chris_b

My experience is 25 years playing a 4 string Fender Precision and, so far, 8 years playing a 5 string Mike Lull P bass. No mud in either of those basses. Your post was highlighting the split pickup in particular. It is a humbucker design which should operate the same on both 4 and 5 string basses. If there is a difference between recorded and live P basses, then that difference isn't the bass or its pickup design, it's the rig and the EQ used.

But P basses don't tend to be muddy down low. Mine have never sounded like that. There are no muddy P basses on any Soul, Motown or Wrecking Crew records or any of the other several thousand hit records where a P bass was played. It's the quality of the instrument, the rig you are using and how you EQ your sound that makes them muddy or not.

I've got Barefaced cabs and a great trolley so I can park anywhere. Load-ins don't bother me anymore. The rest of the band might not be so happy, though!

Me too. Depending on the tides the gangplank could be like climbing up and down a ladder whilst carrying carrying your gear!!

It will be good value if you focus on why you bought it. Forget any short-comings or dislikes, just learn how playing a 6 string bass works and the adjustments you have to make to your technique and open the door to a whole new area of playing . With that in mind I'm sure this will be a great bass for you. And even on a new bass, a good set up will make it play even better.

Excellent. Now for the next 30.

A 5 string bass is not a stepping stone to playing a 6. Play the bass that gets you the sound you want in a way that you feel is comfortable to play.

These days I use TI flats on my passive P bass and D'Addario NYXL rounds on my active jazz. IMO best of both worlds. I've used rounds on a P bass for most of my playing life. As long as you're getting the sound you want it doesn't matter how you do it..

I have a standard shape P pickup on my Lull PJ5. I usually have the J switched off because the sound doesn't need it. This is one of the best sounding P basses I've heard, but then Mike Lull apparently spent a lot of time, with Seymour Duncan, testing custom windings for these pickups, so the quality of the sound comes from having the time and desire to achieve a design goal that was out of the ordinary. Production line basses, as good as they can be, do not have this level of work put into them. IMO these days if a 5 string bass isn't cutting through the reason is probably the way the amp is being EQ'd.

A Fender Fat Finger might help. They sell it as a sustain device, but it also adds mass to the head and that can either lessen or remove dead spots. It might just move the dead spot up the neck to a less noticeable position. Before you spend any money, can you get hold of a G clamp? Clamp it to the head of the bass (ensure you protect the finish). If the G clamp sorts the dead spot then then so will the Fat Finger, but in a nicer package. If the G clamp doesn't work then neither will the Fat Finger.

Play where you are most comfortable. If your sound needs to be fattened up, change your EQ.

You're primarily a guitarist, so I'd work it out on guitar and get up to speed on your more familiar instrument. When you can do that I'd transfer the line to the bass. Then you are only trying to do 1 thing at a time.

We play Joy And Pain in one of my bands. Always goes down a storm.

I do dep gigs , these days more than I would like, but I always ask for a set list. Give me a set list and a couple of days and I'll be as good as the guy I'm replacing. Don't give me either of those and I'll still do the gig, but you'll get what you get, without any apologies. I once had a band leader tell me that if I needed a set list I wasn't as professional as he'd been led to believe!!! I thought that was rude, so I politely declined to play in any band with him. A coupe of weeks ago, on a dep gig, the band leader announced a song. I told him I didn't know it, but he started to play it anyway. I tried to busk it but had to stop in the middle 8. I was just not able to follow it at all. Later I asked the guitarist, who was in the band, what happened and he said he had no idea. He was following me!!!

I would expect this Rumble to be half the volume of your 410. If that's going to work then OK. You still have the option of getting a second cab. I'd go the whole hog and order a Barefaced 410. This cab will work for the big gigs as well as the smaller gigs. Small, light, loud and great tone. More expensive than the Rumble but several leagues above.

+1 I'm doing some gigs with a Chicago Blues Band. I haven't played this style since I was at school. It's pretty much, find a line that fits and repeat ad infinitum. While there are limited opportunities for being creative, it's quite a discipline to get it right and just make one line work for the whole song. Makes you concentrate more on how you play rather than what you play. You can improve your abilities in any situation, even playing things you thought you already knew.

What have you got?

I've had Dunlop Straploks on my basses since the 90's. I've put them on every bass, but they come as standard on Lakland's, Lull's, and Sadowsky's and many other US basses. They are also rebadged as Allparts Strap locks at half the price. I've never used them, but Grolsch washers apparently work well. Be aware if you are getting replacement strap locks for the first time. In the last 20 years I've seen people reporting problems with Schaller. Dunlops are fine, but the Schaller screws often don't fit into the existing holes very well and can work loose, causing the bass to hit the floor!

Melvin Dunlap and James Gadson were the rhythm section on Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band classic, Express Yourself. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Bv4eRhKNMc

My preference for string spacing at the bridge is 18-19mm. That's what I am used to after many decades of playing Fender basses. I prefer my 5 string basses to be the same. I was given a Yamaha to play on a fly gig and it took me 2 days to get used to the 16mm. I didn't enjoy that experience one bit.

My current go to Jazz bass weights 9lb 5oz (4.3kg). Most days I can get through a 2 set gig with minimal problems, but did a couple of 3 set gigs last month which killed my back by the time we got to the last number. 2020 looks like being my year for buying an even lighter bass.

This. Sadowsky have a legendary reputation for their QC, fit and finish. If in future their basses are going straight to the customer from Germany then do they get Warwick QC or Sadowsky QC?

Was this Lonnie's high point?

Suddenly I don't feel so hopeful about Sadowsky basses going forward!!!!

I'd suggest getting a 5 with the same string spacing at the bridge as your 4. Is there anywhere local where you can you try a Squier or Sire? Whatever you buy get a good set up and it will be easier to play. If you want to give a 5 a fair go you need time to develop a new muscle memory and muting technique. Put your 4 string basses away and only play the 5 until you get over the "it's different" and "uncomfortable" stage. At the start I tried to switch back and forth between my 4 and the new 5 and caused myself a lot of confusion. Then I put the 4's in the case and by the time I got to the comfortable stage with the 5 string I never went back.