Hellzero

Don't rush for these grades, they are just pride and joy for ... the teacher. Been there, done that, and it ended up with a loud "snap" which was the start of a fantastic tendonitis on the right arm forcing me to stop playing the piano and bass for 2 years: that's the only prize I eventually won. Strangely I could still play a bit of bass, but not that much. It's getting better now, but I don't play the piano very often, which is a shame. The bass is back on tracks since December 2024 with a bass duet we started just before the tendonitis accident... So take your time @bass_dinger. 😉

In fact, the volume (250 kOhms) is before the preamp on the early series, but it has to be after the preamp and a 25 kOhms linear or logarithmic (up to you and your taste). Easy mod, really. But you have to do both to get the best out of this bass. Check if your pickup has 4 wires. I can send you the correct parallel wiring and it's hyper easy to do too.

On a more serious way, if you try a Lollar P-Bass (not the Hi Wind, but the regular model), you'll get exactly the tone you're after, but it's an expensive pickup.

First thing to do is to wire the pickup in parallel and not in series as they are wired at the factory (hoping you have the 4 wires plus screening ground wire), then it will work properly. And don't forget that even if there is a center detent, it's a boost only preamp, so start with all at zero and add the bass and treble to measure.

Love your thread's title. 🤣

And they are...

If you want to try the most flexible stings, the Hellborg Perfect Pitch, Dogal are offering a 20% discount at the moment on their website for their 75th anniversary. https://www.dogalstrings.it/en/basso-elettrico

@rwillett if you put the output jack just in the middle between the volume and tone pots, you'll have way enough room to use them even with big fingers like mine. 😉

And there's even one for sale here:

Discontinued @kwmlondon ? Don't know where you've been looking... https://www.thomann.co.uk/markbass_mark_stand.htm

It's definitely his Roland G33 fitted with a mirror pickguard. Check this:

It's definitely his Roland G33 fitted with a mirror pickguard. Check this:

Interesting @itu. That said my Noguera Yves Carbonne 8 (non octave) strings fretless was originally meant to be played in this sub octave tuning with a 34 inches scale and it worked flawlessly, the low E0 is a 0.185 string with, from what I can see in the talented Nate Navarro video, a tighter low E0. Check out Yves Carbonne work to hear the sound of this bass. 😉

Strangely I've seen it instantly without cropping, but I think I can see a lot better than most people (with my glasses)... 🤓

I guess you meant: Bet that gridge brounded!

Interesting article: https://www.homemadetools.net/forum/headless-guitar-westone-rail-replica-homage-88759 And interesting photos of a refinishing proving that the bridge is grounded on the treble side tube:

If it's an active EMG, don't forget the battery in the sliding compartment. 😉

Way more clear here @Stub Mandrel :

To me, there are indeed 2 Bartolini preamps and a buffer for the piezos (the one with the 2 dip switches that are certainly for the phase). One preamp is a 3 bands model and the other a 2 bands model (for the piezo obviously). One of the switches is an active/passive switch not working for the piezos in passive mode. The other looks to be for some LED's powered by 2 AA(A) batteries where there is a the white unknown thing on a PCB (it could be the power management of the LED's). Worth putting 2 AA(A) batteries there to see if the LED's turn on.

The two home made preamps are probably buffers for the piezos. May we have a photo of that preamps fair?

A real contrabass guitar scale for once. 😉

I also owned a brand new red Westone "The Rail" in ... 1992 and I've always been picky about ground noise. The one I had had no ground issues, but when locking the pickup block into the desired position, I always noticed a kind of spring resistance with the knob, so I guess the metal tubes were grounding the bridge and that the locking screw was in contact with the output jack ground through a wire soldered to the metallic thread of that locking system. As a side note, the screw was bare and leaving slight marks on the metallic lower tube where the contact was made. That said a good grounded shielding of the pickup cavity helps a lot too.

Love your new toy @Burns-bass ! 😍

Same as @prowla and @rwillett. I bought mine brand new for 350 Deutsch Mark (around 150 GBP) in 1992 in Trier, Germany, and the store was more than happy to eventually sell it after a few years without any interest...

Not my favourite Toto tune, but that bass sounds great, I really liked the end with the chorus. Congratulations Johna. 👌🏻