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I haven't been here since my gig on Friday night so this is a belated nast night's gig posting. My band played on the main stage at Birmingham Symphony Hall for a Jazz night. It was a last minute upgrade from the usual location of the Jazz club there which was one of the conference rooms. No complaints there. We did a Grover Washington Jr set which went down great.

Well the story starts from my Sei. Some might know that I sold it. To Carlsim on BC who is a total gent and a very cool guy. Said bass was posted too Carl. Carl then got in contact with me. I posted in my advert that the preamp was a a UNI Pre. I meant to say it was a U Retro Deluxe but I advertised it wrong. My fault of course. Well after a few PMs back and forth Carl worked out that it wasn't either. It was actually a J Retro Deluxe. BUT the bell plate when it was fitted was not installed, so I presumed it was a U Retro Deluxe. Confusion much so. Anyway it was a pain in the derrière for Carl because he had paid for a bass that wasn't what he expected. So I sent him some money to get the Preamp that he wanted which he wanted being the UNI pre.lets hope it fits we/he said.But all was cool. John East sent him a Uni pre and bless Carl. He un installed the J Retro and then fitted the Uni pre which he is happy with. Carl after a few PMs sent the preamp direct to John I spoke to John East about this situation through numerous emails and on the phone throughout this situation which he always answered. I then spoke to John about getting a new Jazz bell plate for said J Retro. He said on the phone that he had a plate no probs. Now this is where John East is not just one of the greatest designers of possibly one of the best preamps for a bass on the market, but one of the most easy to get hold of nicest guys and one on one its like talking to your next door neighbour . I spoke to him and he said to send him the preamp, he would give me a free plate from his stock that has a slight blemish, he would then rewire the preamp and fit new knobs.! FOR FREE.!! all I have to do is cover the postage.. I don't really need to add much to this. I dont want want to endorse asking John to give away free stuff, but what a guy and what a gesture. For me first off this is what BC is about . Honesty, communication, and wanting other bass players to be happy with what you have sold them. But really its a big up to John East. What a gentleman..

I was just typing a post in the recent ramp thread as I've now made my ramp which I mentioned in said thread, and I thought I'd do a very small build thread instead as it was a bit overkill for a reply to the ramp thread. My Rickenbacker 4005 copy has a massive gap under the strings due to it's design, the toaster pickups on Rickenbackers are mounted straight on the surface with no routing meaning the strings have to sit really high compared to a conventionally designed bass. This feels very odd when going for the occasional pop or when playing octaves with thumb and forefinger. Also the pickups are so far apart that neither one is really suitable as a thumbrest for my normal playing style, and the huge string to body gap make it weird to play resting my thumb on the body. So I've made a clear Plexiglass ramp to act as a full length thumbrest and to make the string to body clearance more like every other bass I've played, so it isn't a ramp as such. I just bought a rectangle of Plexiglass cut to my measurements on ebay for £6.50 and cut the strange shape in to the top right corner. This is for a weird quirk of mine where I always seem to rest my thumb on a pickup but hook my little finger down the side of it, I don't know why but I feel comfortable that way so I cut this chamfered bit to accommodate my pinky. The edges and corners were rounded of and then all polished up and it really is crystal clear. I'm hoping that under stage lights it will virtually disappear rather than trying to make a wood one that will never match the colour and grain of the top. The lower edge butts against the scratchplate to hide the edge and the top edge looks darker in these photos because of light refraction, or lack of light. I've fixed it with two screws under the strings which I don't think are out of place with the scratchplate and tug bar screws. I was going to use clear doubled sided tape but it looked odd and would collect dirt, this way I can remove to clean any dust that may get underneath. So there you go, a clear ramp/thumbrest/faux top thingymajiggy. 🙂

😆

So the body turned up. Now I have a neck to refinish, and a body in need of minor adjustment to take the neck, and a bridge. I really like this minty colour, so I’ll call the bashed bit “road wear” and crack the on! Being that I love gold anodised pick guards, and the new Vintera stuff with this combo, I shall see about getting one made up once I’ve decided on pickups. Originally I was going for MM in roughly P position, but I’m liking what bridge pups can bring to the party, so I think I’ll follow the routing positions in place. Now I am quite a visual chap (shallow), so I don’t want standard pickups. I’m thinking two the same with chrome covers like Mike Lull’s NRT4 would look ace here.

I quit playing a long time ago, and had a break of almost 25 years However, I'm back now, and loving it - despite all the usual set backs My biggest regret ever, was giving up all those years ago! I really feel like I wish I'd persisted back then, and often wonder just how much better I'd be now Yes, we all have huge set-backs, rows, bands splitting, dealing with difficult punters and landlords, problems with health (self and others) but my advice would be stick with it - you may end up really regretting it if you give up.... just like I did have a short break if you feel you need it. Re-assess your situation, play with some different musicians - go to a couple of jam sessions, and just do it for fun But, Don't quit, don't quit and don't quit, and finally, whatever you do - Don't quit! Best of luck finding your solution

Just for you and all the other Moon Froglets reading, here is some String Pudding:

A few reasons - I prefer the more compact body - The II's are significantly lighter and better balanced than the VM4 was - The neck feels more comfortable on the II's and the finish seems superior to that on the VM4, more of a satin feel rather than a gloss.

Clotted Cream?

Erm the primer coat is on...

Very nice work! I've done a couple of these, for basses where the pickup positioning didn't give me anywhere natural-feeling to prop my thumb. I love working with acrylic, very easy to cut & shape, and really satisfying to get a nice finish. Cort B2 Headless: Kawai Sleekline:

It’s rainy up here in Yorkshire... but I’ve got a side on (hopefully enough glue it drank it up) and t-nut overkill!

"I parked the van round the back of the pizza place, tonight." Insightful, I'm sure you'll agree.

Can I just point out something in this story that you mentioned, as part of the story background, but you didn't really focus on. This came about because you made an honest mistake, and when confronted by it, you behaved honourably and did what you believed was the right thing to do. You didn't make a fuss, you showed respect, and helped the other person out. Often times this might not have happened, but for me, it was your actions here that initiated a very positive experience. I'm a firm believer in the whole "karma" principal - you do something good, eventually you get that good energy back. In your case, it just happened a little quicker and more directly than normal. Not trying to take credit from John East here, but you deserve some props here as well.

A bit more digging around in recent months brought another pedal with an arpeggiator function to my attention - the Adrenalinn III. It's an unusual box of tricks jam packed...possibly over flowing with features including an 8 bar drum machine with 8 sets of classic Linn drum samples, full sounding amp model sims from some interesting amps including Bogner, Peavey 5150 and a Boogie Mk2, plus various modulation and delay related effects. It's a great sounding pedal - everything sounds very warm and analoguey. Some of the amp sims are a little raw sounding but nothing unpleasant or unusable by any means. There are 199 presets available so plenty of storage space and MIDI channels. The primary purpose of the unit is to do beat related effects so if a player wants delays chopped up in time to the music or cycles synced to tempo then this box will do it. It can do that effect at the start of Green Day's Broken Boulevard and John Mayer used Adrenalinns I, II and III for three of his hits: https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/Rig_Rundown_John_Mayer So this week I looked into how to set the unit up so that I could do I Feel Love to start with. The sounds in the presets sounded great - there was a definition to the notes that I learned from the user manual, was due to each step having it's own individually definable envelope filter (something I really wished was in the Cooper FX Moment Machine). The user manual also mentioned all sorts of things about programming for drums but I couldn't find how to programme the pitches for each step in a user defined sequence. So I fired off an email to Linn asking for help and Roger Linn himself replied within 24 hours. He said that the arpeggiator was very simple - a flanger where the resonance frequency was controlled by each step. Which in other words meant to me that it wasn't an arpeggiator, it's a sequenced filter. This kind of explained why I was getting clarity on some notes and not others. I have to admit that I was disappointed it wasn't accurately described in the user manual. The pedal sounds so good in all the other ways that I hadn't planned to use it in, it's a little swiss army knife of a thing. So at this point, we are back to the Moment Machine and the journey continues. The FI doesn't have an arp. The Moment Machine doesn't have an envelope filter for each step. The Adrenalinn III doesn't actually have an arp, it's a sequencer based filter. Seems to me like there is a large gap in the market for players who want to emulate arpeggiated synth bass but don't want the hassle of spending days hunched over a small screen scrolling through endless menus and mapping various bits of kit to one another. Right now the Moment Machine, for its lack of an envelope filter, is as good as it gets without the prospect of a company like Panda MIDI including an arpeggiator in a version of the Future Impact.

Silly suggestion, whereas a solar panel incorporated into the bass headstock, placed seperately on the stage or on even top of the amp would solve this issue completely. This would harvest light from amp 'on' switches, audience camera phones, stage lighting displays and the audience holding up lighters ( do they still do that?). Surprised no-one has thought of this before....

Do you mean a stereo jack like on most of all other active basses ?

Continuing my quest to further stress test the floorboards of my mancave, I got this today. It's lived in a full flight case for most of it's close on thirty years and as a result has fared far better than many of the others I've looked at (the 'rubberised' cases tend to have chunks missing out of them looking like they've been nibbled around the edges). Some of the grey/silver paint has worn where it's been slid in and out of the flight case and there's a very slight nick out of one of the corners but other than that it's in fine fettle. The front and back panels are immaculate with all switches, knobs, lights and sliders present and correct and working. It really is in superb nick and sounds great. No scratchy pots, all switches and sliders operate smoothly and with a quality feel to them. No unwelcome buzzing or hissing and the always on fan just spins away quietly in the background. My MkIV is the quietest running amp I've ever heard and this is just the same. So I've got the MkIV, the Series 6 and an SMX (and an Elf). Just on the lookout for a pristine MkV AH250 now and then I think I'd better call it a day. 😁

Yes, me too but in a very good way indeed.

Randomly, listening to this right now

That’s a great video, and reggae drummer, Donovan Miller is dropping some nice beats here too 🙂

This YouTube vid always puts a smile on my face. Devon Bradshaw giving some tips but the real treat is his drummer, lovely laid back feel and some killer fills. On the subject of the Hofner, my Club with LaBella flats is superb for reggae, well trad ska in my house but it's close enough. 😉

I know , it's unbelievable isn't it . We have to pay insurance in case they can't do their job . Pick up only for my stuff - unless its pedals and the like . If they want it enough , they'll put themselves out - sad really that it's come to this

As long as he keeps putting monstrosities on eBay then it's fair to comment on them IMO, same as that mad German seller who doesn't seem to get any defenders on here unlike MDP. Maybe it's because he's faceless and MDP puts himself out there but for me as long as the criticism is of his bizarre workmanship and doesn't get personal it's fair. As for ripping people off - there is a definite car salesman vibe to his listings, extolling the virtues of questionable decisions using pseudo-technical terminology that will only fool novice players who don't know what they're buying so for me there's a slight predatory element and it should be called out. Same with making a cheapo J bass pickup out to be some bespoke unit and implying that the Vintage brand is made in the UK by a fella called John Hornby Skewes, he knows what he's doing there IMO. Check out the listing with the bitsa P bass which has a video attached, no way is that fit for gigging yet apparently it's had a "full overhaul of the electronics" and will "keep pace at any level you might use it". He then sticks a £233 price tag on it and calls it a Squier in the listing, probably because it looks like one he saw once.

Folks, I think you've crossed the line...this is just pointing and laughing now. The thread is starting to be just unpleasant, and isn't doing credit to anyone here, nor to Basschat as a whole. Please feel free to flame me mercilessly if you wish, I don't mind. I just think you should let the guy to get on with what he does and if you don't like what he sells.....don't look at his auctions. YMMV

That’s good to hear. Especially as I just bought this exact setup!!

Depends if you go valve or solid-state. Valve amps require a load; I *think* I'm right in saying that solid-states do not.

Ouch. If you, with your experience and contacts, can still feel like that what point is there in amateurs like me practising? Another way of looking at it is; if you, with your experience and contacts, can feel like that, I'm not the only one... My sympathy. I have periods when I feel the same way. One of them lasted for thirty years.

Not quite, one of Phil Lesh's has a few more!

Ok yeah, so i'm replacing my B3n.. with a B3n! Oh well, at least the resale price seems about what i sold mine for so i'm not losing anything!

This might be the key here. Plugging straight into the desk is much more forgiving to active basses than it is to passive basses! An active bass produces a higher-impedance signal (so less vulnerable to effects like cable capacitance, interference, etc), and the onboard preamp may "warm up" the tone a little more. You'd probably hear more of a difference if you tried the DI with a passive bass. After that, it's down to personal preference. If you're happy with the sound of the bass into the desk as it is, then carry on! Again, this probably comes down to the onboard preamp - I personally find actives sound alright played DI, whereas passive basses can sound a bit "sterile" without a bit of preamp coloration..but then some people prefer it like that.

They'd go invisible if left on the coffee table. Horrible - just horrible

I routed the hole for the handle on my MK2 cab and regretted it. It just does not look right. Yes I routed the recess slightly too wide but as mentioned, the round over on the handle looks better when the handle is mounted on top in my opinion.

I tried taking a double bass by tube just once, to an open-air festival gig with no parking anywhere near. My DB gigbag has wheels and is therefore towable, but the bass really didn't enjoy being towed along uneven pavements and up & down curbs. My journey was very simple, eight stops on a single line with no changes, but neither station has lifts so the DB had to be carried up/downstairs at both ends. All I can say is, I'm bloody glad that @Silvia Bluejay was there to help! For any public transport gig, leave the DB at home and take a Precision ...

Unplugged unless it’s being played, simples.

So I think I'm developing a Sandberg addiction. This VS4 arrived today: As a sibling to my roadworn VT4 I love both these basses, super light weight and beautifully balanced. They sound incredible through the Lil' Stubby. I did have to move on my series I california VM4 to fund the VS4 but I do much prefer the California II's.

True bass-a-holic. Puts his sound before his personal safety...

Had the opportunity to do a little more work on one of these today. First up was drilling the holes for the neck bolts. This was followed by routing the pockets for the neck and for the bridge using the template I posted previously: Next up was round the edges of the bass. I fill in the pockets whilst rounding the edges to reduce any chances of splits or bits going missing!! So this is how it looks next to the headless version. I'm quite liking the way the grain is flowing on this. Should be nice when finished.

Having given the matter serious deliberation I have reached a conclusion. It is probably for the best that Messrs gear4music did not offer Mr Pedro @ped a job. Permit me to expand. * Mr Ped is an intelligent, organised individual with boundless creativity and world-class problem-solving skills. To shackle one such to an entry-level job where he would doubtless be reporting to a mouth-breathing dullard of dubious personal hygiene whose sole accomplishment is the ability to sing the company song would be an unconscionable waste of Mr Ped's talents. * IIRC, Messrs gear4music have long enjoyed (if that is the mot juste) a 'patchy' reputation on this forum. Were Mr Ped to be an employee of said company he might find his leisure hours disturbed by private messages from BassChat members the content of which communications might include but not be limited to: 'I ordered a set of 45-105 D'Adds last week. They aren't here yet. WTF not? Sort it pronto, shop boy'. I think we can imagine the damage such might do to Mr Ped's standing, based as it is on impeccable impartiality and omniscient omnipotence. His authority would be diminished; leadership rivals would fancy their chances; stillettos would be sent off for sharpening. The fabric of our community would be in clear and present danger. * Mr @ped would be forced into constant and unceasing interaction with the shopping public, a group comprised in the main of (i) ill-informed nit-wits (ii) furious complainers who when asked their name reply 'I'm Mister Smith' (iii) dopey, passive-aggressive prevaricators and (iv) sundry other filth and sweepings of the gutter. While I might wish such an outcome upon my many enemies it must be clear to all here that Mr Ped does not merit such a fate, never mind that some of those he has dispatched to Finnbass Island might disagree. * Painful though it may be we cannot avert our gaze from a possibility which would strike to the heart of the forum's rugged independence. Gear4music are Gibson stockists. Gibson not undeservedly get a hard time here on the forum, not least for their corporate shortcomings and the antics of those who run the company. Imagine that Mr Ped were working at gear4music and that the Gibson rep swung by one day and someone were to say 'Oh, this is Ped, he's just joined us. He runs BassChat, y'know' and the blood might drain from the Gibson rep's face and he might say 'Oh. BassChat. The bass forum that savagely mocks my company's senior management on the basis of their competence, their personal appearance and their dress sense? The forum that made poor Henry's life a living hell? That BassChat?' and Mr Ped would reply in the affirmative and the Gibson rep and the gear4music spod might draw off to a distance and a muttered conversation might ensue and the gear4music spod might waddle back over and say: 'Look, Ped, we need to do something about the way that BassChat's members slag Gibson off' and an uncomfortable pause might ensue, whereafter Ped might say 'I really don't know what you mean' and difficult tensions might follow. TLDR: I cannot rejoice that Mr Ped did not get the job. But it's probably just as well

Providing a facility for people to argue about planks of wood with strings on (Basschat)

LBGS 2019 blog is up! https://wp.me/p2ZbyY-I6

I think the “why” boat has sailed. 🤪

Quantifiable Heft?