Waddo Soqable

I think we all know him, or his sister...

I'd agree 100% with @fleabag about the need to set the thing up to your own reqs. I'm also a fan of cheapo basses, much can be done to make these very usable at low or no cost. I've got a basic Squier PJ that sounds and plays great for what I want from it. The ones I didn't like were not set up issues, more along the lines of.. I thought they just sounded rubbish for what they were and /or I really didn't like the whole dimensions of the neck, fretboard schtick , so playing it wasn't an enjoyable experience. Some basses you just pick up and think "nah.." sometimes you come to that conclusion a little after you've acquired the damm thing..

I guess some would buy there rather than take a risk with getting one from AE with some uncertainty and a long lead time etc.. maybe, anything rik shape seems to be stupid money now, the old 70sjap made copies I've seen advertised for more than I've paid for a real Rick in the past. Surprised these don't get pulled off ebay by order of that rather vindictive old geezer 😉

People don't seem to like Ricks, I've had a couple of 70s ones (many years ago before they went stupid prices) I have to say I liked them and wish I'd kept the last one Sticking in my mind as a bass I hated was the Yamaha BB something or other, a thru neck thing ( I believe the same as Peter Hook used) I was fortunate to do a straight swap with someone my Yamaha for their Stingray, which was a great result! Another that I had briefly, hated and dumped ASAP was a Wal, again no idea of the model but would've been no doubt their cheapest bass, shiny black body 2 PUs. Horrible thing IMHO

The bass that dare not speak its name...

As stated earlier, baroque stuff, the basso continuo at the heart of this style is a usually simple ish bass line with chords that the keyboard player (harpsichord usually) extemporises, mostly with shorthand figures to suggest the chords along within the conventions of the period. The bass instrument or instruments could be whatever they had available, bass viol, string bass, bassoon, whatever, if you fancy a go at playing along get the basic score with the "figured" bass, and play the bass part 😊

Nostalgia is always a big seller, an nice little temporary escape from the crappy modern world perhaps. The bottom line with all this being "whoever pays the piper calls the tune"

I just can't get this being picky about what people will and won't play.. If you're in a covers band, and getting paid for it, you're an entertainer and your job there is just that.. if a band member doesn't enjoy or at least accept that then they maybe they should find something else to do!

A bit late on this but my take on AE, I've just a few weeks back started an account with them/it.. my solitary experience so far is very good, I ordered some headless bass bridge bits, which appear decent quality for price & arrived in pretty good time considering Xmas /NY plus postal strikes etc. It seems you have to confirm receipt of goods and the fact you're happy with them before AE release your payment funds to the seller, this is also quite encouraging and dispels the notion they'll do a bunk with your cash! I also paid with PayPal so there's another layer of protection in the mix. I'd happily buy other stuff from there, the goods arrived without any extra taxes or import duties on top of what I paid at checkout BTW

Thanks guys food for thought, I may be using it as the only PU on the project or maybe more likely in with something else at the neck end, not sure as yet. Obviously the SR will be in the position you'd expect pretty much!

Cheers, I'll do a bit of research then.. 👍

Thanks for the Intel, I know they did some of the us made subs as passive, tho whether they used the same PU as the regular ones I don't know, it's tempting to think it'd be a 'parts bin' type arrangement in the factory and they'd use one type but ???

I've got a spare US stingray pick up ( that was going to go into a project that I didn't do) and am wondering if this would work in a satisfactory way just wired in to a basic tone and vol set up without the pre amp, or would I be losing out on most of what it can sound like used passive?

J. Dunlop grey nylon .73 nothing else ever...

Graphite is certainly a useful dry lubricant for many applications, whether it imparts a 'slippery' feel to the back of a neck (if that's the desired thing), who knows..

Just looked at where to buy the stuff, seems 1kg is a bit under 30 quid Inc postage, from Blue Aran which seems to own Tufcab.. whereas the German stuff is 30 quid plus a tenner shipping so the Tufcab appears to be the best bet £wise.. you have to pre order the small 1kg size apparently. .. according to the label on the German stuff 1kg equals about .8 of a litre, so certainly enough for a few coats on a bass body I'd think

Before I pull the Sq P bass apart, I really should do my mad headless Rick project, inspired by @Bassassin of this parish in his fairly recent thread along similar lines.. I have the necessary parts and just need to dissect old Ricky (don't worry it's not a real Rb.) and crack on with it. I'll be in imminent danger of not having a bass that's in one piece at all if I'm not careful, ☹️ ( I've also got a stingray lying in bits not really going anywhere) Rest assured I'll be scoping out where to buy the Tufcab stuff (and the equivalents) shortly, who knows if I destroy the finish on the Headless Rick in the progress of its butchery, it may even end up Tufcabbed itself!

I'd think if it's designed for band type use speaker cabs it's going to be pretty tough, I'd somehow think it'd stick best to bare wood though, if I do it I'd likely get the poly off with a heat gun first, it wouldn't matter if the wood got slightly scorch marked either as it's being "buried" under tarmac kind of 😊

I'm also liking the idea of this more and more, I've got a squier P bass that I don't much care for the shiny black poly look of... I wonder how well it'd stick to 'ruffed up' poly?

It's likely formulated to dry to it's particular wrinkly texture, I'd prob use one of the little foam type rollers.. Hmm. You've got me interested now!

I'm thinking an extreme version of the finish on the US made musicman Subs

The thought police always rock up mate ! .. 👮‍♂️

Oddly I've never in decades measured a bass neck, I've deduced empirically that P bass type necks are wider at the nut and J bass types are pretty narrow (like a little girl's wrist as someone once said! ) despite having short stubby fingers I've managed to switch quite happily between both with no prob... I'd draw the line at a mandolin or one of them Git things tho....