mcnach

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1437385900' post='2825426'] Well, if the one or two (hell, even five) Class D amps which one has tried aren't producing the goods versus the one or two (or even five) Class AB ones one has listened to, then of course it stands to reason that all Class D amps are crap and all Class AB are awesome. QED? [/quote] exactly! who needs statistically significant differences, eh? Precisions used to be rubbish, but in the last couple of years they really have improved the way they make them, because now I like them.

[quote name='mikechapmanhill' timestamp='1437221045' post='2824510'] Also what is greate-ing? [/quote] ooops, typo, now corrected. I meant "create"... As in the original J route is only half the route for the double J... so you need to "create" the cavity for top half somehow.. with the router, with a chisel, dynamite... whatever you can use

[quote name='mikechapmanhill' timestamp='1437220184' post='2824504'] What is a router? Sorry I don't have much experience in changing pickups haha. I think I would prefer to install a MM pickup if I'm honest, but wouldn't I need to make the bass active to get the same sort of tone? Also that bass looks extremely tasty [/quote] a router is just a tool to carve the wood and make a neat (depending on your ability... I've also used a router to make a horrible mess once ) pickup cavity. I'm not sure you can cover the existing cavity with the MM pickup... let me check. Bad news... it'll leave a gap at each end. If you put the MM pickup flush with the bottom ears, so that they're covered, the pickup is a bit narrower than the J pickup and it leaves a gap: It's not huge, but it would bother me a bit. You could make a thin frame for the pickup too, which might look pretty cool and would cover the gap. You don't need a preamp. The MM pickups are standard passive, and the Stingray sound exists even in passive mode (when placed in the correct spot, it'll sound different when you place it closer to the bridge, as in this case, but it will still sound good, just not very Stingray-like). I already experienced that when experimenting with OLP Stingray clones, but the final proof to convince disbelievers was my 2002 Stingray: I had the original 2EQ preamp replaced with one of John East's preamps. They are based on his own '76 Stingray preamp, but it adds a mids module with a sweepable centre frequency you can cut or boost... or leave flat which renders the preamp a copy of the classic 2EQ Stingray preamp. In addition, I asked him to install a preamp bypass switch. So I can bypass the preamp entirely and it's unmistakeable Stingray! You just cannot boost bass or whatever, so you're stuck in that one particular sound... but it's a great sound on its own. The pickup in the pictures is a Seymour Duncan SMB4A. I bought it for a Cort GB74 I have (MM pickup on the bridge, J on the neck, so pretty much what you're after). It's a very powerful pickup (I've used it on OLPs before) and would be my first choice. The Maruszczyk is a great bass. I got to specify the exact neck profile etc... it's a beast! BUt a good kind of beast

[quote name='JapanAxe' timestamp='1437218734' post='2824487'] Part of the way the standard TS works is to roll off lows. The R18/C10 takes the HP frequency lower. [/quote] so it's a design that was never really suited for bass then, eh? Not complaining, as it sounds lovely for guitar! Maybe part of the "tightening" the sound it does is through cutting some of the "flab".

That looks very very promising!!! I don't presume you made before/after clips, eh? I have one of those but I'm not using it for bass because despite how nice it sounds, it just cuts too much low end for me to be able to use it unless it's permanently on and compensate with the amp controls... I wish I were better with my hands for these sort of minute modifications as I'd love to make the Joyo useable for bass Maybe one day I'll summon the courage needed!

simply changing the pickup will not be enough, as the Stingray sound the way it does largely because of the position of the pickup (and width etc). So, it's time to bring out the router, like hubrad said above Now, you could have a Stingray MM pickup installed... it won't be at the right place exactly if you want to cover the existing route but it'll get a fatter growlier sound than you do now. If the goal is not so much to get a Stingray sound, but to get more growl and a fatter tone from the bridge pickup, I'd think of using a "double J" type pickup. They look like two Jazz pickups stuck together. It'll mean you can use the existing routing as is and all you have to do is create the top part of it, and it'll look neat. I have a JJ in my Maruszczyk: The JJ pickup, with the second coil towards the neck, sounds massive. It's got the bridge J vibe in terms of definition and midrange, but it's a lot fatter, and has tons of growl. That's what I'd try.

[quote name='Muppet' timestamp='1436429314' post='2817981'] Sorry, I'm not quite understanding what it is that you're wanting to achieve, can you elaborate a bit more on your problem or maybe post some photos? If the pickups aren't parallel then it could be that the screw holes in the body when the original pickups were installed were drilled wonky, but modifying the pickguard suggest to me that the replacement pickup that was fitted wasn't the correct size or was fitted badly. [/quote] +1

[quote name='FinnDave' timestamp='1437123267' post='2823719'] The idea of laying through an amplifier at home seems totally unecessary and self-indulgent to me. The only reason to play alone at home is to learn new parts or improve your playing in general. For that the 'tone' argument is redundant. No need to make others unwilling share your mistakes. [/quote] There is a thing called "volume" in the layout of my home amp's controls. It seems to be able to regulate how loud it goes, from rattling windows to completely inaudible. I have found a spot in said control that allows me to hear my bass very well at a volume that's no louder (in fact probably quieter than many) TV sets in people's homes. Who would have thought it? Now, more seriously... bass indeed travels. For people leaving in apartments, or sharing walls with neighbours... it's important to be aware and careful about that. But it's not just bass amps... TVs (especially with a full sound system! Those explosions sound awesome in the room but they can be really annoying to neighbours), stereos... Some people don't realise how much noise they make. Stop and think about it. I do use an amp at home, but it's generally not very loud at all. In fact sometimes I practice along to my mobile phone, which is great as its bass reproduction is very poor... so it allows me to play back recordings from rehearsals when we're working on new songs, and it allows me to try different basslines until I find what I like. I set myself a curfew of 9pm, because that's where the little girl upstairs seems to be going to bed. I have indeed spoken to neighbours telling them to not be shy if the noise is annoying... and their response is that they hear it sometimes but it's not obtrussive. My downstairs neighbour says she didn't know I played bass at home... Be mindful and you don't need headphones all the time.

[quote name='alexclaber' timestamp='1437074430' post='2823434'] We'd love to make a great busking amp but very few buskers seem willing to pay what something like that would cost to build let alone allow us to turn some kind of profit! Maybe something for a Kickstarter? [/quote] True, your typical busker doesn't invest a lot of £££ in their equipment I use a QTX QR10PA thingy (marketed as a mini PA) because it's small, light, runs on a built-in battery, more than loud enough... and it just works. But I'd love to have something that also has a great sound

I have used my TKS1126 cabs with both Genz Benz Streamliner 900 and Shuttle 9.2, and they sound good. Fine. But on Sunday I played in a bar without PA support for bass, using my MarkBass combo (essentially a LMIII head in small cab with a 12" speaker) and one of the TKS 1126 cabs as an extension. THAT was really very good! I have previously used a number of cabs as extension for this combo. I used a Barefaced Compact (sounded immense, quite a good match), a Barefaced Big Baby 2 (good but not as good as the Compact), and a Schroeder mini 10R (fantastic sound!)... but the TKS 1126 was the best of them all as an extension cab. I let this other band use my rig, so I got an opportunity to hear it in action away from the stage. In fact, the bass player for the other band had an accident and dropped his bass down the stairs at the venue, breaking a couple of tuners... someone went out to get him another bass, but he did soundcheck for his band using both my amp and my bass... It sounded much more powerful (yet balanced) than I imagined from the sound onstage. So... want an extension cab for your MarkBass combo? do consider these TKS cabs. The sound of this combination is just beautiful!

[quote name='Ghost_Bass' timestamp='1437058120' post='2823265'] [b] [size=5][b]Barefaced Behemoth? Suggest a big crazy cab for us to add to the range! (And tell us why we should...)[/b][/size][/b] Does it have to be big? I had another idea when talking with my keyboard player, he also plays in a dixie band and takes his keboard with him when they go out busking (complicated system to atach it to his body). His main problem is amplification, mainly the low-end reproduction on the existing busking amps. So why don't you take your new amp design for the active cabs, add your knowledge in light-weigh cab building and create the ultimate busking amp? Ultra light, great sound, nice lows, big output (loud as F**K!). Just have to think about the battery Is there a niche for this? [/quote] oooh, a busking amp... I'd like that!

[quote name='Jus Lukin' timestamp='1437060390' post='2823289'] Fair enough, I've sent an email about a replacement. Take away the noise troubles and it will be fine for what I'm after, so hopefully another unit will be the answer! [/quote] fingers crossed!!

[quote name='Painy' timestamp='1436978583' post='2822537'] Just ordered one of these from GAK as I needed a distortion pedal for when my band covers Ace Of Spades (just doesn't quite work with a clean sound). After watching the various YouTube demos and reading this thread though, I'm now thinking I may actually use it as an always on pedal for warmth and growl and just crank it when I need a full on overdriven sound. Should arrive tomorrow so looking forward to having a play with it at Saturday nights gig! [/quote] I'm not sure it would be the right noise for Ace of Spades, its strength lies in lower gain sounds. But with the treble knob up a bit you do get a pretty dirty sound, who knows? Let us know how you find it!

[quote name='Jus Lukin' timestamp='1436969056' post='2822431'] After some judicious use of masking tape it does appear that lots of the switches and sockets weren't airtight and were causing lots of the noise. As I'll likely never use most of them a little tube of silicone will probably help no end! The wheels do rattle a little bit too which wasn't unexpected- I'm sure they can be damped somehow if it proves intrusive. The only other thing is that distortion kicks in pretty early either on battery or mains even with a passive bass. It's only when playing out that I'll be able to tell if I can get enough out of it, and how much bass I can cut before I lose the right spot in the mix. In my living room I've been running it with the treble fully cut and bass at 12 o'clock. Thanks for your help so far, but again, how's yours for clipping/speaker breakup, Mcnach? Mine seems to have trouble after about 9 o'clock on the volume with a P-bass with rounds. It's always hard to gauge volume out of context, but at that point things in the living room were rattling sympathetically, so hopefully it will be adequate! [/quote] I think I'd try for a replacement, that doesn't sound right Mine does not distort, and I have played it with passive (Precision & Jazz) and active basses (Stingray & Jazz + J-Retro preamp), including some bass boost from the onboard preamps on the active ones... I also used it with a Zoom MS-60B, using some of the synth effects... It's not the best bass amp in the world, but I had no issues with rattling or distortion or the noises you mentioned. I'd get a replacement, really. Someone I know has recently bought the 12" speaker version, and he seems to be ok with it too. I think you got unlucky.

John bought my 1996 Fender Jazz 75RI today. Couldn't have been easier! Thank you, John! I hope you enjoy that bass... I'm missing it already, but it deserved going to someone who would really use it.

[quote name='KevB' timestamp='1436894861' post='2821836'] I probably should qualify that all my observations about overrall bass tone are strictly for my 'real world' situations. I play rock n pop covers in pub bands. If I can hear subtle differences in sound in isolation but they are not translated into a difference in sound when I'm playing in the band at gigging volume they are irrelevant to me. I'm only really interested in what the audience hears. This just doesn't apply to strings but changes in pick ups, amps, cabs etc. It's only when they make big enough differences to be noticeable in the 'real world' that they are of any consequence to me. I never practice at home using my gigging rig. [/quote] same here! to be honest, a large part of what makes me like a string is the way they feel, the way they "bounce", as well as the actual sound, so for a pair of string types that sound the same to me, perhaps I still prefer one over the other based purely on feel. Feel is very important as it affects the way I play even if they sounded the same. Some strings just don't have the "meatiness£ that others do. This also means that I may prefer different strings for different basses depending on their setup and what sound I go for (different sounds for different bands...). I agree that much of the audible differences are lost by the time you get the full band going in a bar environment, but the way they feel will affect the way I play, or the way I feel about playing, which affects the final result and my enjoyment of a gig, of course.

[quote name='Jus Lukin' timestamp='1436892769' post='2821816'] Finally got round to ordering the QTX, and it arrived this afternoon. It has many features I don't need, but seems to sound fine for it's intended purpose. I'm having some real trouble with noise coming from the back panel though- did you find any thing like that Mcnach? There are some definite points of air leakage (I can literally feel it puffing from a couple of the switches!), so hopefully it's just a case of plugging or gumming up the right spots. Not sure I'll take it to rehearsal tonight, just in case it is a faulty unit... [/quote] Hmmm, no, mine didn't do that [1]. It did develop some rattling after a couple of months... it sounds like there's a loose nut/washer inside, but I had been taking it places and not being particularly gentle with it so I wasn't going to go back and moan It's still ok. There's some hiss, plugged/battery with/without instrument attached, but it's not audible on the street or in a bar with people around etc. [1] more correctly: I have not noticed anything like that. I have not checked, or felt I had a reason to check.