stewblack

Could you grow me one?

I've been reflecting on the couple of threads from Basschatters unceremoniously or bewilderingly sacked from their bands. Lots of solid advice about moving on to better things, which got me thinking. How about we share our stories from when we were sacked or we finally threw up our hands in horror and walked, and this provided the catalyst to much happier times. My most recent experience was leaving a band of my own volition. The BL was full of BS, couldn't play in time, but did all the work and gave me the gig when I auditioned. So I hung around. I found us a fantastic singer and the drummer unearthed a gem of a keys player. We all knew the BL was the glass ceiling but thought he was a likeable innocent buffoon, possibly on the spectrum too, and so put up with his idiosyncrasies. Then I got a friend in to dep for a gig and discovered he was actually quite a nasty piece of work. She blew the gig and showed me the hectoring, pestering messages he'd sent her, which led to her decision. He then treated us to a wholly different version of events, which painted her as the villain. Other stuff then blew up between him and the keys guy and I walked. He then, in a fit of pique sacked a singer, drummer and keys player so far above his level he should have been begging them to stay. They and I formed a four piece to honour a gig commitment and have subsequently carried on as a band. The new venture is harmonious both on and off stage. Mutual respect all around and damn we sound good. So the guy who we all thought was a bit of a four letter word actually brought us together then provided us with the perfect platform to kick start this new project. Happy days.

Damn I thought I was literally the only person to ever think of that

Which band leaders and more importantly which wives.

Hey this is Basschat, we don't push in, I will hold off until I hear from you.

Well it's all gone a bit quiet. I made a fair trade offer, I thought, but then I assumed his price was fair. If its that inflated then maybe I'm best off passing.

I have a bass he might trade for, waiting to hear.

I am in active negotiations for this. Fingers tightly crossed

Ha! Well I have bought them for my phone, tablet, kindle etc and they're brilliant. I won't be powering the Line 6 with one however as the magnet is nowhere near strong enough. Too much risk of it being pulled away from the little plug. On the other hand if it was caught on something and pulled, the fact that it would come away with no strain on the socket is actually a plus. Hmmm. Now I'm not sure, maybe I shall.

Sorry did I spoil the big reveal?

Taking it to a gig and playing it perhaps?

My Rockinbetter had this bridge, modded with a P pickup at the neck. Mirrored plate. It was rather nice. had to sell it to insure the car.

😬

I'm going to remove mine and do the same, thank you!

Brilliant!

Good shout

I'm sorry. Always remember the above is only my opinion. You might hate it 😬

Sound samples

Anyway, the only thing that matters to me is it looks, sounds and plays like a dream. Others are welcome to disagree but I love it. Well done Thomann, well done.

That's different from the fakers I have.

This has been the subject of much discussion over on another thread so I thought I'd do a straight up review here and keep the controversy over there. Firstly another win for Thomann. Ordered on a whim last week and it arrived Christmas eve - given all the chaos in the postal system this time of year I was very impressed. Why a Harley? Well, I bought a HB Jazz from @yorks5stringer at last years SW Bash. It was inexpensive, I was considering a Jazz anyway, so this seemed a good way to suck and see. I was amazed by how good it was - and still is. Great sound, solid build quality, I couldn't believe the quality in fact. I have subsequently bought 'proper' Jazzes but at heart I guess I'm mainly a P-Bass kind of guy. Interestingly, while the HB is still with me, the more illustrious instruments have long since gone. So I know from real life experience these are serious instruments and not starter basses or toys. The jazz is also heavy and very good in close combat when playing rougher pubs. I loved the look of this bass, immediately. I knew I wanted it. It had a whiff of Rickenbacker about it but was definitely not a copy, it just appealed to me. The cherry burst is lovely. I searched for a fault, any flaw when it arrived and found only one. For some bizzare reason there is one Allen bolt in the bridge requiring a different size key from the others. Mildly irritating but not an issue. The action goes crazy low, I had actually to raise it up a little. This I accomplished with ease. It came strung with bright, light, rounds a little zingy for my taste but perfectly playable. The pick ups deliver a nice warm punch at the neck and a clean but not weak sound at the bridge. I don't know about you but what makes or breaks a bass for me is the neck and the balance. Can't stand neck dive and I love a really playable neck. Don't care if its slim or chunky just has to work for me. This is brilliant on both counts. Slim and fast, I gigged it today and it was like I'd been playing it all my life. So comfortable, so nicely balanced too. Band mates loved it, musicians in the audience loved it and I loved it. I hear the intonation is awkward to set on these. Can't comment as the intonation was perfect when it arrived. Tuners are firm, responsive and stayed in tune all day. Tone Controls responded well (I use my tone and volume a fair bit live).The bass is surprisingly small, here it is up against a CB Which is weedy and poorly made by comparison (but it looks great). I am so happy with this, always a gamble to buy without trying but this is going to see some work, no question.

Ha ha, no but I often receive small packages and wonder what the hell I've bought now .

I have a ChickenBacker as well as this Harley Benton and I can absolutely assure you the hardware is not the same. Maybe because this isn't a Ric copy.