Bassassin

[quote name='uke' post='1162608' date='Mar 15 2011, 12:11 AM']See when you hit 40, get a bit bald, or grey and undoubtedly the bass man gut! how unfair is it that you can now afford all those toys you could only dream of when you were 21! you went off the radar a wee bit when the kids came along and now you find yourself playing "Free" songs with a few numpties a lot less talented than you! At least we can take solace in that we have the best gear available, and have like minded friends on here! Rant over It's good to talk [/quote] I hit 40 some time ago, and have been backing up & reversing over it ever since. Still got all my hideous ginger hair, no more of a fat bastard than I was when I was 30, had a kid once but that's pretty much a distant memory now, still play (mostly) cheap rubbish gear (although I can - and do - afford lots of it), still play in my own originals band playing my own songs with fine musicians, and would shoot myself in the face rather than resign myself to playing covers until arthritis sets in. One always has choices. Jon.

Think there's already a thread about it - this is a Korean-made Jazz 24. No idea why the seller's saying it's MIM. Jon.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' post='1160947' date='Mar 13 2011, 08:15 PM']Maya bass. Looks pretty nice, and with the original hard case might even be worth up to half, or at least a third of, what the seller is asking for it. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/vintage-MAYA-electric-bass-guitar-top-quality-/130496758850?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item1e62368442"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/vintage-MAYA-electri...=item1e62368442[/url][/quote] Nice bass but the price is demented - 1/3 is probably about right. Ain't the original hard case either! Watching the 99p, no reserve Maya P with interest - not to buy but because I have a burst/rosewood Maya P (awaiting its pre-flogging scrub up) which is otherwise identical... J.

[quote name='ras52' post='1160249' date='Mar 13 2011, 10:15 AM']Hm, are you hoping they'll mate?[/quote] Won't work. Dougie's blue SR800LE already lived for about 10 years with a gorgeous red SR800FL fretless - I had high hopes of an interesting hybrid, but nothing. Jon.

[quote name='waynepunkdude' post='1159271' date='Mar 12 2011, 01:43 PM']Why are there no truly cheap Rickenfakers? Every other type of bass has a copy for under £200 new except, Ricks Why[/quote] It's a reflection of the ludicrous price of real Rickenbackers, and the fact that every other type of popular bass has its own budget brand that copies have to compete with. Jon.

A gentleman is a man who can play slap bass. And doesn't. Jon.

Late to the party but all MIK, as BigAlonBass' link should prove. Always liked the Vester Argus - a BCer was selling one a few months ago, wish I'd gone for it now... Jon.

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1158474' date='Mar 11 2011, 07:12 PM']1981 Roadstar -> [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110658871805&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:GB:1123"]linky[/url][/quote] That'll be an RS924 Roadster. And a complete wreck, by the looks. J.

[quote name='LukeFRC' post='1157311' date='Mar 10 2011, 09:54 PM']is the body on your one ply?[/quote] Sadly yes it was! J.

Good score Luke, that will scrub up nicely. It's identical to the one I had apart from the finish: [attachment=74442:fullF.jpg] [quote]Much as I liked the 1908 Cimars, they'd improved a lot by 1912. They could have been great if World War One hadn't started ...[/quote] Most people tend to assume that the years between the start of the Great War & the end of the Second World War actually brought about the demise of Cimar. The truth is that while they never regained the prestige of the pre-war era, the company continued - as a Workers' Co-operative, in the hands of a small but passionately dedicated team of craftsmen & militant Trotskyites. [url="http://www.ibanez.co.jp/anniversary/14/6.jpg"]It's widely accepted that they reached the peak of their output by the mid 1960s.[/url] J.

New toy: [attachment=74430:cortedit1.jpg][attachment=74431:cortedit2.jpg] Cort headless, (no idea of model name/number) from 1985/86ish. These were closely related to the Hohner B2 licensed Steinberger copies, also made by Cort, this has the same Steiny tuner/bridge. Construction's neck-through like the Hohner but the more curvy styling makes it feel more organic somehow. I've got one of the Hohners so it's interesting to compare them - they feel quite different, I'd say the Cort's more pleasant & easier to play. This is largely due to neck shape - the Hohner is narrow (39mm) at the nut but pretty deep & chunky, while the Cort feels fairly shallow for its 42mm width - the Hohner's a little awkward-feeling by comparison. The guitar-type pickups on the Hohner also make it hard to find a comfortable thumb anchor point, but the Cort's P/Js feel instantly familiar. I'd say build & finish are not quite to the standard of the Hohner - there are a few slightly rough fret-ends & the whole thing seems a bit more untidy. I played the Cort at practice last night, it felt & sounded excellent - the passive P/Js make it much more easy to get the sort of uncouth, barking racket I prefer than the clean, nasal sounding active EMGs in the Hohner. It's also ridiculously loud - the J pup measures nearly 12k, which is probably the hottest single-coil I've encountered. Cosmetically the bass is pretty well-used with various chips & dents and a quite big patch worn through to the wood on the back, frets are not bad but a level & crown would improve it. I'm seriously considering stripping it to the wood & either lacquering or oiling it - I think it would look great with the neck-through construction visible. Jon.

[quote name='dave_bass5' post='1156311' date='Mar 10 2011, 10:03 AM']I can see where the OP is coming from here. Personally i would be a bit miffed as well, no matter how nice it looks. I would speak to the seller to let him know my concern, maybe get some money back, but probably keep the bass IF it sounded, played and looked good. Going by those pics it certainly looks very nice (but then again, so do the Sue Ryder basses ) but if i wasnt 100% with the bass itself, and feeling a bit done over as far as being told it was one thing and it isn't, i would take it back before my brain made it in to something a lot bigger than it is.[/quote] Personally - and maybe this is just me - but I'd be a bloody sight happier if a "Rickenbacker" I'd bought from some 70-year old guy for €250 turned out to be a copy. If it was real I'd feel like I'd robbed the poor old sod. J.

[quote name='tomb' post='1156138' date='Mar 10 2011, 01:57 AM']is it a Gehrson? is it an Aztec? is it Ibanez like the Rickenbacker guy said? nobody is sure...[/quote] I know perfectly well what it [i]isn't[/i]. It is absolutely not an Ibanez. It isn't an "Aztec" - this was a European importer's rebrand used on instruments made in Japan in the 70s by Rokkomann in Kobe. Your bass is definitely, positively not Japanese - this isn't a guess. I think it's Italian, probably a Gherson, because it has a lot of construction similarities to the Gherson Rick copies, these have idiosyncrasies which don't appear on any other copy. The cream-coloured humbucker, assuming it's original (which I doubt) is the same as ones which appear on other late 70s/early 80s Italian-made basses. I suspect you don't know a great deal about adjusting & setting-up a bass to make it play & sound good. For example the differing output of your pickups - which is very likely to be down to the high-output humbucker in the neck, and a low-gain single-coil in the bridge position - can be balanced by adjusting the pickup heights. Alternatively there may be a minor wiring issue, or perhaps the internal circuit copies a real Rick (like most old Fakers did) by having a bass-cut capacitor wired into the bridge pickup circuit. A lot of people bypass this to liberate more output & low-end from the bridge pup. The bass would benefit from a proper setup - you would be in a much better position to make an informed decision if it played & sounded at its best, but either way, trading this in for a cheap, low-end, Chinese-made starter bass is a decision you will regret, I can guarantee that. J.

[quote name='tino' post='1155589' date='Mar 9 2011, 05:04 PM']Tell me how many guitars do you see where the scale length is in the text.FEW.......I guess I just take it that a buyer either knows or does their homework... T[/quote] Fair point but most basses are 34" - 30-inchers are uncommon (ooer missus etc) and it's sometimes not immediately obvious from pics. With a bass like yours it's a specific uncommon feature & worth a mention. J.

[quote name='chaypup' post='1155284' date='Mar 9 2011, 01:29 PM']Thanks Jon, fixed it now. By the way, It has the "Steel Adjustable Neck" plate that you mentioned.[/quote] Yep - that's a Matski alright - very close relative of the [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=57034"]Epiphone ET280[/url], in fact the same bass with a different headstock & paintjob. These were also sold under the Aria brand, and they date to the early 70s. J.

[quote name='chaypup' post='1155063' date='Mar 9 2011, 11:09 AM'][url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ibenez-Roadster-Bass-Series-1979-/180634307347?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item2a0ea4cb13"]Commodore[/url] Are these Matsumoku's? I found this thread [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=9999"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=9999[/url] still unclear![/quote] You've linked to the "Ibenez" (potential barg because of the literacy issue) twice, so I can't see the Commodore in question, but if it's one of the old ones then quite possibly. The Commodore brand has been sighted on recent cheap Chinese copies, not seen it on a new bass though. Jon.

Might be helpful if this topic had a poll, either delete asking price/info or keep it as an archive. Personally I leave all asking prices, pics & info on my FS threads, and just mark them sold. Assuming you haggle like a proper pikey, actual sale prices are usually discussed by PM so are seldom mentioned. Some self-hosted pics will disappear if webspace gets cleaned up etc. I've always found old FS threads very useful when establishing the price of a particular bit of equipment or researching the history of something specific. Deleting or editing info can make this frustrating, and in my view is utterly pointless. So don't do it, kids! Jon.

[quote name='hellothere' post='1154823' date='Mar 9 2011, 01:54 AM']Where can I find out more about Rickenfakers? Such as why there are so many and if there is any way to spot a "good" one without playing it.[/quote] There are so many because the Rick 4000 series design dates back to the 1950s and copies have being made since approximately 1970. There's not really a foolproof way of spotting a good one (my best-quality one is damn-near unplayable!) but many of the new ones have had very good receptions from people on here who have got them. However, most of these are not particularly accurate copies, so if that matters, you need to look at the 70s Japanese ones - probably the best way would be to wait until one comes up for sale on BC, at least you get more communication with the owner & possibly previous owners too. [quote]cross Jon's palm with silver [/quote] That'll be a fiver - cheers! J.

[quote name='farmer61' post='1154884' date='Mar 9 2011, 08:04 AM']Friend of family = Get your money back, save for a real Rick and learn a life lesson. Move on..![/quote] The lesson in question being that paying £2000-odd for a bass won't stop it from being awkward, uncomfortable, tonally limited, not necessarily spectacularly well-made, and a gargantuan one-trick pony which hasn't evolved for 40 years. I love the Rick sound & look but would never pay that sort of money for a bass that, because of the above, I know I'd hardly ever play. This is one of the reasons I like Rick copies. That & the fact they're very rare & interesting - any tw@t with more money than sense (or more money than me!) can go & buy a Rickenbacker. J.

[quote name='tomb' post='1154796' date='Mar 9 2011, 12:52 AM']i guess you really are the rickclopedia Bassassin [/quote] JapCrap generally, specialist subject The RickenFaker! Dunno why, really! J.

Sigma, in this instance, is just another brand name attached to a generic-but-good 70s MIJ Rick copy. The bass is the same as those branded Shaftesbury, Cimar etc and a few BC members own or have owned these. I don't own one myself (although one of my 3 Fakers might have started life as one - it was just a body/neck when I got it) but they are typically well-made & pretty much as authentic as they come. In the event you're interested, Sigma was actually the budget brand of CF Martin, understandably it's a lot more common on acoustic guitars, but Martin did dabble in dodgy copies of other US manufacturers' stuff in the 70s. To the best of my knowledge Martin was the first American manufacturer to contract Japanese factories to build affordable licensed replicas of their instruments - they were importing acoustics made by Kasuga Gakki as far back as 1969. I'm afraid I don't know who made this bass - not Kasuga, but the factory remains as-yet unidentified. Jon.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' post='1154664' date='Mar 8 2011, 10:23 PM'][url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Columbus-Jazz-Bass-MIJ-Masumoku-/230594743776?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item35b0848de"]Columbus Jazz Bass MIJ Matsumoku[/url] I now sit back and wait until Jon gets here to see how many of the claims for this bass (MIJ, Matsumoku) are true.[/quote] MIJ: Matsumoku: 1980: J.