Shaggy

We had one built by these guys last year: http://www.gardenroomwales.co.uk/garden-room-gallery/ and have to say it's superb; the floor, walls and roof fully insulated (double walled with sheet insulation between), thick cedar cladding outside, proper slate roof, and sub-floor heating with frost protection. No trace of any damp or condensation at all over the hard winter we've just had - it does get really warm if it's closed up and the sun's out, but a build with less window area with blinds and/or reflective glass would reduce that. Meant mainly for the missus to do her yoga in, but I do go and play my flamenco guitar out there as the acoustics are lovely and I can make all the horrible noises I want without annoying the family....... I'd happily keep electrical gear out there, but not instruments.

Bought a very nice Fender case off Lawrie; very smooth deal with great communications, and arrived incredibly well packaged (oo-er). Incidentally also has a free Gibson neck plate off him last year....... Thanks mate!

I see it was me who started this thread nearly 8 years ago, and jeez if I haven't gone and bought ANOTHER Wal off John - a fretted one this time. As last time, he facilitated the deal big time by meeting me in a surprisingly quiet Cribbs Causeway, where I had the novel experience of noodling on the Wal on an impressive Roland micro-amp in Johns very snazzy motor home. Thanks mate - maybe another deal on 8 years time?

I went straight from violin to bass, which is probably why I found fretless felt more natural than fretted I do play guitar (and mandolin & banjo), and a basic knowledge of chord structure certainly translates to bass, but I personally think bass probably has at least as much in common with percussion - playing "in the groove" / "in the pocket" / use of the space between notes, relates more to drumming

I wonder if today's Foderas and Ritters will be tomorrow's eBay junk in 100 years time, when the BC collective are all playing thought-controlled virtual synth-basses....... Or will we still be maintaining that you just can't beat a P bass, and arguing flats vs rounds?

Yup, it's a banjolin. During the Jazz age of the 1920's there was a trend for putting banjo bodies on any plucked stringed instrument, partly for the practical aim of maximising the projected volume of an unamplified acoustic instrument, and partly as fashion. The small bodied cheap ones do sound tinny, but the high-end ones are nice - I have a mid-'20's Gibson MB-4 (as in pic - to go with my 'teens A4 and F4) that's great fun to play and really nice for bluegrass

Warmoth used to do them, (I have a nice T'bird one) but I think recently stopped by Gibson. You could order a custom one made up through somewhere like guitarbuild: https://www.guitarbuild.co.uk but as its a slab body you could source a slab of hardwood from a local timber merchant (would probably best be done as a 2-piece body) and either DIY or get a local joiner to make one for you - only tricky bit is routing the cavities. Be a nice custom build, especially with a couple of Darkstar type p/ups.

Typically '70's - a fair slab of solid Honduras mahogany with chunky hardware, so not light, but not unduly heavy. Nicely comfortable to wear and play though - Ovation were into ergonomics before it was fashionable. My factory fretless Magnum 1 has been my longest keeper by far.

Do I get a prize for "least interesting thread of the week"?

Not especially rare, but the couple on eBay at the moment are silly money. £700 ought to buy a tidy one, and they're really lovely and unique basses. Stay clear of the active II & IV models if for recording as they can be noisy (the I and III models are passive / stereo).

Ovation Magnum - more low end in the fundamental tone than any bass I've played, but clear and articulate with it - no mud. They do crop up 2nd hand. as played by Jah Wobble.....

Reviving an old thread about varitones, rather than starting a new one - just wondering if any BCers are fans of them? (Or otherwise..... ) My only previous experience was on a BC Rich CS NT Eagle bass, which rather bizarrely had a 9V active output boost with passive Varitone, which to be honest I wasn't too impressed with and usually left on "bypass". Generally I prefer passive basses anyway, and rarely touch the treble roll-off tone control. However, I was recently looking for a decent wiring harness to put in my latest bitsa P bass build, and bought one off this forum from (top fella) greenolive, which had an integral Tonestyler Varitone: http://www.stellartone.com/Page.asp?NavID=313 - replacing the tone control, with the standard tone control on a stacked double pot with the volume control. Thought I'd give it a go, especially as it was only a couple of quid more than a standard P harness, and the components were top notch. Have to say I'm knocked out by how good it is; the darker settings give a thick, punchy bass and midrange with all of the growl and clarity intact and none of the woolly mushiness of a standard passive tone - really usefully sculpts the sound. Wonder why varitones aren't more widely used?

Having restored a good few old acoustic instruments, I've always used Rustins finish reviver: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rustisn-FINR125-125ml-Finish-Reviver/dp/B001GU6E76/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1521054210&sr=8-1&keywords=rustins+finish+reviver - it's essentially the same as T-cut (meant for automotive finishes) but specifically for furniture / varnish - and does work on nitrocellulose lacquers. Most decent hardware shops stock it

Hell of a story, hell of a bass, you sure earned it OHM - some basses are special, sounds like your missus is pretty special too

Anything with The Runaways........ Or more to the point; "Love will tear us apart " with Joy Division. Not because it's a great bassline, but just to be in that time with that band with that song

Nowhere for Slowhands to tuck his fag in that though....... edit: besides, it's also a 2 + 2

Generally accepted that Bigsby got there first with the Merle Travis electric guitar of the 1940's: https://ledgernote.com/columns/guitar-guru/merle-travis-guitar/

The inside of the original hard case for my Ovation Magnum 1 smells like a tramp's trousers, but only sometimes. I think it may be haunted.....