Kiwi

I was about to suggest a Yamaha APX...good choice.

These things bear more than a passing resemblance to the Yamaha Magi-stomp line of pedals. Would that be a coincidence?

I love the sound of them but they're very much one trick ponies.

[quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1494486463' post='3296327'] Given that his parents were, let's say, bohemian in their lifestyle he must have needed to be from the start. ...Nile's parents were indulging in far more damaging vices. [/quote] They were but he's never criticised them for it. He was also shipped back and forth across the country to his grandmothers place twice because he was struggling to fit in at his school in California. In some ways, the experience with his parents gave him a fantastic grounding for being a producer, if you think about it.

He's very, very grounded in real life - tells it like it is, and he's street wise. They say don't meet your heroes but I did and left even more impressed than before I met him.

[quote name='Rick's Fine '52' timestamp='1443118849' post='2872444'] Very anoracky stuff i know, but some of you may find it interesting. [/quote] Someone who prides themselves on making preCBS recreations told me yesterday that fullerplast wasn't the only undercoat used on preCBS instruments. Is that true? Did they use lucite as the undercoat in early instruments?

In planning, the principle of buying next to a source of nuisance and then complaining about the nuisance is called reverse sensitivity. It's not really defensible unless the nuisance activity doesn't have permitted development rights (i.e. permission under current or previous planning permission) or the activity contravenes existing policies/regulations. If the pub is playing within permitted noise levels then there's no case to answer. The neighbour also risks being subject to legal action for harrassment and abuse of legal process. If the pub has been louder beyond permitted levels and neighbours simply haven't complained then the new neighbour does have rights. Best thing for the pub to do is an independent noise monitoring check of its own. Square off with the neighbour at every step and neutralise or introduce reasonable doubt to each of their claims.

[quote name='Damonjames' timestamp='1493281083' post='3287041'] I'd fancy you are right kiwi. He tells the story of how he came to have that guitar in his book. Bernard talked him into trading his Gibson jazz guitar in for it, and he wanted to sound like jimi Hendrix so went for the strat. If I recall, it was red and he had it repainted white when he bought it. So the story goes, when they were getting ready for the '59 fender agreed to buy a whole bunch of ash off a farmer, and when the went to collect it, it was right at the top of a mountain. Due to the high altitude it was particularly less dense than normal ash, and as a result, that year seems to sound a lot more thin and trebly - Niles signature sound. He admits that none of this was intentional at the time, he just wanted to be like jimi so bought a strat... fate is funny sometimes!! [/quote] The story I read from Fender's custom shop, when they were measuring the original for their Hitmaker replica, was that the body wood was alder and narrower than the standard. They got a bulk load for a great price off a farmer but (perhaps because of the hill) the shipping costs were far greater than they expected. Leo instructed them to mill the slabs a few eighths of an inch narrower to keep things even per instrument financially. Apparently the Hitmaker has one of those bodies. Original strat pickups are pretty weak and need a bit of gain to sound chimey. Fender's custom shop also speculated that the chrome plated pickguard might have had an influence on inductance as well but who knows. They could have been clutching at straws to justify making the things in such low numbers. The original pickups in mine were slavishly faithful to the 57 originals and I hated them so they were replaced with Fender Noiseless Vintage. The guitar sounds very much like the original (at least compared to live recordings). These are mine BTW. My Hitmaker replica has a chrome plated brass pickguard too: and...FWIW (the Hitmaker replica was made afterwards unfortunately, or I would had it signed instead)

He does sing! I haven't heard him yet though.

The roundback ovations are classics in their own right.

His playing is incredibly vocal - I think that's what other guitarists mean when they say 'melodic'. He's throwing in double stops to add emphasis which I've only ever heard Pino do in the past.

[quote name='bassjim' timestamp='1492783184' post='3283221'] Our guitarist can't do the Nile thing either on Thinking of You as well as should be.[/quote] I'm a sh*t guitarist and if I can do it, it can't be that difficult. Everybody Dance is way more difficult. Neither Nile nor Bernard have been particularly into their gear. Despite the mythology he's conjured around The Hitmaker, I suspect his pre-CBS strat is a bit of a dog. PreCBS strat pickups are terrible sounding things - very anaemic and scratchy. Apparently he used Tokai strats quite a bit but I've never seen him with one in a photo so suspect they were used in the studio more than anything.

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0Ifd3xkR04&t=80s[/media] Coming around here with his stunningly beautiful, articulate and sensual melodic playing, his flawless switching between improvised harmonies using 10ths and searingly explosive lead runs. Well f*** him. He's not going to make me give up my djenty power chords and high gain. Never. No.

[quote name='No. 8 Wire' timestamp='1492842094' post='3283538'] Thanks mate. What counts as expensive? [/quote] I can't recall individual costs but anything with a replacement value of over £1500 has to be declared separately from the umbrella coverage. (And there I was at the time with a vintage Alembic, a vintage Stingray, a Shuker 6 and a couple of Celinders...) Total cost was north of £6000 and that was 10 years ago. Hate to think what it will be now but I sold the Celinders prior to the second shift.

Good luck with the move to NZ. Be mindful of the insurance cost for shipping expensive gear - mine was more than the cost of shipping...!

He was one of my musical heroes. His band leadership skills were astounding. I don't think we'll see anyone as dedicated and talented as him for quite a few generations.

[quote name='Mickeyboro' timestamp='1491827402' post='3275627'] Ah, Christchurch - the only place I've ever eaten breakfast in a shipping container! [/quote]

Paul Reed Smith has been critical of the CITES requirements. He says the Indian rosewood he uses comes from salvaged trees auctioned off by the Indian government after monsoons. Failing that he uses plantation grown rosewood from Indonesia. The point he's making is that there's no shortage of rosewood and there are plenty of sustainable supplies available so asks what's the point of the regulation? [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzhjOTEbNxU&spfreload=10"]https://www.youtube....xU&spfreload=10[/url] Skip to 54:30

[quote name='Bassnut62' timestamp='1491855940' post='3275967'] If you're talking stock Fender pups, I agree. They often sound both harsh and bland to me. Luckily there seem to be some highly respected pup-upgrades. I only have experience of Lindy Fralin Vintage Hot pups for Strat and they are sweet and toneful, with a little bit of bite when dimed. [/quote] I think anything faithfully specc'd for a strat. I had a set of obsessively constructed 50's single coils in my Hitmaker-replica and they were TERRIBLE. No reflection on the maker or quality of construction but the sound was just awful. So I threw a set of Fender vintage noiseless in and haven't looked back yet. Neither of my strats are particularly chimey though, the Chandler is more of a crisp, low noise studio tool (EMG's) and the Hitmaker isn't supposed to be too chimey (it does the Nile Rodgers thing really well.)

[quote name='blunderthumbs' timestamp='1361614909' post='1988220'] Whilst I have your attention on the Jaydee. Do any of you Jaydee owners have the problem of when the active switch is on you hear a crackling noise similar to bacon frying.? If so what is it and can it be cured? It seems to improve when you back off the hi eq control. [/quote] Probably a dry solder joint or a live short circuit (signal path contacting signal path) Does it change if you jolt the bass with the heel of your palm?

Pearl yellow! It was available but I've never seen one.

Hi Mark ex-Christchurch bod here, playing for 31 years too. Welcome!

All that might be needed is to sand the fingerboard flatter if there's enough depth to it (ie. shaped slab not veneered). If the workshop is set up, it might only take a couple of hours to defret, mount on the sanding jig, refret and dress. Minimal refinishing would be needed (which tends to be where the costs stack up). Alternatively, buy a Fender licensed neck from Allparts or Warmoth and have the board flattened. Even if there's not enough depth, it could be flat sanded or planed and a new fingerboard attached. If your heart is set on a new neck rather than a modified fingerboard, Jon Shuker or Martin Petersen would a great choice for a well engineered neck but you'll need to specify flame or birdseye maple if you want a little growl as the rock maple Jon has is super rigid. If you want something a little more Marcus Miller then you'll be fine. Alternatively, Bravewood (if they're still taking orders) or Limelight might be a good alternative as they've got a lot of experience in preCBS Fender replicas. Expect to pay over £400 though.

I sort of have a love-hate thing with strats. No denying their versatility or egonomics and they're at the core of some classic sounds. My Chandler strat is super easy to play - I like the 25.5" scale and maple fingerboard. But the pickups can be harsh sometimes. Mahogany based construction sounds so much nicer.

"Piano" tones? Gospel isn't played with basses that have "piano" tones, it's played with basses that have a nasteh midrange spike. Smith, MTD and maybe Warwicks, 80's Musicman Stingrays and Dingwalls will fit the bill - basses that use wenge in the neck and/or soft maple. Class D amps sound pretty good with them as they are fairly neutral sounding and don't scoop the midrange. For god's sake don't pair these basses with scoopy heads like SWR, Warwick or Eden heads though or you'll lose that pokey midrange (although Warwick basses and amps do sound good together). If you want "piano" tones, go for something with a very stiff neck - Steinberger M-series, Modulus Quantum, Status Empathy, Zon Legacy or Sonus. Pair with SWR or Eden to soften the sound a little.