henry norton

[quote name='Pookus' post='454241' date='Apr 4 2009, 06:55 PM']Yep thats exactly what I'm after. I just need to be super organised when I get the router out. I reckon if I shim the jig I'm going to use I should get the neck pocket angle just right.[/quote] You'll just need to be careful with the holes for the screws as once the angle is cut they'll effectively be slightly angled themselves relative to the holes in the neck. How different is the dimarzio compared to the original pickup by the way?

That's such bad news, it really riles me when I hear stories like yours. If it's gone wrong within a month of you recieving it then you are absolutely within your rights to demand a replacement or a refund. A letter addressed to the company owner stating your "disappontment and disgust at your treatment" will often produce results or if you're having to call a call centre then keep demanding an answer (something like 'it went wrong less than a month after I bought it, you've messed me around for too long and I want either a repair, a replacement or my money back within a week'. The person you're talking to will not want to commit to an answer to this so you then have to 'speak to a supervisor or manager who [u]can[/u] sort this problem out NOW!'). It depends on what approach you're more comfortable with - either way a cool calm but very persistent attitude normally works. These companies rely on people's unwillingness to cause a fuss to fob us off with crap and make a huge profit. Dont let them!!!!!!!!

Presumably you want to give the Epiphone more of a set neck gibson feel with the board more or less flush with the body. If so, it's not much harder to rout an angled face in the neck pocket, negating the need for shims and maybe even the bridge spacers. How does it sound with your mods?

Looks like I'll have to work it out meself then - what happened to all the self opinionated know alls on this forum.......? I like the look of the MarkBass 1x12 combo (not sure of the exact name) which I've seen second hand for a bit more than my budget but would like to see whether the prices will soften a bit once the mark 3s start circulating. Here's hoping

I'm on the lookout for a new (used) bass amp. I'm not hugely fussed about speaker size (tried 'em all), but I would like something reasonably compact and with enough power to compete with drums and guitar in a pub/club sized venue. I would also prefer it to be reasonably light but with a budget of £400 I realise I won't be getting a Mark Bass Tube amp (or any MarkBass for that matter...). It doesn't matter if it's a combo or a head/cab. I'm not new to bass playing but have been out of circulation for a few years now so if anyone's got an opinion then I'll be glad to hear it.

I used to use a marshall 100 watt head (one of the old pre master volume versions), and it was plenty loud enough to compete with drums, guitar and keyboards. I'd be wary of 'saving up' for something like a MESA 400 or an Ampeg - they'll cost you way over your £250 budget and if something goes wrong they can be very expensive to fix, especially the MESA, which uses particularly expensive valves (something to do with having a fixed bias). Having said that, if you do decide to go for a big bass valve head, (ie. you up your budget for the head, the servicing and the roadie to carry it around for you), there ain't nothing cooler than a massive 3-400watt valve amp stacked behind you. It'll make your MarkBass combo look like something from Noddy

Thing is, with the advent of more affordable portable amps like the Genz Shuttle, I can see Mark Bass losing its market share as the competition catches up. Maybe we'll see a Little Giant with the trademark Ashdown valve preamp in the not too distant future and if you can ignore the fact that it's probably made using prison slave labour in China will be another world away from MarkBass pricewise. I just think that even with these updates, their prices will become harder to justify.

[quote name='Shaggy' post='437598' date='Mar 17 2009, 06:33 PM']My GS Galaxy (1984) - the only "modern" sounding bass I've ever liked, although it looks like a vintage one. They did a few others too, sadly only guitars now, but still handmade at a small workshop near Manchester. [/quote] Yeah, that looks nice - especially the unusual f holes although I would file it under quirky rather than classic. The original Warwick thumb is one of the few non-US basses I would call a classic, (as long as you don't wear it under your chin MK style.... )

[quote name='Marcus' post='436083' date='Mar 16 2009, 02:53 PM']that generation of jazz bass has a way better bridge that the bent tin jobbies, so maybe the difference was lessnoticable. . . . . . a shim in the neck pocket will help you achieve a lower action with the bad ass ATB Mark[/quote] Yeah, the main point is not how great the Badass is but rather how rubbish and flimsy the original, bridges are. All made by that famous Spanish company, 'El Cheapo'. Still, cheap hardware is hardly unique to Fender - I just wonder why people spend megabucks on manky old 70s hardware on Ebay. Authentic 70s dirt anyone????

I think any bridge; Gotoh, Schaller, Badass will help the strings ring out a little better but it's very subjective. 100% improvement? In what way? 100% more sustain, 100% increase in frequency response? All most people can really say is it'll sound better. I fitted Schaller 3d bridges to all my Fenders - they were cheaper and you didn't have to arse around fileing slots in the saddles. That said, I think there's a Badass 3 now that doesn't need fileing.

[quote name='alexclaber' post='433733' date='Mar 13 2009, 03:49 PM']I'd like to seen an SMPS instead of power transformer to lower the weight and then switchable rail voltage or variable number of tubes so you can get similar tube compression/break-up at quiet gigs as at loud ones. Alex[/quote] +1 on that, if it's possible. On the other hand and contrary to just about everyone else's opinion, with the advent of good quality, lightweight bass gear (at long last), I'd like to see a lightweight, all valve , programmable pre amp fully featured with multiband valve compression and a comprehensive set of tone controls; preferably analogue but with digital programmability (if that's not a contradiction in terms). Then I can get all the headroom I need with a hugely powerful digital power amp. I remember the very first Trace valve head, it had a valve input with just a volume control for that pure valve sound and also a GP11 preamp for more control should the player need it. A warm, full valve sound but with the means to get the most out of it - there are already enough 'simple' valve amps out there, and most amps are judged on the range of sounds available. Just a thought....

[quote name='Deep Thought' post='433335' date='Mar 13 2009, 11:24 AM']To those who accuse them of wooliness, I refer you to Mr. Jean-Jacques Burnel of the Stranglers, an Ashdown endorsee for a number of years, who by no stretch of the imagination can be described as sounding woolly![/quote] Given JJ's history of violence you wouldn't want to say it to his face either.

[quote name='Pookus' post='431888' date='Mar 11 2009, 09:43 PM']An Epiphone EB 0 arrived today. Cost £140 all in. Now I'm used to playing some pretty decent basses (I have a very nice Ric 4001 and have owned a top end Warwick and a '73 Fender P etc). I'm well impressed! I was after a short scale bass as I'm after a different sound to my Ric. Build quality seems pretty damn good for a budget bass - no nasty suprises and I think it might actually be made of Mahogany like the info says (I took the liberty of removing some bits to make sure - doesn't seem to be any plywood). I've been doing some homework and will modify this bass with two Bartolini pickups and a pre wired loom / pots and preamp (with a blend control) similar to Mike Watt's EB 3. Can't wait...[/quote] I'm after one of those. The only disappointing thing is it's a bolt on neck, whereas the long scale Epi Eb3 is set. Still, for 140 notes you can't grumble really. Keep us posted vis-a-vis the Mike W type mods.

[quote name='sixshooter' post='431493' date='Mar 11 2009, 02:56 PM']That is how it was built, mid way in 62 they stoped using the block rosewood and used venear instead. I have a late 62 Strat that has the same construction. [/quote] Absolutely true - in fact I had an early Tokai lined fretless Jazz with the same veneer type fingerboard. I'll [i]steak[/i] my reputation on it. Ahem....

Are MarkBass still independent? I don't mind paying the money if it's going straight back to the people who built it but so many now (Genz and SWR for instance), charge the same high prices for gear they have made for them using cheap labour, creaming off a bigger profit for the parent company.

[quote name='fingerz' post='430993' date='Mar 10 2009, 09:54 PM']Interesting. The old stuff is great, and has stood the test of time. You still see old stuff pumping out the sound it was great.... The new stuff doesn't compare in sound or feel IMO. In fact, its like other manufacturers have put the effort in to really move on and give us something better and Trace have re-released the stuff that they were doing before, but with lower quality bits. What's that about eh? Anyways, to answer your question. Why did they disappear? People talk about reliability issues etc.. I have no exp of this as I never owned any.. just hear say.. I was told by a tech (cud be rubbish, just what I was told..) that management were taking too much out of the company for themselves and, although they had a full book of orders, the company went into the ground as the funds weren't there to buy materials, pay staff etc.. Nice one. Isn't that like Rover? So, sounds like they stuffed the company and lots of jobs were lost. How bad is that (if there is any truth in it that is..).. That's what I was told, I may be corrected which would be nice, cos frankly, that's just depressing! Ta[/quote] That may be true but unfortunately it's hardly unique to Trace Elliot. You're right though, it's very depressing

[quote name='alexclaber' post='430971' date='Mar 10 2009, 09:38 PM']bought by Gibson. Kiss of death. Alex[/quote] So it's another case of a buyout diluting the brand. Mark Bass it is then. Or maybe Eden, or SWR, or Genz Benz YAAAARRRRGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I recently picked up the bass again after nine years concentrating on kids and mortgage payments. I used to use mainly Trace Elliot gear - it was reliable, loud and really nicely made. Since starting up again there seems to be a bewildering array of pro/high end gear, but Trace Elliot seems well out of the running now. Considering they were pretty much up there at the top how could they fall so badly and so far?

[quote name='sshorepunk' post='426866' date='Mar 6 2009, 06:49 AM']I will always listen to them though! Tony[/quote] Me too. They should never have re-formed though. It all seems a bit 'vegas period' to me....

I'm pretty sure MusicMan would have sold alot more subs if they'd given the neck a natural finish. It messes up an otherwise really nice bass. Difficult decision but given what you've already said I'd put up with it 'til I could afford to replace the whole bass.

Put in context (1977), The Police were really quite fresh and original. The fact that the songs and the sound were commercial doesn't take away from how they stood out in comparison to their contemporaries back then. Moving the guitar back a bit to give more room for creative drumming and bass wasn't that common, at least for a 'pop' group. Having said that, the songs and image stand out more than the playing imho - and they are pretty awful live, but that's hardly unique to them

Ahhh, my turn to argue, yippee! [quote name='pete.young' post='425546' date='Mar 4 2009, 10:36 PM']I don't entirely buy that. Does Colin Hodgkinson sound like James Jamerson sound like Phil Lynott sound like Pino?[/quote] No but it's still easier to define a Precision tone than it is to define a Jazz tone, perhaps 'cos the Jazz simply has more of a range of sounds - cleaner sounds too. Anyway, you can't compare James Jamersons crusty tapewound strings played fingerstyle to Phil Lynotts roundwounds with a pick. [quote name='Brother Jones' post='425687' date='Mar 5 2009, 02:05 AM']Well...yes you will actually. From Marcus/Larry to, er, Adam Clayton, to Jaco. Jazzes can do it all. I love what my Precision does, but know that there's a helluva lot of variety in a Jazz, and I can get most of it without going near my amp, especially in terms of balancing the pickups.[/quote] I thought Adam Clayton played a P....? That asides, I agree than a J can just about 'do it all', but if you're looking for that 'perfect tone' - and let's face it, that's most of us - you need more than two volumes and a passive tone to get it just right.

Can't you sand the finish off?

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='425398' date='Mar 4 2009, 07:28 PM']I'm interested in the idea of getting my first J-bass so I thought it would be an idea to spend a bit of time playing around with one first. I spent an hour in a good shop this afternoon playing a brand-new, reputable J-bass with "name" pickups through a decent rig. I was surprised at some of what I found but every time I asked the guy in the shop about controls / tone / action the answer he gave essentially boiled down to "They all do that, sir". Hmmm. Could I have a little help please? Volume knobs: Both worked in the same way. The first eighth of a turn went from zero to audible, the next six eighths produced a small, steady increase in volume, the final eighth represented about 50% of the volume coming on-line in a rush. (Salesman: They're non-linear pots and that's what you'd expect. Most players leave the volume set to max at all times.) Is that how it should be? Tone knob: Went from slightly-more trebly to slightly-more bassy and ... erm ... that's it, really. (Salesman: Yes, that's typical.) Is that right? Both pickups full on: A rather undistinguished, dull tone that fell a long way short of setting my pulse racing. Given the way the volume knobs worked, a small tweak on either control produced quite a change in tone. (Salesman: Most people only use one pickup or the other, hardly ever blending them.) Bridge pickup only: Sounded very tight and trebly, and a bit thin, when playing fingerstyle by the bridge, dull and muddy when playing fingerstyle by the neck. Neck pickup only: Sounded like a rather weaker version of the pickups on my two P-basses (one has a Fralin, the other a Lakland own-brand). Definitely more punchy than either the bridge on its own or both pickups together. I have to say that in terms of 'Wow' factor this was all a major disappointment. Is it me? Or this particular bass? Or all 'standard' J-basses?[/quote] Yeah, that sounds about right actually. I've owned 3 fairly decent Jazz basses and they all sounded as described. I think the thing people can forget is that it's just a passive two single coil pickup bass and it'll always sound a bit bland and thin coming from a Precision. There's a good range of sounds there but you won't go from say, a good slap sound to a growling rock sound to a clear jazzy solo type sound JUST using the volume and tone controls - Let's face it, there aren't that many basses you can do that with, (Alembic springs to mind). If you spend some time tweaking the bas and the amp you might just find some sounds you really like. I've always thought a Precision sounded like a Precision but a Jazz sounds much more like the person playing it. As for that 'classic Jazz sound', do they mean Jaco Pastorius, Larry Graham, Noel Redding, Marcus Miller?