fretmeister

I was really tempted by one 1 on eBay the other week. It went for about £375! I should have bought it.

I have the same issue with La Bella flats, especially when my hands are sweaty. The low tensions were worse! On the Deep Talking Flats I have solved it… before I install them I give them an extensive rub down with Wet & Dry paper to rough them up. It makes a big difference. I wouldn’t have bothered if I didn’t like their tone so much. Dunlop make some good medium scale flats. They fit fine on a Mezzo. Eye wateringly expensive though.

That reminds me of Mika Hakkinen a bit. Technically he’s still on sabbatical from Formula One but hasn’t heard when he’s coming back!

Those new prices! Ha ha hahahahahaha I really wanted a TT-800 but they can jog on now.

I'm pretty sure it's only the Masterpiece - on their configurator if you spec Masterpiece and click the More Information thing then it shows the vibration and heat stuff. On the other finish options it does not.

Me too. I'm a 40-100 on a long scale, but 45-105 at least on a shortie.

Another vote for Newtone. Measure up the entire instrument and they'll make you a Steel or Nickel round, with either a round or hex core. Choice is yours. Very nice strings.

Wampler pedals. Once upon a time they put out a book about effects. The book contained cut & pasted copy from a much smaller pedal maker to which Wampler had no involvement. They didn't even give credit to the original author, let alone pay them any money. No hint was given that the prose didn't belong to Wampler. The original prose was very specific to the original author. Other pedal makers such as the genuine legend Analogue Mike from Analogman quoted some of the original work and gave proper credit. Wampler can f*ck off into the sea.

Facebook is usually the quickest.

I've always had quick responses from them!

And I just remembered there is Hardcore Reserve between Hardcore and Masterpiece. Reserve has some gentle fretboard aging. HC doesn’t have any, Masterpiece has loads.

Masterpiece You can see the board and back of neck aging.

The fretboard and back of the neck looks too new to be a Masterpiece. IIRC fretboard and back of neck aging only happened on the Masterpiece and not on the other aging options.

That’s an older shape. The designated Masterpiece aging was introduced relatively recently. I think there was some cross over of the old shape still being available and the Masterpiece but I don’t know the dates. I had an old shape in the heavy aged and it does look similar. Contact Gregor Fris via the Sandberg Facebook. You’ll get a quicker response. The Masterpiece includes vibration treatment and is a real step up in cost.

I think the answer is to get a Two10 and a One10 and an amp capable of running at 2.7ohms or under. It's an approved mix on the BF website. The you can take 1, 2, or 3 cones as you need. You're welcome!

B and C - a MM style. But apart from that I'd measure up a 60s and 70s J and work out the relative positions and pick the one that I liked best.

I've got one of these: Levy 4.5 inch strat and some of these: Black Buckle strap Both nice. The 4.5 inch one is very expensive though. I don't use it a lot anymore as I've got rid of the heavy bass it was on.

Easy to play, versatile sound. I'd put flatwounds on it though.

Very nice! I like them a great deal.

I never like a first chip, but I am relieved when it happens and I get it over with.

My 32 Mezzo B is very good.

My Superlight Lionel is passive and it sounds like a proper vintage precision. I think Thomann have over done it a bit in their chat. Do the Superlights sound different - Yes. They tend to have a snappier faster responding sound with a little less low end.... with all other things / setting remaining constant. Do the Superlights actually need active circuits to "overcome" the perceived lack of low end? - No. The bass and / or low mid controls on any bass amp can add or subtract far more low end than any choice of wood could ever do. My SL TT4 (Original Cedar wood) does have EMGS and the EQ in it. I use the Treble control a lot, and I use the bass control to reduce the lows in boomy rooms. I don't boost it on the bass. I do boost the lows on my amp - but only a little more than any other J type bass. On my Lionel (paulownia) I cut the lows at 65hz. Do I suspect that the Thomann people have plugged an alder body bass into an amp and then set up the amp and then plugged in a SL and left the settings the same? - Yes. And that's dumb. Every instrument needs something different. Strings make a vast difference too. Do all active pickups sound modern? - No. The original EMG J set is designed to sound like 1960s J pickups but without the hum. This is why they are the choice J pickups for Bobby Vega and Guy Pratt. This is one of the reasons I really like them. With steel rounds I can do Marcus Miller with it. With La Bella Flats and a bit of foam - it's Aston Barrett. It's all about the strings and the EQ on the amp. Does the "lack" of low end have any disadvantages? - Very subjective I think, so my view is very personal. To me, it's a bit like having an HPF built into the bass. I have 2 shorties and on the odd occasion when they are strung with the same strings I find I have to do less work on the Lionel to tame any boom. So overall I find it useful. I recognise the difficulty though - it's a lot of money to bang down to risk not liking something. I got my SL TT4 from Bass Direct and I swapped the pickups within about 3 months. It's stayed the same ever since other than having a ramp made for it. On the back of that I was happy to order a SL Lionel. Mike - if you are ever up near Northants you are welcome to pop in and try them out.

What's the tension like on the Galli Synthesis? I like Ti Flats and EB 40-95. Not a fan of anything higher tension than the EBs.