fretmeister

I got my Superlight Lionel via Classic & Cool. I got it in 1 year last March. I suspect the model and what custom options a person wants has an impact. The aging process takes a quite a bit more work so they might even do them in batches. I knew in advance that the waiting list was going to be at least a year. Bass Direct carry them too - as do GuitarGuitar but I don't know if GG accept the custom orders. But yes - all orders and quotes for unusual stuff have to go via a dealer. The configurator cannot possibly have every option on it. I had a chat with Mark, exchanged a few emails about spec and paid a deposit. That locks the price in and the balance is paid when lands at Sandberg UK distribution. I'm still playing mine every day. In hindsight a PJ set up might have been more versatile than just a P but I'm also nervous about getting it routed out for a J at the bridge.

No. but it is an increasingly obsolete view. He, and others like him, have musical careers. They are getting paid to play. That it is not to your taste is irrelevant. That they are getting paid by advertising revenue rather than getting 2% of physical media sales is also irrelevant. He is not releasing music on 78 speed vinyl, he's releasing it on youtube and he has built an audience over years of hard work. And it is hard work. It's coming up with 4 or 5 new vids a week. Planning it, filming it, editing it. Dealing with copyright issues, etc etc. And that ignores the investment of the time needed to be able to play as well as he does. He's probably putting in more than 40 hours a week on it. That's a lot more than most musicians do, or even attempt to do. Complaining about modern ideas is a weird thing. We are on this forum because we play an instrument that has only been around for about 70 years and was laughed at when it was invented. I suspect that when Bottesini asked for a 4 string double bass rather than the traditional 3 string one the response was "Why? What's the point?" as well. Things move on. People like him do not affect the traditionalists ability to get pub gigs, or record what a traditionalist gatekeeper has decided is valid musical expression, or any of what has gone before. It's just something new to go into the pot. And like or not - he's inspiring people to play. 99.9% of them will never reach his ability. But they are playing and increasing sales of kit and making manufacturers invest in more product ideas etc etc. For some reason I had this view that bassists were somehow more rational than guitarists - many guitar forums are filled with people complaining that many new young guitarists say they were inspired to play by Ed Sheeran! Who GAF how they decided to pick up an instrument? The important bit is that they did! As for the amazingly dim sounding "I bet he can't play in a band" type argument.... ye gods that's a poor argument to present. Loads of the flashiest players spend most of their day doing sessions for other people. Just holding down the bottom end, playing roots. Marcus Miller does it. Billy Sheehan does it. There is zero reason to think that someone who can play like CB cannot play what a song needs. I used to play Classical Thump and Colorado Bulldog etc. And I had no problem joining a 25 member jazz big band and just playing what was written. I loved it just as much.

Buy a seat for it on the plane.

I love my Helix. It's amazing. It is now part of my home recording set up so I'm thinking about a Stomp for when I'm out of the house.

I used mine with a SuperTwin and now use it with a pair of One10 cabs. It will work with any 4ohm to 16ohm set up. I assume the Midget has combo jacks so you can you a regular speaker cable and not a Speakon at the cab end?

Hotone Thunder Bass. 5W only, but an amazing lounge amp. Sounds just like a good SVT. Under £100!

With some of the bands I've been in, the others would have sold my gear in that time, and used the money for booze!

"Unnecessary..." iPads were deemed unnecessary. Laptops same. Home computers - same. Carbonated drinks - same. Etc etc. You never know what the next generation will think is a necessity.

When I get a mo I'll do a rough recording of random riffs with and without drums and bass so you can hear it. I have no idea what pickups he uses. He owns a studio that is open to others and he has a massive selection of instruments for people to use. I have 3 guitars - a strat with Lollar vintage single coils, a LTD EC-256 (the cheapest les paul type they do) that has their own brand humbuckers in it, and an Ibanez RG7321 7 string loaded with EMG Mick Thompson active pickups. I usually like EMGs but these ones are not really for me. I'll swap them at some point but used 7 string pickups don't come up often and they are expensive. So I will cope for the moment. I usually prefer mid output pickups, especially for metal. I just like the way they react to my picking more. I want to add my own compression if I want it. I don't want the pickup to cause it by being so damn hot.

Man who earns money on youtube is a PITA for promoting the way he plays the bills? What a weird complaint. Like it or not, YouTube playing is an entirely different sport to band playing. YouTube playing is a different product to band playing. Loads of YT people are honest about it. Like drummer El Estepario did an interview and explained he spends far more time learning drumming tricks for social media than actually playing songs because that is his primary source of income. Just playing four to the floor wouldn’t earn money on YouTube. I don’t know why anyone would think either of them couldn’t play simply for a band though.

On a shorty bass with full sized tuners you can use any strings you like. Long scale ones will be fine. If the tuners have small posts then short scale strings are needed as the fat bit of the string won't go round the tiny post well - and flats will just snap while installing them. I find it easier to get strings for my 2 shorties with full sized tuners than I do for my medium scales with small tuners.

Phil. A legend getting old. Happens to us all. Apart from Keith, obviously.

I was in a very good band with a great guy but his problem is that he never thought a song was finished. Even when we played together again after an 18 year break he was still saying songs we had gigged in a set form for years were not finished. I nearly formed a new band with him again, but ultimately decided against it. I can’t be dealing with that approach. No art is ever finished, it is only abandoned, but it’s futile to keep going back over and over again at the expense of moving forward.

Agreed. The only artist patch I though was any good was Jeff Waters guitar patch that was included in an update a few years ago. I'm a fan of Annihilator and initially I wasn't that impressed. Then I read some L6 posts and it turned out it was a recording patch rather than a live patch. So I recorded a few things with it - not adjusting anything at all - and then double tracked it properly. It then sounded fantastic. Thick and full, but with loads of articulation. His EQ and relatively low drive settings were the secret.

Barefaced Super Twin (with or without a Tweeter) Barefaced Big Twin 3. Both 4ohm and very light. And, more to the point with your amp, very efficient drivers.

ah damnit. It's always the good ones. RIP.

Nice!

Dual lock for me. Just don't use too much or you'll need a crowbar to get the pedal off again!

I've bought a few smaller items - pedals, a USB mic etc and they've all be fine. Delivery times vary - can be a few weeks but it saved me money. Not bought a guitar from them though.

That seems to be a very good bit of kit!

I've got 2 shortie P bass types. One with flats, 1 with rounds. 1 Jazz type long scale. 2 medium scale PJ 4 and a medium scale PJ5 1 Strat 1 LTD Les Paul type 1 Ibby 7 string. The guitars are for recording. Nice variety of tones. The basses - 99.9% of the time I take a shortie. Flats or rounds depending on the gig. I love the J type so it's going nowhere, but I could lose the medium scales ones and not be bothered. I might think about that a bit. I could get a new amp I'd never use....

My recording set up is built around a Helix rack. The entire HX line is amazing. It is very versatile, the sounds are fantastic and I never feel like "I wish I had X, then I could do..." type things. I reckon I have 4 main bass sounds with it + the odd sprinkling of FX when needed. But it also does all my guitar recording, and I use loads of different sounds for that, always double tracked at least. As I've got the rack it is also my Mic Pre as it has a dedicated mic input with phantom power too. I'm thinking of getting a Stomp to put on my board as well though. If you are looking for a cheaper option than the Stomp - get a used one rather than something less capable.

alright Jeffrey - calm yourself!

That's what my basses call me. They speak to me you know! They are my only true friends. They do like to slag off the guitar I've got in the corner though.