Deedee

I agree. A guy I played with tried a wall full of Gibson LP's before opting to buy the MIJ Tokai equivalent and he never had an ounce of trouble with it.

When I do it I firstly set the neck arrow straight with the truss rod (no relief). I then adjust the bridge saddles down to the required height. If I then find that I need to shim the neck, I’ve used cut-up business cards but ideally a thin piece of laminate. They’ll all work equally well in my experience.

100% agree with this. I set up my basses as I like them. If I was to set them as the factory or recommended spec they’d just feel wrong.

I’m sure you’re right but to be fair I was responding to a post that directly referred to gigging as a favourable alternative to doing 40 hours in a call centre/retail outlet. It was my last paragraph that I really wanted to emphasise in response to the OP and subsequent posts.

Again there’s a big difference between those who do it professionally (it’s their chosen profession and main source of income) and those who do it as a hobby. If it was my chosen profession I would enjoy the good, the bad and the ugly far more as that’s what I’d decided to do to earn my coin. However if it’s a hobby alongside a full time job which is paying the mortgage, clearly the threshold at which the downsides could outweigh the joy of the performance could be very, very different. There are many reasons why people don’t gig, or stop gigging. Work pressures, family commitments, performance anxiety, lack of opportunities, band politics etc, etc. I just don’t think that those people should be looked upon as lesser musicians because of it.

Welcome

That’s a little harsh. There are plenty of ‘retired’ musicians who don’t gig.

I think that’s the million dollar question for many. Does the buzz and enjoyment you get from the gig outweigh all the crap that comes with it. While ever it does, happy days. But once that starts to swing the other way and gigging becomes a chore, it’s very difficult to feel the love.

I recognise many of the OP’s feelings. I’m on an enforced break from gigging at the moment and while I am looking forward to playing with others again when the time comes, I must admit that I’m more looking forward to getting out, having a couple of beers and watching others play. The thought of those unloads in the wee small hours are becoming far less appealing.

Still think it looks better with the black plate though 😜

I don't think it's just the number of strings the bass has that provokes ridiculous comments. As has already been mentioned there is gear snobbery of varying types e.g. 'you must play that type of music with a P' or 'those basses are only good for slapping' etc, etc. As we all know, the vast majority of basses will cover pretty much everything required down at the Dog & Duck on a Saturday night. My Aria basses will cover everything that I need but I know it's only a matter of time before some clown pipes up asking why I'm playing Crossroads 'on an 80's bass'. If a player decides to spend their hard earned on his or her dream bass then they have the right to play it wherever they like. Rock on 🤘.

Nice one, thanks. 👍

All joking aside, has this issue since been resolved on the newer cabs? I'd like to try a Four10 in the future but I must admit as a current user of a Super Twin and having owned several other models over the years, I personally would prefer them to be coated as the other cabs are instead of vinyl covered.

Just being greedy............ but I am quite proud of them too! 😆

I’d like to take it further and ask them to remake the smaller 250/280 GP12SMX heads exactly as they were. I’m sure there'd be huge interest.

Oops, see below

At one point a couple of years back I could’ve claimed to be full on GB i.e. Trace amps, Barefaced cab and a Wal Custom. Still using Trace and the BF cab but the Wal has long since gone and I’m now on more of an oriental odyssey currently favouring several early eighties MIJ basses.

Mrs Deedee bought me a Peaky Blinders style titfer a while ago which I may well decide to model at some gigs in the future. This decision will ultimately hinge on the position of my ever receding hairline weighed against the odds of the band turning into a northern Village People tribute band as a result of my selfish hat wearing. 🤔

I think this fella is great. Just cracks on and has a great selection of basses too. I particularly love the sound of the T40 Peavey he uses on this one:

This looks like quite an interesting old Ibby. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Jermaine-Jackson-Tour-Ibanez-Musician-Bass-MC-824-PW-Vintage-Japan-W-Paperwork/202725034456?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

Exactly this. I personally prefer the 3 band with the mid adjustment available should I need it. The EQ on the Stingray Special is more refined than on a standard 3 band version. They’re both great, just a little different.