Bassassin

Always been curious when the MDF bodies were around after picking up a (99% certain) Fujigen-built no-name Precision copy, which turned out to be MDF under the rattlecan spray job. I assumed it was from the same era as the cardboard Silver Series, didn't know they used MDF on E-serials too. J.

If the issue here is that somebody might inadvertantly advertise a Faker, believing it to be genuine, and as a result BC might be on the recieving end of Hall's wrath, then what exactly would be the problem with verifying the authenticity of the instrument before allowing the listing to go live? There were/are absolutely no Rickenbacker copies which are indistinguishable from the real thing, spotting the differences is very straightforward. If it's true that secondhand sales are a thorn in Hall's side, I'd derive a tiny measure of [i]schadenfreude[/i] from exerting a little pressure on that thorn. Jon.

Definitely a bit of a project, fair enough if it stays around £100 or thereabouts. Are the solid colour Silver Series Squiers the ones with MDF bodies? Jon.

I do like Hohner Jacks - but that one's a good £100 over the odds! Jon.

If you want a bass for funk, this is what you want: In fairness, if you actually could work out how to isolate one of the Precision pickups, you'd probably be able to get a decent Motown sound out of it... Jon.

A P project I put together a few years ago: [sharedmedia=core:attachments:57742] [sharedmedia=core:attachments:57743] Having the head matching the actual body was a bit unrealistic but I do like how it turned out. Jon.

It's interesting to note that the original BBs (at least, my old '84 BB400S) had the P pickup reversed: This was fairly common in Japanese basses of the era (my Washburn SB40 also has this) and I suppose theoretically it might brighten the response of the E & A strings - although I think you'd be hard pushed to notice. I did think on the BB it made the pickup a slightly more conveniently placed thumb-anchor than a standard P layout. Unfortunately I don't have the bass any longer so I can't measure the position. Anyone else got an original BB? Jon.

I think it's fair to say that most manufacturers don't push "adventurous" designs because it's not what the current market demands. For a couple of decades now, pro players in successful acts - who influence purchasers - often tend to play Precisions, or maybe a Jazz if they're feeling daring. Of course there are exceptions but many players seem content with generic, traditional instruments. This is very disappointing to an old git like me who grew up watching my heroes playing stuff like JayDees, Steinbergers, Wals, Status, high-end Ibanez, Washburns & Aria Pros and so on. These days the bass tends to have a less prominent musical role than the 80s-era bands who used these instruments and I feel that's reflected in the conservative choices of both players and retailers. Jon.

Thanks for that, no surprise it's a modification. Wonder what it sounds like with that strange wiring? J.

Probably sounds quite a lot like a P - one of the reasons I'm not (very) interested... The phase switch & odd wiring should help make it more versatile though. If it is original wiring (which I doubt), a translation of the text accompanying the identical Kasuga SCB-1200 in the catalogue would prove enlightening. Mr Twit? J.

I'm in the same position as you, financially - I'd love to buy this just to sit and gawp at it! According to that old Kasuga catalogue I linked to, there is a (lined) fretless version. If the recent appearance of these two very uncommon basses within a few weeks has established a pattern, we can probably expect the fretless to be along sometime in the first week of May. J.

There were quite a few of these knocking around on Ebay 5 or 6 years ago - I remember them for having a singlecut design that didn't make me gag (although opinions may be split on this!) and for being within my gyppo-esque budget. Which is to say that this bass hails from a "boutique instrument builder" in Taiwan or Indonesia. Nice looking bass but this probably cost around £200 new. Jon.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1395613952' post='2404465'] I much prefer the darker finishes on the Kasugas on your document. All of them look pretty nice to me, though. [/quote] That being the case, maybe you'll prefer this one: [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251499401197"]http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251499401197[/url] Pro Martin brand again, starting at £150 and that's an absolute stunner. I strongly suspect that's a DiMarzio Model P in there as well. J.

It's ever so slightly ambiguous, but the model's called a Sunburst: [url="http://www.hamerguitars.com/?fa=detail&mid=909"]http://www.hamerguit...=detail&mid=909[/url] Confused me a bit when I first came across them - no idea if it's actually available in sunburst, either... Very nice-looking bass but it'll neck-dive like a rotter! Jon. Jon.

That's gorgeous. Want. Jon.

Same sort of thing as the Kay P copies, Korean-made rather than Taiwanese. I've had a couple of car boot Kays, and they were surprisingly OK after a bit of fettling. These old Shatellites are really the same as any other cheapo - poor quality materials & components, most of them are junk but there's the (very) occasional playable one. J.

Great looking basses, always had GAS for one but never actually played one. Not sure whether it's a recommendation or not but Nicky Wire from the Manic Street Preachers plays these. Jon.

The point of a covers band is to gig, therefore the point of your set list is to appeal to the audience you want to play to. It's kind of immaterial whether band members find certain songs "boring"! You need a band meeting to clarify what the point of the band is for the other guys, while making it absolutely clear what you want from it. If you can reach a concensus which involves gigging, I suggest you go & book a date or two yourself to force the issue. If it turns out that some or all of the other members aren't interested in getting out of the practice room then it's either a matter of biting the bullet & looking for something else, or replacing the guys who don't want to gig. Do you have time for more than one band? You could continue with this for the social aspect and find a second band to do a bit of actual work with! Jon.

Skinny neck/active/under £400 - sounds like something from the Ibanez Soundgear range to me, masses of choice within that price range if you're buying used. I've had two Japanese SR800s, regret selling both - excellent playable, versatile, lightweight & great-looking basses. Jon.

These ain't great, but that's a deal! Korean-made, splintery off-cut body, rubbish hardware - however I had one of these (Gumtree, £40, mainly for the DiMarzio Model P it came with) and after a good clean, fret dress, new hardware & setup, it played really nicely. Would've sounded great too, if I'd left the DiMarzio in it.

Dunno what it is (interesting old thing, if nothing else) but the "Ibanez Prototype" spiel is exactly the bovine bowel product you suspect. This whole "unbranded Ibanez" myth comes from the early 70s catalogues which simply show unbranded Fujigen factory stock shots. Since Ibanez was, is, and has only ever been a brand name, the notion of "Ibanez prototypes" (particularly 70s era copies) is something of a nonsense, and the rule of thumb is if it doesn't say Ibanez, it ain't one. It is an interesting bass, however nothing about it says it's even Japanese. 70s MIJ hardware is very easy to spot, and this bass doesn't have any, pickups are unusual & I'd be inclined to think it's quite a bit more recent than the 1974 he's claiming. If bids started at £80 rather than the ludicrous £800 I might be interested. J.

Postage is £995! From Uxbridge! Although I'd say it's coming via Shenzhen City, judging from what reads suspiciously like a Chinglish translation! Jon.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1395652799' post='2404619'] Everything about this screams that it isn't Matsumoku at all. [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Columbus-Series-2-Sunburst-Electric-Bass-Guitar-MIJ-Matsumoko-Vintage-/161257731329?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item258bb5b501"]http://www.ebay.co.u...=item258bb5b501[/url] [/quote] And you are quite correct. To me it screams "I'm Korean, I'm plywood and I'm from the early 80s!" Never seen an MIJ Columbus that looked remotely like a Matsumoku product. But I'm starting to think that in EbayLand "Matsumoku" has replaced "The Ibanez Factory" as the origin of anything remotely old & oriental. J.

Rebranded Kasuga Scorpion, like the one here: http://brochures.yokochou.com/guitar-and-amp/kasuga/198x/p4.html Quite a few Kasugas appeared with this "Pro Martin" brand. I seriously doubt it's officially connected to Martin Guitars, but what's interesting is that Martin contracted Kasuga Gakki to build their Sigma range from the early 70s onward - in fact I think the first examples carried the Martin branding. I suspect "Pro Martin" was a sort of sneaky re-badged sideline, in the same way Korean manufacturer Young Chang sold Fenix-branded Fender copies which were identical to the Squiers they were building under contract. Anyway I think it's probably a pretty good buy at that price, it will be exceptionally good quality, and I doubt there are many others in the UK with that, or any other brand name. J.