Al Krow

Yup and they made some very attractive neck through basses, too, that I was too late to the party to enjoy!

Fixed. The current Series "3" BB734A doesn't really have a direct predecessor in the Series "2" range, it's really a combination of features from the Series 1 BB614 with the Series 2 BB1024. Personally if I had to chose, I would actually go for a 1024 over the 734A - or more accurately the 1025 over the 735A.

Good question about whether TE has really disappeared without a trace? Some owners are better at letting their acquisitions thrive whilst others simply gut them private-equity style. From what I've observed, Japanese new owners are some of the best at getting this right e.g. Yamaha --> Line 6. The latter are doing superbly well with their Helix range of pedals. Intrigued by the new offering, though. Besides, I wouldn't be ashamed at owning a Peavey one bit - my Peavey Tour 450 was a great bit of kit!

Brilliant Alfred, that's going to make a huge difference to getting into the 500 exercises in your book!

I think you can on the B1-4, but maybe not on the B3N. I've got a couple of dedicated loopers (the Lekato and Boss RC-5) so I don't really make use of the loopers on the Zooms for the reasons I set out above. @Woodinblack has both the B3N and B1-4 and maybe able to advise, and I know @stewblack is a big fan of Zoom loopers.

Yes, plenty. Please refer to my post immediately above yours But you're getting an absolute ton of other features on both the Zoom B3N and B1-4 for very little outlay, particularly used. So if you want something basic in terms of looping, you won't go too far wrong. The drums are a lot easier to get to on the Zoom B1-4 as they don't have to be accessed within a patch (which is the case for the B3N): there's a separate switch for both the drums and the looper on the B1-4.

Same looper and drums also available on the Zoom B1-4 which work nicely together - Zoom have made the drums a bit easier to access on the newer, cheaper and more compact B1-4. I personally find the loopers on multifx (Zoom and Helix) very limited as they are typically limited to 30 to 60 seconds and one loop, but maybe that's all you need? Helix doesn't offer drums. In terms of dedicated loopers, for me: Best value: Lekato Looper Pro (no drums, but combine with a Zoom B1-4 and you're good to go) Intermediate: Nux Core Deluxe High-end choice: Boss RC-5 The Nux and Boss give you hours of recording time and 99 loops. The Lekato a more modest 40 mins and 9 loops but still a massive improvement over your typical multifx. All three allow multiple layers of overdubs should you you want (again another plus over Helix / Zoom). The RC-5 is currently sitting on my board with an additional footswitch, which the RC-5 allows, giving me two extra stomp buttons: one to avoid needing a double press to stop recording and one to start the drums. I previously had the bigger RC-30, but the RC-5 is a really neat update of that older sibling in more compact form. PS @bubinga5 if you fancy updating your thread title to "Looper" pedals to avoid confusion with Loop pedals, that would be great!

Cheers gents. How come the bottom end of the range is getting all the best finishes (natural, white, etc?)

Don't recognise the model at all - given what looks like a modern finish headstock / neck on a not-current range body. @AndyTravis?

Concur entirely with the comments above which are just as relevant to MB's own 12" cabs on their combos and which certainly have a tendency to roll high-end off. I go for a very similar approach to @BillyBass, in fact with another Tech 21 preamp (the VTDI in my case) with it's bite / presence switch engaged. I think this equates to: +6DB at 6.5kHz in the treble, and a similar boost of +6DB at 1.5kHz in the upper-mids. I've got a makeshift presence patch on my Zoom B1-4 which works pretty well too. Makes all the difference and definitely feels like removing a blanket over the MB combo!

Just bought a pedal from Dan. Excellent transaction with another very trustworthy BC'er. Cheers!

Just giving this thread a little plug and to find out how everyone's been doing over lockdown with their courses? We had our second band rehearsal last night since starting up again, and I managed to work in a couple of brief slap riffs into two of our set numbers to an appreciative reception from bandmates. It was actually much less intrusive / sat better in the mix than I'd been fretting about beforehand. So all that time on Mark's course (which I'll have to 'fess I've not yet fully completed!) felt like it was already paying dividends.

Fantastic! How long has your function band been going? (Any uploaded footage?)

That's pretty A/B!

Oki doki. Were you using the same rig otherwise ie was it a fair A/B comparison? Did you have a hangover when playing through the LM2/3? Any other variables? 😄

Be v interesting to hear why you "far preferred" them over the LM2/3s. Was it mainly down to the better EQ centre points, or was there other stuff going on as well?

Ooooh now you're talking. They were certainly a head turner when I was a lad! That would be a BB 3000 then.

Drop the guy a line. You should tell him that bass playing is a LOT of fun and that you might be prepared to chuck in a couple of pedals with your 1024x? Meet the Owner - Sean Puckle and his Ford Cortina Ghia MK.IV | Lancaster Insurance

Nah, we'll just cut to the chase and just ask if you might be interested in one of these? 😁

Exactly this. If neck profile is particularly important for you then definitely see if you can try before you buy, although that might be easier said than done unless you have a local 1024 you can get your hands on. The neck profile on the 5s is quite different to the 4s: the 5s' necks are relatively shallow / flat and very comfortable to play. I can't comment on the 4s as I've never had a 4 string BB. But I come back to the key tonal difference between the 424 and 1024 is 90% down to the pups with the 1024 having an "upgrade", but plenty of folk prefer the cheaper pups on the 424 anyway.

I think you've got a handle on all of the main differences. Neck through: for me wins hands down on looks pretty much all the time. General consensus is that a neck through will have slightly more sustain than a bolt on. A lot of the older top-of-the-range Yamahas have neck through; none of the modern ones, other than their flagship BB NE2, do. The BB1200 will likely be around 30 years older than the 1024, but given you have a 50's P that's clearly not going to faze you!

Today's teenagers would probably love it. Provided it has a vegan menu.

Moving on my first 425 (the one in the pic in my post earlier) was my first experience of seller's regret with a bass! Interestingly much less so with my second 425 , 12 months later. I guess the difference in reaction was almost certainly down to having got hold of and very familiar with a 1025 in the meantime. So it all boils down to personal choice and preference: Ford Mustang or Jaguar XFR (used of course!)...only one way to find out!

Definitely two distinct camps on this thread: those that prefer the 424 over the 1024 and those that don't! For me the biggest and key difference is tone: the 424 is a flatter thump; the 1024 more harmonically rich and tonally complex. I've had the 5 string version of them both and rate them both highly. I've seen quite a few basses come and go over the past few years, in fact all 4 that were in the first pic have departed. The 1025, however, has been a constant with me for several years. I love it!

Just seen the FS post, my queries answered