mcnach

[quote name='SH73' timestamp='1433575839' post='2792175'] Well if the bridge or neck is out of line on a big name such as Fender especially signature model I see it as a massive issues. [/quote] chances are it's just a minor neck misalignment, easily sorted. It's not uncommon, and all it takes is loosen up the neck screws a bit, realign, and carefully tighten the screws again. A very minor shift can look terrible and make it seem the bass is all wrong.

I played my first gig with it last night: I'm in love. It's really comfortable, I love the neck (of course, I did indicate its dimensions... but it's still reassuring to find I didn't make a big mistake somewhere, as Adrian thought I was going for too chunky a neck at first and I had to convince him that I like it like that ) Sound-wise... huge. It wasn't the best venue, regarding sound, and I used my Streamliner 900 into a provided 410 that was all lows and little midrange, so my experience *felt* good but I didn't hear it as well as I hoped, although outside at the front I was told it was good. I went for their stock pickups and... I'm not convinced about the Precision one. The bridge JJ is good, meaty, fat, I really like it. But the P is a bit... wooly, a bit too scooped. It makes me miss the Classic 50 P-bass. So I'm definitely replacing that to see. I ordered already an Entwistle PBXN, the neodymium one. I installed one in a Squier Mike Dirnt and I like it very much, although it's not a "classic" Precision sound, it has good presence and sounds really good. I think it could be a nice match for the JJ. I was meant to play it again at a festival today but the weather is being a dick, and the strong winds means it's been cancelled

I played my first gig with mine yesterday. It's the most comfortable bass I own. I guess that's what you get when you are able to indicate the neck dimensions you want. Only, if I could do it over again, I'd have chosen some other pickups. I went for their standard offering and I'm not convinced at all by the Precision pickup. The double J, however, is pretty cool.

[quote name='4-string-thing' timestamp='1433498506' post='2791507'] A couple of weeks ago, I traded my cheap Chinese double bass for a Fender Modern Player Jazz via one of the bass player groups on Facebook. No problem, both were valued around £300-£350, met up and swapped instruments both seemed happy. Now I see my bass is being traded again but he's valued it at £850! I don't even think they were that much new! Should I be annoyed that even if he gets £500 for it, [color=#0000ff][b]he's made a healthy profit from my bass[/b][/color], or should I just chuckle and think "good on him"? Generally when I see adverts on Basschat where people buy stuff then realise it's not for them, they usually just try to get their money back when they sell it on and I would see this as polite, but a £500 profit? [/quote] I see how it may sting a little, but... it's NOT YOUR BASS. You agreed to a deal, so presumably you were happy with it. So what it the next owner manages to make a profit? Sorry if it sounds a bit harsh

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1433324387' post='2790046'] It sounds to me like a mix-up in terminology. It's inconceivable for bands to provide PA in such circumstances, both for technical and financial reasons. Could it mean 'supply your own backline', that's to say the individual amps and cabs that the musicians play through..? That would make (a bit...) more sense, I think. Confirmation of requirements is the next step, I'd suggest. [/quote] yes, this makes more sense, if it's a misunderstanding.

[quote name='DorsetBlue' timestamp='1433320039' post='2789966'] Okay, this is for a colleague of mine. His son (14) and friends are in a band and they have been picked to play on a minor stage at a small local festival in a 'Battle of the Bands' kind of format. They have been told that they will need to provide their own PA, as last year some of the bands claimed they were not very good because of the provided PA. Now I have never used a PA and neither has my colleague (both Brass players historically) - so we are not sure what level of equipment this would entail. Does anyone have any experience of this kind of thing and could suggest what type of kit (possibly with examples) that they should be looking at? [/quote] The organiser should have arranged for a PA to be brought in and used. It is not reasonable to expect each band to bring and set their own. Battle of the bands? Just don't... It sounds like a disaster. Let the organiser "organise" the event, including PA, or pass.

[quote name='gafbass02' timestamp='1433332467' post='2790141'] I much prefer the micro tilt three bolt on my 75 reissue. Wish it was on all my basses tbh [/quote] same here

a Polish colleague explaining to me how to pronounce this... (the 'y' was some kind of hybrid between i/e, closer to 'e' actually)

[quote name='krispn' timestamp='1433369052' post='2790593'] I'd have swung by your gig this weekend but I'm off up north but keep me posted when your playing again and I'll come have a listen. It's a fine looking bass and judging by the sheer quality of the two NBD threads these guys are worth checking out! [/quote] They are!! Next week we have a weekend off , but we're back on Friday 19th, Whistle Binkies, midnight-ish till 2.30am. Come say hi if you can!

That looks even better than the first picture! 7.2lbs!!! wow!!! Mine is less fancy than yours, but like you, I'm amazed at the level of workmanship, and the cost... it just doesn't add up. It's not just a lot of bass for the money, it's just a lot of bass, at any price. Taking it to a gig soon? Mine is out on Friday and Saturday, no doubt!

Well, I had a 2h rehearsal tonight with the Jake. AND I LOVE IT!!! Very comfy, the neck is a little nicer than my Classic 50 even. I don't know what it is... I think it may be just as wide and perhaps a tiny bit deeper on the first frets, but further down is a bit shallower... I don't know, it is just a nicer profile than I expected. Very pleased with the result. Sound-wise... that bridge pickup is a beast! I am still not 100% sure about the P pickup... but it sounded better than I expected after my test at home. They're not bad pickups at all. The P actually reminds me of the Wizard Thumper I used to have... I also felt it was a little scooped in the mids for my liking. I used mostly the P on its own, and sometimes both on. We have one song that calls for a bridge pickup funky kind of sound, and the bridge alone with the tone rolled off a bit was just perfect... This bass is going to be used this weekend, for sure! It cost just a little more than the Classic 50 Precision... and I was able to choose finish, colour, neck dimensions (and I could have changed a lot more things, like pickup placement of types of pickups... for not much more). These basses are fantastic value. I suppose it'll be harder to sell on than a Fender, if it came to it... but who in their right mind would want to sell it? Also, I had not noticed at first that the headstock is slightly tilted back. Just slightly, enough to ensure a nice break angle over the nut. Nicely done. I'm not in a hurry to buy another bass... but I suspect that I'd think of another Maruszczyc if I want something else. Highly recommended!

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1433359017' post='2790481'] I like the maple/ash natural look, the neck looks like a nice bit of quartersawn wood and it all looks very tidily built. If you gig it on Friday I might be around to hear it, though I think my Saturday gig clashes with yours. [/quote] I will most certainly use it on Friday, so if you're around you're welcome to lay your hands on it

[quote name='Roland Rock' timestamp='1433358594' post='2790476'] Really nice. The black hardware looks particularly nice. Is the body a bit more 'offset' than the P? I like it [/quote] I think the lower horn cutaway is a bit lower, yes, because of the extra fret.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1433358098' post='2790470'] Very funky! Have you taken the plastic off the PG yet? :-) [/quote] Not yet! I didn't have much time before rehearsal tonight, so I didn't want to waste time (I like to remove the pots so that I can get to all the plastic). But it'll happen tomorrow. How about yours?

That looks fantastic, WoT! I unpacked mine too But I cannot get the light right...

The two "contenders" for this weekend's gigs

Although this was "custom", I didn't go for anything very extraordinary, at least visually. It's essentially a PJ, passive, where instead of the usual J I have two J pickups in a humbucking configuration. The zero fret is a feature of all Maruszczyc instruments. I always liked the idea. I initially wanted a more yellowish finish, kind of "vintage" Fender, if you know what I mean. The neck is lacquered, gloss. I emailed back and forth about this... Adrian said it might be difficult to get the exact colour I meant and he showed me a picture of one of his yellow tinted necks. I felt it was a bit too much. It might have been ok, it's hard to photograph correctly and I've seen other instruments that look just right... but I played it safe and told him to not worry about it. The actual colour is more "alive" than the pictures above suggest. I should take pictures on a sunny day. What I wanted was a PJ type, replicating in a way the neck of my Classic 50 Precision. This is considered by most people as "chunky" but I think it's a wonderful neck. I specified nut width and depth at 1st fret, to get in the ball park. The result? GREAT! I love the neck, I feel at home instantly. It's a *tiny* bit narrower perhaps, but it could be my perception, as the strings are indeed closer together than on my Precision. You see, I indicated the width at the nut, but not the inter-string distance! The nut appears to be cut just as if it were for a narrower neck instrument (his stock Jakes seem to be about 40mm wide while the Classic 50 is about 43). Not a biggie, especially in a zero fret instrument! But I'm not in a hurry to change that, and I probably will leave it as it is. It plays beautifully, really comfy. The pickups... I'm not so crazy about. They're just the standard ones, I decided to just go stock and see... and I'm not sure. But I'll give it a try before deciding to change them. I had to play a little with the pickup heights to make it sound right to my ears... The bridge pickup was a bit overpowering. The output of these pickups is enormous, both of them! So I ended up bringing them down, away from the strings a bit, and angling them a little. Now they're more balanced, and with both pickups on it sounds pretty meaty, whilst originally it was too scooped. Usual Jazz bass tricks balancing the pickups. The bridge humbucker is nice. It's my kind of sound: fat, good definition, lots of mids... this cuts through like nothing else. The neck pickup is ok, but when played against my Precision, my Precision wins, no question. It sounds ok, but it's a little dark. Now, I am not sure how much it is because of the pickup, and how much because of the position of the pickup. It's about 1cm closer to the neck than in a standard Precision. Adrian said it made little difference, but I'm not entirely certain. Again, I could have placed it anywhere I wanted, but in the end I went for their stock placement. It certainly is a Precision, no doubt... but it doesn't make me smile the way the Precision does. Still, early days. Let's try it with the band and judge then. So... that's my Maruszczyk Jake 4! It feels wonderful. It's very very well balanced, better than my Precision. Not particularly light, yet definitely on the light side. The build and finish is flawless. 2h till rehearsal! Let's get something to eat and take this baby out edit - I forgot another feature of these basses: the angled headstock.It's is slightly angled, enough to do away with the string tree on Fenders and MusicMan basses. I don't have anything against string trees and I think that a straight headstock is probably less prone to damage (falling flat, hitting headstock first, etc)... Not a huge consideration, but there it is.

I forgot, it came with a nice leather strap too, as shown in the picture above. Really nicely padded... I'm not a fan of leather straps, I own a couple I never use... But this one is very nice. Another very nice touch. Ok, a few pictures:

Well... I got home and unpacked it. The ironing board came in a reasonable gigbag (it won't compete with my Fusion F1, but I'm sure I'll find a use for it), some tools in a pretty velvet bag (unnecessary, but I guess it adds to the nice overall cosmetics), and (terrible!) a booklet with a lot of drooling material and further info about what kind of custom work this company will do for you: everything you can think of! This is bad. It makes me want to design something really special for them to build! But I'll resist for now... and here it is... my Maruszczyk (spellchecker, go away!!!) Jake:

[quote name='Markolinni' timestamp='1433337576' post='2790204'] now.. UNWRAP IT ... and say out loud... mar.. marus.. marusxz... well, forget that! .. let's play [/quote]I I'm going home earlyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!

[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1433339203' post='2790226'] I would have had to open the parcel if it was me...would have sneaked an amp in with me in the morning too if I knew it was coming... [/quote] Well... as I was anticipating this moment, I prepared for it, and I have only about 15 left at work before I escape home. Rehearsal tonight as well... I was planning to use my Precision on the Friday and Saturday gigs, and tonight I get to use the backline that will be provided on Friday at rehearsal... But... It would almost be insulting to leave the contents of that box at home.

[quote name='Weststarx' timestamp='1433338501' post='2790220'] I have no idea, but I have the same filing cabinet as you at work. [/quote] (turning around....) But I don't see you? Are you sure it's the same???

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1433336384' post='2790182'] I am also at work, but mine has been opened and plunked upon. More later :-) [/quote] Dang! You beat me to it! And? Looking forward to the inevitable NBD thread

[quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1433332235' post='2790138'] Ironing board? [/quote] You clearly know me and know the state of my shirts (I own an ironing board, and a nice iron... which gets used about 5 times a year )

[b]edit: finally revealed, I edited the title - Maruszczyk Jake[/b] This is just cruel... I have received this a couple of hours ago... and it's just sitting there looking at me while at work. Unopened...