Paul S

8lbs of creamy custard-coloured Precision goodness. What a bass, what a story! So what are you going to do with all the others now this fella has returned home?

If you are a tightwad like me you can get lap top bags from charity shops for next to nothing that are much the same thing.

Another top job from Andy - nice one!

I have a Hohner B2A and it is possible to get an extremely good woody Precision tone out of it for some reason - you couldn't get much further away from the P bass design.

Guitar hardware is pretty cheap out there - Hipshot detuners, tuners, bridges etc etc. Even stuff like strings.

[quote name='yorks5stringer' timestamp='1428867092' post='2745501'] Following on from that is the "Guess the weight of the Cab Competition" where ( again in a circle) we blindfolded try and guess the weight of different cabs to the nearest oz. [/quote] We did that at the SE bash, too!! I won. I bashed my shins when I lifted it up, then the handle fell off - I correctly guessed it to be a TKS of course.

I currently own 2 Precisions and they both feel like 'coming home and putting on my slippers'. It is nice to go out, go on holiday, but nicest of all to come back home again. Strangely both of mine are Squiers. One is an early 57 RI JV0xxxx spaghetti logo in tobacco burst. Which is everything it should be. It is almost a shame that it isn't my favourite bass. But it isn't - my absolute best and favourite ever bass (which I always write about so apologies to stick it all on here again), is a mid 80s MIJ 32" scale in a beautifully aged creamy white that has had vintage wiring loom and pots and Fender Original pups put in. This bass has the exact tone that I carry about in my head as the 'perfect Precision bass' tone - from woody, old school thump to Foxton bite. Under 8lbs, 38mm neck, a really old set of strings - everything about it feels, for me, just so right. Also got 2 'nearly Precisions' - a Precision Lyte and a Jazz Bass Special that has been converted to active. But they aren't quite the same.

A brief update. I decided to try a little experiment just now with a Harley Benton 'Prometheon clone' amp I have as a back up. Bass into the input of the Eden then, via the phones out, into the HB which had a BF Midget plumbed in. It seemed to do the job, controls on both units worked, seemed to be a sweet spot using the controls on the Eden about half way then the master volume on the HB to control the overall volume level. Mute on HB plus other bits such as colour and various other filters also worked although the tubey sound was getting increasingly lost with each layer of fiddling about. Which I guess was only to be expected. Is it worth it? Possibly not. Just an extra bit of kit to lug about and, if I am honest, the tube sound of the Eden isn't vastly different from the TC Electronic head I use. Maybe a bit more 'honest' but as soon as everyone else in the band kicks in I doubt anyone would hear the difference. I am sure it will do someone else a turn though, so it will be appearing in the classified very soon.

Looks like it might end up being a bit of a faff, really. I'll try it with both cabs whilst I still have them, just to see if i think it is worth it. If I decide I am dead set on tube preamp maybe I'll move this on and get a more powerful amp to keep my 'one amp, one cab' aim going.

Thanks for that - it is starting to look promising. Next question, exactly what types of power amp are going to be suitable? This is all completely unknown territory for me! For example, a quick search of the classifieds on here throw this up [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/259127-for-sale-hollywood-impact-600-power-amp/page__hl__power+amp__fromsearch__1"]http://basschat.co.uk/topic/259127-for-sale-hollywood-impact-600-power-amp/page__hl__power+amp__fromsearch__1[/url] Is this the type of thing I should be considering?

Aha! Thanks for that - I will scrutinise the holes and see what they are labelled as. PS - just found the manual online! Should have done that in the first place.

I feel silly even asking this, as I feel it is so straightforward that I should already know the answer. But I don't so bear with me. I have recently acquired an old Eden traveller WT300 amp. This has a valve preamp and I really like the tone. But, into 8 ohms, it isn't loud enough. And I am about to rationalise my cabs and use a single BF Super Compact. Is it possible, therefore, to connect the Eden head to another amp (power amp?) to beef it up? Or doesn't it work like that? I said it was a daft question.

I ordered a SC a couple of days ago and have actually had to put back delivery as it was going to be ready too soon! Another myth busted

[quote name='Prime_BASS' timestamp='1428448458' post='2741466'] I've used a single super compact for over a year now. Best one cab solution out there. [/quote] I think I will cash in my Compact and Midget to get one of these. One cab has to be the way forward for me.

I think all things considered it isn't worth doing. I just need to decide whether to live with it as is or move it on. Thanks all

[quote name='Manton Customs' timestamp='1428403530' post='2740887'] We make custom necks by the way . [/quote] PM on its way, just for the sake of discussion....

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1428401708' post='2740859'] I'd buy a bass that was designed to be what you wanted in the first place. [/quote] Yup, that would have been the sensible thing to do. GAS is a cruel mistress.

Thanks again, much appreciated. I've just discovered that nos necks are available - just checking to see how much! If I am going to get a neck carved about probably best to do it to a new unfinished one and leave the original be.

Any observations and input are most welcome, I assure you. Looks like a new neck is nudging ahead at the moment. There is a chap who appears from time to time on the Shergold forum who makes replica necks - I might see if I can get in touch with him. I guess I just need to balance the cost of that against how much, realistically, I will use it. Might save me a lot of angst to just move it on rather than fiddle with it!

Yup, I hadn't thought of that but, yes, a possibility. Thanks!

I have a Shergold Marathon bass. Lovely old thing - very light, loads of character. Been fiddled with an awfully long time ago and has handwired pickups by a luthier of some renown, Jim Cairnes, and rather than one pickup it now has two which sound absolutely great. The thing is I don't use it as much as I would like to because I find the neck a little too wide - 43mm. Ideally I like 38mm wide necks. The neck is maple with black bound edges. You can sort of see it in these pics. [attachment=188688:marathon2.jpg] [attachment=188689:marathon7.jpg][attachment=188690:marathon3.jpg] What I am mulling over is the idea of having the neck made narrower. I assume it would be a kind of taper so that it still fits in the the pocket ok. I am sure it is possible, but have no idea of the costs involved mainly because I have no idea of the amount of work involved. It would mean it is no longer a standard Marathon neck, but then it is no longer a standard Marathon anyway. What would the good people of Basschat feel are the pros and cons? And does anyone have a rough idea how much something like this might cost?

You have 3 - are they all pretty much the same or have you found differences in each one? just curious, really. And, yes, the Dano secret is safe with me...

As far as the bass is concerned, it is a bit of an oddity - a mid 80s limted run medium scale Overwater. Fairly lightweight but not massively so. Had I sorted the issue with the pickup (which I think is actually more about the bridge and string spacing) I would most likely have changed the tuners for light weight ones as has been suggested by a few posters to make it lighter overall but I didn't like the inherent tone and didn't consider it worthwhile for me to spend even more money on it. As far as this post is concerned - naming names is irrelevant, it is so easy to find who is being talked about as I am sure the OP is totally aware. The first thing any of us is going to do is have a look at feedback and follow the chain, just to get the gossip. So I was horrified to see I was one of those being talked about. It all seems a bit snidey to me to have this kind of insinuation made - I'm certainly not keen on having my honesty questioned in a public forum as honesty is a value I hold dearly.

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1428229042' post='2739259'] At this time I don't want to name and shame. [/quote] Woah there. That's a bit harsh, fella. I am one of those 3 - use of the search facility very quickly shows that - and don't like your implication that I ignored an issue with the bass in order to sell it on. In fact, I don't think I could have been more honest in my description of the bass when I listed it. Any neck dive was, as far as I am concerned, not worth mentioning as, for me, it ended up horizontal when I took my hands off it. Hardly an issue. Frankly I believe you should think twice before saying things like this in public.

Is that with stock pickups, Pete? How do you have yours set? Mine never seems quite 'there' for some reason - never the old school woody tone I have in my head. The preamp is a U Retro, so should bring out a good range of tones. Slight aside, I gigged with my Danelectro Longhorn again last night and feel moved to say again how huge it is in the mix. Lovely, lovely bass. Re. balance, I think this does help to an extent but, for my particular needs, a neck diving 8.5lb bass is better to wear for lengthy periods than a 9.5lb balanced bass. Possibly it makes a difference where the problem in the back is?