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JapanAxe

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Everything posted by JapanAxe

  1. I wouldn't want anyone to get the idea that I'd followed 'a certain Mr King' from Ashdown to TC - just a coincidence, honest! Still, I expect he gave TC the 'thumbs up'
  2. [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1350850256' post='1844321'] Have to say..this would worry me.... I know you can't legislate for certains things failing...but all the same, the only experience of the last 20 years I've had with things going wrong has been the result of external forces..ie, amp dropped under power. Why on earth a component should fail otherwise is not something I've come across .. Poor qc, design or bad luck ..?? A one off is one thing.... any sort of pattern is not really good enough and something you remember in brand terms... [/quote] Well it [i]does[/i] worry me. Is there a screwy batch? I once bought a brand new CD player - it skipped like a kangaroo on speed. Got it replaced like-for-like - same thing. Ended up shelling out extra for the next model up. What worries me more is if the replacement goes [color=#ff0000][b]BANG[/b][/color] 18 months down the line. On a gig...
  3. [quote name='StephenFerguson' timestamp='1350838140' post='1844067'] Stienberger: Sounds like a synth(ish) and makes you look like a twat. So yeah, attack! defend! or mediate [/quote] I really wanted to like Steinberger but when I played a real one it was not a nice experience. It would have been even more painful to pay the asking price!
  4. Banners are frequently a pain when it comes to finding somewhere to secure them - many happy hours balanced on top of speaker cabs and drum stools...
  5. This happened to the guitarist in a band I was playing with at the Guildhall in Cheltenham. The system picks up room sound from one or more mics, and feeds it o an induction loop running around the room. Single-coil pickups then pick this up, it comes out of the amp, is picked up by the mics - bingo, feedback. My HB-equipped bass was unaffected. The racket stopped when the induction loop was switched off. Hearing aids have a setting marked 'T' that picks up the induction loop. It would be polite to enquire whether there are people in the venue relying on the system, and who might want it on (at least between sets!)
  6. I bought this pedal to use with my guitar rig. I liked it a lot, but ended up buying and keeping the much more expensive Custom Comp. The pedal has had a little home use, and that's it. It comes complete with the box, a stick-on foam rubber bass, and one of those rubber doodads that you put over a control knob so that you can operate it with your toe. While it has been in my possession I couldn't resist the temptation to have a look at the circuit board, and I have provided a gut-shot for your delectation. You will see that the board is populated with quality full-sized components, not the surface-mount rubbish you see in a lot of pedals these days. The circuit is Revision F. In the process of removing the base-plate (which you have to do to get to the battery anyway) a couple of tiny flakes of red paint have come away from next to the screw-holes. Otherwise all is in tip-top shape. I have included an alkaline battery so you can use it straight away, or the pedal will work from any standard Boss-type (centre negative) 9 volt adaptor. I am looking for [color=#0000cd][size=5][b]£55 delivered (UK)[/b][/size][/color]. These pedals go for at least £73 new on eBay and online retailers. [attachment=121737:DynaComp.jpg][attachment=121736:DynaComp_guts.jpg]
  7. Aha! I did find one report of a failure similar to what I experienced, only it was in the early days of the RH450 (same power stage as the Classic 450 I presume), reported on [url="http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f15/my-tc-electronic-rh450-amplifier-died-any-users-had-problems-565716/"]TalkBass[/url]. If mine is only the second reported incident out of all the units TC have shipped, that can't be bad!
  8. I am restoring my Silver Series Squier Jazz to original spec before (probably) moving it on, so I have just removed the DiMarzio DP123 pickup set that has lived in it for the last few years. You can get the full gen [url="http://www.dimarzio.com/pickups/bass/standard-bass/area-j-pair"]here[/url], but basically these pickpups are hum-cancelling, with 4-conductor wiring. Rather than being 'stacked', the two coils sit side-by-side (one for the E and A strings, one for the D and G), a bit like a non-staggered Precision pickup. You can connect the coils in series for a fat, mid-heavy sound, or in parallel, for a brighter, more open sound. A DPDT switch per pickup (which could be on a push-pull pot) will allow switching between the two sounds if you wish - it's up to you how far you want to get into this! DC resistance is about 6.8k with the coils in series. The black pole pieces are adjustable using an Allen key. These are currently set to give good string balance using 45-105 Elites. There is plenty of wire left (the shortest length being about 5 inches) which is plenty to reach the control cavity and still leave room for manoeuvre. There are no mounting screws supplied, so you will have to use the ones on the recipient bass, or obtain a new set if doing a 'bitsa' build. There is one slight oddity about the bridge pickup in that the magnets are reversed in their polarity, I believe from the time of manufacture. I will supply full details of this, but it just means you have to substitute red for green, and white for black (compared to the neck pickup), when reading wiring diagrams. [u]Important note about dimensions[/u]: These pickups follow the original Fender convention of having a slightly longer pickup in the treble position, to match the slight splay of the strings as they get nearer to the bridge. I believe some more recent (Mexican?) models use a short (neck-position-size) pickup in the both positions, meaning that the DiMarzio bridge pickup will not fit in the cavity without a bit of routing. Also they were quite a snug fit in the cavities on my MIJ Squier. See [url="http://www.dimarzio.com/sites/default/files/diagrams/4strjcovdim.pdf"]here[/url] for DiMarzio's stated dimensions. I am looking for [color=#ff0000][s][b][size=5]£70[/size][/b][/s][/color] [color=#00ff00][b][size=5]£60 [/size][/b][/color][color=#0000CD][b]delivered within the UK[/b][/color]. Please reply here me with any general questions, or PM me with offers. I am not looking for any trades at present. [attachment=121724:DiMarzioDP123_set.jpg]
  9. deefer, keen to know which way you jump as a Jag bass may be in my future too...
  10. Met up with Stuart today to hand over my (now his) Ashdown rig. He had already paid me upfront. Spent a happy half hour over coffee talking all things bass, and was sorry to have to say goodbye!
  11. Just tried a couple of the Sterling Rays in Gloucester. 2-band with maple board priced at £749 in Remus - liked sound a lot but action could have become tiring on long gig. 3-band with rosewood (or similar) board priced at £599 in Soundhouse - didn't sound as growly to me but different amp used anyway. Definitely preferred the 2-band but at that price would look for used US model.
  12. Thanks for your encouragement guys. I have trawled the web and found no reports of this kind of TC amp death. By contrast, 6 of the 22 buyers (27%!!) reviewing the Ampeg PF500 on the Musician's Friend site have reported power supply failures, or the amp going into fault mode. Best stick with the TC methinks... I have also PM'd bruce@tc so the TC guys can make sure they get hold of the returned unit for a post-mortem. I'm delivering my Ashdown rig to vmaxblues tomorrow, so for a short while I will be without a gigging bass amp. Yikes! Just as well I am mainly playing guitar at present...
  13. By way of a follow up, the Classic 450 is now dead. Defunct. Shuffled off this mortal coil. Used it this morning, went to switch it on after lunch, loud crack and flash from mains inlet, second pop and flash from the mesh by the carry handle. Result: trip switch went, one dead amp. Hope it hasn't caused any damaged to my BF Compact (output was muted anyway). GuitarGuitar are picking it up on Monday. Now undecided whether to go for replacement (I do like it) or push for refund and look at some of the usual suspects (MB, OTB, PF500...). But for now, just
  14. [quote name='Greggo' timestamp='1350623573' post='1841312']Coming from guitar, when I first picked up bass over 10 years ago I used to be exclusively pick because I hadn't learned fingers. I played in a number of bands and whilst I was never commended for my playing (as I imagine most players aren't on bass in typical bands - nature of the beast) but no one ever said anything about not playing with fingers. I did learn fingerstyle and in my new band I am now exclusively fingers with the odd pick dabble here and there. Even though I feel I could probably excel in my playing by using a pick more, I still have this thought in my head that although pick playing can sound awesome, that fingers just looks better on the stage. So I'm wondering, does anybody actually care? After all who notices the bassist anyway? [/quote] My route into bass playing was identical to this. Most of the audience won't hear or understand the difference (even assuming they can tell which is the bass guitar ), but in terms of the satisfaction of getting a sound that makes you feel good, I try to match my playing style to the idiom/band/whatever. And this approach gives a much-overlooked variation: [quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1350626924' post='1841330'] For a lot of rock & pop songs it probably doesn't matter, you can roll the top off so the pick isn't so clanky if needs be. [/quote]
  15. I think the answer is that your band is just[b] too loud[/b]! (I know - I'm too old...) Once the volume wars begin, there is no winner. Another thought: Have you listened to the [s]mess[/s] mix by walking out into the audience and still playing? Like most people, I have ears either side of my head (a bit like Shrek in fact), not on my ar$e cheeks. I have often found that what I can barely hear stood in front of my rig (up till now a 2x15 500W Ashdown stack) equates to alarmingly loud a few yards further forward. Try it! Other than that, I concur with this: [quote name='Conan' timestamp='1350633344' post='1841388'] True, of course, but even they have to be as loud as the drummer! He is usually the one that determines everyone else's need for volume... Try turning one of them down! [/quote]
  16. [quote name='mentalextra' timestamp='1350590749' post='1841075'] There is a little phrase where I need to actually pluck the string and move quickly to the next. Barring means the first string will ring and it doesnt sound right. Three strings on one fret. Does this makes sense? [/quote] I think what you are describing is called a 'layover' (not a sleepover or a lie-in btw). Guitarists do it a lot. You are right, if you get more than one string sounding at once it will sound naff. Alternative approaches: 1. Use different LH fingers. 2. Drag your fretting finger across the strings as you play (sweep fretting!?) 3. 'Roll' you LH mini-barre (Stop already! I'm ahead of you!) so that by the time you sound the second note, the first has stopped ringing. 4. If any of the notes can be played as an open string, precede or follow it with the other note fretted on that string. 5. Damp unwanted strings with your RH thumb or finger(s). That should be enough to be going on with!
  17. Seems like a jolly nice chap, kept in touch throughout the transaction. Pleased the G&L has gone to a good home, though now suffering seller's regret...
  18. [quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1350577615' post='1840822'] I wonder if removing the 4 screws at the top would allow it to tilt outwards & then be lifted up? [/quote] You would probably expose a lot of internal gubbins doing that!
  19. I have had the privilege of conducting a sort of 3rd-party ABC test on a MarkBass, OTB, and Eden. This was when I was playing guitar alongside andyonbass, and he used them on 3 consecutive gigs. I can't 100% remember the models, except the OTB was definitely the 500W, and I [i]think[/i] the MarkBass was a Little Mark. Anyway, the only one that didn't sound good in a band context was the Eden - it just sounded muddy to me. Well that's my 2p worth...
  20. Not sure if that makes my GAS better or worse...
  21. [quote name='oggiesnr' timestamp='1350460751' post='1839044'] Doesn't set the bar very high does it? Steve [/quote] Oooh! Controversial...
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