Lfalex v1.1

No real reason to deviate much from BEADGC. Unless you need Drop A tuning. Sixes are great for chordal playing. I miss mine (Though it wasn't a Spector)

Try a post in the items wanted section? It sort of worked for me with an Ibanez I was seeking after the Gallery let me down over an EDC700. I ended up with an EDA900 and an EDC715, both of which are superb- thanks to two fine gentlemen on this very forum. My search for an EDC700/705 and an EDA905 continues, however. Nonetheless, I'd recommend trying an ad. You've nothing to lose. And nothing but basses to gain!

⬆️ That'll do the trick.

I had a Columbus J fretless. It was my second bass, and was definitely ply! Dreadful thing. I still have the neck. What's left if it after using Roto rounds on the Rosewood board.... 🙃

There was a Deluxe Hotrod P that looked similar to that, but active. Best P/J I've played.

Not immediately familiar with the Mezzo, but something @Chiliwailer mentioned made me think. Does the Mezzo have a 3 position pickup switch, VVT or volume, pick-up blend and tone? If it's the switch (I HATE them) there's no way to greatly alter each pickup's contribution to the overall tone. Perhaps there's some sort of cancellation going on between the pickups that's causing the thinning of the tone that you're trying to resolve. In the OP, you suggest 2 jazz coils in series as a potential solution. My personal experience of pickups in series has been... varied. Musicman do it best (SR5 in my case- but parallel still sounded better) the S1 Jazz was "different" but still slightly less useful than the standard wiring. My Streamline had series/parallel on both pickups and was useless in series. I've recently discovered that the humbuckers in the Ibanez SRX700 I owned might have been series wired. That would explain why I couldn't get a tone I liked out of it! If you do opt for a coil tap o on a bridge humbucker of any sort, don't rule out a parallel option! Series wiring of the coils of the same pickup can result in a mid- forward "shouty" tone with a big gain in output but a relative loss of bottom end when compared to parallel.

This is one of my main gripes about P/J basses; The J is often the weak link. Fixes? No cost- Can you lower the P pickup height and raise the J without losing too much tone? Drop-in- What others have suggested; Stacked Js, Side by side humbuckers in J casings. Maybe an overwound or high output single-coil J? Bizarre- Try a weaker P, but that would seem to undermine the tone you already favour Out with the router- MM. My favourite? The MEC TwinJazz- found in various Warwicks (Dolphin, Fortress Masterman, Infinity) Like a good MM, it can be run in parallel or single coil. It's a good aesthetic match, and AFAIK, they've got blade polepieces, so nice even output regardless of string alignment. Catch? Very expensive.

I've an NS CR5 that I purchased on here a while ago. I went straight to EUB from BG, but have endeavored to adopt the correct RH technique. Pros- Transportability, "grunt"- the 18v HAZ preamp has plenty of headroom, and the EQ points are nicely set. The Tripod stand is a boon, the bass stands up on its own when you walk away! Lack of feedback in loud environments it a huge bonus. A fifth string; That low B can be huge, if you want it to be. Cons- Uh... it doesn't sound quite like a DB. More like a giant fretless, even if you're using the appropriate DB technique and some sort of EQ. I attribute part of that to the fact that it's strung with the D'Addario modern strings. Maybe a less contemporary set of strings would be better, but a restring is mighty expensive.

I didn't know that either, but then I get confused between Without You, Without Her, and Living Without You. The last is actually Randy Newman, but Nilsson covers it on "Nilsson singa Newman" I think Randy plays piano on it anyhow. Damn good it is, too.

Going Back to my roots - Odyssey. Originally by Lamont Dozier. The Odyssey cover is quite faithful. And better because its more upbeat.

Was just going to say... someone needs headphones. Either you or the Mrs, doesn't matter which! 😉

The whole travelling there part; Where will I park? Is my car being vandalised while I'm at the gig? The people; I work with Joe Public for 40-50 hours a week. I'm all peopled-out. I can't bring myself to spend any more time with them. The expense; some gigs are bloody expensive. I no longer go to gigs. These are the same reasons that I chose to give up playing in bands.

Looks like the pickups are available separately. Not sure if I'd want such a high-tech solution in the retro-looking package they're offering. I understand some people would like it, but I think I'd prefer them in a more adventurous design.

Come See, Come Saw - Rocket from the Crypt I feel love - Donna Summer. Great Giorgio Moroder line, originally done on a synth, naturally. I know the RHCP have covered it, but I reckon Flea has worked out some kind of thumb/pull-off/hammer on shortcut. Playing it fingerstyle makes both hands fall off!

Still haven't made it there yet. I like to try before I buy, but it's a fair old drive.. (3hrs+ each way)

My Sharona. RSI set to music.

The trick to solving this is to dedicate time to messing around with effects/multi effects/pedal order (delete as applicable!) Then allocate separate time to actually practising. It only took me 25 years to figure that one out! 🤣

That bridge 🤪 How does one adjust the intonation? Just oudh the saddles back and forth by hand? And the reason it didn't work- they forgot to put a pickup in it! 🤣

My 1990 SR5 had a Pau Ferro 'board. A superb choice. Tough, smooth and spot-on tonally.

Next EBMM projects: The Death-Ray, Gamma Ray and Cosmic Ray, Sterling Silver and last (but not least), the Um-Bongo... (Google it if you're under 30!)

That's nifty. Liking the use of Warwick hardware- particularly on a 5, because there's no "W" in the centre of the tailpiece!

OCD? Look at that uneven P pickup! 6 polepieces on one half, 4 on the other? I couldn't own one! 😜

I've always thought that Post-EQ DI was more for (studio) recording purposes, allowing the on-amp EQ to be used to capture a certain tone. In a gig scenario, Pre-EQ DI gives the desk a "flat" (er) signal (dependent upon what EQ and effects are in play elsewhere in the signal chain) Importantly, it frees up the on-amp EQ to help compensate for any on-stage sound issues you may have. (I'm looking at you, hollow, boomy stages!)

That's an odd implementation. I'd have expected something like; Pickups- Blend pot- EQ- Volume control- output jack. Maybe it's to facilitate easier active/passive switching, or is related to the P pickup being very hot.

Liking the parts where the two lines deviate and harmonise with each other. Otherwise a solid line, but it's the way the song is written and the way the bass line serves the song that's exemplary. Extra points for people thinking it's a pleasant song about watching over someone you care about. When it isn't.