BigRedX

Plenty of custom/boutique basses that don't look like Fender clones or coffee tables. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=53555&view=findpost&p=532114"]See here[/url] for just a couple of examples.

From my post on the Boutique Bass/Pick Players thread but especially relevant here:

[quote]TBH the main reason I have custom basses is because I like the way they look (of course they're also brilliant sounding and playing instruments). If I could find off-the-peg cheap basses that fitted all my needs for looks sounds and playability then I would be using those. However once you step outside of the styles of Leo Fender you're entering a specialised minority market and you have to accept the prices that go with that.[/quote]

Custom/Boutique basses don't have to look like coffee tables - see my initial post in this thread.

Contact between the mains cable and the power in socket on the Superfly was one of the things that Ashdown suggested in their email. However after the initial failure to power up that was the first thing I checked, and I also made sure that every other mains lead we tried was securely seated before switching on.

I think if I could afford it at the moment I would like to get something more reliable instead, but it would need to be relatively cheap (under £300), light (no heavier than the Superfly) and the right shape to fit in the Line 6 Pod bag (it fits neatly into the compartment designed to hold the Line 6 Shortboard - so smaller than 19"x9"x3.5")

Any suggestions?

Now that I've had a bit more time to think about a proper answer rather than just post some pretty pictures...

[quote name='Shockwave' post='532038' date='Jul 3 2009, 09:20 PM']1) A good ole P with heavy strings and plectrum sounds awesome. An expensive bass with god knows how much worth of wood and electronics in it, wont sound any better if not worse when played with a plectrum.[/quote]
I have no idea if "a good ole P with heavy strings and plectrum sounds awesome" because the last time tried one plugged in was probably some time in the late 70s. Since then every time I've picked one up out of curiosity in a shop it's been fairly quickly put down again due to it feeling clumsy and uncomfortable.

[quote name='Shockwave' post='532038' date='Jul 3 2009, 09:20 PM']2) A plectrum dings up the nice woods of a unscratchplated bass.[/quote]
I'm an aggressive pick player, and none of the basses have any kind of pick damage including my Fretted Overwater that was my main bass throughout the 90s and was subjected to at least an hour of pick playing a day during that time.

[quote name='Shockwave' post='532038' date='Jul 3 2009, 09:20 PM']3) Plectrum users have their feet firmly placed on the ground [/quote]
Ground? what ground? I think my taste in basses says it all...

[quote name='Shockwave' post='532038' date='Jul 3 2009, 09:20 PM']Also for those of you who do use a plectrum and have a custom shop bass, is it any different to the usual P or J clone? Why did you choose it?[/quote]
Again see the picture I posted...

I play a mixture of fretless and fretted basses. Right now due to the music I'm doing the balance has moved back to fretted, but a year ago it was 80% fretless. The fretless basses never get played with a pick - it simply doesn't sound right for the tone I want from a fretless. The fretted basses get played with a pick or with fingers depending on what the song calls for.

The Born To Rock Bass, is strictly a pick only bass simply because there's nowhere comfortable for me to rest my thumb and play finger style.

I don't own any Fender-style basses because I find them uncomfortable to play and their design limits what I can play on them.

TBH the main reason I have custom basses is because I like the way they look (of course they're also brilliant sounding and playing instruments). If I could find off-the-peg cheap basses that fitted all my needs for looks sounds and playability then I would be using those. However once you step outside of the styles of Leo Fender you're entering a specialised minority market and you have to accept the prices that go with that.

"Boutique" Basses? Played with a pick?

Look no further...

Mine was one of the £199 ones.

It only gets light use, but at the moment I get a lift to rehearsals with one the the guitarists, and my main amp set up (Black Cat, Bass Pod Pro and Peterson Stroborack in a 6U rack case) is too big to go in his car with all the other gear hence I'm using the Superfly with a Kidney-shaped Bass Pod. which fits neatly into the Line 6 Pod bag.

One of the cabs I use with this rig has jack connectors only, but I'm extremely careful about plugging this in as I don't approve of jack connections for amp/speaker systems over 50W.

I've had a reply from Ashdown already saying it might be the filter on the mains input? but not to worry unless I get a repeat of this happening.

Anyone come across this before?

[quote name='BarnacleBob' post='531476' date='Jul 3 2009, 10:50 AM']Pete raises a good point. what if u order a custom bass and u dont like it?
Expecially if u have had input in the build process?[/quote]

IME people who are unhappy with their custom-made basses have over-specified them and got too far into the fine details that should be left up to the luthier who ought to have far more experience than you when it comes to knowing what will make the right bass for a given customer.

They specify woods, based on examples that may well have been grown in a completely different continent to the stock their luthier is using, and electronics and pickups based on word of mouth and sound clips off the web rather than actual first hand playing experience.

As a player pick what you know about. The look, the playability and how you want it to sound. It's up to the luthier to then turn that into the right bass for you, and a good one will be able to guide you in the right direction. You should know what you want the bass to sound like and so the luthier will be able to pick the right woods and pickups that will give you the correct end result. If you want fancy wood finshes remember that there are plenty of different timbers that will give the same look and if for instance you want a flame or quilt top it doesn't have to be maple - there are plenty of other woods which will look the same but may be far more appropriate for the sound of the bass.

Don't push your luthier in building an instrument they don't feel comfortable with. There's plenty of luthiers to choose from - over 10 first class ones building basses in the UK alone. Someone will be willing to build what you want, although I think you should decide based on what they've made previously that matches what you want. And once you start looking world-wide (a much easier proposition nowadays) someone somewhere will already be building something that is pretty close to your dream bass.

[quote name='wrinkleygit' post='531437' date='Jul 3 2009, 10:02 AM']Hello,recently I have searched long & hard for a fretless 4 & during the past weeks I have been fortunate to place my hands on the likes of Zon,Pedulla,Warwick & Fender,but rather than boost the American or European economies I suggest you contact Chris or Laurence at Overwater (email or phone) which is the route that I finaly took & in my case was fortunate to purchase a used Progress fretless that they had in stock,it arrived this morning & it is truly stunning.Out of all the instruments that I have played this is far & away the best use of my hard earned cash,good luck in your quest, mike b.[/quote]

I hope you'll be posting photos in the [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=52576"]Overwater Porn Thread[/url]

Weird one this.

My small portable rig is powered by an Ashdown Superfly. At last night's rehearsal it would not power up. Completely dead. None of the lights came on and obviously no sound. Tried a couple of different mains leads (that we knew were working and were still working after failing with the Ashdown) and no difference. Did the rehearsal going through the PA.

Just taken it out now to check the fuse and decided that before I start taking it apart I'll try it one more time. Plugged it in and now it seems to working fine. Used exactly the same leads as last night too. All that has happened between last night an now is that It's gone back in it's bag and gone in the back of the car for the journey home. Obviously it's no longer quite as hot now.

So is it a heat issue? It was hot last night, but the previous week's rehearsal was pretty hot too, and more worryingly, I've done gigs where it's felt a lot hotter on stage than it did at the rehearsal and although I wouldn't normally use the Ashdown at a gig, if I was pushed for room with my normal (very) big rig I might consider using it. Alternatively could it be a lose connection somewhere inside the amp. It's worked fine up until now and I didn't treat it any more roughly when loading/unloading last night than any time previously.

I have noticed that the amp does get very hot with normal use, so maybe there's is a cooling issue. Anyway anyone got any suggestions for what to look for or are there any known issues with either loose connections or heat that would prevent powering up?

I'm going to be contacting Ashdown as well but if anyone here as come across this problem before it would be good to know and also how you solved it.

I don't know of any "off-the-peg" bass that ticks all the boxes for looks, playability and tone for me. Most will be lucky to tick one.

I own two Overwater originals and they're fantastic instruments, although neither were made especially for me so I couldn't comment about that part of the process. You can see them both in my post at the beginning of [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=52576"]this thread[/url]. The fretted bass was my main for most of the 90s and stood up to everything I threw at it both musically and from a playing PoV. The only reason they're no longer my first choice basses is because I have since bought 3 Gus Basses and a Sei!

If you've got a Mac then iMovie will do it all for you including compressing and uploading to YouTube.

In a word, yes!

As with any product there is a law of diminishing returns the more money you spend, but if you have the cash why not have something that little bit more special?

Sure most of us could get by on a well set up Squier bass, but having something that was crafted especially for you, to look, play and sound how you want is going to inspire you all the more.

Also if like me you find looks just as important as tone and ease of playing, and you want something a bit more innovative than a rehash of 50 year old Fender designs then boutique/custom is pretty much the old way to go.

I haven't seen the most recent copy of BGM. I think my subscription must have run out, although I thought the same last month and on returning from town with my newly purchased copy found another one waiting in the post for me!

If what is being said in these posts is being taken seriously at BGM, then let me add my weight for more reviews of high end gear. I have no problem with a magazine full of £2k+ instruments provided at least one of them wasn't made by Warwick or is essentially a posh version of one of Leo Fender's designs. I also have no problem with reviews of cheaper gear provided that it isn't the kind of instrument that can be found hanging on the wall of pretty much every musical instrument retailer in the UK. The Hagstrom 8-string review would be an excellent example (under £1000 but not at all mainstream) if it wasn't for the fact that the article failed to address a crucial design feature of the bridge and how it would affect the intonation - pretty much the first thing that I would be checking out if I ever manage to get my hands on one.

I don't need the look of instruments described in the review, that's what the pictures are for. I want to know practical stuff. Do the machine heads feel smooth, do the strings stick at the nut or elsewhere when tuning? How easy is it to adjust the action/intonation (do you need to slacken off the strings to do this?) How easy is it the change the strings? Do you have to remove any hardware to do this? Will the bridge fall apart once the strings have been removed? Easy of battery access in basses with active electronics. All this practical stuff makes a difference especially at the lower end of the market a well designed bridge may be the only realistic difference between two basses.

By all means describe how the bass sounds but don't spend too many words on it. Put in a link to your web site where the sound clips are. These will tell you more than any number of words when it comes to what tones you can get out of a bass.

I not entirely convinced of the worth of reviewing very inexpensive/beginners instruments. When I bought my first bass, my decision was limited to what was in stock at the local music shops that I could afford. Reviews would have been pointless because the final decision came down to a cheap P-bass copy, a cheap J-bass copy or something old and weird second hand (can you guess what I ended up with?). However it might be worth doing a run down of the common cheap brands that only ever appear on eBay and which to avoid and which could be worth a punt, because for most of us there is no way to try without buying.

Personally I still haven't seen better reviews that those by Stephen Delft that appeared in International Musician in the 70s. The man had no worries about criticising instruments that deserved it where they cost £100 or over £1000.

Nice, but maybe the price is a little high for a second hand one when you consider that a brand new one made to your spec will be around the €6,600 mark?

Did you check that you'd installed both pickups the same way round? If you put one in the wrong way round then that would reverse the direction of the coil, so swapping the wires would sort it out.

Congratulations!

It's stunning music. If I lived in London rather than Nottingham, I'd would have been up for that like a flash.

I trust you'll be keeping us posted of gigs etc?

Thanks for that recommendation. Another CD added to my Amazon wish list

[quote name='Linus27' post='527611' date='Jun 29 2009, 12:10 PM']HEHEHE OMG, I am far too boring to like any of them. I think I have been well and truely sold the commecial product. If it does not look slightly like a Fender then I don't like it [/quote]

From experience I know that Fender-style bases simply don't suit me and place far too many restrictions on my playing style for me to ever consider having one. By the time I would have put right all the problems I see with a P- or J-style bass, it would have so little in common with the instrument it started out, that I might as well have something that's been design properly from the ground up to be different.

Also (not a criticism aimed at anyone - simply an observation) I find it fairly depressing that for many people claiming to produce original music their originality hasn't extended to their choice of instrument.

[quote name='Linus27' post='527505' date='Jun 29 2009, 10:38 AM']I've not heard of any of those basses [/quote]

You be needing to have a good read of [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=5525"]this thread[/url] then!

You want unorthodox bass playing?

Take a listen to our very own [url="http://www.spoombung.co.uk/"]Spoombung[/url].

If I was going to expand my range of available basses, I'd be looking at the following:

Spalt Hybrid
Norton
Pagelli
Ritter Raptor
and probably another Gus (5-string fretless this time)

I wouldn't bother with an onboard pre-amp. Unless you're forever tweaking your sound as you play the tone controls on your amp should do a more then adequate job.

Probably just about any bridge from a reputable manufacturer will perform mechanically better than the one you have at the moment. Hi-mass bridges like the Badass will change the sound of your bass and it might not be in a way that you like. If the only problem is the poor construction go for a similar design but better made version.

Pickups - the quest for the right combination of bass and pickups can be never ending, and only you will know when you've got it right. I'd start by talking to either Wizard or bare Knuckles.