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[quote name='Pete Academy' post='1080266' date='Jan 6 2011, 06:55 PM']I know these aren't to everyone's tastes, but I think they are the most stunning basses on the planet. [url="http://www.ritter-instruments.com/available.php"]http://www.ritter-instruments.com/available.php[/url][/quote] Not too keen on the body shapes but there are some truly fantastic finishes on some of those basses...

[quote name='Skol303' post='1080160' date='Jan 6 2011, 05:29 PM']Yeah, this is probably a dumb question, but heh! I'm just wondering how important pickups are to the overall sound of a bass? I'm currently working on an old second-hand bass as a DIY "do-er upper", and I'm considering replacing the pickups (once I've learnt how to solder a bit better, that is!). The bass in question is a Hohner Rockwood LX90B - it's a cheap P-bass copy, with split-coil passive pickups. My limited understanding of such things mean I see pickups as being little more than lumps of magnet wrapped in copper coil - I know there's more to it than that (!), but at the moment I don't understand what I'd be paying for if I invested in a pair of sw***y new pickups (e.g. a pair of P-bass pickups via evilBay or similar). Given this is a cheap bass (less than £100 brand new), is it really worth replacing them or should I stick with what it's already got? Any info gratefully received as always [/quote] I have a few things spring to mind here. It's never going to be anything other than a £100 bass regardless of what pickups you fit to it - you could potentially be fitting the musical equivalent of £800 worth of super posh tyres to a rusty Ford Fiesta. Having said that, if you want to gain some expertise in upgrades, then this would be the bass to try it out on. You could chop and change wiring, play with the setup and generally try 'hairbrained' ideas out - safe in the knowledge that you're not going to wreck an expensive bass. Parts could always be swapped back and retrieved at a later date for reuse in something better.

[quote name='benh' post='1080103' date='Jan 6 2011, 04:53 PM']Just wondered what your thoughts were on the best pickup config for the EMG 40 range. Was thinking about getting a 40TW for the bridge and a 40J for the neck (to replace the mediocre 40HZs that are in it now). Only problem is, the new EMGs use "Quik Connect" and I'm not sure if it'll be more trouble than it's worth connecting them to the existing preamp.[/quote] What you really need to do is decide what your final end game is. If you plan on using an EMG pre in the future then you really don't want to be cutting the quick connectors off of the pups. If it was me then I'd either buy the whole lot in one go or make a connector to fit the 'quick connectors' to the existing pre-amp - thus leaving the factory fitted connector in place to make the next phase of the overall upgrade easier. Looking at the connectors I'm guessing that they will mate with these: [url="http://uk.rs-online.com/web/search/searchBrowseAction.html?method=getProduct&R=0467560#header"]http://uk.rs-online.com/web/search/searchB...=0467560#header[/url] [quote name='benh' post='1080103' date='Jan 6 2011, 04:53 PM']So would it be possible to leave out the preamp and just run the bass with the 2 active pickups? At least until I've saved up again for a decent EMG pre![/quote] If you're running active pups then a preamp really needs to figure somewhere in the equation. [quote name='benh' post='1080103' date='Jan 6 2011, 04:53 PM']Do you think it'll be worth the £150+ that it'll probably cost?[/quote] That's a tough one! It really depends what it is you are looking for soundwise and what you think the limitations of your current setup are.

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1079431' date='Jan 6 2011, 02:45 AM']There are a myriad of bad AC/DC bass covers out there but this one takes the biscuit. I love how he's so laid back and confident that he doesn't even have to look. [/quote] That AC/DC buskalong was truly awful

[quote name='JMT3781' post='1078277' date='Jan 5 2011, 09:37 AM']Thanks for that shout on the ampeg stuff, I will be per suing that today[/quote] Two others that fall in the price bracket are the SWR LA series and some models by Laney. I think you're going to struggle to do better than Hartke for the £ per watt enticement that your customers are looking for though... I haven't thought it through carefully (I don't know your business structure or limitations after all) but have you considered finding a far eastern 'generic' supplier and doing a rebrand at all?

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='1078369' date='Jan 5 2011, 11:05 AM']Nothing serious has happened in the bass world... but in the guitard world... Fender Deville died on me at a gig. Had to plug my amp modeller into the PA and hope for the best. "Fixed" Fender Deville died at a recording session in the studio. Had to borrow a Hughes and Kettner Warp 7 amp to record. I've never sounded so pants on record Brand new Fender Twin (Deville replacement) died on me at it's debut gig. Plugged into my Laney LC15 I had back then, draped mic in front of it and hoped for the best. Replacement brand new Fender Twin died on me at the very next gig. Plugged into my Laney LC15 I had back then, draped mic in front of it and hoped for the best. Replacement Fender Twin (number 3) has never given me any issues... touch wood. Can't beat a Fender though - still on the look out for the right Fender Dual Showman.[/quote] Jeez you're far more patient than me EBS. My brand new Line6 died after 30 minutes total use and I'll never consider using their gear again!

[quote name='Grand Wazoo' post='1078206' date='Jan 5 2011, 07:57 AM']I don't think the problem is related to the brass nut, if it's a Jazz type of bass this is a common issue and it boils down to the fact that the string tree (I am assuming this, having not seing a pic) will only hold down D & G strings hence the for the A & E ones you will have to compensate this by winidng the string round the posts in a downward spiral so that you end up with a greater angle from the nut to the headstock, if you restring all your strings like that, it should fix it if not take it to a repairman to have a look at it. good luck[/quote] +1 Also check to make sure that the machine head collars are tight - I had a loose one that vibrated and drove me up the wall until I realised where the vibration was coming from...

[quote name='JMT3781' post='1077649' date='Jan 4 2011, 06:40 PM']hartke - we used to have it until soundtech lost it we cant have peavey because the shop over the road is a peavey main dealer fender.. we have had the bassman and rumble stuff in the past, and although its been good gear, customers in our neck of the woods aren't so crazy about the prices (we cant really move on fender stuff, as we are a medium sized shop, we don't get the best deal from fender). saying that, we have ordered one of the new lightweight rigs, but are waiting for them to arrive on this side of the pond i will be checking out where hartke is coming from though..[/quote] Carlsboro, Warwick, Line6 and HiWatt? Some of the low priced Ampeg stuff also falls within your price range I think? Hartke UK distribution is through Samson I believe.

Have you considered Hartke, Peavey or Fender? They all make combos that fall in your price range...

[quote name='mikhay77' post='1077582' date='Jan 4 2011, 05:39 PM']So I was sat there looking at my recently aquired V6 thinking why did trace use green carpet? Fluffy,bobbly and tatty.Then Eureka,got out the nicki clarke trimmers and good as new,probably been done and said b4 but another post to add.Pity I didnt take pics B4 but here are pics after plus the collection of fluff around the barbers chair lol,no attatchment and as low as you can go.Got me BLX to do (back,sack and crack)will do b4 and aft pics(Of the amp).No doubt anything carpet covered! Just a blow dry and then something for the weekend ha ha [attachment=67873:trim_1.jpg][attachment=67874:Bum_fluff.jpg][/quote] ...Give your Trace a trim... ...'cos it's worth it...

Gaffa tape is not the material to make permanant woodworking repairs with. The repairability of the crack is really dependant on how wide the crack actually is (you need to get wood glue inside it!). Although it's for repairing a cracked neck [url="http://www.ibanezrules.com/tech/setup/crack_neck.htm"]this[/url] article provides a good description of how to carry out an appropriate repair...

[quote name='mrtcat' post='1077242' date='Jan 4 2011, 01:02 PM']Hi all, I'm currently building a pair of BFM DR280 pa cabs. I'm getting along nicely but cannot for the life of me find any 4 ohm 10-20watt resistors for the high & low pass filters. I've trawled the net and drawn a blank. Can anyone help? Woodworking skills are fine but I'm a bit green with the electrical side. I can locate 3.9 ohm 10w resistors but you'll probably tell me that to substitute these will result in a full meltdown of life itself. Pls advise [/quote] Big wirewound resistors (the type you are looking at) are not manufactured to close tolerances - they will be + or - 10% of the marked value. A 0.1Ω resistance difference will make no difference to the overall performance.

[quote name='redburp' post='1076982' date='Jan 4 2011, 01:44 AM']I've been searching on the internet but can't find the answer so I'll ask you nice peoples. Is it ok to mix different brands of cabinets in your rig? I'm new to the whole bass stack game and just wondering as I don't think I've seen anyone doing it.[/quote] As others have already said, there's nothing technically wrong with mixing different brands of cabs provided you understand the rules regarding impedance (shout if you need help on that - we're pretty good at the 'maths' part of impedance on here!). One thing to remember though is that the cabs have to be sensibly sized if you intend stacking them on top of each other - you don't want to end up with a 'leaning tower of piezo'...

+1 for the Ashdown. As for the worries about what any pro or semi pro in the audience might think - just don't! If they are at a 'plug n play' night then they'll not be too far up the 'pro ladder' to have forgotten how nerve wracking things can be for relative 'newbies'. People go to 'plug n play' nights for all sorts of reasons - to see others perform, to pick up hints and tips and to meet other local muso's. The one thing they ALL have in common is that they're there to play and will all be supportive of anyone who joins in! Relax and enjoy

[quote name='Thunderthumbs' post='1076804' date='Jan 3 2011, 09:27 PM']Can I be the first to say I'll be dreaming about bananas all night long?[/quote] Which one is Bananas?

[quote name='Sean' post='1076400' date='Jan 3 2011, 04:00 PM']Cort make a massive quantity of Ibanez branded stuff and I think Samick made or make some of them. I know that Ibanez have their own place in Japan for the high end instruments.[/quote] Aha! I was half right then. As it's only the first week day of 2011 things are looking up!

[quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' post='1076307' date='Jan 3 2011, 02:20 PM']Rather than this, isn't it the case that Ibanez is a brand rather than a manufacturer so owns no factories & contracts manufacturing to the same far East factories used by other companies, ie Cort, Samick or whoever else gets the contract for any particular model?[/quote] Could be. I thought Ibanez owned a manufacturing plant that other brands used but it could easily be the other way round (and knowing me, it probably is!)

Line 6 HD750 amp just faded out and died halfway through the first song of a gig. Far too much cleverness in one small box...

[quote name='GRAHAM SG1' post='1075812' date='Jan 2 2011, 10:06 PM']Yesterday I bought a new Ibanez BTB770 bass, I went along to Nevada Music in Portsmouth with the intention of getting a Fender USA Jazz (having always loved Fender guitars and basses) but thought I would try a few other basses as well, I tried the Fender first and liked it but when I got to this Ibanez I was very impressed, a beautiful highly figured top with through neck, fantastic glossy finish, excellent quality construction, fit and finish perfect, 3 band active EQ, powerful Bartolini Mk 2 pick ups, 35" scale, the action was perfect, the EQ is very sensitive and makes this bass seem alive with energy, best of all was the price, a whole £350 less than the Fender, now I dont want to get into a Fender versus Ibanez argument and I know Fender basses are brilliant but how can the Fender be worth £350 more than this Ibanez, is it down to far east labour costs ? Anyway, here is a picture [/quote] I use Fender [b]and[/b] Ibanez so I'm not gonna argue As to the £350 difference, a lot of that is probably based around different business models. [u]Fender:[/u] The acknowledged brand leader when it comes to electric guitars\basses - even non-musicians know the logo and the name. Extensive marketing and brand reinforcement has been fundemental in achieving this dominant market position. Somewhat constrained by the popularity of their designs and market value (although Squire and MIM have made good inroads into those constraints). Fender will only supply goods to authorised dealerships and, as such, this tends to reduce competitive pricing. [u]Ibanez:[/u] Have never achieved the brand exposure that Fender has and have therefore not had the degree of marketing expenditure. Eastern factories have lower operating costs and this is reflected in the pricing. Make guitars in their factories for other brands and would therefore be able to buy branded parts (Bartolini, Gotoh etc) at much reduced bulk pricing. Not having a massive brand name to promote and maintain the pricing structure of also reduces POS costs. Ibanez used to supply anyone who passes a retail credit check (not sure if that's still true) and therefore manage to achieve a greater market penetration (and therefore reducing prices again).

[quote name='witterth' post='1075563' date='Jan 2 2011, 06:28 PM']Right thanks Bit scared of doing such work myself though at least I know it wont cost a fortune now maplins for switch cleaner I thought? Thanks again W[/quote] Yep - Maplin will do fine for a can of switch cleaner. There's really nothing to be scared of - if you are comfortable getting to the fan and giving it a clean then you are only 4 screws and two wires (a red one and a black one usually) away from replacing the fan anyway! The only other things to remember are to: 1) Unplug the amp from the mains before taking the cover off. 2) Make sure that the fan isn't sodden with switch cleaner when you switch it on - it won't do any electrical damage if it is but it'll make a hell of a mess! (think slapstick comedy involving a liquidiser and a lid that comes off!)

[quote name='alexisonfire' post='1075585' date='Jan 2 2011, 06:44 PM']The other day I was wiring some new pickups into my bass, I then went to test it (stupidly) through my rig and ... POP. The status light on the front panel is now flashing from red to green.[/quote] Now't stupid about that - just about everybody on here would have done exactly the same thing [quote name='alexisonfire' post='1075585' date='Jan 2 2011, 06:44 PM']The user manual does not specify what type of issue this warning represents. Before I take it to a tech, does anyone know what this could possibly be?[/quote] Not sure which manual you are looking at but the main operators guide (http://www.ampeg.com/pdf/SVTCL_OM.pdf) is saying that you have a power amp stage problem. [quote name='alexisonfire' post='1075585' date='Jan 2 2011, 06:44 PM']p.s all the tubes are still glowing.[/quote] The bad news is that although glowing tubes can provide a quick way of checking that valves are working, it's not at all accurate. All the glowing means is that the heater section of the valve is working - the rest of it may be dead. The good news is that Ampeg have rather considerately put diagnostic circuitry onboard and the red/green flashing LED might save you a trip to an amp tech! As a starting off point I'd take a look at the section entitled 'Setting Tube Bias' on Page 7. Work your way through those instructions (don't be tempted to take shortcuts!) and if you don't get a result from that then change the Power tubes and do the 'Setting Tube Bias' section again. HTH

[quote name='witterth' post='1075551' date='Jan 2 2011, 06:17 PM']Thanks MR Ic! On listening to the fault a friend of mine (who plays in the band) thought it may be the bearings that were at fault, but cleaning is a good place to start,so thanks. I do think it may be more than that, But will try. I was told not to use WD40 as when dust gets on it sits there (stuck to oil) where as switch cleaner cleans things then evaporates(?) again, thoughts/advice Cheers W[/quote] Yep - switch cleaner is better if you have a can to hand. Internal fans are usually a pretty standard size and fit so a visit to your local Maplin with the busted one should get you are replacement pretty easily.

[quote name='witterth' post='1075469' date='Jan 2 2011, 04:59 PM']The fan in a Trace Elliot AH500 had been making some funny clicking/catching noises then the sound stops, but then again the fan carried on regardless. Anyway on NYE the fan stopped alltogether, at the sound check, so I luckily noticed it, and used a spare I'd been carring due to previous worries about the Fan. I was worrried hot venue and running amp without fan. could do severe damage to more expensive bits. Anyone know how difficult it is to repair and what to expect pricewise? Its a AH500 mark4 so quite old (but Emily loved him-thats how old it is, if you get that reference!!)so Id like to get it fixed So...? Ideas chaps? W[/quote] Probably not a hugely expensive repair. If it's an old amp then you might be able to fix it yourself by removing all of the caked on gunk from the fan (vacuum cleaner and a paintbrush would do the trick) and making sure the bearings are running freely (a wee squirt of WD40 would do the trick here but make sure you wipe any excess off before powering it up).

[quote name='Dom in Somerset' post='1074217' date='Jan 1 2011, 10:22 AM']I heard him in an interview saying that the bass on paint it black was done by playing Keith Richards with his fists![/quote] Fixed

[quote name='Thurbs' post='1074941' date='Jan 2 2011, 12:57 AM']All that gear can be had for £450. What am I missing?[/quote] Therein lies the problem Thurbs. You just aren't going to get a half decent rig kicking out 1000W for that price point. Behringer seem to have a pretty poor reputation as far as their power amps go (although the outboard studio stuff is quite reasonable for the price).