Sean

Thanks. It reminds me. In addition to my list already submitted, I'll be bringing my very recently repatriated BB1300. Rocking horse hen's manure tooth back home.

What's the 550 like in comparison as far as tone? Same preamp, very different tech in the power amps, how does that translate?

I think that's really good advice. I've had a few breaks from BC over the years. It changes and evolves over time, like anything. If you're ever in the UK when There's a basschat event on it's worth attending. I intend to do the South West, and if it goes ahead, the South East bashes this year.

That’s hilarious. We love you already. You’ll fit in beautifully but the pressure is on you now to maintain that level of wit and repartee 😃

Welcome to Basschat. I’m in my 18th year of it and if I’d spent that time practising instead of chatting, I’d still be mediocre on a good day. I haven’t been on there since Chef passed away in 2021. He was a mod and always very helpful (in a very direct way) with Mesa and G&L related issues.

That’s on my learn list for the next few days. One of the few on the list I’ve never played before. After that it’ll be Bohemian Rhapsody.

A few questions to get started: What’s the construction/config of the pickups? They look to me like each one could be a pair of J pickups in a humbucker wiring with a big cover over the both. This would be about 92Lx35W if it was. If that’s the case, there are some interesting possibilities. Are they coil-tappable on push/pull pots as it stands? Can you take them out, take photos? Can you put a multimeter on the tip and ring of a lead to get the various pickup resistances?

If you think it sounded good then I’d question the need to replace the pickups and preamp. It depends on what you want from it. A keeper beater? As soon as you start spending money on it, it won’t add resale value unless it’s a general refresh and original hardware is replaced. If you want to see how far you can take the modding, then the world is your oyster.

I've just bought the GK MB Fusion 500 that Gary Mac was selling. Mainly as a very portable amp to drive the 8x10 in the rehearsal room (cos the resident Elf doesn't cut it). After spending a good few hours with it, it can, as you might expect from a GK, pretty much do anything. It's even got a "Spector Switch”. Now, they don’t call it that, obviously but it’s there and it’s labelled up as “-14dB”. Also, one of the many benefits of a GK is that they're beautifully made and can be repaired. GK-ology came flooding back to me quite quickly, it's surprisingly (or not) similar to the 700RBii I had when I was playing in a function band years ago. After about 30 minutes I was left feeling a bit miffed with myself for not having owned a GK in 15 years.

@Jonrh98 Have you bought anything yet?

@Allaboutthebass Have you bought anything yet or are you overwhelmed by the "advice"? 😉

I absolutely love my Toltec J pickups. They're hot @ 11.3n and 11.6b but they have so much definition and sparkle. I've just engaged with Mr Toltec to do a custom pair of twin J splittable humbuckers for "that" Yamaha I have. All will be revealed soon but in the meantime, I think I've found someone to fill the hole Wizard left. I know Hot Rod took on the designs but it wasn't the same after Andy moved on.

An absolute pleasure to deal with all round. GK amp arrived exactly as described, beautifully packed, even the delivery driver was charming. Gary kept me up to date all the way. Highly recommended.

@Paulhauserwhat's the string spacing?

In a nutshell. Bass Direct talking to Spector about a Euro limited run. Spector-nerds on BC speculating/suggesting/fantasising spec. BD not ready to confirm details yet.

This might sound silly but in my mind the white JJ Classic is like a BBNE2 on 'roids at 60% the price tag.

I could easily live with one. Especially in that ultra violet finish the Euro X came in. I need to get much longer arms before I have a Euro X.

When did it become OK to use the R-word on this forum? I saw one for sale here a while back, how things change.

You’ve gotta plant seeds. The power of suggestion. That big tree of yours, that was a seed once 😀

It probably depends on what percentage cut Mr Kip Winger wants on his purple Euro 4 Signature models with Ian Hill profile necks 😉 They've got to do costings and set up the CNC for those new body shapes too.

I’m not into buying new (unless it’s something exceptional/collectable/rare because there’s better value/quality on the used market) however in this case, it’s for a backup piece of kit that’s relatively cheap (£299), highly rated by buyers and comes with a 3 Year Warranty and free shipping at Thomann. I bought some new Parkside power tools (3 Year Warranty) as backup for my essential DeWalt and Makita tools. In this case, I would buy it. That 3 Year Warranty is a good deal. I’m not sure if that’s just a Thomann deal. As for brand snobbery, I wear Parkside T-shirts so you need to speak to someone else.

One of them has motivated me to sell something I've got.

All very cool. What's the history of the NS-94 as a model? How did that come about as a design? Looks intriguing to me.

Well, the songs are Dancing in the Dark and Learn to Fly. There's a few others too. Hence it's an Eb Standard and play those up a semitone.