Danuman

Just wanted to share: I've long wanted to go see Jon Cleary and his band and yesterday I lucked out. I managed to grab a ticket and went to see them in Rotterdam at the North Sea Jazz festival. Sadly, I couldn't get into the (rather smallish) tent to see Richard Bona, but I'm so happy to have seen the Gentlemen. If you don't know Cornell Williams, do check him out. Brilliantly fun player, and the rest of the band equally live up to their band's name. They'll be playing some UK gigs soon: http://www.joncleary.com/tour/

Cheers, thanks for that! Had I been able to get to Margate, I'd have put an offer in. How do you like the EQ points?

Hi all, Sorry if this has been done to death, but my queries haven't turned up much useful info. I'm looking for something light and powerful, ideally with the option for silent practice, to supplement my (rather good) Eden WT550. I was thinking of a used Little Mark III, which would be a nice change of pace, but it lacks aux in and headphone out. At some point I'm probably going to get some or other DI jobby as well, but for most gigs I'm likely having to rely on the amp to do the heavy lifting. Any ideas?

Hmmm, bbot. There's that word again. I figured that it's the bent steel bridge... is it an acronym? I think bent steel bridges sound absolutely fine, by the way. (Usually.) I just happen to find tighter string spacing a lot more comfortable.

You're right! Although I like the idea of it, I had kind of dismissed the Babicz because of the over-designed/premium look, but the Z bridge looks pretty good.

[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1499234269' post='3330085'] they have scale drawing on their website [/quote] Thanks! If you hadn't asserted they would in fact be there, I wouldn't have bothered... (I eventually found them under one of two FAQ's) If anyone's interested; the A has a minimum height of 0.39in/9,91mm and the KA has a minimum height of 0.4in/10,16mm. [quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1499234485' post='3330087'] Also found out last night when starting to fit mine.... Schaller 3D metric tools needed Hipshot A imperial tools needed What is your set of Allen keys - buy a bridge to match? [/quote] Thanks for the heads up! Luckily I bumped into such problems before, so by now I've got a fairly eclectic bunch of tools at my disposal.

This is all great stuff. I'm really starting to appreciate the Schaller, which is a bit of a shame, as I found a Fender mount A Style this morning. 😂

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1499001916' post='3328477'] I really don't see the problem with this bridge. But if you have to change it I'd go for a Hipshot A Style. I have these on several basses. [/quote] I know. It's awfully petty. The Kickass is a nice bridge, but to me it just looks off on a P. Do any of you happen to know if there's any difference in the relative height of the A style vs the Kickass?

My ideal travel/practice/mixer-upper package would be a regular LMIII with aux in/headphone out.

Thanks for the suggestions so far! I suppose I should've specified that the deciding factor is adjustable string spacing. I'm quite intrigued by the Schaller, however, I'm not going to drill into the body in case I want to move on the bass at some point. I do have a nice maple body for a spare, but it still needs to be finished... Hmm, choices, choices.

Hi all, Looking for some suggestions. I currently have a Hipshot Kickass fitted on my P, but it looks awfully out of place. (It'll go back on my Jazz as soon as I find a replacement for the P) I'm looking for something with adjustable pitch, as I prefer a slightly reduced string spacing. I like the Hipshot A style, as I find it aesthetically pleasing and it features quick release, but I can't find anywhere to order it that isn't finicky. Alternatively, I'm looking at the Schaller 3D, but I'm less sure of the design and it's not as pretty. So, any suggestions? Which bridges do you favour? Thanks!

I encountered my very first pre-rig DI on a local radio show recently, but we had different issues to sort out (weirdly set up stage) and very little time, so I left it. I eventually regretted the sound on the recordings, so I won't let that happen again. However, I'd like to echo the positive statements above. In general the sound engineers I've encountered have been knowledgable and pleasant to work with. In the end we all just want to run a good show. The technical nature of their specialisation I suppose leads some of them to be a bit set in their ways, but I bet bass players are no different!

Hi all, I was wondering whether some of the knowledgable people on here might enlighten me regarding the particulars of Fender Precision pickups. Might there be any difference in the dimensions between MIM and USA pickups? I picked up a lovely sounding Curtis Novak P-bass pickup, but the pole pieces manage precisely not to fit the covers from the original (MIM) pickup - so, annoyingly, adjustment is just shy of spot on. Just wondering whether a set of USA spec covers might help. Thanks!

Whoops, I meant to include that. As I mentioned, I swapped out the pickup and it's spot on. Beautifully rich and balanced P tone with the amp set dead flat. Maybe the pickups in 2008 MIMs weren't very good? This pair didn't look particularly nice. Cheap wiring, thin and cheap looking cast bobbins and shoddily applied resin-like gloop, sort of half covering the pole pieces and the ferrite magnets. I don't know. They didn't sound awful, but not particularly good either.

I spotted a used Curtis Novak PB-V pick-up some 10 minutes down the road. The seller had some very tasteful offerings, so I decided to grab it. On a whim really, but so far it turned out beautifully. It's nice and polite and woody, with that lovely hollow thump I'd been looking for. Other than that, I know nothing about it. Lucky find.

Something to take into account: Although the Eden is a very nice sounding amp, it is most definitely not a loud one. Edit: Sorry, little quick on the trigger there. You said you'll be using DI, so it'll be a viable option then. Awesomely portable to boot.

[quote name='markdavid' timestamp='1497870789' post='3320933'] You can usually cut mids but if they are not there it is diffcult to eq them in I have a Seymour Duncan SPB-1 in one of my basses, really need to get round to removing it, I used to have loads of mids, put the SPB-1 in and they practically completely dissapeared, that being said you wont find definition from the SPB-1, maybe its the wrong pickup for that particular bass but I find with this pickup there is a lot of bass, zero mids and not much treble, that bass is saved by the bridge pickup but the SPB-1 on its own sounds like poo [/quote] It had shortlisted it, so thanks for the heads up! [quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1497872151' post='3320950'] Definition isn`t really the P-Bass forte, warmth and presence is. Sure newer round-wound steel strings will add to the clarity of the notes, but the P-Bass is a lot different to the Jazz bass on this aspect. [/quote] I suppose presence is what is lacking in this particular configuration. I did some more testing, and the output is severely scooped around the 8-900 Hz region, once I turn that up it starts to reveal the precision sound I was looking for.

Thanks, very duly noted. I suppose I need to take a trip down there some time. Always nice to hear when people are enjoying their gear. Happy playing!

Sounds like a cracking little amp! (Looks like it too, never heard of 'em before, though) What bass(es) did you play it with and which Eden did it replace?

I taught myself to play the guitar, which, as Mitch Hedberg said, was a bad decision. So when I switched to playing bass, I took the time to get my technique in order. It really is a boon. There's lots of tutorials re the 1 fret per finger concept, so I'd suggest having a look. Only stretch with your pinky and index finger. All the notes are right there. Makes playing four hour sessions a lot less taxing!

I have the (um, I guess) more powerful WTX 500, which I picked up for 235 or so pounds. At its core it sounds very nice - to my surprise it even garnered rave reviews on several occasions - but I find it lacks a certain visceral quality and it runs flat out of steam far too quickly for 500 watts. Great package for traveling, though. Then I bumped into an old WT550, and this one ticks all the old-school boxes for me. Warm, punchy power. The parametric EQ is brilliant, but I generally don't have any need for it. I still keep the WTX around for backup, but at some point I'm probably going for a Little Mark III or some other little class D powerhouse.

Welp. In a heady mix of peer pressure, brand loyalty and hurried expedience, I decided to pull the trigger on a set of Chromes. So far, they're just the ticket. Nice and taut, and although they require a fair bit more strength from my left hand, they sound much more even string to string. Really brings the bass to life! Hope they won't lose too much zing after settling in, though...

[quote name='jimbartlett' timestamp='1497343672' post='3317370'] The neck is amazing, I'm so happy with it! Yes it's an A Style bridge, really good and nice to adjust. The only snag was that I had to fill the existing holes and then drill new ones as it is not a straight replacement for a Fender. [/quote] Ooh, I was thinking about getting an A style bridge, so that's good to know... I'll have a bit of a think about that one. Anyway, happy NBD!

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1497335628' post='3317316'] Too much low mids? Err, that's a P sound. You'll probably need very different amp EQ settings compared to your jazz. Still, it you want less mids then the SD Quarter Pounder has more bass and lowered mids. [/quote] I get what you're saying, but there's this pronounced hump around (I'm guessing) the 250 Hz mark that just booms everything out the way... I always run my amp pretty much flat, and this is the first time I have to be doing any sort of drastic tone-shaping...

[quote name='LewisK1975' timestamp='1497347433' post='3317404'] Isn't that just a reflection of the floor? Happy NBD to the OP. [/quote] That had me puzzled for a bit... It is, indeed, very shiny.