Jean-Luc Pickguard

I don't know about the Blackstar, but If the aim is to spend as little as possible on a bass practice amp, I would go for this Ashdown Tourbus 10 -> https://www.cashconverters.co.uk/shop/music-tv--video/musical-instruments/amps--stage-equipment/guitar-amplifier/046100161066 If the budget is (quite) a bit more I'd look for a secondhand Roland MicroCube Bass RX, which is what I have and use daily, including with my NS-Design CR-5M EUB.

This Must Be The Plaice — Talking Heads

Where Is She? — The Residents

Me too — I use the 40 - 60 - 70 - 95 (blue) set on my 3 × Epiphone Vintage Pro + a Gibson non-reverse Thunderbirds

Born Tibia Live — Patrick Hernandez

Bones — Darts

Death Grip On My Wheels — Pure Retribution

Elevation — The Residents

But that's the best kind of tweeter

Half-Asleep — Jeff Tweedy

Birdmad Girl — The Cure

Not a colour I would be able to live with.

I Am A Camera — Gentle Giant

Satan's Fruit — Pure Retribution

Seventeen — Sex Pistols

Tears Like Blood — Pure Retribution

I'm a sucker for a maple fingerboard on a Fender, and of the player mustang basses, this and black with maple, are the only finishes that I like enough to consider buying, and this came up at a price I'm happy with before a nice black one. The grain and matching of the individual pieces on the body of this one are very good as well, although it doesn't show too well on my snapshots. In fact, the matching is so good that you have to look very closely at it to realise it isn't a one-piece body.

Bah! You got me. I clicked expecting something about N'awlins funk.

Now I have had a chance to get used to the player mustang, there are a couple of issues/niggles with the electronics. Nothing major but enough that I'm going to attempt to fix them. First, when switching to the jazz/bridge pickup soloed, sometimes this results in no sound whatsoever. The neck pickup and middle position are fine. After considering whether to replace the switch with a blend pot or another switch, I decided that I'd prefer a better switch, so I have ordered a short switchcraft one. I'm thinking that it might have been better to order a right-andled switchcraft, but I'll see how the short one is when it arrives. Cleaning or messing about with the existing switch wasn't an option as in my experience any fix will only be temporary. The second issue seems to be a widespread issue with the player mustangs due to how they are wired. When the volume is at any position other than full, turning down the tone results in a big loss of volume. The best explanation for this I have been able to find is that these basses use a 50s style of wiring where the volume control is wired back to front, and the fix for this is to swap around the two wires at the volume pot: 1. from the output of the switch, and 2. to the tip of the output socket. I will try this mod, and replace the switch when the new one arrives, and report back on whether this fixes the issue. Factory wiring: Proposed modification - desolder the two wires marked red at the volume pot and swap their positions:

No Sleep Till Brookside — Beastie Boys or Buddy Hollyoaks — Weezer

Crossroads — Robert Johnson

She Hangs Brightly — Mazzy Star

Don't Come Back — Simi Stone

Peter Percival Patterson's Pet Pig Porky — The Monkees

Weird At My School — Pixies