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Obrienp

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Everything posted by Obrienp

  1. Obrienp
    Back to DIY modification of a cheap donor bronco or Mustang? A set of Tone Rider the Duke J pickups costs £65, plus a bit of P&P. If you are handy with a router, you are laughing. Just need a custom pickguard made, or even DIY it. I would be tempted to have a crack, if I didn't have J bass so well covered already. .
  2. Obrienp
    That just looks like a fun band to be in. Love a bit of brass and backing singers too.
  3. Obrienp
    I think I would be inclined to make one from a Squier Sonic Bronco, or Mustang as suggested a few posts back up the thread. My experience of Japanese made Fenders is you will want to change the pickups anyway. If you are hacking it about, you may as well put some contours on the slab body as well. Fender high mass bridge and some decent machine heads, and it would still come out a lot cheaper than importing.
  4. Obrienp
    GAS abated! 👍
  5. Obrienp
    Every time I hear mention of the Bass VI I get gas and I was hoping to be a star of the gear abstinence thread this year! 😳 I can’t explain why they appeal. It’s a pretty daft design really with that whammy bar set up and the string spacing is narrow, even for my tiny Trump like digits! Perhaps it is because Jack Bruce played one at some stage and the Beatles had one kicking around. I’ve probably seen other hero’s from my teens using them as well.
  6. Obrienp
    I think it is more than a few people. Try oldies and there are a lot of us. Size, weight and stretch become issues when you have back and joint problems. You might be spared but many of us aren’t. The sweet spot for me at the moment is medium scale but shorties are even more forgiving and may become my standard in the not too distant future as arthritis progresses. At the moment I use a couple in one band because they suit the material we play. I am not always convinced by the kids with full scale basses. They may be able to slap the hell out of a six string for 5 minutes but could they get through a full gig with that beast over their shoulder? I guess Tal Wilkenfeld is the prime example of a small person who can and is a brilliant bassist in multiple styles.
  7. Obrienp
    Muddy got it right: “Champagne and reefer, ain’t going to touch no cocaine”. However, can’t afford the former and it’s been more than a few years since the latter. I tend not to worry about people smoking some weed. Generally it makes them pretty mellow, although there is always someone who reacts differently. I get decidedly unsettled if it’s obvious that harder drugs are in use. Of course, alcohol is the cause of the most amount of aggro in society and obvious drunks are concerning at a gig, especially if it’s young men.
  8. Obrienp
    NYE dep gig with Backtracking at Bob Carter Centre in Drayton (Norwich suburb). Ticketed do with buffet etc. Sold out but quite a few non-shows due to flu/Covid/Colds/indifference. Touch and go whether I would make the gig as I was in hospital until the evening of the 23rd with sepsis. I only got released on virtual ward, so amused my bandmates by doing my vitals during the intermission between sets. I admit having to check my blood pressure and oxygen saturation between sets was a new one for me! Very enjoyable gig with people dancing from the first number in set 1. Organisers actually provided a room to leave our cases, gig bags, etc and a room to change! We also got first dibs at the buffet. No stage, which was a bit weird but plenty of space. I put bright green gaffa tape on the floor round the band area and it worked as a barrier. Nobody crossed it, except at midnight for the odd random kiss from strangers! Anyway, the punters seemed to love it. A full dance floor and several encores. The BL said the organiser had asked if the band could do next NYE. Think I might get a return dep for that too and the money was good. In bed by 2 am,so not bad for a NYE gig. No pics yet but will post when received. Gear: Maruszczyk Elwood 4a 32” and Hartwood Satellite with DiMarzio DP145 Will Power mod, Ashdown RM800, Blackstar U700 on standby, 2 x LFSys Monza, Soundcraft active monitor, Peterson Strobostomp HD, Boss wireless. Two LFSys Monzas proved to be total overkill: sound man had me turned down to about 9 o’clock on the master and my DI was just going to the monitors. Black Chelsea boots as trying to look smart. Got sent a pic.
  9. Obrienp
    I was going to ask about the pickup in the original Fender Musicmasters. Was it a proper bass pickup, or just a Strat pickup, like in the recent Squier re-releases? There seems to be a healthy market in proper bass pickup replacements that will fit without modification. I just put a Tone Rider split P in the Squier I had a few years back. It sounded great but it required quite a lot of modification to the body and a custom made scratchplate to accommodate it.
  10. Obrienp
    I’m 2 years behind you and I play in a blues/rock band, and a covers band. I perhaps get more musical satisfaction from the blues/rock stuff but the covers are much more rewarding from the audience participation perspective: dancing, singing along, etc. We do throw in a few originals too but they largely go unnoticed, people think they know them but can’t remember who charted with them Lol! I would worry about the multiple gigs per weekend scenario when it happens. You are doing really well when you can get that many gigs! Train up a dep and cherry pick the gigs you want to play, when it gets too much.
  11. Obrienp
    I’m a Maruszczyk fan boy too. My Elwood 4a 32” is the nicest instrument I have ever owned and the neck is amazing. If money wasn’t an issue, I would have a Jake 32” in a flash. A Mensinger with a MM style pick up would be next. Just great gigging basses.
  12. Obrienp
    All the best for the treatment and the upcoming gig. Yes, try not to catch a cold. Might be worth wearing a mask for a bit of protection.
  13. Obrienp

    AndWhy’s Feedback

    Obrienp replied to ash's topic in Feedback

    Andy bought my BF Two10. He was extremely easy to deal with and a great communicator. In fact, having arranged for Andy to come and try the cab this morning at my place, I was unable to be there myself, because I had been admitted to hospital. Andy was happy to be let into my studio by my partner, set the cab up with his own amp and bass to try out. He then made a bank transfer to our account for the agreed amount. Despite what could have been a major set back, everything went extremely smoothly thanks to Andy. Deal in confidence. A great BassChatter. Pat
  14. Obrienp
    Thanks and having checked, the V2 has a pre-post switch for the DI out.
  15. Obrienp
    That picture looks a bit like a Smiley with a monocle 🧐.
  16. Obrienp

    NSSBD

    Obrienp replied to Chienmortbb's topic in Bass Guitars

    I just used various grades of sandpaper on a cork block, plus the paper held in my fingers to get the roll off more rounded. A bit hit and miss TBH but I’ve seen my local luthier do it that way. Of course, he has infinitely more skill than I do but I wasn’t too disappointed with the result.
  17. Obrienp

    NSSBD

    Obrienp replied to Chienmortbb's topic in Bass Guitars

    No, fortunately but I really didn’t go that deep, so I don’t know if it is genuine roast maple, or just stained to look like it. It required a bit of care when it came to those fret markers. Rounding them off too much reduces their visibility from above. P.S. It’s probably the other side of the neck from the fret markers that really benefits from rolling anyway. I probably needn’t have touched the fret marker side.
  18. Obrienp

    NSSBD

    Obrienp replied to Chienmortbb's topic in Bass Guitars

    I had a go at that on the Satellite. It was crying out for it, given where the frets end. I’m not sure I have achieved Sire levels of smoothness but it definitely feels nicer.
  19. Obrienp

    NSSBD

    Obrienp replied to Chienmortbb's topic in Bass Guitars

    Congratulations. I have its Hartwood stablemate, the medium scale Satellite. I was very impressed with the neck on that and the fretwork. The general fit and finish was excellent for the money. In fact, the only things I wanted to change straight away were the strings: far too clanky and very rough feeling. By all accounts the Delta is the better of the two, so I think you’ve snagged yourself an excellent value bass there. Enjoy!
  20. Obrienp
    Interesting config!
  21. Obrienp
    I doubt it. Sorry, I had missed that part of the discussion. WRT importing from Japan: the adverts normally say that you are responsible for custom charges. I should imagine that it would be similar to my experience importing from Canada. You get an invoice for custom duties, VAT and a service charge, from the courier/shipping agent. P.S. Just looked it up. Import duty on a guitar from Japan is 6.7% calculated on the cost of the guitar, plus shipping. You also get charged VAT at 20% on the total of the cost, shipping and import duty. The courier will also make a handling charge. It sounds as though it could get quite expensive!
  22. Obrienp
    Depends where from. Thomann is dead easy. They do everything for you. I imported from Canada and got an invoice to get it released from customs but the shipping agent handled most of it.
  23. Obrienp
    So if you have a driver rated 600watts @8 ohms, does that mean you need to be using something like AWG 12, or 10?
  24. Obrienp
    If you can stretch a few more quid, the Sire U5 is a great little bass and very versatile. In the value category, there is the Hartwood Delta from Gear4Music. Very similar to the HB Mustang look alike.
  25. Obrienp
    Resistance is futile. Soon you will be assimilated into the abstinence hive.
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