Kiwi

The prototype, custom pickups were delivered today and I'll be testing them this week in my Cutlass II. I've had some quite major issues trying to achieve a radiussed body shape. Mainly because the quality of finish is so poor from Jon's CNC machine, even with a ball headed cutter, that it looks like it will need more hand finishing than a more conventional slab bodied instrument. There are also issues about how to achieve the radiussed edges. Looks like the body shape will need to be wire framed in 3D Studio Max! I'll post a pic of the body shape later today.

update: its being gloss finished this week apparently.

I'm not buying one until they release a version for bass

[quote name='TheDarkReaver' post='288854' date='Sep 21 2008, 11:19 PM']the slight tightness seems to help prevent tendonitis like flare ups I sometimes get.[/quote] You're getting tendonitis at 21?! Something doesn't seem right. I've been playing 20 years and never had a problem wiith it.

We have a pair of mackies for our PA, they have a history of overheating apparently and we've had both our subs and one wedge monitor repaired under warranty after 10 months of use.

Thats sad news about his wife. The house was on her side of the family wasn't it? I hope he's OK and dealing with things. Sounds like it would be a pretty cool event to have. I remember the photos and the property was pretty impressive!

Hmmm, interesting! I'll keep an eye on them. Thanks Gareth.

Hmmm, thanks Red! Unfortunately the price list says they're not made any more. Im not sure how air tight the top cabs would be though.

Does anyone know of a reputable company that makes neo wedge cabs for bass? I can't seem to find any and although I was talking to Dr Bass about it a while ago, but I just thought I'd see if anyone knew of any other suppliers apart from potentially Zoot?

Last night's gig was at Grittleton House School, just off Jct 17 of the M4. The school itself is family owned and independent, what was most remarkable is that this place is set in 18 acres and has a series of impressive buildings but the school has only been in existence since 1951 and caters for 300 pupils. The two original founders are still alive and the school has moved location twice in its short history because of growth. Anyway, we were put in the ballroom and there were two receptions going on at the same time, ours was on one side. We couldn't get into set up until they'd cleared the cash bar (on wheels) which was another 45 min to wait. After that, the gig itself was doomed from the set up onwards. After we set up, we discovered we couldn't soundcheck because our room was right next to the reception dinner. The acoustics were the worst we'd ever faced with peaks all over the place and no specialist eq to compensate for them. The bass was boomy and the midrange was swamping everything else. So we started badly and the monitoring issues meant we never really played with 100% confidence. There was no food provided, we'd been given an allowance but Grittleton is out in the wopwops, it was difficult enough to get a mobile signal there as it was. Our keyboardist suggested we get pizza delivered but we were too far from any pizza place to get delivery. Added to that, we were doing a 3 setter which meant shorter breaks, so if we collected the pizza there wasn't a lot of time. We started the second set early, and finished it after 45 mins so that we had enough time to eat between the second and third sets. So we ordered after the first set and at the end of the second set the percussionist and keyboardist left immediately to collect the pizza. They were gone 40 mins and when they got back, we dived in and scoffed ourselves stupid as there wasn't a lot of time. Next thing we know, the best man has come up asking when we're going on as the bride and groom are leaving early. Turns out our finish time was 11:30 and someone in the band assumed that because the license wasn't over until midnight, we had at least 30 mins flexibility. Wrong! The sound man said the groom was absolutely fuming that we'd taken such a long break (even though we'd only had about 15 mins to eat). So we downed pizza and went back for the third set. The crowd was pleased to see us (they'd obviously been enjoying the cash bar) and the third set went well until we got the message to finish 3 songs before the finish by the management who then wanted us out by 1am so we only had an hour to break the PA down and load up. So we all thought 'f*** it' lets wrap this up and get out. We managed to pack the PA away in 40mins which was probably a record for us! All in all, one of the more forgettable gigs mainly due to the lack of time after being caught between the venue management and the expectations of the groom. Ah well, at least we had the perfect amount of stage area for a change! I left the Smith 5 at home and just took the Cutlass 1 (for the Chic songs) and flew solo with the Spector 6. The Spector sounded so growly I thought the amp was distorting!

[quote name='OldGit' post='287296' date='Sep 19 2008, 02:03 PM']Aarrrrr, That will be your Talk Like A Pirate Day Cutlass then [/quote] Aharrrr harharharrr aharharhar har har.

Yesterday we played a gig at Babington House near Frome for Cherie Blair's Hairdresser, Andre Suarde. He was getting married to his partner in a civil partnership ceremony. We were setting up when he introduced himself to us by saying "I'm the bride today, so sorry if I'm a bit poofy" Which was a great ice breaker considering he was wearing a black morning suit with a black kilt... ...yes, thats right he's french and he was wearing a black kilt. Everyone was too scared to ask him what was underneath it I think. Anyways, the gig was a total riot, absolute hoot. The crowd were up on the dancefloor from the first song and the dancefloor stayed packed all night. They loved us, we loved them and it looks like we'll be marketing for more civil parnerships as we got offered another gig last night from someone who is Director of Purchasing at House of Fraser. Cherie was there as well and she stayed to watch us for a couple of songs and then left. She seemed to be a bit aloof generally, we didn't see much of her after that. Tony wasn't there at all which was a shame. Danny from McFly and Barbara Dixon were supposed to be performing too but we didn't hear or see them either so no telling whether they did their thing or not. Music was provided by Radio 1 DJ Rob da Bank. Andre basically told us to help ourselves to the dinner menu and order whatever we wanted. So we did! Bloody hell was that food good, grilled sardines, poached brill with olive mash and whatever refreshments we liked. When we finished our final song, Andre was so happy he was almost crying and he even slipped one of the singers an extra 100 quid tip. Awesome, one of the best gigs all year. If all civil partnerships are like this, there are much much harder ways to earn the same money! Tonight we played Brockley Hall Golf Club. The kitchen staff apparently gave others in the band quite a bit of grief and were being very pushy to the point of rudeness about us getting in the way (which we had no choice about given we HAD to load in through the kitchen). We came close to just telling them to f*** off and let us get on with doing our job so we could clear the place quicker but we held back. The stage was far too small and there was virtually no space for the singers to move about. But we got on with it I took the Smith 5, the MM Cutlass 1 and I've been trying out my Spector 6 too. On Thursday I tried it in the middle of Set 2 and tonight I used it pretty much instead of the Smith all the way through. It worked out quite well, the Spector doesn't have the scooped sound of the Smith and its quite easy to get a growly sound of out it. The one thing I became aware of with this 6 as well as the Smith 6 I used to own is that the fingerboard is so flat, its not possible to see all the strings when wearing the instrument. So there's a bit more muscle memory required in knowing what notes are on which string. I suspect this has been the reason why I struggled with the Smith 6 in the past. I was getting some really chewy, focussed and powerful sounds out of the spector tonight though. Very nice, its almost better than the Smith for live work! The crowd were stereotypically Essex (think over dressed and voices that could grate cheese) and they were a bit cold in the first set, despite us pulling out all our crowd warming tricks. We reckoned it was because they weren't pissed enough. We noticed also that there were a large number of women who all shared the same platinum blonde bob hair cut, we couldn't figure out why until the percussionist suggested that it might be the Posh Spice effect in action. LOL When it came to the meal, the Maitre D announced they'd made some sandwiches for us and we said "um, no, our contract specifies a hot meal". So we ordered off the lunch menu and the food was also pretty good. I ordered a medium rare ribeye and it arrived medium rare! As a contrast to the kitchen staff, the waiters were pretty cool. When we had eaten and came on to do our second set, the crowd were a bit warmer (read: pissed) and stayed on the dance floor. The groom came up to the percussionist while we were playing and basically said, I know I asked you to play until 11:30 but if you play for an extra half an hour, I'll see you right on the money front. So we did. We'll find out tomorrow what the extra dosh is going to add up to. He was a bit pissed when he mentioned it. The bride was ecstatic afterwards, couldn't thank us enough. Apparently this is the first time she's actually seen some of her friends dancing! When we completed the load out back out through the kitchen, there was a mountain of empty sandwiches left on the side. The fillings had been more or less removed and the bread left behind!

[quote name='phil_the_bassist' post='286648' date='Sep 18 2008, 02:44 PM']if that was a 5er with a figured birdseye maple neck, that would be my dream bass! Are you gonna be at the bash with that'un?[/quote] I had planned to bring one or both of the cutlass basses. I could bring this one instead but it could do with a decent fretjob. Although its still very playable I don't play it a huge amount right now because of that. However I might just stick some new strings on it today and take it out tonight just to see what it feels like again. If you want me to bring it, can do but the Cutlass might be even more interesting perhaps?

as it so happens, I have a blend pot spare so might well try that mod if the spindle diameter matches the knobs.

[quote name='lowdown' post='287078' date='Sep 19 2008, 09:46 AM']Forget Pirate Day... Lets all have a Dutch cafe day!.. Garry[/quote] er, har harrr.

[quote name='doctor_of_the_bass' post='285504' date='Sep 17 2008, 12:49 AM']I actually owned that bass after it was recovered by the relevant authorities and was placed up for sale in Electromusic in Doncaster. I'm not fully aware of the deal but was told by the shop that MK had been made aware of the situation and was happy for the bass to be sold. Intrigued to know more Steve...[/quote] Sorry Nick, "deal" probably alluded to more than was actually the case. As recipient of the instrument I suspect you'd probably know more about the circumstances than I. All I know is that Mark was happy for the bass to be sold because he'd already recieved an insurance payout. However I understand that if stolen property is recovered after an insurance payout then technically the insurance company owns the recovered goods? I don't know where things were left off re: the insurance company on that one. [quote name='Annoying Twit' post='287062' date='Sep 19 2008, 09:33 AM']Surely the person who bought the bass would be able to make a claim on Crack Converters? As in Crack Converters took their money in return for an instrument that CC did not have a legal right to sell.[/quote] Yes, but unless one party can prove in court that the seller already knew the goods were stolen when they recieved them, I suspect the case would be a civil one rather than criminal. I'm not a lawyer/policeman though. If I was CC I'd be getting people to sign undertakings that the goods are not stolen and be taking sufficient information from them that they can be quickly located by the police if the goods do turn out to be stolen.

[quote name='R,5,R,5...' post='287041' date='Sep 19 2008, 08:57 AM']May I remind everyone travelling to the Netherlands to pass the dutchy pon de left 'and side, as they drive on the right there.[/quote] er... +aharr?

here's my grungy 79 stingray which some of you will have already seen Its not as punk as the others though.

[quote name='dub_junkie' post='286381' date='Sep 18 2008, 01:45 AM']The natural SpectorEuro I traded with owen and then I got back after 3 months has also been in the hands of 4 other basschatters as far as I can tell making 6. is there a bass with more BC owners? if you remember it being your property then add your name to the list [/quote] Was that owned by Homerplaysbass originally? That bass is a little cracker. Proportionally I guess I haven't bought a lot through Basschat. I've bought two Celinder basses from Flanker, another bass recently from someone else that I promised I wouldn't discuss , my Trace V8 head (TonyF) and my EBS Neo212 cab (loudnclear) came from Basschat. The Pedulla Pentabuzz off ebay from Vmaxblues who turned out to be a BC'er anyway. My Smiths both came directly from US retailers as NOS and my Genz benz was a rare new purchase c/- Bass Direct via Basschat. Most of my other kit came from Ebay with a couple of items from Talkbass (MM Cutlass 1) and the Alembic forum (Alembic Series 1 graphite). However, there's some pretty awesome kit that comes up here occasionally. I'm still looking for a EBS neo 210 cab *sigh* Its even been known for some Basschatters to swap instruments temporarily just to try stuff out for kicks.

too bad you can't make it to the bassbash gareth, I would have loved to try this one out.

Depends on the manner of shipping though, if bulk container sea shipping is used the weight is less relevant.

Caveat Emptor though guys eh?

Its my understanding that noone can sell title to goods that they do not legally own. So if you purchase something from CC, and its later discovered to be stolen, I guess the person possessing the goods at the time of recovery is the one that loses out unless by agreement with the insurance company (witness the deal struck over Mark Kings stolen Empathy Matrix 001).