Leaderboard

NBD just in time for my birthday next week. Here’s my first Fender. Got the American Vintage II 60s P. What an eye candy! Love it so much and loved it even more when I put on some La Bella 760FL. My first bass was a Squier Affinity Pbass when I started learning. Ended up going back at it. The Pure Vintage 60s pickup is amazing for my taste. Love the bottom end, nice warm mid-range tone and not to harsh for me. Here are some quick soundclips I've recorded through my focusrite. Pbass>Cali76 bass comp>Capo (Tone around 50-60%) Vultures: Vultures.wav Disco Yes: Disco Yes.wav Beautiful Daphne Blue P happy kid 13 yrs old me with my first bass on our first big gig @Dubai Original Music Festival

Last night it was a long trek to Llandovery for a pib gig on the first day of the sheep festival. The singer was picking me up with the pa but due to a local incident we left late on the 1 ½ hour journey, this meant only 30 minutes to set up, but the three other guys were already sorted which meant ok but no soundcheck. It was a half-timbered pub with about an inch of clearance above my head! No pogoing! I bet @Bluewine doesn't play nearly 800 year old venues very often! Pub was full and the audience was mostly older people and our very rock setlist went down well. We even had people singing along to War Pigs! One oddity was What is and What Should Never Be, which fades out gently and was met with stunned silence, very disconcerting. Yet three people came up and said how much they appreciated it! My first three-set gig, we played from eight to 11 with two 20 minute breaks. The last set was more dancy with "those songs" Dakota and Sex on Fire. Superstition went down very well too. A fair few new songs for us, Motorcycle Emptiness didn't get dancing but virtually the whole pub was singing along. Finished with Everlong as encore. We got free drinks on arrival, at the end the bar manager fetched us another free round, paid us more than the agreed fee and asked us to come back. Lots of good feedback from punters (also one said he'd come after seeing our Facebook page). So we were pretty pleased with how it went. Tonight a normal 2-set gig, with the drummer from my other band standing in. 😁

Our annual gig for Mencap last Thursday, we always love this one. Just like a Christmas party!

Played at The Pheasant as part of Worcester Music Festival last night... We were told to bring minimum stuff as it's a long narrow venue, so I brought the ACG and Helix to go into the supplied Ashdown 600 and 2 Laney cabs. And I couldn't get any sort of clean sound! Whatever I did it was distorted, and not in a familiar Ashdown growl sort of way; with my usual BBE/Crown set up, or my Marshall Jubilee, I get an almost creamy but meaty slap sound until I hit the Helix drive button when it's growl-time. So after quite a while of fiddling with eq I discovered it sounded less-bad with Helix growl also engaged. And it sort of worked for a bit - 1st couple of songs, OK, then an old mate who'd come up from London especially to see us signalled I should be louder. I turned up a bit and it was too loud, and not only that but there was a horrible crackling every time I moved and was too loud - had to play extra-light-touch so as not to drown everyone out. So unplugged both ends while our singer did some bants, and all was absolutely fine. All sounded great - our drummer said afterwards how good the bass sound was. However, there was a decent crowd (100ish, which was pretty full - twas difficult getting our our bass player's cab out!), and I don't think any of them noticed my bass-centric woes as they stood there stroking their chins. Though my London mate jigged wildly, and there were some young folks (they exist!) also having a wiggle, which was nice. Not only that, but we were all collared individually on the way out and told never to come to Worcester again or there'd be trouble. And that they were looking forward to seeing us on 2nd November... No pix yet, but as most of the band are doing holiday stuff till then we do have our gardening leave photo.

Really good night at a Supernova event at Poplar Union in London last night, we were one of four bands on, really nice vibe to the whole thing. The other bands were excellent and really friendly which made it a very cool evening. We gave really good account of ourselves and got a lot of positive comments from the crowd. The Ibanez EHB continues to wow me in terms of sound and playability - I'm really enjoying playing it, and my back loves me for it

The Spurs , our little mostly instrumental Mexican band did an outdoor last night on Agricola St. We set up in front of Carlo Auto Service , close to the street. They’ve been doing street gigs there for much of the summer. Perfect night , the weather cold not have been better and many of the passerby stopped to enjoy , wound up with a lovely crowd. Very strange but enjoyable night , it’s always a joy to play that material. Ended at nine pm , not late returning home. Bonus! edit to add live photo

Put together a bit of a fun board to use some of the older pedals that haven’t been out for a while…

Guess, while we’re at it, the “currently unused section”: And the everyday home practice board (as constructed many years ago by Dadtheelvy) - empty space for trying our different pedals in situ:

And now….. it’s finished A lot of work went into rebuilding this bass, and I’m delighted. Absolutely brilliant instrument. The Quarterpounders sound fantastic, so it’ll slot right into our live set no problem, alongside the Thunderbirds. Turns out the tuners are absolutely great. Smooth and steady, so they stay. So, I started with basically a body and a neck. Both were good quality timber, and provided a good base to build on. The electronics were junked straight away. I’ll keep the pups, you never know, but the pots and the awful bridge went in the bin. My list of jobs on it: Fret job, ends and polish. Clean and oil the fretboard. Hi mass bridge from Bass Wielder. Strip and lube the tuners. SD QP pickups. New controls, CTS pots, jack, cap etc. Set up with new strings. Very pleased, really enjoyed working on this one, and I’m delighted with the result. This is a really fab bass now, and I’m looking forward to gigging it. Another great addition to the collection.

Well, that's the knobs sorted. As Baga Chipz would say, "MUCH BETTAH!"

Nice gig tonight at Leamington Tennis Club for their 150th anniversary. I took my new 5 string P Bass out and it was a real joy to play, great tone. Band played well, people danced, we got paid and got another gig booked off the back of it. So a result. Downside was it was outside and it was freezing! So cold that I had to order a coffee… Rock and Roll! 😂

Long day doing a fundraiser for a theatre company I’ve played loads with. It was a pick up band, so one rehearsal on the day, matinee gig and then evening. It was a community do so the musical calibre was of variable calibre and the inexperienced md, despite working very hard on the charts doesn’t have the technical chops to write with the correct musical grammar, which is a proper headache when songs in Bb minor are written in A# for example. The occasion was a 60s singalong- let’s see if any takers can recognise these two groovy classics. Anyways, lots of discussion and teamwork and we managed to put a show together, did about as well as I could do gluing tempos together between a lower section brass band drummer and an enthusiast dancer with a tambourine, off for a lie down and looking forward to a regular gig next weekend.

Ooof, that’s kind of a big question… OK, so as follows: super clean board: Wee tiny board (also used occasionally to simulate bass on an acoustic, using both outputs): Usual gigging board (key essentials): Looper board (for when the motivation hits…): And, just for completeness, board for when I pretend to be a guitarist…

The venn diagram of “awesome desirable pedals people love” and “ @iamtheelvy’s old stuff in the cupboard” has a fairly big overlap!

On the basis of cheapest options first, I'd plump for a set of rounds. I would also ask what are you aiming for? You are satisfied with your sound using your own gear? I am presuming the valve amp you mention is yours? Using 'foreign' gear is always a lottery. It may be a pedal is what you want (a valve pre I suppose). I'd explore the strings first. I certainly wouldn't be adding pickups/buying different basses.

New to me 5 string USA P arrived yesterday. It is absolutely wonderful to play. Got it setup with Ken Smith master series taper core strings which are my new favourite roundwounds, got two other P’s strung with flats so decided for rounds on this one. Going to gig it tonight so really looking forward to seeing how it performs! Only question now is… gold anodised pickguard or not?!

As many have said here already you’d really need to go to visit either The Gallery or Bass Direct. They’re the only places where you can realistically try a wide variety of instruments at all price points; both new and used. Seeking out various branches of PMT or Guitar Guitar would not prove particularly fruitful as neither of those chains stock that many basses and would only cover and handful of brands. If it were me I’d be straight down to The Gallery. Even all the way from Leicester. It’d be well worth the extra time

I’d invest in a preamp pedal. My VTDI, with the bite switch engaged, really lifts the highs of my Mustang and P, both fitted with flats. That way you have the advantage of 2 tones. I also have a Sadowsky SBP2, which works ok with those 2 basses, but is better suited to my J and MM types and isn’t as flexible as the Tech21.

Roundwounds. I'll get flamed for this but I've found the Precision to be a two trick pony; both tricks are superb and depend entirely on the strings (OK, four tricks if you include fingerstyle/pick). I've never got on with PJ as the staggered p pickup blended with the inline j means there's a significant difference in tone between EA and DG.

Yes, such hardcore punk lyrics... Bonsoir Ton véhicule n'a pas l'air d'avoir de passager Peux-tu, veux-tu me recevoir Sans trop te déranger Mes bottes ne feront pas trop d'échos dans ton couloir Pas de bruit avec mes adieux Pas pour nous les moments perdus En attendant un incertain au revoir Parce que j'ai la folie Oui j'ai la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie Il était une fois un étudiant Qui voulait fort, comme en littérature Sa copine, elle était si douce Qu'il pouvait presque, en la mangeant Rejeter tous les vices Repousser tous les mals Détruire toutes beautés Qui par ailleurs, n'avait jamais été ses complices Parce qu'il avait la folie Il avait la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie Et si parfois l'on fait des confessions À qui les raconter Même le bon Dieu nous a laisse tomber Un autre endroit, une autre vie Eh oui, c'est une autre histoire Mais à qui tout raconter Chez les ombres de la nuit Au petit matin, au petit gris Combien de crimes ont été commis Contre les mensonges et soi disant les lois du cœur Combien sont là à cause de la folie Parce qu'ils ont la folie Ils ont la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie Oui c'est la folie La folie La folie La folie La folie La folie

Only three weeks to go before my band Shreds. play THREADSFEST in Sheffield (at Zepher's on Saturday October 5th). Buy your tickets online in advance and come check us out! Five bands for £5, how cool is that?!? https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/terraphile-promotions/t-jzlozvx

No, I haven’t done anything about damage. I don’t mind chips and dings, they’re all part of the story of the guitar. The only “work” I do is on working parts that affect the playability of the instrument. Anything cosmetic, I don’t tend to bother.

Thanks everyone! Been listening to D’Angelo’s Voodoo album, Sean Hurley, Nick Campbell, Pino, Michael League and Sam Wilkes who inspired me to come back to Pbass again.

Suits you. Congrats, that's a lovely bass.

#MyKindOfFriday...

Tonight's gig rig. 🤠

Have they decided on the new member yet... or are they still making their minds up?

I picked this up a while ago from a chap in Norfolk. Didnt pay a lot for it, about £90 iirc. Its been languishing in my office, but I have finally gotten around to it. Cosmetically its pretty beaten up, but the neck is straight and there doesnt seem to be anything terminal.....I hope! So, the plan is: Strip the paint and refinish (looks like quite a nice piece of mahogany, if it is, tru-oil if not, paint). The fingerboard is pretty worn and pitted, so that'll need sanding and a refret. I understand that the pickups on these are Dimarzios. Anyone know for certain? @Bassassin perhaps? If it turns out to be decent I shall try and clean it up and salvage it. The cavity is a mess, it'll need a complete rewire, new pots and knobs. There is a hole for a micro switch, I think this is a series/ parallel. If anyone knows for sure please let me know. Thanks! Stuart

Seer Green Beer fest tonight. First outing in anger for Mesa TT800. Not convinced it beats a Handbox for vintage sound yet. Needs a bit of work on the two channels with the Fender through the valve channel and the Wal through the clean channel. Mesa TT 800 14 9 24

Thanks man! Video definitely helped by the decent lighting on stage

Well, the neck certainly isn't.

Still holding out for that OC-2 Waza craft…

Being over 35 (I'm being kind) ages you out of most "we're gonna be the new Oasis!" youth bands who still think they can make money from original music. Don't go answering those ads with the "I look younger than my age/I'm still 25 at heart/I can be like a mentor until you find a younger player" routine unless you really like sympathy. Age still matters to the record industry and unless you have some past success you can spin into a Scene Legend type gig it's probably not happening. You should be more sensible by that age anyway... Once you're over that mental hurdle and are just happy with making the music you want to, preferably with some pay involved, then you can keep going until you physically can't stand the late nights any more. If you're prominent and competent in any niche genre for long enough you'll probably never struggle for gigs. Everybody else has been weeded out by the aforementioned late nights and you've hopefully got a reputation for not being a total van monster - reliability is key over talent and nobody wants to take a risk on a young hotshot who ends up throwing their TV out of the window when they're served the wrong temperature of latte.

All my P basses have got very worn in flats and I’d say none sound woolly, mellow yes, personally I wouldn’t go altering your bass, do you think it could have been because you didn’t have enough time to familiarise yourself with the new setup and experiment a bit

A day trip by train to London may be the best course of action. Get up to Camden from Kings X or Euston (whichever your terminus is), there you’ll find a branch of Guitar Guitar, then you can go to the Aladdin’s cave that is The Gallery, a bit up the road.

Very nice chadu ,congrats , imo you won’t go wrong with that, and the La Bella 760FL are a perfect choice, they just get better the more you play them

It’s great to hear that you intend to try plenty of bases wherever possible. In my view, this is a really good idea. As others have suggested, both Bass direct and Bass Bros are not too far from you. A train trip to London wouldn’t be difficult either, even if this means taking some money for the train fare from your budget. The Bass Gallery in Camden is packed with an incredible range of basses and a couple of hours in there may be very helpful in helping you to decide what suits your needs and preferences

Just got back from seeing Texas in Birmingham. Not a band I'd usually go to see, but went with a friend. Wow - what a show! Great sound, the band were fantastic and she can still wail. So nice to see someone with charisma fronting a band too. Favourite bit was when Charlene went right up to a woman that was waving several cardboard signs. She looked at them all, chatted with the woman a bit then said "I can't help thinking of the people behind you as you're waving those signs. I've seen them all now, so put the f***ing things down and let's party". All good natured but it got a good laugh.

Keep an eye out for a used Warwick Streamer LX. Try a modern Streamer in a shop first to see if you get on with the necks. Warwicks, Laklands and Ibanez basses all sound/play very different to each other so best going to a shop and trying a few first.

Bass Direct and Bass Bros aren’t too far away from your area, def worth a look.

My new love arrived today. Added Rotosound 77s for reggae, 60s pop & Northern Soul.

I made a few changes because of the next gigs that I have. I removed the Wireless and the Midi controller, since I won't need them. The comp is back again and it will stay. I added a tuner because I like to have a mute switch.

The problem with 'hating songs with a passion' is that someone else likes them, so if I don't like something, well that's MY problem ..