noelk27

[quote name='walbassist' timestamp='1323787474' post='1467019']All made in Japan I believe, and very expensive![/quote] Certainly were being made in Japan, under licence to Greco, but I though that agreement had ended, and production had moved outside of Japan. All of the Greco instruments have the Greco branding inscribed where you'd expect to see the Zemaitis branding.

[quote name='benebass' timestamp='1323802317' post='1467320']I think they were made in the same factory as early Westones, so a really solid build.[/quote] Westone instruments were built by Matsumoku. Certain models in Aria's CSB range were built by Matsumoku, but not all. The CSB range was a bit cheap and cheerful, many of the instruments using laminates in the bodies, or a number of pieces of lesser solid timbers glued together. The pickups and circuits also used less expensive components than found in the likes of the SB and TSB/RSB ranges. Compared to the PB design, the CSB is a less well executed take on the compact-body bass, and the neck-through PB, with its DiMarzio pickup, balances better and plays better. The nut width, on the CSB, according to Aria's original technical specifications, is stated as being 43mm (not 42.5mm).

[quote name='Skybone' timestamp='1323783533' post='1466938']No, [Burton] only played the Aria (SB Elite II) during the Master of Puppets "era"[/quote] He played an SB1000 and an SB Black and Gold.

So, am I the only one who can't spot the "delete" option for my own posts? It used to be next to the "edit" option, but not tonight.

[quote name='Nibody' timestamp='1323621865' post='1465104']£4 to post? Are they made of lead?[/quote] Would be interesting to know why you think the stated delivery fee (in fact £4.99) is unsupportable? Delivery service simply states "Other Courier", but assuming seller is requiring a signature on receipt then the fee isn't unrealistic. Human nature being what is is, if the seller simply dropped any items sold in an envelop and in the standard Royal Mail service, sure he'd be inundated with "undelivered package" refund claims.

[quote name='iconic' timestamp='1323417864' post='1463026']Be hard to fake the engravings on them, tony had a lot done by purdeys the gunsmiths.....not that they knew that....my dad was head barrel maker there and tony and he were good friends![/quote] Sure that's what a well-known guitar retailer was thinking when it took in a "Zemaitis Black Diamond" as a part exchange. Later developments would suggest that these are entirely possible to fake, engraving and all. And, with the Greco licensed versions trading/selling for upwards of 150,000 Yen, certain of the highly-decorated versions easily reach 250,000 Yen, and an original Zemaitis in excess of 500,000 Yen (£4,000+), it's easy to see why Chinese labour is being used to do just that. Oh, and, interestingly, another well-known bass player who used a Zemaitis, Darryl Jones (used with the Rolling Stones, on Voodoo Lounge).

[quote name='TheDaivisch' timestamp='1323197160' post='1460513']I didn't like the idea of the Nato body wood and glued construction, but it sounds and looks great![/quote] What's the issue with the wood being nato (mora)? Mora is pretty much indistinguishable from mahogany when used in musical instrument construction. It has similar tonal qualities to mahogany as well as being strong and durable, and unlike many varieties of mahogany is widely available. Would much prefer a bass built with nato than the more commonly used basswood, given how much more resistant to wear and damage nato is. [quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1323370004' post='1462674']Really? All the Greco fakers I've seen have very wrong looking pickups and bolt-on necks.[/quote] Depends on which factory was manufacturing under the Greco brand name, as Greco isn't a factory, just a trading name originated by Kanda Shokai. Matsumoku manufactured some very accurate Rickenbacker copies for Greco, that are neck-through, and highly detailed, almost identical to the ones Matsumoku similarly manufactured for Aria. Reason you don't see many of either of those copies is that most are wearing Rickenbacker decals, and fooling the purported experts.

[quote name='Krysbass' timestamp='1323436009' post='1463344']Good call - I also seem to remember seeing a Whitesnake video from that era where their resident bassist (not sure which one) was playing an Aria SB.[/quote] Post "1987" (aka the Hair Metal Years)? Rudy Sarzo. He used several different makes, although his Aria was an SB-ELT, before moving on to a Peavey signature model.

Used by many of the big names of the 60s, 70s and 80s, and always handbuilt by Tony Zemaitis. After he retired, and then passed away, various models were being produced under licence to Greco. Original Zemaitis instruments can sell for big money. Even the Greco instruments had a very high retail price, and have a similarly high resale value. This may be why Greco Zemaitis instruments have been widely faked, mostly by factories in China. Also reports of the Greco ones turning up with faked "Zemaitis" bridges and "Z" headstock plates. Definitely something to be careful of when buying from Asia, or just generally.

[quote name='FlatEric' timestamp='1323265682' post='1461225']Just over 20lbs!! But. . . . it's not as bad as it sounds.[/quote] It sounds pretty heavy (to anyone with a bad back). That said, it's a beautiful chunk of wood(s).

[quote name='walbassist' timestamp='1323081777' post='1458905']buying new, under £800[/quote] Given the number of Precisions that come up here, for under the upper limit of your budget, why are you thinking about buying new? Could be you just want that "I'm the only person to own this" rush or are a registered business so can take advantage of offsetting VAT, but otherwise?

Without knowing which Squier Jazz, in addition to condition, then it's impossible to say. The modification won't add what the value of the parts/cost of the work would be. It's easy to spend several hundreds of pounds on a cheap instrument and only get a fraction back at resale. My general rule of thumb has always been to try asking for circa 25 per cent of modification costs back at resale.

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1322955098' post='1457784']He sounded legit to me.[/quote] Well, he's certainly not trying to hide anything in his description (misleading title aside). And, for someone in search of a Wal neck, who'd see the pickups as a bonus (or vice versa), this could work out much cheaper than sourcing replacement parts through the new Wal. Be interesting to see what the market thinks a Wal neck and pickups are, in fact, worth.

Personally, I'd avoid M-Audio. Pres just don't have any real quality (unless, of course, you want to use Pro Tools M-Powered). Take a look at this http://www.lexiconpro.com/product.php?id=170 and this http://www.motu.com/products/motuaudio/4pre Lexicon is more a home use design, but Motu has been designed for multi-purpose environments.

Give this http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jan10/articles/studioheadphones.htm a read.

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1322825039' post='1456240']Get your head round that then ...[/quote] Still not a patch on some of those seventies classics from the likes of Alembic and BC Rich. Now, that's what I call switch-tastic!

When is a Wal not a Wal? When what you have didn't leave the manufacturer's factory (or repair shop) with a body, a neck, and all the appropriate proprietary parts. Trades descriptions: The title makes an unsupported claim, even if the full description goes on to make the description clearer. Seen retailers adds having to be pulled for less.

[quote name='the boy' timestamp='1322781400' post='1455968']The sound it made was real nice but there was no range.[/quote] So, just like a Fender Precision then? Actually, had one of these in the early 90s. Played unplugged it had enough character that it made a nice instrument to fiddle with at home, particularly at night. Always wondered if the fretless version would have been more fun. Think the main problem was the character of the Lace pickup - a bit synthetic. Thought it was the USA made version that was uncommon, and more collectable?

Lead vocals. Unlike Mr Sinatra, never had the benefit of a tele-prompt, so simply had to rely on memory. Always found it most productive to rehearse vocal and playing parts separately, and then combine those section by section. You'll find, the more you rehearse, combining both playing and singing, it'll fall into place in time. At the beginning, with new to you songs, what'll you'll be doing is thinking about it too much. After a while, muscle memory kicks in with your playing, and frees up some brain capacity for the vocals element.

[quote name='bluejay' timestamp='1322666261' post='1454175']My - admittedly limited - experience with strings is that ... flats tend to be made at least partly of steel; those I have on my Corvette are entirely made of steel, hence their stiffness.[/quote] Apologies if you already know this (and adding some detail for general consumption), but it's very unusual to find an electric bass string that isn't made of steel. With a string labelled as being stainless steel, the core and all the wraps will be steel, with the surface of the final wrap being highly polished; with a "nickel" string it's just that final wrap that has been coated with nickel (so, nickel coated steel as opposed to pure nickel); and with a "chrome" string just the surface of the final wrap which has been chromatised. The final coating really only affects the attack of the tone; the bloom of the tone will be very similar irrespective of the final coating. Why people believe a flat wound string is fuller (louder/more even) than a round wound string is the slightly increased mass of the flat, compared to the round. People struggle to hear as pronounced a difference between a round/chrome and a ground because of how a ground is manufactured. Leaving aside the issue of scale length, the three factors playing the biggest part in the feel of the string are core design (the most common being round and hex, but there's also semi-oval and prism), compression winding, and witness contact at the bridge. A round core will be the most compliant (least stiff). Historically, wrap to core slippage would have been an issue with round cores, but this isn't an issue with modern winding techniques. Some manufacturers, to counteract slippage, use a round core with a single flattened surface or a semi-oval core. The difference in compliance between these and a fully round core is completely negligible. A prism core will be less compliant (stiffer). The advantage of this design is core to wrap adhesion and increased proportion of void. This results in a string with significant air (a very bright attack). A hex core will be the least complaint (stiffest). While core to wrap adhesion is high with this design, void is at a lower proportion than for prism, as well as the nature of the voids differing. The smaller voids result in less attack than a prism but more even transitions. The difference in compliance between a prism and a hex core is negligible. Compression winding is a way of increasing the mass of a string for a given gauge, by winding the wraps onto the string under pressure. This results in more mass, which results in a string with more presence (overall volume). In theory, retaining a fuller sound, switching to a compression wound string could allow you to drop a gauge while maintaining tone. Witness contact contributes to the responsive feel of a string. Leaving aside the impact on tone, a fully exposed core should feel most responsive, a semi wound core less responsive, and a traditional wound string least responsive. Opinions vary greatly as to how these designs affect tone, but generally people associate a fully exposed core with most brilliance and sustain, so, this again can allow a drop in gauge without sacrificing overall tone. (I’m least convinced about that than other factors.)

[quote name='bluejay' timestamp='1322660474' post='1454057']I should probably have said 'non-steel' rather than nickel flatwounds - I'm simply looking for something less stiff. Will do a search for the names mentioned above asap.[/quote] Stiffness (compliance) isn't primarily a feature of the windings but of the core. All other factors being equal (gauge and finish), a string wound on a hex core will feel "stiffer" than a string wound on a round core. The opportunity to compare a DR Lo Rider with a DR Hi Beam, say, would allow you to feel the difference core shape makes to the compliance of a string. The majority of flat wound strings will feature a chromed steel as the outer wrap. The flattened outer winding means fewer voids, and the chromed finish is less reactive magnetically than polished steel. Both these design points contribute to the "deadness" of a flat wound string. Mostly, a round wound string sounds brighter as a result of the voids moving air when struck. If you prefer a nickel wound string, but like the feel of the surface of a flat wound string, have you considered using a half wound (aka ground wound) string?

[quote name='ped' timestamp='1322577445' post='1452961']


noel27k, think before you post? Seriously, just think about what you say.
[/quote] Leaving aside that it's always nice to get someone's name right, when you're addressing them directly; my question to you would be, Why? Just what, exactly, did I say in my first post that was so offensive, so critical, or so insulting? Simply stated, I just said that a particular "Precision" bass design seemed pointless. In your opinion, that constitutes unfair comment? I don’t know which I find more laughable, that bass, or your statement. [quote name='Grand Wazoo' timestamp='1322576856' post='1452941']
 Some of you guys just don't know how to criticize, and always ready to take things too far. In response I would say that is an ignorant reply unless you've tried one you shouldn't diss them like that.
[/quote] What I was looking at, in the OP's unedited post, was a "Precision" bass body shape with Dingwall's take on varying scale length. From a company that has cloned the "Jazz" bass body shape previously (and had the "originality" to call that design the "Super J"), there's now a “Precision” bass clone? Charitably, let's just say that the Super J is Dingwall's homage to the original and iconic Fender designs (and not view it as a cynical marketing ploy, or an exercise in pandering). But, does the bass-buying marketplace really need yet another Fender clone from Dingwall? This, after all, is a company that has its own "unique" body shapes: "Z", "AB", for example. (Although, there's sufficient citation to clearly demonstrate that there's very little about Dingwall's styling that is, in actuality, unique.) Those body shapes, however, represent the culmination of Dingwall's styling, and the execution of its original concepts. So, varying scale length, in combination with fanned fret layout, is one of the "unique" selling points about Dingwall basses. The theory that each string has an optimum length between witness points to achieve best possible relative tuning appears valid, and can certainly be supported with computation and through analysis, but it's not this aspect of instrument's design that I was commenting on, but the lazy and derivative styling (prototype, or not). Certainly, as for any commercial concern, patent and trademark issues aside, Dingwall has the absolute right to manufacture an instrument to any design which it conceives, and if it wishes to build a "Super P" then, I’m sure, it will. But, given that it is capable of originality of concept and design/styling, and has previously paid homage to the iconic, what purpose is served by doing so again (and again)? (This could be said of many instrument designers/makers, of course, but that's a discussion for others, and not one I'm not interested in holding.) That's the question that was in my mind. The answer, of course, was that I thought the design was pointless, and nothing that's been added here alters my opinion. Oh, and I've played both four- and five-string Dingwall basses. Own a property in Hatton Park, just outside of Warwick, a legacy of when I was lecturing at the University of Warwick. From time to time I'm back in the area (most usually when tenants are moving out/in of that property), so I've had the opportunity to visit a well-known bass store in the area, which stocks said basses. Personally, while observing that the design concept is well executed, and the instruments built and finished to a high standard, I found the sound to be somewhat sterile, which left me wondering if the execution was one of those more science over substance achievements, and if it's not the inherent "dissonances" of the imperfect "tuning" of the traditional fretted design which makes it a more natural listening experience for the human ear. The claimed characteristics for the concept of varying scale length just didn't communicate to my ear, nor did the feel of the instrument offer back anything more to my touch than the other more traditional instruments I own, and play.

[quote name='charic' timestamp='1322550294' post='1452341']Damn it's disappeared from the post[/quote] You didn't miss out on anything special - another Precision bass body rip-off, just with the as expected varying string length's Dingwall approach. Designed by someone with zero original thought.