WalMan

Don't really know as to the original question (it would be nice as one of mine could be fairly early in the model line up) but as a G&L convert I have to say don't buy them as an investment, buy them as bloody marvellous basses. I now have the twin L2500's - red 4+1 headstock, fretted that might be earlyish going by the serial stamped on the neck plate, and green 3+2 fretless and both play and sound just great. The Wal is in semi retirement for the occasional gig with the prog covers band, when we have room for all the gear, and recording at home. The G&L's are the main basses now, and the fretless was only originally bought for use with the prog band, but is now coming to Alibi gigs as well

The Fountain in Chichester..........................damn I love that place it's always (there I've jinxed it now) a great night. Crowd up for it & singing along. The fretless was sounding gorgeous again tonight, and I even managed to get through White Punks as the last song in the first set on it No time to change. Some barking mad female punters, frankly scary, but they were getting into it so really who cares. Plenty of totty about, and quite a lot of people down from Goodwood who had been tucking into the alc all day but all friendly enough. Had one guy in the first set staggering up to Steve 1the vocalist who made some jokey comment about not really wanting to be so close as to share DNA and he was off out the door - I thought it might have been Steve's comment, but apparently someone else in the crowd tapped him on the shoulder and asked him to get out of the way Checked levels with the drummer after the first couple & he asked me to back it off a bit, but a little later asked me to turn back up...RESULT! I so wish every gig was like last night. Back to the Red Lion Stubbington after a long lay off next Friday and I fear it will be average. Hey ho.

Said it before, but do please bear in mind that whilst you might get away with some of the suggestions, as Beedster says HMRC are not fools and have plenty of people who know about these things. Getting an under declaration of value or trying to walk it through in a battered case, or in pieces in a suitcase [i]could[/i] get your exchange rate bargain confiscated so you'd be out the cost of the bass, and trip if that's the option you tried, with nothing to show for it. And it does happen. In the last of these threads I quoted bits of a tax tribunal case where just that happened, and the fact that the bloke doing the importing said the pricing "error" on the Customs slip was down to the seller not him made no difference. At the end of the day you would be trying to avoid the duty and smuggling. For purchases from outside the EU the limit for charge is £18, and if it comes through in the post there will be a handling charge by Parcelfarce or whoever - the last item I bought for #2 son that came in from the US was a shirt that got hit with £8 VAT & £8 handling charge. Basically, always factor in VAT & a handling charge when deciding whether it's a good deal. If it still is, and you're not bothered about dealing with any issues over a distance rather than being able to take it back to the shop personally, then by al means go for it. Sometimes things do slip through the net through without a charge by the courier, but don't bank on it.

Yup. Used StringsDirect in the end. Ordered Monday night, arrived yesterday. Can't say better than that really. It would be nice to support a local shop, and one did offer to order in for me, but that then meant order last Sat & I couldn't get back to pick them up 'til next Sat, and I really wanted then sooner to get them on and adjusted before Sat evenings gig. Could have got MrsW to do the collection (assuming they had arrived & she wasn't working) but.... Like I said at the start of this thread I suspect that with 'tinternet string shops the local music shops[list] [*]cannot compete, so [*]just carry a few of one or two brands; and [*]are really not interested in holding much stock for walk ins, certainly so far as bass & >4 string sets are concerned [/list] And, despite the feeling that they were more regularly used nowadays, it seems that basses with >4 strings remain the exception

[quote name='johnnylager' post='907826' date='Jul 28 2010, 08:24 AM']Guitar Junction? Not tried the Hartkes mate - tapered B? I should really file the Spectors bridge to get a normal one in there![/quote] No, Guitar Junction (now behind the Guildbourne) had a few Ropewounds otherwise nowt. Music World was the one I was thinking of & apparently shut a couple of Saturday's ago - well it said "Last day Saturday - Cash Sales Only" but was in darkness last Saturday. Didn't get out to Drum'n'Strum, but Monster was a bit of a let down Hartkes don't have tapers at all IIRC. I'll double check tonight

[quote name='johnnylager' post='907566' date='Jul 27 2010, 08:42 PM']Nowt in Worthing Al, except Rotos. I have tried and failed to buy a whole bunch of varied things locally lately, trawled round the shops, failed every time and ended up purchasing from the internet. For example, I phoned a local guitar shop to see if they had what I wanted [aged white Strat knobs] - 'Yep, no problem', went to collect 'em - 'No, we don't have those - we can't carry everything, try Allparts on the web'. So I did. And will in the future. At least they sell Roto 4-string sets though. Great. I wouldn't buy strings from anyone but Stringbusters now - fantastic service, great advice and they put a low B with a 4-set to cater for my odd requirements for no extra cost over a 5-set. 45-65-85-105- tapered 130 long scale D'Adds.[/quote] I know. That was my fruitless Saturday. Didn't even realise the one out towards the Aquarena had shut! Mind the new one in Warwick Street was the one that offered to order in a set at internet prices. I really ought to go back & support that one before it dies on the vine!! BTW did you say you liked the Hartkes? I've two sets of the 50-135's that are too short for the new G&L fretless strung through body if you're interested

Circus Maximus - Isolate had a bit of a going over this afternoon. Suited my mood. Dare I say Norwegian Dream Theater and a find from eMusic - I love the guitar solo in this. Don't know why but it gives me goosebumps EDIT ....and I do realise it is largely technical w@nk but I like it

[quote name='woodster' post='907506' date='Jul 27 2010, 07:51 PM']Whereabouts are you Walman? Nevada Music in Portsmouth usually have A half decent selection?[/quote] Between there and GAK - pretty much bang smack in the middle, but though gigs are Portsmouth way for some reason I tend to head towards Brighton & GAK. From memory Nevada do seem to have an apparently larger selection of bass string brands, but again (and it may be because I wasn't really looking for strings last time I was in there) my recollection was of more 4's than 5's What particularly surprised me was Andertons (I work in Guildford) who were the ones with three 5 string sets of Rotosound and one of Elites in a pile on the floor at the bottom of the large display of mostly Rotosound 4's on the wall. Ah well

I suspect that I know the answer to the following - and it's internet retailers like Strings Direct) but I have spent three fruitless days trawling shops for a new set of strings for the fretless, preferably 50-135, but 45-130 would have done and either Elixirs or a half/ground wound set and being an awkward b@st@rd preferably not Rotosound, as I don't really like them but would have taken a set at a push. Oh and they needed to be long scale as I am stringing through body and the temporary set I have on at the mo put barely a wind on the D string Found loads of sets of Rotosound 4's but only a couple of sets of 5's that were generally 40-100. The one shop that did have a solitary set of Elixirs, and a 5 string set at that , wanted full list of nearly £60 Another (admittedly predominently a g####r) shop that has only a couple of basses in only had a few sets of Ropewounds - sorry Rotosound - and generally all that was on offer was that or the odd set of Elites nearly all 4 string sets. One newish shop in town at the w/e offered to order in Elixirs and matched the usual web price, but other than that the choice across two towns and a couple of big stores was pretty poor IMO, especially if you wanted a 5 string set. Ended up ordering from StringsDirect last night, but really I wanted a new set sooner than that to get them played in for the w/e. Now as I said at the start I suspect that the web retailers are the main reason for this dearth of choice and no doubt shops cannot afford to carry a stock of all shapes & sizes against me coming in one day for a set, but I was surprised how difficult it was to find a 5 string set in stores generally. Found perhaps 20-30 assorted 4 string sets to no more than 5, and often just 1 or two 5 string sets which seemed a little odd. Perhaps 4 strings remains by far the norm and 5 + string basses are still unusual? I know I used 4 strings for an awful lot of years before getting the first 5'er a couple of years back. Anyway.... end rant

Solid bottom with a bright top, but not hugely scooped mids, and with a smidge of grit. Settings tend to be [list] [*]EQ flat on the MB [*]Slight boost to treble & bass on channel A of the EBS MicrobassII with treble boost on [*]On the L2500's [*]either both pups or just the front [*]Series/parallel switch forwards to series [*]preamp switch on (middle) or sometimes forwards for treble boost [*]bass & treble normally full, but occasionally roll back a bit on the treble [/list] Until I actually sat down to try & learn the Chris Squire line to Astral Traveller I would have said I was after his sort of sound, but listening last week it sounded horrid. Love the sound Dave Meros of Spocks Beard gets, and the guy who plays in Neal Morse's European touring band also has a great sound (IMO) on the recent live CD.

[quote name='Merton' post='900903' date='Jul 21 2010, 12:57 PM']Oh, bugger. Best start saving now [/quote] Indeed. If Andertons had had an LB in stock I might have had one last w/e, but the desire is waning now. A small valve amp that could be DI'd looked good to me, but I wanted to try it with one of my basses and the cab I would have been using with it for a final check - and then they confirmed that the ones they are advertising are not the UK ones, which are an additional £100. Think I'll wait to see what's in the pipeline now

[quote name='thepurpleblob' post='900739' date='Jul 21 2010, 09:28 AM']There's a company around my way called "Sofa King". Although to be fair they stole the name - it's far from unique. However, they have huge billboards all over the place "Sofa King Cheap", "Sofa King Easy" etc. It's an old gag, but how they get away with it I don't know....[/quote] ...and of course [list] [*]there used to be a company called "Knobs & Knockers". Marvellous [*]Ashdown have jumped on the bandwagon with the Little B@st@rd [/list]

[quote name='hubrad' post='899857' date='Jul 20 2010, 11:48 AM']I'm not 100% sure on this point, but ref. selling gear later, I think that if you've claimed it as a capital expenditure (i.e. it's machinery!) then the proceeds of selling it come under Capital Gains Tax, for which there is a separate allowance. Other items like profits (and losses) from buying and selling shares also get lumped into CGT>[/quote] You're not sure, but I am and am afraid I have to tell you you're wrong. You have a pool of capital expenditure. You add to it and claim relevant reliefs. You sell an asset from within that pool and the proceeds (up to original cost of the asset sold comes back in as a receipt in the pool, which if it has a value of nil will give you a charge, and a charge in any event when you eventually retire from gigging/making money (do we ever!). If you are lucky enough to have a bass that has appreciated in value through being a vintage rarity and make a profit over cost then that profit will be a capital gain, but [i]probably[/i] exempt due to CGT rules on chattels EDITs to tweak the answer for correctness / hopefully help in understanding. If you are not sure ask someone in the know, which sadly nowadays [i]probably[/i] does not mean the HMRC Telephone Helplines as recent experience suggests you will get a variety of answers that may well not be correct

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='899157' date='Jul 19 2010, 05:29 PM']So If I (erm sorry Derek) were to claim the pre EB stingray and Genz rig against this years takings I would get a rebate from my (Sorry his) everyday job?Thats how I see it and it appears the way but contradicts earlier posts? Obviously they would not allow it forever and the gear would belong to the company rather than...... er Derek?[/quote] Well possibly. You've got to convince HMRC you're carrying on your musician business commercially and expecting to make a profit at some point. Then if you spent £2k on the gear plus say £400 on other expenses but only took in £500 from gigs you have a potential loss of £1,900 to set against your other income But again remember that if you sell the gear for £1.5k in a couple of years time, then that is income and taxed. NOTE this is a VERY basic example with a lot of assumptions, but you get the gist?

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='897328' date='Jul 17 2010, 02:58 PM']Gear buying is capital, so you can claim for depreciation, not the whole cost, unless you blow it all up within a year.[/quote] Well yes & no. You would claim the first £50k as a straight deduction - the Annual Investment Allowance - but remember that when you sell the gear you have claimed for theproceeds come back in as income, and if you stop your business/give up playing you need to value such items and bring the value in. So it's only a cashflow advantage for collectable/vintage amps & guitars [quote name='farmer61' post='898747' date='Jul 19 2010, 11:19 AM']I spoke with a Chartered Tax Accountant (through my work) last year about this very subject, who stated that earnings from a hobby are not taxable. However if the Tax man can prove that it is more than that then it is taxable. From that, and it was verified but a second source, I deducted that weekend warriors (those who play for beer money and gear) are safe. For functions band charging several £k's per gig, I think it could be construed as more than a hobby therefore would declare away. Btw O'Neills pubs ask for NI numbers on invoices. What do we feel about this from a data protection basis??[/quote] That's about the size of it. Pubs you probably should report, but there is likely to be a loss and after a few years of claiming losses HMRC would tell you it was a hobby and not allow you to set it off. Function bands are more likely to be in the taxable bracket with income exceeding expenses NI numbers, well that'll be because they are a large chain (Greene King pubs do as well) and their internal accountants will be more aware and have set it in stone as a requirement. Effectively they are self invoicing you and your NI number allows HMRC to link returns of payments to entertainers with the entertainers main tax record. As above there is no limit. If you make a profit it should be returned, but make sure you claim all your expenses and if you look at the odd £30 pub gig with perhaps a 50-100 mile round trip then once you take account cost of travel, strings, batteries (obviously some changed more frequently than others), use of your home for personal practice, band r/h costs, phoning round for gigs, etc., then there is little left and at that level it's really no more than a hobby. If you get sent a tax return for some other reason then you should at least acknowledge the fact that you gig, but possibly by adding a note in the "Other Income" section to the effect that you earn small sums as a musician, but it is really only a hobby and expenses regularly exceed income

[quote name='algmusic' post='893531' date='Jul 13 2010, 10:58 AM']depending on how much you want to spend. Markbass are very light and sound great. you could take it on the train Markbass MINI CMD 121P very light (300w on it's own), 500w with another light extension cab. There are usually a few on ebay second hand as a bit pricey new.. £800[/quote] The MB combos are great, loud & light but don't come anywhere near the cheap requirement. Love my 121H but as I've said elsewhere a bit of a bu99er to keep down to a level that keeps the rest of my lot happy

EBS have just brought out a small 60W kickback combe that got good reviews in BGM as I recall.

I should have thought [list] [*]speaker out to cab for onstage monitoring [*]DI out to PA for FOH reinforcement in the overall mix [/list]That would be what I would be doing anyway. Then you have a bit of air moving on stage for everyone else to hear - fine unless you are up against monster guitar rigs that swamp you - and the (full range) PA for general level. My experience of running a Bass POD straight to the PA and feeding that to everyone else through foldback was that it was not the same as having an actual bass amp onstage shifting some air. Might have been different if everyone had used IEM's but that's another story

[quote name='phatbass787' post='893009' date='Jul 12 2010, 05:55 PM']Ive had some covers from these guys in the past, very good and theyll make up anything you want... [url="http://www.ampcovers.co.uk"]http://www.ampcovers.co.uk[/url][/quote] That or [url="http://www.roqsolid.co.uk/wordpress/amplifier-covers/"]Roqsolid[/url] Used them for both the MB combo & Epifani extension and they are - roqsolid

You ought to be able to through the DI socket, which is part of my cunning plan re the LB. Mind the MB combo with the basses volumes rolled back, but not obviously affected as running the actives, sounded blahdy marvellous Saturday, so we shall see.

New gig @ Bognor Yacht Club on Saturday. Worried at the start as it looked as if we were going to get bemused looks & nothing else all night, but actually it went really well response-wise. Playing good enough, but a couple of car wrecks to play through. Sound on stage was odd, bu apparently out front was great. Didn't use the IEM or radio and probably should have. Ah well I should know by now. G&L's sounding great as ever. I now find I have the volumes rolled right back to what seems like next to nothing on both to keep everyone happy on volume front, even with the MB combo on flat EQ, 12 o'clock in & around 8 o'clock out, but the actives seem to keep the sound good.

[quote name='cameltoe' post='891511' date='Jul 10 2010, 06:52 PM']If I can't get the volume I need it may be going straight up for sale if anyone is interested.[/quote] Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh!

[quote name='KiOgon' post='891159' date='Jul 10 2010, 10:40 AM']I haven't heard of any Chinese built in the UK yet so most likely was a handmade you tried. There are some mistakes in the online manual regarding the switches, I pointed these out to Ashdown a while ago but nothing seems to have been updated/corrected yet. As you said the Bass Shift works opposite to the instructions, like the Mute too! The Bright has no effect according to my hearing, which unfortunately is like the rest of me - nearly 60 Still a great sounding amp though, just don't expect tone shaping anything like a 12 band EQ Simples old's kool Cheers, John[/quote] Ah haaa! Yes the Mute switch was odd. Duff lead first time round when I tried it so there was little or no level and I did wonder whether the mute was on at one time. I have the tone controls flat on my MB combo so lots of shaping is not required, and I could probably handle that with the EBS Microbass II. If I got one it would be running through the 1x12 Epifani so I probably ought to try taking that & one of my basses down for another go if I continue to have hankerings for one. Level is not an issue as it would be DI'd to the PA anyway. Decisions!!

Mentioned in the [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=90616"]other thread[/url] on these, I tried one out last w/e & it sounded good. I have a bit of a hankering for one myself. It did seem to me though that only the treble control had any great effect on the tone. The bass & mid seemed to do very little, and to my ears the bass switch up was a harsher, middly tone, where the manual says it gives a deeper tone. Think I need to step back & give this some thought. It would also be interesting to know how the first 100 hand wired in the UK compare to the normal ones built elsewhere? Not sure which the one I tried was

[quote name='Paul S' post='887245' date='Jul 6 2010, 01:12 PM']One of my bands has decided they want to cover 'Somebody Told Me'. Every now and then he seems to pay a low D. I've watched vids of them playing live and he uses a 4 string but I can't quite get my head around whether he has just dropped the E to D or detuned the lot. I suspect the first but can't really tell. Any tips from anyone who plays it? Ta. Edit - I'm not sure he does now... I think what I was hearing as a D was just an E... anyone know for sure?[/quote] Not a clue, but perhaps he has a [url="http://store.hipshotproducts.com/cart.php?c=6&m=product_list"]Hipshot D-Tuner[/url]? Great bit of kit I have had on my Wal for years, and so easy to fit even I could manage it!