NancyJohnson

To this day I can't work out why I didn't connect with this album. I've listened to it several times but for me it's just missing the crucial something that would call me back for repeat listens. On the death front, I do wonder how things would have panned out had he not gone swimming that night.

When we looked at this place, honestly, it was semi-derelict. The place hadn't been touched in 40+ years or more. The room I have my gear in is a brick extension that the previous owners were using for storage, we took the roof off and put in a glass roof in, doors into the garden etc. We use this more than our regular lounge.

This is something I try to explain to my wife when she asks why I need 900w. I've A/B'd with Graeme's BB2s and my Big One; in terms of how they sound, they're both pretty thunderous, but to my ears the BB2 cabinets (these are 3rd Generations) edge things on the tightness side, while the BO is a tad looser and warmer. A little tweak on the EQ makes them pretty indistinguishable from each other, so I won't be rushing to buy any additional enclosures. What a great way to spend a Saturday.

@Graemeross kindly dropped over his pair of BB2s and I've been ramping things up. The AO certainly suits the BB2s over the Aguilars, so I'll concentrate on these for the review element. It's a truly lovely head...despite the 900w rating, this is into 2ohms, so expect 375w into an 8ohm configuration. I'm leaning more towards the Alpha side tonally; it just has more scooped mids and is more dUg sounding. It's very suprising to me how different my basses actually sound through this; the 5 string Lull is way phatter than the JAXT4 despite sharing the same pickups and loom. The old Aria P-bass is just gnarly. Of the head itself, little tweaks make so much difference. A touch of anything affects everything elsewhere. I prefer to run things flattish tonally, but the graphic is very sensitive. The cabinet emulation/shaping option on the rear doesn't seem to have any real effect, maybe in a bigger room it may. Anyhow, that's it for now.

OK, first impressions. Loud, gnarly, distorted, gwaaaaar. And so on. My initial preference is for the Alpha side...it just sounds more controlled. I'll have a play over the weekend and report back. I would say that I tried it with the Barefaced Big One, lovely, but with the Aguilar SL112s it didn't procure such a happy result, so I suspect these will appear in the For Sale section over the weekend (don't worry mods, I'm paid up); it's simply not a happy pairing, they're simply not aggressive enough and I just feel that they're trying too hard to smooth things out, so there's little point in keeping them. I'm hoping at some point to try these out with a pair of Barefaced BB2 courtesy of @Graemeross More later...

'Candygram! Candygram for Mr Anthony!'

About 30 years ago, I discussed the collecting/storage/reselling of instruments with my dad; on retirement he had a tidy nest-egg from something he'd invested in and did ask me whether guitars would be a good route to throw money at. Even back then, you knew the stuff that was going to appreciate; old Fender Jazz basses, Les Paul Juniors, old Les Pauls and Stratocasters, things with known provenance etc. but conversely I don't think my dad really had the inclination to store a load of instruments on the off chance they'd turn a profit. As things stood, my dad died about a year after he retired, everything passed to my mother and my dreams of being able to dip into a lock up full of vintage guitars died with him. Moving forward, in 1999, on my first trip to New York, I remember seeing a load of 60s/70s Jazz basses (a job lot from a recently deceased NY session player) in a store opposite Manny's and these were selling from $700 - $1,200. Certainly the 60s stuff would by now easily have tripled/quadrupled in value (or saleable value), but I could neither afford to bring any of these back, nor would I have had any inclination to hang onto them for 20 years to see that return. It would have just been about quick wins. I suppose my position right now is such that I have three very nice, rareish basses (Lulls/Hamer) that would likely sell for £2-3K a pop should there be a buyer out there for them, but this is well under what I paid for the Lulls (50% under), although the Hamer would be a winner; but I bought these to play them, not leave them in a case in the off chance they'll appreciate in value. Cab-wise, I have Alex/Barefaced first/prototype cabinet, but nobody is interested in backline from a value/investment perspective; it's probably worth more to Alex than it is to anyone else. Let's just say I'm looking after it for him.

I have a pair of SL112s. I think the expression I'd use is that they're very hi-fi, smooth and honest (in that they're only going to be as good as what you squirt into them). Conversely, my Barefaced Big One is rude, loud and aggressive by comparison. The SL112s look lovely...my wife prefers those being out compared against the Barefaced, which is why the Barefaced is out all the time.

Updated attendance list below. Just as an aside, so as to take up a bit of the day, would anyone like to see another bass shoot-off? I suspect Gary and I will be a little smoother than last year; maybe utilising a wireless might make things quicker in the changeover. I know we had a huge variety of basses last year, maybe if we rein that number in to ten we could just do Precision Basses or something? Paul Attendance & Gear List: 01. Silverfoxnik - BC Rich Eagle, Ander van der End JB5, RBV5, Ampeg V4BH head and matching cabs. 02. Hamster - Tea, Coffee, Pastries, the Wife - might bring a bass! 03. @Frank Blank Rob Allen Mouse, Godin A4, FRFR setup (QSC K12.2 and Fishman preamp). 04. RodFunnell - '78 Stingray, Assorted Warwicks, Vanderkley Spartan, Mesa Prodigy 4:88, Barefaced Big Twin T and it's still a few months away so maybe more! 05. obbm - Sadowsky Metros, Handbox WB100, Bergantino cabs. 06. Cetera - Spector NS2, Spector Euro LT, Hamer Impact, Hagstrom Super Swede, Italia Imola GP, Fender FSR PJ, GK800RB, GenzBenz Neox 2x12 07. @NancyJohnson Lull JAXT4 & Lull JAX/NRT5, Darkglass A/O Head (will probably be old hat by then), 2xAguilar SL112s. 08. 09. 10.

From a visual perspective, these are beyond hideous, so much so that if Sandberg gave me one I'd never take it out of it's case.

A couple of days I guess. UPS. Might work from home on Thursday. Cough.

My head shipped today from Thomann. Weeeee!

Betty Boo. Seriously.

Growing up in the 70s, I always looked west for musical inspiration...Kiss, Rush, Angel, Starz. When punk took off, the UK was where things were at to my newly-annointed teenage ears. I'd say right now, the stuff that's stayed longest with me is UK based...Japan, early Queen, The Clash, Rich Kids (what a band they could have been), curiously a lot of the US powerpop/poppunk stuff I listen to is very UK-tinged.

The Lulls are both wired VVT, same as a Jazz Bass, Thunderbird etc.

I do harbour a lot of love for the 60s Thunderbird clones on my Lulls, so (not wanting to be pedantic) it's a T/T from me. Just on a personal note, I've never really felt at home on a single pickup bass...my second choice would be a P/J combination; I play with everything fully open - including my legs - and the addition of a J pickup in the bridge position just seems to bring the bass alive in a way that a J/J doesn't.

Much as I'd criticise Fender for their constant reinvention of their core bass range, they do tend to mix things up and even if what you want isn't part of their current catalogue, it's almost certain that they'll have tried it previously. Moving along, it's clear the old Gibson management were asshats and almost certainly played the game and had policy of not giving the public what they actually want.

My advice against you buying an Epiphone? Save a few/lot more ££ and buy a Gibson.

That's a great looking bass!

Saw that Thomann had pushed the availability date to 'medium term availability', which is just vague. Popped an email to Tommi Otsvaara at Darkglass and got the following: I can't say for sure when you'll get yours but I think first units are shipping out this week. We have pretty limited stock at the moment because producing these amps is rather slow especially in the beginning of every new product. I hope you'll get yours asap, hopefully next week already! Thanks for your patience! Best regards Tommi I'm ampless at the moment - which isn't an issue - but I'm like a kid waiting for Christmas at the moment.

Dubious on the pricing? It's £150-200 cheaper than prices listed elsewhere.

If it was me, I'd initially find out who I was playing with and see whether the bands concerned would be willing to let you borrow their backline; bands do share and if you lay it on that you're travelling from the UK, people become even more accommodating.. Next up, I'd consider option (c); leave all my gear at home and factor in the buying something in Las Vegas and either bringing it back (VAT/duty/running the green channel) or selling it on (at a probably loss) after the final show. Without a doubt, Las Vegas fulfils the demographic for pawn/musical consignment stores...so long as you're not picky, you should be able to find what you need. Google is your friend. I have a friend who lives in Henderson...her son plays guitar, so he's probably quite genned up on what stores are about. I'll happily shoot her a message. Finally, if all this borrowing freaks you out, forget about it; 18 months ago I did some dates in Italy; as a band, I think collectively we took a Sansamp BDDI (and fresh PP3 batteries), headstock tuners, plectrums and some drumsticks. It was fine.

Maybe it's just me, but how many times can you reinvent the wheel? Also, the geometry on Squier headstocks always looks slightly off, an approximation rather than a straight copy.