mcnach

I'm going to block threads like this from my feed until I get my VM4...

Well, Alex must have seen my comments here or on the other thread, found my email based on the serial number, and wrote to me. I didn't want to get glueing because it looks to me like it'll be complicated to remove the excess glue afterwards. However, he says their water-based glue (the one that does seem to work) can be wiped off with a cloth and warm water after the tolex is glued back together. It looks like you need to warm it up, paint it, press both parts together and wait till it cools down. I think I'll have a go. The description sounded like even someone like me (hate DIY) could manage it. Nice touch that Alex found me even if I had not tried to reach him.

Am I the only one who really likes the logo on their bass cabs?

Haven't we all heard that before, 'though I hope it does the job for you. It looks great too. Is yours blue like in the picture? I like the look of that one.

We had to pull out. Our drummer has some family matters that will take him away that week. Are you going to be playing? I was also going to play on the Saturday with a one-off band we put together just for that, playing Audioslave songs [1]... but the singer, after standing us up twice, has just told us she needs call it off. Shame, as I was looking forward to play those (only 6 songs). [1] One of the organisers got in touch with our RATM band to ask if we did Audioslave too. We said no, and that our singer didn't have the range for that. But she said she knew a girl who would be perfect, sent us a video, and we said we're in. Well... our drummer was going to be away (different drummer), but our singer said he'd do it. It would be his first gig on drums. We were all quite keen but too much faff for a one off 30min show to be looking for a singer now.

Isn't the SC finished in 'tuffcab'? If it is you'll be ok. I owned a Compact and two BB2, and from time to time they'd acquire a ding here and there, which was very very easy to retouch (I bought a small retouching kit from BF, but you can buy the stuff elsewhere). With regards to TKS, I only have praise: the sound, the service, options, look and the built quality. I personally don't imagine using a single 112 except as a stage monitor. It's true that I've played gigs without PA support with a single 112 or 115, but I play more gigs where that would not be enough. The Barefaced BB2 was probably the closest to being ok from the ones I tried. If I absolutely had to use only one, that would be the one. But I do prefer two in general. I think stacking two vertically gives me the best chance to get the right sound out front while still being ok onstage. The TKS S112 is my favourite sounding of theirs. It also happens to be the cheaper one, and it's very compact and superlight. I've used a single one as a stage monitor and for rehearsals. For rehearsals, choosing the right spot close to a wall helps a lot getting the right depth, as the S112 is not very big on the low end. Using two it's a lot easier to get the right amount of 'girth'. I think they're beautifully sounding cabs with tight low end and there's something in the midrange that just works for me. They just sound good whatever I do The only drawback is that they're a bit limited with regards to power handling, so you need to be sure that you're not going to put hundreds and hundreds of watts through them. Normally I would not need to, and I used a pair for all of my gigs for quite some time. Small bars without PA support? No problem... but I'd be a bit nervous about others using my gear and bumping up the lows higher than I go for. I play mostly ska/funk with prominent bass lines, so I'm not shy with volume or depth, but I realise there's other bands who like to be louder than we go for. The 1126 is bigger, but still easy to carry, and is a lot bigger sounding with better power handling. I'd be ok with a pair of those. I used two, in fact, for a while. But I prefer the sound of the S112 so I stuck with them despite not being as powerful. If you think a single 112 by some super-duper company might be enough for you, volume wise, then I'd really recommend you try a S212 or two S112 by TKS. Yes, it's two speakers... but they're compact and light. I'm actually more comfortable carrying a pair of S112 than a single Two10. They won't be supermegaloud... but no single 112 will be, really, and they sound great.

I hope they REALLY sorted it this time. They said they had before... I'm not sure there's much point talking to them. I am nowhere near them so the notion of popping round and having them reglue the seams is a no goer. I use the cabs regularly and I don't want to be posting them etc. They could offer to send me glue, as I think they have done to others. Frankly, I can buy my own glue. They sound good and have had people commenting on that a few times... so I will continue to use them, but I'm considering removing the logos as a protest (yeah I know, but let me have my tantrum for a minute )

I've had two Two10 cabs for around 3 years one, 2.5 the other. The covering on the newest one (May 2017) has started to peel away over the past few months. The other one (September 2016) seems to be slowly starting. What's the best/easiest way to fix this? I'm leaning towards getting a roll of black duct tape and tape the seams around the back and be done. Not the prettiest, but it can be done reasonably well and I know it *will* stay in place. Glue is ok, but it seems like it would be a faff considering the gap is narrow at the moment so I'll have to deal with a lot of spill over cleaning afterwards, and it would presumably need doing all around the seams, even the ones that at the moment look ok, as it's surely just a matter of time. I don't live anywhere near Barefaced HQ so I'm not going to drive to them with my cabs or post them (and I use them regularly, although it could be a good excuse to bring out my lovely TKS again)... Any other suggestions better than using black duct tape?

After how many years? My early 80s Marshall guitar combo has not exactly been treated nicely, and the covering is firmly attached as ever...

Well... I hadn't noticed anything in February, but must have been starting, because look at this The other one seems to be going the same way although it looks better. The seam was never as 'seamless' as I would have liked but it never felt like it was coming apart... until recently. The cabs are always indoors, with their covers, moderate temperature never close to heaters etc. They're transported, used, and brought back. Not exactly pleased. Really like the sound, shape, weight and everything. But I'm really not pleased about this. I bought mine after they were supposed to have sorted their glue issues. Clearly not so. I got one in September/October 2016 and another in May 2017. The one that is in better condition is s/n 103, so I expect that's the 2016 one. The one in worse condition is 149 in the pictures above, presumably the 2017 one. I know they offered to reglue or send you glue etc to fix it but... come on. I expect that they have learnt how to do it since, now that they regularly offer vinyl cover cabs for their guitar range etc... but I'd be a little nervous.

Really good to hear. I love TKS. And no peeling vinyl covering on those ones...

Some of the early SUBs were definitely wired in series. I've got one (2003). But most were in parallel (my old 2005, for example, and others I've tried). I actually prefer the series mode with the 2EQ, they seem to complement each other better... but both are good sounds that scream "Stingray" when you hear them.

Not a fan of the 'full on' 2EQ. It's just too bassy and not a little mid-scooped for my liking. Then again, I don't try to out-dub or out-scoop anyone... I don't think I'd have bought a Stingray if I only tried it with all controls on full, to be honest.

More like £150-160. It's still not cheap but it's 25% less

The 2EQ pat is not that different. I do think it's less shrill on the treble and the bass a bit tighter... but there is not much between them. The reason to replace the original, for me, was adding the semiparametric mids. If you go for a MMSR, get the 3-band. With the mid control at the centre detent it does nothing and you get the usual 2EQ goodness. But when you need a bit more control over the midrange (for any value between 100 and 2000 Hz), that extra control is there for you and comes really handy.

If you are ever in Edinburgh, send me a message and I'll happily let you try my 2002 Stingray (with a 3-band John East preamp) and my 2003 Made in USA EBMM SUB with original 2EQ. Personally, I find a lot of other basses are ok. I had a long honeymoon period with OLP basses in particular: once you find a nice one, they're a good platform to modify. But nothing really compared to a nice genuine Stingray, except the SUB. edit: sometimes various MM/J or MM/P basses have been suggested as getting close, even the G&L L2000. I cannot agree with that. They can be very nice, but when the pickup is not even close to the position in a Stingray, you just cannot get close to that. The Ibanez ATK series gets a bit closer, but it's still very much not-Stingray. I had an ATK300 in natural for a while. Beautiful bass. Great sound. Not Stingray like, just another very nice sound.

I don't think you can compare two instruments and say that any differences are due to one particular component, no. But you can, in theory, devise a way to measure the effect of any given component, by having a single instrument where you try multiple units of the component you want to measure: essentially keeping everything the same except that one component. Whether anyone should be bothered, is another matter

Exactly. That's why the only 'practical' (for a strange definition of practical, I admit ) way I see to address this is to use a single body/pickup set/strings and attach to it a large number of similarly produced necks, some rosewood, some maple fingerboards. There can be other factors such as how well the necks have been fitted etc, but with a large enough sample the effects could be ignored if we accept they willl randomly affect both types of neck. Then start measuring and get plotting. Get a sense for just how much variation there is within each type, and how the two populations compare to one another. I'd expect to see that the variation within each type is larger than between types. Maybe I'm wrong, of course. Either way, I'd expect that it would illustrate quite well why it's hard to predict the result, even if there may be a slight tendency to favour one direction. Measuring the variation could also be interesting to illustrate how big the effect -if it exists- is. Or rather, how small, and how little it means when you consider the signal processing applied to any bass output, especially in a band mix. Just my expectations. I'm certainly not interested enough to go to the trouble to do this Which is why 20 years from now someone else will be having the same discussion

It's common on AliExpress. It gives the seller a bit more time before the transaction can be closed as unfulfilled. It costs them, so they don't want to get there. You're still protected, you're merely agreeing to postpone the initial delivery date.

No need to get that far, and that would not work either because the trees will not grow to be identical anyway. My view is that there is so much variation between similar instruments, that even if say maple 'tended' to be brighter, the effect is small enough to not really be a factor when designing an electric instrument, especially considering how the results cannot be predicted with any degree of accuracy. I'd be happy enough taking a single instrument and trying similarly constructed necks, just with different fretboard materials, say 100 of each, and see what the spread of the data is in each case. My empirical and non-statistically significant experience suggests the spread would be quite wide and the overlaps very large. There may be tendencies for some woods to be darker or brighter... but if we continue discussing this without reaching an agreement it's probably an indication that there is not a clear cut answer. Much like in Jazz vs Precision threads there is never a clear winner.

Good points well made.

If you take a couple of instruments that look and are built the same, they often still sound different, as I'm sure you might have experienced in a shop when shopping for a specific instrument...

I heard a difference. I don't know what it was due to. I design experiments and analyse data for a living... That was not a real experiment

I actually agree with just about everything, with a couple of little qualifications in places. It even contains the "best bass for metal" (kind of) issue... Just a bit of fun

Damn, I should read the whole thing before replying... always late to the party