Kiwi

Small world, huh?

Great day wasn't it? You really are a lovely bunch of people! Huge thanks to SilverfoxNik, Hamster, OBBM, Happy Jack and Mrs Hamster for their work in organising the event and laying on the refreshments!! I was just stunned. Also also thanks to Fender for their top prize but most importantly a big thanks to everyone who showed up and donated to those worthy causes. I'm looking forward to seeing the photos Sylvia.

[quote name='bluejay' timestamp='1379670016' post='2215426'] BGM is featuring our bash in connection with Joel's Q&A session: [url="http://www.bassguitarmagazine.com/2013/09/16/a-chat-with-editor-joel-mciver/"]http://www.bassguita...or-joel-mciver/[/url] [/quote] Aww that's nice of them. I'm looking forward to the Q&A also

[quote name='alexclaber' timestamp='1379502547' post='2213362'] Aarghh, we've been hacked again!!! Thanks for spotting that. Anyone know how to fix this security breach in CMS? It happened about a month ago and our webmaster was going to sort something out but we've been hit again before the weakness as been fixed. [/quote] I'd suggest checking whether the server security is an issue also.

I agree, Fender never bothered with their custom colour orders. They just grabbed a bass that was already finished and stuck the custom colour on top. If you expect a mirror finish though, that smoothness is important. Also keep an eye on what thickness any coats of paint do to clearances such as the neck joint.

[quote name='kurosawa' timestamp='1379538240' post='2214043'] Interesting. Is it important for the laminations to be made of different woods? [/quote] No not at all. It's about stiffness not species and it's possible to have different stiffnesses within the same piece of wood as well as the same tree. Kubicki basses in the 80's had necks from maple laminated necks. Pedulla and Rickenbacker still do through body necks from three pieces of maple. Parker do neck lams too but they're supported by a hard outer shell for stiffness. Speaking of which, the Parker Fly is (in my opinion) a good example of what happens when the instrument is TOO stiff. [quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1379539592' post='2214074'] No to bits of wood are going to be the same. If you are laminating the same piece of wood chopped up, you flip them over so any tendency for it to develop a twist will oppose each other. Lots goes on internally in wood, not nearly as simple as all these statements make out. [/quote] For the sake of clarity, luthiery levels of expert advice were never offered either. However there is a technique of flipping and turning the wood over so that the stresses cancel each other out. But nothing beats letting the wood dry out properly and THEN shaping.

Yeah sand it back and get your auto bloke to spray it. Wood needs a primer, colour coat and then 5-6 coats of clear poly. Some say automobile paint isn't good for wood because it lacks the ability to swell with the wood during humid weather. I suspect that might just be the clear coats but might be worth checking that one any way.

The only difference to me is the amount of control you have to compensate if the bass doesn't deliver what you are looking for.

What's your opinion of the Ibanez...? I've been wondering how they rate as arch tops.

[quote name='kurosawa' timestamp='1379469475' post='2213106'] Probably dead spots aren't caused by wood. John K. figured out how to make dead spots go away by increasing the mass of the headstock. Ned Steinberger did it by decreasing same. Hipshot has had some kind of fix on the back burner for a while. However, I discovered poplar makes dead spots worse for me (at least the poplar plank that plagued me), and some guitarists have found poplar makes "chirping" easier (which sounds to me a whole lot like the harmonic that rings on after a dead spot goes dead, seems it's an octave plus a fifth above the dead note). I am in the group that likes wood louder. Seems to give me a wider dynamic range to work with and seems to allow more wallop in the attack. Not saying others' experiences aren't valid. Just relating mine. [/quote] Deadspots are caused by neck density and mass regardless of the material. I had a Moses graphite Jazz neck which had a deadspot at the 5th fret on the G string. They happen in wooden bass necks when resonance q of the wood shares a sympathetic frequency with a note on the fingerboard and dampens it. Both John K and Ned S solved that problem by changing the mass of the neck in order to shift the resonance q either up or down. Alembic used necks laminated to increase stiffness and lower the q below any fundamentals. Ken Smith mainly relies on a very thick piece of ebony for the fingerboard to create stiffness.

Jon Shuker has successfully installed a sustainiac on a couple of basses. [url="http://www.sustainiac.com/st-pro.htm#bass"]http://www.sustainia...st-pro.htm#bass[/url] A feedback based delay type effect wouldn't be capable of handling different volumes of notes in a consistent way, The feedback threshold would work for some volumes of note but not the quieter ones. If you play too loud for some notes the effect could distort unpleasantly.

I have one of these. Some sellers have been asking as much as £2300 before the recession. They come up so seldom that there's not much precedent. I'd suggest starting high and consider offers.

He has a no compromise approach to the quality of joints and finishing. Nothing leaves his place unless its perfect.

I won't be bringing the self build unfortunately - I won't be able to work on it until the end of this month. But if there is space in HappyJacks car...I might be bringing Ms Kiwi because she has said she wants to know what you lot are like...

I thought the track was being sung by the Scissor Sisters when I first heard it.

Its not unknown for some companies to purchase their competition...SWR for example.

The 6's aren't bad at all. Thats why so few of them come up for sale. I want another...

[quote name='Bassnut62' timestamp='1378840991' post='2205483'] Just scored an immaculate Burman 501 1x12 guitar combo that sounds better than anything I've ever heard and it's a heavy bugger. [/quote] Welcome to the club [quote name='Bassnut62' timestamp='1378840991' post='2205483'] I would love to hear a Burman 4000 bass head and cab. I bet you could knock the Sun off its perch with one of those. [/quote] Mine sound very clean and full. I wouldn't say they're loud but you do get a lot of volume for 140w. I once kept up with a guitarists 50w Marshall but needed a 4x10 and 1x15 to do it.

At one point I would have been prepared to compare him to Fodera. But now I've been taught by him, I believe that would be insulting. He is completely dedicated to his craft and uncompromising...nothing leaves his shop unless its perfect. I've just spent the last 2 hours bouncing around on the headless 6 he made me in 2009 and there are hidden depths to the instrument that I've only discovered. In part this is probably because the instrument has mellowed a bit since I took ownership. One minute the bass sounds like a Status, then with a tweak It sounds like a Fodera and with another tweak of the mids and treble, it sounds like a Smith. I'm learning from it.

[quote name='White Cloud' timestamp='1378759970' post='2204462'] Yes agree totally...very good to practice on & it's easy to work. I used it for a body and neck stringers on a fretless build....that bass sounds very good indeed. Wood snobs can sneer but if it sounds good then it sounds good lol. [/quote] Well the funny thing is, when I was in China I played an Atlantsia copy with what I figured was a meranti (aka Philipine mahogany) body and a maple neck, it had a nice bit of growl to it. I was impressed. But SE Asia region isn't a world leader in sustainable harvesting.

Hi Pete, that would be interesting - I may be looking to buy one at some point because I think the boost bands might be narrower but would like to compare it to the simulation on Guitar Rig.

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1378719888' post='2203519'] I have a little Fender G Deck 30 I have brought along in the past for the jam room, if that is any use? [/quote] Thanks! It's better than playing through a bass amp I will be bringing a laptop with Guitar Rig 3 and the Kontrol foot controller as well as the strat, so if we plug the controller into your amp we should have a nice little set up going.

Good luck!