molan

In broad terms, and having seen a lot of both brands, I'd say the average level of build quality on a Korean made Lakland is generally superior to most MIM, MIJ and some US Fenders. US Fenders are difficult to generalise about because they vary a fair bit. From about 2010 onwards they seem to be universally good. Before then they are mostly good but with the odd beast kicking around. MIM Fender build quality is all over the place. Some are fine and others are complete dogs, poor neck pockets, nasty sharp fret ends, truss rod issues (either not working or pushing through the top of the neck), pick guards not aligned properly, scratchy pots, thin sounding pickups etc. etc. However, there are definitely some very good ones out there as well and, maybe more importantly, they can be transformed with a bit of TLC from a decent luthier and possibly new pots & rewire along with better pickups. The biggest issue to watch out for is a dodgy trussrod as this can be more complex and expensive to fix. MIJ models generally fit in between the two. I've certainly played, and owned, some that have been the match of, or even better than, their US counterparts. Laklands are almost universally well made and finished and have a pretty even tone. I've never come across a bad one, doesn't mean they don't exist just that I've not seen one. US Laklands are another step up and are excellent instruments. Really nicely finished and all seem to have great necks and fingerboards. On balance I'd say there's a greater chance of picking a Lakland off a shelf and it being good than a MIM, MIJ or pre 2010 US Standard but with Most Fenders below the Vintage, Deluxe or Custom Shop models it can be a bit hit & miss

They hold value pretty well - could probably get one here and then re-sell easily if you didn't like it I bought mine used from the Bass Merchant for £525 and got that back again when it sold.

I had a TF550 and moved it on very quickly. It seemed a very 'picky' amp. Worked well with some cabs and not others. For a short while I had the TF, an Aguilar AG500 and a TH500 and the TH was by far my favourite. In fact I ran a little home test with a 'name' bassist who lives near me and he hated the TF and refused to try it for more than a few minutes because he simply could not get a sound he liked from it. The AG500 came 2nd and the TH also won for him. The speakers we were using were all 12's Aguilar DB and SL and Bergantino AE. The TH sounded good with all of them, the AG was nice with the DB's but a bit too bright with the Neo cabs and the TF just sounded very 'coloured' with all of them but also best with the DB's. I think it's one of those amps that you'll really like if you find the 'coloured' sound is what you were after, if not then it's one to walk away from

For those people that are interested there's an interview with him here www.bassplayer.com/artists/1171/dirty-loops-henrik-linder-to-appear-at-bpl/48947

[quote name='timhiggins' timestamp='1412231964' post='2566890'] Blimey..she's gooood, i do hope she got something for the inferior tunes using her vocals ! i cant tell if its a p or not but it does sound like a pick or tone up full with nails i think its Ron Barker on bass [must be after his porridge ] [/quote] It was written and produced by Dan Hartman who sued Black Box for royalties. As far as I know the exact payment wasn't made public but it was generally believed that Hartman and Holloway took the majority of royalties from the initial release of the song. Dan Hartman was certainly no mug so I can definitely see him winning any court case about song rights and ownership. One of his biggest solo hits after he left Edgar Winter was Relight My Fire which featured Lolleatta Holloway on vocals. He earnt big money on this song when Take That covered it pretty much note for note with a, way inferior, female vocal part from Lulu!

Interesting brand diversification - 546 Motorsport accessories!

As mentioned in another thread somewhere - it'll be interesting to see what happens to TC once they are sold. The theory is that they need capital to expand further but then that's what most companies say when the founders have had enough and want to take the money out of the business and either slowly retire or go off and do something else. Obviously it'll depend on who buys them but so many musical equipment businesses seem to go downhill and/or bust once they've been bought by someone else

I must admit that I kinda like them. There's a lot of this very 'technical' playing stuff out there these days and much of it leaves me cold but these guys seem to have a bit more life about them and I really like the new arrangements of existing songs. I find them hard to listen to on any sort of extended basis but the odd song or two now and then always makes me smile

It'll be interesting to see what happens to them once they've been sold. Current owners saying the sale of the business is purely for expansion but too many times a new owner seems to wreck a business in the music industry

[quote name='wwcringe' timestamp='1412191686' post='2566691'] I'm hoping to get to the London show too. Hopefully catch you there Molan..anyone else?! Tom [/quote] There are two London shows in Nov and another next Mar

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1412105577' post='2565756'] Has he considered a career in politics? [/quote] No, but he does work in advertising

We were sitting in our local pub after rehearsal a few weeks ago and they had MTV on. A female singer came on and I said to the band that I thought she was pretty good and the bass sounded great - then I spotted Lee Sklar and looked her up. Had never heard anything from her before but thought she sounded great. Would love to see that band live, will have to check out local dates Edit: this is the TV show we saw. Love the band at around 10 minutes in: http://www.vintage.tv/catch-up/video/3769020879001/ Have bought tix for November gig in London

A friend of mine was once recruited into a band whilst standing at a bar because the lead singer mentioned he really fancied a synth player. My friend mentioned he had a real cheapo Wasp synth. He couldn't really play it but simply having one was enough and he was immediately offered the gig. Only lasted a few gigs and one album but had one really big hit single. The lead singer died years ago and my friend helped re-form the band and thy are now a staple on the post punk / 80's revival circuit. Somewhat amusingly not only can he not really play keys but he can't really sing either - he's now their lead singer

If the active treble and bass aren't obvious and the battery is running out so quickly then it sounds like there's a wiring fault somewhere. I've never really heard of a battery losing charge so quickly but I've definitely experienced tone controls that don't appear to do anything. In fact we had a, very expensive, bass in the shop recently with a balance control that was either all one pickup or the other or both in full. Effectively a pickup flick switch rather than a gradual blend. One of the pickups was really weedy and thin as well. Turned out to be a relatively simple re-wire and, I think, a pot replacement.

[quote name='basexperience' timestamp='1411894977' post='2563527'] Have you??? [/quote] Only briefly when you picked it up We've still got some screws by the way.

[quote name='basexperience' timestamp='1411813844' post='2563002'] Don't be put off: try a GR55 with a well set-up GK3B and see what you think. I run the GR55 into a Bass pos XT for other effects. I run the amp flat, only dialling in anything the venue needs at sound check. [/quote] The Tobias is still working well then I must admit that I've heard this bass working with the Roland kit and it sounded really nice. Didn't hear any glitching or tracking issues

Yep, vid is working on my iPhone and vids here often don't load properly for me

What's great about it? Looks like a fairly standard everyday Yam?

Malcolm always was the band for me