bass_dinger

AKG K240 headphones. Bought a set when I was 18. After 38 years they were broken, so I got another set. They work, they are comfortable, they are affordable (for me). @neepheid is right about the Boss TU-2 tuner (which also works as a mute switch and a 9v power distribution hub too). Solid, accurate enough for me, and reliable. Oooh - and my straplocks too. Solid construction, easy to operate, don't seem to wear out. I still have a 30 year old set on my Lowden, and every new bass guitar gets a set too, even if it means asking on Basschat for the older version. And Dunlop nylon .73 plectrums, for guitar.

My wife bought a new kitchen 19 years ago. It's already worn out, so, she's not getting another.

That is what I thought in 2023, until two of my "unicorn" basses came up in the same Facebook advert....

Just bought a new power supply for my Kurzweil SP76 piano. The old one is playing up, failing to make consistent contact with the power input socket. It works, but not reliably. So, £4.94 worth of preemptive repair/ replacement (rather than new gear). "Breakages. If something breaks through no unusual intervention of your own, and is unable to be repaired, you may replace it."

I want you back, by the Jackson 5. It was played on the bass guitar, by a saxophonist. Here, all the dots for you Take the same chord sequence and bassline, transpose it down a semitone, and it fits with Taylor Swift "we are never getting back together ". Two pop songs for the price of one! There used to be a mashup of both songs on YouTube, but no longer. This is the closest that I can find -

I agree with @Shockwave and @neepheid. It is a 2024 order with a 2024 estimated arrival date. However, circumstances mean that you may need to re-do the order - but that is not your fault, nor was it your intention to buy that item in 2025. You shouldn't be penalised for not receiving the item in-year, and having to re-order the item.

I must have seen that video previously - because it is the reason why I went for an edge-lined fretless. The edge-lines allow me to get into the right region, and my ears (ha ha) will allow me to make adjustments from an even-tempered scale.

So, I had a bass refinished last year, but when I received it, it was a bass in bits, and the body was without a finish (it had been fully removed by the previous owner), so the refinish was judged by Challenge Jurors to be a repair. There was some debate about whether my refinish was a frivolous and unnecessary vanity project, or necessary to bring it back to factory originality. However, the jury concluded that it was allowed. So, precedent seems to allow a refinish where it is a genuine repair.

A major purchase, you say? Is it a new set of cello strings?

There's always ebay.... You could go online while the singer is setting up the PA, and spot an original stack-knob Jazz bass in Burgundy Mist with a Buy It Now of 50 quid! Then, you would buy it, and be out, and everyone would laugh at you! 5 hours to go.

Spot On! For me, the biggest win of this Challenge is realising that a new effects pedal, or amplifier or bass won't necessarily help me play better. I am more focused on improving my skills, thanks to these yearly challenges. In which case, why do I have five bass guitars, but only two hands...

I am in - a too-small house ensures that I won't buy anything more, oh yes.

I have enjoyed @neepheid's custody of this year's Challenge - the right mix of mercy and scholarly application of the rules. Thank you for keeping the flame (other maple finishes are also available....) Robert

You are Spinal Tap, and I claim my £5.

Looking forward to the Future

Sorry. I made a joke so poor, that I now need to explain it. People will sometimes comment on a bass for sale, saying that it's lovely, but has the wrong number of strings for them, and wishing the vendor all the best with the sale. I took it to the next level - I saw a headstock for sale from a 4-string (in essence, a lump of wood with 4 holes in it), and wished that it was a lump of wood from a 5 string. I'll get my coat....

Four Candles was enough for Ronnie...

I'd be all over that if it was a five. GLWTS!

Or, indeed, if only Spear And Jackson made a bass guitar.... The body seems very short, and the bridge is commensurately closer to the neck. So I wonder if the 12th fret is in the right place. Actually, on reflection, the 12th fret, and the bass, are both in exactly the right place - in Norfolk, 200 miles away from me.

I am planning on using them - and wanted them to also install the base, too. I shall carry out a little more research.

And he hadn't felt enough, either.

No, I think that that his handle still works for a member who used to play bass but now plays guitar. Bas Sadder 60.... But, in seriousness, I need to visit there more often.

I refer the defendant to the case of bass_dinger v Basschat.co.uk This case seemed to establish that a refinish that was a repair, counted as any other repair, and would not result in a Gear Abstinence breach. However, it will be for you to show that it was a repair...

. . . and the bass is painted, a turquoise-to-blue-burst finish. Even the headstock has the same 'burst. Although it is ready to ship back to my luthier to be rebuilt, we all agreed to wait until the start of January 2025, once everyone is back at work after the holidays. That allows the finish to rest and cure a little more, and ensures that the item is not stuck in transit over the Christmas holidays. Right now, it looks like someone else's bass, or something out of a custom-shop catalogue - certainly, it doesn't feel like I can possibly own this! I rather like it. @AndyTravis - that colour was inspired by the image of the 8-string that you shared. Woof, indeed! Edit - the colours are Candy Blue, and Candy Royal Blue. Not the Feibing’s leather dye used by the Washburn custom shop. But I am very happy with the finish.

Me neither. In my case, due to a lack of talent rather than a fear of heights.