Beedster

I feel immensely privileged, surprised, and guilty all in equal measure to own this thing. Years ago I posted here that my Modulus Sonic Hammer was something of a Rottweiler, this things makes that bass look like a Chihuahua, it is huge in dimensions, sound, and ambition. Gonna have to hope I can do it justice........

Takes you to a different place doesn't it 👍

Likewise mate, likewise. These are the reasons music still feels magical, mysterious, and magnificent 😆

So, opted for this……..

Makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up 👍

I'm gonna go back to Rotos for a while, see how they do 👍

I don't think you can, there is something about all four of them that is sublime. Moon is so in the moment that he seems like a child, but his power and timing are incredible. Townsend's theatrical guitar playing is extraordinary, while JE's bass part drives the whole thing with an apparently - although in real terms deceptively - simple bass part. Daltrey, despite being one of the greatest rock vocalist of all time, is almost a bit part player in this performance 👍

Moon is simply glorious, the passion, energy, and life in him are extraordinary 🙏

My sense with the 4v5 thing is that 4s work for most players most of the time, and i think it's that simple. For those for whom it doesn't work, 5s/6s are a solution, but that doesn't - as is perhaps suggested by the OP - mean that 4s are an anachronistic or limited instrument. I've owned 5s by Yamaha (TRB5, beautiful), EBMM (SR5, dull), and Status (between the other two), but never needed to gig them, 4s have always done the trick. I also briefly owned a stunning Yamaha TRB6, and first time I took it to rehearsal I was told to give it back to whichever NY-based pop/funk/soul session player I'd borrowed it from....... 🤫

It is mad, it really f*****g is mad. Stupid and impulsive buy that it was, like many others in my long bass playing history, je ne regrette rien, because there is real magic here. The first 10 minutes of playing was almost like picking up a new instrument, not unlike the first time I picked up a DB; same tuning, notes all in the same place, same lines/parts/ideas work, but it feels so different. Still keep getting completely lost in the upper register of the two 8ve neck, the 12th fret is where the 7th should be, the volume control's in completely the wrong place, and I keep bashing the headstock on everything. But being someone who likes a graphite neck I have to say that this is among the best I've played, thick, fat, flat, and long. And it has piano-like clarity, even with some rather old and tired blue (anyone know what make/model?) strings, it sings and rings beautifully. A part of the decision for me also was that, having played DB almost exclusively for two years, moving beck to electric has been quite a shock, my right hand has lost a lot of speed and my left hand has lost a lot of fine motor control/precision. By comparison with my PBass, this baby - like my Modulus Flea years ago - makes stuff I want to play a whole lot more playable. Just gonna need a fretless now 👍

In case you're still wondering.....

It is....... different. Firstly, it is engineered to perfection. Second, it is huge. Third, the action is crazy low. Fourth, it actually makes you hold it like JE used to hold his basses. Fifth, the active circuit with the sweepable mid and boost/cut switches is very powerful. Sixth, the range is huge. And Seventh, and also most important, it makes you want to play it. Early days, I'll update as it goes, but at the moment, I'm very impressed.

So, after many years I've realised how my electric bass ownership model works. My mainstays are 1. A nice Precision 2. A nice fretless Precision 3. A unique and interesting bass 1 and 2 might change but they are there or thereabouts pretty much the same instrument nonetheless (I recently sold a FCS Precision to buy a '70's Precision, but my bandmates would struggle to see or hear any difference). But number 3 varies. Examples include Modulus Sonic Hammer/Flea (because I LOVE the playability and tone of graphite necks), Ric 4003 because I love the contrast between the two PUPs and the sheer power that you can get when using it to wind up an SVT or 400+, EBMM Bongo/Reflex because I like to try innovative and versatile instruments, and basses that stand out (Blue sparkle Flea, bright red Sonic Hammer, orange Bongo), because - shallow/unprofessional/daft as it might sound, I know when I take them to an audition/rehearsal/gig I need to be on my A-game. So, a month or so ago I started to learn a new tribute act setlist, and realised that while they should, neither my '73 Precision, my Status-necked Geddy Lee Jazz, or my EBMM US SUB were the instrument I needed/wanted for the gig. I asked a few questions here, did some homework, and then a chance encounter on Reverb sealed the deal. It meets all my criteria for 3 above, but despite this is a bass that for most of my playing career was one that I knew was never the sort of bass I'd own, and for so many reasons Pics to follow. In the meantime, see if you can guess......

So much going on underneath it all (warning: NOT hifi)

Agreed, perhaps I should have said one of their less well known 👍

Interesting evolution

Worth watching to the end BTW 👍

I'm learning a Who set at the moment. This, not one of their greatest or most recognised, takes my breath away every time I watch it. Mad, odd, loud, visceral (in places), and strangely beautiful, although not in a conventional sense

That was just what a wet Saturday afternoon needed. CB is probably the more technically proficient but man DS getting those parts and tones out of a Ric won it for me 🙏

Wish I could help but good luck finding a solution, I switched from guts to steels for a gig a couple of months back because I needed to use a mag PUP for volume/feedback reasons, and I was in pain both during the gig and for days afterwards. you're absolutely right to avoid that at all costs 👍

Exactly, designed by 4th former 👍

Especially as they look like shit, the body shape is school project territory....