Dingus

[quote name='marcus bell' timestamp='1366900718' post='2058776'] see how it sounds when it arrives [/quote] If you really like the bass and decide to keep it then John East makes a preamp especially for that Fender MM Jazz Bass with the uniquely- shaped scratchplate thingamyjig that will probably sound tons better than the Fender one . That said , I have heard Marcus Miller play a bog standard off-the - shelf Fender Marcus Miller Jazz Bass rather than his own custom bass and it sounded ... just like Marcus Miller . So much of that sound is in the way that he plays , rather than the gear .

A lot of them are pretty heavy ( way too heavy for me ) , just like the 1970's ash- bodied Jazz Basses they are based on . Pretty poor preamp , but it does a job I suppose . Very bright and snappy sounding basses .

[quote name='4000' timestamp='1366733649' post='2056596'] Thanks for the input guys. I've just spoken to the shop and whilst they would be prepared to take the instrument back as used, I'd take a massive hit on the bass, almost half what it cost, so that's no use to me. I'd just like to clarify that Tim has been very helpful and sympathetic over the phone and my issue is in no way meant to reflect on him; apologies if my frustrations make it seem that way. In a sense it seems that the law is backwards in terms of protecting the distance buyer over and above the shop buyer, the opposite of what most shops would want. I've effectively been hoist by my own petard; my need to try the bass due to my conditions has totally backfired, especially seeing as the problems I was worried about didn't surface until later. Ironic when I could've ordered it on the internet, played half a dozen gigs with it and then sent it back without any reason whatsoever. I guess I should have asked about the returns policy, but it just didn't occur. 'No questions' remember? Ah well, keep your eyes peeled; you should - barring a miracle cure - be seeing a stunning, highly figured (lots of flame etc), brand-new-in-all-but-name 4004 for sale at a bargain price some time in the next few days. The longer I keep it the more likely I am to to try and work through the problem and as I found out with the RIM, doing so is generally NOT be a good idea. BTW, icastle, that did occur to me but that's not a route I'd really want to go down. Here are pics as a taster........the yellower ones are with flash, the others in low natural light. [url="http://s290.photobucket.com/user/josten72/media/IMG_5012_zps7156f5b4.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s290.photobucket.com/user/josten72/media/IMG_5011_zpsfdb1c21c.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s290.photobucket.com/user/josten72/media/IMG_5045_zpsd816e604.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s290.photobucket.com/user/josten72/media/IMG_5019_zps4da03ebb.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s290.photobucket.com/user/josten72/media/IMG_5030_zps703dc75b.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s290.photobucket.com/user/josten72/media/IMG_4998_zps5461bd07.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s290.photobucket.com/user/josten72/media/IMG_4996_zps74fec244.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s290.photobucket.com/user/josten72/media/IMG_5046_zpsa60f02c4.jpg.html"][/url] [/quote] This is a [u]very [/u]beautiful bass - absolutely stunning , in fact , and just about the nicest Rickenbacker I have ever seen . Unfortunately , as others have already pointed out , if you buy something in person from a shop the law says a deal is a deal , unless the retailer agrees otherwise . I would think you will be able to shift it without too much trouble , albeit with a slight knock in terms of what you paid for it . Try not to blame yourself too much ; the assumption you made is a fairly common mistake for people to make in the current age of internet shopping . I had a similar situation with a computer I bought a few years ago but eventually managed to get a refund because it was an employee of the company who gave me inaccurate advice about the refunds policy .

I thought this was great . Thanks for posting . Also nice to see that they have drafted in a social worker to play hand percussion .

Maybe the simple answer Marcus , is that people don't value what you have to trade the same way you do . Depending on how long you have been trying to do the deal , it may be that you have to rethink your strategy . The hard fact in every case where you need to do a transaction is that things are worth what you can get for them , plain and simple . I would go along with Pete on this . You would do much better and give yourself far more options if you sold the bass or basses you want to get rid of and get the cash to buy a Stingray that way . Myself in your position , I wouldn't even have bothered asking about a trade . [u]You can always get a bargain if you are patient and have got cash in your hand [/u], that never changes .

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1366559160' post='2054009'] I have no problem with the charges for selling things ( why would I ? I don't want to sell anything ) but I have been aware a lot of resentment , bad feeling and tension on here lately . It is all my fault , as I'm sure a lot of you will have noticed . That is because I have been sent here by Talkbass to destroy you . [/quote] Just kidding ! I blame Thatcher .

I have no problem with the charges for selling things ( why would I ? I don't want to sell anything ) but I have been aware a lot of resentment , bad feeling and tension on here lately . It is all my fault , as I'm sure a lot of you will have noticed . That is because I have been sent here by Talkbass to destroy you .

I like the Police , too . They were a very original band comprising of three unique musicians , each of whom brought a lot to the party . I would describe Sting's bass parts in the Police as a compositional bass playing , in so much as his parts are carefully thought and and structured to be integral to those songs . He has got a knack for playing things that are so simple and so obvious that only a genius would ever think of playing them , and I mean that as a compliment of the highest order .

[quote name='megallica' timestamp='1366480660' post='2053144'] I listened to a few dio era sabbath tunes recently and thought that the dehumanizer tunes sounded more like a rough demo than the production on heaven and hell, mob rules and the devil you know. Regarding metallica they went from thrash metal act with progressive tendencies to a stadium rock act in the space of two years, which to me seemed a bit too calculated. I mean if you listen the last single from the justice album one to the first single from their fifth album enter sandman and there is a big style change. [/quote] I think that Heaven And Hell and Mob Rules are two of my favourite Sabbath albums , especially in terms of Geezer's bass playing , and I agree that Dehumanizer doesn't really match up them as an album overall but it is a valient attempt to stay current with what were the current trends in metakl at that time . On the Metallica thing , I remember when that album came out the momentum it had behind it , presumably because the record company saw the potential to market it and create a multi- million selling behemoth , which was exactly how it worked out . For the band it must have been all but impossible to stand in the way of their own success , even if they had wanted to .

[quote name='thunderider' timestamp='1366475074' post='2053064'] mk3? [/quote] No , it was the mk 2 lineup with Dio .

[quote name='thunderider' timestamp='1366474006' post='2053044'] ill have to have another listen i didnt really like it.....ive only ever liked the first 10 albums of sabbath...dio....gillan.....tony martin....nah!!! my trivia... tony iommi used to live down my road..... my dads cousin used to be a pisshead around aston and newtown birmingham with jimmy butler.... my mom was friends with geezers sisters.....victoria rd/vicarage rd aston were close communities... i worked for some one whos brother was tour manager for sabbath/ozzy and was a sleep in the tour bus wich the plane randy rhodes was killed in clipped... my bands last album was produced by some one who was taught by rick ruben how to produce!! my guitarest worked for metallica during justice for all/garage inc era!!! lol ill stop now....!!!! [/quote] Yeah , that's nice , but like I mentioned earlier , I've got a bit of Tony Iommi's Ford Cortina at home ( Tony gave me it when I was twelve years old ) . Cortina wins every time .

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1366466855' post='2052944'] Better quality version without the radio announcements: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVfUimq2KeI[/media] Shame you can get it via iTunes at the moment. Anybody know what bass Geezer is playing on the new album? Sounds like a growly Precision pickup. [/quote] On the Youtube footage of Geezer in the studio recording this album he has got a selection of several vintage Fender Precisions and Jazz Basses to choose from . Sounds very much like a P Bass on this track to me .

Ultimately , you could play a seven string bass ( some do ) or a three string bass ( Tony Levin had one but it got burnt ) , but what would be important would be what you played on it in terms what the musical results were , and how much you enjoyed playing it . If you lack the ability to play properly or effectively on the four string then you will still lack it on the five an extra string won't solve many problems for you in that respect . The five string isn't an improvement over the four , rather it is just a development of it that suits certain applications . They are very handy for playing low notes in certain keys though , and that is why I am still looking for the right one because I hate tuning down .

I used to like China Crisis back in the 1980's , and I've just been listening to them again for the first time since those days and I had forgotten what a great band they were and what superb songs they wrote . Looking on Youtube , I'm glad to see they are still going and sounding just as good as ever . I will go see them play live if I ever get the chance .

[quote name='Graham' timestamp='1366440985' post='2052584'] After reading some of my pals comments on Facebook I had fairly low expectations for this, but liked it - not a patch on their early stuff, but a good solid track, keeping with the Metallica analogy I can see this album being their Death Magnetic - a decent album with some good songs but nothing you'd call a classic. Lovely bass sound though, I assume it's Lakland / Hartke [/quote] I think Geezer used a selection of vintage Fenders for this album , but no doubt he will be using his Laklands on the road .

[quote name='timmo' timestamp='1366401410' post='2052265'] I have a feeling Free Bird is going to haunt me [/quote] Free Bird haunts everybody .

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1366400839' post='2052247'] Past performance is no guarantee of future results... [/quote] ... and the future is never guaranteed . So much great music has been made on the four string that it seems silly to dismiss it as outmoded when it is quiite clearly a consumate instrument in its' own right . When it comes to the whole four string versus five / six string debate I always remember hearing Jeff Belin say that the biggest difference the introduction of the five string bass has made to bass playing is that a lot of people who couldn't play the four string now can't play the five string . Most of the players I enjoy and who I am trying to emulate in one way or another play four strings , as do I . I have thought about getting a five to see how useful it would be , but haven't found one yet that really appeals to me or feels as natural as a four .

I've listened to this at least ten times today and it's getting better and better [quote name='megallica' timestamp='1366391170' post='2052054'] Cant say I hear any similarities in those two albums the metallica disc is an over produced sell out while dehumanizer is dark and raw sounding. If I was looking for a commercial sabbath album itd be never say die or seventh star There are a few good tracks on metallicas fifth album but the direction from justice to the black album seemed a bit like abandoning their past for an mtv friendly sound [/quote] On this subject , it's interesting to hear that some Metallica fans think that Black album was sellout because to me as a casual listener and not a fan of Metallica's music , it's still way too heavy to be commercial . Except for the tracks released as singles ( that are still very heavy by most standards ) that album is not very mainstream - accessible to my ears . You folks must want it [u]very[/u] heavy if you see that album as a sellout .

[quote name='megallica' timestamp='1366391170' post='2052054'] Cant say I hear any similarities in those two albums the metallica disc is an over produced sell out while dehumanizer is dark and raw sounding. If I was looking for a commercial sabbath album itd be never say die or seventh star There are a few good tracks on metallicas fifth album but the direction from justice to the black album seemed a bit like abandoning their past for an mtv friendly sound [/quote] I would beg to differ . If you listen to the production on Dehumaniser in terms of the audio engineering , there is, the same exaggerated upper treble and lower bass frequencies as Metallica's Black album, giving the Sabbath album the same kind of scooped - out sound , and the density of the arrangements and overall style of some songs is also very evocative of Metallica's music of that era , to my ears at least . I was around at the time and I remember being struck by how derivative the Sabbath album sounded . Not a surprising direction to take considering the millions of records Metallica were shifting at the time .

Interesting trivia / memorabilia fact : I've got a bit of Tony Iommi's Ford Cortina at home .

[quote name='plunkrock' timestamp='1366375220' post='2051720'] Well put Dingus, I was worried about the same thing but this track is very Sabbath! I remember being a huge fan of Metallica when I was younger and the crushing disappointment of St. Anger, glad Black Sabbath are staying true to their sound. [/quote] Funnily enough , I always thought the last Sabbath " reunion " album with the Dio lineup that came out just over twenty years ago , Rehumanizer , suffered from trying to sound too much like Metallica's Black album , which was selling millions at that time . Thankfully , this new material sounds free of those kind of commercial influences and is only trying to sound like Sabbath .

This is track is epic ! I am always fearing the worst when bands reunite but this is some of the best Sabbath ever . I was a massive Sabbath fan as a kid , ever since I saw them doing Never Say Die on TOTP , and Geezer Butler , along with Geddy Lee , was the reason I took up the bass . The mood and overall structure of this track reminds me of Wheels of Confusion / The Fixer from Vol 4 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsJO2gQ5E5Q Maybe Rick Rubin has encouraged them to evoke the spirit of those classic albums on this new project . I certainly hope so , if this track is anything to go by . I love the extended form and changes in pace on this new track , and if the rest of the album is up to this standard then I can't wait . Geezers playing has always set the standard for heavy rock bass players , and on this track he raises the bar again - great tone and great feel , as usual . Brad Wilk is an inspired choice of drummer , too . Ten out of ten from Dingus .

I've got some vague recollection that he has got a daughter who is a bass player - I seem to remember Wal making a bass for her . Ginger would come close to the top my list of musicians I wouldn't want to cross , that's for sure . I would venture that he is a prime example of of someone whose personality and musicality being indivisable - if he wasn't the man he is he wouldn't have such a unique identity on the drums .

[quote name='Musky' timestamp='1366309925' post='2050954'] If it's anything like the interview he gave Robert Elms recently I wouldn't bother unless you're into monosyllabic grunts. [/quote] [quote name='seashell' timestamp='1366310137' post='2050964'] Ginger Baker is one of my drum heroes. So I was very disapointed when I heard him once on Week Ending on Radio 4 and he came across as a bit of a berk tbh. Would still like to see this docu though. [/quote] That reputation for being "difficult " is exactly why I think he is such an interesting subject for this film . That , and the fact that he is amongst the most gifted and exciting drummers to ever pick up a pair of sticks , in my opinion .

[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1366302856' post='2050822'] ...and that somebody would stop swinging that cat around by it's tail - bloody racket.. [/quote] That is why this post carries an extreme fusion warning , thus freeing me of any legal responsibilty for the grossly self - indulgent content .