BigRedX

Finally managed to find the web chat page on the HMRC web site and it turns out that the link from the Interparcel page is out of date and if I used the correct one that will be supplied I should get my number with a couple of minutes of completing the form. I thank him and start filling in the this new on-line form... until I need to supply a Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code. I follow the link to search for the relevant code for my business. 10 minutes and plenty of lateral thinking later I still can't find a code for anything like my business. Start the HMRC web chat again and after 5 minutes of being number 1 in the queue I am informed that there are no advisers available despite the fact that it says on the page that web chat is open from 8am to 4pm on Saturday. Return to the EORI form only to discover that I have been signed out "for my security" and that my what I have complete so far has not been saved. Grrr...

I am in the middle of trying to sort out sending a parcel of printed labels to Belgium for my business. Previously this wouldn't have been a problem. I would have given the printers the EU delivery address and paid a small extra charge for non-UK delivery on top of the printing costs and that would have been it. However... 1. The printers are currently not delivering to the EU because it is too complicated. I can't use a different printer because this is a repeat order and the print has to match exactly for colour and stock. Plus the quality I am getting is great from this printer and any other would be an unknown quantity. 2. I have spent ages trying to find the correct Tariff Code for self-adhesive labels printed on paper. It turns out that they are a sub-category of leather and fabric labels rather than a sub category of printed paper. 3. And now I need an Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) number. I have filled out the required form on the HMRC web site, but there is no indication of when I will actually get my number. I suspect that it won't be quick. The labels need to be in Belgium by Friday. If it wasn't for Covid. I would suspect that it would be easier and quicker for me to deliver them in person.

IME you still need to put the case in cardboard box. Ideally the case should come with one when you buy it.

I nearly always use UPS booked through Interparcel. In almost 20 years of sending musical instruments this way I have only had three problems and Interparcel's insurance paid up promptly, in full and without complaint on every occasion.

Sonic Seducer Magazine described as a "Depeche Mode" Christmas Single!

Thanks. The main baseline was supposed to be a 80s style synth part and then I got to channel my inner "Hooky" for the solo.

My "other" band Hurtsfall have a new single out, available to stream and download from all the usual places plus Bandcamp and an animated video to go with it: In true post-punk style, the instrumental solo is provided by a Burns Barracuda Bass VI.

Are you sending within the UK?

Fair enough, in that case I'd go with the P-Bass and neck combination. However... On my Burns Sonic bass which has bridge and neck pickups in similar positions to the Höfner, by far the best sounds came from having both pickups wired in series, so there is a use for the bridge pickup. I certainly wouldn't consider a short scale bass complete without one.

Put three pickups on it. Then you get the classic Höfner arrangement as well as one in the P-bass position

Free school milk is still available.

That is very easy to say when you have visa-free access to the whole of the EU should you want to gig more than 50 miles away from your home.

I never sit when practicing. All my serious playing (in front of an audience) is done standing up so that's how I practice.

Just had very poor service from DPD as detailed in the other thread.

However even at minimum wage rates it's more economical to fit a set of £5.00 strings then it is to go through all that cleaning hassle.

Whilst I never really used the extremes of the filters, I didn't find it too hard to adjust the controls to find the sound I wanted on each pick-up. I was using mine with two very different basses - a Pedulla Buzz with the typical P-J configuration and a Sei fitted with Ibanez GW1 pickups, so having a larger range of adjustment could have been beneficial, but ultimately wasn't needed (by me).

IME accumulated dirt and damage doesn't always register with the player if it has been gradually acquired over a long period of time. I had a bass which I sold some years ago as someone on here had actually put a wanted ad up for that particular make and model, and I thought "I've got one of those which I don't need anymore". The bass in question had spent most of it's life as a back-up to my Overwater during the 90s, and therefore had very little use - it had spent most of it's life either in a flight case or on a stand at the back of the stage. It would get used occasionally at rehearsals just so I could check I could play all our songs using it, but had never been actually used at a gig. Since I had bought my first Gus it had gone permanently into storage. When I got the bass out of its case I was very surprised to see that it was covered in grime and a multitude of dings, dents and scratches that had never registered with me before. I spent a good half a day cleaning it and photographing all the damage, luckily the buyer was still interested. However I only did that because it was being sold in response to a wanted ad. Had I just been listing it on eBay, it would have been sold as it came out the case with a few photos showing the worst dents and dings, and something in the description to cover the condition.

Just get the Boss dual pedal that was mentioned earlier in the thread. It's switchable between latching and non-latching. If that one doesn't work then there is something wrong with the amp (and you can always send the pedal back).

Those prices are somewhat inflated since they are for the US distributor and will include EU to US shipping and import taxes as well as a distributor mark-up.

Basslab used to offer a service where you could try one of their instruments for a small fee plus shipping costs, before deciding to buy it or place an order for one of your own specification.

Two things you can do. 1. Go to your local bicycle shop and ask for a bike box. Normally they are only too glad to get rid of them, and with current boom in bicycle sales they have more than usual to dispose of. Cut the box down to the right size to fit your bubble-wrapped instrument. IME bike boxes are made of far stronger card than the typical musical instrument box and will take a lot more punishment. 2. Buy a cheap hard case for the purposes of shipping the bass. It ought to come with a cardboard box, so you can simply open the package when it arrives, put the bass in the hard case, add bubble wrap if required, and replace in it box ready for sending.

Also used on the Born To Rock guitars and basses, although in this case it was to allow the design to do away with the need for a truss rod.

If you look at the actual Jammy website you'll find that the latency is around 10ms which puts it right at the acceptable limit for a controller, and will rule out the use of anything that it does not directly interface with - i.e. external hardware driven via the computer/DAW. A pretty good idea that hasn't quite been properly implemented. Also the use of USB-C connectors for the digital interface means studio use only. High-tech instrument manufacturers need to come to terms with the fact that modern computer connectors and cables are completely unsuited to use in a gigging environment.

Having owned basses with filter pre-amps on them (ACG EQ01), the ability to "tune-in" each pickup for the sound you want and then use the pick-up blend control the adjust between them is the biggest strength (IME) of this system. It's initially a lot of daunting-looking controls but the Cut-off Frequency and Q controls for each pickup tend to be "set and forget" and then you just have one control (blend) to get a wide variety of sounds.

You need to ask?