molan

[quote name='JBassist' post='550585' date='Jul 24 2009, 09:14 PM']nice basses which 1's your favourite[/quote] Tough call - I guess the current #1 is the walnut stained maple Spector NS5XL. The redwood one is prettier & more versatile but it's a bit heavy for live work & has a gloss neck whilst the walnut stained one has a lovely satin neck. The Zon has a bit of a 'special place' for me as it's just such a fantastic little bass. I keep toying with buying a 5'er but they've shot up in price over the last couple of years.

Natural finish ex-demo for £599 [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200366444980&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&salenotsupported"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...alenotsupported[/url] and a sunburst, also ex-demo, from the same dealer for £699 [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200366445260&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&salenotsupported"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...alenotsupported[/url]

[quote name='Born 2B Mild' post='550581' date='Jul 24 2009, 09:10 PM']Does it come stringed with Bootzillas?[/quote] Strangely no! D'Addarios I think

A lot of these not taken by me - which explains the different backgrounds & image quality! One day I'll get round to lining them all up together I'll try to upload them in order of purchase: 1) Zon VB4 2) Overwater J5 3) Spector NS5XL (walnut stain) 4) Spector NS5XL (water cured redwood) 5) Spector LX5 6) Ken Smith BSR5MW 7) Traben Bootsy Signature Space Bass 8) Alembic Rogue 5 (this one hasn't actually arrived yet!) Technically there's a '75 RI Fender Jazz in the collection as well but it's more or less 'spoken for' already

Here's my VB4

Well, it's arrived already and everything about this bass is just soooo over the top, lol. When I saw the size of the box I assumed it had a lot of padding in it but it's just that the actual case itself is huge! Must be a third wider than a standard bass case. It has a really deep powerful bottom end with everything turned on but not overly boomy or anything. I can now see what they've done with the three Aggie pre-amps. Each one obviously has been pre set for a particular core sound. E.G the 'Ultra low pickup is really deep & powerful and the Ultra highs are simply just putting out high end frequencies. So far I've just been playing with all 5 pickups on and the tone controls centred. I couldn't resist running through a distortion & compressor into an envelope filter - the ultra lows mean that you can get a great funky bass sound without losing bottom end. Will report more when I've had a decent chance to play it properly

[quote name='MacDaddy' post='545875' date='Jul 20 2009, 11:26 PM']I'm old school rock/metal through and through, but Bootsy has always been my hero .[/quote] Back in '78 I was in the tail end of punk but still listening to a lot of heavy rock. Bootsy was my first funk outing & within a year or so I owned 14 Parliafunkadelicmentthang albums. Went to see them late '79 when I moved up to London & loved them so much I went back the next night & bought a ticket from a tout so i could get right down the front

[quote name='MacDaddy' post='545860' date='Jul 20 2009, 11:09 PM']It's Bootsy baby! [/quote] Been listening to Bootsy all evening [i]. . . Bootzilla's here! The world's only rhinestone rock star doll baba! I wanna be your toy. I wanna play for you . . . Created by Funk-A-Tech Incorporated, Makers of funky things to play with. Wind me up, people! Say what the . . [/i] Bought this on 12" in '78 & still have it

[quote name='Born 2B Mild' post='545827' date='Jul 20 2009, 10:40 PM']They do it in a 5? You really shouldn't have pointed that out. Oh no. [/quote] I've never actually seen one for sale & they are out of production now. May well pop up on the used market though

[quote name='GreeneKing' post='545572' date='Jul 20 2009, 06:26 PM']I actually expected something more extreme like loadsa colour and some pink fur Nice one.[/quote] That'll be what I'll be wearing when I play it - I still have my pink acrylic fur shortie jacket from my psychedelic punk days (I kid you not!). Only vid I could find of the Traben was this 5 string version: [i]Your love is kind of sweet, sweet enough to eat I'm hooked on you chocolate star I got the munchies for your love[/i]

[quote name='mxm' post='545504' date='Jul 20 2009, 05:18 PM']Welcome to the world of the Space Bass ! We ought to have our own sub-forum like: 'Why Have 2 Pick-Ups When You Can Have 5 ?' or 'Whats Wrong With Star Shaped Basses ?'.[/quote] That's one pickup for each point of the star So have you got one of the Trabens as well? I know there have been other Bootsy basses around but not sure on exact pickup config for each (Washburn ones have a paltry 2 I think - pah!)

[quote name='Rayman' post='545396' date='Jul 20 2009, 03:39 PM']Now [i]that's[/i] quality. Imagine pulling that bugger out for a set down at the Dog and Duck on a Saturday night.[/quote] Pretty damn close - I think my next gig is at the Dog and Partridge. I'm toying with using it for a couple of songs just for a laugh! I found someone in the USA who has one and he said it's really nicely put together and sounds like an absolute beast I can't wait for it to arrive now. . .

As a huge Bootsy fan I've always quite fancied owning a Space Bass of some description but the only previous ones I've seen were crazy money £3K plus for a Washburn! Even the Traben's have been kicking around the £2K mark but I spotted one at the weekend for a great price & thought I just had to have one OFFICIAL SPECS BRIDGE Traben Bootzilla Star CONSTRUCTION set neck PICKUPS five Rockfield™ pickups Fat Bass-Tard j-style ELECTRONICS 3 individual Aguilar® amplification obp-3 pre-amps custom wired for various settings BODY basswood FRETBOARD rosewood NUT chrome plated brass INLAY Bootzilla shooting star How could you resist no less than three onboard Aggie pre-amps & 5 Fat Bass-Tard pickups eh? Ok - well actually I can easily see why any sane person could resist one of these given the somewhat 'esoteric' styling Should arrive in a couple of weeks so I'll keep you posted on what it's actually like to play!

[quote name='Old Horse Murphy' post='544753' date='Jul 19 2009, 04:32 PM']I've been there and I'm sure it's an O'Neill's. I'm sure the Big Man would be happy it's been turned in to a pub rather than apartments for Boho Notting Hill wannabes. I'll ask him next time we chat [/quote] I've been there as well, still got the pews for seats too

Quick check question - is the main sound of your bass in the audience coming from your head & speaker or through the PA? If it's the latter then the combination mentioned above will make a huge difference. Get the cab up off the floor & closer to your ears, a beer crat or even any old pub chair will do so long as it's reasonably secure. Alternatively get a decent speaker stand from someone like QuickLok. Then play with your mids - these are generally the frequencies that will help you to hear yourself. This is often a problem with a lot of players who prefer a mid cut in their sound (classic smiley shape graphic setting). I tend to use a a little low mid cut in my sound but whenever I ahve problems hearing myself this is the first control I grab & start feeding those mids back in until I can hear properly. I also often bring my tweeters back in as well for a bit of high end definition (I'm not a huge fan of tweeters & only use them when really necessary). I have pretty good control over my stage sound because I'm sending a clean signal through the PA & our sound guy sets up a sound a like for front of house.

[quote name='WHUFC BASS' post='543998' date='Jul 18 2009, 02:31 PM']I'm not a betting man but I'd wager he wouldn't.[/quote] Not quite the same neck of the woods but there was a famous picture once of Bootsy crossing the road with Dave Stewart in Crouch End in full space-funk regalia, big hat, rhinestones, platforms, star glasses, pretty much a complete stage outfit. He was working with Stewart on one of his solo albums & had a recording facility somewhere in Crouch End. The locals just stood and gaped at this crazy looking guy strolling down the road seemingly oblivious to the fuss he was causing . There's a vid here from those sessions - some idea of Bootsy's 'purple' period look. He's in the background at the begining & a few better shots from around 2:30 onwards Apologies for 'off topic' - here's another nice Bootsy pic (in purple) to make up for it: [i]U.S. Senator George Voinovich laughs with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Bootsy Collins (in purple) and Walter Williams of the O'Jays[/i]

Pleased you like it B5

[quote name='WHUFC BASS' post='542494' date='Jul 16 2009, 06:44 PM']f***in' 'ell. [/quote] Don't think he'd get away with this outfit on the streets anywhere near the Boleyn ground eh?