Jonesy

Thanks for the help! So do you reckon I could learn on 61 and then move to 88 if I get into it, or will starting on 61 be prohibitive from the off? Wouldn't I just be able to learn the line and then just not go to as high an octave as the original song? Or is that silly? And same for the pedals, would i be able to get by without them for learning, or would you suggest using them from the off? Good point on the Leslie cabs. I guess that's another thing I can look at if I get good and look at playing properly.

Thanks for the reply! The recital looks to have decent reviews and there's a few near me for not a lot of money. The more I look into it, there's loads of features that I have no idea if they're useful or not?! Sorry for the onslaught of questions........ - Would you say 61 keys would be enough to start with, or would you recommend kicking off with 88 keys? Would I need the extra octaves? If I could get by on 61 I was thinking it might be better to save the space? - Velocity sensitive and touch sensitive? I get that it's a decent feature to have, is there a difference between the 2, or is it marketing lingo for the same thing? - Weighted keys I understand is a good thing, but one review said they might not be so good for playing fast. I'll be concentrating on hitting the right keys rather than playing fast (!), but is there any reason I wouldn't wanted semi/weighted keys? - Would it be worth getting a sustain pedal? - Are stuff like light up keys or learning programs built in worth it, or are they naff? - 4 sound presets vs 5,000 with drum beats. I was planning on learning blues/boogie woogie, maybe with the occasional bit of deep purple/the doors thrown in for fun. I guess as long as I have a decent piano and organ sound, I'd be happy? As well as the Alesis recital, I've also heard good things about the Yamaha psr-e37 and Casio cts1. There's a few vids comparing the both on YT, has anyone got any experience with them? Have to admit, I like the look of the cts1 with it being a bit smaller and easier to tuck away when not in use. Plus, I'm a sucker and think it looks good in red!

Hello there! Can anyone help me out with a few recommendations for a beginner keyboard? I've always fancied learning and have decided to actually do something about it, but have no idea where to start, what makes a good keyboard or what features I should be looking out for when buying a keyboard (apart from it having a headphone jack so I don't annoy everyone!). I was thinking of spending £100-£200ish, but if it was worth spending a bit extra to get a decent step up then I may be persuaded. If I was spending that sort of money on a bass I'd be looking at Harley Benton or used Squier's, is there a keys equivalent? I saw Thomann have their own brand of keys in that price range, are they worth a look or is it best sticking to Yammy & Casio etc? Aaaand, is there a recommended keyboard height, or is it just go with whatever feels comfortable? Just wondering if I need a stand, or if it'd be OK playing at a desk/kitchen table? Thanks!

Cream pups, black scratch plate

Depending on what you're looking at spending....... I'd look at changing your electrics first and would whole heartedly recommended a ki0gon loom, as would a load of other people on this forum. The looms are solder less, so there's no hard work to do. If you fancied changing the pups later, the set you choose will just drop in nice and easily. I haven't played them, but the toneriders Lozz mentioned get rave reviews. Other than that, I'd look at the EMG GZR's. They're based on Geezer Butlers P bass pups from the late 60s. I've had the P set and they're fantastic. They come with all the electrics too and are plug and play, not a hint of soldering in sight.

The Tributes are fantastic, especially those with MFD pups. I have an SB2 Tribute that I love, it's a sleek P bass on steroids, light and with a J neck. Perfection. The JB didn't need any tinkering. The reason for the change was I wanted something different from the electronics that the stock ones didn't do, rather than me not being happy with them. I had a ki0gon loom with a tone bypass in another bass, love it for some extra agg, and fancied it for this band (which is in the realms of Melvins, Jesus Lizard, Shellac). I'd also heard some good things about a series parallel switch in a J, so has that chucked in too. While I was doing that and in a quest for the most aggressive, horrible sounding, Jazz - I thought I'd chuck in the most mid heavy sounding J pups, which were the 74s. It probably didn't need those mods, although the series parallel switch is something I'd recommend for every J.

My gigging bass for one of my bands is a G&L Tribute JB and I love it. I've replaced the pups with Fender Pure Vintage 74s and guts with a Ki0gon loom. Was it a good bass and entirely giggable before the mods? Yup. Did I do any sort of test before and after to hear the difference? Nope. Do I think it's a better bass now? Yup. Am I slightly deluding myself to justify tinkering? Probably 😂

When I first heard about that I thought 'wow, good on him'. Then a few months later I read an article somewhere and his guitar tech has replaced the tuners (gotoh), bridge, pickups (fender noiseless) and electronics (CTS).............but apart from that it's a bog standard £100 guitar 😂 Still, not to get away from the point of the thread - it's a great time to be playing an instrument. Despite all of the recent price increases for the big boys, the lower end of the market is producing fabulous guitars and there's no need to pay big bucks for a guitar nowadays.

The Supreme looks pretty similar to the Revelation RBG too.......

I've also had this in my eBay watch list for a while. Tempting me. Making me thinking about it at all hours of the day........£300 from China. How bad can it be?? I've got zero use for it, but I do love an SG shape.

Stingrays are mine too. They wouldn't fit in any band I'm in and I haven't got on with the necks on any I've played before. Really love listening to other people playing them though and am always tempted to give them a go!

If you're looking at a Jazz then give Limelight a look (if you're OK with relics). They can essentially build you a custom shop J for a lot less money. I picked up a Limelight P last year and love it. Heading in the complete opposite direction...........if you're playing rock/blues rock then a Gibson SG is perfect. I love mine and it's one of the most fun basses I've ever played. It takes dirt wonderfully well for that extra bit of grunt n grime, it's body is thin and light weight, neck is easy to play and it looks the biz. If you can't do neck dive then it won't be for you - it's so light that I've never found it a hinderance. Plus, my left hand is pretty much always near the neck, so it doesn't go anywhere!

This is one of my favourite blues tunes as it's normally pretty ballsy/rocking/powerful, but I love this cover of it for the funkier bas line. Think it might be Kenny Berdoll on bass - enjoy!

It's really stunning, probably the most easy on the eye of the new Vintera range imo. Thanks for the extra pics, I'm very jealous!

Prove it, more pictures please!! It's pretty hard to make out what it looks like, is it a sort of iridescent burgundy burst around the edges? Either way, I like what I've seen from pics so far 😃

Ohhhh, is that the competition burgundy? They look lovely in pics I've seen online, but the name really confuses me! Gorgeous bass - enjoy!

No worries, I knew spending hours just staring and lusting over it would come in useful one day. Looking forward to the NBD thread 😂

It wasn't a Lakland by any chance?

Congrats on your new bass! The rosewood on yours looks lovely and dark. Since picking up a Limelight earlier in the year I toy with the idea of moving mine on......then I play it. The neck is just perfect and the build quality is great. Enjoy it!

I like that a lot - what is it? I'd be tempted to just use a black scratch plate and keep the body as is, looks pretty good to me!

Haven't seen one of these before..... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/204531032949?hash=item2f9effe375:g:aNIAAOSwxCZlShur&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA8FRWbsRzbspKBfdyJg89HLnKohayhJpg0tDO%2B%2F2TXyz5nJwyoI5dH8LDVlexc%2BIQoKzj3Q18IGgp2WTkUvGdAtVselYmKDUuGe8kDm9sjSUmScBfgVie4mrteYjmMklsofvU9P%2BXou26MsgBfdB9DhIlbiMjaOuYkgicPtabKgPSXsoIuq0%2FdIZdrfrxyeIx3SMr92u5%2F4YwhWru1mZ%2BytbYx6S6kxO83UFr%2FrFX7Y7xvlYQg8qNVZmLabkg11va7F1r7uZIon3pEtRuw0n6jdiSUlfTZt0Pv5N3W%2BDKqCdPXjAh0nYRvlLZiiNoGwHKFQ%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR5q45-yPYw

The Gallery in Camden only charge £110 for a defret according to their site, which seems pretty reasonable to me. The only thing that would annoy me is that the fretboard markers and side dots would be in the wrong place, but I'm sure they could deal with that for you too. At the lower end of your budget is the Harley Benton B-450FL - unlined fretless with humbuckers for £165. HB stuff is decent and it's worth a go if it's just something you want to experiment with.

I was thinking about picking one of these up a year or so ago but haven't ever seen any in the UK. I called one of the bigger retailers that usually stock G&L stuff (either Guitarguitar or Andetons) and they could order one in, but they wanted a non refundable/transferable deposit and I didn't fancy doing that for a bass I haven't played. I think they came in at around £650ish at the time.

Really glad you're happy with the pair! Agree with you on those pups, I've only played the MK1 Vintera but thought it sounded great - much better than the Am pro2. It was equally happy digging in with a pick for some Dead Kennedys as it was playing some softer blues.

What a lovely duo! Really like the necks on these and they sound fantastic too. Do you know if the pups are the same in the new series?