miles'tone

Armstrong pickups can help you there. http://www.armstrongpickups.co.uk/repairs-rewind-services/

Nick Oliveri used/uses GHS Bass Boomers .115 and .095 for his C and F strings mixed with Ernie Ball Power Slinkys .075 and .055 for his Bb and Eb strings. Gives him the right string balance and flub according to the man himself in a YouTube interview that I can't find again right now. You can make up this set if you want by going to www.bassstringsonline.com and ordering the single strings (they are cheap compared to UK prices and you don't get charged import vat or anything.) You're welcome

Yes, mostly. I've always been very rhythmic and danced a lot as a child plus I've always picked out the bass first when listening to music. My initial approach to playing bass was "play the drums on the guitar". Still is really.

I do actually have the candy Apple red Squier VM Precision V, and I also need a lighter bass due to a bad back. Mine weighed 9.8lbs when I bought it and I did actually consider returning it because of that. But, after playing it I decided it was a keeper as it really is a cracking bass for the money and the candy apple red is gorgeous. I was expecting it just to be metallic red to be honest but it does kind of change colour in the light and has a copper-like hue to it too. It's really nice to look at. Another deciding factor is the neck. It has a great profile that is really comfortable and reminds me of my old AVRI '62 P neck profile in a way. I have modded it with lightweight licenced by Hipshot tuners, an American Standard P5 pup, a KiOgan wiring harness, a pro set up (dropped the nut slots a tad plus a fretdress) and a set of DR nickel Lo Riders (which take this bass to another level as the B string is stonking now! Fantastic string to string balance). I have also drilled out the body under the pickguard to reduce some weight and after weighing it properly now, it weighs 8lb 10oz which I can hopefully live with. I love this bass, it plays and sounds amazing and is a total keeper. My perfect bass all in cost me £420 which some may see as a lot for a Squier but I don't care, plus I'm not too precious about where I take it and I'm happy to gig it anywhere I suggested the Luna Paz above as it's very lightweight to begin with and had I known about it first I may well have taken a punt on that one instead as it costs about the same as my Squier has with all the mods. No regrets though.

Luna Paz P5 maybe? Within budget and only weighs 8lbs. And it's black.. http://www.gak.co.uk/en/luna-paz-lenchantin-signature-bass-5-strings-black/28134

The most success I've had with finding peeps to form bands with that have had any longevity, is to go to open mic/jam nights in pubs/cafés/artys-fartsy venues. Not sure if you can do this where you live but getting the chance to meet and hang with folk in person is always great for feeling each other out and making sure you start a band with the right people with like minds in the first place. Hope this makes sense as I've just woke up and can't find any coffee :-P

Allparts necks are very good quality and worth the higher price tag inmo and experience - mine had lovely flame to the maple and was solid as a rock. As good as a decent Fender neck easily. Not heard of musikraft before do so can't comment there sorry. There is always http://www.stratosphereparts.com/vintage-50s-ri-fender-p-bass-neck-tuners-precision-1957-maple-bass-guitar/ but it will probably come in at about £300 with postage and duty (bought a couple of necks here in the past).

Mint green for me.

Bought a Brand new Dimarzio model P for £25 from C.C. a few years ago. Made my week!

Et voila!

Big yes for Shoreline gold/tort/matching headstock from me. The matching head would work as it would be subtle, very classy imo. If you go for LPBlue then I'd go for natural headstock and mint guard. The tort guard can work with LPBlue but if you get a darker shade of it then the tort clashes too much for me. Ask for very light relic too if you go Limelight

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1407602235' post='2522246'] Who mentioned technical ability ? Certainly not me. I am referring to overall musical ability and musicality , and my assessment of what constitutes musical ability and effective music would, on the whole, tally with your own. . Some people have neither technical ability or musical ability. Kim deal and all too many of her ilk have some kind of innate musical savvy attributed to them [i]because[/i] they lack technical facility, when the reality is they have none . It is a classic case of the emperor's new clothes. All too often such musicians are neither skillful, tasteful, original or indeed particularly interesting in what they create, just like the "technical" players they are supposedly the antithesis of . There are many( too many) technical brilliant musicians who make awful music, but there are just as many unskillful ones who churn out dreary self-indulgent twaddle too. What I take exception to is the popular misconception that unskilled musicians are innately more creative, original and "refreshing" than ones that play well. Music is primarily a craft that you learn , not an art form that is the product of moments of transcendent inspiration, despite popular romantic myths to the contrary. [/quote] Just out of interest Dingus, why do you think Kim Deal is not a good bass player? Is it simply because you don't like the band she played with? She could play in time, serve the songs well (very simply ok, but that's all they needed) and could take playing professionally to large crowds in her stride. I mean it's not like she used to mess up with loads of bum notes, forget where she is in a song or rush the tempo. Also the Pixies songs usually sound simple but the changes could come in unusual places that would throw some people. Plus she could sing and play bass at the same time, which isn't the easiest thing in the world to do. Taste is a personal thing but she wasn't/isn't a bad player.

Jack.

What he said ^

[quote name='EliasMooseblaster' timestamp='1407165690' post='2517956'] Maybe not virtuoso, but that's some very solid bass playing, and her tone is to die for! [/quote] Oh yeah, she's really solid. I think she's a great bassist which to be honest is more of an inspiration to me in my world than a lot of the virtuoso crowd are (regardless of gender). Corkin' old P bass too!

Ok, so this thread is about people's favourite female bassists. I've heard the name Paz mentioned a lot here, so I thought I'd check her out. I see now. Disclaimer... This vid does not contain any virtuoso bass playing at all. It does contain: A beautiful woman, A beach, A really snarly sounding vintage P bass. These are my favourite things period Surely it's ok if guys fancy girl musicians? Apologies to those who may be offended by such a crazy notion (Anyway, all I here about from my missus is bloody Ricky from the Kaiser Chiefs... I know!) THE ENTRANCE BAND on the Beach (Part III) @ Duna …: http://youtu.be/jS5ZkvZyTM4

Well, I decided to hit up the weight thing both ways: Got a Hipshot A style aluminium bridge on it's way and just bought some Asics running shoes! :-D 16 week gym course starts tomorrow...

Sims custom shop or Allparts UK are a couple of others.

Read this recently on Talkbass, you could try it.. "Go to any MusicMan dealer and give them the serial number of your bass along with the new pickguard colour you want. They will forward your serial number on to the factory where a new pickguard can be made for you. The reason for the serial number is, that Ernie Ball keep a record of every instrument that they've ever made including the exact position of every pickguard mounting hole (template) that they've used. This way when you get the new pickguard, all of the holes will line up perfectly with the existing ones in the body of the bass. I personally just changed the pickguard on my StingRay5 from black to tortiseshell. It took me all of 5 minutes to remove and reinstall the new one. I didn't have to remove the original pickguard and trace it then put it back on my bass, and then send the tracing off to them to make an accurate new one. EB already had all of the information they needed. So I didn't have to waste my time and screw around with it. I sent Ernie Ball a email one day asking them for some specific info on my bass, they quickly responded back with the entire description of my bass to me. They included the day/month/year it was made, the colour of the body and neck, pickguard colour, electronic configuration, etc. Cheers"

Bump again? What happens nex..KABAMM-BAMM-BAMM!!!

Cáit O'Riordan - The Pogues. She's the reason I first bought a P bass.. The Pogues: Live Concert 1985: http://youtu.be/DAKyA2ttv0I

Get a full refund pronto and shop somewhere else. Total pi$$take.

[quote name='Bassman Steve' timestamp='1406668197' post='2513642'] Back in the days when the Bass Centre was in Wapping they had a decent range of s/h stuff. Must be around 1987/8 they had a whole bunch of ex-Entwistle basses. I arranged a bank loan and bought a 1953 Precision, a 1961 and a 1962 which was refinished white. I also bought a slab 66 which was there. This was before the days of the internet and I had no idea slab basses were so rare and that the white re-fin was the first Precision JE ever owned. Each of his basses came with a certificate signed by him. I kept the '53 for a while but didn't really use it so it was a bit of a waste in my hands. The same with the 1961 - I found the E string was dead no matter what strings were on it. The slab went because it was a bit uncomfortable (being a slab body!). I kept the '62 for a while - getting it refinished in black. Not long after I found a 1966 in Brighton that was far better than any of the older basses and the '62 went (via Sotheby's). The two slab body basses recorded brilliantly but I was doing far more live work. The prices will make you smile. 1953 = £995 1961 = £950 1962 and 1966 - £895 each. And you tell the young folk of today!!!! [/quote] Holy sh!+balls!! :-O

[quote name='Doddy' timestamp='1406629689' post='2513127'] I think the problem is that it becomes easy for people to take the piss under the guise of charity. You get some bands that play loads of charity gigs for nothing, that's their choice...no problem. The problem starts when it then becomes difficult to get any form of money because you've already set your reputation as being willing and able to play for free.Why would a venue pay you when another place up the road is getting you for nothing a couple of weeks later? The other side of it is the fact that there are other people being paid.You may get some stuff for free but I guess bar staff won't be one of them? People are also, generally, paying over the bar and I pretty much guarantee that money won't be going to charity. [/quote] Yep, been in that band and we did dig a hole for ourselves in that respect.