Leaderboard

Shout out to Dave and Chris at Ashdown for the amazing customer service I have recieved this week. I bought a secondhand LB30 head and LB112 cab quite a few years ago and shortly after owning it, it developed an issue where by the amp sounded like static/white noise when the amp was on with or without a bass guitar attached. I kept hold of the rig and thought I would get round to getting it fixed, but you know life gets in the way. I messaged Ashdown a couple of weeks ago and Dave Green responded back to say to give them a call and arrange to bring the head in to be looked at. When I called, Dave said that the head could be brought in anytime, he then realised that Chris lived very close to me so suggested that rather than I bring it in I could drop it off with him to bring in. I dropped the head of with Chris last Saturday, it got into Ashdown on Tuesday and I got a call from Chris on Wednesday to say that its been fixed. Previous owner had swapped in a couple of substand valves for some reason and this was the cause of the sound quality issue. The valves were swapped out and the head given a clean bill of health. Picked up the amp from Chris last night and a quick collection became a decent half hour chinwag. I really cannot fault the service, its great in this day and age for a company to go above and beyond to look after customers like this.

A few years ago (about 5 I think) I bought, what was later to be called the "Frankenbass" from a BC member (Bloop dad) A superb vision of creativity and feat of engineering resulting from, (if I remember correctly) a vehicle / double bass related issue. I had bought it with a view to learning but also as a bit of a quirky statement. I loved it although It seemed at the time that not many others shared my enthusiasm. Fast forward a couple of years and it was usually then described as my "art installation" In 2021, after settling back in the UK in Norfolk, I decided to sell it as I had a further two EUBs and so, it was sold via Facebook to a lovely young lady called Sophie who weighed approximately half of the weight of the Frankenbass and who also loved and "got the quirkiness" Was it doomed to be forever a conversation piece? No it wasn't. Attached are a few pics. Ranging from my purchase, a first live gig with the new owner, to getting tried out by an old pal of hers (yes, it really is him) and the new make over to give it a more modern appearance and now being played live at least once on a weekly basis. Sorry to bore you all but I just love it when things, particularly instruments which seemed to have stalled, get the chance to continue their journey. Link added. https://www.facebook.com/703000065/videos/6070260493013146/

In my quest for the ultimate pedal board power system I've tried so many solutions. The best and most affordable was the rechargeable power pack. But I just couldn't shake the nagging fear that it would run flat mid performance. I should add that it never did. Ever. But I'm not a rational being and I hate distraction while I'm playing . So enter my latest (last?) PSU. The power bar replaces the top bar in your HB board. In fact you take the whole thing apart and replace the sides as well. Unless you buy it as a 'power board' which is a board with the power bar already built in. They come in different widths to suit your needs. Power via a kettle lead, have pretty green lights, a multitude of options in including USB outs on the front. Mine (the 60) has 13 fully isolated silent outputs. Even I couldn't use them all! There is a 3000ma 9v for hungry multi effects, a 24v link, multiple 500ma, 300ma and 250ma 9v, and four 500ma sockets switchable for 12, 18 or 9v. The unit comes packaged with all the gubbins you could ever want. Velcro, power cables of various lengths, cables to reverse polarity, cables to link a 9v battery, cables for old pedals with mini jack inputs. There's even a bag of cable tidy clips. Simple, elegant, efficient and effective.

Pity they don’t do covers for the 1x10 cab, got one made up from Roqsolid

For the uninitiated, the original Mutron III pedal, launched in 1972, has been seen by many as the ultimate envelope filter for a range of instruments, not least the Bass guitar. It's design, robust build and new sound meant that it became widely used on seminal recordings by artists such as Stevie Wonder and Bootsy Collins. Wikipedia does a better job of explaining why this legendary pedal has such a following. I bought one a few years ago, serviced by Soundgas in Sheffield. I made sure I could return it if I wanted to, as I expected to find, as with many other 'super hyped' pedals that I've had over the years, that the reputation has entered the mythical realm that the pedal itself can't back up. I'm happy to say that I was wrong, and the filter is the most greasy, wobbly and liquid of them all. It looks and feels fantastic and although expensive, it's probably not going to nosedive in value. It's partly due to this religious following by sometimes perhaps overzealous owners that the version which was released by Has Labs in the 90s (unsure of exact date) has been widely regarded as inferior and often downright hated by those who felt that the filter not only didn't compare audibly with the Musitronics version, but also because of the way it came about - Haz jumped in and copied the Musitronics design because they didn't protect their IP properly, and there was bad blood between the two companies over this. I read somewhere that the designer (Mike Beigel) has recently chilled out about it a bit but I het the feeling that just a mention of the name will send him into a destructive spiral of rage. I wanted to see if this reputation is deserved, and putting corporate fallout and in fighting to one side, judge them based on their sound alone. Although there are lots of threads around where people are asking for comparisons, actual A/B tests are thin on the ground. Most testimonials are based on hazy memories and preconceptions; people are even piling on negativity about the Haz despite not having tried one, or a Musitronics either. To my mind, the downsides of the Musitronics design is the bypass, which is a little bit lossy, and the fact that the gain is coupled to the output volume, so for example a lower output bass either needs boosting before it enters the Mutron or you turn up the gain which will result in a volume increase. This is the case when bypassed as well, which can give some interesting effects, but if you want to bypass the pedal in a loop it isn't convenient to jump above unity gain. It's not actually a problem with my instruments particularly, but I see how it could be for some. The Haz has several 'improvements' - or evil changes to the original holy design depending on your POV. I think either Haz or someone else claimed that the circuit was 'exactly the same' as the Musitronics, which it absolutely isn't - being digital instead of analogue for one. But is that a bad thing? Actually some of the differences give some improvements, on paper. First you have a good bypass. Secondly you have a depth control in place of the gain, and a battery level indicator which can also function as a peak indicator. I'm really happy with digital or analogue gear. The hub of my whole setup is digital so everything gets converted to 1 and 0 anyway. If it sounds good, it sounds good. The Haz has some really useful DIP switches inside which give lots of options over the range of the filter, the peak of the sweep and so on (see attached manual). I'm getting used to the Haz and I haven't started fiddling with the switches yet, but this morning I gave it a quick blast in my favourite setting (high range, sweep up) and I have to say I was mightily impressed. Whilst I own most of the other filters that come out to emulate the Mutron (AF9, Qtron+ etc) this game me that sound right away, with plenty of range either side of the dial to further explore. I'll do more comparisons over the next few weeks, maybe a video - and add my thoughts here. Cheers ped

Bit of a thread revival, but I thought I’d post here as I recall there being some fans of the Lomenzo Hyperdrive here. Going by a comment from Mark Gooday on a post on their FB page, it would appear we are about to get a new Lomenzo pedal. Please let it be as good as the original bit in a much smaller enclosure! edit to say this is in reply to a comment asking for a new Hyperdrive.

I used a crowbar and a mallet to precision engineer a dirty great mudbucker into my Squier 50's CV transition P bass. It's not everyone's cup,of dried leaves in boiling water, but I find the result highly pleasant.

This was taken while it was still wearing Delanos. It since been switched to a Quarter Pounder.

No, well, yes you can, but not stably unless you put in a corner. Same problem with the Alembic series bodies. There is a screw in the tail of the Jaydee which goes in the hole that is used to hang the bass when spraying, but depending on angle of lean, it could be wood on wood. Honestly, just buy a stand. It will fit in some stands that support the bottom of the bass, see picture.

Trying to find the ultimate set up. This is the latest iteration. However it's already changed this morning since being built last night.

I think i have the solution, I knew I'd seen this somewhere.....

Went for this in the end.

My favourite bass! The colour is almost pastel in person.

It's great to hear about companies who stand behind their products.

Acoustic 360 preamp: First I tried the viva-analog Version, but I dont like it. The assembly instructions are not easy to understand and also contain errors. The potentiometer layout is terrible and looks amateurish. So I used the Factory schematics and designed my own PCB layout. I kept the blend function.

For any sort of doubling (or tripling), hard to beat the Boss LS-2 with its level matching and multiple routing options in a compact form. Or in particular for upright, consider one of the EBS pedals - the Stanley Clarke Acoustic or the MicroBass 3. They do more than you've asked for, but I found them very good and I was able to replace some of my other existing gear and streamline my doubling setup.

That works - match it to the length between the screws or a little shorter. You're looking for a good stable base allowing you to get the slight angle to match the fingerboard radius and keep them level on the bridge/neck axis (if you see what I mean) as you don't want them dipping or pointing towards the bridge or neck. It's very easy, just takes a bit of patience.

I Belong To Glasgow ～ Will Fyffe

Just been announced. Meant to be an exact replica of the original Mutron. Set to be around £100 but no word about release date yet which may be some time. I think there are some other clones in the pipeline possibly ahead of this but I know some suggested that Behringer should do this to follow up on their Mutron Octave Divider they released last year. https://synthanatomy.com/2023/03/behringer-b-tron-iii-a-clone-of-the-vintage-mu-tron-iii-envelope-filter.html

If this is another Lomenzo in the vein of the Hyperdrive then you win the Internet... Edit: Having read the comment you're talking about, it could be taken to mean the total opposite of what you think... But we'll stay ever hopeful!

OK, so follow up. It took about 20 minutes to remove the standard Maru bridge and replace it with the Gotoh. I used the original Maru screws as they are longer than the ones supplied with the Gotoh. I didn’t install the two front screws on the Gotoh because I wanted to make sure it worked OK before drilling new holes. I am pleased to say the Gotoh works well. It fits exactly with the original screw holes of the Maruszczyk bridge and the strings align with the pickup pole pieces about the same as they did with the OEM; not perfect on the two outer strings but acceptable. String height and intonation adjustment perfectly simple. Fortunately, the saddles will go more than low enough to get an acceptable action. In fact it is a bit slappy at the moment but I thought I would let the neck settle before doing the final adjustments. The E string saddle is just about back at the stops, so I am hoping I don’t have to flatten the intonation anymore. However, it was with the OEM bridge as well. It’s on its way to being 33” bridge to saddle on that side and it’s about 32 1/4” on the G side. New strings may get it back closer to 32”. The Gotoh anchors the strings a bit further back, so the wound part only just makes it across the nut before the winding starts (see photo). The Gotoh is about 20 grams heavier than the original Maruszczyk bridge, so it’s not going to make the bass feel any heavier, or fix the slight neck dive. I would definitely recommend it as a no modification replacement for the OEM standard bridge. I have put a few photos on: comparison of the two bridges and the string alignment with the Gotoh. Photos taken before setting the intonation.

Bright Onion pedals make a load of very good quality pedals for switching and routing, they will have one that chooses input A or input B into a single output.

So I took your advise and ordered the GB EMG's. Question how much foam do you use? Do you cut to the same length of the pickup?

Hi Guys, Thought I'd add my thoughts here. I bought the Burgundy Mist Harley Benton MV-4PJ Gotoh. I really can't believe the quality for £200 including delivery. So much so, that I've got the Sea Foam Green one due to be delivered tommorrow. The pickups are good considering the price, there's good versatility with a volume for each pickup. Thanks, Paul.

Yup - overnight ferry to Santander with the bass in the back of the car (size permitting of course) then a car trip to the destination arriving with a happy bass! NB - check how hot and humid it might be on arrival and possibly humidify the instrument as it might react to the humidity shift

That's what I'd do, in part because I'd love the drive, the bass would be the excuse 👍

The only way I'd do it would be to drive it myself. Or buy another one once you get there...

It’s a pastiche stitched together with every cliche under the sun. I am enjoying it despite having more cheese than a fondue.

For anyone wondering, this is one of the things SB bought. What a very nifty item. I might well get one. https://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_spaceship_powerbar_60.htm If anyone cares, I bought a HB Beatle Bass.

As I put the power board together I was struck by just how good HB stuff really is. Not just cheap, but well thought out, well made, solid gear. The restraint I've shown not to buy a new HB bass for nearly 3 months has been, I think, quite commendable.

This old girl has just had a set up, fret dress and polish, hand carved bone nut and a new Jack and pot clean. I can’t wait to get her back. I keep looking at some of the budget basses that look really good for the money, Harley Bentons etc, but I decided to spend the money on getting my first bass match fit. I’ve not gigged her regularly since 2013. I’ve got her back in time for the weekend and a gig in a tight spot where a lyte bass will be welcome.

First rehearsal with the band today since then. I do believe this is going to be my new regular bass for gigging. Of my Gibson flavoured basses I prefer the tone of this to both my Gibson LP Jnr DC and my Epi T-Bird Classic Pro; it is certainly easier to play than the latter. Despite my love of all things Precision, this sits with the band mix in a different way and just sounds perfect for the stuff we play. Both pickups combine to give a tone that is rather special. One of the tuners is a bit stiff but I can live with that. The bridge is not very adjustable but good enough and certainly more comfy on my palm than the 3 pointer. Very happy chappy

A rare outing for The Daz Kelly Band, playing for a birthday party at the King William pub, Milford Derbyshire. Daz on Guild resonator, me on Harley Benton shorty P and Craig on the boxes. There’s a nice photograph on the wall behind us. The landlord had a ride in the two-seater Spitfire as a special birthday present.

My very first bass was a medium scale cream Columbus tele bass and I've had a soft spot for them ever since. Here are my current Tele basses. An original '69, which I love as it has the DNA of the very first P bas in it's design and has a great woody growl from the single coil pickup. The Japanese Paisley blue bass was my workhorse for many years tuned down a tone to D and used in a blues quartet, finished with the matching blue strings it attracted many comments!