which would have become defunct) were either offered a full refund or their purchase moved to the FM3

Hall & Ball - it's like a double act from the 80s - Rock on Johnny

Probably the rig I've still got I can't see any reason to change. Loud, light and compact.

The licensed Ultralites are genuinely great, I had them on a Cort B5 and they were absolutely rock solid and very smooth. One screw hole though so on a Sire you'd have exposed holes, with the Schallers you have to drill 2 new holes per tuner IIRC as two existing ones line up, the old ones are covered by the base plate though so once they're installed everything looks fine. You'll need the 11/16" nuts for Ultralites btw, they only seem to be available in 1/2" (13mm) or 3/8" (10mm) on Bass Direct, or just use some tape! I kept all the original parts as modded budget basses tend to be hard to sell for their composite value. Don't envisage selling it any time soon but you never know.

'F Simandl' Book 1....(publisher Carl Fischer Inc).....Simandl 'New Method for String Bass, (publisher International Music Company).....Simandl 'Eighty Six Etudes for String Bass (Carl Fischer Chord Studies for Electric Bass by Rich Appleman and Joseph Viola from the Berklee Press.......These are all books with exercises and scales, some get a tad boring but persevere. The double bass exercises can be used for electric bass and you will see in the first book listed a lot of 'advice' on hand/finger positions. These are not always exact and you wouldn't suffer as much strain on electric bass as maybe on double bass if you get them wrong. A simple ear exercise on each string...(no jokes you lot!) is to slide up from the lowest note on a string, even the open string to the upper octave. ie G to G octave then G sharp to octave G sharp etc.

Nice! I assume you have seen the Yamaha BB thread? There is info about reversing the saddles, particularly on the B string to get some more attack - might be worth having a look.

No I don't and no I haven't, I'm afraid; it was just something that I saw in an online review (which was quite positive) whil I was casting around for an inexpensive P-bass option; and so I thought that Thomann would be the place to check out the price. What impressed me most about the review was that the guy got all the way through it without saying "Sandberg" once...

@BassBunny That's the preamp in my BC. Using your 1st photo and working L-R Bridge pickup hot. Neck pickup hot, Red to battery clip.Next 3 solder lugs are grounds (mine are pushed together with a big blob of solder covering them). A very fine yellow (2nd in from right) to jack socket. Far right black to jack socket.

Lovely! I'd be tempted if it had an extra string, a rosewood board, and was a different colour.

He’s got some nice genuine vintage stock, he can be a bit pricey but he’s open to negotiation 🙂

top tip for the day ... never EVER do festivals unless you have an access all areas laminate

I will be playing 3 sets there this year.