mcnach

Indeed, but that doesn't make the same headline as saying that the evil EU hates us now. It is a complex situation and we need to be cautious about 'news': we rarely get all the relevant information from a single source, unfortunately, and it works both ways both for pro and anti-EU stances.

ah well, you save me from a sleepless night trying to decide what to do Let us know what you think about it after you try it, please

🙉🙈🙊 Only £25, that's really nice if the pickup is decent (and it sounds like it is!) I really want to wait until I get the new strings, I've changed too many pickups when a different string model could have been all I needed . The OP's bass (the MB-4) sounds really nice with the stock pickup, judging from those clips.

I haven't tried the Focusrite Scarlett Solo USB interface with my phone because it cannot power the Solo, but I intend to try the additional cable with an external power pack and see if that works. If it does, that would be the ultimate record-anywhere solution, as I may not have my tablet with me always, but I'll always always always have my phone. A lot of modern phones are able to power an USB peripheral directly 'though. While an external interface is not necessary, these USB interfaces make recording extremely easy without worrying about latency etc, it all happens under the bonnet and you just plug and play. The Solo in particular is quite flattering for bass without any additional processing, so I prefer to have it at hand. N-track comes with some free FX including guitar and bass amp simulations. They're not amazing, but they can be pretty useful too, although I generally prefer the sound of the bass straight from the Solo.

I have one of the older Behringer labelled mixers, pre-USB era (I got mine in 2001 or so), the 1002 model equivalent. I love it, that's why I considered their Xenyx USB range. The 502 looks just right too, a good compromise between size and features. The 302 can be USB-powered, which can be a nice feature, but it was the 502 and the 802 that were tempting me the most. It turns out that the Focusrite Scarlett Solo works well with the tablet and can be powered up through the USB, which is nice: fewer cables and it means I can record anywhere without external power. Two inputs (microphone/instrument) as well, so if you are happy to record one thing (or two) at a time, the Solo is fine, but it doesn't have the additional functions that a mixer gives you. So many interesting options!

It's true that some of their instruments look a lot like some J&D and Harley Benton, and even some Jim Deacon a decade ago or so... but SX say they make their own instruments and since the early 2000s don't make instruments for others. Shrug.

another data point, thank you!

No, SX is an independent established brand with their own factories in China, as far as I was told back in 2005 when I came across my first SX guitar. I got in touch with them because they seemed to make a wide range of instruments which we couldn't really see over here and I was after a cheap but nice Stratocaster. I think they have had deals with a couple of retailers, like Rondo in the US and... I forgot the name of another shop in Germany (where I got my first one). There was another shop in Ireland that seemed to sell a great selection of what SX made, around 10 years ago, but I can't find them anymore. edit: some about the SX history, it looks like they used to make instruments for others for many years, and then they set up their own brand SX. It sounds a bit like Cort in that respect. http://www.sx-guitar.com/index.php/About/history

I haven't tried those, but my experience with SX instruments has always been very good. Like most cheaper instruments, they often benefit from some attention, perhaps some mild fret levelling, or the nut slots, just things like that which would be covered in any decent setup. They punch way above their price suggest.

Some were, some weren't. I never figured out what the deal with that was, but it appeared that earlier ones (late 2003 and early 2004) were often (if not always) wired in series, based on the ones I could check personally. My 2003 one was wired in series and I felt that configuration suited the 2EQ preamp better. The 2005 I had was parallel. I saw others wired in series and none of them were later than mid 2004, and every 2005-2006 was parallel. I also had an early 2005 SUB5, and that one was parallel. Alnico too, at a time when SR5 basses used ceramic pickups. I really have no idea how they chose their pickups.

Really good basses those. If you're not after the Stingray sound, the L2000 is a great bass too. I still regret selling mine...

Exactly like a Stingray of the same period. I owned three SUB 4-string and their necks were pretty much like my 2002 Stingray. It's neither a P nor a J, but definitely more P than J.

... until you go to pay and discover that UK is not listed 🙈

So true! So many options... In the early 90s I could only dream about a 4-track tape multitrack recorder, and when I finally had a Tascam 424 I thought that was a small miracle. The idea that I can use a phone or tablet as a multitrack recorder is amazing. Garageband looks great, I have friends who use that very effectively, but unfortunately it's not available for Android. N-track is a very good alternative 'though. I have been using Reaper on my computer before, but I've ended up buying the PC version for n-track as well as its simpler interface suits me and it means I can shuttle projects between tablet/phone/PC easily.

I just ordered a new set of strings. It looks like DR don't make the exact set I would like and can't seem to be able to find the right singles... and a lot of suppliers seem to be out of stock, so I had a look at Newtone Strings: UK-made and often compared to DR. I ordered a set choosing gauges individually, round-cores stainless steel (going more for the Fat Beam vibe after all), and the cost was similar or a bit cheaper than buying DR. Let's see how it goes.

Just a brief update: Little android tablet + Focusrite Scarlett Solo USB interface (USB-powered) = easy recording anywhere. It works very well, no latency to speak of in n-track and super easy to use. My mobile phone cannot power the Solo through USB so a different cable + additional power is needed, but it works very well enough using its builtin mic (or the iRig2, although this is not as good on my 3 year old phone). Still useful to capture ideas anywhere, but the tablet is really good for recording, and then projects can be transferred to the laptop for easier editing, although you can do everything on the tablet itself.

I'm considering that, yours look great! I actually have a few adhesive vinyl sheets somewhere that I could try. Not sure I have any black right now 'though. I have purple, various shades of red, even copper effect too, but not sure about black. I may have some with that 'carbon fibre effect' texture, in black and burgundy if I recall correctly. I'll have to look for them and see, maybe I get a chance to try it today. I have no experience whatsoever of Warman, they seem too cheap to be good enough, but sometimes cheap is good (Tonerider, Entwistle...), your clips sound good, so it's definitely a contender (edit: I got confused, the clips I heard were fropm the OP, with the stock pickup, I think?). I won't think about it seriously though until I have put strings that are more to my liking (probably DR Sunbeams on this one... although I have a set of blue DR Neons that could look interesting but I'll have to get a separate 5th string for that... blah blah blah... )

If I didn't have a Stingray already, I'd be very tempted too (I am tempted anyway, and I don't need one ). A perfectly nice bass for no money at all, with the option for 'upgrades' if you really want an onboard preamp and/or a different pickup. I've played my share of cheap instruments, and this one is probably one of the better ones, by far. The finish is so unique too, I love it.

Well, it's been a few days now, still getting used to that 5th string, and overall I can give a big thumbs up. 👍 It's not perfect, but whenever I think of something that's not quite 100% then I realise that I was comparing it mentally to other basses that cost me up to 10 times more It's a very decent bass, and a ridiculously good bass for the money. Mine looks like it had been on display for some time. It didn't have fingerprints or anything, but there was dust accumulated on the bridge/saddles and on the same side of all three knobs, and it seemed a bit... messy in general. By comparison, my girlfriend's Precision in the same finish was absolutely smooth and impeccable. Quick wipe, and all is good. It's pretty light for a 5-string bass: 8.6 lbs. My old EBMM SUB5 was close to 11, and the G&L L2500 was around 10 lbs. This one is only 8.6 lbs which is nice. The balance is pretty good, on a strap it stays where I put it, but I can feel the neck is very nearly in the 'too heavy for the body'. It's one of the things I've found in many light basses, they seem to achieve that largely by using light bodies, and then the neck pulls it out of balance. This one is ok. The neck is full, slightly on the chunky side for a 5-string, not far off the L2500 as I recall. The SUB5 and Lakland 5502 were shallower (and also slimmer for the SUB5). Is this bad? Not for me, I favour meaty necks: Precision/Stingray styles. The string spacing is narrowish but wider than on 5-string Rays, and the G string doesn't fall off the fingerboard because there is enough room. It is BLACK. Like... none-more-black. In a guitar rack it looks like a blackhole-shaped guitar. I love the finish. Not sure what the fingerboard is made of but it's very nice, very dark, smooth, shiny. Fretwork is good. Originally the neck had far too much relief and the saddles were too high. I think that maybe the same person who put it on display noticed some fret rattle and decided that one way to alleviate it was to ensure the strings were as far as possible from the frets. If that was their goal, I expect they slept very happily that night, proud of a job well done. If they wanted to still have a bass you could play... then not so much. A quick adjustment (what took me longest -minutes- was to adjust the curvature of the saddles, they were all over the place) soon made it very playable. I haven't played 5-string basses in years and even back then I never really adjusted to them, so I still feel a bit lost and hit the wrong string, between the narrower strng spacing hand having one more string... muting is getting rapidly better but I still have work to do to get to an acceptable level. Right now I can play ok for a while and suddenly KLANG goes the B string, ooops... I definitely don't feel comfortable to play it live yet, not that there's any hurry, unfortunately Sound... definitely on Stingray territory as you'd expect, but not amazing. It's a perfectly usable sound, and between the two volumes and the passive tone it's decently versatile. I love Stingrays, and this gets me close enough... and again, if I think "hmmm, I wish it had more X or less Y" I quickly remember the price: if something bothers me enough, it would be very easy to modify it while retaining the total cost low when you consider how good the resulting instrument is. The only thing it needs is to file the nut slots a little, as it's a little high as it is, but that's trivial and it's perfectly playable as it is anyway. Other than the pickguard (not a fan of the tortoiseshell look) I have no intention of changing anything in a hurry, but I suspect that if I end up using the 5-string more and bring it to my bands I would change the pickup. My favourite is the Seymour Duncan alnico (SMB4A for 4-string) or the original (Nordstrand MM4.2 is very close to it), unfortunately the 5-string version comes in a differently shaped enclosure so I would have to find something else. No hurry 'though. I think a black pickguard is the way to go. This is without one at all:

Indeed. For what it's worth, I spent some time adjusting and readjusting the pickup heights until I was happy with the sound: it really is easy to do. Also, are you aware of the dip switches on the board of the preamp? You need to open the control cavity to access them and it gives you 4 different modes for the operation of the treble. I had no idea when I bought mine and only found out months later. Worth experimenting with that too: some settings were not to my liking at all, but a couple were good (for me).

That looks like the pickup was pushed down in transit. Don't touch the screw yet, and simply try to pull the pickup cover up (edit: pushing down on the opposite side as @Doctor J says will help). If you can't, then undo the screw and redo it. I don't think you'll need anything under the pickup. I remember vaguely I can push mine down a bit and they push back ok. I can't check right now as I lent the bass to my trumpet player, but your picture is pretty clear to me.

Yeah, let's go back to important yet never repeated questions like... P or J? which bass for metal? is pick only for heathens? etc...

Well, it is the bass I was waiting for More tomorrow

Received the dispatched note on the 23rd of December, arrived today in one piece (Harley Benton bass).

Mine was ordered around mid-December, and a couple of days later they all had the "in stock in 10-12 weeks" or something of that kind. I'm assuming that what the label says on the box is correct I haven't opened it yet, waiting for my girlfriend to finish work.