Lfalex v1.1

I own a Passion 5 s3. I've used it for all sorts of music, including heavy stuff, and it's never let me down. I've also tried an Excess 4 and a couple of Passion 5 s4. They're all very well made and play consistently well. Only oddity I've found with my particular instrument is the way it interacts with effects units (especially OD/distortion), possibly due to the low-impedance (600 Ohm) output. Not an issue with the s4, as I don't think the Glockenlang pre has a low-impedance output. Best bet? Try some out.

Oi! Teebs! NO MORE WANKELS! (not even animated ones)

My TE sort of went loud. I suppose most people would classify it as loud. I arguably never drove the pre hard enough to get the best out of it. Swapping to a pre amp and bridged power amp (Ampeg and QSC) that easily gave twice the power and had a fourfold increase in damping factor was an eye-opener.

Wasn't the bass version of those guitars something like a Marlin Sidewinder? Talk about mixing your animal metaphors. Edit- Nope. That's something else. It's just a Maverick bass. Still with the Volume controls in the edge though.

The 'net says somewhere between 41 and 46 kg dependent on model. A Trace 1048h is about that, too.

Potentially quite a nice spec. Not keen on the ashtray myself, but the matching headstock and ebony fretboard are nice touches. Think I'd put black control knobs on it.

I saw Monster Magnet on the "Dopes to Infinity" Tour. One of the best pieces of band/crowd interaction I've seen. Dave Wyndorf was merrily stage diving, and they "fed" a cheap old strat copy to the crowd while it was still running (via heavily gaffa'd attached wireless) into the PA. Soundman mixed the racket into the song while Wyndorf egged everyone on. They were just pure (Stoner) Rock n Roll, like a slower, dozier Motörhead. It was a small club (Subterranea), and I think that suited them better than a larger setting.

Those were the thoughts I was having while making my previous post; "Were I to get a budget bass, I'd give it the best set-up that it could take, then swap out the strings for some decent ones when the originals die." (It never ceases to amaze me how poor the intonation is on some basses when you purchase them) I had a Squire VM Jazz that I was (gently) modifying. It gained black Schaller control knobs and a BadAss II. It took a really good set-up and was arguably better made than my US Jazz. I put some DR Fatbeams on it and it played very well indeed. Alas that I had to sell both jazzes to help raise funds at a difficult time. Pickups would've been next....

Even now I wouldn't rule some of those out if I were in the market for an instrument of that type. I reckon it's possible to coax at least one decent tone out of most of those basses, and in the sonic chaos of some live environments, even the most discerning of punters would struggle to tell that you were playing a less- expensive instrument.

Skimmed through it. No mention of anything I've used in the last 20 years, nor any of the more interesting alternatives; DR Fatbeams/Sunbeams "Regular" Elixirs for electric basses TI jazz or flats... I could be tempted by Cobalts, but regular Slinkys feel like fret-eating cheese graters to me. Round Rotosounds just don't last, but if I had something like an Ibanez SRH500f then their tapewound flats might be nice. I'll be headed to Newtone when the time comes to re- string the Stick..

Most of "They Might be Giants" output.

It was recently out of warranty and I couldn't prove that the lacquer cracks weren't my fault, so I didn't approach them. It had gone out of warranty by this point and I wasn't prepared to face the possibility of spending more money on it, so I sold it on.

It was a joke alright. I wasn't laughing, though. Use of the past tense deliberate. Bought from new. Sold on at a massive loss. Wouldn't have another. Shame it wasn't the one bass in Leicester Square incident. I'd have simply given it to them.

Gosh. That's a choice. Must go and listen to "Animation" again at some point. Guitar "combinations" I like; Stuart Adamson/Bruce Watson - Big Country, especially the old "bagpipe" style sounds. Eric Peterson/Alex Skolnick - Testament Raging Slab - the ever- changing mixture of rhythm/lead/picking/slide from the 3 guitarists.

My Streamline was a disaster. De- laminating fretboard, cracking lacquer, issues with the string clamp when not using DBE strings, poor implementation of series/ parallel switching. Also the only bass I've owned that had a batttery leak in it. /tangent

Looks like he has the same reliability issues with Status as I did... and even mine did a few gigs on its own before it started to dismantle itself. Still only ever used one bass at a gig. The venues that I played at meant it was just one more item to keep an eye on. If I'd had two on the evening that two large less-than-gentle men wanted to relieve me of my Warwick, I'd not have been quick enough to lose them across Leicester Square... Ah, those were the days!

I struggle with the fact that (as with almost everything in life) the theory is considerably less interesting than the practice. My fear is that it will erode my enjoyment of playing, and that's been in enough jeopardy before without theory pushing it over the cliff. I read about stuff and just think; "Er... what?" I think I'd probably get it if it wasn't so one- directional. Bouncing a few questions off of someone knowledgeable would probably resolve it. I guess I'm a prime candidate for lessons, but I struggle dramatically with tuition. Teachers only ever want to teach you what they want or think is best rather than what you actually want to investigate; "...We'll cover that in lesson #438"

Do I even dare? I'm trying to learn to play slap. I've looked at Youtube until my brain hurts and am getting nowhere. The frustration is compounded by two factors; I'm a reasonable (two) finger-style player (ear and technique > theory) an injury to my middle finger on my right (plucking) hand has turned me into James Jamerson- index or nothing. Online videos and tuition do precisely nothing to address useful basic questions to which I have no answers, so here goes... I hope also that this may give others a starting point or at least a basis for comparison. Instrument choice- 4 or 5? Active or passive? Single or twin pickups? String spacing- narrow or wide? Strings- Age, condition, material, gauge, design... does it even matter? Gain Architecture- Instrument volume up full? High gain and lower master volume? Or less aggressive gain settings? EQ- On the instrument and on the amp. Do pedals/ fx help? Which leads nicely to... Compression- None? A little? Or a lot? Technique- Where does the motion originate; the elbow or the wrist? What even is thumb up and thumb down? What direction am I striking the string in; downwards or inwards so it hits the last fret? Where should I hit it? Up by the neck, over the pickup? How hard!? Which digit should I pop with? Index, middle or either? How much finger should I by using to pop with? the best sound I can get is by using so much it won't fit between the strings! Less, and it deteriorates into nothing. Thanks in advance for any and all input. Now all I have to do is find somewhere in the house that neither cats nor humans will roll their eyes as soon as I put thumb to string!

Only experience that mirrors yours with a 1990 Fretless SR5. Excellent bass. Why not just go back to a single H SR5?

Definitely go used. £1k goes a long way. If it has to look Fender-ish; G&L, Sandberg, Lakland, Sire and (naturally) Fender all qualify. If you only need the J/J configuration, Warwick, Ibanez and others enter the fray

I might not run away. Just walk quickly away. Just the way the bridge is strung tells you everything you need to know about this instrument.

That's a great idea.. but it'd only work if they didn't use it on any other body style; Can't be having a Jazz in "P" Green.. 😆

Can't you just slide one pickup off of one and put it on the other? Or does a 2 pickup Rail defeat the object? 🤣

Agreed. I've a Warwick with a good Low B, plus the Vigier and 2 Ibanez. All are 34" scale. String Choice (type/gauge/manufacturer) also plays a part.