JapanAxe

My fist guitar was a Grant copy of a Les Paul Special - a complete pile of poo. The pickups were screwed to the flat top of the body. At home I discovered that it was impossible to tune, as the bridge was not far enough back. I took it back to the shop and managed to swap it for a Cimar Strat copy, which was much better. A couple of years later, I saw Prefab Sprout in a pub in Durham. They were not famous at the time. Paddy McAloon was playing the same Grant guitar, which fed back microphonically every time he turned it up for a solo.

I taught myself rhythm guitar from Harvey Vinson's 'Rhythm Guitar' book. It stood me in good stead. First tune I learned on bass was probably either Peaceful Easy Feeling or Apache, learned for a home recording on 4-track cassette.

Gigged again last night with the Cobalts. I think I've 'got' them now. I turned up the amp a bit so I wasn't exerting too much effort with the plucking fingers, and didn't experience any dragginess; in fact I felt like the Dingwall was making me play better. The only song where I didn't feel so liberated was The Beat's version of Tears of a Clown, which is a finger-fuddler for me at the best of times! I also A-B'd the Dingwall against my Precisions through my gigging rig at home this morning, and I love the brightness and clarity of the Cobalts. Thanks for all your suggestions - I'll stick with these for now, and maybe try some GHS Pressurewounds at some point.

Ah but was it a serious smiley or an ironic one? Fair enough, but just in case there are people that really think that (as I used to)...

People seem to be pre-ordering a lot of their incoming Dingwalls even before they arrive!

This is it, the response is so even that you can play notes on the E and B strings right up on the 10th fret without it sounding all bloaty and OTT - something which could not be said of my previous 5-er. @krispn - I've actually taken the action down on the lower strings, as I play with quite a light RH touch. Such an easy playing experience!

They 'replaced the tubes with FETs' (1:12). Hmm, where have I heard that before? Possibly not an ORIGINal idea, but one that's undergone a REVIVAL in the DRIVE for new pedals. Still, motorised faders - not much to go wrong there!

I'm probably listening for different things in my 'tone' compared to what you are in yours. To me, they sound lovely for country, jazz, blues, rock, and soul. I only find them at all lacking for percussive funk. Also they feel nice.

I was the lucky man who bought that black/maple model from @krispn just over a fortnight ago... and ditto to most of what @CameronJ says! I've been playing it almost exclusively to get back my 5-string chops (previously owned a G&L L1505 for a couple of years), and I'm finding I use much more of the neck. I have a bad habit of playing down the money end unless I need to go higher; now I find I'm living around the 7th-10th frets but making frequent excursions up and down whenever I like. I'm getting to know the whole fretboard more thoroughly than I ever have before. The neck is pretty wide near the body end, but the bass is still very easy to play. I've put on EB Cobalt flats rather than my usual Chromes, which allows me to pop a few notes here and there (e.g. in We Are Family). I took it out on a covers gig last Saturday, and it really did the business, to the extent that I got compliments form the keyboard player. @CameronJ - love your Steely Dan cover. I see you use the same floating thumb technique as me - nice one! Here are a couple of crappy phone pics:

Given the upsurge of interest in Shitenbackers, I hop nobody is thinking of listing theirs for sale on the BC Marketplace...

I was interested to see that in this recent video, Scott Devine eschews active EQ as a means to great bass tone:

Another vote for pressurewounds then.

Another contender then. I shall be attending the SW Bass Bash soon, so I propose to ask every other person there what strings are on their bass, and can I have a go on it please.

They sound like the GHS Nickel Rockers that I use on my skinny-string guitars. Their website says 'unique round wound construction that ensures the best playability of any round wound electric bass set on the market', but they don't go into why.

Tell me more...

Thanks, I did try some D'Addario half rounds on a previous 5-er, but they didn't really do it for me. I'm going to persevere with the Cobalts for now - not least because I sank £48 into them! - and then maybe try rounds again based on people's comments here. Did the Elixirs give you any hum problems - i.e. do you become electrically insulated from the metal of the strings?

I've been using flats on my Precisions for the last 4 years or so - D'Addario Chromes, which are pretty bright as flats go, but still not the same as rounds. I recently acquired a Dingwall Super PZ5, which came with NYXLs fitted. I like the way they sound, but I find the feel a bit uncomfortable. I've fitted a set of EB Cobalt flats, which are bright enough to pop (unlike Chromes) but feel a bit draggy on the plucking hand. For those who have tried several brands of rounds, which feel the most comfortable under the fingertips of the fretting hand?

I had my eye on that as a possible, until I picked up my Super P.

Congrats! Was the the pre-owned one they had?

I'm looking good for this! I'll be bringing most, if not all, of the stuff in my signature. I'll also bring my Orange valve tester - it can check most common valves except for rectifiers.

Advance fee fraud. Before long they will be asking you for an admin fee, which will allegedly be refunded later. Pay that, they'll ask you for more. Why is the message not personalised to your band? Why no website to check out? The link is to a different organisation. Avoid!

Big band do at a rugby club Valentine's ball. I am depping for the regular guy, who it turns out has been poached by another big band. One of the sax players describes my playing as 'solid', which I take 100% as a compliment. The band leader asks me whether I would consider joining them permanently, which for various reasons I decline. In truth, I have little problem with the pop, soul, and disco material, but I really do struggle with a lot of the the more traditional big band jazz stuff. These people have been playing from dots since they were kids, whereas I came the self-taught route. I enjoyed the gig, I relish the challenge, and I have another one coming up next month.