cameltoe

[quote name='dave_bass5' post='1077108' date='Jan 4 2011, 10:45 AM']I used to have a HW-one (not a 1) P and loved it. I now have a CVP and it feels and sounds different. The HW range are very good value, although the finish is an acquired taste. To me the HW-one P was a more meaty sounding bass. Even though i love my CV P (and its been upgraded with a new pup and pots) i find the CV's sound a bit mushy compared to the HW's. Maybe its the wood, the BAII or the reinforced necks (or all of the above) plus the finish but they do definitely sound different. more articulated and punchy (IMO). I do prefer the CV necks, especially the vintage frets, but the HW feels more ridged and i like that.[/quote] What's the difference between a highway one and a highway 1? Are there two types? I always figured the highway 1's were essentially American Standards that had been put together a bit cheaper. If so the same problem applies if American Standard owners look down their noses at you for having an 'assembled in mexico' bass. As a Roadworn owner I can sympathise, but like other Roadworn owners (and probably highway 1 owners, for that matter) I can laugh knowing full well how damn good an instrument i actually own. Personally, I prefer the vintage vibe, however I think the highway 1 seems like excellent value. I've never played one, but I like the idea behind them. I'm looking forward to trying one now, as the combination of parts sounds good. Like the thin nitro finish! Oh, I also own a CV 50's Precision. Excellent quality, great looking bass, does need upgrades if you're fussy about tone. The highway 1 seems like a better choice on paper for a main, gigging workhorse though. I'd like to try one so I could offer a decent opinion, but it all comes down to what feels better to you anyway.

[quote name='Grand Wazoo' post='1079446' date='Jan 6 2011, 06:33 AM']Funny that, they were at LIMS last year and were displaying all kinds of covers which to me looked very nice, I must be a good judge of character because it took me only 1 minute talking to the main owner to realize he sounded like a peasant and had no business accumen or savoir-faire for me to steer very clear from ordering a cover. And what made me get that impression was when I wanted to order one for my Mark Bass combo, I asked him how much did he want as a deposit, he said if you want to order one, I won't take a deposit from you, you pay it all upfront now or I won't take the order! And I replied: "seeya!"[/quote] Brilliant! Sounds about right though. Such a shame, because his website is very good, much better than most competitors, and really lures you into thinking you're dealing with pros. And as been mentioned many times, the product, if and when it turns up, is top notch.

I think this is more a Jazz vs Precision question! I'm not opening that can of worms..... I've never been a big Jazz fan, so, +1 on the Fiesta Red P! My roadworn is fiesta red. Great colour! As far as I understand though, the Fiesta Red P and Oly white CV jazz were the best of the CV bunch. (even though they were all good, but ya get my drift!)

Ok, I emailed Shaun on 23rd December to ask politely for my money back. I had just torn the tolex on the cab, and told him I could not wait any longer, so would like a refund. I was half hoping this would kick him into gear a bit, and I may get a grovelling reply and might possibly receive the cover. No such luck. No response, and certainly no refund. It's now 5th January, 6 weeks after I paid for the cover, and I have been emailing Shaun to find out the progress of the cover since 14th December. He has not replied on a single occasion. Tonight I filed a paypal claim to try and get my money back. Be warned people. Any chance we group together all the threads on Silverstone amp covers and make them a sticky? Seems like more than a couple BC'ers have had big problems with this supplier.

Planet Waves lead just died on me after 1 year use. Wish I kept that receipt.

[quote name='eude' post='1078261' date='Jan 5 2011, 09:18 AM']I've found the D'Addorio XL Nickels and SIT Nickels to be the closest to DR Sunbeams and Nickel Lo-Riders, they can be similar in tone, however the feel is radically different. The come close, but no cigar, unfortunately... I buy my DR's from the states via ebay, usually ends up about £25 for a 5er set and less than £30 for a 6er, including shipping, the only pain is the wait, but it's never been longer than a week. I do feel bad about not patronising a local or even British music store but bass string prices in the UK are a total joke! I used to pay over £50 for DR Hi-Beams for my 6er years back, and they're not much cheaper now over 10 years on - insane... Eude[/quote] I find D'addadrio sound similar, but yes, feel a whole lot different. If I was to put XL nickels on my bass, the truss rod would need tightening as a result. I love the Sunbeams, am looking forward to trying Fatbeams on a recommendation. How are the Low riders?

[quote name='The Burpster' post='1077694' date='Jan 4 2011, 07:11 PM']My job here is done...! [/quote] Yep! Thanks for the help sir!

[quote name='Fat Rich' post='1077089' date='Jan 4 2011, 10:21 AM']I usually give my Fenders a quarter turn but this year they've needed a bit more because the central heating has been going full pelt for the last month and dried all the moisture out of the air. It's actually possible to get to the truss rod adjuster without taking the neck fully off: Slacken the strings off completely Slacken the 2 neck bolts at the top so they're approx 10mm clear of the neck plate Undo the other 2 bolts at the bottom enough to clear the neck completely (approx 15 to 20mm). You should then be able to tilt the neck out of it's pocket just enough to get the allen key in and make the adjustment. If you make small adjustments you're unlikely to damage the neck, you have to really crank the trussrod hard to strip the thread or break something. Most important thing is not to damage the threads for the neck bolts by over tightening each time you have the neck off although this can be fixed with inserts by a repairman if necessary. If the E and G are a little high then that'll need to be adjusted on the bridge.[/quote] OK So I just had a play on it, some 14 hours on, and the action is just about as low as can be. It seems to be right on the tipping point of playing perfectly, yet possibly needing a touch more relief to stay consistently good, as it needs to be fully in tune to play perfectly. However it is a complete joy to play again. Very similar to how it was when I bought it, in fact, as I remember in the shop it played like a complete dog on one occasion, until i realised every string was slightly out of tune. A quick tune-up and it was absolute magic. I think I would have preferred a touch more relief- although this is how I love the guitar to play, and the reason I fell in love with it, knowing the neck will shift slightly over time makes me think I should have a bit more room for error. I'm in two minds whether to give the truss rod a very slight tweak to allow a bit more relief, and more room for error, or leave it as it is. It would be such a small adjustment though that I may just leave as-is. I'd probably end up moving it too far the other way, then have to readjust a few times to try and get it to play nice again. Plus I do have fairly light gauge (40-100) low-tension DR sunbeams on there at the moment. It seems to have it's magic back in any case!

[quote name='Johnston' post='1077088' date='Jan 4 2011, 10:19 AM']Check out 2:10 onward Fender don't believe in baby steps [/quote] Woah! After watching that, I want to buy hand-made.

Just tweaked it now, feels better already. Had to remove all bolts, got girlfriend to hold strings to fretboard and pull back on headstock slightly, whilst I supported heel of neck and tightened truss rod 1/4 turn. Just tweaked the action as well, only on E and G strings as the saddles always seemed a bit high to my eyes. Much, much easier to play already. Will give it a good 24 hours now and see what it's like then. Is a 1/4 turn usually enough to compensate for seasonal and inital playing-in changes to the relief?

Brilliant guys! Will let you know how I get on....

[quote name='The Burpster' post='1076046' date='Jan 3 2011, 07:57 AM']The bit I've highlighted above needs some clarity. You don't leave the neck off the body for a day, under tension (this is very bad)...! Proceedure is - slacken strings. Undo neck bolts, remove neck ( I leave the strings attached now), tweak t-rod, and then replace neck on body. Retune. LEAVE it in that state for a day (you can play it as much as you like in that time!) and then measure the relief again. If it needs a further little tweak then repeat the proceedure. THATS what the 'leave it a day' means.... The truss rod's job is to equalise the assymetric mechanical tension that the strings put a piece of wood under (the neck structure). The neckwood couldn't cope without some assistance, however the neck wood and the trussrod work together to form this balance and wood being from an organic substance needs a little while to adjust. As to the confidence bit.... I cant possibly give you any, but I can encourage you that this is not a big, difficult or scary procedure if you set your stall out and take your time. Invest in a GOOD Philips #2 screwdriver for the neck bolts, and get intimate with your bass. Mansons are a very good luthier, but will charge you for this proceedure, and if you keep going there every time it settles or your change strings etc, its going to get very expensive.[/quote] True. As far as the procedure goes, I'm confident I can take the neck off, adjust the truss rod and refit neck, but it's the finer details I worry about, like possibly needing to adjust the bridge to compensate, the nut profile, and the specific way of making the adjustments (that you've highlighted above well, cheers). I guess I've got nothing to lose though, by making a quarter-turn adjustment and seeing if it improves it? If it does, I've saved myself a trip to Exeter (1hr 30mins drive) and the cost, plus the length of time without my bass. If it doesn't, then back to plan A. Just to get this straight though, I believe the truss rod now has excessive relief, so I'd need to tighten truss rod by turning to the right, no more than a quarter turn yes? I may give it a go.

Awesome advice all round guys, cheers. I've adjusted truss rods before on my previous instruments, basically because they were all budget instruments with poor set-ups from new, and with a bit of advice on this forum and the Fender set-up guide I gave it a go. With the Roadworn though, I'm reluctant to do it myself. For starters, I so loved the bass how it was when I bought it I fear I may not be able to recreate that myself, and two, the bass has the vintage-style truss rod adjustment at the base of the neck, which requires the neck to be removed. The fact that people recommend leaving it a day or so after adjustment only serves to reinforce my lack of confidence! I'd have to remove neck, adjust truss rod, leave a day, refit neck, restring, probably leave it a while after restringing, then if it's not right I have to go through the process again. That's fine, but someone more experienced may be able to tell whether the neck needs more adjustment whilst it's still off the bass, and without going through the whole process of setting it back up to be played. That's without the fact that the bridge may need to be adjusted to get the best out of the neck at the same time! Don't think I have the confidence for an instrument I love so much! Mansons?

I've been thoroughly enjoying my Roadworn Precision since I picked it up in July, and bought it as it was one of the easiest playing, mellow feeling basses I had ever touched. The action was set as low as could be, and I learnt to develop a much improved touch as a result, as anything too enthusiastic would send the frets rattling! However it seems lately that the action has somehow gotten higher on this bass. It's still very playable, but not like it was. Whereas before the action stayed consistently low from the first fret to the last, you can now see the string height increasing over the middle of the neck, as if there is suddenly more relief in the neck. Before, if the bass wasn't in tune, (even a semi-tone out) the strings would rattle against the frets even when played very lightly. That doesn't happen anymore, so at least I know I'm not imagining it. I know the saddles haven't been adjusted at all, and I've kept it in it's hard case whilst it's not been played. Whenever I've changed the strings I've changed one at a time. Is this something that just happens over a bit of time? I know the Roadworns are made to (almost ! ) vintage spec, so maybe the one-piece maple necks are just a bit unstable? The only other things I can think of, is that; 1) I left a set of DR sunbeams on there until they went absolutely completely dead. 2)The recent cold weather might have affected it? Even then, it's not improved since it got warmer. And I keep it in my warm house, so the cold weather would only get to it on gig nights, etc. 3) I changed the tuners to Gotoh res-o-lites (again, one at a time), but I can't see how this would have anymore of an affect than changing strings. I've been using DR sunbeams since I got it and they are the strings on there at the moment, so it's not like I've put a higher tension string on either. I'm still a relative newbie to the world of bass, so take it easy on me if I've not got all my facts right, I'm just guessing. To solve the problem I was thinking of taking it to Mansons in Exeter for a professional set-up. The last time it was set up was a few months before I bought it (July last year), I had played it in the shop several times before I parted with my hard-earned and it felt lovely every time. I'm reluctant to take it back to them though as the turnaround can be weeks and weeks. I've also read that Mansons are one of the best places to get a guitar set up- even though they will be more expensive, it'll be a hell of a job. They will also adjust/ file the nut if need be to get the perfect action which is something I know my local shop won't do. Suggestions please!!!

I have a CV 50's P, (with the tele headstock) and it's a fabulously well-made piece of kit. The electrics are naff, as stated earlier in the thread, but a decent wiring kit and pickup makes all the difference. My only real grumble, is I can't get it set up to play quite as nice as I'd like. My main bass is a Roadworn P, and if you've played one of these, you'll know how I like my basses -I want the action very low, with little relief in the neck, very mellow and easy to play. I haven't got the time or resources to deal with it at the moment but I'm thinking a pro set up along with a purpose-cut new bone nut will help it get there.

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1074911' date='Jan 2 2011, 12:12 AM']My L-1000 is basically a passive, neck pup only L-2000 (with some additional passive wizardry under the hood) and I'm of the mind that it produces a more pronounced P tone* than any Fender P can.... I fancy Leo thought so too. * with the ability, if I should wish, to go classic "single coil P" at the flick of a switch. Fan-bleeding-tastic. [/quote] Always liked the look of them, they sound right up my street as a P bass fan. Awesome guitars

[quote name='machinehead' post='1074915' date='Jan 2 2011, 12:22 AM']Not sure if that was sarcastic or not but I really meant what I said. One thing that might help is to back off the knobs a bit, all three or just the treble and volume. I find this makes the sound less aggresive. Frank.[/quote] It was a little bit sarcastic yes. Don't get me wrong, I fully enjoy finding new sounds from it and don't wish it to sound like anything else, but at the moment it's far too aggressive sounding to use where I'd normally use the precision. If I can find a way to get closer to the P sound i've heard everyone say you can nail with this bass, then I can use it more frequently and send the precision away to be set up. Thanks for advice on rolling back tone pots, will give it a try (unsarcastically!)

[quote name='Bass_Guardian' post='1074684' date='Jan 1 2011, 07:31 PM']All explained here [/quote] Awesome! Cheers

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1074694' date='Jan 1 2011, 07:54 PM']In my experience the opposite is more true. To start with the bridge pickup is in the wrong spot to get the 'ray tone not to mention the preamp being all wrong. The neck pup is pretty much directly in P territory and when soloed (whether in passive or active) hits the nail on the head. There are several mods you can do to the existing switching arrangements which open up even more possibilities.[/quote] Yeah it gets the fat punch of a P bass when I play with the settings, but it always sounds way too grindy and hence won't sit in the mix as well for some of the stuff I use it for. One of my bands is a folk/rock band, and I need a really percussive thump that I get from my P bass. I can use the grindy sound to full effect in my other band which is more of a grungy/garage rock 3 piece, but the sound of the bass is just too exposed in the folk/rock thing (tried once and didn't work for me). Hence, I could use it for both bands if I could nail the P bass sound. I'm wanting to get the Precision set up professionally too, which will mean a trip to Mansons in Exeter, and more than likely a spell without my P bass.

[quote name='machinehead' post='1074762' date='Jan 1 2011, 09:17 PM']A Stingray can't do a G&L sound. Seriously though, why not just find sounds from the G&L that you like and just use them without wishing to sound like something else? These are really great basses. Frank.[/quote] Thanks for your help

Recently aquired a 1991 USA G&L L2000 from our friend Tom1946, and am thoroughly enjoying it. It's a different beast altogether from my usual Precision axe, and thats why I love it. However, as I'm usually a guy of simple controls (plug in-play), can someone give me a rundown on the controls on this thing? I've read what the switches do (all of 'em) on the G&L website, but it doesn't say which switch/ knob does what! I'm using my ears to get a sound I like, but I think it'd be helpful if I actually knew what I was doing. Any advice on trying to get some recognisable tones from this thing would be good too. I can get a sort-of Stingray sound from it, but can't get it to sound like a Precision, it's always too grindy. If I could, I could use it in place of the P from time to time. Cheers!

[quote name='paul_5' post='1073992' date='Dec 31 2010, 08:28 PM']Them purty amps. I've done quite a bit of recording g**tars over the years, and my the easiest tones to record come from an Orange Tiny Terror and a 4x12. Period. Just a great sound. With this in mind I've toyed with getting rid of my LH1000 head and using the Bass Terror head instead, I know that (on paper at least) there's a massive drop in power output ratings, but that's not really an issue. How do you guys reckon the Terror would stack up into a Hartke Hydrive 410 cabinet? PS I reckon my wife wouldn't notice ANY change of amp apart from an Orange, Everything else seems to be the ubiquitous black / grey, so no massive change visually.[/quote] Get the bass terror 1000w! [url="http://www.soundslive.co.uk/product~name~Orange-Terror-Bass-1000~ID~13655.asp"]HERE[/url]

Yep, I went and did it a few months back. Couldn't wait for the 15% discount so acquired one second hand from here. Great amp! Just was I was looking for. Punchy as hell, the tone you want as soon as you plug in, looks cool, and is damn loud. Found myself forever fiddling with all my solid-state amps to get 'that sound', which of course changed from venue to venue. But this thing seems to get it right ever time, tighty, punchy low end with definition. And it weighs nothing! I use mine with the Ashdown Little Bastard 2x12 cab, which seems to suit it very well. Only downside is I have to keep the amp in front of the van on the way to venues, as I'm afraid it'll get squashed in the back!

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='1066855' date='Dec 22 2010, 03:08 PM']Search is your friend... [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=29270"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=29270[/url] [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=107446"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=107446[/url] Anyway, sorry to hear it. I hope you get sorted.[/quote] Ahh b*llcks Wish I'd read those first. Got a good mind to file the paypal claim now, cos listening to those threads it doesn't sound like it will ever get here, and if it does it will be wrong.

Currently not impressed.... These guys have a very slick looking website, and I've seen a few of their covers and they really are great quality. Our guitarist has one and it's very well made. However, I contacted the guys there to make me a cover for my cab over 6 weeks ago. Good communication from them at first, not great, it was usually 48-72 hours to get a reply, but it did come. I eventually plumped to order one with them, and paid via the paypal link I was given. A week later I got an email asking for the exact dimensions of the cab. I had initially sent them a link to the cab on Ashdown's website which had all the specs for it, but the guy wanted me to measure it myself to be sure. Fair enough I thought. 48 hours later I get a response thanking me for the dimesions and telling me it would cost £37.99, which was a bit strange as I'd already paid £39.99 over a week ago. I emailed them my reply along these lines and got a satisfactory response, but a month on I'm still waiting for this cab cover to show up, and the guys there have ceased all communication with me. I've now sent three emails over the past week and a half to two different email addresses and have heard nothing back. I wasn't expecting a quick turnaround, as it would have to be custom made, but a whole month is more than I was expecting, and IMHO there's no need to ignore a paying customer. Speaking to my guitarist it turns out he had similar issues with them, taking a good fortnight's worth of communication to just get them round to making the bloody thing, and then a big wait for it to actually arrive. What's really effed me off now though, is on Friday night I was a bit robust in removing the cab from the van and ended up ripping the tolex. I don't want to put these guys down too much because their covers are very nice, but how long am I supposed to wait for this thing? Paypal give you 48 days to launch a dispute and we're now at around 30 days. If it isn't here on the 47th day I'll have no choice but to claim the funds back.