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This thread is so old I don't think Google even existed. Maybe he should have Asked Jeeves.

While Roger Sadowsky is a well-respected luthier, he does have a vested interest in "bigging-up" the contribution of the woods used in solid electric instruments to defining the sounds of those instruments. He is after all a maker of instruments that are essentially Fender copies (admittedly very nice Fender copies - I've played several in his workshop in NYC - but still essentially Fender copies) and therefore to downplay the contribution of the wood to the sound of the instrument would be to instantly remove half the USP of a Sadowsky bass. The problem I have with "tone woods" for solid electric instruments is that they are given as absolutes (which the article very much re-enforces) instead of what I think as VERY rough guides. I've played instruments that contradict probably all of these presumed absolutes. Perhaps if you are Roger Sadowsky and you get all your wood from exactly the same source (and here I don't mean the same wood merchant but from trees grown in the same small geographical location for any given species) then maybe we can put some weight behind those generalisations, but no-one can tell me that wood from an ash tree grown in the US is going to produce the same tone as wood from an ash tree grown in Europe (not withstanding the fact that "ash" covers 40+ different species of trees). Even Mr Sadowsky himself says: "When I coach people on buying an instrument at a music store, I tell them to try to listen to several of the same model, made with the same woods..." If wood of a certain species was a absolute there would be no reason for this statement. The when you consider that most small scale luthiers are at the mercy of whatever their usual wood supplier can get in stock, and the large scale manufactures will on the whole buy with best value for money in mind, it is impossible to make anything other than most sweeping generalisations about tone when it come to choice of woods for an instrument. My position on tone wood is similar to that of Carl Thompson who said that the choice of woods used will have a impact on the sound of a solid electric instrument, but you can't tell what it will be until the instrument is finished. The problem with all these so-called tone wood comparison tests is that none of them are valid from a scientific PoV because of both flawed methodology and sample sizes being far too small to give any meaningful results. I've stopped worrying about the woods used for my solid electric instruments and concentrate instead on how each individual instrument looks feels and sounds when it is complete. It is only sane thing thing to do.

That gig went well... nearly a riot when we finished, and with a song i've never heard before, let alone played. Thang god gor 12 bar blues! end of the night the landlord came up and said 'are you booked for new years eve?'

Finally made it back to the Polished Knob in Todmorden last night to play the thrice cancelled booking that should have originally taken place in April '20. A mixed night overall: The bad It was pretty quiet. We normally play Saturdays and it looks like that's the busier night. There were about 30-40 people in having a good time but another 30 or so would have tipped it over the edge. Plus I always find it more difficult to summon the energy after a full day at work. We've only played together once since the end of August. It was pretty good considering but you could hear the 'joins' in some places. It wasn't as polished a performance as the Knob deserved. Amp failure. Plugged in, unmuted and....... nothing. Did the usual idiot checks, swapped the cable and still nothing. Turned our background music off and could just about make out a static-y, fuzz pedal type noise that didn't change volume when I played with the input/output dials. Of course, I'd forgotten to pack my backup power amp pedal. Fortunately the DI was still working fine, so I went through the FOH and turned the bass up in my in ears. Checked everything today and it looks like the problem is with the speakon connectors on the amp (DI is fine, headphone out is fine, cab works with other sources (originally thought it was a cab issue). **Edit** Turns out it was user error. There's a 'headphone' button on the back of the amp that is proud when disengaged and slightly less proud when engaged. It'd got pressed in the amp bag and I didn't spot it (never used the feature). If I'd posted about it on here at the time then I'd have had the answer in 10 mins (like just happened) but I was too busy swearing! The good The pub has its own PA & lights, so no lugging it around and a quicker setup and pack down. Raised stage means that you don't spend the entire night worrying that you're going to get your mic knocked into your teeth by enthusiastic dancers. Despite the kit issues and basically setting the bass levels by guesswork, feedback was that it sounded pretty good. A little FB clip here: https://fb.watch/8ottck_Xkx/ We decided that the first gig back at our regular venues would be a freebie. It's not much, but if these places shut then we've got nowhere to play. The landlord last night gave us the cash and told us to donate it to a charity of our choice, so the Booth Centre in Manchester will be getting a few extra quid in their coffers.

TTBC & big brother Trace Elliot 2103h for comparison: Sound clips to follow...

I think the moment I finally lost all patience and respect for Morrisey was during the court case. Not only was he refusing to pay ex-Smith’s members for their contributions he was insulting their contributions calling them as replaceable as parts of a lawnmower. He had a great and fabulously unique band. All the members made that happen and the fact that no individual member has been able to recreate that magic shows how important all the individual members contribution was. Morrisey became increasingly wealthy and bitter off the back of it all. Sad end to what most of us dream of as teenagers.

ZOMBIE THREAD! : I heard Heaven Knows on the radio earlier. That lovely bassline is still mesmerising after all these years. Shame the song is spoiled by the whining sanctimonious knob, errm I mean vocals. Are there instrumental versions of Smiths tunes available anywhere?

Rather dark, but beginning to build up a decent finish. 4 or 5 more coats, then I'll let it harden and buff it.

I admire bands like The Stranglers and The Cure who don’t let greed get in the way and split the money evenly amongst the band. Bands that squabble over the cash just forget why they were making music together in the first place and end up bitter and losing a lot of dignity not to mention income in the very court rooms and system they often set out to challenge. I stopped reading his book when Morrisey had bought Clark Cables old house, had already earned enough for a lifetime but was still whining on about the injustice of the record companies, courts and everything else. It was just sad.

Which applies completely to acoustic instruments. as I keep saying all those factors are far, far less important with a solid bodied electric instrument.

Congratulations to @Doctor J on his September win , that puts him on a double , he has thus supplied the following image for your inspiration. Usual rules apply. You know the drill: ✔️ Entries must be <5 minutes and written/recorded this month. ❌ No illegal samples, copyright infringements or other snide goings-on ❌ Bagpipes. please no bagpipes, summer equinox truce now Expired. panpipes only if you have too. ❌ No voting for your own entry. We'll know. And we'll shame you. A line or two offering an insight to your inspiration will be good as well , it works nicely on the voting thread. Deadline wise , we will go for midnight on 'United Nations day ' 👍, and yes, yet again, again you probably have till about 19.00 on the 25th, ( the clue given here is that 'United Nations day' is the 24th). Good Luck and Happy Composing

It’s been on before but, Rudeboy the story of Trojan records is on sky arts, it’s worth a watch if you haven’t seen it

Alpha & omega, they really should have sued darkglass 😂🤣 Christine Woodbridge on bass I’ll add this one too

I deconstruct it like this: Route A I need to show people what I can do and demonstrate what degree of an derrière I am. I also need to see this in other people. Both needs are met in a decent jam session or equivalent. I was introduced to my local blues society ( not my perfect choice of genre) and started going along. I've now had two cracking bass chairs in two of the best blues / rock bands in my region. Route B I have been in JoinMyBand and BandMix for several years. I had two contacts, from a very odd pot head, and a decent enough own-stuff band. Route A is to my mind the only one: play with people and build contacts, build skills, be willing and be as likeable as you can.

I've been looking forward to trying the Marquess out with a full band but that's been delayed due to the fact that the B-stock Marquess that Thomann previously sent me unfortunately had a bashed top of the headstock (my pic was carefully angled to avoid displaying that!), which was a lot more than would be expected from mild wear & tear on a B-stock bass and given that the packaging was undamaged, it was clearly either something done in-store or by the previous owner and Thomann didn't spot. Thomann kindly agreed to provide a replacement including paying for the return postage, which is what they always previously did. It took a little while for the replacement to come through - delays with Customs on the way back and a bit of chasing my end, but arrived safely yesterday and they were very responsive throughout. Another thumbs-up for Thomann. Thought it might be useful to re-confirm the weight: the previous one came in at 4.2kg, this one is a shade heavier at 4.3kg (9.5 lbs) but still a very comfortable sub-10lbs for me, particularly when combined with a decent strap. Had a nice exchange with another BC'er, who is a pro-bassist, about me "downgrading" my kit to really good quality but cheaper gear (basses and amps in particular). He made the following comment, which I hope he doesn't mind me sharing, but hit the nail on the head for me: "I’m really appreciating the charm of cheaper stuff too. Not sure if it gets to a point where you’ve had the high end stuff and realise that the difference isn’t that wild, or when you’re gigging and realise that, for all the niceties of handmade stuff, cheaper gear can still do a top job." Combine that with not having to worry about getting a high-end piece of kit damaged in a pub gig so you can just focus on playing the thing, and I'm loving returning to high quality but more budget gear.

There's a stunning TRB5 Pii currently in the FS. But the weight at 5.04kg / 11.1 lbs was the deal breaker for me - too much for me to comfortably wear over a 2 hour set. I'm not sure they ever come much lighter, but you might be comfortable with the weight. I've also just discovered how outrageously good the Yamaha BB 2005s are, particularly for the money - they've been the best kept Yamaha secret from me till now! 85% of what my BB NE2 provided at 30% of the cost - very, very happy with it. If you get a chance to try one of these, definitely worth giving it a spin.

Found the right paint for refinishing a boring natural BB2024x edit: just remembered – there was no natural 2024x .... but there was a 'vintage sunburst' in need of covering up

All well and good, but a magnetic pickup is not a microphone (you may wish to Google the differences). It doesn't "hear", by sensing variations in air pressure (detecting "sound waves", if you like). It senses vibrations of a string within a magnetic field and converts them into a minute electrical signal. The materials solid instruments are made from may, due to differences in density, rigidity, etc have a tiny (and I do mean tiny) effect on how a string vibrates, how long it sustains and so on, but it will be insignificant. It will be different if you are using a piezo pickup or contact microphone (which is what double bass players normally use).

This sounds to me like a covers band playing pubs to punters who get steadily drunker as the evening wears on ... pretty much like my band The Junkyard Dogs then. Much as I love the blues, and much as I admire the work of John Martyn, very few of these recommendations could possibly be considered 'crowd pleasers'. I spent YEARS trying to get through to the Dogs that "we play what we want to play and if you don't like it, well tough titty" is a rather soggy sales pitch. A few years ago we finally reached the stage where we could play three straight sets of crowd-pleasers which the band ALSO wanted to play. Guess what? We are fully-booked every year, turning down gigs by mid-Summer, and pretty much all those gigs are at £300 - a decent rate around here for a pub band.

Bought a minter from Munchies here about 4 weeks ago. I already use a 6B cab (with GB 900 head) and I am partial to the PJB approach. I'd felt these things were getting passed around a bit - see one for sale, few months it's up for sale again. So what's it all about? This isn't a proper review so not in reviews section - just a quick impressions thing. I seriously love this combo. Very small, quite a lump (about 13Kg I think) and sounds fabulous. The reputation is 'hi-fi' and I suppose that is a fair indication of what you get. I leave the EQ flat almost always - I may well use the L/F to correct for boomy rooms say, but apart from that either the Precision Special (PJ) straight in and all tone shaping on the bass, or the fretless through my board to use the Sansamp for mid shaping and a touch of drive, plus the chorus on subtle settings. I don't really bother with the compression, it's a fairly basic 3:1 limiter. So for me this is a swith on, set a level above the max I'll need (about 12 o'clock) and do everything at the bass (or pedalboard and bass for the fretless). How's it sound, I mean what's this 'hi-fi' thing? Well, I know exactly what my PJ sounds like straight into the desk and back through decent monitors. That is what it sounds like, I mean exactly that. It is not loud. It's seriously OTT for home practice. It's loud enough for acoustic/unplugged type stuff. Couldn't balance to most drummers so that's out. Fortunately I do get involved in a fair bit of acoustic so it has a purpose for me. Discontinued now and replaced with cheaper variants, but the Briefcase feels, looks and sounds every dollar. Do you need one? No. Do you want one? Depends. But I bloody love it - an absolute definite keeper.

Seems about right. Yamaha serial numbers are frigging bonkers.

Ive not heard it all but this is killer. Is there anything this guy can't do. His piano playing alone is killer. fantastic guitar playing also.Of course his bass playing is just. It takes bass forums like this to put out the word about talent like this guy.

Purists avert your eyes! I found the stock bridge pickup a bit anemic and noisy in the bb350f. The pup route is not standard though as it has rounded ends rather than squared like a Fender. I had an Enwhistle jbxn lying around so I printed a new pup cover for it to adapt to the Yammy rout! I might get closer for the exact holes at some point but this will do for testing.

For @ambient, Leduc U-Basse 6 Fretless : Ask @greenolive, he now onws my second U-Basse 6 fretted...

I would have personally given the guy from Facebook a go, good guitarist- tick, good singer-tick and has his own PA-even bigger tick. I know you stated Sunday evenings were not ideal for you, but it would have been well worth sacrificing one Sunday, you may have got on playing together really well, this would have created a real positive vibe and you may have mutually found an alternative evening that suits you both for rehearsing.

Really lovin the Roots Makers at the moment, Karigan on drums

Last night I teamed up with my old friend of 32 years to perform a few 80s Alternative / Darkwave / Goth songs on acoustic folk instruments. So a bass free gig. It can't be everyday that you walk into your local and someone's playing Joy Division's Love Will Tear Us Apart on a bouzouki!

All the ones listed are good , the Spectrum is a real one stop shop as long as you're happy using a computer to set it up. I also like the Fwonkbeta which is massive bottom end wise, and the Mojo Hand 443 seems to retain the bass well. If I had to pick one it would be the MXR bass envelope filter.

I know, the cheek of it! I was a huge Smiths fan as an 80s teenager but it it was only years later that I discovered how The Smiths wrote most of their music - Marr, Rourke and Joyce created and demoed the music to the songs (written by Marr) as instrumentals, then gave a cassette of it to Morrissey who would go away and write the lyrics and his melodies in isolation. If anything, he was actually the most replaceable part! 😄

When you get the metal grill, you need a nice green “Twerp Elliot” badge 😁

Is this still a thing? Another thread chasing its own tail. Yes, it is! No, it isn’t!

Ideally, we want the undervalued 424/5s to keep drifting up in price, and the slightlysteep 2024/5s to carry on slipping down ... until the upgrade only costs another fiver or so ... 😬

October is ON

No, maybe one day. My ability on the bass doesn't really justify it at the mo having played rhytm guitar for many years bass is quite new to me and revived my interest in playing music. I have a bass for every occassion right now while I find my sound. A BB425 (rounds), BB350f (Flats), Ibanez 305 (flats) Fenix short scale and a MIM Precision I have on long term loan. If I can't get the sound I want out of that lot it's down to my technique, the rest is just gas! Glad it went to a good home, or I might have been looking for a new one!

Just a bit of positive feedback for Bandmix. I put a simple profile on a couple of months ago, was contacted a week or so later by a band, auditioned and they offered me the role this week. Established local covers band who were reforming post lockdown, good players and nice people so hopefully will turn out well.

I ordered a Couch strap from the States and it arrived nine days later and no duty or import fees to pay. Result. Being a child of the seventies I went for the Scout Caravan Royal Red Detroit '78.

One thing I've learnt is not to bother with any new projects that don't already have a drummer. It seems like there's no good drummers available. That and avoid heavy pot smokers, even if they're nice people it's really frustrating when they're an hour late every rehearsal because they lost their keys, guitar, trousers, car (all genuinely used excuses from one pot head) plus you have to listen to their crazy ideas about the government controlling us.

I just looked on joinmyband and the first three bands to come up in my area looking for a bassist are Busted tribute, Nickelback tribute and Coldplay tribute. Unacceptable

I know we’ve exchanged PMs but I would just like to say publicly what a brilliant thing it is you’re doing and I’m pleased to be able to contribute to your cause in some small way. The kids that receive the instruments will be enriched by the experience and some may even go on to bigger and better things as a result. Keep up the good work 👏🏼

Travel rig, straight to FOH and out to Power Amp/Barefaced Super Midget

Potato/Pataaaaarto. Bongos are stunning instruments on so many levels, I wish I still hand my 5-string one. There's absolutely no way these should be included in a fugly bass thread.