bassmayhem

My baby: J'78, all original from neck up, with the exception of a refret. It had originally athe weight of a small car; I played the bass from 1982 and forward, causing me a slipped disc on the way. I retired it around 2000, but "revamped" it with a custom ordered body from guitarbuild.co.uk and made it look nearly the way it did when I got it. Do I have to say it sounds and plays fantastic. This is the bass I bring to a deserted island...

Bridgehouse, what are the specs for that bass? Scale length? String spacing? What pickup and electronics are in there? Is the fingerboard plain wood, or epoxy treated? It is truly a stunner. I've had a quite a few fretlesses through the years, but tend to go back to my old Skyline 55-02 all the time. I don't know if I've had luck with that one. From what I've heard it is kind of a custom mix instrument, where the US Lakland facility picked the best Skyline neck they had lying around and added to the best ditto body. I've had Warwick, Sleinberger L2, NS Radius, some custom madebasses, but this old Skyline really is the fretless to play for me this far. Anyway - you got a very nice instrument there, had it only had five strings...

I forgot to add my fifth... Super J5 with J-Retro Deluxe. (I've equipped the SJ4 with the same preamp too...)

The ABZ also has a very thin laquer to let the wood "breathe and resonate" more naturally.

They are Vovox Sonorus; the best cable I've found out there so far. Vovox won't even call them cables: "Klangleiter" is the term used. They really do difference; they let EVERYTHING through. We had a cable shootout a few years ago, with a lot of different cables: everything from crap to expensive. "Is there any REALLY expensive cable here?" was a question asked. I offered my 20 ft Sonorus for a test. The test leader connected it and started to laugh in a very bullying way. "IT BUZZES!!!" All the crowd laughed, until I said: "It is your shitty P-bass that buzzes, but noone can hear it with all those lousy cables you use." Well, the guys with lousy cables chose to believe their cheap cables were better. None of my basses buzz through my cables. Never and ever. And - your fingers won't smell like old rubber... things when you have rolled them after a gig...

My two (or three) new kind of midget setups: Acoustic Image with AccuGroove Tri112L, and Vanderkley Spartan with the same AccuGroove Tri112L... Well, three setups, I use the AI alone too... I also use the Spartan with my big TKS 2126 cabs...

Here is my choice:

What brand is that bass?

I bought an Acoustic Image combo from tharidla, it arrived well packaged after a swift and trouble-free deal. Nice amp, nice guy!

I bought Rorys Kala U-bass; it arrived in one piece, well protected in a coccoon of bubble wrap. Rory is a nice guy to deal with, highly recommended!

I cannot say anything about the East MM-preamp, but I've installed the J-Retro Deluxe in my both Dingwall Super J basses. A most versatile preamp, and I doubt the MM model would be less versatile and well sounding. And - Mr East is the definition of a true gentleman. A pleasure to deal with...

This one has some really nice grain... If the neck is anywhere near the neck on the US Bob Glaub I had, well, then it is just fantastic...

My old beloved Jazz Bass I bought second hand in 1982 has undergone some dramatic changes through the years. It started as a black maple neck bass. I took off the horrific lacquer and had it more or less just wood filled/plain wood for a lot of years. It was the heaviest s.o.b. out there, causing a slipped disc and back surgery for me. Some years ago I had a new very nice body made for it, chambered, with "tiger eye burst". But - I made a mistake: I didn't tell the luthier I wanted 70's bridge pup position, so it was a beautiful wall warmer for some years. Last year I bought a super nice single piece swamp ash body with 70's routing from www.guitarbuild.co.uk and today I let the old friend out in the sunshine again. No lacquer, just heavily Danish Oiled and polished, Hipshot KickAss bridge, the Swedish Lundgren single coil pickups and completely shieded and grounded. Even the pole pieces are grounded, so no buzz when touching them. Faraday cage, kind of... Well, here is my old friend, my first ever bass, revitalised and reincarnated... It is the same bass as in my avatar, but with the beautiful body, that now has a fretless neck...