petecarlton

I know exactly what you mean - I lost 4 days as a result of Jabba (see what I did there?) 1 and three from jab 2. No fun at all.

Not sure a cake bash is such a good idea 😂

I thought this was an old pipe tobacco, but it turns out to be an amazing bass build - can't wait!

Edited for latest acquisition!

As in phonetic punctuation?

I was literally just wondering that when I saw your post in notifications, Richard!

I've just bought a Sterling by Music Man Short Scale Stingray from Tom and it has been the smoothest of transactions and a delight to chat with him throughout the process. I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending him to other Basschatters, though - judging by the length of this huge feedback thread - they probably know that, as he's probably traded with them all already! Thanks again, Tom - you're an absolute gent.

We'll see...

I think the other costs would be UPS's - back in the day, Thomann used to swallow the delivery charge over a certain purchase price,

I don't think there'll be any extra costs from Thomann themselves - the website price will include VAT and handling, so it should be the price you pay: nothing else. But they're not there yet! I've ordered a product at £216 pre VAT and handling, and I reckon it's going to be £274.72, as against the old potential price of £256.80 (i.e purchase price including VAT), which means the additional handling fee will effectively be £17.92. That's not exactly earthshaking - perhaps we can call it the price of Brexit (no trolling intended!). Certainly manageable, given that I can't get the product anywhere else and - even if I could - it would probably be more expensive. But I was never great at maths!

Just had this in an email from Thomann: We do understand that our UK customers would rather make one single payment for the total amount, so we are happy to inform you that we will shortly be introducing door-to-door pricing whereby the price on our website will be inclusive of VAT and the additional handling fees outlined above. We hope to implement this in the coming weeks and our website will be updated accordingly. So I guess that's progress, of a sort.

Mind you, I have no idea how much they sold to the USA, where stuff was probably already pretty cheap from the likes of Sweetwater, Guitar Center and Sam Ash.

Very true - hopefully they'll get around to us soon!

OK

That's precisely what I mean.

That's a huge exception. I meant a more favourable (apologies for the previous typo) deal in terms of trade with UK private customers. Do you imagine Thomann (or any other EU-based company with a formerly-significant customer base in the UK) prefers the current situation to what existed before? I for one have been put off buying anything from them which costs more than £135 before VAT. I'm sure I'm not the only one here.

I - perhaps stupidly, in retrospect - bought myself a Positive Grid Spark 40, because they claimed it could handle electric and acoustic guitar and bass. The bass options turn out to be very limited and, although it's not dreadful, my overall feeling about it is "meh". Gregor and Frank's review has given me GAS for this NU-X jobbie, I've got to say. Very tempted. Mind you, it's £216 on Thomann (and therefore above the £135 post-Brexit bureaucracy ceiling) and they don't expect to have it in stock for 15 - 19 weeks. I might have to try the Mighty Plug in the meantime. EDIT: Just been outbid on a Mighty Plug on eBay. Damn! 😕

You would think that was a no-brainer too - the UK must have been their main market (or one of them) after Germany itself. And it's not as if they had no notice. Perhaps they're waiting it out in the hope that a more favurable trade deal comes along soon?

I'd rather be sharing an event with drummers than with (lead) guitarists! 🤣

Here you go: ***UPDATE - Return of The UK Bass Guitar Show – (April 2-3 2022) Liverpool ACC - UPDATE*** First and foremost, we hope that this post finds you and your friends and family well. It has been a challenging year for all, along with the music industry, and we truly cannot wait to see you all again! The UK Bass Guitar Show are pleased to announce that the return of our postponed event, will now take place, at the later date of the 2-3rd of April 2022 at a larger venue, the ACC Liverpool. We have taken this decision, along with the return The UK Drum Show, putting health & safety, along with practical measures for its return as the priority. At present, whilst we have seen announcements for outdoor events beginning in the next few months, the planned restrictions are not due to lift until the end of June here in the UK, as long as there are no unforeseeable delays. Of course, the richness and variety of the show is based on a wide selection of companies exhibiting their latest innovations from various countries, and of course, the UK is ahead with regards to its vaccination programme, as other countries catch up with distribution and vaccination. The return of the show is not just a change of date, but a change of venue, along with The UK Drum Show moving to a neighbouring hall in Liverpool too. Over the past few years in Manchester, regular visitors to our drum show will have experienced the show grow year on year, so we are thrilled to say that the new exhibition halls are now twice the size, not only to accommodate further displays, but also to facilitate and provide more space to freely move around both events. As each year the shows grow in its new home in Liverpool, and if distancing need apply in 2022, something we all hope will be a distant memory, the new venue is significantly larger. Whilst The UK Bass Guitar Show moves to the ACC Liverpool, the weekend of the 2nd & 3rd of April 2022, so will our dedicated drum show, which was due to run September 2021. The response from our drum exhibitors and guests is one of excitement with guests and bass band members making a day or a weekend of the show together. Located in a neighbouring hall, our drum show & bass show guests will be able to freely visit either show in Liverpool at no further cost if in receipt of a drum show or bass show admission ticket. After all, this is the rhythm section, so for us, the return made good sense to reunite our drum and bass buddies for what will be a great weekend and positive return. The ACC Liverpool is located approximately 45 minutes from Manchester, with good train and road connections, and Manchester International airport is just 40 minutes away. All of our guests that have purchased tickets for either delayed events will be honoured, and for those that purchased artist tickets, we are writing to all our confirmed artists due to appear on the main stage last year, to learn if they are able to return. Any changes on either artist line-up will of course be communicated and guests can exchange tickets for other artists should that arise. On behalf of the Golding Family, we thank you for your continued support and understanding, and look forward to seeing you all in Liverpool in April 2022. Websites, socials and ticketing for our events will be updated following this announcement and if you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us at [email protected] We look forward to seeing you soon and the return of live music – we all miss it so much! Take care, stay safe and see you soon. Neil Golding – Organiser.