Kiwi

I had a look at getting one a while back but it doesn't have an effects loop.

I've played a maple faced MK Sig in the past and it was a great bass, very growly. If anyone was interested in an Alembic for live situations, this one would be a winner. £4k is a bit steep but Alembic don't price them to appeal to the mass market.

I haven't noticed any grittiness with other pickups. I have a set of SD passive soapbars as well which were nice but not as warm. Are you going to drill a hole in your instrument for the earthing wire?

Pete, I just found the attack on the EMG's to be a bit gritty and although the bass sounds fantastically growly, I was deliberately hunting for more solidity in the low end. Andy at Wizard delivered on every count plus I got coil taps thrown in for single coil/series/parallel modes as well when I solder up and fit the mini toggle switches. The attack is a bit more natural sounding and the u-retro bass and mid controls are much more effective. So now I have a warm, growly and sweet sounding bass with enhanced versatility. I have plans to upgrade the U-retro to a 3 band parametric eq at some point in the future for even more versatility. Just waiting for the supplier to get back to me.

Definitely not run of the mill! Despite all the zany ideas it still hangs together as a nicely designed instrument.

Hi there, I've just installed a custom set of Wizard GEM's and a U-retro in my Spector NS5 and taken out the EMG DC40's. However I'm left with a bit of a problem over the earthing. Normally a bass equipped with passive pickups will come with a bridge earthing wire so that the strings are earthed. EMG's don't need a bridge earth so any bass that comes with them factory installed doesn't normally have a hole drilled from the bridge to the control cavity. Now before I go to the trouble of getting one done, does anyone know if there's a clever alternative to deal with the earthing which avoids having to drill the bass? Seems there isn't but I thought I'd ask anyway.

Yeah, he put it on his FB profile on Saturday. Bit of a change from his previous gigs but lets hope she shares the spotlight.

For a while I kept forgetting that the second and third verses weren't separated by a chorus in 'Valerie'. The embarrassment was enough motivation to get it sorted though.

[quote name='elros' post='582424' date='Aug 27 2009, 12:38 PM']For bass lines though I'd suggest transposing down an octave or two and playing in the upper register - the tracking is more accurate (timing-wise) there.[/quote] +1 Lag is likely to be the biggest issue you'll face when recording using a pitch to MIDI interface. It will make getting notes spot on very tricky without using a quantise function and even then you'll lose feel. Alternatively you can teach yourself to compensate for the MIDI lag but it takes practice and even then might not deliver the exact timing you need for recording. If you're lucky enough to have a bass with the Steve Chick MB4 system installed such as the Wal, Maton or Peavey variants you'll find the tracking and lag is much better but you won't be able to do string bends. EDIT: I have the Axon AX100 pitch to MIDI and Graphtec GHOST preamp system which, when I have the right strings installed and the sensitivity set up, works really well. Lag is less of an issue because the AX100 has learned to convert the pitch by sensing only half the waveform, unlike other units on the market. However there is still a little lag, enough to make recording a little tricky.

Did it with a guitar once that was decent but wouldn't sell. Its still being used by my band.

By recycled, do you mean they come predigested?

I've had the opportunity to chat with Nile a couple of times on Facebook before he went permanently offline because he got too busy. He is a really, really nice bloke, very approachable and recently had a cancer scare which FB helped him get through while he was travelling cross country from CT to LA to see his specialist. He says he rates Duran Duran's Notorious as one of his favourite sessions still.

[quote name='Musicman20' post='566162' date='Aug 11 2009, 07:33 PM']Im after the ultimate 70s style Jazz, classic growl. The USA 75 Reissue Fender is not that much less than a custom Shuker! And, to be fair, with Fender my Jazz I have is spot on, so I dont see how another £500-£600 on another Fender will improve it.[/quote] I've tried a 70's jazz made by Jon and it wasn't too bad in terms of replicating that sound although probably wasn't as bright as Marcus Millers bass. Jon's fender style basses generally are not as polite sounding as some high end jazzalikes because they have a robust lower midrange, but they are superb rock basses which is where Jon's personal taste in music lies anyway.

I have a set up with my 6 that involves graphtec piezos, Axon AX100 and either Yamaha CS6R, EMU Virtuoso, EMU Vintage Pro, Roland JV1080 or my laptop and Ableton. Haven't figured out how to work half of it yet though so am probably useless for advice unless on how to bugger up an AX100 with firmware upgrades.

I've owned both and I think Jaydees and Alembics are worlds apart in terms of tone. The Jaydees tend to have more prominent mid range and less thunderous low end (although the S2000 pickups are warmer to some extent). Alembics are almost the opposite, relatively flat in response. Although the maple necked/faced models are punchier than other Alembics in my limited experience.

Aaaaah, so this is the explanation

The passive tone should be the treble. The trimpot is gain. I'm very surprised its got another new owner so soon after I sold it.

Midge Ure was preciously talented but never really got the critical acclaim he deserved. I really liked Black's Wonderful Life too.

[quote name='Monz' post='584691' date='Aug 29 2009, 07:22 PM']Mark my words... you will need either an affinity for wasps or a lot of fly spray, they love colours with high infra-red signatures[/quote] Do you mean ultra violet?

I've gigged the Pro4000 with red transformers in a former motown band I was in. It was great for pub gigs if I used two cabs but did tend to get a bit warm. I haven't gigged the other one because its in mint condition, only 10 hours playing time on it and the original GEC Gold Lion KT77's.

Yeah, the visual differences are minimal. There might be other changes to the internals too as the newer one distorts slightly more easily if I use an active bass.

Here's mine: Burman Pro501 guitar amp, ex Simon Cowe, Lindisfarne Older style Burman Pro4000 with script logo and red transformers. Newer style Burman Pro4000 with sans serif logo and yellow transformers.