Wolverinebass

Thanks. I do try squire!

It's difficult. Whilst it could have just been innocent, life has taught me to chase the rats in my head to the worst possible outcome. That way, nobody can ever disappoint you or (more importantly), they can never blindside you. From a personal perspective, as I never play in covers bands, there is no way someone else is playing bass in a band I'm in. They would have 3 seconds to make up their mind and after that point I'd quit. Maybe I take things too seriously. Maybe the lady in question is very nice, but just a bit self unaware. Maybe it's all a ruse to force you out of the band through a series of petty humilations waiting for the day when you snap, quit in disgust leaving them with one less band member to split the cash with and them laughing sinisterly with lightning flashing in the background. Sorry, that's just my weird thought process. The keyboard player is probably just an eager div who didn't realise the implications of the suggestion. Or maybe this is a subtle way to start a tempestuous affair with you by taking an interest in your playing and requesting "tuition"...... Sorry, couldn't resist that one.

The easy way to explain the Stingray series is - They're all massively overpriced because Ernie Ball are clearly on the gear. Now, you don't need to know anything else. A grand for a Sterling?!! 3 grand for a Stingray?!! It's just insane. I toyed with getting one about 5 years ago when they were £1800. However, now that they're twice that, I think not.

I watched "The Kids Are Alright" when i was about 8. Bass guitar didn't sink in properly until I got into U2 about the time of the Pop album. After picking up the bass I realised how little challenge those parts were and I went back to The Who. My late brother said when I was taking up bass, "What's the point? You'll only be as good as Sid Vicious. You won't be as good as Adam Clayton or John Entwistle." Some years later he denied he'd ever said that. Whilst I had musical training in the form of piano and trumpet beforehand, after I saw The Who in 2000, I realised that bass was all I wanted to do musically. I saw a level of technique I wanted to attain and determined to get there. Going this way has its downsides too. People that want you to play much simpler (for lots of reasons), but after 25 years I just don't entertain those bands that don't give me any freedom. That's not to say I am (or am not) a colossal show off, but I always play what the band needs first.

In the case of the Spector, Warwick got there first. Which in Warwick's case is their only one despite protestations to the contrary.

What will Sire do next? Judging by those basses, quite frankly, any old crap as long as they can put Marcus Miller's name on it.

Yes, there are worse bridges. Even Rickenbacker replaced theirs eventually. When I got my Epiphone Thunderbird I couldn't get it to intonate properly at the action I wanted. I grant, that is exceptionally low, but it was infuriating that either the D or G string could never be got to intonate properly. So, after a few hours of creative swearing I ordered a Hipshot. Unsurprisingly, that worked exceptionally well. The simple fact is the 3 point bridge is crap if you want a super low action. Gibson don't care about bass players so we get the scraps from the table and a bridge made in a cave by bending some corrugated iron bin lids into a weird dolphin shape and saying "that'll do." However, on a more serious note, maybe it should be "bridges that are amazingly difficult to adjust."

Well, at least you know what Richard Burton is going to show you in Room 101.

Some people have no commitment to GAS or the need to almost bankrupt themselves buying stuff they don't need. To quote Liz Truss, "That.... is.... a..... DISGRACE!!" 😂

I had a bleak time after I left a signed band when I was 28. I couldn't understand why bands wanted a more simple feel. I really was actually quite angry and disappointed about it. Then after a bit of a venty post, Chris B said "maybe you're not going for the right bands?" Something immediately clicked and I realised that was the case. Since then, I've been very picky about the projects and people I work with. I'm very lucky to be in 2 originals bands with people who are not only great players, but also lovely people. I guess being in the sticks is much more difficult. I'd probably be doing some form of online collaboration if that was an issue. Certainly, where I'm from in Scotland I'd be stuffed as I'd have to drive everywhere and I've never owned a car. I think as many have said, be very sure of what you want and eventually it'll make itself known. Although one of the bands I'm in is mine, the other, I was referred to the guitarist by a friend, so that has been borne out in my experience at least. Yes, I had to wait for a while to get started with both of these and the gap between them and my previous projects was actually about 3 years. There was only a few attempts at things during that gap which didnt work out, but I will say I was lucky.

Well, I joined Basschat many moons ago, when the options for geographical accuracy was a bit more limited. I just haven't changed it. Welling is in Zone 4 actually, so yes, it's in London. London Borough of Bexley. As it borders Greenwich, Woolwich and Plumstead are they not in London or does it only apply to the square mile? Ha! There should be no logos on a headless. Mainly so the manufacturers have "plausible deniability" of having built them after they're sold. It's funny you say that about your Squier. An old friend bought one in CAR and it sounded fantastic, but I did have a laugh about the possible reason it was so cheap was because it looked horrible.

Not at all. You asked what the "usual" position was, so I told you what is the most common. Alembic, Status and Gibson basses have that position as do virtually all other basses that have double humbuckers. Musicman are the outliers here. The only one more ridiculous is the double buck Warwick where they're almost touching each other in the middle of the body. Maybe you missed the word "prejudices" in the title of the thread. For every single thing someone has listed, someone else will have that as their favourite thing ever. Ironically, I've played double humbucker Stingrays and they've been fantastic to play, but I can't get the snap out of them I'd want due to the pickup positioning. So, for every person who has listed something, it's all an opinion or something that won't work for their technique, hand size, tactile feel, appearance, sound, or whatever arbitrary quality standards they expect when buying an instrument.

Look at non Chris Wolstenholme Status basses. The pickups are about an inch further towards the bridge. That's where they should be.

Only on my days off.

This is going to be a long list. Singlecuts that look like a melted plastic toy whale. 38mm nut width. Satin finishes. The fact that virtually all basses have 40mm nuts nowadays as so many are made in the same factory. Cort, Schecter, ESP to name but a few. 3 point bridge. Headless basses. Basswood bodies. Humbuckers in the Musicman positions rather than the normal ones. Fender custom shop (You're not making a Wal. Cut the crap eh?). Warwicks. Mainly for pricing structure and plagiarism. Block markers that are a weird colour or just not white/pearloid/black. Foderas. Sorry, how much for a bass that's more polite and free of personality than my aunt? Dingwalls for the fact that every Nolly wannabe has to have one. Ashdown basses. They're really not great. Cheap tuning pegs. Just why? Oil finishes. It's not a deck chair, get it finished properly. Inaccessible truss rods. Figured necks. Planning on playing with your back to the audience the whole time? No? Well, you've just wasted your money on that roasted flamed maple neck. Logos on the body. If I wanted my bass to look like an advert, I'd put a Marlboro sticker on it just to be difficult. Candy Apple Red. Has anyone ever bought a bass this colour? I certainly don't want to go onstage looking like I'm about to play a stale Braeburn apple. Sparkle finishes. Good luck fixing that when it gets chipped. Racing stripes. Does a Mustang bass go faster? No, it just looks cheap because of it.

A friend of mine saw Whitesnake on the last tour. They did the same thing. 2 songs. Voice shot. Solos. 1 song. Solo. Etc., etc. I don't dislike Coverdale either actually. I was just making the point he's past it.

"Tonight at The Tickled Trout.... The JTUK All-star band!!"

I think most people have something that they'd change. For me, I spent too long working with one person who despite being an excellent player, was also incredibly difficult and controlling of the band's direction. It took a very long time for me to realise that and I blame that on being young. I wished I'd started producing bands professionally when I was 25 rather than 38. I stupidly settled for the easy paycheck. That decision caused me years of anguish of hating my job. I love my job now though. Over the years I got fired from some signed bands (don't worry, they did nothing), which was mainly down to making sure I kept a job I hated to pay the mortgage rather than take a chance. In 2019, I quit my job to produce full time as I realised I'd reached the point where the job was making me ill and if I didn't make the leap, I wouldn't ever. Nowadays, I love my bands I play in and the people I work with. We all get to where we get to. Maybe it's not when you wanted it, but when you're ready for it. Life has it's way of teaching us whether that be in the case of hard knocks or learning about ourselves over time.

A great day with old and new friends alike. Many thanks to @Merton for letting me leave my 12 string next to his copious amounts of ACG's (borrowing a strap) and running it through his fantastic trace 1200 and Barefaced 210. Whilst I'm not in the market for new cabs, having tried @stevie's LFSys cabs, they're great. Exceptionally clear and articulate which is why I'd choose a cab. They really do the snap, click and top end extension which I like very well. You could do a lot worse than get one. They're easily on a par with Vanderkley, Barefaced or Bergantino.

I'll be on that train as I'll be getting it at Waterloo!

Is there a running order of things yet?

Ernie Ball. If you're reading this thread, sort your life out. Issuing a bass which costs more new than the period model it's copying? Really?!! I think there are far better basses that I'd spend £3100 on. Plenty of manufacturers (some of which are in the affiliate pages here) which for that cash would make a bass that would be spectacular. There's nothing massively special about these. They're not character basses in the way that brands like Alembic, Wal, Status, ACG are. They're just a slightly more modern take on what Leo thought a bass should be in the 70s. As such, they're not boutique and to me are a £2k bass max. Maybe it's all reverse psychology though. Maybe they don't really want to ship to Europe and the UK so are jacking up the prices so nobody will buy them leaving them cheaper in the US where their more natural market is?

You do realise that playing a 12 string will be endlessly more fun than miming/crying/looking moody/dressing up as a banana or whatever people do in music videos any more.

It's all relative. I saw David Coverdale at Ramblin' Man festival in 2016 and I can say even then his voice had gone. He managed 2 songs before going off whilst the guitarists alternated solos for 10 minutes. Then came back on did one song, then guitar solo. That pattern lasted the whole gig. It was quite sad actually. As an ardent Who fan, they should have stopped in 2002 when Entwistle died. All the music since then has been awful/mediocre and the fact they have got lesser and lesser bassists since then (now its some American session musician who looks like an iced gem) just takes it to a new level of wrong. That's about the only band I'd honestly say should pack it in, but only because of my hypocritical stance as a lifelong fan. Most people are going to see bands of this age because they're always sure it'll be the last time. I think the Stones got that nonsense in 1994 and they've just continued. Plus it's nostalgia. How you felt when you first heard a song transporting you back to your long since departed youth. It's all expectation as well. I saw Kiss at the o2 recently and it was clear to me some of thr gig was being mimed. Isn't that having a laugh? I actually went to that one for free as a mate got tickets through his work. If people are going to pay for it, who are we to say who should retire? I'm 44 and recently a band (in their early 30s) the singer said (not to my face) that I was too old to join the band. I hasten to say, I could easily pass for almost 10 years younger than I actually am. We're all going to get there eventually I suppose. Someone saying Danny Glover style that "you're too old for this." It's the way of things and to be expected. Much like ageing boxers, we all believe that we've got one more fight left in us. Whether other people agree is a different matter.

That's true about anything. Whether it's fitness, sport, snooker, whatever it is you're into. If you want to get better, you'll find the time. I count myself as fortunate that I can play every day if I want to. I mostly do. I work on something I can't do until I can do it or get a bit closer and continue from there. Certainly when my kids were born I had much less time and I felt like I was stagnating. The gulf between what I felt I could do and what I wanted to was there in my head at least. I still do the same things well as I always have, I just happen to have a few more of them now and the confidence to do stuff live that I just wasn't so sure I wouldn't screw up when I was 28. It's all relative and only the person in question can make (or subconsciously make) the decision that where they are is a good place to be in. We're all different and can all learn things from each other. At least, that's the way I look at it.