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Well, MrsAndjr1515 tells me that I am out of time for the rest of the day (as @Aidan63 guessed I might be ) , but it's been quite a productive afternoon. I set out just to experiment how best to cut the aluminium sheet but it went a bit better than that. And so - this is 0.2mm aluminium sheet. And it is proper strong and resilient sheet. But - it's actually just thin enough to be able to cut at least the outline with some decent scissors - and without deforming! Ignore the swirly bits, I was just experimenting. Hmmm...it's a long shot, but I might be able to use this as a real version rather than just a trial... But how to cut out the tuner holes. Clearly scissors can't be used and it's too thick for a Stanley knife. But maybe a curved chisel? I tapped both sides round the circle and then stuck the Stanley knife in every mm or so round the work-hardened punch line and, with a little bit of wiggling, the bonds snapped and the centre came out fine: Then, a clean-up with the Stanley knife to the pen line: And I just have the truss rod access and final external shape trimming to do...which will have to wait until I've served my penance helped round the house a bit, starting with hoovering the little bits of sharp aluminium stuck in the spare bedroom carpet Oh...and the weight? 8 grammes - exactly half way between the weight of a gnat's whatsit and a smidgen! Who'd have thought?!!

Couple quick photos of this Japanese Reissue I picked up on here this week - reversed Geddy? Been after a nice clean one for a while that hasn't been drilled for a bridge cover. Already upgraded with a nice Gotoh bridge and Seymour Duncans, plays great!

+ the one on this. A group of competent, friendly and professional individuals will always be my preference over the ego driven 'super-talent'. If it ain't fun, it ain't worth doing. To the OP, I'm always wary of taking too much notice of vocal sound quality on phone vids; I've cringed on occasion on band vids I've been on in the past where I thought the sound was ok and the video 'disagreed'. If the audience were dancing then don't worry. The only comments I have on the vocal quality on the vid is that it was maybe mixed a little high and could have done with a bit more effect as it was a bit 'dry'...............nothing to get too hung up about though, especially with the length of time the band has been going.

I get where you're coming from, but it's still a tough call for who's at fault. You guys sounded good to me. Everyone here on bass chat has had gigs that didn't happen the way they were supposed to. Here are a few examples of how a gig can go south on a band. 1. Where some guy just loves your band and wants to book you for his 50th birthday party. He didn't take into consideration that his friends and family are all duds. 2. The pub owner that all of a sudden wants to start booking live bands. He didn't realize his clientle have no interest in live music. 3. Your playing in one room and the bar is in another. 4. Your a blues band. Lol Please feel free to add more examples. Daryl

Epiphone have released a new JC model and taken it fretless with an unlined board, which I'm sure will please some people here. Only seems to be the one finish. https://www.epiphone.com/en-GB/p/Electric-Bass/Jack-Casady-Fretless-Bass/Aged-Royal-Tan

Yep doing a 70th birthday party this Sat with the Glam band. Done a few private parties in this venue and it can be very hit or miss. The birthday boy will love it assuming he's into Glam but rest of the audience you have no idea. Not sure how we ended up with this gig as i vowed not to do any more private parties for that sole reason. Hopefully we'll shock them into submission and get them dancing while confused. Dave

Banking on the hoover sounding louder than the pillar drill, and risking that it will be a few moments before MrsAndyjr1515 realises that the sound of the hoover is actually coming from the cellar rather than the spare bedroom... ...it'll take a bit of practice and more trial and error and probably a different sand pad but I reckon we can get at least into the realm of 'essence of':

TBH Pete, we've been convinced to do the odd Wedding do and even with Glam it's definitely a mixed bag. We definitely push back on these days and recommend a good function band/DJ.

Yes that's me. Sorry about that

My band Maple Road Blues Band is not really a traditional blues band. We have a mix of originals and covers we open up and jam out on. Jolene, Ohio, Knocking On Heavens Door, Angel From .Montgomery, Them Changes to name a few. But we are certainly not a wedding band. You never know how it will turn out. Give us a report. Daryl

100% with this. I find the prima-donna's don't work well with others. Any successful band i've been in has had members that are all just nice people and easy to get along with. You don't need to be THE best at your instrument, just competent and reliable. Dave

I would honestly go with this exact bass - handmade, Bartolini & East electronics which are the best there are. Sei Basses are unbelievable and you’re getting a lot more instrument for your money than picking up a Fender at the same price, a LOT more

The band sounded good to me on the vid. I did hear the vocals being out a little but not a major blow over a full set assuming it was a rare deviation. I sometimes think bands don't research the venues enough before taking a booking. From what i hear on your short vid you posted the songs are aimed at a younger age group than me at 64 yet most of the people in that particular venue looked older than me. That's why i suggested you look for venues with a younger audience rather than "old man pubs" altho i'm exaggerating a bit there. If you are playing songs from 1990 onwards then aim for an audience age group around 30-40 yrs old and they'll be more up for it. Sometimes a widely varied age group works very well too but it all depends on your set list what works best. Have a discussion with the rest of the band and see what comes out of it. At 7 gigs in you should be tight enough by now if you've rehearsed enough beforehand. You should already know what songs work best and then tweak your set with similar style of songs. I've always said since i was a late teenager that if a venue can get women in and dancing then guys will automatically follow suit. Its life. Guys follow women when it comes to pubs and clubs. It worked for me since the 70's Dave

The other thing I will add is that any band is better than the sum of its parts. Average musicians can make great bands.

Firstly apologies. I always forget to take a money shot before a gig. Last night was an odd one. The Rebbels played an old coaching inn in Blandford Forum, The Greyhound. It is in the open air, under a huge umbrella. We usually mange a nice warm evening but last night was cloudy and a little chilly, however the crowd was good and we played well. I was using my usual rig of a Bugera Veyron into my LFSys Monza. Now the Monza has never disappointed but this was the first outing in the open. I had the volume up much higher than usual as expected but the Monza took it all in its stride. I was shocked at such a huge bass sound from a single 10. I can understand the "need" for a stack, and one day I will try another Monza but really I don't need one. Of course there was a problem. Firstly I used a cable from the pedal board to the amp that I had not made. Big mistake, The signal kept cutting out when I stood on that cable. I also must have moved the control on my M2 bass in transit. Switched to passive and all was well.

So my mate has this Warmoth Strat neck, and wanted a body with just 1 neck pickup and hardtail bridge. Needs to be light, just wants an oil finish …… and importantly wants to do all the sanding and finishing himself. Those happen to be my least favourite activities…. So said sure… I ordered some White Limba, I quite like that as a body wood. Very close to alder in tone (also relatively soft) but with nicer grain. The entire process only took a few hours, so just posting a few pics of “my bit”, and will post once my mate has finished things.

Well, not today exactly, it arrived Saturday, but close enough. It's a new to me Ibanez EHB1005SMS. Short/medium scale (30-32") fan fretted 5-string bass. Found in the B-stock section at Andertons for a decent price (£699 inc official gigbag and shipping) I've been thinking about one of these for several months now. It's not my usual thing at all, but I've been curious about fan frets, and this one ticks a lot of other boxes as well. I'm a 4 string player at heart. I played a 5-string exclusively for many years (and had a 6-string for a little while), but I realised I played it as a 4-string with a few extra low notes on an extended thumb rest. However, my band's repertoire has been edging into genres that need lower tunings. I've been making do with the pitch-shift on my Helix that works rather well, but I can't be bothered to set it up at home to practice (and I've been through somewhat of a journey finding a small practice device that handles pitch-shifting - so far settled on the Katana:Go). I've been curious about fanned frets for some time now, but being vertically challenged, and with a limited budget, I didn't fancy going up to 35" of the regular Ibanez EHB series, or 37" of the Dingwalls (although I'd love to try one). I've been having so much fun with my diminutive Jackson Minion that I thought I'd give this 30-32" model a go. This should also prove useful in tight spaces so I don't end up clumping Dave, one of my guitarists, around the head! I'm also very conscious about weight and balance. This is a little under 8 lbs (I haven't actually weighed it myself, but it feels very light). And I could tell immediately when I first saw this design that would balance very well and give easy access to each end of the neck. I quite like that the back of the upper bout is slanted, so it brings the bottom of the bass forwards a little - like a built-in beer gut. All in all, the entire design appears to be well thought out - function over form. Thoughts so far. Handles and feels great. Feels perfect on a strap and doesn't change position when seated (and still balances when seated). The fan frets are easier to adapt to than I thought. The extra string however... Needless to say I haven't played a 5 string in a while! Still, I guess it's easier than the mental gymnastics of switching to BEAD tuning on the Helix. The strings are dead. I know it's B-stock (meaning it could be a customer return), but I think it still has the original strings on. New set delivered to work today to install later this week (if I can work out how!) The preamp appears quite powerful (although difficult to tell with dead strings). I'm not a big fan of active basses (I can't be doing with swapping batteries - and I've broken a couple of battery clips on past basses and pedals), but at least this one has a full passive mode, where the treble pot becomes a passive tone. I've yet to determine if the passive mode works without a battery. If it does, I'll be very happy. Still, once I've changed strings, I'm hoping this will be able to achieve "that" modern 5 string tone. It didn't come with the straplocks that the bass originally ships with, only the strap buttons. Not a problem for me as I don't use straplocks anymore - I have a strap permanently attached to each bass with rubber washers. However, these straplock buttons don;t work as well with rubber washers, so I've ordered a new set of larger buttons Those who know me will know I don't like skinny or thin necks. This was a gamble, but it appears to have paid off. It's comfortable wide and doesn't feel like it's going to snap. Fret markers. This is my main, and only gripe TBH. The roasted maple neck and fretboard is lovely and all, as are the abalone markers, but I just can't see them. The side dots are luminlay (or something similar), but again they disappear into the wood colour under normal light, and charging them up with a UV lamp only lasts a few minutes. I've spoken (emailed) fretlook.com from whom I bought block inlay decals for my G&L. They've said they should be able to design a set of similar block inlay decals to fit this fretboard. That should make things much easier. Obligatory "fresh out the wrapper" pic below.

From thefretboard forum https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/270188/secursus-insurance-not-valid#latest TLDR: You need a certificate of sale to be covered, with signatures! I'll stick with Overland Express in the future!

One of my bands has a ridiculously talented blues guitarist, and he's only 22. But he's a modest and self-effacing as you can imagine. His other, indie band, were at number 3 in the UK physical singles chart and he's almost embarrassed by that. For me and his long standing drummer the only frustration is his reluctance to push the band as hard as he could despite much encouragement from working musicians. Hexs more likely to tell you how he's working on his vocals in response to praise. As the 'rhythm section' it's insanely easy to play with him as he can telegraph what's happening so we stick in a fair bit of improv, yet my ear and playing individually and as a unit has come on in leaps and bounds. I know I'm still way short of his standard - I'm so used to it, then sometimes I'll realise he's kicked up a gear... So yes, it's horrible to be stuck with a prima donna frontman, but if you find someone good who puts the band first, it really will lift you all up.

Wow! That was a close one. I thought you said Jeffrey Dahmer aka the Milwaukee Cannible. Daryl

I get the reference. I've been following bands, trends and genres in England since 1963, not 64, 1963. Daryl

Only the best for a @Happy Jack job!

A pair of 2003 Yamaha BB604 basses. If I’ve understood the serial numbers correctly they were made within the same month of each other at the same factory in Taiwan, but found themselves 20 years later together in my ownership. They are identical, apart from one having strap locks and a lot more wear and tear, while the newer one to me has had the machine heads swapped to Gotoh’s by a previous owner. They sound identical, play identically and weigh exactly the same amount. I’m putting them to good use don’t worry.

Anyway, I routed the pickup / control cavity and neck …. Now up to him to finish. The logo is laser engraved - such a great way to get a nice logo.

Bloody hell that’s quite frightening. Is there someone out of camera sacrificing a goat or two?

I've got aluminium, I've got CTS pots, including one of their push-pulls for the series/parallel. What I don't have any more is...any excuse not to just get on with it!

Thanks guys, I wasn't looking for a pep talk but I'll be honest it was nice! I need to remember I've been in one band for 13 years and another for 7. No good comparing 4 months to that.

Do you mean since the 1970s or since you became 70?🤣

Just keep at it. If you are enjoying it and gigging, you will get tight. To use the football analogy, you can train/rehearse till the cows come home but you need to be match/gig fit and the only comes from playing. I have two bands. The newer one gigs regularly and has done since just after lockdown. We must have been OK as we were getting re-booked but the last few gigs it has changed. It like we really know what each other is doing and the sound just seems so tight without trying. My pre lockdown band gigged a lot and we had a rehearsal about 6 weeks ago as someone remembered us and asked us to do a party. The party went well and although we did it as a favour, we did get paid. We enjoyed it so much that we played an open mic night last Thursday, No new songs but the muscle memory was still there and I can never remember a more enjoyable night. Thee scary thing was about half way through, three people walked in. One was a superb drummer that also teaches, the other was a really good guitarist and they were very complimentary. So keep on keeping on and it will click.

Update. You may or may not know that I had a Monaco, the 12" version for a while and as I am getting a bit older and mor feeble and traded it for the lighter 10" Monza. The smaller size also makes it easier to load the car when I have the full PA loaded. I knew that I would sacrifice a small amount but as I never pushed them too hard. I did not worry. Yesterday we played The Greyhound in Blandford, Dorset. It was an open air gig and we usually play there twice each summer. However this was the first time I used the Monza there. I knew I would have to turn up the volume and I expected to have to tweak the low end a bit. I started to play and turned up and this lovely sound come out with plenty of usable low end came out. I had the feeling that it would have taken much more without breaking a sweat. I use it with my Bugera Veyron, and amp that gets seriously loud. However I am sure that the Monza would handle everything I could through at it. I am not on commission although I do get a nice cup of coffee when I drop in to LFSys World HQ in Casterbridge. Suffice to say that the Monza is a Hardy cabinet and it will not let you down.

For me, it would the Silver Sky Strat shaped, PRS quality and I'm a John Mayer Fan Boi

For £35 I'd take it as a cheap life lesson and move on. There is a danger it will poison your mind for months otherwise. Life is too short.

And next build…… another wimp machine with 6 puny strings. Dragon’s Blood Red / Nitro finish Ebony cap on headstock Alder body Mahogany neck Waiting on some templates and hardware, so will start in a few weeks time. Watch this space…..

Every time i play through mine they seem to sound better and better and I smile more and more…do speakers’bed in’ and loosen up?? I don’t know but these little buggers keep producing the right results for me x😊

Spiraltastic!

😎

1983: ROCK STARS on tuning, strings and sticks | Rockschool | Classic BBC Music | BBC Archive Wow. This brought back lots of memories. Now in the BBC Archive on YouTube! 1983 was the year I was given my first electric guitar so this show was a definite watch but didn't have a VHS recorder and couldn't remember most of what they said... Good detail with the types of bass strings, though, although no mention of tapes.

Had a very busy weekend. Power sorted but I cut 2 cables to short, c'est la vie. Unfortunately it means stripping the top deck to fit the longer power cables. Other than that all the individual loops are sorted.

Last night at the blues jam in the old dive.