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As the title suggests... I've moved country and needed a bass to keep me company while the others are back waiting for me overseas. The Tokai came up for a good deal on gumtree, I went to check it out and couldn't leave without it. This thing is mad. It's hot, bling, garish and built like an anvil. Sounds ballsy and plays superbly too. It's like if Arnold Schwarzenegger were a drag queen, but it's a bass. Anyway, here's pics.

It's not quite so easy, though there are rules of thumb that engineers can use to determine the validity of specifications (called cross-checking or cross-verification). The AC input power is required for any amp to be the current draw at 1/8-rated RMS audio power at the lowest rated nominal impedance for any amplifiers compliant with IEC 60065 or 62368 safety standards. The standards also include a provision that if an amplifier is intended to and marketed to drive more than 1/8-duty cycle, the stated AC input draw MAY be increased to account for the increased (more severe) duty cycle. That said, the rated AC input power is verified by the test lab and really can't be fudged. RMS rated power can be calculated from the input power using the following method. Using an assumed efficiency of 80% for a class D/SMPS, the 110W is multiplied by the efficiency then the result is divided by the duty cycle for rated RMS audio power. Using the 110W input example: (110W x .80eff)/.125dutycycle = 704 watts RMS (presumably 4 ohms) With the Orange Terror, to me it looks like they are using a more severe duty cycle because roughly (500 watts input x .8 eff)/.125 = 3200 watts. In fact, what it looks like is that the rated input is actually the maximum rated input rather than the average rated input. This would conform to a duty cycle of 1 On the Subway amps, I typically use a duty cycle of between 1/4 and 1/3, therefore the rated AC input is higher than what it would be if we used 1/8-duty cycle (IIRC, I use ~400 watts rated AC input for an 800 watt RMS rated amp). This is because the amps are advertised and marketed to be able to be overdriven, and these numbers would then be accurate.

These monsters were collected over the weekend from a lovely chap near Southport. Barely used, I now have an SVT CL, 410HE and 115E! Really, I've bought it all for the studio but always kinda fancied an Ampeg rig and is something of a contrast to my usual Trace Elliot setup(s!). Initial impressions are very good both in terms of build quality (these are chinese examples) and performance - the biggest surprise is that EQ being very powerful and flexible - I had no issue dialling my usual noise. Whilst I've not yet used it at 'stun' or 'kill' volumes, power certainly doesn't feel like it's going to be an issue! 😀

I've had a think about this. My biggest influence is John Entwistle, without a doubt. He's the reason I started playing, and the reason I had wanted to play since the age of 8 after seeing this clip: Of course the camera completely ignores John throughout, but his playing and tone is just shattering, particularly for the era. A howling, distorted grind. He absolutely dominates here. It's easy to forget just what a gamechanger John Entwistle was - this clip shows why he was.

I've been insured with Victor C Knight for years, they specialise in musicians and were basically the only company who would insure me unless I lied and gave my occupation as 'music teacher'. Never had to claim through them so can't comment on how well they handle that side of things, but they should at least be able to give you a reasonable quote.

You can tell Neil Murray is posh because he's from Scotland but he doesn't have a Scottish accent. Rockschool was a seminal experience for a whole generation of young musicians. I thought it was great at the time. Looking at it again now, I am still of the same opinion. You've got to remember, it was a era before the internet, YouTube ect and accurate information was a lot harder to come by. Most folks still didn't have video recorders. You had to watch it and remember it! Kudos to the BBC for such an innovative idea and having the balls to see it through.

Weighting for an Alibi - Thin Lizzy

As a builder, this is becoming very interesting indeed. As I have the actual neck to hand, I have been able to double check the positioning of the neck on the full-size drawing to get the 35" scale length in the right place. There is a yellow arrow at the mid-scale position of the fingerboard: I've then cleaned up the paulownia billet that Mike has sent to me with a hand plane. And it's a bit of a revelation. It's just as lightweight as I expected, but it is quite a bit harder than I was fearing...which is a pleasant surprise In fact, it is noticeably harder than the 'bitsa' J bass body I used for the veneer demo. It planed very nicely - full length continuous shavings over this whole length and quite resistant to the fingernail dint test, which the bitsa body certainly isn't. And this whole billet above is only 7.5lbs. And, although I will use much of the actual depth in order to get some decent top and back carved curves in, this is at least twice at thick as my average finished thickness will be. And so that makes an effective billet of 3.75lbs. And that's before I cut the shape out of the length! And so, a circa 2lbs wood-weight body is still feasible The next stage, theoretically, is to cut the two body halves out and see what the double-thickness-but-everything-else-per-body-blank weight is...but there is one thing I want to do first, and that is to do with balance: - On the strap, the button position is almost guaranteed to cope with any Centre of Gravity shift resulting from the lightweight body - but I'm still bothered by the over-the-knee waist position. - But I maybe able to estimate that before cutting any wood. - I reckon that, knowing how much further forward from the lower waist mid point to the heel the present design assumes (and with the actual tuners fitted to the actual neck) I may be able to measure the effective weight (actually, for those who remember their Applied Maths, the 'moment') of the neck from that knee position using a spring balance and adding an estimate of the volume of body wood forward of the point - likewise, I can estimate the moment rear of that same point, knowing the weight and probable positions of the pickup and bridge - then I can see if I have to get that lower waist further forward - In the meantime, I'll do a few sketches to see how much further forward I could move that bottom waist without it adversely affecting the look of the bass.

This is one of the clearest and most concise summaries I've seen. I suspect I might be quoting this for a while. Interestingly the Bugera has been a subject of much debate and as a result has been repeatedly measured at around 720W depending upon the distortion levels you want to measure it at. That's entirely consistent with the figure of 705W RMS calculated above. There's a genuine dilemma for amp designers and manufacturers. You can design an amp to score well in the standard tests at 1/8 ratings or beef up the power supply, heat sinking and a few components and deliver a more rugged amp that will deliver in a wider range of conditions. In my book that makes it a better amp and likely to prove more reliable to boot but it is then marketed against amps that look better on paper. On the upside such manufacturers should build a better reputation long term. For me I'd prefer a regulated market where only standardised figures are allowed to be quoted in advertisements and penalties are imposed upon companies who deliberately mislead. Even this 'simple' explanation @agedhorsehas offered is not easy for a non technical musician to follow. I'd like us as a society to encourage the good guys and discourage sharp practice. Think VW and emissions.

Stick stick stick stick sticky sticky stick stick - hey dugee

Whatever. I still use real measurements that we got from good King Henry VII, not that latecomer Napoleon.

Neo cabs aren't necessarily lighter. For instance, one of the most common tens is the Eminence Beta 10. It weighs 3.1 kg. The neo Deltalite II 2510 weighs 2.1 kg. In a 410 the driver weight difference is only 4 kg. Neos are quite a bit lighter when you're talking about premium drivers, but most bass cabs don't use premium drivers. It's a different story with the cab material. A 120 mm x 240mm sheet of 18mm Italian Poplar weighs 21 kg, the same size of MDF in 15mm thickness weighs twice that. You have to look at the weight of the finished cab, not just the driver magnet material.

I'm learning a lot on this thread so far and obviously @Reggaebass has explained it best Dave

It’s easy, the valves are magical 🧙‍♀️ 😁

I've been blasting No Nuclear War by Peter Tosh too loudly recently. It's just so so good.

🙇🏼‍♂️ I've Got a Splitting Hedachi ～ The Dickies

Lovely. I really like the models with the edge binding too. Very underrated basses 👍

Danny’s tone is just amazing, certainly one of the reasons I’m hugely attracted to the DB. My first exposure to Danny was on David Sylvian’s Ink in the Well. I didn’t know who DT was (I’d only recently stared playing bass), but that sound! Sorry, I know this is a JM/DT thread, but I can’t not post this…

There's No One Quite Like Gram Ma - St Winifred's School Choir

When they do, be prepared to be overjoyed, or deflated. It'll be one or the other. Fortunately, Promenade Music stock a lot of their stuff and it's 15 minutes walk from me, so I'll be there as soon as they have them in regardless.

Cool. Fender tonestack is out then. Can totally understand why

I dunno, they must have been pretty dexterous to remove them all and get away with it

I got it

As an engineer I really like seeing things like this which take convention and ask "can it be done differently". It will be interesting to see how it progresses 👍

I think the collective noun should be a "rumble" of Thunders....

I missed the word "comedy" in that top line there for a second 😆 Thank heavens I then came across this bit and I could stop fuming:

It’s tough finding an insurer…(the Musicians Union will have a company they use if you can find out?) l left my broker after many years as he was getting some silly prices each year to the point where I’d had enough. My wife, being a teacher had her Teachers Union advising use of Aviva. We insured her car as the first and me, as a musician as the second and it was accepted and was half the price of the old broker cost. Look at www.musicguard.co.uk Also if you are in or join the Musicians Union you can get free insurance to £2000.

I really like KiCAD https://www.kicad.org Bit of a learning curve, but then there is with all stuff like this...

Farting is the sound you get from an excess of power applied to low end frequencies. I think it's entirely likely your 500w amp is fully up to the task of farting your 4 ohm BF cab without clipping itself. Outdoors you have no wall behind the cab to add the usual 6dB of low end reflective bass. Effectively that's a 'phantom' 6dB cut on your EQ ie the knobs haven't moved. To compensate you boost your lows or pluck nearer the neck without realizing. Fart city for the cab getting four times the low end power to get it sound like it does with a wall behind it.

The rosewood fingerboard looks best, that would steer my choice.

I don’t blame you 😊 Si

I love my Barefaced Super Twin. 18kg, wheels, 1200W handling, 4ohms. It’s ace.

Well...the decision is made. Thank you all!

It's all very sinister. Keep up at the back!