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Apologies for poor response, Chris, I can't find anything from you since we spoke in 2017 apart from the beginning of July, I can see I didn't respond to that, really sorry! It was a huge struggle during the lock-down. I was doing everything, failing to keep up by quite some margin, even working 10-12 hours a day, Monday to Saturday, major intent - staying in business. (A lot of emails do seem to end up in the junk folder these days, mine as well as replies to enquiries and purchasers) I'm sure I can take care of your P-Retro BTW. As for the future of the P-Retro, I want to continue with it. We have lots on a wait list and I really like it as a product. The EQ circuit and circuit board design has been enhanced, we do have some stock of the audio circuits. The hold-up is the custom rechargeable system which required my time in terms of design and implementation. I've worked on several new schemes , settling on one that's compatible with the original but with a USB charger. Another important factor is getting the systems made. Previously we made virtually all ourselves in the UK, not easily viable at this point so we're looking to outsource the manufacture. We started talking to a supplier at the beginning of the year but C-19 put things on hold, back on again now. There's also the investment in various custom components, such as the special pots and battery cells which isn't entirely trivial. Another important point, before we put them out again, I wanted to ensure we have longevity of supply set up. I'd always wanted to do something a bit special for the P Bass, very close to my heart!

Very funny @Frank Blank 😂 I am assuming you remember that brilliant Peter Cook sketch years ago about the 'Jeremy Thrope' case, which had that genius line in it: 'a self-confessed player of the pink oboe' Going back on topic, I did O'Level music in 1976-77 and although it did have all that droney stuff about certain classical composers and their works, what I did get out of it was the understanding of the major and minor keys, scales, plus stuff about harmony and time signatures etc.. So when I first started playing bass in bands - and was learning to play the instrument using tabs as opposed to those there proper dots - I could at least with my basic music O'Level theory, understand what was happening with the guitar chords in the songs we were writing/playing.. I'm grateful for that I'd nothing else as it meant I wasn't afraid to explore bass lines beyond simple root note and 5th... Must admit, I also really enjoyed learning about how crazy and obsessive some of the famous classical composers were, and what unusual and sometimes sad lives they lived. It completely prepared me for all the weirdos that I then met later on in the music business! 😁

I was photographing this to put it up for sale today (don’t get the wrong idea - I’m fully paid up already) and I just can’t bring myself to let it go. It’s just a really lovely example. Looks stunning (much better in person), plays beautifully and sounds just like it should. The neck is as smooth as silk and it’s weight is very reasonable. I’ve never gigged it and I’m not sure it’s even seen a rehearsal space actually. Back in storage you go 😎. EDIT: It’s a PDN Neptune Blue by the way. Purchased from @BassTractor a few years ago.

In September 2018 I assembled a ’51.75 Tele-P Bitsa. See link. I was incredibly pleased with the outcome but found myself just using the series setting of the Jess Loureiro Pup. Having absorbed so many comments about the “Flea” bass and the positive views of the Sandberg basses I thought it might be an idea to add a Stingray Pup to the Tele-P. I own a USA MM Sterling which sounds and plays really well, so I was familiar with what I could expect from adding a Stingray Pup in the correct position. I took some advice from here and purchased a Warman MM style Pup. https://www.warmanguitars.co.uk/product/mm4-4-string-bass-humbucker-13-09kohm-4-wire-overwound/ Over the last year or so I have put together a ’52 P Bitsa and a Jazz bass Bitsa using necks from JinWan on eBay. I was so impressed with the Jazz width necks, bound fingerboard, MOP block inlays and gloss finish that I ordered a third neck for another ’51 P build. The first ‘51P neck had a perfectly shaped headstock but the second one had a more ‘bulbous’ headstock shape which was closer to a Telecaster guitar shape than a ’51 P shape. As I was “upgrading “the ’51.75 Tele-P I thought I should use the new neck as it looked much more like a Telecaster. I marked out the position of the Stingray Pup and ensured it was in the correct “sweet spot” 335mm from the 12th fret. As previously stated the body was originally a 32ins Squier Telecaster Bass which a previous owner had modified the neck pocket to allow for a 34ins neck to be fitted so the bridge had to be repositioned to provide correct intonation. I added a ‘string through’ bridge and rear ferrules. I ordered a new loom for the “God Father” of Tone our own @KiOgon which provided a 3-way Pup selection switch master Vol & master tone control. To be honest I did a pretty poor job of routering the Stingray Pup cavity causing some breakout of paint at the edges of the cavity. Maybe I will refinish the body sometime in the future? After assembly I was astounded at the variety of tones on offer from such a humble gathering of parts in this Bitsa. Firstly, the unplugged sound was vibrant, full and clear. The combination of the large body size mass of Basswood coupled with the extended neck pocket ( 6 neck fixing screws) and through body stringing made the bass really sing. Position #1 is the Jess Loureiro in it’s series mode, gives a powerful warm, clear, typical P Bass tone, Position #2 is both Pups in parallel and adds a huge amount of depth and mid drive. Probably my most favourite setting. Position #3 is the Warman Stingray on it’s own and is identical to that familiar Stingray sound. I was astonished how powerful, and tuneful the Warman replicated the Stingray sound. I am convinced it would need a real expert ear to differentiate in the blind test. Following @KiOgon recommendation I can only endorse his views , these Pups are fantastic value, powerful and sound identical to a MM Pup. Here are some pix of my TeleRay in it's new case ( curtesy of @Osiris} And one of the headstock with my poser decal!! protected with @Andyjr1515 wipe on finish method. The back of the headstock has a Sharpie signature again sealed.

Presumably with Randall amps?

Very happy with this bass!

My school did pretty well - in the mid to late 90's. I had one 25 minutes one to one bass lesson each week, from someone who turned out to be a bit of a local legend - George Lyle. I didn't know this at the time though. I learned a mixture of genres, though he obviously favoured jazz. I eventually learned pieces up to level 5 for my Higher exams. (A bit like a Scottish A-Level) Outside of this, the school had an orchestra - but played more interesting music rather than clasical standards. From rock numbers like Eye of the Tiger and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, to accompanying the choir for a Queen medley. They also put on a musical at the end of each school year, and I'd inevitably be part of the band - being the both capable enough to handle the pieces and enough of a geek to want to! My mates would be on guitar and drums. In return, we'd sometimes be allowed a slot at Christmas shows or similar with our own band, where we'd do something like an Oasis cover. The year after I left and was a Uni student, I got a call from tthe head of the music department, asking if I'd play bass for their summer musical Grease, with about two weeks notice - they original bassist was struggling to get it up to scratch and pulled out. Some of my slightly younger friends were involved, so it was quite fun. My first paid gig. I think I got £50 for a matinee and two evenings. George

Already done mate!

Just as an addendum here, I probably learnt more about music from my mum and dad. There was always music on in the house; my mum (who passed away a couple of years ago aged 87); while she was a huge fan of The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Kinks and The Small Faces, her musical roots were Sinatra, Martin etc. She took me to my first concert (Elton John, Hammersmith, Christmas 1970-something), I took her to her last (Kiss, Wembley. 'I can't do this any more.') Until a few weeks before her death, I went down to the house and she was listening to Rod Stewart, Bon Jovi and had a copies of Quiet Life (Japan) and Destryoer (Kiss) in her car. Just because she was old, doesn't detract from the fact that she'd been listening to Bon Jovi 35-odd years ago, when she was around my age now. My dad loved soul and reggae, but his overriding passion was for Hall & Oates (which makes my head tilt, even to this day).

Bought a splendid little combo here a while ago. RM series, really, really good little amp and speaker. But the pots had become a little dirty. And I kept on and on meaning to give them a wash and brush up, but just never got a round tuit. Until just now. Well done Ashdown! After using your knob puller of choice (mine is the shaved remains of the handle off a long since dead kitchen utensil) you will discover, adjacent to the shaft of the potentiometer, a little hole in the fascia, just about perfect to shove in the straw on your can of Servisol Super 10. Squirt squirt, wiggle wiggle, job done. All made easier by Ashdown's little hole. It's good news week.

Mrs. Pook bought me a couple of my basses. That's what fills me with the most joy.

A SC that may sway?

Au contraire mon ami, a craftsman would use hand tools, all this electrical gubbins is for amatuers 😃 Ducks for cover!

Preferred the original tbh

I made a recording of the Riedel for anyone wondering how the Black Labels can sound. I appreciate a large component of the tone you'll hear is the valve amp this was recorded through, but it gives you an idea hopefully. Bass was used in passive mode. Sounds stonking if I do say so myself. Defiant Bass.m4a

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Shell Pink slipper?

Art, like beauty, is subject to the subjectivity of the beholder's eye. It's doing no harm that I can see.

Marty Hopkirk on drums ?

Nice, I’ve heard both in action and quite typically for me the Ashdown wins it.

Great colour on the Sandberg FB site

Keep posting then but also PM me them and I’ll look over them properly when I’m back from holiday and ongoing . Happy to help!

Ha. I loved them, their ergonomics, their 4-band, and their colours (a.o. the original Dargie Delight and the second Dargie Delight), but the Rays had a bigger impact on me. Here's a pic of your Ray showing its wood inside the blue. Not the very bestest piece of wood ever, but I liked it in total.

If the case is part of the sale, then it should be wrapped up in cardboard.

I can imagine a courier refusing a pickup if insufficent packing has been used, or using it as an excuse to refuse a claim after loss or damage, but I wouldn't expect it to be accepted and then have a fine levied - thats a new one on me.

I tried them in the shop where I wasn't able to push the volume. My impressions were the ampeg cab was deeper/muddier sounding than the TC K210 I was testing at the same time. I could definitely hear the changes to Markbass EQ better with the TC cab. That said, I'm not sure what settings I had the horn on with the Ampeg cab. Pairing the Ampeg PF350 head with PF210 was a nice combination though.

Yes, the drive is on the amp. No effects, no modelling, etc. It’s a mid-90s Ampeg SVT-II Pro running KT88s. Tone settings as shown in the photo, and running into the BF 210S.

Great thread! 👍😁 From Wikipedia : 'Suspense is a state of mental uncertainty, anxiety, of being undecided, or of being doubtful.[1] In a dramatic work, suspense is the anticipation of the outcome of a plot or of the solution to an uncertainty, puzzle, or mystery,[2][3][4][5] particularly as it affects a character for whom one has sympathy.[6] However, suspense is not exclusive to fiction... ' Now that we all understand what the use of' suspense' means in an artistic setting, we can move on to explore the concept of 'suspenseful music'.. So, please make a note to look out for my next post on this riveting subject here on Basschat sometime around 07:45 on 07/09/27.... 😁

Down here in NZ we didn't get live music back at all until we dropped all the way to level 1 (essentially normality). We've since gone back up to level 2 (social distancing 1m+, table service in bars, no crowds over 100 at all) and only seated gigs are going ahead, at much reduced capacity. Been quite a change considering that for the 3 months at level 1 we were back in nightclubs, gigs, big sporting events.

I agree. Modern cabs are generally better and certainly much lighter than some of the horrors we used to lug around 30 years ago. but I can't understand the need for amps that you can pick up with one finger. There is always a compromise with something that light and Class D amps just don't sound as good as the great hybrid amps of a few years ago that you can pick up for peanuts these days. If you put them in a lightweight rack it is still an easy one hand lift, so why the obsession with making everything unnecessarily light?

I do, for what I was doing in my last band the Ashdown could get the sound I wanted on its own (even though I always used my Para Driver with it) whereas with the Ampeg I wouldn’t have had the choice, I would have needed the Para Driver.

Oh god I think I'm going to regret this!! 😢

I had a chance this morning to fit the block inlays. Here they are being fitted and glued.

I'd like to have been there for the drummer's 'four stick clicks' count in! I guess would need overnight accommodation between clicks.

We had a rhythm guitarist with a similar approach, although he was so swamped in reverb no-one really noticed. Why was he in the band I hear you ask? He had a van

Possibly the witless and superficial BBC report fails to convey the nature of the composition, the project, the site, the rationale, the technical construction, the historical semiotics, the aesthetic precepts, the metaphysical allusions, or the implications for numerous modes of ambient or experimental music. I went to a gig once. Won't do that again. Eight quid spent, and it was over in no time with nothing to show for it. What a con.

Wardrobe :