Sean

[quote name='daz' timestamp='1334196180' post='1612492'] Why on earth are you willing to take up this mad challenge ? I hope you have set a sufficiently stupid challenge in return for him ? If not, why not! [/quote] It's been fun and I've learned a lot. His challenge is the same but for a guitar and the budget is £250. He starts after his summer holiday, his missus has said that she'll put a "trade" embargo on him if he spends any holiday cash

[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1333008053' post='1595990'] but for 200 squid that looks like a nice bass. how does she play/sound you need to tell us more! [/quote] Now that I've had a chance to play this bass quite a bit, I reckon it's definitely the kind of beater/workhorse bass that I can easily live with. The reverse P pickup sort of tightens up the P-bass sound of it, the coils are in opposite positions so the lower strings are less boomy than a standard P and because your thumb rests a bit further back than with a conventional P you're striking the strings (a bit) nearer the bridge given that I use a pretty normal fingerstyle technique. This bass came in at £160 and so that still leaves me £40 for mods if I want; it certainly doesn't need a bridge, the tuners are bombproof although I'm never going to get a Hipshot X-tender to match but I'm thinking about putting a beefier pickup in it. There's nothing wrong with the one in there however when I A/B this bass with any of my other passive P-pup loaded basses it does sound quieter, more vintage I suppose. I'm used to punchy P pickups and this one is just too polite for my taste. I'd like to keep the original look of the instrument with the pole-pieces showing so maybe a Wizard Thumper will do the trick if someone has one second hand. I had a Wizard Thumper in a CIJ P bass (Sid) once and it was glorious. The tone control on this BB400S is really good, responds well and behaves like a tone control ought to, not like those dreadful ones where you have to roll it three-quarters before anything happens. I've got some paper-in-oil caps somewhere and might give one of them a go just to see. The neck on this is more chunky than any of my other BBs and it just feels right, I get on with lots of neck profiles so this is rarely an issue. Overall the bass sounds very woody and partly down to that massive bridge it sustains very well even with Rotosound Flats on it. We're recording rehearsal on Friday so hopefully I'll get some sound clips up over the weekend. Build quality is typical of early-80s Japan, it's very well put together and although it's obviously not made from Yamaha's premium wood stocks of the time, the quality is undeniable. It's not heavy either, it's under 10lbs. One thing that has struck me lately is that this bass is a real candidate for a re-finish.

[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1334175134' post='1612186'] One question- why a PJ over a Jazz? [/quote] That's like asking someone about their hobby; why boxing over flower arranging

[quote name='Wally' timestamp='1334174465' post='1612161'] leaner, mellower, funky blues thing and I'm thinking a smooth passive P/J would sound somewhat more fitting in the mix. [/quote] The Yamaha isn't lean or mellow and it isn't smooth, it's like a big nasty bear that wants to rip your bandmates' arms off; I never leave home without mine (which makes motorcycling a real pain in the arse). The necks are somewhere between a Jazz and a Precision but slightly more towards a Jazz and very similar to a real MM Sterling if you need a different reference. The Yamaha is easily tamed and I'd buy one of the many Yamaha BBs for sale on here and on eBay at the moment and spend the difference on... ...another Yamaha BB Or some motorbike gear or something else self-indulgent like a motorcycle bass rack.

[quote name='Horizontalste' timestamp='1334073873' post='1610534'] [attachment=104726:100_1453.JPG][attachment=104728:100_1456.JPG] Playing with the camera today. [/quote] BB1100S?

Bought a PA from Ade - great condition and a fantastic deal. Top bloke, we have a really good natter and put the World straight about a few things bass. Cheers!

That's nice! A BB2000 is top of my shopping list. I also fancy a BB24X but have only seen one in an old catalogue. What X-tender do people install on the older BBs? Do Hipshot do one that matches?

[quote name='Ruck' timestamp='1333388857' post='1601054'] I love how you guys have the pickups really set high out of the body! I experimented and put the same pups in my bb1200 and the pickups are soooooooo hot output wise ive had to set them into the body as much as possible to stop the low frequencies from spiking constantly [/quote] Did you put the pups from your 414 into the 1200?

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1333104698' post='1597399'] I have severe GAS for a BB2025X. Sean, did you get a chance to compare to the BB1025X/BB1024X range? [/quote] I've played the 1025 and 1024 and they were both fantastic basses and for about £700 on ebay, you probably won't find better value for money.

[quote name='Monckyman' timestamp='1333208874' post='1598768'] Hello all, I`ve been offered an Ibanez Blazer BL800,the wine body/maple neck with white PG version which I think is 82. It`s a bit rusty and dinged to feck. Not been used for a few years. App price? I`m thinking £60. Too low/high? [/quote] Souds low. Got any pics?

BBs are totally epic and nothing else comes close. I know a few people who don't have one and their lives are meaningless and empty; sure, they're better musicians than me but they cry themselves to sleep every night and this could be easily remedied if they just swapped their F***ers for a Big Bad Yammy ;-)

[IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/025.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics006.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics014.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/037.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/032.jpg[/IMG]

And my other one... [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics058-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics063.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics053.jpg[/IMG]

More (better) photos of mine... [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics021-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics023-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics034-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics036-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics043-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics020-1.jpg[/IMG]

So, here it is... [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/002-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/022-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/011-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/012-1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd462/Stoker1/Bass%20Pics/BassPics051-1.jpg[/IMG]

[quote name='SteveK' timestamp='1332692819' post='1591708'] Just get a bass that [i]you[/i] like the sound and feel of, regardless of neck-through or bolt-on. Best not to get too geeky about it. . [/quote] Well, I'm glad that's put to bed; more time and space for a good Jazz vs. Precision thread now

[quote name='ikay' timestamp='1332690026' post='1591648'] This video gives a direct tonal comparison of similar bolt-on and neck-through basses and may be of interest: [url="http://www.theguitarcolumn.com/2010/03/bolt-on-vs-neck-thru-tone-difference.html"]http://www.theguitar...difference.html[/url] [/quote] Interesting stuff, however it doesn't really explain the physics of it. The engineer in me wants to know

Stunning! What are the scale lengths?

[quote name='Sean' timestamp='1332420104' post='1587997'] As much as I see the benefit of the design and as much as I love technology I think that the aesthetic of them is a major stumbling block for me. [/quote] Now that I've seen the 4-string Super P, I've changed my mind about the aesthetic. As far as I can see with an added J at the bridge, that would be a gamechanger for me (and no, I don't mean the MM pickup wiring trickery thing )

[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1332574288' post='1590141'] OK, enough small talk, where are the pictures? [/quote] Just for you (and the rest of Basschat) I've commissioned some professional photographs of the Yamaha BB400S that I bought to complete this challenge. A friend of mine is a photographer and wanted some practise on something different and I half-jokingly said he could photograph my bass collection if he wanted something different to do and he lept at the chance so hopefully by the end of the week we should have some £200 Challenge Bass Porn. Hopefully I'll photos of my entire BB family too but this does not mean that I'll be joining one of the Talkbass-style clubs

I keep hearing and reading that bolt-on construction basses are generally considered better for slap. I've just acquired a neck-thru and it's the first one I've had for a few years and it got me thinking that for me there doesn't seem to be much difference, if any; as long as I have the right pickup settings and EQing it sounds great on any of my bolt-ons or neck-thru. Is there a "laws pf physics" reasoning to why bolt-on would be better? Do any of us have any strong opinions either way as to whether one or the other is better? If so, could you please explain your thinking? Many thanks

Effortless transaction done from halfway around the world; very easy guy to communicate with and returns messages really promptly. Easy to arrange a mutually beneficial pick up time too. Picked the bass up from Joe this morning an he's a great guy to deal with and it's an epic instrument. Many thanks.

I'm home tomorrow, I'll post them then!

This challenge needs a load of rules, strict parameters and a timescale otherwise it's not a challenge. The £500 budget alone takes a lot of the challenging aspects out of the challenge! If this really is a game, cut the budget in half for a start.