molan

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1474280348' post='3136685'] Because they are mostly Fender copies with a horrible looking logo on the headstock? How many more Fender copies does the world need? [/quote] There's a reason people like Fender copies - still hard to get some gigs without something that looks like a Fender and many beginners want to start with something that's familiar. I realise BC can be very elitist at times though so maybe that's why they aren't as popular. . .

I think a lot of their instruments are excellent. Great value for money. Can't understand why there isn't more love for them here.

I thought M83 were really good. The 'Steve Vai' solo at the end was fun Liked the first KoL song but not the second. Thought Sting started OK but got a bit 'samey' very quickly

Could be a whole number of things really. One thing to check might be speaker sensitivity. Using cabs with higher sensitivity will sound louder - a 3db gain in sensitivity makes a huge difference. If you're after a completely different tone then there's lots of potential cabs out there. Be sure to test them back to back with your existing setup though. However, if all you want is 'loudness' I'd just turn your amp up - that's a lot cheaper than throwing money at new cabs

Provenance will always add value if the player and/or album is big enough to be known to a wide audience. This can be especially true of an instrument with some concrete proof that it was used on a a high profile recorded work (as opposed to live performance). There's a whole host of players out there for whom lots of players have huge respect and many of those people will pay extra for a 'name' bass. The bigger the name the bigger the jump in value but even a lower key player can sometimes add a bit of desirability to an instrument. None of this makes the bass any 'better' but as a financial investment it can often make sense. Edit - Adam Clayton is a perfect example. Things he's actually owned can really add a lot of money to the price of something. However much people here like to slag him off all the time he's one of the most famous players in the world, has inspired lots of people to play and has a huge fan base. He's also famous / rich enough to have his personal instruments finished to an incredibly high standard so they are highly likely to be really good examples of whatever brand he happens to like in any given month

[quote name='sifi2112' timestamp='1474044547' post='3135286'] Thanks for the responses .. I did try a Walkabout once & was indeed very impressed .. except for the price lol Molan did you actually A/B the Jeff Berlin to the Alain Caron btw ? [/quote] I owned a Walkabout for at least 15 minutes. Great tone if I wanted to sound like I was playing through a wet blanket but unfortunately that's not ever anything I wanted to replicate - it was sold again within 24 hours I have played both a Jeff Berlin and an Alain Caron but not directly back to back. I didn't dislike the JB but just remember it sounded a bit lifeless. The AC feels like it has a lot more character and is definitely voiced differently. I wanted a combo for smaller gigs and rehearsals etc and had a choice of a very wide range of gear and chose an AC. As a simple one box solution that you don't have to worry about whether to take an extension etc it just works really well for me.

[quote name='kodiakblair' timestamp='1473981324' post='3134779'] Just got nailed £15 Import Tax,Vat and handling charge on a £32 preamp Customs is currently debating if they want both my kidneys for a bass coming from Japan. If you want it, buy it. Kidneys are over rated. [/quote] Handling is usually a fixed charge so the relative percentage on a low cost item is much higher. It would be the same £10 or so on a £32 pre amp as a £3,200 bass

I've brought loads of stuff over from the US. It's relatively painless once you've swallowed the 25% or charges. Current exchange rates mean it's nowhere near as advantageous as it was pre Brexit referendum though. Very rough calculation now is that a $1,000 bass is going to cost you £1,100 in the U.K. after you've paid shipping, insurance, duties, taxes and clearance charges

The Aguilar Hot P is a great pickup with more output and aggression than their classic P Aguilar stuff is generally pretty bomb proof - there's a reason so many pro players use their gear and their pickups are turning up in more and more instruments - Fodera, Spector etc.

It's worth asking Pierre at BassFreaks about JV basses. He has a regular flow of them at his online store https://bassfreaks.net A lot of them are 'to order' and are sold immediately an others go so quickly they don't make his web site. Send him a note and he'll let you know what's in stock and what's coming soon

The ATS cab is incredibly rare in the UK. I don't think there's more than 4 or 5 of this particular model in the country.

I'd get it looked at just in case. I've seen a truss rod push right through the back of a neck This was a very special case but has made me paranoid ever since!

[quote name='dood' timestamp='1473629167' post='3131878'] That sounds very familiar actually yes! [/quote] Found it: 2.5 Internal Boost Preamp Controls Boost Preamp – Drive, Bass, Midrange and Treble internal trimpots to customize your Overdrive level and tone. The dip switch is used to select OD1 (Normal) Boost or OD2 (Super Boost) Overdrive. [b]Note: Only one OD switch can be selected at a time or the overdrive circuitry will oscillate. [/b] Here's the [url="http://www.suncoastanalog.com/Suncoast%20B1p%20Owners%20Manual%20Rev%20B.pdf"]user manual[/url] in case you don't have one

I seem to remember that there was an instruction somewhere that said you had to be careful with the dip switches on these. If you operate both at the same time it can cause a major malfunction which usually results in a squealy sort of noise

[quote name='JapanAxe' timestamp='1473541953' post='3131155'] I concur. [/quote] Me too! I was surprised to learn recently that a lot his stuff was played on a Sadowsky - looked more or less identical to his regular Tele style guitar.

Take a look at the little GK combos as well. I heard a guy using the 200w 1x12 last week and couldn't believe how loud it went! Edit - forgot to say that it's the 1x8 that is the comparison model. Only mentioned the 1x12 because I heard it being used at such volume. The 1x8 is really nice too. Might take you over budget though as it's about £125

Elderly friends of mine were on holiday in the US and heading down from their room in the lift. The doors open and a large man stepped in - "Hi, I'm meatloaf" he proclaimed. My friends tried to get as far away as possible from him as is possible in the confined lift and reported him to reception as quickly as possible because they thought he was clearly insane. . .

I spent a fair bit of time swapping the principal pre-amp valve around in my Demeter M800 head. When James Demeter sent it over he'd temporarily run out of stock of his regular valve so he let me have a Sylvania NOS 1960's one he had. The Sylvania was worth a lot more but James wanted to get it over as quickly as possible. Because he's such a pro he then sent a free valve of the regular type just so I could be sure I had the one installed that I preferred. By chance I had a couple of cheaper valves kicking around so was able to test three different set ups. The 'stock' valve appeared to have the most gain and was the 'purest' sounding. The cheaper pair sounded a shade warmer but maybe a bit more 'brittle' - tough to explain but it was the least attractive to me. The Sylvania was both warmer and richer sounding. Because the Demeter is a very clean amp to start with I decided to choose the Sylvania because it game me a few more options. The amp has normal, bright and dark options and the bright is a bit too crisp for me (great for people who like a 'hifi' tone). By adding the slightly warmer valve I feel the bright was more useable for my basses. Anyway - summary is that different valves do sound different but the change can be subtle. The Watford valves guys are absolutely the best people to help, especially if you're looking for valves that will break up and generate pre-amp distortion

[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1473422160' post='3130073'] Interesting angle. I don't think its fair to say Dingwall hide it in the smallprint, the combustion basses are half the price of the next range and its in the specs. They are all set up professionally in Canada as well bear in mind. I find that in China you get exactly what you pay for. A £1.3K bass built in China is a £1.3k bass, as opposed to basses built in the UK/US/Germany/Canada, where value for money varies wildly! [/quote] I wasn't suggesting that they 'hide' it - it's just at the bottom of the list of specs rather than the top. From a marketing angle this is entirely understandable. if you compare the spec list to a Canadian bass you can see the difference: [list] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Dingwall made in Canada FD3N pickups x 3 - £200 option[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Dingwall passive controls, volume (p/p, a/p), pickup selector, passive tone[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] 3 x series/parallel switches - £110 option[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Dingwall USA strings[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Two piece Alder body*[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Ferrari Yellow[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Wenge neck - £165 option[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Wenge fingerboard - satin finish, 34 - 37", Ivoroid side dots[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Speedo lines on fingerboard - £200 option[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Banjo frets[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Novax® Fanned -Fret System™[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] 5 piece Maple neck[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Hipshot ultralight tuners (black)[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Extra strap lock on rear of bass [/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Custom Dingwall Bridge (Black finish)[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Weight - 7lb 14oz/3.3kg[/size][/font] [*] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Manufactured in Canada[/size][/font] [/list][font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] On this bass the Made in Canada is right at the top of the list - and then again at the bottom just to stress it.[/size][/font][font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] If I were marketing a Chinese bass I wouldn't put it first on the list of specs either [/size][/font] [font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] I don't really understand the 'get what you pay for' comment?[/size][/font][font=Helvetica-Light, Helvetica][size=3] Chinese prices are all over the place as well?[/size][/font]

I used to play a lot of 'tough' pubs in north London, you'd not get out after the gig (or even during) with a bass that had a Hammers logo on it!

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1473418239' post='3130004'] Is that where they are made?!?!?!? China make fantastic instruments, in fact they make a lot of fantastic products, but something doesn't sit right with those prices. [/quote] It's in the small print: SPECIFICATIONS: •Dingwall made in Canada FD3n pickups* •Darkglass 3-band pre-amp, active/passive switch •Rotary 4 way pickup selector bridge, both parallel, both series, neck) •Dingwall USA strings - buy HERE •Alder body - Black Finish •Maple Fingerboard - 37 - 34" scale •Black dots •Carbon Fibre pickguard •Banjo frets •NOVAX® FANNED-FRET SYSTEM™ (see below) •Five piece maple neck •Black nickel hardware •Hipshot licensed tuners •Manufactured in China •Final set up at Dingwall Shop in Canada Manufactured in China but finished in Canada. I agree that it's possible to get quality stuff from China but they tend to be cheaper than Korea and Indonesia simply because labour costs are dirt cheap.

If the choice is between the two P's you've mentioned then the price differential is a pretty big factor. Any new bass is going to depreciate rapidly as soon as it leaves the store. Fenders hold value better than most and seem to have a slightly different depreciation cycle than some other brands. Very loosely you tend to find that a new one won't drop too far in the first couple of years so long as it's kept in near perfect condition. Then it'll go a bit further until it's about 5-6 years old when it'll take a real dip. Once it's got over that it'll sit at the same value for a long time. Reason for saying this isn't that you'd be looking at your 'investment' value, lol. It's just meant to be a bit of a guide on pricing. The older one ought to have reached the point where it'll hold value well. That means you could keep it for a decent amount of time and shouldn't lose money if it doesn't work out. The new one is likely to be an all round better bass (a lot of current new US Fenders really are great instruments) but you will certainly lose money on it if you decide it's not a long term keeper. Slight Edit - the lefty market is a bit tougher to judge. Generally a decent used lefty will command a premium over a righty simply because of supply/demand. However, sometimes they are just impossible to sell so you can pick up the odd bargain. This tends to be on new basses and/or more 'esoteric' or custom basses than a good old Fender P or J though.

I love it - I'd happily gig one of those! I've always found the NG series a bit expensive for a made in China instrument though.

I'm about 45-50 minutes each way for rehearsals and gigs are usually about an hour, sometimes 75 mins. Doesn't bother me at all. Get in the car, put some music on, spend an evening with good friends doing something I really enjoy

Fender's CS are a bit of a maverick bunch when it comes to releasing specific age models but for quite a while the main way of ordering a full custom build was to start with a Time Machine base model and then add options. The only basses on this were: 1955 P 1959 P 1964 J That means a lot of instruments on the pre-owned market are going to be derivatives of these three. Other options were always available but price went through the roof - I once asked for a dot & bound 66J with lollipops an was quoted nearly £5K vs a nice 64J at under £3K. Part of this price is that if you went 'off ratecard' then your build immediately became a 'masterbuilt' rather than a batch build (one guy on bodies, another on necks etc). There have been artist models based on 60's, most notably the Pino and limited run like the '64 heavy relic from 2014 etc. Overall this means you're far more likely to see a CS P bass with a 5 in front of it than a 6