project_c

Hi guys, second time I'm asking about this bass here, I could use your expert advice again. I've been umming and arring about this bass for ages, it sounds good and the neck feels great, so I've had a much closer look at it today. Here's the thing - the guy wants £399 for this bass, and it doesn't look like he'll accept an offer just yet. The problems are: - No case - No chrome cover - Many dings, several on neck and one chip on the back that's gone through to the wood. None of them affect the playability, but will certainly affect resale value. - Crackly pot, and general dirt everywhere (not a big a deal), chipped paint (I know its standard with these) - Bass goes out of tune real quick, which could mean bad tuners, or it might just be the Roto's that have been on there since the early 1600's. And now the big problem - there are 2 hairline cracks, both sides of the neck pocket, that look pretty nasty. Here's a pic: [attachment=152037:photo 3.JPG] What do you reckon about this? Is this normal with these basses? Is it an easy fix / non-issue, or a Very Bad Sign? I love the feel and character of this thing but I'm worried that it'll turn to dust as soon as I get it home.. Would you buy it in this state? Here's another couple of pics: [attachment=152038:photo 2.JPG] [attachment=152039:photo 1.JPG]

Here is an update: I ordered the aforementioned item from GAK, and they sent me the wrong thing - i.e. the same PSU as the one I already have. They also sent it a day later than promised, which means I sat about waiting for a delivery yesterday for no good reason. That's the last time I order anything from those weed-stinking red-eyed ketamine-sniffing ironic-jumper-wearing Brighton wastemen.

yeah, I realised that, there's also a UK version which I ended up ordering from GAK, let's hope it works.. [url="http://www.gak.co.uk/en/dunlop-ecb-04uk-18v-dc-regulated-power-supply/35999?gclid=CPu6sMaXvLsCFUbKtAod8VcAQg"]http://www.gak.co.uk/en/dunlop-ecb-04uk-18v-dc-regulated-power-supply/35999?gclid=CPu6sMaXvLsCFUbKtAod8VcAQg[/url]

Actually in the meantime I've been doing a bit of research into all this, turns out Dunlop - for some BIZARRE reason - make two types of 18V PSU's, one that is useless and whines like a castrated pig on amphetamines, and one that is regulated and seems to be the answer to my problems. The difference in the product names is almost impossible to notice, unless you're some kind of magical wizard, which I am not: ECB-04, as opposed to ECB004. This is the regulated one: [url="http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/dunlop-ecb-04-barrel-18v-adapter"]http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/dunlop-ecb-04-barrel-18v-adapter[/url] ..and this is the whiney one: [url="http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ECB004/"]http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ECB004/[/url] So I'm going to order the regulated one and see if it fixes this problem, in the meantime hopefully someone will see this thread and learn from the error of my naive ways and save themselves £17.99.

Thanks Matt, great suggestions, it just all seems like such a massive effort for powering one tiny pedal.. is the squeaky 18V PSU a known issue that everyone's been aware of all this time? I thought I just had a just a dud, but it seems like this is something a lot of them do, which makes me wonder how they're ever used in a studio..

Thanks again - this Dunlop unit is already the second one after I took the previous one back, and the whole soldering thing is just overkill, so I think I'll cut my losses and go the Maplin route.

Thanks for the reply! The official name (incl. part number) is Dunlop ECB004UK AC Adapter 18V. I am not familiar with the term 'switch-mode', but this thing cost £17, which isn't cheap for a PSU, and Dunlop, as far as I knew, were ok when it came to stuff like this. Can you recommend an alternative 'linear' 18V PSU?

I have a Tri-logic Bass Preamp II which is lovely, but changing batteries is hell, so I bought an 18V Dunlop PSU (recommended for this pedal), and the thing makes a squeaking sound which sounds like tinnitus. The sound actually comes out of the PSU, and it is also audible in recordings, which essentially renders it a 100% useless waste of money. It happens wherever it's plugged in, whether it's the socket next to my amp, my computer, my kitchen, my neighbours toilet etc. I can post a clip if anyone really wants. This one is already a replacement for another one which was doing the same thing, so either I'm really unlucky, or I'm doing something wrong, or these things are just plain sh!t. Anyone have any good suggestions before I throw it out of the window in a fit of violent festive rage? thanks!

[quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1385221966' post='2285768'] ..... and if you do you won't need to use the photo of mine anymore to show what they look like. [/quote] [quote name='ash' timestamp='1385212242' post='2285648'] It's a Mark 1 as it has the large rectangular scratchplate to cover the rout for the Hayman pickups as it's made from Hayman surplus parts. Very nice - if you decide against let me know - I'll have it! [/quote] You guys are doing a great job of fuelling my GAS.. The guy actually wants £385 for it now, and as you can see from the pics, it's not in the best state (as opposed to BetaFunk's which looks very well looked after, or that white one on Ebay, which also looks pretty immaculate). It will definitely need a proper setup as well as a massive clean-up, it's really grubby right now. I think I'll offer him £350 cash, as long as the truss rod is still ok.

Here it is - just a couple of pics taken on my phone, still thinking about it, I haven't bought it yet...

If I have time tomorrow I'll go over and have a closer look at it, I'll grab a couple of photos of it while I'm there.

thanks for the replies, it's possible the one i played was a bit heavier than yours, but in any case I'm going to go back and have another look at it. The neck was definitely all over the place and needed sorting, I'll see what he says about that, if it's not screwed up beyond repair I'll go for it. Very pretty basses with great tone, no doubt about it. First bit of GAS I've had in over 2 years..

Thanks for the reply, the cracked paintwork was actually really nice, so that's not a problem - would you be prepared to buy a bass like this with a bowed neck, or would you want it to be set up properly before committing to it? Thanks for the link - it will add much unnecessary fuel to my GAS.

Played a nice old Shergold (I think it was a Marathon) today, it weighed a ton, the setup was pretty awful, high action, but the tone was AMAZING, growly vintage dirt. So as a result of that now I have a severe case of GAS. It was just like the one in the pic (not my pic, found on google but I believe it belongs to someone from Basschat). A couple of questions: The bass I played had a switch above the tone pot, which was apparently a 'mono / stereo' switch, according to the guy in the shop. Is that actually true? Did these come with that as standard? Or was it modded? When the switch was over on the bridge side, the output on the D & G strings dropped to almost zero, which is apparently what happens with the bass in stereo mode but going to a mono out. I'm not sure if this is true or if it's just bull, can anyone chime in and let me know? The neck was very nice, but it was bowed and it desperately needed a good setup, the action was way too high. The guy in the shop told me there was a slightly unique way of doing this - you had to adjust the truss by removing a little panel on the back, which gives you access to a spoke wheel or something similar - but it should set up without any problems. Does that sound about right? The paintwork was cracked but regardless of that it was very nice, and the cost was around £350. How does that price sound? I'm tempted to go for it but I would welcome any input / advice you guys may have. cheers!

Thanks for all the input everyone. I'm slowly working my way through Joe Hubbard's book, (as recommended by Faithless a few posts up). It's taking me a while because I'm practicing everything in there in all 12 keys, but so far it all makes sense and seems to be pretty good. [quote name='Hector' timestamp='1368015441' post='2072028'] A nice way to provide a sense of motion through a ii-V-I is to use guide tones: [url="http://www.simonpurcell.com/media/GuideTonesforImp.pdf"]http://www.simonpurc...TonesforImp.pdf[/url] (page 3 is wicked, some of those chromatic resolutions are really nice, and provide a good sense of motion through tension and resolution) You could also try using some chord tone enclosures: [url="http://www.simonpurcell.com/media/C.pdf"]http://www.simonpurc...com/media/C.pdf[/url] [/quote] This looks really interesting, I'll have a read through, cheers for posting. Also while I'm here, I have a couple of recommendations for help with practising jazz, I'm sure most of you know about this already but if not, check out an app called iRealB ( http://www.irealb.com). It's not free, but it's dirt cheap for what it does, and the user forum has every jazz standard ready for download, for free. I strongly recommend it, it's more versatile than any backing track and it sounds excellent (for jazz, anyway). The second is a free app called MuseScore (http://musescore.org). The combination of these 2 apps has made practicing jazz a whole lot easier for me. One of them gives you a backing track, the other allows you to write out whatever line you're studying and transpose it to any key without any fuss. I used to do both of these things manually in Logic Pro in the past and they took up a huge amount of my practice time, which is limited at the best of times. I've been using both for months, they were definitely a good addition to my practice routine.

I emailed him earlier and I have the book now, thanks guys. Looks very good actually! Time to get stuck in..

[quote name='Faithless' timestamp='1366751524' post='2056976'] If you want to learn to walk over changes in an logical, step-by-step manner, I can't recommend enough the "Walking Basslines" by Joe Hubbard - that book is everything you need to know about walking. [/quote] I ordered this book a few days ago and haven't received anything, no response to my emails either so I'm not sure what's up, I might need to get paypal to refund. Shame because it looked pretty good.