Sibob

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1472658516' post='3123017'] and a decent headstock. [/quote] It is a crap headstock isn't it.....like really crap lol. Yeah perhaps I overstated that 'most' departing designers/brand owners do better, but I bet Musicman & G&L had a better reputation/was seen as higher-end when Fender went through the their awful late 70's/early 80's period. I think it's only relatively recently that they've pulled it back. But actually the example in my head was Michael Tobias with Tobias to MTD etc Si

I've noticed zero tonal deficiencies with my chambered Maruszczyk vs other solid body basses I have. Whilst there are other variables, all my basses are Alder bodies, maple necks and rosewood boards. It's just really bloody light with no neck-dive, 4 string, 33" plus Ultralite tuners obviously help here, but as has been mentioned, even with 34" and their standard tuners there doesn't seem to be any issues at all. Si

[quote name='Machines' timestamp='1472557651' post='3122051'] The Shark is what was missing from their line up to compete with the 44-02/55-02. It's a mashup of a Stingray/Sabre and I like it. I'd probably move that pickup an inch further from the bridge though. [url="http://dlakinbasses.com/the-shark-4-tech-specs/"]http://dlakinbasses....k-4-tech-specs/[/url] [/quote] Good god what a mess! Lakin has swung and missed big time with the D Lakin brand in my humble opinion, which is odd, usually it's the original brand that fails after takeover and the original brains behind the operation carries on being great with their new project. As has been mentioned, the D Lakin brand very much feels like a hobby Si

I modded an old Squire Bronco (30") to piccolo a long time ago. Was fun for a while for chordal stuff, but no real real-world usage for me. Unfortunately I didn't really know what I was doing when I strung it up, and so the setup and string tension was too much for the poor quality of the bass. High action and scared to pluck the strings for them breaking lol. Hasn't got the same range, but had much more fun with a 5 string bass with a high C, think I even had a 4 string strung A,D,G,C for a while (Tenor?) Si

[quote name='M@23' timestamp='1472591746' post='3122489'] Cool. I've only seen the YouTube vids but they look like fantastic basses. The Paul Turner one is great, what a day that must have been! Out of interests sake, what would one cost you or me? [/quote] About £5k

Maybe your kids are just into games, programming and visual arts etc.....whilst others are into music?! Things like Young Musicians Of The Year award along with Youtube kinda proves that music and virtuoso playing is alive and well. Si

Yeah I still use my old bi-fet every now and then to add some phatness! Shame about the low end loss though, they need to reissue the FX-25b without the Vol dip. Si

[quote name='acidbass' timestamp='1472203068' post='3119349'] Brilliant gig, Flea used his shell pink Fender Jazz hybrid with a single humbucker in the Stingray position - surely going to be a Custom Shop line of these? Sparkling tone! Usual array of GK 4x10 and 1x15 cabinets too. I think I spotted a silver Modulus too used in By The Way (tuned) to drop D. Catch them if you can! [/quote] I asked the chap at Custom Shop who built both his Jazz/MM hybrid over Instagram, and he said there were no plans for a Custom Shop line of these. But I agree, they look fantastic. I have seen a few Maruszczyk basses with this spec though, and they'd certainly be cheaper Si

[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1472130331' post='3118745'] I rarely listen to anything with a regular rhythm section. The occasional jazz record maybe. [/quote] Fair enough, I guess pure ambient soundscape stuff is the exception to the rule Si

Funk I get, it's a genre....but not into groove? That seems odd, because surely groove is present in all music?! Punk music without groove is just really crap, out of time medicore punk music for example?! Si

I've never heard Billy Jean sound so good!! Si

My votes would be for a COG 66 or an Xotic BB Bass Pre Simples Si

Interested what the 440 is like. Wish they'd re-issue the bass envelope filter. The mix control made that filter for me, but the volume drop made it unuseable live Si

Bob is equally brilliant and lovely, was teaching at Wooten Woods when I was there. Si

No way, rosewood all the way! Si

That Elwood Absolution for £750 at Bass Direct is a ridiculous bargain! Si

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1472023523' post='3117678'] As i said earlier. I've seen VW gig twice. In the first gig he was accompanied by keys as well as a guitarist and drums, and Victor played bass. Anthony W was there as bass-tech. The music was more jazz-funk and the melody and groove was strong. In the second gig it was drums, guitar, bass and VW on "lead-bass" in an almost continuous bass solo mode. So I prefered the first gig. My opinion. Others may disagree. Like many here, I like a balance in the performance, not too much fast, continuous soloing. [/quote] And this is absolutely fine, no-one is saying that one should like all of his output (or any of it), but for someone to suggest that he is in someway a worse player because his mate is also on the gig, is still silly, especially when it's proven not to be true depending on how Vic chooses to staff his band (as in the first of your examples). The other point that Nick raises above, about how he views the bass guitar is interesting. Fundamentally this is really odd to me. Bass guitar is simply an instrument, the role it plays is determined by the music and the player. I imagine that there are many many instruments that, during their infancy, were simply for accompaniment, and weren't considered solo instruments. But as the players who choose that instrument develop the voice of the instrument, it's invariably going to grow into something more. So again, my expectation of the bass guitar is not to just play the bass line, it's just a tool to make music. Perhaps my expectation of a certain player in a certain musical context is of course to just play the bass line, but that's different to having an expectation of the instrument itself. Remember that soloing is effectively also about developing a melodic and harmonic voice, that knowledge and appreciation is always going to help your bass lines, how your lines effect the harmony and chordal quality of a song etc. Practicing soloing is a great way to stretch the muscle, no-one is saying use it on every gig, or any gig, but it will only ever help you. Si

[quote name='XB26354' timestamp='1471973480' post='3117392'] No it's not. It's called an opinion and I'm just as entitled to mine as you are to yours. Ask your non-musician friends how wonderful victor backed by another bass player is and watch their eyes glaze over. It's rare for good reason and has nothing to do with <insert 2 soloing instruments of the same type here> in a band Also note that I didn't say two bass players together but one backing the other, i.e. one plays bass lines and the other makes a noise, sorry, solos soulfully... [/quote] Again, what instrument they play is irrelevant, if you ask a non-musician "do you think it's strange for one musician to backup another?", they would say "no". What you're suggesting in the way you worded your comment was that Victor is a lesser musician/bassist or diminished in someway because he chooses to play music with his friend who happens to play bass?! It's also worth noting that on that tour Anthony was the swing-guy, meaning he was playing keys, singing, bass, whatever the song needed. So whilst I agree that everyone is more than entitled to an opinion, and to ignore mine, I don't think this is a subjective subject, the idea that all bands MUST have one bass player or one drummer etc. Any given musical situation should be made up of the musicians who want to be there contributing to the conversation. And if someone doesn't agree, then they're missing out on a LOT of good music on a silly principle Si

Wow, wasn't expecting that lol Si

Absolutely, I would never say "Oh you have to like his music", because that's a ridiculous thing to say......but if you can't see past the technique and the constant focus on slap, then you're absolutely not looking hard enough. Perhaps the kind of person to say "oh there's no good rock or punk bands anymore"?! . If nothing else, look at his achievements with education, his mastery of rhythm in general etc. For me, there is absolutely no comparison with Mark King, well, other than they can both slap well. It's also equally ridiculous to say "a bass player who needs a bass player is in trouble" (as mentioned by someone above)......they're musicians first.....they're best friends....what instrument they play is irrelevant, they want to play together. As long as they understand that they need to occupy different sonic space, who cares that they both play bass?! Also, <select super popular guitarist> is rubbish because there's multiple guitarists in their band Si

Virgin has decided that BBC 4 won't load.....so I guess I'll wait for iplayer 😒 Si

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1471900997' post='3116897'] Mrs G and I went to his recent London gig. It was the second time we'd been to see him. This time we had a treat to see Janek Gwizdala on stage with him; both in a dual for the lead role, with Anthony Wellington in the background playing the traditional bass line role. That was all impressive stuff. But quite frankly it was very self-indulgent in our opinion. We left early as we simply felt we'd seen it all before. In the morning I wrote to Anthony Wellington and told him we really enjoyed his playing. Just felt I wanted to let the guy know that while he may have played 2nd fidle it was his playing we liked best. I got a really nice reply from him too. [/quote] But I'd argue that any solo (or certainly 90% of them), are self indulgent. But also, why would that be a bad thing? Essentially you're watching a conversation between two people, what they're saying to each other needs to be fun for them and them only, that's the creative imperative! Now if it was Anythony soloing (which he does a lot) and Victor playing the bass role, presumably it would be Victor you were emailing? Si

An amazing player with a mastery of rhythm that many of us will only dream of attaining. I don't particularly listen to much of his firework/music show playing, as that's just what it is, a display. He knows that and is the first to admit it, but it's part of the job of a musician....tap into what revenue streams present themselves. Love his playing with Bela, it's also nice to hear him in a more 'standard' role like on Indie Arie's 'Summer'. And if you want his more sensitive side, check out his Bass Day '98 (I think) rendition of Arie's Eyes. He's also an incredible educator, watch his Groove Workshop DVD, eye opening and the reason why I then went to one of his Music/Nature camps in Nashville a couple of years ago. So again, I don't really slap much (no call for it generally), I'm not easily impressed by firework playing......but he is a bloody brilliant bass player and human! Si

Yeah I use my VB-2 on bass, but on an extreme setting. It's only really useable in my math-rock instrumental trio.....doesn't go down so well with the wedding bands lol Si