tauzero

I got it at around 12.30 too. Where's the forum actually hosted? I was just wondering whether it might be being briefly locked when a backup was being run, and if it was hosted in some foreign place, that could be ridiculous o'clock when there could be expected to be few users on.

Knocking things over reminds me: Knocked the guitarist's 12-string acoustic Yamaha (which was in a guitar stand) flat on its face onto a concrete floor. Amazingly, there was absolutely no damage. When he did exactly the same thing a couple of weeks later, he decided that perhaps he ought to replace the incredibly precarious stand.

[quote name='ped' post='119871' date='Jan 13 2008, 11:36 PM']Forgive my ignorance but what is a 'JD' Thumb?[/quote] It was a version of the Thumb designed by bassist John Davis which had a shallower body and neck than standard, making it a bit lighter and much easier to play than the standard Thumb. Unfortunately the email I had from Warwick about it has gone in a hard disc crash - I have a vague feeling that the JD was the first Thumb, being a cut-down Streamer, but this may be bollocks. Ah, [url="http://warwickthumb.web-log.nl/"]it might not be bollocks[/url] after all.

Early on with the covers band, when I still hadn't memorised the songs, on one occasion I turned up without my song book - quick dash home to get it. Another time, I'd taken the singer's songbook home to put it all into Word and then forgot to bring it to the next gig (even worse as he still hasn't learnt the songs after two years). Standard one, though, is having a 4-string moment when playing the intro to a song on the 5-string.

Twice so far. Twenty years ago, after playing it and falling straight in love with it, I traded in the Precision and B2 that I had at the time for the JD Thumb. I've never found another fretted 4-string as playable. I bought another Thumb and had it defretted and the neck reprofiled to be the same as the JD. I don't count that as finding it because it was quite a change from the original, and when I had flatwounds on it I couldn't quite gel with it, but since fitting roundwounds it's been great. The second "the ONE" was when I bought the 5-string fretted Antoniotsai. I've been trying to find a 5-string that I really got on with for a long time, probably about 15 years, but the trouble is that they've not come up to the playability of the Thumb, until I got this one. Rather lucky really given that it came from Viet Nam.

[quote name='RalphDWilson' post='119332' date='Jan 12 2008, 10:53 PM']can anybody tell me what bass this is on ebay (and what it's worth ?) Looks like a Warwick, but I'm not sure about the dull black finish. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=170184623995&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=007"]ebay bass[/url][/quote] Nothing like a Warwick. It's the same as a Vintage model (might be a Westfield) like [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300189409149"]this one on ebay.[/url]

[quote name='Wil' post='119106' date='Jan 12 2008, 01:06 PM']Once you've played a Status, you'll wonder how any bass could possibly be easier to play [/quote] I have. Doesn't touch the JD Thumb for ease of playing.

[quote name='markdavid' post='114730' date='Jan 6 2008, 03:11 PM']I was after an opinion about my fret buzz problem. On my Squier , I get some nasty fret buzz from the 12th fret to 21st fret , particularly on the D string, the fret buzz is particularly bad on certain frets (13th, 15th, and 18th). My action is quite high and I would like to lower it but when I do I get fret buzz from the 9th fret to 21st fret.[/quote] Sounds like the neck isn't quite angled right and needs shimming to angle it slightly forward from where it is now. Washers on the two neck screws furthest from the bridge would do the job - try that and see if there's an improvement.

I've got their 7-string set on mine and they seem fine. Not that I've had much experience of 7-strings, mind.

[quote name='cheddatom' post='117954' date='Jan 10 2008, 04:34 PM']You can call anything jazz if you want to - radiohead are jazz-rock? It's a bit stupid though. I hate these endless classifications, genres and sub-genres.[/quote] I think I'll try my hand at some death jazz.

[quote name='TheBigBeefChief' post='117462' date='Jan 9 2008, 10:10 PM']I just want to be held.[/quote] No problems. Cuba's nice this time of year and you'll look lovely in orange. Might need a new beret though.

[quote name='finnbass' post='116918' date='Jan 9 2008, 12:17 PM']It's all subjective obviously, but the last two adjectives I would apply to Chris Squire's bass playing are, 'muffled' and/or 'distorted'.[/quote] You should have a listen to "Yessongs" then. Not muffled, I'll grant you...

[quote name='TheBigBeefChief' post='116238' date='Jan 8 2008, 02:29 PM']Because they treat the wood with a chemical that turns you into a git.[/quote] Did you know that if you eat a Warwick, you'll die? Well, a proper Warwick anyway.

[quote name='TheBigBeefChief' post='116893' date='Jan 9 2008, 11:45 AM']Playing originals through crap gear, well you can always claim that the muffled and distorted noise coming from you amp is intentional.[/quote] True. It worked for Chris Squire.

You may find [url="http://www.upce.org.uk/"]the uk.people.consumers.ebay FAQ[/url] of use. And, come to that, the newsgroup uk.people.consumers.ebay itself. Packed with handy hints and tips on using ebay...

I've almost managed to get rid of the '52, the replacement '60 is far superior in every way, especially harmonics. Somewhat heavier, but more comfortable all the same. Those spring-out buttons are great, aren't they? Just a little touch and they pop out so you can fiddle with them to your heart's content.

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='116054' date='Jan 8 2008, 08:17 AM']I'm not sure anyone does the WMC's for fun...[/quote] Well, we do them for money, but that's not to say that fun can't be had. There's a couple of clubs we do that are good fun, they enjoy themselves, have a dance, and the remember who we are too. There's a few which are just about OK - they're the ones which are gradually emptying as they lose their memberships. Mind you, in Brum, one can get 50% of the audience onto the dance floor by playing UB40, dreadful cod-reggae sh*te though it is.

[quote name='MB1' post='115398' date='Jan 7 2008, 01:14 PM']Interesting!........ what tribute bands , might a crap bass player be able to get away with?????? [/quote] U2.

[quote name='queenofthedepths' post='115042' date='Jan 6 2008, 10:09 PM'][quote name='tauzero' post='115040' date='Jan 6 2008, 10:07 PM'] On the club circuit in the Midlands, we're on about £200 for a 4.5 piece.[/quote] A 4.5 piece?? Is one of your members only half-human (the guitarist?)? Or just less than reliable? [/quote] If you look at [url="http://www.break-away.org.uk/index.html"]this lot[/url], you'll see the one in the middle is a chapess, who in fact plays the keyboards. As the keyboards aren't necessary for all of the songs, we economise by not having her standing on the stage when she's not playing.

[quote name='Cantdosleepy' post='115018' date='Jan 6 2008, 09:43 PM']1) How good do you need to be to get into one[/quote] Competent. Unless you're doing stuff with very complex basslines, but there aren't that many songs like that around. Bluff your way through the ones you're not that familiar with, there's only half a dozen bass lines in the world that people will notice you're playing wrong. [quote name='Cantdosleepy' post='115018' date='Jan 6 2008, 09:43 PM']2) Is it worth doing, from a financial point of view? I'm not talking about thousands of pounds a night - if I could come away from a gig with fifty quid in my pocket every time that would be smashing. Are those the big leagues? I've got good enough equipment, I reckon.[/quote] On the club circuit in the Midlands, we're on about £200 for a 4.5 piece.

About half a dozen ceilidhs (missed a couple as both bands were playing some nights) and 20-30 with the covers band. Did two or three acoustic duo ones. Also played in the house band and in the acoustic duo most Thursdays at the Roadhouse open mic nights.

[quote name='warwickhunt' post='112433' date='Jan 2 2008, 05:20 PM']I defend your right to dislike the Streamer entirely but I find it a strange comment that a Warwick or a Spector is 'clunky' or 'thick' around the top horn compared to a Fender as the latter is way thicker (front to back) than the former! I could be misinterpreting your definition of the thickness to mean the width but even then I think the Fender would be wider...[/quote] I mean the top to bottom thickness rather than the depth (front to back). The Streamer doesn't have a taper on the top horn which the Fender does - in fact, it gets thicker. [attachment=4486:composite.gif] Top - the sexy Thumb. Middle - the awkward Streamer. Bottom - the half-a-dinosaur-like Precision ("thin at one end, much much thicker in the middle, and then thin again at the far end" - Anne Elk). Note - I'm not saying that Fenders have thin top horns (far from it) but that they taper in a natural way rather than getting thicker and then thinner. Still, the poll results so far put the Streamer ahead of the Thumb, which just shows what a poorly evolved sense of aesthetics most bass players possess. No dinosaurs were harmed in the making of this post.

The Squier Special 5 I bought for £100 or so was a pretty good buy (neck was a bit chunky for me and so I sold it when I got the Tsai). I think it's the same model (metallic black, not sunburst): [attachment=4485:S6000137.JPG] Nothing outstandingly good or bad, just grey porridge.