JapanAxe

There's plenty of different ways to play 'straight 8s'. Also hat makes such a b-line interesting is the way you get from one chord to the next. Listen to the bass part on Tina Turner's 'The Best' for an example.

Impressed!

Sadly the only thing that might conceivably qualify me for this gig is the fact that I own a black Gretsch Duo Jet,.

Do you mean the pots or just the knobs? Makes a big difference!

What exactly do they mean by 'speaker surround'? The seal?

I have a Treble'n'Bass too. The presence control (both on this amp and generally) is usually a global high pass filter that works on the power amp. It controls the negative feedback for the treble part of the signal - more negative feedback, less treble to the output.

[quote name='randythoades' timestamp='1389633062' post='2336360'] Cheers for that, it is coming together! My first choice pickup is a handwound strat bridge pickup from Catswhisker pickups that I used in my strat until I converted that into a Stratotele... (another cut apart and "improve" project) It is a slightly overwound bridge pickup but with fatter polepieces and a whacking great magnet on the base so that it acts more as a P90 and a much fatter tone but not distorted compared to a standard strat pickup. I don't want super twangy but I am looking for that kind of slightly hollow, more vintage tone. Beauty is that being a standard rout, I can try all sorts of pickups until I get where I want to be! Hopefully wire it up tonight but only got roundwounds to test it on, need to get a fresh set of flats to give it a roadtest... [/quote] Hope there will be sound clips!

Great idea! Any pickup lined up yet? My guess is that an overwound job would work well, unless you want to get really twangy with it.

I have pretty much stopped selling on eBay, having reached the conclusion that they are [s]money-grabbing b@st@rds[/s] a successful online business.

Not a massive fan, but Ukuleles have their uses. Trouble is you need a lot because they burn so quickly. I'll get me coat.

[quote name='peteb' timestamp='1389289729' post='2332469'] Mark is a really nice guy and can be very talkative when he gets the chance, bearing in mind he is a one man operation and always seems to be really busy. Beware that he is a man with very definite views, which may not be the same as yours! That is not to say that your way of doing things is wrong, but be prepared to be challenged a bit - he never read the memo about the customer always being right!! However, he does know his stuff and he may give you a new perspective on certain types of gear, etc... [/quote] Once again, this. Mark won't just let you walk out with what you [i]think[/i] you want, he'll help you find what you [i]do[/i] want and what is going to work for you. He is not afraid to contradict you if you start confidently stating erroneous 'facts', as I did!

How are you sitting? By which I mean height of seat, back supported or not, legs crossed, angle of bass... In fact get someone to take a photo of you playing bass sitting down, then post it here.

Although I can hardly complain at having a full diary - what a shame I have a full diary!

Yep, never met a Basschatter I didn't like

[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1389533585' post='2335141'] I'm puzzled when people say they don't use the low B. The low B opens the bass up, you can play all the low notes normally on the E string, F, F sharp, G etc on the B string from the 6th fret up. Making playing in higher positions on the other strings easier, 'cos you don't need to move about so much, I tend to do most of my playing around the 5th fret, playing a low F, 6th fret B string with my first finger I can easily reach a high A at the 9th fret on the C string. Don't buy a 5 string or a 6 string and then play it the same way you would a 4 string, you're totally missing the point of it, 'cos it's not just about the extra notes . [/quote] What he said!

I just use a laptop bag.

Good point!

Does anyone know of a UK (or at least EC) dealer who sells these strings? They are a medium scale flat wound set specifically designed for through-body stringing, and as such would be perfect for my Mustang.

I recommend that before doing this on a gig, you check that there is no loss of bass, which could happen if the speakers end up out of phase.

[quote name='cameltoe' timestamp='1389128963' post='2330491'] I've still got a Grant Les Paul copy in my shed! [/quote] My very first electric guitar was a Grant copy of a Les Paul Special. The pickups were flat coils mounted on the surface of the body, and the bridge was so badly positioned that it was impossible to intonate correctly. (I also saw Paddy McAloon play one at an early Prefab Sprout pub gig.) I took it back few days later and swapped it for a Cimar Strat copy not unlike the model 1940W in the catalogue in the link. This was pretty good but the pickups were somewhat micro phonic. A year later I upgrade to an Ibanez Musician 300. Now you know where my forum name comes from!

My TC Classic got moved down to spare when I got my GB Streamliner, but I took it away with me at Christmas (along with Midget and Mustang) and was reminded how great it can sound. The RH has a bit more to call on in tonal range so congrats gsgbass!

Unless it is something very simple and repetitive I make as near a note-perfect transcription as I can (often omitting minor variations on repeats) and work from that. My reasons for doing this are 1. My brain is very oriented to visual patterns, so this helps me to learn the song. 2. Even if I end up not playing it, I have a part I can go back to an sight read at a later date. 3. Playing the original part forces me to play in ways that are sometimes outside my comfort zone. I have no criticism of anyone else's methods, this just works for me.

I own a fantastic Fender Custom Shop relic '59 Strat. It's not entirely 'off the peg' as it was built to spec for World Guitars. I tried an example of the same model in Guitar Guitar the other day, this one a 'dealer selected' model. It was completely different, and in my opinion nowhere near as good. The message: try before you buy!