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I was looking for something understated and unassuming for the 70s Glam band. Something that would allow me to dissolve into the background and not stand out too much. Think I’ve got it about right with this one….

Snorkie Likes Jazz?

Bought this new in 1988. A friend at work was being wooed by a bloke who had a music shop and she suggested that if he did a deal for a friend of hers she might just see him again. Think I paid £515 against the RRP of £795. Can’t see myself ever parting with it

Here's a photo of two of the instruments I referred to in my post on May 8. The guitar is a 1967 Gibson J50 ADJ that I bought new in Toronto in late 1967, I still have it and enjoy playing it and it has been gigged extensively over the years as explained in my earlier post. I was 21 when I bought it, I'm really old now. The banjo is a 1975 that I bought new when I joined a trad band in mid '75. It is an Ode tenor built when Baldwin (of piano and organ fame) owned the company, thus the Baldwin Ode name. I use it on some jazz gigs including one last weekend, lovely to play and stays in tune better than most banjoes and sounds great and has been used on hundreds of gigs. The only downside is that it weighs 14.6 pounds(!) due to the heavy cast bell metal tone ring but it sounds so good I just live with it and use a wide strap. Edit: While I really like playing both of these I LOVE playing my DB. 😊

After managing to track down another EBS Microbass (albeit a 2j from Graham from this very parish, (Thanks once again mate) I’ve upgraded my travel/flyboard for when I’m not using a transmitter pack, or on small club stages. The main band I play with operate a silent stage with no backline, so a decent preamp is a must. I really like the EBS tone, so having one for each board is luxury… It’s nice having the option now, especially when trying to travel as light as possible…

Here it is. All £230 of it [/smug] managed to fit some TI Flats on it, too. The worst issue is the side tape is bubbling up in a couple of places. I can live with that.

Hi all! I recently posted examples of the sound of a wal clone preamp with cheap Chinese pickups. I decided to go ahead and wound the pickups to approximate the specifications of the original wal pickups. I made a series of calculations and determined the characteristics of the original sensors, after which I made low-impedance coils of 1k6 and 1k9 resistance. Since the resonant peak of the original sounds determines the maximum only for the pick attack function, I decided to correct the peak on the spot. The pick attack frequency is in the range of 6300-6700Hz, so I simply adjusted the resonant peak of my sounds after taking measurements. I'm planning to make full-length multi coil pickups soon. As an example of the sound, I attach a small cover. I apologize for my English, and for the cover - this is the only track that was played nearby, which I decided to play there are two modes in the first and second verses, respectively 5555555.mp3

Next gig for me is with In Isolation at Ivory Blacks in Glasgow on Saturday 18th May, supporting Joy Division tribute band "Shadowplay".

What subject were you teaching? 😂

My '78

So after some hassle with the courier delivering to the address down the road that is one word different to mine (not the first time; I have complained) I have the Three10. The true test will be on a gig (I have two in a couple of weeks), but my initial impressions are good. The tone is what I expected: overall very warm, a little less upper mids than my Compact, a touch more bass, but just the right amount of the right kind of highs (IMHO). I've played around with the tweeter and not heard a massive difference with it on or off, but I play with flats and no wild effects, so frankly I'd rather have a mellow tweeter. The wheels and handles mean its not much more awkward to move than the Compact, though I did not enjoy carrying it the hundred or so metres back to my flat! Plus it matches my office.

My 1993 Alembic Europa Bass with Koa wood ❤️🎸

My three a few years back.... ....an '82, '64, and '71 (albeit modified with Jazz PUP and fretless board). A great gang, but collectively worth over £10,000. I love the idea of vintage Fenders, but in terms of value it's nothing more than an antiques market, you can build instruments of equal quality for significantly less than £1000 if you're patient. The magic is in the player not the instrument, despite what the dealers tell you 👍 PS those two rigs were also lovely, the Ampeg way better than should have been the case at the price - and so easy to hear on stage - and the Boogie/Bag End just glorious at any price

I know this seems a bit hit miss with accurate info, but it’s great that Sire answer emails from the general public and seem genuinely interested in helping. I emailed them about something a good while back and I remember them being super helpful then too. Tech21, DiMarzio and Hipshot have this kind of customer service too, nothing seems to be too much bother. Other companies could learn a thing or two from this kind of service, both large and small, UK and US based.

These are my two - they make me very happy.

Some sound advice here but let’s look at the real world. 1. You should never use 6.35 plugs (1/4”) for speakers,,,,, but some amps and speakers have them so… use the best you can and NEVER and instrument cable. 2. SpeakON 4 way connectors are close to a standard but on cables a 2 way works fine. It mates with a 4 way socket on +1 & -1. You cannot use a 4 way plug into a 2 way socket. 3 Cables.. You can use mains flex as long as the current rating is OK for your rig. The problem is it is not very flexible. 4.Speaker cable is more flexible and more suited to stage use. You do not need 4mm cable unless you are doing high powered PA speakers over long distances. They are a pain to use in the old Neutrik speakons and way over specified for bass rigs. 5. Although Neutrik are the industry standard, both Cliff and Amphenol make fine Speakon compatible connectors. Switchcraft may also but they are not common in the UK. 6. As a general rule I use 20 amperes as the maximum current (amperage is NOT a word) that 2.5mm cable can carry and 16 amperes as the max a 1.5mm flex can carry. Although commercial flex may be rated higher, that does not account for the losses in the cables. For bass rigs this may be negligible when using a 50cm to 1m cable but PA cables are much longer and the losses add up. 7. So a 2.5mm copper cable, In my opinion, is good for in excess of 3000 watts continuous at 8 ohms. For 4 ohm use you must halve that rating to 15-1600 watts. For 1.5 mm cable, the figures are 1800 watts at 8 ohms and about 900 into 4 ohms. For longer runs I would derate those figures. Conclusion, 4mm cable is overkill for a bass rig. 2.5 and 1.5 are more than enough but buy a reputable make. Some cheap cables are CCAW or copper covered aluminium wire. It is rubbish.

Good progress overnight. Managed to finish off the last two body parts. Strap screws in place for neck and bridge. Earthing wire in and not working Need to resolve this. Am now printing off two pickguards, one for the neck and one for the control panel. 4-5 hours each. @JohnH89 still offering advice, the guy must be a saint putting up with my witterings Weight without pickguards and control knobs, 3.9Kg. can't see it being under 4K as each pickguard is 50g and the control knobs and wiring will be around 100g, so 4.1Kg. The last bass was 4.4Kg so I have saved 300g. TBH was hoping for more. The body is a little longer so more filament, may look at printing with less infill or tailor the infill for certain areas. My MIJ 97Jazz is 4.4Kg, my medium scale Mustang is 3.5Kg so just about in the middle. Rob

Aye, Czechia's entry this year should really have been in the final... Bit poppy for me, but did have hints of Placebo. And while I didn't watch the final as I was gigging (to be fair I rarely do anyway as I don't really like the Eurovision song format) but the staging is absolutely amazing. I'd love to play on a stage like that rather than a grimy grass-roots venue with 4 coloured spotlights and duff PA!

Totally agree with you, the Vistas are way better than the USA original Musicmasters on so many levels.... I had three of them up until a short while ago. All great players, with a big tone. I moved the black & pink ones on, but kept the sonic blue

An oldie but goody: Peter Walker arrived at a press showing with a new set of his Quad speakers. Realizing that he forget speaker cables, and not having time to drive back to the shop to get a pair, he went around the corner to a hardware store, where he bought what he knew would work well. At the press conference later the press seemed as interested in the cables as the speakers, being captivated by the bright orange color. Prodded to reveal the brand of what they assumed were very expensive bits of wire Walker replied: 'Black and Decker!'.

I have a Les Paul style short scale Retrovibe. If I remember, it was a one off, put together to try out the style. I think David does this every now and again. I love it. It has a chunky neck and is fitted with their hi-gain RIC style pick ups which gives it a fantastic sound with roundwounds fitted. (Apologies for it looking rather grubby, but I have been playing it recently and it does need a clean!)

I’m in the ‘early’ stages of rediscovering bass having had a cheap knock-of eb3 copy that I purchased (and gigged) for £60 about 30 years ago. In due course I moved onto guitar and bass fell by the wayside until I picked up a lovely precision bass a couple of years ago. Something wasn’t quite the same and I have gradually pieced together that as good as the precision is, it’s long scale. Since then a Hofner ignition Beatles bass has been added which is fantastic for the price, and then in the past few weeks a Vox VBW3000 (Bill Wyman) bass has turned up. Since it’s arrived I have played little else, though I do need to get a set of flat rounds on there for that authentic mid-60s sound.

Love the blackguard! I had a black one too, very nice bass. Bought s/h off ebay. Liked it so much that I got a green one too, although they both went shortly after I got my first CIJ Fender Mustang, 2003-ish. Preferred the Jazz width neck on the Mustang but otherwise I would have kept the black Squier. I’ve still got the original Squier Vista catalogue somewhere. Not that I’m a hoarder or anything...

St. Alfonzo's Pancake Breakfast - Zappa

Last nights pre rehearsal cab "shoot out" revealed much. I amassed a veritable smorgasbord of gear: Headrush Core Mesa D800 Hartke 3500 Crown Xli 1500 Barefaced Super Twin Barefaced Two 10s (pair) Orange OBC 112 Ashdown Routemaster 610 After nearly 3 hours of plugging unplugging twiddling listening and conferring with a long suffering mate conclusion were reached? Ahem So I in true logical fashion created the ultimate rig of the apocalypse. Headrush running a Ampeg SVT model with Darkglass Drive. split signal to Mesa and Crown (1400 w RMS) with all 3 Barefaced cabs connected model. All reports of a small earthquake felt within 10 miles of Coventry, sounding like the bass Intro from Love Song by The Damned can be attributed to the monster rig. On a more serious not my mate was invaluable as in true Chappers style he blindfolded me and swapped stuff about. Many surprises followed and I would recommend this method to all confused GAS addicts. Playing along to a bass removed band recordings there was one sound that stood out for me. Mesa D800 Orange Cab. Just fitted in the best falling-out the sound and cutting through enough for definition. Adding The Headrush Comp and other effects. An honourable mention goes to the Headrush Ampeg model straight into our "vocal" RCF/Presonus PA! So im a happy boy compounded by the fact I found a pair of said Orange cabs file sale today and they will be attached to my Mesa tomorrow. So watch this space for an imminent upcoming SALE of Barefaced Big Twin 2 Silver Cloth excellent condition stupid loud Roqsolid cover & Barefaced Two10 4 Ohm Roqsolid cover usual Rolex peel but not to bad & BarefacedTwo 10s series 3 Switchable 4 or * Ohm Pre sale enquiries welcome

A bass bash is when a bunch of bass players get together, bring some/all of their gear, set it up then we all go round admiring and trying out other people's basses. There's the general social aspect of it, there's often things like talks, gear shootouts, raffles and sometimes food is laid on also (can attest to the feast at this one being particularly good).

Just picked up this cab today, a rather tasty Epifani UL610 1500w beast. Currently paired with my Epifani UL901 head to make quite a monster of a rig. Not disastrously heavy for a 610, about the standard weight of a 410, so a tolerable one-person move. Set it up in the studio today for our first band practice in 6 weeks, it didn't disappoint! Snagged it for a mere £250 from eBay. 👍

Here’s a full body pic of my 55-94 I got from the Bass Gallery last year on my birthday.

And particular favourite pig? I suppose proper home made crusty bread goes without saying, any, preference on the flour? Would an aluminum pan be ok or do I need to forge an iron pan with Lake District ore? I also suppose you want it cooked on oak boughs grown in a western hillside with specific soil pH. I'm afraid that rounding up a virgin to cook it might be beyond my powers though....

I have an old classical guitar, a Vicente Tatay Tomas, that my mum and dad brought back from Spain, about 1972. It's been in the loft too long, and is now in several pieces. Apart from that, my Ovation Balladeer, model 111-4, that I bought in 1975 from McCormack's in Glasgow for £150, a whole term's grant. I thought it sounded lush. I have snapped the headstock off twice. The second time I repaired it with carbon rods, and it has never held its tuning better. I will not be parted from it.

Deep in the woods - Birthday Party

I use a home-made BC micro cab for open mics, paired with a Tecamp Puma 900.

I’m really impressed with it. This modern run are built in partnership with one of the Japanese factories and it is the usual high quality build we’ve all come to expect from Japanese made guitars and basses. It plays really well and was almost perfect straight out of the box. Smallest neck I’ve ever encountered on a bass, but kind of fun for it.

This has to be worth a look: https://www.bassdirect.co.uk/product/sire-marcus-miller-v9-brown-sunburst-2018-pre-owned/ Some dings but nothing serious to my eye, worst one by the jack socket, but even that only looks to be chipping to the finish, nothing a dab of the correct colour nail varnish wouldn't tidy up a bit. Gig bag too.

My Squier Affinity Jazz, in Charcoal Frost Metallic. I replaced the black pickguard with a cheap tort one and added a tugbar, as I’m probably one of the few people that use them on the treble side. It’s got La Bella flats on it now also. I originally wanted the Burgundy Mist Metallic version but everywhere was sold out so when Thomann were knocking these out for £175 I didn’t hesitate. Would have loved a blocks & bound neck on it but I think they only came with the 40th Anniversary Jazzes. Still an amazing bass regardless of cheapness 👍

I got a pair for my birthday, and like them for home practice. On my recommendation, the leader got a set to try out, and used them within 2 hours of them arriving - zero stage volume for him! On that recommendation, another leader got a set. I need to make a little box for the IEMs and the jack extension lead, to protect the kit. I won't be able to try them until June, but I am pleased that others (especially the guy with the loud amp) now have IEMs too.

Hello! Right, I've come up for air. It was a VERY late night last night 😄 Rehearsal days were 10-7. Show day was 9am-2m (as it turned out!) Yep - here's the set list: So, the songs all have some sort of connection to Auf Wiedersehen Pet and / or Jimmy. The character Oz was a big Merle Haggard fan, so that accounts for their presence, and that of steel player and all-round lovely bloke Mel Duffy, who is an absolute wizard. He's currently touring with Squeeze. We had various cast members get up during the evening to sing songs (the principal ladies sang Boots and Stand By Your Man, for example). Rehearsals were relatively painless - we'd all done our homework in advance, and there were only the odd arrangement tweaks to account for. It was a busier time for me as I was also vision editor, responsible for creating the 70-ish videos seen throughout the show on the massive screen. The shows themselves went fine, with only the odd flub from any of us that Joe Public wouldn't notice. The smooth execution was aided by one of the best crews in the biz. The shows were a massive success - 4,000 attendees in total, raising a shedload of money for charity. And I got to meet Bill Paterson. It was shot with a view to possible release at some point, but I don't know way more than that. Here's some pics! The AV room, where the director makes sure the cameras capture every little nuance....

I built this bass as a gift for a friend when I worked at the Yamaha custom shop in LA around '94-'95. I used a Yamaha neck but it had nothing to do with the company. The black lines in the fingerboard are graphite to increase the strength of the neck and to make the strings speak better. I wound the pickups as well. The body is basswood with a maple veneer on top. It's great to see it after all these years!

With my JMJ on hold and the Mikey Way in the classifieds I thought I’d take a quick group shot of my shorties before they are reduced from 4 to 2.