Bassassin

Presently I have genuinely lost count of how many basses & bass projects are stacking up around me. I don't really want to depress myself by counting the bodies, and adding up what I spent on them, but considering the type of disreputable junk that gives me amusement and ensures my playing stays sloppy and awkward, at a rough guess it's probably not more than about £120. Jon.

Mid 70s is about as accurate as you can be about non-serialised ones, which I assume this is. Value, on BC probably £300ish, on ThiefBay maybe £350 - £400, particularly if a bidding war kicks off. Anyway: CMI = Cleartone Musical Instruments, which was a sub-brand of Marshall Amps, apparently set up by Big Jim to side-step a dodgy/restrictive distribution deal the Marshall brand was tied to. As well as amps they sold guitars & basses, predominantly Japanese-made copies but also some original designs made in the UK by Ned Callan. This of course is a JapCrap copy & a damn fine one it looks too. These are the same, as far as I can tell, as the Shaftesbury & Cimar-badged through-necks, and are very accurate, realistically they only compromise on the original with the generic little tuners and single truss rod. Because they appear under a few different brands, this type is fairly common but I'm really stumped as to who made them. I can say though it wasn't Matsumoku (who did make CMI bolt-neck fakers), Fujigen or Kasuga - their Rick copies are well-documented and have idiosyncrasies and differences that make them easy to recognise. As far as I can see this one looks in great condition, very unusual to see the bridge pup cover still in place, they are usually the first thing to get removed/lost, just like real Ricks. More pics, as soon as you like! Jon.

[quote name='BassBus' post='933551' date='Aug 23 2010, 12:49 PM']Tell you what I'm tired with is a lot of the contributions to this thread recently. BGM is a mag that has to cater for a wide range of players and genres. You can't please all of the people all of the time, as someone once said. If you are that unhappy with it do as some have done and go else where and stop whinging. I think they do a pretty good job. I don't read it from cover to cover but I can usually find enough to satisfy me. There have been a lot of complaints about type setting and typos in the mag. Well quite frankly some of the contributers to this thread should check their own posts first before they criticise others. Rant over. [/quote] You know what? I strongly suspect if you give it a little consideration, you'll appreciate that a pretty good representation of the magazine's readership is right here. Complaining about it. Jon.

[quote name='waynepunkdude' post='928365' date='Aug 18 2010, 09:14 AM']The guy in the shop where I got my ABM cab from told me Mark King had played through it, could be true as they do get a lot of old tour stuff in there but he obviously didn't realise that wouldn't be a selling point to me.[/quote] Well, if that counts - in 1981 I bought a bass (Washburn B20 Stage series) from Macari's in Charing Cross Road, which is where Mark King apparently worked as a bass salesperson before L42 turned pro. I was just a snotty kid and have no recollection of who got the bass down from the wall, or whether or not he played any boinkety-boinkety slap lines on it before handing it to me, whereupon I probably fumblingly attempted to play something by Rush - most likely Xanadu or Red Barchetta. So, apropos of nothing at all, really. J.

My band organised live music for a small festival in Edinburgh for 5 years - backline was provided and we had a strict 30 min running time for each band & a 15-minute changeover. We did make sure we got each band's equipment & setup requirements off them well in advance so the sound guys knew what they were dealing with. Bands, sound crew & organisers all knew exactly how it was (hopefully) going to work beforehand, and on the whole everything went pretty smoothly. Realistically the best you can do is assume backline is provided unless you're told otherwise, and let the organisers know your specific requirements (no. & type of amps, no. of mics/DI etc). Make sure your set is brief unless you're told otherwise & drummer brings his own breakables. Jon.

[quote name='warwickhunt' post='933460' date='Aug 23 2010, 11:12 AM']The x1 Jazz + x0.5 Precision pup seems an intriguing mod' I'd like to know the rational (and how it works) behind that. If it is wired in then its obviously intended to beef up the D G strings but I'm just not sure how that would pan out or (and this is my guess) is it just a Jazz pup and the 1/2 P pup is just to fill in the offending space![/quote] Why not ask - it's either Ms Charles or a close acquaintance selling the bass, or I doubt they'd be offering a signature! I don't think that neck looks the same age as the rest of the bass. Finish on the headstock front looks a bit orange-peel, too - I'd say it's a replacement. J.

What a strange modification. Not sure why you'd do that. Yolanda's been an active session player for years & her own band's supporting Level 42 on their upcoming tour, so it's a reasonable assumption that she can play a bit. Jon.

[quote name='karlfer' post='933074' date='Aug 22 2010, 09:03 PM']Didn't know you'd met the wife Jon. [/quote] [i]You[/i] married my ex? J.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' post='933249' date='Aug 23 2010, 12:03 AM']I asked if the can get me a Rickenbacker 4003 bass guitar for less than £600.[/quote] Oh, no bother. They'll sort you out with one of [url="http://www.tradetang.com/for-sale/Rickenbacker-4-string-bass-Sunburst-Jazz-bass-Solid-body-Electric-bass-Free-Shipping-new-68864/122208-2519862.html"]these[/url]. Maybe even two! J.

[url="http://www.tradetang.com/wholesale+bass_c2205.html"]Tradetang[/url] And I'm sure you can guess the rest. Jon.

And then there's this: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Guitar-Fender-Precision-Bass-Brand-new-/270625346772"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Guitar-Fender-Precis...w-/270625346772[/url] Erm.... J.

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='933089' date='Aug 22 2010, 09:10 PM'][url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/electric-bass-guitar-/330463815298?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV"]Bid onn this before he can change the title.[/url][/quote] Excellent suggestion, and I would if his start price had been 99p, no reserve! Jon.

There are a few more reasonably-priced examples (and some ridiculously priced reissues) if you do a general search for Aria Bass. Plus a couple that will make your eyes water. There's also this: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-pro-II-RSB-90s-RSB-Bolt-Bass-made-Japan-/300457787586"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-pro-II-RSB-90s-...n-/300457787586[/url] Being sold by Aqua Music in Japan, no model number but the seller reckons 90s, it's MIJ and if he's right about the date, obviously not Mat. Never seen anything quite like this before - domestic market only? J.

Hector SkaFace's bass looks to me like an Epiphone ET280 - a not-uncommon mid 70s Matsumoku-built Japcrap. A few of them have been up for grabs here, including this high-profile example: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=57034"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=57034[/url] Never had one myself but I certainly wouldn't say no. Jon.

[quote name='karlfer' post='932454' date='Aug 22 2010, 07:35 AM']That'll teach me to research 1st. My dad always said I only opened my mouth to change feet.[/quote] No - you're quite right. Here are the basses: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro11-SB1000-bass-guitar-/140442705431"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro11-SB1000-ba...r-/140442705431[/url] [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro11-SB-1000-bass-guitar-genuine-vintage-example-/250682983200"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro11-SB-1000-b...e-/250682983200[/url] These are both Matsumoku examples and the prices of both - nice though they appear - are well beyond the realms of gibbering, tongue-swallowing, compulsive self-abusing loony land. J.

Well I like it! It's the stuff of prog nightmares! Quite right about the tuners - 4-in-line, mirroring each other would have been practical and better-looking. Or even better - headless. Jon.

[quote name='Bassclef' post='931359' date='Aug 20 2010, 08:37 PM']Well, I like eBay, Jon. Sad, I know but I use it a lot and am guaranteed a sale on a convenient day. Their fees are not that high surely? PM'd you about something else.[/quote] The last thing I sold on Ebay went for £95 - the total fees & charges on that amounted to £14.40 s0 it's an approximation but a fairly close one! For the record that was 99p, no reserve meaning no insertion fee, & 90p for a "picture pack" of 6 hi-res (well, 800x800! ) images - everything else was final value & PayPal fees. As far as being guaranteed a sale, I know what you mean, but recently I've had 3 non-payers - plus the item above was paid for but the next day the guy messaged me asking for his money back because he'd decided he couldn't afford it! Tough really because I'd already posted it, but basically there's no comeback for buyers who act like arseholes - so that's exactly what they do. I prefer to sell decent stuff on here but I do still sell a few things on Ebay that I wouldn't inflict on BC, usually guitars. Replied to your PM J.

[quote name='Johnston' post='931639' date='Aug 21 2010, 08:59 AM']Surely the ebay police will have that pulled for the ricky TRC and use of rickenbacker in the title.[/quote] Very likely. I do like the white front/black back/checked binding on that one. :brow: J.

[quote name='fux' post='931363' date='Aug 20 2010, 08:40 PM']Oh i am sorry my bad. I'll fix it The owner said that the thing is still working. So i don't know maybe i should give it a test drive ??[/quote] Only if you can haggle him down to €20-€30. J.

Haven't heard all of these, but those I have really serve to demonstrate that a great band is much more than the sum of its parts, if you get my drift. Jon.

Just curious - why put it on Ebay with its 15% fees rather than sell it here? Jon.

He'll get banned. He plainly thinks he's being a smartarse & dodging fees by doing this, he's something of a newb to selling and it hasn't occurred to him that Ebay might have encountered this sort of stunt before. Those mental Chinese sellers from a few years ago used to do this all the time. Jon.

Yep, that's an early 70s Japanese copy, probably looked like this one when new: [url="http://personal.inet.fi/surf/lorse/bellcatalogue/26.jpg"]http://personal.inet.fi/surf/lorse/bellcatalogue/26.jpg[/url] (top right) That would be a major restoration - I've done a few and would think twice about taking that on. Just out of curiosity, how much does he want? Jon.

[quote name='Machines' post='929447' date='Aug 19 2010, 09:59 AM']The topic should remain factual and avoid personal attacks.[/quote] As long as we can still have lame puns on already-silly names. Sterling Scrotum. J.