Burns-bass

The frets look absolutely bloody awful.

Thats the normal price!

I get that I was just joking. To be honest, I'm not a Queen fan.

That’s exactly what I did (learn to read the dots to gain more jobs not playing with Queen!).

Very smart. I wish I’d followed all this advice when I started!

It was my recommendation that leading music helped me. I also found the whole process fun and rewarding. It was great to be able to learn what’s effectively a new language all on my own. It unlocked lots of interesting things. I could play a Bach cello suite, for example. In the end, there’s no real need for me to learn to read music but I did it because I wanted to and enjoyed it. In the end, if it’s not fun, then why bother? Very few of us do this for a living, but we do it because we love it. I like process but others don’t. All good.

This is the biggest problem with the transition from EUB to DB. Be sure to watch the videos online about using arm weight. Using proper technique means you can be dexterous without putting any strain on your thumb. I’m not trying to patronise you, it’s a mistake I made and it can really impact you negatively. This bass looks amazing and I’m sure you’ll love it. Just protect your hands.!

They say they do but claiming is a different matter altogether in my experience (admittedly not me but acquaintances). They always have clauses like you need to have a picture of the items in the car etc.

Your insurance wouldn’t cover it in the car but would in a locked hotel room.

Have you taught yourself? I found that a couple of lessons helped to identify some poor habits and provided me with lots of material to work on. One thing that I found transformed by playing was learning to read music, play along to chord charts and improvise. There are lots of ideas here that can help you achieve that. Personally, I believe you'll make faster progress working with someone else, even if it's one lesson every couple of months. (If you don't want to pay or can't, I'm sure someone on here would help you.) Of course, I say this as someone who used to teach a bass guitar course. But I saw what the regular feedback and structured support did for the players I used to teach. Thankfully, most if them are much better than I am now.

Traditionally would have been played on gut strings, but it really doesn't matter. I played in a gypsy jazz-style band for a few years on an old Boosey & Hawkes bass. Sounded great, looked great and was a lot of fun!

Scam

I recently listed a Sixties Cherry 335 on eBay and was offered £1500 by a guitar flipper. There was nothing illegal about it but I did tell him (politely) that I found his offer offensive because he was aware of its true value and just wanted to take advantage. To be fair, he accepted it in the spirit it was delivered. It's just a weird and slightly sad business based on someone either being desperate for cash or unaware of the value of their item.

You can find the tab here: https://www.songsterr.com/a/wsa/panic-at-the-disco-mad-as-rabbits-bass-tab-s49857 I don’t really like the guys voice but musically they’re tight and the song has a really interesting rhythm pattern. There are no rules about what you should learn. Take it slow and enjoy it!

Happens on all forums. I’m a member on several other forums (non-bass related) and people will do this to try and raise a few quid. It’s a bit of a sad way to make money and as a business model it’s entirely unsustainable as goodwill quickly evaporates. What’s more annoying is that the practice works to inflate the prices of used items which ultimately costs us all more money (if you buy stuff, obviously). Whenever I lose out on something I remind myself that there’s a 90% chance I’d sell it on in any case.

When the fun stops, stop.

I have now bought one! Not had the chance to set it up but will hopefully do so this week.

I’m gigging 5 times a month with a 2000 Musima double bass. Its cheap and cheerful and sounds good. I’d dearly love a vintage bass but it’s not necessary at the moment.