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RichT

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  1. RichT
    I too discovered short scale 'by accident' when I got a Hofner HCT Club a few years ago after seeing Curt Smith playing a Club bass in a Tears For Fears live video and just loving the look of it. It wasn't a conscious decision re scale length at all, it hadn't really registered with me that it was a thing prior to actually getting one! Although looking back I now realise that the first bass I learnt on in early teenage years was a short scale, I just never knew it.
  2. RichT
    Both my short scale EBMM Stingray and Maruszczyk Jake (P style) have scaled down bodies to keep them visually in proportion with the scale length. I don't know exactly how much but I'd have guessed they're about 7/8ths, which would be in keeping with a figure of 12%ish. I love the fact that they are very obviously Ray and P shaped/sounding because I physically struggle with the full size versions, and this way I don't have to miss out on having those classic looks & tones. I never got on with large bodied basses even before I moved to short scale, so as a result I'd never owned a Fender in the 35 odd years I've been playing. These scaled down shorties are a godsend.
  3. RichT
    Bargains! I already have two A1H, but I jumped straight over to the Vox site and almost immediately bought the A2S... then like a fool I remembered that the reason I never owned a jazz is that I'm allergic to single coil hum. The Aguilar AG 4J-70's sound great from what I've heard but alas not hum cancelling. Somebody's going to get a great bass though, if jazz pickups are your thing that price is ridiculous.
  4. RichT
    @Obrienp Thanks for the detailed run down, the U5 certainly sounds worth a shot, especially given the lack of anything else anywhere near it in price. Jazz width necks are my preference, and amazing to hear that the pickups are noiseless, I just can't do single coil hum! I also saw a Low End Lobster video which indicated that Gotoh GB528 lightweight tuners will fit the U5, so nice to know that option's there if an upgrade is needed. We'll have to see about the 'belly bulge' (there's one of those round here already 😁...) Cheers! 👍
  5. RichT
    @Obrienp I recall seeing on a thread somewhere that you have a Sire U5 fretless? I'm having to come to terms with there being something about the ergonomics of my 34" fretless that leaves my shoulder in pain despite it not being that heavy, so I've been considering the (very limited) ss fretless options out there. How have you found the U5? I hear Sires can be quite heavy generally, how does yours stack up weight wise? It seems to be the only affordable ss fretless I can find, and apparently exclusively available from Thomann with about a 3 month wait time. They don't make them easy to find! More widely, does anyone have any other suggestions for a ss fretless that won't break the bank?
  6. RichT
    Never had one, but in every Youtube demo of a Sandberg I've seen they always have a very characteristic bright and modern 'metallic' top end to the sound. I think of it as sounding 'springy'. It's very distinctive, I always presumed that's just the inherent Sandberg style.
  7. RichT started following Lighter weight bass , Does anyone else use different strings on their various basses? , Flats are off and 2 others
  8. RichT
    Definitely, different basses have different voices which need certain strings to get the best out of them. I don't mind that at all, it's just a pain that the only way to find out which strings suit which bass is random trial and error. Currently have Ernie Ball Cobalt flats on my EBMM ss Stingray, Ibanez EHB 1505, Hofner HCT Club and one Vox Starstream. Got Elixir nanoweb nickels on Ibanez SR500e and the other Vox Starstream. Thomastik Jazz flats on fretless Ibanez Portamento (only ones I'm not sure about yet). And Ernie Ball roundwound slinkys on my Maruszczyk ss Jake (P bass pickup). On my guitars though it's D'Addario XS all the way.
  9. RichT
    I say use whatever strings make you happy in the moment and not necessarily what internet forums think is right. Internet wisdom has told me several times that I must use flats on a P bass and rounds on a Stingray, but after much experimentation, I've found I like flats on my Ray and rounds on my P. And they're both short scale (which the internet says is only for children and people with small hands 😉)
  10. RichT
    I buy short scale strings when they're available, but to be honest I've never actually had a problem fitting long scale strings on my SS basses. Sometimes I'll cut them down (e.g. Elixirs, which have no silks), and sometimes I'll just wrap the full silk length around the tuning post. Nothing's broken on me (yet).
  11. RichT
    As far as these things go it's pretty straightforward 😊 - Knob closest to neck is Volume. - Centre stacked knobs are Treble cut/boost (upper) and Bass cut/boost (lower). - Stacked knobs closest to the bridge are Mid cut/boost (upper) and Mid Frequency sweep (lower). You can also pull up the Treble pot for an instant bright boost One of the great things about this preamp is that if 3 bands and sweepable mids all seems like a bit of an overcomplicated faff, then it can also essentially function just as a 2 band, simply by leaving the Mid boost pot on the centre detente. In this position, the effect on the mids is completely neutral so the Mid sweep knob has no effect on the sound, and you can then ignore the knobs closest to the bridge altogether if you wish.
  12. RichT
    I've got the same John East pre in my EBMM short scale. Hands down the most intuitive and just plain useful pre-amp of any bass I've ever played. Find your sweet spot with the mid sweep, and then just takes a touch of mid cut or boost to either pull the bass right back into the mix or push the poke right out forward front and centre. So instantly versatile! GLWTS!
  13. RichT
    Lola Young's album This Wasn't Meant For You Anyway. Spotify suggested her song Messy to me a few weeks ago and it was one of those rare moments where something new just grabs you instantly. Fantastic voice and I love the fact that lyrically and musically she consistently subverts my expectations. And her bassist plays an Anaconda, so at least 10 extra basschat points.
  14. RichT

    NHBBD

    RichT replied to Franticsmurf's topic in Bass Guitars

    The Ibanez SRH500F (or Aerium) has a very nicely designed contoured edge. Very specific sound though, being both piezo and fretless. They don't make the fretted version any more but someone was selling one very affordably on here recently.
  15. RichT
    *Everyone* should learn to play with a floating hand 😊 I had no choice but to learn when I got a piezo-only Ibanez SRH500F about 5 years ago and suddenly had no pickup to rest my thumb on. Turned out to be one of the best things to happen to my playing technique. Very freeing being able to completely change right hand position on the fly from note to note to get brighter/warmer tones even within the same phrase.
  16. RichT
    These days weight is an overriding factor in my bass choices. I know I'm ok up to 7.5lbs, but going much above that tends to completely screw my shoulder up. Current favourites are: (short scales) EBMM Stingray - 7.5lbs Vox Starstream A1H - 7lbs Maruszczyk Jake - 7.4lbs Hofner HCT Club - 6lbs (long scales) Ibanez EHB 1505 (5 string) - 7lbs Ibanez Portamento (4 string) - 7.5lbs I've also previously had and moved on: Hofner Ignition Club - 4.5lbs Gretsch G2220 - 7lbs Ibanez Aerium fretless - 6.5lbs On the one hand it's fantastic that there are plenty of light basses around if you look, but on the other I find it massively frustrating when some bass makers and online sellers really just can't be bothered to even try, or to understand that this can be absolutely crucial to someone's ability to play an instrument. I recently had a farcical discussion with a customer service rep from Gear4Music who insisted on quoting the weight of a Mustang as 8kg, because that was the official 'shipping weight' in the specs, wouldn't budge on it despite me gently explaining this would literally make it one of the heaviest basses ever made at more than 17lbs, before they admitted that they didn't have a scale in the warehouse to weigh them even if they wanted to. If the likes of Bass Direct, Peach Guitars and Sweetwater are capable of weighing everything, then the failure of Andertons, Gear4Music, PMT, GAK, Guitarguitar etc to do likewise is at the least pure laziness (or worse... I could go on far more of a rant about it, but I won't, I just never spend money with those places any more).
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