Bassassin

[quote name='paul, the' post='42074' date='Aug 6 2007, 05:44 PM']I'm sure Wesleys are much nicer than Staggs. I don't think it's right that beginner musicians should have Staggs available to them.[/quote] Machines is right, though - some, at least, are from the same factory - Stagg do an identical JagRay. I recently helped my girlfriend choose a budget acoustic for her dad, who's taken up playing again after a 30-odd year break, and we ended up with a Stagg dreadnought - which was a lovely guitar for its ridiculously cheap price. Most cheap guitars just suffer from poor or no setup. As far as Wesley's concerned, last year I impulse-bought their Europa Rick-ish thing, and unfortunately it had loads of problems - most obvious being a shagged active preamp that did nothing but give a low volume distorted buzz. Also it had a lousy fret job (all different heights & razor-sharp ends) and a neck that won't adjust to give enough relief for a particularly low action. I sent it back, they denied there was anything wrong with the preamp (that's what active preamps are like, they told me! ) & they sent it back grimy & scratched, the backplate off & taped to the back, and the dodgy frets "fixed" by raising the action so I could nearly stick my hand under it. They also failed to refund the postage I paid to return it to them, despite me mailing them repeatedly. As has been discussed elsewhere on here, buying any cheap instrument is a gamble - & it looks like most Wesleys are OK & I got a duff one, however, their customer service & after-sales was bloody awful & I personally wouldn't buy from them again, and wouldn't recommend them on that basis. Jon.

[quote name='barneythedog' post='41612' date='Aug 5 2007, 02:46 PM']I'm even interested in some of them myself. Does that make me wierd? [/quote] Me too, then! Now if this was just a little better executed: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-LEFT-HANEDED-DOUBLE-NECK-HEADLESS-BASS-5-4-FRETLESS_W0QQitemZ190122088384QQihZ009QQcategoryZ4713QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-LEFT-HANEDED-DOU...oQQcmdZViewItem[/url] Item no. 190122088384 If only it was a lined fretless 5 & fretted four, and had proper headless bridge/tuners! J.

[quote name='nick' post='41419' date='Aug 4 2007, 10:10 PM']A nasty Hondo! [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Hondo-II-Vintage-Bass-Guitar_W0QQitemZ250151272477QQihZ015QQcategoryZ2384QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZewItem"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Hondo-II-Vintage-Bas...1QQcmdZViewItem[/url][/quote] Item no. 250151272477 Not sure how it works, I think but this is the same one (knobs missing, bit of an old screwdriver for a "bridge") that was on a few weeks back and got pulled. Pretty sure it's a different seller. J.

[quote name='beerdragon' post='41294' date='Aug 4 2007, 04:03 PM']Proof that you have never seen it all [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-PRO-ELECTRIC-BANJO-WITH-FRETLESS-BASS-2-INPUT-JACKS_W0QQitemZ190133602461QQihZ009QQcategoryZ10177QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-PRO-ELECTRIC-BAN...oQQcmdZViewItem[/url][/quote] Well I have now. Guess that's it for this life! *Kills self* Jon.

[quote name='barneythedog' post='41229' date='Aug 4 2007, 11:44 AM']Here we go again [url="http://cgi.ebay.de/IBANEZ-Bass-made-in-Japan-401-403-Hammer-Teil-70-Jahre_W0QQitemZ220134498448QQihZ012QQcategoryZ23300QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZewItem"]Ibanez ?[/url] again - 220134498448 if the link is broken[/quote] For once, yes it is! July 1976, model 2389B. These are strangely much less common than the 2388s with the Gibson-style mudbuckers & sparkly inlays. J.

[i]Bass Player[/i] now has a pretty long & interesting interview with Ol' Bignose online here: [url="http://www.bassplayer.com/story.asp?sectioncode=21&storycode=19053"]http://www.bassplayer.com/story.asp?sectio...storycode=19053[/url] I concur wholeheartedly with his observations about playing fretless! J.

[quote name='OldGit' post='40063' date='Aug 1 2007, 04:08 PM'] Yup You lucky man I've had that experience before too - almost .. guy at the jam I go to now and then has a Marlin P bass, aincient strings, one knob missing, through a HH head and a Vox cab. Total retail value about 50 quid. Sounds great. It's kinda depressing sometimes [/quote] - Just as well I never mentioned my Behringer head & ancient Peavey 1x15 then! J.

[quote name='OldGit' post='39907' date='Aug 1 2007, 11:12 AM']Well yes.. and playing a Name bass transfers that prestige to the person wearing it. You pay your extra dollar for the benefits these things bring. These no name basses may easily as good as a name bass, the savings being in the costs of manufacture, but there's so much more to the "value" of a bass than the way it looks, plays and sounds.[/quote] I can't put into words how glad I am that I don't share that viewpoint. My band recently played a couple of gigs in Northern Ireland, as guests of a local band. Their bassist has a lovely Warwick Corvette 6er which probably cost more than all of my no-name oriental cheapos put together. I'm delighted to say he was drooling over the tone I got from my £60 JapCrap CSL jazz copy - and now has me looking out for one for him! And anyway, let's face it - Joe Punter couldn't tell an Ace Pro from a Fodera! J.

Yes - wish I hadn't sold mine. They come up on Ebay from time to time & I watch with a tear in my eye as they soar over what I'm willing to pay! J.

[quote name='bass_ferret' post='39371' date='Jul 31 2007, 09:14 AM']You get what you pay for.[/quote] And a lot of the time what you're paying for is the prestige of a brand name. I've never played an Ace Pro brand bass - but my assumption is that they're Chinese or Korean built instruments. Ace Pro won't be a manufacturer, just an importer's brand name. The quality of instruments coming from China & Korea is surprisingly high these days - broadly speaking they're far better than most of the budget stuff from the 70s & 80s. There's every likelihood they're coming off the same production lines as Ibanez, Aria, Cort & many other better-known Oriental brands. If I was after a 6er, I'd certainly be interested in looking at one of these. Jon.

I'm not Bill Beard but I looked, 'cos I had a B20 years ago. Brass bogseat saddles.... Jon.

That looks excellent - I'll be moving to a new place in a couple of weeks & the basement is going to be the band's rehearsal room & recording studio - what's more I've already been offered my first commercial recording job, even before I've moved in! Jon.

Very interesting watch - but that's not [i]all[/i] his basses though. They don't mention the fact he's playing the Rick again on this tour. Jon.

[quote name='nick' post='38607' date='Jul 29 2007, 08:25 PM']That makes two of us. I used to have a V-S Bassamp head, the one with 'valve sound' switch. Brilliant amp, underated IMHO. Why did I get rid of it(?!) [/quote] Same here, my first "real" amp in the early 80s was a VS Bassamp 1x15 combo. Got rid of mine because it developed a fault in the VS module which made it distort horribly all the time - which was apparently a common problem. There was even a mod (published in [i]International Musician & Recording World[/i] mag - who else remembers that? ) to bypass the VS unit - didn't work for me. I somehow managed to trade my dodgy H/H VS in for a Session 4x10 combo - the poor man's Trace Elliot - in the mid/late 80s! Jon.

Interesting - that hardware on such an ineptly cobbled together piece of junk. I bet the fretboard's off the same donor Status. Jon.

As far as its aesthetics are concerned - leave it! it's a 20-odd year old, well worn bass & that's its life written all over it. You should see the state of my old CSL Jazz, it looks like it's been played to hell & back in its 27 years & looks fantastic, to my eyes. Buckle rash looks better than gaffa tape! For the strap button, I'd recommend using cocktail sticks & a bit of epoxy - the good thing about cocktail sticks is that they're pointed & will fit screwholes better than a matchstick, and you can use several to fill bigger holes. The tuner's probably taken a knock at some point, which has either bent or loosened the retaining hoops which hold the threaded part of the key, or slightly bent the backplate. You might find if you take it off & dismantle it, you'll be able to bend it back into shape so it holds tune better. I think if the bass sounds fine with the EMGs, leave them - looks like the main work will be the frets. Jon.

I was watching that too, was playing last night & forgot all about it... Might be JapCrap but I'd guess late 70s/early 80s Korean. Not a Marlin, I think - no fish at the 12th fret, and Marlins had more Fender-like headstocks than this thing. I think that at nearly £50 delivered it was a bit dear to be a worthwhile beater project - particularly considering the neck might be dubious & it's not complete. You wouldn't pay more than £20 for that at a car boot. Jon.

Both of them will have been built in the same factory. Does the no-name bass have anything on it at all, country of manufacture or a serial number, perhaps? Jon.

[quote name='nick' post='36105' date='Jul 23 2007, 08:24 PM']Is it really superior to Ibanez, & Kasuga? Come on (?!)[/quote] It's a more accurate copy. Wouldn't fool anyone who knew real Ricks for one minute though. None of them would. J.

Sonycom - feel free to give me a slap for being pedantic, but unless your bass is some sort of mobile phone hybrid, it'll be a [b]Tokai[/b]. Jon.