Old Horse Murphy

So I was asked by a mate of mine down in darkest Cork to source a Geddy Lee Jazz bass to take over with me when I travel this weekend and I found this corker (ahem). 
 

Anyhow, so did he, right on his doorstep and in his excitement he forgot to mention it until I had taken delivery of the Jazz. I want to move it on quickly as I don't really get on with Jazzes and having played this one briefly I am starting to want to keep it....

It's an early Mexican Geddy Lee from 2014 with the original Badass Bridge, not the Fender branded one. It comes with the Fender gigbag and all the tags etc. and is in excellent condition for an eight year old bass (especially a black one). It plays superbly and weighs in at just under 9lbs. Build quality is excellent and easily as good as any Japanese Geddy Lee I've seen (it weighs a lot less too). The body is alder for those of you inclined to ask. 
 

I am looking for £800 deliveted. No trades please. 
 

I'm pretty certain it didn't. I bought it from Guitar Guitar and in truth I would be surprised if the bass was actually opened by them prior to shipping it. Either way, it's got a lovely low action and sets up pretty well (for my tastes anyway). 

Sorry Dave 😂

1 hour ago, neepheid said:

OHM, you're Pokemon-ing the crap out of G&L worldwide stocks right now

I thought I'd do it while I can afford it before energy and NI increases. I've sold a few bits too which (sort of) justifies it to me!

Price drop to £1,200 delivered or £1,150 picked up. I won't go lower than this now. 

So I took delivery of a US Kiloton today in a gorgeous metallic Tangerine colour. It's built beautifully and the colour is even more striking in the flesh. 

Unfortunately though it was pretty unplayable as the open A string was buzzing something chronic and the action was really high (certainly for my liking). I contacted the retailer and it is due to be picked up tomorrow and hopefully given a decent set up (if it's nothing structural). To say it was a disappointment is an understatement. I'd actually cleared my collection down a bit to get hold of this. 

My other G&L's have been great straight out of the box, so I was very surprised that this one had "issues" but can't imagine the retailer had taken a look it it before it was sent out. There's no way they would have sent it playing like it is currently. I've found G&L's to be a cut above in terms of fit and finish in general, so I'm hoping they maintain their standards with newer instruments too. 
 

Fingers crossed that it gets it sorted. It was a bit beyond me and I really didn't want to do anything as it's under a distance Selling Regulations. Here's hoping I hear back soon and it's nothing too bad. 

1 hour ago, neepheid said:

 

Did you do your A/B comparison between the LB-100 and SB-1?  Keen to hear someone's immediate thoughts with both of them in the same room, I'm working from memory here.

I did, although it wasn't so much an A/B as I finally landed on stringing the SB-1 with rounds and the LB-100 with flats. 
 

The main difference as you mentioned is the output. The SB-1 actually left my SR5 in the dust and it really does need to be rolled back a bit or as I do, use my Tonebone instrument selector to balance out the outputs so I'm not fiddling with the amp each time.
 

The SB-1 is remarkable though and I'd liken it to a P90, in that the volume and tone knobs really do change the sounds quite significantly and it gets a lovely warm but still aggro sound with the tone rolled back. It's probably my favourite "rocking out" bass right now, although I've got a Kiloton arriving shortly on loan. 
 

The LB-100 is just like an old friend and I've strung it with TI Flats but it feels like an old pair of slippers. It's very subtle and I'm not sure it would ever do the JJ Burnel thing particularly well but for that rolling back the tone just a tiny bit thing it's sublime. 

I approve 👍

Forget the bass, tell us about the jacket! 

My perfect Jazz Bass right there 👍

I'm no longer looking for trades thanks and will now let this go for £1,250 delivered or £1,200 picked up. 

Slightly (a lot) off topic, before I went to university I had a summer job with a local builder and we did some work for Jack Gold's son (Jack being one of the founders of Shergold. I didn't realise at the time the connection between Shergold, Burns and Hayman and only associated Shergold with New Order etc. 

I recall Jack Gold had passed away shortly before and his son (really nice chap) had these mint condition Burns guitars, Haymans and a couple of Shergolds sat in gig bags in one of the spare bedrooms. He wasn't a guitarist but had inherited them from his Dad and kept them for posterity. When he found out I was interested in guitars he brought them all down so I could see them. He was very proud of his Dad's legacy and rightly so.
 

I definitely recall one of these Haymans and a superb Black Bison guitar which I imagine would be worth a fortune now. 
 

3 hours ago, Eldon Tyrell said:

Agree, "bold and bright" immediately made me think of this recently released bass

 

 

 

Sigh.....I used to lust after a Washburn in a similar  colour scheme to that back when it used to appear in adverts in one of the free music papers and in Guitarist in the late 80's/early 90's. I'd still snap a guitar/bass up if one came up looking like that. 
 

Sold Aidan a cricket bat. Well, it was a Hohner B2A. His communication was excellent and he paid promptly. A nice guy and highly recommended 👍

.

This was a very recent acquisition as part of a few comings and goings and as much as I want to like Jazz basses they just don't work for me. In addition, the 7.25" radius doesn't fit my hands or my playing style. 
 

This is one of the early Flea Jazzes from 2016 and I must say, the fit and finish is a lot better and less formulaic than me were ones (IMHO of course). The relicing is excellent and the nitro finish is less matte and powdery than newer ones I've seen, and is more gloss which I find looks a bit more realistic. Similarly the pickguard isn't as dull as the newer versions too. It sounds ace and the previous owner has shielded the pickups with copper tape, so it's very quiet for a Jazz bass. 
 

It's a lovely light weight and comes with hang tags and gig bag. 
 

I've priced this to sell and want £720. Action is currently 2.5mm on the E at the 12th fret and 1.5mm on the G. It's a tiny bit high for my liking but I am a very light, lazy player. I also struggle setting up 7.25" radius necks to my preference so the price will hopefully allow it to be at up just right for whoever buys it (assuming everyone is as inept as me at setting them up- if not then hopefully it's a bargain!)
 

I'd rather this was handed over in person, either picked up from Monmouth or within an hour's travel where I'd be happy to hand it over. Alternatively I'm happy to post at cost.

7 minutes ago, Quatschmacher said:

Do I go around the houses again?

Clearly the answer is yes 😂

For sale is a stunning American Pro II P Bass from 2021 in Miami Blue. It's in mint condition and comes with the original pickguard plus a WD Music black pickguard. It plays beautifully with a lovely low action. 
 

The bass comes with the original Fender case plus all accessories and tags. It weighs in a lovely 9lbs dead according to our digital kitchen scales. 
 

It's a really difficult colour to photograph and is actually more of a dark turquoise in the flesh. Either way, it's lovely. 
 

I've not had this too long but now I've started gigging again I'm likely to be using my G&Ls or my SR5, so sadly this won't get much use and it will sit there gathering dust. 
 

I'm looking for £1,250 delivered although I'd rather this was picked up or handed over within an hour of Monmouth.
 

No trades please 

I went through a stage where I assiduously fitted Schaller strap locks to all my basses but for the last few years have reverted to Grolsch/home brew washers as well. I have never had an issue with them coming loose or being less secure, whereas the Schallers would work loose intermittently over time and often I found I had to butcher a good strap to get the locks to fit properly and securely. I actually used to find the extra distance the Schallers pushed the bass away from the strap was a bit disconcerting too.
 

My only bass that has Schallers still is my 4003S as them come as standard on it and replacement strap buttons are not as easy (or cheap) to find due to the specific diameter of the screw used. 

Don't know why but it reminds me of when The Shadows were in The Thunderbirds once. Maybe it's the dancing and lip synching. 

I think if you can justify it and get pleasure out of it then go for it. It's definitely more important it does what you want it to playability-wise and sounds how you want it to for me 👍

17 minutes ago, gareth said:

Then you must try a G&L Tribute Jb-2

 

Many dealers were selling these for £250 round Christmas time and they can still be had new for £300

 

They are a revelation - jazz tones in a p body 

Thanks. I've just been eyeing one up funnily enough, but I also had a P Bass body built a while ago for my Fretless along the same lines. It does make such a difference. 

7 minutes ago, Cat Burrito said:

I like so many bands where the bassist uses a Jazz bass. I've owned a couple over the years and my latest one I've lived with for a few years is an American standard from 2008. My issue was always that on it's own, it sounded fantastic, in a small 3 piece arrangement there was a noticeable lack of bottom end. I strung mine with flats for a while which gave it a 60s Scott Walker type vibe and it sat nicely in the mix of a 2 guitar band but lately I wanted more of an 80s alternative sound so recently went back to roundwounds. I've found by rolling back both the tone and the bridge pickup slightly, I can keep that Jazz sound whilst getting a thicker sounding bass. 

 

I can't be the only bass player to feel this way. I don't have this issue with my other basses so don't think it's my playing but always find the Jazz suffers in a smaller band setup. I just wondered how others got the best from a Jazz. Did you perhaps not feel this was a problem, change your amp settings, play around with the controls on the bass or change the pickups. Or a combination. Interested in people's thoughts. 

I completely understand this as I have always felt the same way. I also struggle ergonomically with the Jazz body but would certainly persevere more if I could get a sound I liked. 
 

In my Fretless I switched over to EMG JAX pickups and harness which has helped a lot but I still set the EQ similarly to you. I think the only way for me to get a thicker sound I like would be to go down the old S1 switch route, with a series/parallel option. 

I remember seeing an interview with members of Manfred Mann talking about when Jack Bruce joined them and they showed him their magnum opus Pretty Flamingo. They said they would talk him through the changes but he said "don't worry, I've got it" after one run through. 
 

It think it was Tom McGuinness who said it used to break his heart watching Jack playing it on stage as it was so far below what he was capable of. Still, a gig is a gig I guess...

@Clarky