WHUFC BASS

Lovely bass ^^^ I think Spectors really are the best kept secret in the world of bass. When I got my Euro and plugged it in for the first time, it was like a revelation. Everything just fell into place, MASSIVE sound, great ergonomics and everything just felt "right". Believe me, I've gone through 30+ basses in the 35 years I've been playing and they really are the best basses I've ever played. I'm currently on the lookout for a 4 string Spector too, which I think will be my final bass purchase. The 4 and 5 sting Euros really are all I'll need for the 4 bands I'm in at the moment.

I had a 1x15, 4x10 and an AH500 back in the 80s and played all the main venues in London back then (Fulham Greyhound, Mean Fiddler, Powerhaus, The Cricketers, The Half Moon, George Robey etc.) and thought nothing of humping it around, in and out of a Mark I Escort estate. The thought of doing that nowadays would give me the creeps. My back (which is flaky at the best of times) would give out straight away. I love the sound of Trace amps, they're the only amp you can plug straight into and you get an instantly great sound and I would absolutely love to own another but the weight is what's putting me off.

Well, this is a new one on me. Never seen one of these before ... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Super-rare-Status-6-string-graphite-and-exotic-woods-headless-guitar-for-sale/132640758092?_trkparms=aid%3D333200%26algo%3DCOMP.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20180409081753%26meid%3D3cc9ebe9fe3b4d6dac48daeada1f4a7b%26pid%3D100008%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D12%26sd%3D264123492862%26itm%3D132640758092&_trksid=p2047675.c100008.m2219

Oh without a doubt it will be. Annoying to say the least !

Well, I bit the bullet and ordered one today, in anticipation of a 4 string Spector Euro4 LX which I'd won on eBay, only for the seller to message me saying he'd just dropped and cracked the neck joint and refunded my money. Grrrr!!!! I'm Gutted.

No, I was the first to sound check so I was the sacrificial guinea pig. I can't remember for definite but I think everything cut out - no lights, nothing. Certainly don't remember a purple fault light. As for your second question, we did change power outlets which didn't have any affect, the fault was still there. I do get the thinking behind a dry joint being culprit, but even a cymbal crash - which to my ears didn't really make any noticeable vibration cut the amp out. It's possible that it could be the straw that broke the camels back and was enough to separate the connection.

Yes, the PF range from Ampeg are renowned for the protection circuit kicking in, but I had the limiter on which safeguards against overload supposedly. Must admit, I didn't have the volume on ten and was playing a passive bass too.

Drummer actually asked that question and was told there wasn't. Guitars hadn't even started so that would make sense.

Recently did a gig in Belgium in a mid / large-sized venue where the backline was supplied. Bass backline was an Ampeg PF-500 and a Warwick 4x10 cab. Got there early to do a soundcheck and plugged into the amp, switched on and sound came out and I tuned up and noodled, tweaking to get a decent sound. Suddenly my sound cut out. Odd I thought, and began checking my amp, connections and bass. All seemed OK and suddenly sound came back. Carried on noodling and then, sound cuts out again. Called over the sound man and explain it keeps cutting out. Couldn't replicate it in front of him so just carried on. Then when he jumps off stage, sound cuts out again, then sound returns after a few seconds. Really odd, so he calls his mate over and we try to work out what's going on. Eventually, I worked out that when the drummer started playing my sound cut out. Nonsense I was told as I was DI'ing from the amp and drum kit was mic'd up which made them rubbish my claim until I got the drummer to play at the same time as me, sure enough sound cut out. We spent half an hour trying to work out what was wrong but none of us could work it out. Anyway, in the end I had to go direct into the PA with monitors acting as stage monitor for me. We never did work out what it was and in over thirty years of playing, I've never had anything like this happen on stage. Any ideas what this could have been? I must admit, I'm completely stumped.

Agreed ... they're pretty consistent and I've owned two TRB 5s, a BB1100s and an RBX. All sounded great, very playable and built to a very high standard.

The string alignment on this is err ... interesting to say the least. The machine heads too look like they're on the fosters as well. Who built this thing, Stevie Wonder ? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/left-handed-u-k-luthier-built-thunderbird-bass-guitar/113516111103?hash=item1a6e1664ff:g:laMAAOSwwZxb3Y1N

He had spiwit ...

Thanks for all the unput fellas, I think I'll definitley invest in one when a suitable Spector Euro 4 string comes along but Christ almighty ... that Michael Manring clip! 😧

I had a ’78 Jazz fretless which I bought back in the late 80s for around £300. It was the same, heavy as lead, very boring sounding and just uninspiring. I persevered for a good while until it was time to move it on. I also had a 76 Jazz which was the exact opposite, fantastic, light and with a huge sound - almost like ti was made by a different manufacturer

Just ordered one from obbm. Thanks for the tips fellas!!

That was exactly the same as mine, it was an early model. Agreed on the electronics, they really were good but I also found the bass quite ergonomic and reasonably light. The price was the clincher for me and I used it to record quite often. I foolishly sold it on and regretted it for ages afterwards.

I've just had another cable go pear-shaped on me and I'm getting really fed up with it. I've had two Planet Waves circuit breaker cables go bad, a Fender cable that lasted a week, a Monster cable and numerous budget cables over the years. Is there one that had a cast iron reputation for not breaking ? I don't mind paying as long as it's not gonna crap out on me.

Really? I had a 5 String Rockbass Corvette and it was an amazing bass for the price. Sounded superb when recorded, had a fantastic neck too for a 5 String - one of the best I've tried.

I owned a Schecter Stiletto Custom-5 bass for a while and really liked it. There was a lot of talk about them at the time when I bought them and the fact they were built in Korea but set up and inspected in the USA and were quality instruments. I initially bought a Schecter guitar and was super impressed with the playability and quality of it that I decided to check their basses out. A Schecter Stiletto Custom-5 came up quite cheap on eBay and I wasn't disappointed with it either. Set up and quality was really good, almost flawless aside from a tiny nick that the owner owned up to. It had EMG 40 HZ pickups which were really powerful from what I can remember. The neck was really nice and string spacing was spot on too. I sold it on in a moment of madness which I almost instantly regretted for a Japanese Jazz Bass which turned out to be a big disappointment. It looked identical to this ... I started playing more guitar shortly afterwards and vowed to get another one but never got round to it. I've seen a few for sale and almost pulled the trigger on a Stiletto Extreme but held off as I wasn't sure about buying another 5-string as I have four already.