Leaderboard

A friend posted this on Facebook - someone has isolated a single audio track from an SACD, giving just lead vocals, bass and drums. It makes for a fascinating listen.

So yesterday was my (60th) Birthday. Can't believe I'm 60...anyway, I got this T Shirt which I thought I'd share here.

While @Jus Lukin 's lower back wing is drying, and since receiving the No 10 UNF bolts and confirming they fit - it's time to bite the bullet and start on the neck pocket This really is - of all of the tasks - a 'measure multiple times and drill once'. There is so little room for error - positionally or in terms of angle - with machine screws, it basically has to be right. I started with a paper template, pressing down with my thumb to find the insert depressions and then using a taper punch to find the exact centre of the insert itself: After drawing the centre line on the body back, I used a template of the pickguard to make sure that the neck pocket template was going to be in the correct position. Then I used a sharp ended punch to transfer the pattern on the back of the neck pocket with a teeny dint, where I would subsequently drill using a good quality brad-point drill. You can't see them in this photo because they are tiny, but they are there. I checked all of the dimensions, including the diagonals to ensure that the dots were in exactly the right positions (the Wal's inserts are 0.25mm out of square ) : I started with a 12mm Forstner to drill the recesses at the back that the screw inserts will go into: I then used a 5mm bradpoint, using the forstner spike hole as my bullseye and drilled two holes right through - a diagonal. Then turned the body over and used the template to put the drill dots in the other two positions - again checking the diagonal dimensions to make sure I was replicating the 0.25mm out of square of the original and also that I had marked it out of square the right way round (ask me why I know that checking THIS is important )!! I then did the through-body trick of drilling 1/2way through, then turning the body round to drill from the other side and meet in the middle - this should mean that the exit holes are accurate for getting the machine screws in the inserts and the entry hole are accurate for the aesthetics of the screw heads and inserts. Testing time. Would the temporary machine screws fit?: ...and none more surprised than me! So now I could bolt the neck fully against the top of the body and first check that it still lined up with the pickguard within the 'wiggle-room' oversize: ...and then draw round the neck heel for the next step, cutting the pocket itself...which will be tomorrow Time for a cup of tea As always, thanks for looking.

This is mine.... one day....

Ladies, Gentlemen and everyone in between: I proudly present the Brooks Thundervee. A hybrid between a Thunderbird and a Flying V. - Neck through with Korina body wings - Nine ply Korina/mahogany neck - Ebony faceplate on headstock - Red Mahogany stain. Gloss transparent acrylic finish - Rosewood fretboard - 23 Jumbo frets - 34" scale - Handcut Buffalo horn nut - Three ply black-white-black pickguard - Wide travel Thunderbird bridge - String through body ferrules - Hipshot ultralite nickel plated tuners - Spokewheel double action trussrod - 2 x Sixties repro Thunderbird pickups nickel. 9.2 K Ohm - Di Marzio EP111 toggle switch 4PDT for serial mode - 2 x Volume pot Bourns 500 kOhms logarithmic - 1 x Tone pot Bourns 500 kOhms logarithmic - Kemet capacitor 47 nF paper insulation - DR FatBeams 45-105 Electronics circuit by BQ Music Pics of the build process can be found here This is what she sounds like:

So you're saying that because it's in a newspaper it isn't true? Or that because it's in this newspaper it isn't true? It appears wholly consistent with the Government's rather rabid and dogmatic "Sovereignty at all costs (especially if it means cutting off our noses to spite our Empire-bred, beautifully proud British faces!)" mantra!

The back is glued: Now it's REALLY starting to look like a bass I've now been able to take the clamps off and had a look at the joints. They look good I'll be trimming the sides flush with the top in the morning - I'll take a photo in the daylight when that's done. And then...it's pickup chambers....

And done!

There's a topic on that as well.

Here’s my latest incarnation. Helix, drop, fwonk and the Bluetooth bergantino amp switch. All powered by a Cioks DC7. There’s enough room on the board for a boss SY-1 eventually.

It's quite ironic that many of those countries that are currently under the EU's shackles have quite different requirements... It's almost as if they have actual control of their borders!

Look, just stop it, OK.

In that case, the EU were right, on this occasion.

On my wanty list would be something like this 61 jazz, but I just can’t warrant 20k for one , so to be more realistic, even though I’ve never played one, this Wal is quite a stunner 🙂

Lucky to be relatively bass gas free atm. Only because I'm suffering horrendous pedal gas instead. However there are a few on my long standing wish list. Notably this -

Recenly acquired my first P Bass De Gier Soulmate - find attached the original images from the luthier cheers johannes

Luckily most 'boutique' expensive basses don't interest me. But show me something quirky, gaudy and tacky and I can't resist. Luckily these are mainly basses no other sane person wants so it works out quite cheap. 😁

As I think many people are finding out, what they saw advertised and what actually arrived are two quite different things. It’s like buying a villa on the Côte d’Azur, and ending up with a rickety old caravan overlooking a sewage works. Though many are quite understandably in denial, insisting that this is exactly what they wanted. I’ve been incredibly lucky, and performed at some marvellous events in Europe. These are small events, and just don’t have the budget to cover the increased expenditure. It works the other way too, there are some incredibly talented artists now precluded from touring in the UK. I’ve also been fortunate to have been given the chance to do talks on and present my PhD work abroad. This too has now ended, unless your field of study falls into a very limited area, then you need a work permit. My university’s music department just can’t afford it. I find the whole thing utterly depressing and tbh, rather pointless.

Great bass playing but what a truly incredible voice she had.

They're geat basses the T-40s @stewblack. I've had 2 over the years and certainly wouldn't say no to a third. Very heavy though! 😬 I like this idea for a thread @bubinga5, but it's one hell of a way of throwing even more Basschat fuel on the GAS fire! 😁

Instead of basses I’d buy time. I’ve had all the basses I’ve ever wanted and no time to play them...

I don't really like the Sandberg headstock, that said, these VMs dropped into my timeline a few days ago. The reverse headstock works for me...

How embarrassing not recognising musicians. Sat with the future Lady Maude in a pub behind Plymouth Pavilions at a large table, and in come a bunch of traveller types who plonk themselves down at the rest of the table and start drinking. We were going over The Pavilions to see The Levellers later and I leaned over to Lady M and commented it's a bit sad when fans try to dress just like their favourite bands. No malice intended though and we had a drink with them. Yeah you know where this is going. Roll on a couple of hours in The Pavilions and our table sharers walked on stage. In my defence the bass player (the recognisable one with the dreads) wasn't with them in the pub and the singer had put on a bit of weight. Also to be fair to Lady M she did keep telling me it was them but Captain Kronenbourg here was having none of it. 🙄

The fingerboard has been buffed and frets pre-polished, then installed. I trimmed the tangs so that I have a gap to fill.

Hand made in Greece, a tiny pedal, which is almost two pedals. Almost, because the octave only works in conjunction with the filter, and not on its own. My search for the ideal filter led me to the Tsakalis Audioworks phonkify after trying a fair few. I have a Future Impact which more than caters for my synthy filter sounds, and I have a Fwonkbeta I still haven't tamed yet, it can shake the fillings from your teeth. My most recent (prior to the Phonkify) is the Sonuus Wahoo. Unquestionably the most customisable of the lot, it is a complex bit of kit. All this helped clarify what I'm after. I want a filter which works. I don't want to have to twiddle knobs in a seemingly endless search for the one configuration that actually produces a noise. I want neither volume drop nor increase when I activate the pedal, but if I get either I want to be able to change them quickly. I want a funky, relatively liquid sound but one that retains the quality of my bass. I want to be able to change the sound in a swift, simple, intuitive way on the pedal itself. This little box ticks every one of those boxes. I also like the idea of octave pedals in conjunction with a filter, so that is a bonus, but not a deal breaker. To really hear why this is such a great pedal you need to hear it in a mix. Some filter pedals actually get on my tlts after a couple of minutes. They're just too in your face. This one is deceptive. Because it doesn't leap at you and grab you by the throat , but is still most definitely there, I jammed for a straight 40 minutes with it on the other night and loved how the sound sat in there. Forgot it was on - but in a good way. I've made a little vid for y'all, but remade it because I wanted some other noises with the bass . I don't own anything other than basses so I had to invent drums and keys. It's just an improvised loop with my fat hands getting in the way, but hopefully gives an idea.

Yes, I am. Both as a session musician, a featured artist, and as a DJ. Possibly as backline tech as well. Last year I would have spent around 10-12 weeks in total working in the EU. It probably would have been the best pay I would have seen in 2020 if not for Covid. This year is too uncertain for me to call, as there’s still Covid to factor in. But I made the move to France last Autumn just to be on the safe side, and I’m gonna do as much as I can from here. There’s still a chance that I might not get residency here but I’m actively doing everything I can to look out for myself right now. The UK government is doing nothing to make a difficult situation any easier. Quite the reverse. Just reading that the leader of the opposition has come out in support of ending freedom of movement, and it’s not filling me with hope and uplifting sunlands-ness. I fully understand I might be in the minority on here, but c’est la vie and all that. I’m certainly not out to Fosters on anyone’s chips or anything. But yeah, it’s not a great situation. Even if you think, “it doesn’t affect me” you just never know. If you’re in a functions band or play on the cruise ships, or ever dep for other musicians who work further afield than you usually do... you just never know.

Oh no you won't.

Why am I on edge reading this? I'm not drilling it. 😬 😁 Great work as always Andy. 👍

All the bits are here now and I'm furloughed again from Monday so progress should resume then when I've got an empty house, the sheds just too cold at the mo. I need to get a woodburner out there to get through my projects quicker, one in the burner one on the bench, one in the burner one on the bench. 😁

The webshop recently stopped shipping directly to UK customers. I ordered a part this week via the UK distributor by emailing [email protected] ; it will be included in the next shipment of basses sent over (whenever that is - TBC). There may be delays as Germany is currently in lockdown.

Posted before but as I'm a member of the club it's worth posting again. Had my RM 500 for almost a year. Looking forward to gigging again, whenever thst is.

Unfortunately there are a hell of a lot of musicians in this country in the same position as you.

Haha! those are 3 I built form parts - goldie I finished and relic’d myself. These 2 I carved the body and finished from scratch but added aftermarket necks proportion size next to DK Orange has a Seymour Duncan Custom shop hot stack P - so essentially it’s the fender dusty hill with a correct orientation neck at a fraction of the cost and a tonestyler 10. The 2 jazz weird one was fun in designing a different shape it has curves all over the show. I must add-none are flawless, but the quirks add to them! The Jazzenbacker-well I like a Rick, can’t afford one, spotted the highway one body super cheap at about £120, spotted the Rick pick ups really really cheap, and thought why not?! The Tonestyler again I got lucky on price and fitted it together-I just like learning about different concepts-some I keep, some I shift in for cost of parts. I attempt the odd repair as well on old cracked bodies, or refins Also the DK is the perfect jazz so didn’t need another!

Be aware that even electronic kits generate a fair amount of mechanical noise which will be transmitted through the structure of the building into your neighbour's houses. IME simply the sound of the sticks hitting the pads is loud enough to drown out the drum sounds from speakers at reasonable hifi volumes. Not a problem for the drummer if they are wearing headphone but might be enough to set off sensitive neighbours if you play for any length of time. The big problem from my experience is the kick drum. The foot action will sound as though you are constantly stamping your foot hard on the floor. You might get away with it if the kit is situated in a ground floor room with a solid concrete floor, but anywhere else you will need to build an isolating riser for the kit (it will also help with any mechanical noise being transmitted through the stands). It's not as difficult as it sounds. I made one from an old table top with a fairly deep lip. I glued neoprene isolating foam onto the top, then flipped it over and filled the space with carpet underlay. Then on top of that I rested a sheet of 3/4" ply with carpet glued to it. The table was big enough to accommodate the whole kit except the drum stool which was raised accordingly. It was enough to keep my neighbours happy.

While waiting on Lull to quote me on a bass, I felt a little queasy when I saw recently that (Neon Trees) Branden Campbell's oversized non-reverse Lull Thunderbird sold on Reverb about a year ago for a spit over £2k. Maybe purple sparkle isn't my colour, but at least it would bring me a bit of happiness.

For some reason, this really appeals:

Larger bands won't be troubled too much as they will already do all the necessary when they tour outside the EU. It's bands like mine that will be worst hit. We wouldn't earn enough to make it worthwhile.

Would be my pleasure This is it next to a couple others I made/bitsa’d together It has a status P neck which I didn’t quite get on with. here is the body alone Plan is to either go for a maple with blocks like your classic Geddy - or I may actually get a status jazz neck, which I love, with no markings or logo and go completely stealth - it has a lovely tone to it. The body is a Fender Highway One I picked up second hand for a great price - so very well made

All of them. Seriously.

Unnamed source is a standard way governments can release information to gauge the response and deny it later. Certain folk seem to find it ominous, and the very people that do it deride it.

You may be surprised to hear I have 2 pairs and 2 tee shirts and the cook book, not that I like Sandberg or anything...... good info on the distribution

Really enjoyed hearing this. Wasn’t aware how busy the bassline was either TBH. Great to hear Karen’s voice without all the layered backing vocals which for me made a lot of The Carpenters stuff hard to listen to. Thanks for posting., cheers.

Well - you know what I think about routers. But there are times when only a router will do. What I do try to do, though, is always be working with a 'captive' bearing bit. I forgot to take the shots, but I started like the weight relief - hogged out the chambers with a forster bit with the edges straightened up with a chisel. Then the bottom-bearing flush bit couldn't go anywhere but follow the chiselled line: I've included the provision for in-chamber battery for both general layout options (although I think @Jus Lukin is going for the straight-row toggle option), with the non-used chamber useful for coping with the excess loom wire. We could even go battery box if @Jus Lukin preferred and then use both battery chambers to cope with the excess wire In the photo above there is the rebate bit - again, it can't go anywhere - for the hatch. Here is the rebate with the battery in one of the recesses: And here is the healthy channel to feed three looms with their multi-wire connectors to the pickups, with the battery in the second recess: As usual, I will leave it until the morning before I glue this wing on...just in case I've forgotten something, and while the glue is setting, start on my cunning neck pocket plan on @Fishman 's Wal save Who says that men can't multi -oh sorry-just got distracted task