ChrisJaxon

I have just treated myself to a shiny black fiver. Lots of comments on other forums kept remarking how heavy these are, but when I picked it up in the shop I was quite taken aback by how light it is. In contrast, I picked up a flat white 4 which was next to it, and it was as heavy as a heavy thing, noticeably heavier than the 5er. Most peculiar. So a good start, then I started playing it and was instantly smitten. I am mostly a PJ player, but wanted a jazz with balls just to see how I got on. Once I had got the thing home, changed it into Chromes, set it up nicely how I like it, tightened a few knobs, it really is a lovely thing. Without the bass/treble boost it sounds like I imagine most jazz's sound, very musical. When a bit of boost is engaged (it is quite subtle, no 'in yer face' red-lining) it really turns it into a lucious growl. With the stacked boost knobs, in combo with the 'passive' tone knob and the pup blend, you can get a whole range of sounds and tones. The finish is pretty good. When setting it up, I took the neck off and found quite a lot of compressed sawdust which was making it not quite right in the pocket, so I cleaned it out, put in a little shim, and it set up much better, without the B bridge almost on the deck as before. The 19th fret is a little proud so needs a shave, but apart from these things, it is a very nice bass for the money I just weighed it on the bathroom scales and it comes out at 9lbs (doesn't show ounces!) but I know it is one of my lighter 5ers. I am looking forward to playing it with the band and probably at the next gig.

Surprised nobody has mentioned Picato yet. I have a 5-string long scale set and they were really thumpy, but the B string was not really tonefull. On a 4-string they worked well, lovely feel to them, quite high tension, and a real thump. But where Picato have excelled for me is their short scale flats. I put a set on my Squier Jaguar SS and they are excellent. Lovely tone, good feel, and the E string (which can sometimes be tonally odd on a short scale) works very well. Quite high tension. They make a fun-to-play bass feel even more fun to play, and at gigs playing blues type stuff it sat well in the mix. I suppose they do not come into the cheap category at £35 https://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/strings-c1/sets-c865/bass-guitar-c34/picato-flatwound-bass-strings-45-100-stainless-steel-short-scale-p789 but I really like these SS strings. Plus, the black silks are good on the black Jaguar SS headstock!

I find that if my flats get sticky during a gig, a quick rub around the face with the finger tips, especially around the base of the nose, gets enough grease to make them slick again. Works every time. Grim but true.

I get everything I need out of this rig, RM800 Evo + Super Twelve. No pedals, just the joint versatility of the BB735A/RM800/SuperTwelve. Perfect match!

Just bought some strings from Darren. Top guy. Thanks!

Bought some strings from Laurence. Perfect. What a gent!

Hi Ray: I didn't take the photo, I was too engrossed listening to the song and enjoying your playing! One of the organisers took it and posted in on FB here along with some other memorable photos - including a couple of me! It was a great, tiring weekend, with some great music. Gets better every year. Hope to see you next time too.

Raymondo: spotted having a crafty twang!! .....and levitating whilst doing it.......

Just bought a pair of SD jazz pups from Chris. Perfect.

I am depping for the Charlton Blues Kings on Saturday night. Be good to see anyone there.

I have put a set of Picato flats 45-100 on my Squier Jaguar SS. They fit just right, feel great, the black silk matches the headstock (!) and have a good thumpy tone for the blues band I play in. I would recommend them. Picato SS strings on Amazon

Stuart bought a Dean fretless 5 from me. Totally problem-free, pleasure to deal with. Hope to deal with him again one day.

I wanted a shortie for a short term project coming up (depping for an upright player), and I wanted to try one out anyway (good ole'gas!), so I pressed the button with GAK for a black Squier VM Jaguar SS for all of £178 including delivery the next day. What can go wrong, I thought, and when it arrived I dutifully kept all the packaging just in case. But when I took it out and gave it a quick once-over, it was faultless. Apart from a little brown knot in the maple on top of the headstock, which looks rather like a fag burn and rather hip. Then I plugged it in, and once again it all functioned without issue, and the sound was exactly as expected. I then replaced the strings with my preferred flats, set the string and pickup heights to my liking, tuned her up and -BINGO - what a fantastic little bass! And for my dainty little hands, the business end was so much easier and less tiring to play than my long scales. And I found myself able to play faster more accurate runs. I may be converted.... But how does the industry make a great 'beginner' instrument like this, with everyone in the food chain (even DHL to my door) making a profit (including the taxman) for £178? Hats off to Squier.

I gig with an RM800 evo/BF Super 12 and this combination fills any size space with luscious tones. In a pub I can't have the volume knob higher than around 10%- 20%, and even then my troosers are flapping. Really good combination and great tones.

A very happy BB735 player here! Such a versatile bass and such a delight to play. I set the amp at the beginning of the gig and make running sound adjustments on the 735 as required, from poppy jazz sounds through to thumpy P, it has it all covered. Fantastic! Enjoy!

I started off with a MAG300, on top of MAG 210 and RM115 stack. Never a hitch. Great Sound. Moved on to an RM420 head. A bit of a learning curve to get a good sound, but it served me well and never let me down. It is now my reserve amp, giving pride of place to a RM800 Evo which is superb through my Barefaced Super Twelve. No Ashdown product has ever let me down, so thankfully I have never needed their customer service, except for the one time I was sent the RM115 completely free of charge, as a Valentines day thank you for buying one of their products!! Don't you just love'em?!

Bought a pair of Beyerdynamic headphones. All as described, perfect. And quick postage too. .

I also have a 735A and didn't know about the function of the treble knob until I read that review. The first 50% up to the indent does indeed only control the passive treble, and the second half does only control the active treble. Before I read that, I thought it was 100% for both active and passive: but they are correct! The tone changes are quite subtle, but effective. I upgraded from a BB425 (which I highly rated) and now the sound of the sound of the whole (blues rock) band is much fuller and richer, thanks to the 735. A very well thought out instrument.

We played a pub gig on Saturday, which as some of you may remember was quite a warm day. The pub was a town pub surrounded by housing. Outdoor events have been banned, even though they built a lovely outside bar in the extensive gardemn. It never gets used! Whenever they have live music they have to keep all doors and windows closed tight. So there we were, in a complete sweat box! It made for an atmosphere but not sure how you would describe it....! Nevertheless we played pretty well and survived, and got paid. Anyone else get stuck behind closed doors on a balmy Saturday night?