Wilco

I feel partly responsible (in a good way!) for your GAS resistance caving in. 😄 That looks bloomin’ awesome!! Nice score.

True enough, but why can Maruszczyk do that on a new bass which is way cheaper? Just seen this;- http://www.bassdirect.co.uk/bass_guitar_specialists/MARUSZCZYK_Sputnik_5a_Burl_Walnut.html Not just a few hundred quid cheaper - over £7000 cheaper. Seven Grand!!! 🤔

It’s what I was thinking to be honest. Said luthier makes the questionable business decision to set up in an area with a high cost base ( I mean, NYC!?! Everything is stupidly costly there!) & hopes that enough gullible punters will cover his costs by overpaying vs quality of the end product. Not saying it’s poor, obviously not, but unlikely worth the price vs the competition. From a fiscal perspective only on a used Fodera then, is that possibly the worst bang for buck in the bass market? Said production costs have been covered by the first buyer, & similar quality used intstruments are way cheaper. What’s the extra thousands buying you then............. ?

Honest question. Not a pop at the seller who after all is selling both. £8849 (to be exact) is not exactly loose change! http://www.bassdirect.co.uk/bass_guitar_specialists/Fodera_Emperor_II_Elite_5.html http://www.bassdirect.co.uk/bass_guitar_specialists/SH_Maruszczyk_Sputnik_5.html Yes, obviously there are wood & spec differences but where is nearly £9k of difference?

Got to say, the look & sound of the blue Bass on this has very definitely got my attention......

The MB Fusion is still on my radar, although have changed my mind I think on the Terror bass. Perhaps too much of a one trick pony. I really liked the look of the 4 Stroke. Very similar to the LH500 but better spec. Unfortunately same size & weight! I think i’ve reached the same conclusion on the Darkglass. I think that’s out too. I’ve got a Glockenklang pre amp in my Elwood 4 & it’s epic. Unfortunately so are their amp prices! 💷 😬 I don’t know why, but I look at the Ashdown website & just can’t get excited about what I see. 🤭 The Quilter is back under consideration! When I thought about it more, I could put my Bass Fly pedal in front of it for additional sound shaping..... 🤔 Hmmm, that looks interesting. A bit 80’s on the styling front, but like the spec. Where did you see the price? I think they are still available - there is a website anyway. Yes, good spec & looks a great amp. Can’t see a UK dealer though, which probably kills it for me. (thank you for the offer to try yours out though) Anyone know if the MB TTE 801 can do a ‘modern’ sound, or is it purely aimed at a vintage sound?

I have eclectic musical tastes, so need an amp that’s a good jack of all trades. I really like my TC. I’ve happily used it on gigs & the various connectivity options are very useful indeed. Great quiet home rehearsal tool. I’m definitely keeping that amp regardless. I used to have a modest Hartke LH500 which had a valve pre & solid state power amp. I loved the ‘piano ring’ sound that amp could give out, & it’s that i’m trying to replicate I suppose, but on an amp that does not weigh as much as a car!! 😆 Your comments about the Quilter echo what i’ve read about them, & I think I would miss the top end a bit. No doubt a great amp, but probably not for me. Did not know that - interesting. Would go some way to explain why the Darkglass gear sounds so good? I’ve just spotted a Markbass TTE801 at a good new price. Wondering if that might be sonically similar to the LH500? It might be too vintage for me though & possibly lacking in top end. Notice it has the old school VLE filter control on, but not the midcut VPF one.

I’ve no problem buying from fellow BCers - most of my kit has been bought from here. However, take that Markbass TTE for sale for example. Mighty fine amp i’m sure it is, but judging by the photos it’s a 2011 model so already nearly 8 years old. In my mind I can get a new (ok, different model) amp for circa 50% more & because Amps contain electronics that can fail over time, my personal preference would be for new. Agreed on full valve sound & power amp too, but the comprise for me there is on weight & portability. A good point, but I just haven’t got the free time to go round trying a load of amps. All I can do is make a best guess informed decision based on t’internet info & any other information I can get hence this thread.

I was getting that impression about it’s valve sound too. All my basses are active, so that should help in filling out the EQ. Bloomin’ ouch!! 💷 I’ll buy used basses & cabs, but I have this thing about only buying new amps. Safety & reliability etc. All good heads though. What about the Darkglass Microtubes 500 anyone? Not a valve pre I know, but Darkglass seem to get rave reviews. Still not as good as a real tube pre amp?

Top of my thoughts at the moment are either the new Orange Terror Bass 500 or the GK MB Fusion 500. Cabs as per my sig below. Anyone got any experience of similar set ups? Any thoughts on either of those two amps? Alternative suggestions at similar or slightly higher prices? My TC BH550 sounds great, but pretty sure I can improve on it.

In the book he says he used them on his Rickenbackers & he did notice a sustain difference on those. That probably drove his opinion then, but as you say, having so many Jazz’s to compare to now must have changed his mind.

I’ve only had a cursory glance at it so far, but one page I wanted to get to was about his ‘72 Jazz. Interesting comment about Badass bridges on that one, basically saying they make bugger all difference on Fenders over the stock BBOT. Many of us will have formed an opinion over the years on the value of a high mass bridge on a Fender, but from a player of that amount of experience with loads of Jazz’s to compare against, is that the definitive answer?

Only one that I’ve owned that I really hated - a 1999 MiM Fender Jazz 5 string. It was an incredibly dull & flat sounding instrument tonally when I got it. I thought i’d could cure that by putting a couple of Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounders in it. It then turned into a louder but equally dull & flat tonal instrument!! Possibly poor quality wood both body & neck? Electrics worked fine & I changed the cap too. It was just a dog of a bass though.

How many times do you see that on a Fender Jazz - loads. You’re right, should no way happen when a custom builder is involved. I had a Jazz Deluxe once & the scratch plate & control plate didn’t line up on that. Not very Deluxe. Misaligned plates & gaps in the neck pocket are all too common on Fenders. Just general sloppiness & poor quality control.

You’re not wrong. I’ve just been on the Maruszczyk configurator & specced an Elwood to something similar as below (can’t do the Jake). That Elwood spec includes Delano pups & hipshot bridge & tuners. Build quality would be just as good & comes in at £1800........

I’m going to go against the grain here (‘pun’ intended) & admit to thinking it looks.......sort of alright. The spray around the pickups is definitely a step to far though, & the price is just ridiculous. Good to see a Fender P that aesthetically isn’t as boring as f**k though!!

A couple of pairs for me. Obviously I have a thing for wood grain & matching headstocks!

Yes, agreed. Better instrument depreciates faster - go figure. Saying that, I think a stronger used value is a particular strength of a Fender instrument vs pretty much any other brand. Maruszczyk’s are on a par or better with most others i’d say. Sandberg’s are a good comparison & their used prices are comparable. Given how good my SGC’s are & how little I paid for them, I gave up trying to understand the used bass market ages ago! 🤷‍♂️😂

I was thinking the same thing, but then I look at say a well specced Elwood or Jake price & they could still come under the price of a Fender Jazz/Precision Elite. I know i’d rather have a Maruszczyk given a choice of the two. Time will tell on Brexit, exchange rates & pricing, but if the £ falls further it’s obviously going to effect all foreign made brands anyway.

Geddy’s new bass book - very excited about that. Gear wise - nowt for once. In that unusual situation of being very happy with my current gear. How’d that happen?!?! 🤔

Since the 8th November I’ve had 15 marketing emails from Fender!! I suspect that is mainly due to Black Friday time, as 4 of those arrived on Friday alone. On all sorts of products too, in fact don’t think any of them were bass specific. Time to unsubscribe I think, as fell out of love with their products ages ago anyway!

+1 to that. I have them on my Elwood 5 stringer (also with a Delano pre-amp) & they sound great. Far livelier than the Barts they replaced.

You probably won’t want to see this then!?!? http://www.bassdirect.co.uk/bass_guitar_specialists/Sire_4_V7.html

Seem sensible enough. No mention of upgraded tuners though. The tuners caused issues on both V7’s I had. Still good value for money. https://www.sire-usa.com/new-features-2nd-generation-sire-bass-guitars-new/

These have a lot of similarities to SGC Nanyo’s. Ok, the headstock is different but the body shape looks the same shape. The jack socket area is reprofiled, but at the same location & angle. I’ve always wondered what the historic connection is between these two ranges? Is there one? T’interweb not really offering up much info about a connection, unless i’ve missed something. Anyone know?