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Showing content with the highest reputation on 11/04/22 in all areas
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Has anyone bought any items on a whim of particular ridiculousness? I bought this definitely ridiculous beast some 18 odd years ago... sold it on after maybe a year as it was just too ridiculous to keep any longer. My old man dug this ridiculous picture out last night. Anyone else guilty of ridiculous purchases? Ridiculous photos are a ridiculous bonus if you have one to share! (P.S. ridiculous...)28 points
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In 1983, when I were just a mere slip of a lad, me and my good lady saw Big Country, The Alarm and Yip Yip Coyote at the Lyceum. So taken with the band, me and a mate decided we should catch them a few months later and decided that (for logistical reasons) we should fly to Jersey and see them in the Fort Regent Centre. My brother (and my mate's dad) both worked for British Airways, so flights were arranged. We'd procured tickets through my mate's channel Island office and found two days board in what could best be described as a house straight out of The Munsters in Pontac. Gig day we pulled on our Big Country shirts, thumbed a lift to St Helier and got picked up by a very drunk man driving a Lord's Taverners Fun Bus. We arrived at the venue around midday, found a bar, had some lunch at which point Big Country just sauntered in. I doubt any of the punters in there knew who they were, but they saw us and just sat down with us. We had a couple of pints, discovered Mark Brzezicki knew my brother, that Tony Butler lived a couple of doors away from a friend of mine in Sandhurst and that Stuart was amazed and appreciative that we'd flown over for the gig from London. They invited us in for the soundcheck. We just hung around with them until 7.00pm. Post gig, we went back to Chez Munsters and were back at the airport about 7.00am for the flight back and in they strolled, saw us and just started cheering and greeting us like old friends. Stuart bought me a roll of film for my camera as I was out of money. We were on standby, so had to wait for seats on the plane, we got called at the last minute, got on the plane and they're cheering us on (again). I met Stuart a couple of times after and he remembered the whole thing. He was a lovely, lovely bloke. I miss him. He shouldn't have gone like that. [Edit] Just wanted to add something for context here. We (me, my best mate and my wife) were all mahoosive Skids fans and remember that The Crossing hadn't even been released when we did the Jersey trip. Obviously, it was an absolute joy to be two young blokes standing in the middle of the venue watching them soundcheck for an hour, it was like a private gig. (Later in the same year, I recall an occasion where me and my mate experienced something akin to absolute joy at hearing 'In A Big Country' on the radio for the first time. We were in my old Datsun 120Y coupe, driving to rehearsal down The Causeway, approaching Staines Bridge. I haven't experienced such delight since. The excitement when it came on - and the silence that descended while we listened - was just fantastic.) I can recall Stuart saying he'd bought a watch for £2.99 and kept showing it to us. 'Two, ninety nine!'. Also Kenny Dalglish (and family) was at the gig and on the same flight home. He saw us in our Country shirts and got a bit animated; I couldn't understand a word he said. Worryingly (I suppose), the drinking thing was evident with Stuart at the airport on the way back. He was knocking back shorts at 7.00am in the morning.13 points
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Rare occasion I overdid the wine last night… used to be every week. Always came with hilarious consequences. Spotted this on Facebook marketplace earlier in the day…”damn that’s nice…must behave” Anyhow: apparently at 2am this morning, just before going to bed… I bought a bass… Could've been worse. Damn PayPal interest free.9 points
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Past through his home town last week in Crossgates7 points
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When I started this over on the RIP thread I didn't know that Stuart's daughter Kirsten has today (11/4/22) released a cover of her dad's song Peace In Our Time. This is in support of the charity War Child which "works directly with children who are living through conflicts, offering them safe spaces and delivering life-changing services and support". Vocal performers include Karen Matheson (Capercaillie), Dean Owens, Jill Jackson, Dave Burn, Lisa Rigby, Dan Raza, Emily Smith, Paul Gilbody and Jason McNiff.7 points
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So after a few months with the Euro 4, I decided I would actually be happier with a Euro 5 that looks the same. My (new) band requires a 5 but really liked the feel and sound of the Euro 4. In the meantime, I actually bought a Dingwall D-Roc 5 and was going to just trade in the Euro to balance the books. This was an eBay purchase, but it was very very close to BassDirect and the journey killed 2 birds with one stone. This is a 2007 model and the TonePump (pre trim pot) was a bit of a surprise compared to the newer model I had before. It's manageable with delicate volume control use however, and does what I wanted for that sound. I managed to break a pot expanding the shaft, but a new one is on the way. It has a couple of minor dings but all very good for 15 years old. Truss rod was slack and action high, but all sorted easily. So that's 2 unplanned basses in the last 2 weeks 😳.6 points
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Indeed so. They matured beyond the bagpipe guitar thing and knocked out some amazing songs. For a brief time they were spoken of in the same breath as U2 and IMO they were the better band. Nicely enough, the Edge paid great tribute to his friend Adamson and donated a guitar to a fundraiser for Adamson's family.6 points
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Big Country were an amazing band. Saw them support Bowie at Sunderland in 80's think it was Glass Spider tour and they were better than Bowie. Fantastic live band, so much power and energy. Sad Dave6 points
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The Skids - What a band; saw them live in Liverpool Uni circa 1979. Have to say I wasn’t quite such a fan of BC, although a really unique sound, and what a golden era of Scottish music that was: Simple Minds, The Associates (with the fabulous and equally tragic Billy McKenzie), Orange Juice, Altered Images, the Blue Nile, etc etc The good die young ☹️ Listen and enjoy:5 points
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This is not getting enough use, so it's getting culled. Band situation is a bit weak right now. It all works, it's light @ 3.5kg , fitted with rounds right now. Condition is excellent. No hard case, so not risking postage. Interested buyers can arrange postage if they wish. I WILL HELP WITH POSTAGE TO THE TUNE OF £25. The specs : Neck : 5pc Jatoba/Walnut neck Top/Back/Body : Spruce topOkoume body Fretboard: Bound Panga Panga fretboard Off-set white dot inlay Bridge : Custom bridge for AeroSilk Piezo system bridge String spacing : 19mm EQ : Piezo active tone control Scale : 34" Width : 38mm at NUT Width : 62mm at 24F Thickness : 19.5mm at 1F Thickness : 21.5mm at 12F Radius : 305mmR4 points -
Part of a ‘rationalisation’ of instruments, for sale is my Ibanez SRSC805 in Deep twilight flat. Nice compact 5 string to play and good range of sounds. it’s got some playing wear on the body, I’ve tried to show this in the photos. spec below NECK DIMENSIONS Scale : 864mm/34" a : Width 45mm at NUT b : Width 74mm at 24F c : Thickness 20.5mm at 1F d : Thickness 22.5mm at 12F Radius : 305mmR Specifications Neck type SRSC5 5pc Maple/Purpleheart neck-through Body Poplar Burl top/Mahogany wing body Fretboard Purpleheart fretboard w/Avalon Oval inlay Fret Medium frets Number of frets 24 Bridge Mono-rail V bridge (18mm string spacing) Neck pickup Bartolini® MK-1 neck pickup (Passive) Bridge pickup Bartolini® MK-1 bridge pickup (Passive) Equaliser Ibanez Custom Electronics 3-band EQ w/EQ bypass switch (passive tone control on treble pot) & Mid frequency switch Hardware color Black matte4 points -
A gig in the village hall to raise money for Ukraine. We raised £1800. The local Ukrainian centre provided a choir of young ladies to sing some traditional songs and one of them is a refugee from the conflict Followed by various ditties from local acts and scratch bands, one of which I was in.... we're mulching our way through 'Sorrow' here. The chap on the left of the pic in the white shirt is Forest & Newcastle legend Frank Clark4 points
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The fretboard is not stuck to the neck and I've had a go at making an aluminium nut to match.4 points
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Agreed wholeheartedly on all counts. I loved Big Country and SA's untimely passing was a tragedy on many levels. A solemn reminder of the need to talk, to ask "are you ok?", to listen.4 points
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Remembering Stuart Adamson (Skids/ Big Country). A good man with his share of demons. Born this day in 1958, gone these 20-odd years.3 points
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We have a definitive answer, ladies and gentlemen: "Respecting"3 points
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My Sire V33 points
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A tortured soul who left us far too early.3 points
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Having a bit of a clear out so selling a really nice Cort B5 in a teal green colour. I took this in a trade and it is a great value for money, lovely to play and around 3.8kg. Really good spec, roasted maple fingerboard, Bartolini pickups, Markbass preamp and Hipshot hardware. CONSTRUCTION Bolt-On CUTAWAY Double Cutaway BODY Swamp Ash NECK 5PC Panga Panga & Walnut FRETBOARD Roasted Maple FRETS 24 SCALE 864(34") INLAY Abalone TUNERS Hipshot® Ultralite BRIDGE EB12(5) Bridge PICKUPS Bartolini® MK-1 ELECTRONICS Markbass® MB-1 HARDWARE Black3 points -
Heilung - Hamrer Hippyer3 points
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As a long term bedroom player and new to gigging I am astonished at how hard it is to get the right tone in the field. ALL the gently and carefully honed bedroom settings go out the window in a pub gig with other instruments. And as noted elsewhere a rusty Behringer or cheap Ampeg head with trashed venue Peavey cab may give a tone miles better than my poncey high end brand head and cab purchase. Case in point, I'm currently running a MB LM3 into a BF 210 and would swap it for the crap rig in my rehearsal studio in a heartbeat, if only I could carry it!3 points
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3 points
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Couple of Body Shots... getting there...3 points
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Vino Palladino?3 points
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Bella Lugosi’s dead - Bauhaus3 points
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:: SANDBERG California TTi - Lollar TBs :: Soft-Aged :: Special Run :: only 15 pieces worldwide :: Here I offer my gorgeous and just bought Sandberg California TTi Bass. The Sandberg California Bass should be well known regarding. The special feature of this special model, limited to 15 pieces, are certainly the Lollar Thunderbird pickups. These give the bass not only a particularly cool look, but also a very powerful and defined sound. The output and the dynamics are on the level of active basses despite the passive circuit. Another special feature is the color "Light Grey", which is more reminiscent of a faded sonic blue and harmonizes super with the chrome-plated hardware. The bass has received the Sandberg soft-aging. All marks and scratches come as "from the factory" and are created by the luthier. It's a matter of taste - I think it's pretty cool! I bought the bass at Zoundhouse music store (Dresden / Germany) at the beginning of this year. Unfortunately, two weeks ago an ultra-rare and always on my wish list Celinder J Update came across my way. It cost me a lot of money and since the 30-day return period had just expired, I am now offering this special bass as new at a reduced price. The bass comes with an original Sandberg gig bag, which can be exchanged for a case in "vintage tweed design" if desired. The bass can be seen, played and bought in 58300 Wetter (Ruhr), Dortmund or Recklinghausen (Germany). Since I'm on vacation on Sylt next week, a free "delivery service" to the north of Germany would also be possible. Otherwise I also offer free shipping within Germany and worldwide shipping upon request. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Here is the official "press release" and the technical data: The Sandberg Special Edition California T4 Passive RW Light Grey Soft Aged electric bass comes as a special run of the popular California-T model, limited to 15 pieces, with a specially designed finish and powerful Lollar Thunderbird HB pickups, which together with the straightforward passive circuitry make it a first-class all-round bass for almost any style of rock or metal. In addition to the offset alder body, the four-stringer also features a bolt-on maple neck with rosewood fingerboard and comfortable "C" profile, while indestructible Sandberg hardware completes the features of the Special Edition California T4 Passive RW Light Grey Soft Aged by Sandberg. :: Alder body in offset design :: bolt-on maple neck with rosewood fingerboard and matching headstock :: Abalone dots fretboard inlays :: scale length: 864 mm (34") :: Fretboard radius: 14" :: nut width: 39,5 mm (1,55") :: 22 frets :: pickups: 2x Lollar Thunderbird style :: passive electronics with volume, balance and tone :: Parchment pickguard :: Sandberg Lightweight tuners and Sandberg hardware :: Color: Light Grey (RAL7035) :: Sandberg soft-aging :: incl. bag :: Original price: 2.390,-- EUR :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Feel free to ask any questitions - but please: NO TRADES!2 points -
Couldnt resist in the end. Got a great deal on this, and was able to try at the shop, so I really didnt have an excuse for not at least giving it a go. A couple of years ago I'd have found this a horrible looking thing, and wouldnt have given the twin humbucker looking pickups a second glance. Now though..... well, I love it! Looks stunning in the flesh, and the build quality is just a work of art. The sound is wide and varied, but the main sound imo is bridge pick up on, and take it away! Its punchy, rounded and sounds really rich. It has that raspy stingray sound about it and every note really does rung out without any extra effort, especially high up the neck. Rolling on the ne k pick up rounds out the bite and does sound nice. You can get some convincing p bass sounds out of it too! Gonna give it a whirl at practice wednesday!2 points
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This week I have been mainly listening to King Tubby and no surprise this has already featured on the thread.2 points
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Sorry! You'll be pleased to hear this will be heading up to Aberdeen shortly. Hopefully that's far enough away for you 😂2 points -
I saw the current version (at least it was then) of Big Country last year. It now takes two people to cover what Stuart used to do, a testament to his talent. I remember being shocked when I heard that he’d killed himself, as I also did with Chris Cornell. Hearing them now, often makes me sad.2 points
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Now now, stop spreading GAS I’m not listening 😂🤣2 points
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Horace Andy has done a few tunes with Adrian Sherwood lately, including this version of Massive Attack's (who he's done a lot with) Safe from Harm2 points
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That’s a great way to put it Steve, something I found out by accident but which is so spot on.2 points
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That's a great story and typifies what i thought they would be like if i ever met them. Dave2 points
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When I was in a band it was easy, make it cut through and fit between guitars and drums. Make it sound clanky and horrible in isolation and it worked well. Now I'm just playing at home it's even easier because it just doesn't matter.2 points
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I installed a Sadowsky in an old Blade B4, replacing the original, rather quirky pre-amp. I needed to create a new hole to facilitate 4 knobs but I had a Metro many years ago so knew what I was getting and didn't see it as a risk or anything I'd ever want to undo. It's a 9V system, not designed to take two batteries, ever. The bass and treble are boost only, they do not cut. The VTC is on all the time. It's in the circuit whether running active or passive. It's a very musical preamp provided you don't overdo it. The low boost is at 40Hz, IIRC, so loads and loads of boost will do more harm than good. I love them, but the bass has to sound decent without it. It's a pleasant colouring of the tone rather than a radical overhaul.2 points
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I did a deal years ago with @lawriemacmillan and he played with Stuart if I remember right. The guy was a great writer, guitarist and singer in the Skids and Big country. I still love the first BC album The Crossing. Sadly his personal demons got the better of him2 points
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I don’t dig a lot of guitarists but he was a great player. I disliked Big County deeply but loved The Skids.2 points
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I'm not quite going to be able to top @binky_bass's purchase, especially in the necks or strings department, but here is mine (well, technically this is not mine but one just like it): It's a Longbow Bass and it's been sitting idly behind my rack of basses and guitars for the last few years. It's a surprisingly fun and good sounding instrument, but an ergonomical nightmare. It's tuned E-A, strung through-body (if you can call it a body), it's got a stacked humbucker for each string that sits roughly in the P position, and its recommended way of travel is the most American thing you can imagine: in a rifle bag (which I also bought for it, but it never leaves the house so I've yet to explain to an officer what I'm doing walking around with a rifle bag). I may consider selling it at some point, but for now it's sitting fine.2 points
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There is now a second video at the top with the Stingray preamp set to 70% on bass and treble for comparison! Someone pointed out that it would be useful to hear more of the boosted preamp sound since that is how many use the Stingray. There are of course millions of combinations but I settled for this.2 points
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And at a band saw cut rate of around a minute an inch, done While I still have a flat surface at the top, I will do some indexing in the router jig to set the accurate depth of the spine, which - when I carve the profile - will be the datum. But before that, a few more pm discussions with @fleabag in terms of the bridge that is planned so that I know whether this needs to be a flat bottomed heel like a Fender or a neck-angle-built-in like most other basses. And then the fretboard can be epoxied on2 points
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"It needs new strings too." "Which one?" "Yes."2 points
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Did Bill Bailey buy it off you?2 points
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In vino verybass2 points
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Smalltown England - NMA2 points
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King of New York - Fun Lovin Criminals Huey Morgan still refers to himself as the king of new York and goes on about how much he loves NY. He loves the place so much he lives quarter of a mile from me in Frome, Somerset.2 points
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The carpenters would have faded away and Karen would have ended up like stevie nicks, solo gigs, sort of music royalty but not really hitting the headlines. jimi Hendrix would have ended up acting and putting out the odd record but never touring2 points
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Just changed the guard from white to Ivory white and a matte B/W/B2 points
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There's only one rule that can be applied to amplifying a specific double bass using a specific mic and amp. You simply won't know until you try. Do not spend any cash until you know that what you have doesn't work. And then be prepared to remortgage the house, sell some organs for medical research, and possibly become a cat burglar if the first two don't produce enough cash. I have a 4/4 that produces zero feedback using a mic that produces nothing but feedback for the guy I sold the mic to, but I have a Yamaha SLB-100 that I can get to produce monstrous feedback using a wing PUP. Explain that? All I can assume from my experience is that God long ago decided that double basses should not be amplified and that the lives of anyone who tries to do so should be made as close to hell as possible 🤔2 points
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Ok. It's time to talk about what things cost. We've put our prices up to reflect the new UK manufacturing and have already had several angry emails from potential customers. So I want to address a few things. The cost of manufacturing in the East Even if we'd kept our manufacturing in India, our prices would probably have gone up 30%. This is due to the cost of wood going up. Shipping prices skyrocketing. Import Duties (we used to get our instruments tariff free on an EU trade deal. That's now gone). And just simply the factory in India raising their price. So although our new 60% price increase seems a massive jump. It's two jumps in one. One of which we were already absorbing. The sustainability of manufacturing in the East First - it's a bit wanky - but it's not too environmentally friendly shipping guitars all over the world by ship. Ships are massive polluters. It's not a great idea. But even that aside - all the manufacturing capacity at the Indian / Indonesian / Korean manufacturers is being bought up by the big boys. Smaller manufacturers like us were being pushed to the back of the queue ALL the time. They're just not interested in manufacturing for us. A move to the UK We know that if the ONLY thing we're offering for the increased price is that it's made here - then people are going to see that for what it is. So we are taking advantage of the fact that we can now work more closely and flexibly with a UK factory to squeeze in some improvements. Chambering / Weight Relief, Boutique Woods, Better Finish, Carbon reinforcement in all necks, Blind Fretting, Rolled Edges on Fretboards, Better parts. ALL of these are included in our price increases. So you're getting a lot for our money. Come along on the journey with us. We KNOW we are going to lose sales. Spending £850 on a bass is a lot more than £530 on a bass. We are not worried however about where we sit in the market. It's a totally fair price for what you're getting. Our confidence in the market on the whole is a bigger concern. Higher bills, national insurance and inflation makes us worry that people might not have the money to buy a bass. But it is what it is. Come on a journey with us while we build a proper UK build bass brand. It's going to be fun! Thanks for letting me ramble.2 points
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