Dood

I...I.. Nope, I actually can't bring myself to post any response.

Speaking of preamps - There are a few names that come up often as proved upgrades. My friend and fellow BCer has an Aguilar OBP-3 that is installed in a metal box, a bit like a pedal and it was nice to hear what his jazz bass sounded like with and without it. Very nice with, I can tell you! - I think John East is also making some really good circuits too with tons of options available for different instruments. I have to put a shout out for Jon Shuker too, who has his own line of preamps that are really very good.

[quote name='LukeFRC' post='1226933' date='May 10 2011, 11:32 PM']I would have thought the preamp would have as big if not bigger influence on the sound.[/quote] Yes and no. Some preamplifiers are designed to not colour the sound at all, but just allow bass, mid, treble boost and cut where as other manufacturers have engineered a 'frequency curve' or 'tone' in to them. Interestingly the EMG preamps are pretty transparent - but the boost and cut is in really sympathetic frequencies for Bass guitar. Pickups will in most cases make the most amount of difference. I guess you'd only have to look at the pickup upgrade market for a P Bass alone to see that the differences are worth the upgrade/crossgrade costs.

Well, if anyone saw my Facebook ramblings today, it's this prototype beauty: Made by Andy Guyton of Guyton Guitars in Suffolk for Brian May. or at least a production model of - this one was at the London Bass Guitar Show:

[quote name='silddx' post='1225102' date='May 9 2011, 02:05 PM']Do it. Try and get a Jap Fender non-export model. A good S/H one won't cost much more than a new MIM, and it will kick a USA Fender's backside to kingdom come.[/quote] Yep yep! Infact, CIJ non-exp did do a 70's P with a maple neck. I was at odds as to whether I should get my black one with a rosewood f/board or a natural bod and Maple f/board. In the end, Mr Deacon won

Hmmm - I might just counter that opinion a wee bit. Yes I do agree that there is a percentage of the instruments tone locked away in the woods and physical hardware, but the pickups and their position themselves govern a large percentage of the overall instrument's amplified tone. So I'd have to say that swapping the pickups out won't make the bass sound exactly 'like the Spector you played', but there will be a marked difference in tone of the Bass. For example, the EMG DC active pickup that Spector uses in a lot of it's basses has a very strong character or 'voice' if you will and you can definitely hear it in different instruments. Whether or not it's an improvement is personal opinion.

Bring me an Alligator sandwich! And make it snappy!! [/coat]

Wouldn't mind running a HA5500 with my rig to see what they sound like! - I've heard other people with the 3500 and it sounded great!

[quote name='thebassman' post='1223255' date='May 7 2011, 02:35 PM']I'm not sure, i think the big one has been discontinued though.[/quote] Yep, it has unfortunately - I think the 2x12 eminence drivers 'out performed' the single 15.

[quote name='skej21' post='1223657' date='May 7 2011, 08:46 PM']Yeah, it's 555-KISSMYDOOD Hope that helps [/quote] Hot diggety! I gotta get me some of that fine ass! I'll have a go on that first! (etc etc etc)

Well, that took a millisecond to choose!

Consider it pinned - This is a brilliant walk through!

[quote name='Nick Brown' post='1222495' date='May 6 2011, 06:57 PM']Don't get around here much these days since giving up the bass due to some arthritis based hand issues. I came across a link to this thread on Marcodi's Facebook page and thought I pop along and contribute. Years ago I strapped on Warr guitar as I always liked the concept of playing bass and melody simultaneously and at the time the Warr seemed the logical way for a bass player to do this with a proper extended range. One thing led to another and it didn't quite work out for me as I'd hoped but the tapping style of playing still really appealed to me. Moving along a couple of years and my hand problems really hit hard and I had to start thinking about life without playing bass guitars (I still have a few in the cupboard ) but really didn't want to give up on music making altogether. It was at this point that I started talking to Tim at Marcodi and he was very helpful in explaining the concepts and the reality of the Harpejji, a few months later and ......... It is a beautiful instrument to play and opens up worlds of possibilities whilst still giving me that string fix, I alternate between the Harpejji and the Eigenharp these days. When I confident I'll post up some videos. BTW I have no other connection with Marcodi apart from being a satisfied customer. I'm just pleased to see them get a little more exposure.[/quote] Ahhh Nick! Sorry to hear about your hand problems, but it's great to hear that you have found an alternative for channelling your music! Thank you also for posting pictures. I'd definitely like to hear more about the Harpejji - and see some videos if you do indeed post some. Have you found it easy to adapt to the Harpejji's layout and are you finding playing with both hands a challenge at all? Dooooooooood

I'd like to hear some comparisons of the two as well actually. I think someone on BC has the Super Twelve T but I've not seen either a 'Big One T' or 'Big Twin T' at all. Are there actually any out in the wild yet?

It looks like a tastey piece of kit! Some of those wide interval piano chords just sound lush! I've just gotten a new Synth at home so am loving playing keys again - then I happened upon these. I think my wallet just rolled over and died!

[quote name='Wil' post='1222171' date='May 6 2011, 01:02 PM']Shameless plug, and perhaps just over your budget, but I'm selling my Crown XS700: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=132566"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=132566[/url] 750watt @ 4ohm, IE, it'll blow your balls off.[/quote] £230 with the rack too?! I'd rip Wil's arm off Ross!

[quote name='Ross' post='1222077' date='May 6 2011, 11:17 AM']Basically I'm making progress on deciding a new rig, i'm planning on using my bass pod pro as a preamp, then using a poweramp and probably some kind of 8x10 cab underneath it all. However I'm wondering if a standard power amp for PA systems is any good, or if I should be looking at a specific kind? Probably looking to spend £200 tops but preferably less on one. Cheers, Ross[/quote] Hi Ross - yes, a standard power amplifier (those used in PAs) are perfect for the job. Best advice, given the overwhelming choice out there, is to stick with the names you know to start with - and it doesn't hurt to get something powerful. If you are just going to use a single cab, or have no need for biamping or stereo operation, then you see if you can get a power amplifier that is 'bridgeable' - i.e. it 'sums' the two channels to make one single powerful channel - thus you may get away with a power amplifier that is only 300W per channel RMS, but will bridge to a much higher output, say 800W in the case of one of the QSC amps mentioned here : [url="http://www.qscaudio.com/products/amps/rmx/rmx.htm"]http://www.qscaudio.com/products/amps/rmx/rmx.htm[/url] Or you could just use a single channel on a power amplifier, but I would recommend starting at 500W per channel at 4 Ohms as an absolute minimum. £200 quid tops? Definitely go the second hand route. You may pick up a Peavey PV power amp or similar for about that price, but I wouldn't recommend spending that little on a new power amplifier.

I'm not entirely sure how I just stumbled on this, but I would love to get my mits on one! - Not strictly 'Bass Discussion' but this instrument does have a bass range in it as well, so it's tenuous. You probably know how much I love tap style and the Chapman Stick. I think the Harpejji is taking it all to the next level. I'll shut up now and just post the videos I've just watched! There's plenty more on Youtube - but I really like the idea of this instrument alot! Check out the bridge on this bad boy! ha ha

Great thread posts guys - the information will be helpful so I'm making this a sticky.

[quote name='BigRedX' post='1219511' date='May 4 2011, 08:45 AM']One important point that always bugs me in discussions like this. The IEC 60320 connectors/lead found on musical equipment [i][b]ARE NOT THE SAME AS A KETTLE LEAD[/b][/i]. The connectors found on musical equipment are the C13 (female) and C14 (male). They are rated at 15A and up to 70°C temperature. The temperature rating is the important bit, because as you know water boils at 100°C and therefore the connectors used on kettles need to be rated accordingly. The IEC 60320 connectors for kettles are the C15 (female) and C16 (male). They have a temperature rating of 120°C making them suitable for appliances that boil water. Also they are a different shape, the plug having an additional cut out and the socket having a corresponding locator ridge. This means that a lead with a C13 connector which doesn't have the correct temperature rating won't fit into the socket on a kettle. Only leads with a C15 plug on them are kettle leads, because only they fit a kettle. The leads that came with your musical equipment will all have been fitted with C13 plugs which will not fit the socket on a kettle, and therefore are not kettle leads.[/quote] Thank you! I was just about to go outside and shoot myself! - 'Kettle leads' is a phrase that irks me more than people calling D-Class amplification 'Digital'. - I remember posting such a description of the differences between the two plug and socket types a while back & thank you for doing it his time!

I can find reasons for picking each part out of my chain to comment on as to why it has a bearing on my 'tone' or Bass sound. I chose to select 'Cab' this time - My cabinets are well known for having a particular 'tone' to them and I have been through a lot of gear to return to the very same cabs again - so it must be something about them that just works for me.

[quote name='aldude' post='1220003' date='May 4 2011, 04:09 PM']Thanks very much, I was hoping it was something as simple as that.... I will have a fiddle round inside over the next few days and post the results, if I haven't fried myself! EDIT: This head is actually a beast for fuses when switching it on - it blows fuses in kettle leads and distribution boards, and even trips mains fuses sometimes.[/quote] I'd say if it is blowing fuses (of the correct value) then it's a good time to get it checked out by a professional. The fuse in the power lead should be 13A - and if there is a fuse in a cartridge on the back of the amp then check it's the correct value and type (e.g slow blow). If it's tripping a distribution board, then alarm bells should be ringing ;o) Good luck, I hope the fix isn't costly!

[quote name='dood' post='1219253' date='May 3 2011, 10:05 PM']In Premium, I understand you can 'save' tracks for running locally and furthermore at 320k bit rate. Are they stored locally as MP3's or in Spotify's propriety file system?[/quote] I'd asked as I'm deciding if I wanna go premium or not. I know I use my MP3 player a massive amount and having tracks dropped on to it would be brilliant whilst I am out and about. What I don't wanna end up doing though is not making enough use of the premium service - I really don't spend 10 quid a month on CDs. Though I wonder how much that is due to Spotify Free being available.