thodrik

I lived in Tain for two years and then two bands I was in were in Glasgow. 3 hr 40 min commute to practice each way. Not ideal but we managed to keep going. In the USA it’s not uncommon for some band members to live in different states, so I tried to use that logic. Wouldn’t do it again though! Now, about 20 mins.

High end jazz basses are not all the same product. They might look similar, but construction, pick ups, sources of wood, type of electronics and many other variables will make them different products from one maker to another. Unless Sei capture a bigger share of the US bass player market, then I would also argue that the basses are also competing in different markets, or at least different levels in the same market. Sadowsky has a fairly big presence in the USA. Sei does not, at least not to the extent that there is Sei club on talkbass. The sizes of the two companies are not really comparable for a price comparison purpose.

Different products, different company, different country, different markets, different levels of demand, different company overheads. Both nice basses.

D’Addario make a balanced tension set of 120 -50. I have used them for drop B before and they worked fine. I did think about ordering singles or a custom Newtone or Circle K order but, the D’Addarios are less than £20 a pack and do the job for any tuning from drop B up to D standard. They are also useable for drop A Mastodon tuning (D standard with the lowest string tuned to A). A lower bottom string would be ideal but if you need to change tunings it’s a lot easier to change tuning than change bass during a gig. Frankly if D’Addario discontinued that gauge I would be pretty upset!

Thread resurrection, but I see that Guitar Guitar now have these available to order: £1799 for the five strings and £1699 for the four strings. Pretty much the same price as a Sandberg or Fender American Original. Pretty tough competition at the price point. Would certainly make for a fun visit to one of their shops to compare the three! Will there be a noticeable difference in quality between the Metro Express and the standard Metroline? If the answer is no, then what is the appeal of the more expensive Metro line? If the answer is yes, then surely you would be better off buying the Sandberg or Fender or just save up for the standard Metro line? NAMM 2030: introducing the Sadowsky Tramline: made in China, one colour scheme (black), maple board, special 'Sadowsky designed' pre-amp, bridge and tuners!

I have a bit of amp and cab envy there!

I would love a 4 ohm Mesa 2x15. Far too expensive, far too heavy, completely unnecessary, not very practical and inefficient compared to modern lightweight design. However I have a Trace Elliot V6 that is also all of these things and I think that the two pieces of gear would be a perfect match. The amount of heft on tap would override all other negatives.

Not really. Most of my recordings have been done on my Precision or a Sadowsky Metro rather than the Vigier. Also most of my recordings are in less heavy genres unfortunately. Never really managed to get a truly heavy band going and when did get to the demoing stage I recorded it on an old Precision! https://khydra.bandcamp.com/ This crap demo below done in 2005 is about the only slightly heavy recording I have of the Vigier Excess. We were all drunk at the time. Think it is tuned to C sharp: https://myspace.com/nythsco Did some alt rock demos with my old band in drop D, back when I couldn’t grow a beard but had a full head of hair: Might have something recorded later this year though with my new (to me) band, Electric Mother. Heavy rock in drop C for the most part. Not decided what bass to use for recording purposes yet. Might end up being the Excess. https://m.facebook.com/electricmotherband/?locale2=en_GB Sorry for spamming in advance!

I own two Vigiers, an Excess and an Arpege 5 string. In terms of downtuned heavy rock/thrash, I actually prefer my Excess to the Arpege. The Excess has a slightly less complex EQ system and is definitely more of an all out rock bass. The Arpege is more of a refined bass and was my bass of choice for doing modern metal/prog stuff. In terms of old school downtuned metal in the High on Fire/Baroness/Mastodon/Saviours/Kylesa stuff, I would pick the Excess over the Arpege or Passion every time. One thing to consider is that the scale length of the Vigiers is slightly under 34 inches, so if you are tuning down to C you might need to use bigger strings than you would if you were using a 35 inch scale bass or a fanned fret alternative like a Dingwall. I don't find the scale length on the Vigier to be an issue, but saying that I love the sound of a downtuned Rickenbacker bass which only has a 33 inch scale. Also be aware that the Vigiers have no trus rod, so you will never ever be able to adjust the amount of relief on the neck. On the plus side, the neck should never move, so the relief on the neck on the day you buy the bass should be the same relief when you pick the bass up again ten years later. I have had the Excess for nearly 14 years now and no neck issues so far. Though saying that I've had an 1974 Gibson EB3 and a 1978/9 (ish) Fender Precision for nearly 20 years and not had any neck stability issues with them either. I don't think that carbon fibre necks are essential. I would really recommend trying as many basses as you can just to see what neck shapes/pickups and EQ systems you prefer.

Just wow! I have a V6 myself but haven't used it because it only works on 2 or 4 ohms and I stupidly downsized to a single 8 ohm cab... I would love to see and listen to a V4 or V6 in person.

In terms of the site at Dalmarnock site, the rent is generally dependent on the size of the room you are using. You are honestly just best off contacting the company to see what they have available. A general guide would by £280 -£400 per month though it has been a couple of years since I was renting directly from the company. There might not be anything free either if all the rooms are currently rented out. In practical terms to most likely chance of getting a room there is via an official 'sub let' from the main tenant who is renting the space from the company and sharing with one of two other bands for costs sake. Spaces on it can be advertised on Gumtree etc. I am aware that there used to be rehearsal spaces for rent behind Viper in the West End. Given the location though, the rooms were pretty small and the rent was higher as well.

I used various units in that the development over the years. Cracking set up once you take the time to set up the room to your liking.

That cab should be incredibly bright and incredibly loud. Is it possibly to do with the settings on the amp? The classic 450 is designed to give more of an 'old school' sound, so if you push the drive on it might make things sound a bit muffled. See if you can try the head with a different cab and the cab with a different head.

I would take the tug bar off personally but apart from that I think it is a totally gorgeous bass. I don't think that the mis-build aspect would really hurt the re-sale value of the bass, especially since Fender have confirmed the authenticity of the bass. I personally quite like the idea of owning an American made 'mis-build' as makes it an (accidentally) unique bass. Just think of it as a custom build that was custom made for somebody else. It is an American made Fender, it will be a class bass.

Might be a Mesa thing. The Walkabout series featured a very loud fan as well. I have had a Walkabout for nearly ten years and have just used to it on the basis that the fan is never audible when playing with a band. I'm guessing Mesa just expect people to be playing their amps at 'full band practice' levels rather than bedroom levels.

I know, but the Fender based Spector Coda line are a bit too ‘bling’ for me with so much flame going on. My ‘boutique’ Fender choice is always going to be a Sadowsky, or a Fender. The top line Spector basses are as good as anything else out there though.

I have tried too many alternative tunings to count - from up to F standard with very light strings and down to A standard with very heavy strings. Most of the variations are based from choosing the 'standard' tuning and then altering the pitch of the bottom string to get the 'drop D' or 'drop B' or very rarely the 'drop A' equivalent Never tried Cello tunings on a bass guitar though. I am pretty sure I would get very confused very quickly!I tried that DADGAD tuning on a guitar once and absolutely hated it.

I would never buy one myself as the looks and ergonomics are not for me, but nearly time I hear a Spector in a live or rehearsal setting, the bass sounds great.

It’s a good price, even if it had been stripped, or was fitted with a new bridge or pickups. If it plays well and sounds good you onto a winner. The days of picking up a seventies Fender for less than a grand are long gone.

Mesa Walkabout for me. Great 1x15 combo for 90% of all gigs, but could be removed and used through a larger cabinet, stack or 8x10 if someone was doing a 'bring your own head and you can use my cab' type of gig.

I might be biased though...

Me too to be honest. The bass looks better sans scratchplate. That and black is just cool.

Cracking looking bass. I have one of the newer bolt on Arpeges but I think the old through neck models are truly state of the art and more unique looking. For anyone else looking to get on the Vigier bandwagon there is a rather tasty Excess on sale at Guitar Guitar. Price seems reasonable considering the quality of the bass. I have had an Excess since 2004 and it is still going strong. https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/product/px180127321592006--vigier-excess-1996-dark-red-burst-pre-owned

Cool. It wouldn't surprise me if Bass Direct took in a few NYC models as well, as I see Thomann have a few for sale on their site.

I say this as an owner of Les Paul, however I really don't like singlecut basses, particularly those 'exaggerated' boutique singlecut designs from Fodera and Sadowsky. To me it just makes the whole bass look unbalanced and looks like a waste of wood to me. Beyond that I can appreciate pretty much anything.