Matt P

I use a SB-2 on my tiny church pedalboard, the chain is Polytune->spectracomp->Mini HP vong->ENO eq7->Bass soul food->corona chorus->Radial sb2 the pedalboard is a mildly modified Mooer M5 with all of the power distribution under the board. this works perfectly for me with all of my basses (all passive as that's my preference) I'd expect that it will work fine for you as well, the Radial Di's are great bits of kit. i don't have to use the Pad or the ground lift and run it straight into the desk with no eq or effects on the desk. It seems to work perfectly with all of the pedals off as well as with them active. Matt

i'm one of the small group that own and play short scale 5 strings, i'll have to look at the numbers later (i have a HB shorty as well that i'm planning to re-body as a jazz when i get round to it) as an alternative option that you might not have considered, one of my short scale 4 strings is an Aria Integra, they have used an interesting build method with this, the neck blank is actually the same as a 34" scale 21 fret neck but with a 30" scale 24 fret board, combined with a small body this makes for an excellent bass. (as an aside this bass is small enough to fit in a standard electric guitar hard case) If you could find a cheap 21 fret 5 string then with a new or modified body and a fretboard it would be possible to build a great 5 string (this was my plan before i chickened out and commissioned my 5 string from Andy) If i get a chance i'll take some photo's and measurements tonight Matt

good choice with the Pacifica, If the plan is to mainly be using headphones then skipping the amp and going for a multi-effects unit (like a zoom) might be a better option, they have loads of useful sounds, amp simulations and if you get the right one a looper as well, not to mention a good tuner all built into a ready to go unit. that should keep him happy for a bit and shouldn't sound bad run into the bass amp (set fairly flat i'd guess) i helped a friend source a cheap Zoom unit a while back and before dropping it over i gave it a reset and a test, i was mightily impressed with the quality of the sounds. then if he sticks with it you can scour the local classifieds for a decent amp. Matt

You can just see the word piano on the handles of the bahco cutters, I've just given them a quick check and the cutting edges are still in good shape, Matt

I bought a pair of Bahco cutters about 18 or so years ago, they specifically are designed for cutting hard steel wire, 2mm capacity on a single core. they're still going strong and have handled a .125 stainless steel low B with no issues at all. Bahco cutters they're not cheap but they are quite compact and work perfectly and give a nice smooth cut. I know that some of the technicians where i work have the same cutters and guard them jealously! I have one of the planet wave tools (part of a goodie bag when the NYXL strings were launched) and they work fine but the cut isn't as clean as the bahco cutters Matt

i'm not sure about the G10 but all the others (as far as i'm aware ) it is selectable, the G30 has 6 channels and the others have more (possibly 12) one thing to note, If you are planning to mount on a pedalboard and use a different power supply then they need an isolated supply and quite a bit of current (the G30 ran happily on a 240mA connection (doubled current cable on a Harley benton power plant junior), the G50 needed more so i'm using a 500mA connection now (Fame DC Junior) Matt

I started with a Line6 G30, never had any issues with it, leant it out to a friend for some Christmas shows and they pestered me to sell it, at the same time a G50 popped up in the classifieds at a great price so i sold the G30 and bought the G50 I haven't had any issues with the G50 either, i used it at church quite a lot and they are using the Line6 wireless Mics (5 of them) and there were no issues (just find a free channel and off you go). I briefly borrowed a smooth Hound system and just couldn't get on with it, I really don't like the bug style transmitters and the fix using a coupler and a cable didn't work for me either. Line 6 do sell the transmitter separately, but they seem to be out of stock. A cheaper option might be to buy another secondhand set and put the spare receiver in the cupboard as a spare (or sell it to someone that has 2 different pedalboards and wants another receiver.) Matt

no 2 basses of mine have the same strings, My '77 p-bass has a set of very old ernie ball group flats that were on when i bought it 10 years or so ago (and were old strings then) the Letts 5 string has chromes as that was what was most easily available at the time (possibly 7 years ago? only bought one set, never felt that they needed replacing) My Aria Cardinal came with a set of status groundwounds and they are still on there (8 years?) my Swift shortscale 5 string has labella flats as there is a limited choice for shortscale 5 string flats, Dunlop or Labella. My Aria Integra shortscale has GHS precision flats as someone on here was raving about them so i thought i'd give them a try (love them) when i first started i had a Yamaha 5 string and used Dr Fatbeams, they seemed to work really well on that bass, just before I sold it i fitted some Picato flats to it which also semed to suit it well (still has them I believe as it went to a friend and they haven't changed them) for a while i had a few different basses with roundwounds and usually just fitted xl's as they are the easiest to get round here (D'addario distribution centre is just outside toon) Matt

@Downunderwonder your maths looks right to me (although it is nearly 20 years since my thermodynamics lectures at uni) the TC Electronic combo that is shown above might have a side mounted vent/fan but it also has an air gap all round the head in that enclosure so there is some ventilation for the amp (and i'm not going to mention the actual rating of that particular amp being much lower than the quoted value) I think this little 250w head is going to get rather warm and possibly shut down (assuming it has a thermal cut-out) As there is an insulating layer of wood between the amp casing and the outside world it will be difficult to keep track of how hot the amp itself is getting. Matt

my favoured method for this would actually be to fill the holes in with some 12mm dowel then re-drill with an 18mm forstner bit, (sounds counter-intuative but would guide the bit the best) A small diameter (3mm) pilot hole through would allow you to drill from both sides for the cleanest finish. Matt

I think @Downunderwonderis right, that looks ,like the igniter for the UV tube, my amp has a different one (the white cylinder in the middle picture ) if you can find one of the bases like mine has then you should eaily be able to substitute in a 110/120V equivalent. something like this would do the trick. i would follow the wiring and see where it leads, you should be able to work out if the leads go to the mains input or a tap from a transformer etc. Is this a USA market amp or has someone imported it from the UK? Matt

I hadn't actually noticed that either until @BassBod mentioned it! I don't have the right UV tube at the moment, it's actually one designed for a reptile tank, but it was very cheap and confirmed that it was the tube that was broken when i got it, i'll be ordering a proper blacklight UV tube at some point. Matt

the front mounts to a pair of wooden sections with captive/tee nuts for the front panel to bolt to, with the uv tube housing held in by a pair of very long screws from the front, the rear section is fixed with 3 bolts through the top and 3 small screws through the small flange on the rear panel. that's about it, there isnt anything else in there at all.

As promised here are some dimension (can you tell I'm an engineer and once worked as a draughtsman 😁) All dimensions are in mm and are inside with the exception of the length which is outside. Matt

certainly, I will agt it measured and make some rough sketches for you. I should have some time one evening this week. do you need to see any of the internal structure of the case? Matt EDIT - due to Illness of our lead singer/guitarist there was no band practice lat night, the next one is 2 weeks away!

welcome, i don't have much to add except that there is a dedicated sub forum for left handed bass sales on here, and if you're within collection distance there is a bargain Ibanez SR300 for sale in Winchester (no connection to the seller myself) Here My advice would be to get a decent secondhand bass (like the Ibanez) and a small practice combo for a total outlay of half your budget, then get some lessons and some practice, then the rest of the money is there if you find yourself in a band and need an amp suitable for gigging. Matt

the enclosure on my head seems to be 18mm plywood so 1/2" should give a nice weight reduction from that, i have peeked inside and the size of all the components is considerable! this head was originally the "house" amp at my church, we went over to IEM's a couple of years ago (much to my dismay) and as i had paid for all the servicing etc for the amp over the last 15 or so years it was given to me. I'm fairly well acquainted with the sound, the only reason it doesn't get much use is because i have a bad back and the F1 is considerably easier to move around! Matt

as i have now dug the Trace head out of it's hiding place i've decided that it's getting a run out on Monday at band practice, i usually use a Markbass F1 with a Barefaced Midget but this week i'll hook the Trace up to the 6x10 Ampeg cab in the practice room instead, i've never used it with this band so it will be interesting to see the reaction it gets from the band If you are having a new enclosure made i'd really suggest trying to keep it's weight down, this one in it's original housing with the UV etc weighs in at 20.7kg/ 45lb 10oz. Matt

hello, I've just come across this, I have an identical Trace GP11 AH250 head sitting here, happy to help with measurements/ photo's etc to get your amp back into usable condition. Just let me know what information you need. they are a bit of a beast of an amp, the 250W rating is nothing like how they respond on stage, i don't think i've had mine above 2.5 on the master volume (and that was wearing earplugs.) Matt

i've voted 4m as that's the length i use most often it seems the best compromise for me between enough length to let me move about and not so much that i trip over it all the time. Matt

i've not done the booking but i have travelled with a guitar in it's own seat, it was a band trip to germany (i think on Ryan Air?) each instrument had a seat and there were belt extenders for each, one of the instruments was assigned to me and the rule was that the instrument went in the window seat next to the passenger that was booked with it. as an aside, for that trip the guitarist had a small marshall combo that was small enough to be hand luggage, he just tucked his book in the back of the open backed amp. Matt

it's not quite clear from the photo but it looks like the outer nut/strap pin section isn't screwed all the way in, this would stop the jack plug from properly engaging and holding in place (as you describe) it might be worth adjusting it so that the middle threaded section is flush with the button section and see if this fixes the issue. if that doesn't sort it then i'd sugest removing the whole socket and checking there isn't a peamp or similar built into it befoere you order any parts (some systems have a buffer or preamp circuit built into the jack socket) Matt

I'm glad someone has bought that Antoria as i've been eying it up since it was first advertised! (i don't have space for any more basses at the moment) If you want to see an example of @Andyjr1515's handywork then you would be welcome to have a noodle on the 5 string shortscale that he built me Build Thread, drop me a PM if you have any questions Matt

I haven't tried them yet but i've bought a selection of the Harley benton guitar strings (including some flats for my semi acoustic). I'm looking forward to trying them out. matt

I have a Polytune on my main pedalboard (one of the first gen ones) and a polytune mini on my tiny second board, i've had brief experience of the TU-2 and didn't get on with it for some reason. the polytune wins for me as i can check all the strings very quickly with one strum (excellent for a quick check between songs) Matt