RussFM

I like mine. My chain goes something like: EQ - Compressor - Chorus - Octave - Drop then either Ampeg SVT into Markbass 212 IR or Darkglass B7K into Ampeg 8x10 for my overdrive tone There are a few bass amps, but it's enough to get the tones you want (a Trace Elf was just added too). The different routing options work well too, but you might find it limited in effects if you use a lot of those - my old Zoom B3 had a lot more, but the Headrush definitely sounds better and much easier to use, everything is very easy to adjust. The last update allowed each footswitch two have two options, which made it much more flexible - you could have 2 different settings for one pedal, or switching something else entirely. For me, it's overkill, I probably use 10% of it's capability, but it would cost a lot more to build a pedalboard with at least 5 pedals, and I'd end up doing a lot more tap dancing. It has the added bonus of being an audio interface, great for headphone practice, etc.

In 23 years of gigging I've had: Trace Elliot AH300 SMC + Peavey 410 +115 Ampeg B2R + 410HLF Gallien Krueger 1001RB-II + Neo212 Musicman Audiophile + SWR Triad Tecamp Puma & S212 (since 2009 and still going strong!) I'd happily have any of the old ones now, they all sounded great. I should have kept the GK rig but I wasn't in a band and needed some money.

I like the features that make this stand out from a standard Precison, but I prefer his old Jaguar!

New bass day! I thought I'd revive this thread rather than start a new one, since this it where it belongs! I've had 3 Spectors before, a Legend 4, a Q4 Pro and a Legend Custom. All fine basses, but nothing special and I've ended up moving them on. I've always wanted to try a Euro but couldn't justify the price or they didn't suit my bands at the time. I saw PMT had this Spector EuroBolt 4 in Inferno Red in their sale, £700 cheaper than it's original price. I couldn't resist! It's got a very wide neck compared to what I'm used to, but a comfortable profile and it's nice and light (my bathroom scales show 7.4lbs), so I'm sure I'll be able to get used to it. A couple of issues - there's a mark which appears to be under the finish on the top horn, and two cracks in the finish at the neck join - perhaps screwed in too tightly? Other than that it all looks good. But why couldn't they make the electronics cover flush with the body, they are on the Korean made ones. Looking forward to plugging it in this evening and seeing how the Aguilar pickups and preamp compare to the EMG HZs I've had in the others.

I've been to a few gigs by myself this year. Not that I don't have friends with similar tastes, we just live hundreds of miles apart now. I'd rather go by myself than miss out. My wife used to go with me, but childcare costs more than the gig tickets these days.

I had a sunburst one. Played really nicely, I really liked the flat fingerboard radius. But I sold it to fund my habit of not keeping nice basses for long enough.

I'm still playing my G&L Tribute SB-2 more than my US Fender. Smaller body, nice Jazz width neck, powerful P bass MFD pickup. (I don't use the J pickup much). I'm still tempted to try out some others - probably the Kiloton or maybe an L2000 or JB-2.

For me, while I grew up listening to John Deacon, it was Flea and Tim Commerford made me pick up a bass, but the player that I most aspire to play like is Jason Black of Hot Water Music. He's always my go-to example of player who fits the 'serve the song' mantra. A reliable and solid rhythm player who drives the songs, but uses spaces to add melodic fills, just a few seconds that bring your attention back to the bass during a verse or when the guitars have been the focus. And thanks to the two vocalists, he's always front and centre of the stage, where he deserves to be!

Yeah I'd say that's my old one! I sold it on here for £350, it was sold on again I believe for a similar price, then a while later I saw it on Bass Direct for over £600, now they're asking £830 for it!? There's a Czech made Rebop on there for similar money, I wouldn't spend that kind of money on a well used Korean version.

Phoebe Bridgers, Turnstile, Skunk Anansie, that's about all that interests me there. I'd go see Robert Plant and Paul McCartney just to say I have, but that's pretty much it. It's a very expensive festival for a very bland lineup.

They've owned Spector for a couple of years now too and they've been doing pretty well under them.

Semi-acoustic, or generally anything with binding on the body. I like the look of some of them, but they're just uncomfortable to play.

I used https://www.karaoke-version.co.uk/ recently. I only needed one song, but it allows you to customise the tracks, removing any instruments you don't want, easy to use and the track sounded good.

Yep, since buying a £350 G&L Tribute SB-2, my Fender American Standard Jaguar rarely gets taken out of it's case, I'm always reaching for the G&L first. It's lighter, and I love the sound of the MFD P pickup. Apart from a tuner upgrade, there's nothing that could justify the cost of upgrading to a US version.

I like Fender offsets, but this one's just a step too far for me. And I have a feeling it will be priced way higher than I'd consider it at.

I'd definitely recommend a G&L Tribute SB-2 for value for money. Indonesian budget but with USA pickups. I prefer the sound to a Squier for similar money. They're £489 at Andertons but £399 at Guitar Guitar. I'm still tempted by one of the Jazz style G&Ls too, starting at £329 or £399 with block inlays and scratchplate.

If something with MFDs comes back down to £350 it would be hard to say no!

Thanks all. I really didn't expect the Effects section to tell me I'd be better off with the Headrush 😁 I guess cost is a big factor here. The Headrush does so much for it's price point, and does it very well. I'll keep the idea in mind though and if a suitable preamp does come along at the right price then maybe that will be my starting point, but I'll hold onto the Headrush for now. As for the tuner, my band plays songs in three different tunings, and not all together in the set list, so there's lots of changing!

Confession time. In 20 years of playing in bands, I never had a single pedal. I then bought a Zoom B3 a few years ago, just for practising at home. When I joined my current band, I actually started using it, but found it a bit limited for getting the sounds from a couple of their old songs. I upgraded to a Headrush Gigboard and I'm really happy with it. But it got me thinking, I probably use 10% of it's capabilities, I have one rig set up and I switch between three effects. So what if I built a pedalboard? Here's my set up: Compressor - EQ - Chorus - Octaver - Ampeg SVT - Markbass 212 IR. In parallel I then split off to a Tube Screamer, a high gain guitar amp (not sure what it's modelled after!) and another IR for my distorted tone. That's blended about 60/40. If I sold the Headrush I'd probably get around £350. So let's set that as the budget, but I'm happy to buy all used gear. I think I'd need: 1) A preamp. Must have DI out, plus headphone out and aux in for home practice. 2) A compressor. It could be in the preamp. 3) A distortion. It could also be in the preamp? But must have a blend control, so maybe something separate like the Soul Food? 4) An octaver. The one I use is based on a Boss OC2, but guessing I'd need something cheaper. 5) A chorus - I currently only use this in one song, so can be something really cheap. 6) A tuner! What's missing - a small board and a power supply? Is there anything else to consider? I have used my Headrush to record through it's USB interface. Are there any preamp pedals with that built in? What order would I put them on the board? If I wanted to use the board to practice through at home, the preamp would need to be last to use the headphone out after the effects, perhaps I'd switch that back when I'm playing live?

Thanks everyone! I hadn't had chance to play it again until last night. I sat down with my tools to give it a proper inspection and set up. I took the neck off and noticed it had a two small strips of sandpaper as a shim. Not sure how they were set in there as they fell out when I unscrewed the neck, but I put the neck back on without them and noticed mine too then had a significant forward bow. The truss rod was stiff, but a quarter turn sorted it out. My saddles are now very low, I could perhaps give the truss rod another slight turn and raise them up, but it's playing nicely as it is. Certainly no corroded frets or missing screws though, it's all put together very well, shame you got a poor example Martin!

I've been looking to replace my Spector Legend Custom (now sold to vmaxblues), with something more Fender flavoured as a backup to my Fender American Standard Jaguar. After lots of research I settled on a G&L Tribute, taking advantage of Andertons Black Friday/Cyber Monday/'well it's Christmas soon' £100 discount (still available!). I usually play my Jaguar with just the P pickup, in active mode with a little bass and treble boost, which gives it a really grindy tone that cuts through well in a one-guitar rock band. I'd never played a G&L, but the MFD pickups sounded like they'd give me the tone I was looking for. I was almost tempted by the £399 L2000, that seems like a lot of bass for the money, but wasn't sure I'd get on with that wide neck, so decided to go for the SB-2 at £349, with the more familiar 38mm neck. Available in Sonic Blue with a maple board, or Black Frost with Brazilian cherry, I decided on the black. When I opened the box, I was a little disappointed and wished I'd gone for the Sonic Blue. Despite being described as 'a classy gloss finish', it's more of a matte/satin finish, like the old Fender Highway 1s. It already had a slight mark on it, and is a fingerprint magnet. However, after a quick play, I realised it's very comfortable for my pick playing, and as my budget backup, I don't mind at all if it gets some early natural wear. It's a little more unique than the common black gloss basses too, it looks great. Construction and quality wise, it's far ahead of the Squiers I've played. Better than the most of the Fender Mexican Standards too, though perhaps a step below the Fender Deluxe Active Jazz I used to have (why did I sell that!?). The neck is very smooth - I'd describe as very well sanded as opposed to a satin finish like my Jaguar. The fretwork is perfect, on quite a thick fretboard compared to my Fender. The Brazilian cherry looks like it has a more coarse grain than rosewood, but certainly more attractive than the pau ferro other brands have been using. It's a light bass, definitely under 9lbs, I'll weigh it over the weekend, but it balances perfectly on a strap. The sound is exactly what I was looking for. It's a punchy, well defined tone, like a boosted active P. It doesn't have a tone control, just two volumes. Bringing in the Jazz pickup rounds things out a little, taking off that edge. Rolling back the volumes gives a more vintage tone. There's no noise at all. Having US-made pickups in these Indonesian-made basses should have them flying off the shelves quicker than the Squiers for similar money, especially with the Fender price rises this year, but perhaps they're missing the familiar shape and Fender name. With these current discounts I might be tempted to buy another! L-2000 or JB-2 next? 😄

Met up with Stuart to hand over a Spector Legend Custom, great to deal with, thanks!

For 10-15 years I went from a passive bass straight into amp, and used the amp EQ, but so many times the sound engineers took the DI before the amp, I didn't like not having that control. These days I always prefer to use a preamp of some kind, either in a DI box with an EQ or now using a Headrush Gigboard. Ar least I know what I'm sending to the desk is what I'm used to hearing at home/rehearsals.