Sibob

[quote name='OldGit' post='621111' date='Oct 8 2009, 10:45 PM']If I wanted an old style Jazz I'd have a word with a certain Mr Shuker about a recent build ... Let's say Herbie might recognise an old friend ...[/quote] Know of any photos? Si

NomNomNom Sexy CS Jazz that! Anyone gonna go try it? Slightly OT, but mentioned.....There's a really nice Nash at the Gallery at the mo, Heavily relic'd natural, 60's style with a Fender decal....£1250 I believe! Plays and sounds great Si

I had an interview in London yesterday (find out on Friday....fingers crossed), and afterwards I decided to take a trip to The Gallery as I haven't been there in a long while. I phoned prior to my interview to see if they had any Custom Shop Jazz basses in stock, so I could have a look and a play, they had one active one....so although it isn't what I want, I figured I could check out the build quality. Anyway, here's my little run down of the few basses I tried, all played through a Mark Bass 'Berlin' amp with a 15" speaker: 1) [b]2nd Hand Custom Shop Active Jazz Bass[/b] - I was a bit disappointed because I was really hoping to get a good idea of what to expect from a CS if I decide to go down the route of ordering one, unfortunately this was VERY 2nd hand and the neck was pretty beat up (no it wasn't a relic ), dead strings, and the poor Fender preamp definitly wasn't happening. I'll hold out for a good example of a passive one to get an idea. [url="http://www.thebassgallery.com/images/fendercustomclassic.jpg"]http://www.thebassgallery.com/images/fendercustomclassic.jpg[/url] 2) [b]Zon Sonus 5 string[/b] - This was sat on top of the Berlin amp, so I had to have a go having never tried a Zon. Stunningly made......that's about all I have to say. To be fair I don't get on with narrow string spacing, but it really wasn't sparking me at all. The bart electronics were severely uninspiring and under-powered. Not a great introduction to Zon I'm afraid. [url="http://www.thebassgallery.com/zonsonus5.html"]http://www.thebassgallery.com/zonsonus5.html[/url] 3) [b]Nash 60's Jazz Bass[/b] - Not sure of the exact model, but this was a 60's vibe jazz with a Fender headstock logo, very heavily reliced with a slightly out of place stack-knob arrangement. I say out of place because they didn't look old like the rest of the bass and the lower rings were black, with the upper knobs chrome, didn't look right . Played and sounded fantastic though, very fast neck as the finish was down to the wood from about the first fret to just before the heel. Real growly with the bridge pickup solo'd and nice and balanced with both pickups on. Lovely stuff @ £1250 4) [b]Sadowsky Metro MV4[/b] - I think it was an MV4 anyway, Ash body, maple FB, dots & white scratchplate. The bass was obviously built brilliantly, the ash of the body and the lacquer that finished it were a joy to look at & hold, the wet-look of the body was a stark contrast to the neck though, which was a very plain maple finished in, what I'm guessing, a satin finish, almost looked unfinished, very 'matt'. The bass sounded fantastic though, it took me about 1 minute to find a tone that was very useable, thick yet growly. The preamp was extremely versatile (aside from one dodgy pot) and overall I was very very impressed. I'd be interested in trying it in a gig setting, because depending on it's sound in the mix, I'd definitly consider one.......and I hate active basses lol. £1799 though.....harsh 5) [b]Lakland DJ 4[/b] - Natural finish. Not going to spend to much time on this, same as in the shop. Apart from the E string sounding quite nice, this was pretty average. Ash wasn't as nice as the Sadowsky, uninspired sound and feel....so I put it back lol. 6) [b]Sei Series1 6[/b] - Singlecut 6 string with Bartolinis. Beautifully made, we all know that, the fingerboard was wiiiide and flat, it actually felt amazing to play and I was quite at home over the 6 strings very quickly. I love the SC body shape, and If ever presented with the opportunity (or rather a band that it was appropriate in), I'd definitly go down that route, really comfortable. The sound was severely lacking though, just really really average Bart electronics (is there a pattern developing?). So yeah, great craftsmanship and amazing neck! [url="http://www.thebassgallery.com/seisingle6.html"]http://www.thebassgallery.com/seisingle6.html[/url] 7) [b]2009 US Fender Jazz[/b] - Old faithful obviously, nothing spectacular here, although....huh....a considerable amount of flame on the neck!? Very nice. Played nice, instant great tone, not quite as nice as my 2003 Jazz, but still a great bass that I'd definitly look at if I wanted another US Jazz. 8) [b]Fender Highway One Jazz[/b] - Very similar sound and feel to the '09 Jazz....You'd expect that I guess, it's the same spec apart from the finish, and that's why I wouldn't buy it. I was scared to play the bass in the shop lol, it looked like it would dent if I looked at it. Great sound and feel but not a gigging instrument in my eyes, not if you like to retain some of the sunburst finish . [url="http://www.thebassgallery.com/fenderjazzhw1.html"]http://www.thebassgallery.com/fenderjazzhw1.html[/url] So that's it really, had a good time, the Sadowsky was the run away winner for me out of the 8. The '09 Jazz and the Nash were great and close 2nd, I was pleasantly surprised by both of them. The Zon & the Sei, for me at least, were examples of basses needing to be more than just pretty and well made to be a great instrument. Cheers Si

Just putting this over to 'Bass Guitars' Si

Ok great, only a couple away from me Si

Gotcha! Thanks very much! So the difference between a 7.25" and a 9.5" is going to be fairly minuscule I guess!? Si

So I don't really understand fretboard radius'. I understand that it's a curvature of the fingerboard, but where are the actual measurements coming from? From what I can gather, 3 of my basses have these radius': 2003 US Jazz - 9.5" 1973 Jazz - 7.25" Squier Deluxe 5string - 12" Do the higher values mean, less curvature? I think my 5 string is flatter than the two 4's. I'm more interested in the practical differences between my two Jazz basses to be honest Thanks Si

[quote]no i'm not tech savvy I'm the plug and play type[/quote] Me too, that's why I play passive basses lol What I found with the Barefaced cab is that it's hyper sensitive....well compared to my cabs, and probably the Warwick, that is. So anything that is a small problem, mostly unnoticeable through another cab, may well sound more up front with the barefaced. It's not a bad thing....just a little more unforgiving, it of course means you get a much more natural and transparent sound Hopefully the new trimmed tone pump will solve the issue Si

I am gonna pop this over to Gear Porn though....cos that wat it is Si

Normally I'm of the opinion that a bass should be played as it was designed to do, regardless of the age. But in this case, it's in such amazing condition, it's gotten passed the point of being worth it lol. Keep it safe and that is a lovely family heirloom or pension! . Especially if it's a bit of a dog to play haha Si

I'm in C,F,Bb,Eb with 45-105, low action, no rattle......lovely But yeah, definitly for A, E, A, D I'd go for lowest 4 strings from a 5 string set and detune your B to A. Si

and the south one? Si

I may well try and get down for this seeing as I might miss the SE bass bash! Does anyone know if it generally sells out? As I'll most likely have to decide closer to the time! Cheers Si

I much prefer Victor's groove playing that his slap playing, it's a shame that a lot of people focus on how fast he can slap rather than his fingerstyle. Flea is primarily a punk rock bassist, with some pseudo funk chops.....so it's unfair to compare them. Even if they were in the same genre, they're two different people who hear music in different ways, so it's unfair to compare them. The initial clips of flea were quite old as well, his playing on their last double-album was really melodic in places! Si

Whereabouts are we on the list/route? Si

Well to be fair to Wal, it's seemingly half the price of a custom shop Warwick lol Si

Cool That's the end of it Is this a legit thread about vintage Orange amps?? I hope so! Go to it Si

You should have used the word 'goose' then Si

This is all very interesting, I know a few people with Wals and they love them, I've never tried one myself. As some of you know, I'm contemplating a CS Jazz bass, and people have had issues with their pricing. Here some people are attacking the pricing once again. What do people think that Wal's, at this initial price point, have over say a £2000 Shuker <or insert luthier here> bass.....£1200 more quality?....or are you paying for the name? Si

It will sell for as much as someone wants to pay for it. Please mind your language in future Si

Detuning a bass from standard 'E, A, D, G' tuning to something lower So when i refer to my tuning as 'Drop C standard', I mean C, F, Bb, Eb Drop D is commonly D, A, D, G. Drop D standard would be D, G, C, F I assume that the Drop A that the OP is referring to would be A, E, A, D on a 4 string Unless he means Drop A standard, which is A, D, G, C There is of course millions of combinations of tunings, high, low etc etc Nice Si

I've got a passive bass tuned to drop C standard with Dimarzio UltraJazz pickups....it's as meaty as you can get. It took over as my main bass from an 18v preamp'd bass Si

Why not just drop tune the K5?! Pretty sure Fieldy is down to A anyway. If you really want a 4 string in that tuning, your best bet is going to be stringing it like the bottom 4 strings on a 5, ie BEAD, and then dropping to it A. Slightly higher tension strings might help, but as long as you have a solid neck and bridge on whatever bass you choose to use, it should be fine! Si