Steve Browning

Dunk your fingertips in the hottest water you can stand. Works a treat. Apparently, the blood vessels get crushed when you play and the hot water opens them out again.

Mate of mine (Rumblefish on here) has a Berg 2x12 which is a brilliant cab.

Got to be a Fender Logo'd JV Squier. Not too many about and not the stupid price of the 1958 Precision I'd need.

Unless you're Mike Love!

The best £3.50 I ever spent was on a cheap kitchen wall clock that goes discreetly by the side of the stage so it can be clearly seen on stage and no-one is having to take a sly peek at a watch.

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1493904633' post='3291696'] Got drunk and snogged the intended bride on the dance floor. To be fair she instigated it but that was that. [/quote] Curse that being a bass player and the coolest guy in the room eh?

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1493829938' post='3291094'] Incidentally, it was the first and only time that I saw someone (Joel...) actually turn green in colour. A rough trip for all, but that poor lad really did suffer. [/quote] I was in a plane once and witnesed this. I had always thought it was just a saying but the guy was there and a definite shade of green.

Don't discount a Japanese Fender. The US derivations have alder bodies and US pickups. Probably less than the MIM and a bit cheaper too.

I played in a swing band, similar to Brian Setzer's band. I had been asked to join and questioned whether they really wanted a guy playing electric bass but they were perfectly happy. Me and the drummer clashed a little (he was an utter prat, to be fair) but the music was good and we were mainly playing arrangements. We had a band meeting at a pub one evening and I was told by the drummer that I was a great guy, awesome bass player, but he couldn't work with me. The rest of the band were a bit stunned and a great friend of mine (on keys) found himself binned because 'it was assumed he'd go as well'. What made it worse was the fact that I had arranged with the drummer to be the house band drummer at a blues weekend in 3 days time and he said he couldn't do it. I think it was his wife who had clashed with mine a couple of weeks earlier. Naturally enough, it turned out they had been rehearsing with an acoustic bass just prior to the meeting.

Go on, get one. Get two and become a fridge magnate.

Thank you for an excellent post Phil. As a non-techie, that makes perfect sense.

I guess we hear as much with our eyes as we eat with them.

I wonder what sort of packaging would be required to withstand the knock that did that to a piece of wood?

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1493035368' post='3284982'] That's a surprise Alex, since the cab he mentioned as 'how the hell do you cope' was one of yours! In saying you 'completely disagree' I assume you are telling everyone that a single Barefaced 12 isn't enough to keep up with the band for 80% of bassists. Is that what you are saying? [/quote] As Tommy Cooper would say "get out of that without moving".

Yes. My '66 bass was pretty much retired a few years ago but I dragged it out on Saturday, as I was doing a gig in memory of a very guitarist I last used it regularly with. The neck is just beautiful on it, worn in and with an almost non-existent action. I would use it more but my finger style playing has worn two grooves in it, over the years, that I don't want to get any worse.

Bought one of OBBM's magic speaker serialiser/somethingorotherisers from Lozz. Plenty of comms and immediate delivery. Can't ask for more in a deal. Recommended.

Good suggestions by Pete. I have a pair of those basses and the neck is very similar to my old B profile basses. Keep an eye on the Ishibashi site for a good used one.