martin8708

I go up to London 2-3 times a year and each time I go to Denmark Street ,the quality of the instruments and the customer service seem to slide down yet another notch. Andys at the end of Denmark street now sells old eastern european and Hagstrom type guitars which possibly only Jack White would like , I can remember when the instruments were great 10 or so years ago,and you would put up will the poor treatment from the shop staff as part of the "Denmark Street " experience . Now the guitars are appalling , there is no reason to go there. I agree that there is huge potential to revive the street, probably just need to get rid of Music Ground ,or wait for them to go bust ,so that the shops can go back to individual ownership.

Hi Clarky I am quoting from the Vintage Guitar Guide by Alan Greenwood and Gil Hembree ''An original instrument must have the original finish . A refinished guitar is generally worth about 50% or less of the value shown in the guide .A repaired guitar , technically ,is not all original . Repairs can make a guitar generally worth 5% to 50% less than values shown in the guide . A professional re-fret or very minor nearly invisible body repair will reduce a guitars value by only 5% . As a fellow 63 P-Bass owner , the pleasure of owning these instruments is playing something unique and if the neck needs a refret to bring it to its full potential , it will only enhance the instrument . As it is a refin , it will never be a '' museum -grade '' instrument , so relax , get the refret ( with period correct frets ) and enjoy . PS , spent 2 weeks in Tuscany , now its a toss up between Corfu and Italy for that bolt-hole .

[quote name='KiOgon' post='1322391' date='Jul 31 2011, 07:24 PM']So if you turned up for 'your average pub gig' with a Custom shop Pino Palladino or similar, let's say £2.5+ks worth - how many people would notice?[/quote] I normally gig a 57 Vintage Re-issue Precision , have done for the past 10 years . Recently bought Jasons CS Pino Precision ( though I would treat myself to a bit of class ) and the first gig I did with it , I was told the bass sounded '' farty '' and some-one offered to nip home to get their Arai bass for me to play in the second set . Amp is LittleMark 3 with two New York 604 cabs which sounds fantastic . Now I just say the Pino is a cheap Squier bass and changed the strings to round wounds . I used to have a 5 string for gigs too , but got rid of that as everybody wants you to do 5 minute solo's as they assume you are some bass god with the extra string .

[quote name='Monckyman' post='1279540' date='Jun 23 2011, 12:27 PM'] That`s me told! I might remind you though, that this is supposed to be fun, otherwise we`d all be accountants.[/quote] Great to hear a kindred spirit out there in the wilderness , again I have nothing but respect for the audio engineers who probably know squillions more about cabs + speaker design . But please give us mavericks in our woodsheds a chance . I am constantly tinkering with my cabs , stripping them down , adding bits + bobs and seeing how it effects the sound . I will never go into production , but just enjoy ''punking '' around in the woodshed . After all, you Americans did put a man on the moon using slide-rules and one of the best Harley Davidson flat track racing bikes was designed by a dentist !! I may never change lead into gold , but who knows what may happen along the way .

[quote name='Dad3353' post='1276818' date='Jun 21 2011, 11:06 AM']Good afternoon, Martin... I see you're on the Isle of Wight. Have you got electricity yet..? (No, just kidding; I do things the empirical way too. Not always so proud of the results, though..!)[/quote] Hey , we have had electricity for at least 10 years now , but we just got this new fangled thing called ceefax . I have nothing but respect for guys like Alex , whose cabinets probably sound 100 times better than mine , but the OP is interested in building his own cabinet , and most people seem to be trying to put him off or confuse the guy with computor talk . Basic woodwork skills are a must , and a well build , sealed , cabinet will look /sound alot better than something which looks as if its going to collapse . A lot of people will follow computors blindly , ie , motorists driving straight into rivers because their SatNav tells them to keep driving straight on , so use of Brain + Hands is neccessary . A sheet of 8' by 4' 13 ply Marine Ply will cost approx £55 and any decent builders yard /timber merchant will give you as many accurate cuts to make the basic shape of the cab , if your corners are 90 degrees , most things fall into place . Most cab depths seem to be approx 15 inches , I suspect this has more to do with Tolex coming in 36 inch width to allow economical use of this expensive material . Sea Sick Steve built a guitar out of a hubcap given to him by Jack White , If my approach is a bit unorthodox , I make no apologies . Martin.

Hi there , if the old amps / speakers were so terrible how come all the major amp brands offer ''modelling '' amps to try and re-create those sounds we had in the seventies . I am on my 6th cabinet and my approach to building would probably give the computor boys hysterics. 1) snap up a cheap speaker on e-bay 2) Rummage around wood-shed for suitable wood , the more I can re-cycle , the better . 3) Build the box ,I'm probably a better woodworker than sound engineer . I have built cabinets out of 100year old pine ( rescued from a Victorian house doorframe ) Fender used pine in his early cabinets , Used 80 year old Mahogany from an old fireplace ( Brian May built his guitar from a mahogany fireplace ) Used Meranti from a Salvation army hall Stairposts , made front panels of laminated American Oak with mahogany stingers (just like the old Hobie Surfboards ) , each cab sounds different , but they are unique . I gig them and receive nothing but good feed-back and requests from other players to build them a cab . Perhaps in this over -computorised age , we need a bit more of '' seat of pants '' engineering One thing a computor program cannot give you is the pride you have when you plug in your cab that you've made it with your own hands . Rant over - I think I'll crawl back into Woodshed now . Martin.

I have been to 5 of the I.oW festivals , it helps when you live about 30 minutes walk away from the venue . They seem to be cramming more and more people into a fairly small venue ,just moving from one stage to the other is a real struggle . To my suprise ,Tom Jones was probably the high point for pure professional entertainment , he looked as if he was really enjoying the show and all the audience was behind him .Nice to see John Paul Jones too. Some of the younger bands could learn a lot from the old guard .

I lived in London for 3 years from 87' to 90' and used to visit all the Denmark Street shops on a regular basis , and unless you are Keef or Sting or some other up and coming band with a fat advance cheque from the record companies , you were generally treated with the same indifference and bad manners and ignorance in all the shops ( most are owned by the same parent company , anyway ) . It is still the same today , but my favourite target is V+R where I can get a real good laugh at the prices they charge , and makes me feel like Bill Gates if I apply their values to my own collection . Most of my great bargain basses ( including the 63 P Bass ) have been bought locally here on the Isle of Wight . Many thanks to Ian at Strings Music shop in Ryde. ( shameless plug )

I play in yet another '' Pub Rock Band '' ( don't do Mustang Sally ,thought ) , but halfway through the second set we throw in Folsom Prison blues by Jonny Cash and the audience really go nuts and start stomping around the dance floor . I think there is a little bit of Country and Western in all of us , but I don't think I could do a whole night of it .

Getting back to the original thread, I have bought and sold basses , amps and pedals on basschat with very few problems , and generally had better success than selling on e-bay . There will always be ''window -shoppers '' who want your items and will ask for pictures + information with no real intention of buying them , but this is part of retail life . If you oblige these people with friendly and civil replies , they may turn into a real customer . If you jump down their throat and call them a timewaster , you will never see their money . If you wish to sell , YOU NEED THE CUSTOMER , The customer does not need you .

I'm 47 , hair went 20 years ago but have my own teeth /knees. But at least I look in better shape than the drummer !

Is that not normal dress code for gigging bass players ,then ?

Hey ,I love Le Chic and Sister Sledge and watching an old video of Duran Duran live in Rio some 25 years ago was what made me take up bass guitar, but I think if Ozmike were to spend 5 hours in the Bass show trade hall , he will understand the flavour of the thread. I can do slap bass myself, but apart from using it on one song ,about 10 years ago in a covers band, I rarely ever use it and it will probably get you thrown out of more bands rather than Muso's rushing up wanting you to join their band ( unless your a Level 42 tribute band )

Just got back from the Bass show and I agree 100 percent with Clarky. There were more slappers in the trade hall than a Friday night down the town after payday. Most were pre-pubescents or the guy from the Rotosound stand . Obvoiusly they did not attend the TM Stevens workshop, he emphasized the role of the bass player was to make the other musicians sound good , not draw attention to themselves .

Just got back from the Bass show , in agreement with all the comments on every single trade booth filled with '' slappers ". Not really my idea of a good time , but TM Stevens was great and Marco Mendoza well worth the trip. I attempted to try out the new Yamaha BB's and the Attitude 3 , but really could not hear a thing as I was competing with all the grommets in the next booth playing mega-slap through rigs that really belong in large venues/stadiums. I took a wad of cash and credit cards, but I'll probably stick to Basschat for my purchases. Glad I went, not sure if I would rush back .

Hi 73 Jazz , I had the refin done about 6-7 years ago and I think it was about £350 for the body work . back then there was a 6 month wait for the guitar to be returned . I was talking to Mark Foley who runs Fatboy Guitars here on the Isle of Wight . Mark specialises in ageing scratchplates and pickup covers and other small items for guitars , and he knows Clive quite well and says he now has a 3 year wait list and you are probably looking at £500 for a refin . Best idea is to contact Clive himself for price and waiting times . Mark did a brilliant job of a authentic torty shell scratchplate , he has them cut in old style nitro cellulose by Martin Sims of the Sims Custom shop and then ages them for you , very handy guy to know . Best Wishes Martin.

Thanks Guys , actually it was 73Jazz cool collection that inspired me to get off my rear and take some photos on this miserable sunday afternoon . Clive's refinishing is probably the best around and has fooled many of the experts , he also did a 63'Strat for me in fiesta red . You can just see the faded colour where the rear ashtray should have been . Hi Clarky , I still play the 74 maple neck Jazz you sold me back in August , lots of posative comments from the local bass players . Cheers Martin

Here are a few Precisions from my collection . A 63 that was stripped when I bought it and has been refinish back to original olympic white by Clive Brown [attachment=72082:P_bass_c...tion_021.jpg] Heres a very early Custom shop 51 P-bass , never seen another one since . [attachment=72086:P_bass_c...tion_017.jpg] here a very pristine 72 P bass [attachment=72087:P_bass_c...tion_016.jpg] Main gigging bass , a 20 year old 57' Vintage Re-issue , definately a keeper . [attachment=72089:P_bass_c...tion_020.jpg]

A pint of wife beater in Cowes , Isle of Wight. is pipping the £4 mark It's cheaper to stay in with a bottle of Aussie Red . I noticed my Ashdown 550 head has gone fron £600 to £669 in a matter of days in Dolphin music , but you do get a ''free'' Ashdown T-shirt in the deal . I think the second hand market is definately the way to go , all the money saved could be spent on crisps .

Had a bit of a clear-out to finance the Mark Bass mini stack . Done about half a dozen gigs and the volume and clarity is top notch . Lots of nods from guitarists + drummers who like the sound . ( kinda miss the valves and the 15'' speakers thought )

I was leafing through the Aug edition of Bass guitar magazine and came across the Woodshed article on Ashdown Engineering . I have been aware of the lower priced amps and combo's that Ashdown produce , but I was not aware of the high end big valve amps they build as well. I've always fancied an Orange 200W valve bass amp to keep the flag flying for British built valve amplification ,but now I have started looking at Ashdown in a new light . Does anyone own / use these amps and what is your ( honest ) opinion of these amps , are they a viable alternative to the Ampeg/Orange / Hiwatt amps ? Cheers Martin. PS , I know Ampeg is not British , it's probably not even American any more , but I know people will use it as a benchmark for bass valve amplification .