thisnameistaken

[quote name='chris_b' post='501461' date='May 30 2009, 10:13 AM']There were times when the pound vs dollar exchange rate was favourable enough to risk importing but these days, unless you are getting a very interesting or rare piece, importing has too many problems for too little benefit.[/quote] +1

Nice one Bilbo. Good luck, and let us know how it goes.

Like a lot of people I started playing bass because two of my friends at school wanted to do a band. Soon realised though that all my favourite songs from before I was old enough to understand instrumentation were led by the bass part (Rhythm Stick, House of Fun, Peaches, etc.) so I figured playing bass made sense. I've done gigs on drums but I don't practice them enough, done occasional gigs on guitar but I'm better on drums than guitar (!), can play keys well enough to use it to write songs and record any parts I need to record, can play one tune on alto sax (Mercy, Mercy, Mercy) and one on trombone (Guns of Navarone), and I've been having a bash at ukulele lately. I plan to spend more time on guitar in future. My knowledge is mostly up to snuff but I've never got used to those fiddly little strings.

[quote name='iamapirate' post='500336' date='May 28 2009, 10:13 PM']hmm, not to bad-mouth things on the forum, but I personally woudn't want to spend £3000 odd on things which have NO warrenty covering.[/quote] Well, he said the fund was £1900, not £3000, but either way: Effects aren't like basses or amps. They're cheaper for a start, and under a grand ought to buy you everything you need unless you get drawn by the allure of boxes made by magic elves who died before the age of man (Musitronics Mu-Tron III, Roland Jet Phaser, Akai Deep Impact, Digitech Bass Whammy, anything from Toneczar, etc.) or Eventide or Moog stuff. They're also, consequently, more disposable, and it's harder to know if they'll fit into your rig by just trying them in the store. That's why people recommend buying used, because typically you can move stuff on without losing money if it's not for you. If I'd bought every filter I ever owned new, I would've lost about £300 before I found one I stuck with for more than six months. And that's just filters!

[quote name='pete.young' post='500284' date='May 28 2009, 09:19 PM']If you're looking to invest, buying any of this, or anything else new, is going to lose you a fortune. Resist the lure of all that shiny sh*t, check out your options and then watch for stuff on this forum. That way you shouldn't lose too much.[/quote] That's the best advice you've had yet. If you see something shiny you like, look for demos or reviews on youtube, see if you think the sound would for you. We can't tell you what pedals to buy. Expect to go through a few filters before you find one you like, maybe a few octavers too (unless you buy an OC-2 first ). Tremolo is tricky to work on bass unless you get one with a tap tempo feature, and tap-tempo trem pedals get quite expensive.

Is this genuinely totally out of the blue, or have you been missing some subtle "pull your socks up" messages?

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='499214' date='May 27 2009, 07:36 PM']bottom line: Thru-body=breakable.... maybe on your bass.[/quote] I used to break strings all the time when fingerpicking down by the bridge pup. Probably because I couldn't hear myself properly on stage so I was over-doing it. Haven't broken one in years but it used to be a common problem for me. It was usually the thicker strings that broke. Not sure whether that's because I was attacking them from a different angle to the treble strings or because they're less flexible or what. Had it happen on a Jazz, a Yamaha BB1100S, a Warwick Corvette 6, er... some other basses, I forget. None of them were strung through the body.

There was a singing bassist in a band called Dag with the same name in the mid '90s. Wasn't him though. Forgot how good some of their tunes were actually.

Looks better than his guitar! I'm surprised, I thought this would be minging.

[quote name='benwhiteuk' post='499877' date='May 28 2009, 02:12 PM']I really like the look of a bass with no pickups – [/quote] Looks even better with no frets. Mine was black with cream binding, an ebony f/board and black headstock. Looked as good as it sounded. Shame they're so head-heavy though. Neck dive is a swine on fretless.

[quote name='benwhiteuk' post='499853' date='May 28 2009, 01:44 PM']Slight OT, but in theory could you use Piezos on their own instead of using them in conjunction with a standard wound pickup? Would it sound rubbish?[/quote] The Godin thinline acoustic basses do that - just a piezo in the bridge. I had one of the first ones (the old "Acoustibass") and it sounded ****ing lush, frankly.

[quote name='cytania' post='498534' date='May 27 2009, 09:51 AM']Well a few weeks ago I did a singers night at a folk club. No big disasters but alot of learning. I've been reassessing the songs I thought I could sing ever since. I now seem to spend alot more time working on my own right pitch and right phrasing of the words than I ever did before.[/quote] I wish our drummer would do this. Some tunes he's great, others he's either off pitch or he wavers or his drumming slows down. Worst part is I'm singing harmony with him, so I get an equal share of the dirty looks!

Sounds like it has rather awesome potential.

You could always look at integrating the Graphtech "Ghost" saddles + preamp. Not sure if they do saddles to fit a standard Stingray bridge but they might.