Muzz

Yeah, it's not really possible exactly as per the record ( see t'other thread about that around here somewhere), but there's a ton of playthroughs on YouTube which get pretty close to the live version, so it's not as hard as it could be. I was more worried about the overall feel and sound - after all, there's 27 people on stage with Mr Simon on one version, that it worked at all with guitar, bass, keyboard and drums was the biggest surprise.

Ok, so a very occasional function band rehearsal today to run through some new numbers, and the one I'd been wary of was finally dragged into the light: You Can Call Me Al. I'd been wary because I really didn't think a four-piece could pull it off, but Blimey, it worked a treat. A bit of creativity from the keyboards (and a lot of splits for different patches) and some moderate clenching on my part, and by the third run through it sounded good - even the two-bar bass 'solo'. Very pleased. Anyone had misgivings about a cover before the band played it, only to find out they should have had a bit more faith?

I love the Dingwall multi scale, 34 to 36.25, all in four strings! No problems changing mid-gig to a normal 34", either.

Completely agree with playing with EQ in a band setting - I spent years going round and round adjusting backwards and forwards, before I realised that what sounds good in a mix with the rest of the band doesn't always sound as nice when soloed, and vice versa. What really brought it home was using my Schreoder cab - the low mid bump doesn't sound fantastic on its own, but in a band context, it really delivers. Also a big +1 for attenuating issues out rather than adding more in - it's counterintuitive at first (it just feels more natural to add more bass, or mids, or treble to a problem sound to fix it), but it can work a lot better. As someone else said, hours of fun!

Sounds very different, and a really interesting spec, although I was derailed by the phrase 'fancy Thunderbird'...hmmm...

I've got an SX P-Bass body (actually a P/J) with a Mighty Mite Jazz neck (and a Schaller 3D bridge, and Wizards pups, and Hipshot tuners) and it turned out so well I sold both my US P-Basses on the strength of it. It had a MM P-neck first, but I changed it for a J-profile and put the P-neck on my Fenderbird. The P-neck was a bit better than the J-neck out of the box, but nothing a fret dress and setup wouldn't cure. I'd use an MM neck again, for sure - great value for less than £100. I've recently built a Warmoth Explorer bass, and the quality of their gear is top-notch. The necks are definitely chunky, though.

In that case, I'll have two...

Ooooo, that sounds like it'll be affordable... I'd still like a look, tho...

I think I'll try applying some overtension to the neck and leave it for a while to see if that pulls it back - it might work, it might not.

My ABZ4 has killed off my bass GAS for a long while now, hopefully for good. Fantastic playability, the 36.25" E is a joy, it weighs nowt (7lbs 5oz), I've just put a P-Tone in it, and it sounds even better. Killer bass.

Cheers for that, though the bow on mine is the opposite of the one he's dealing with - I might have to get brutal in the shed with it...

Ok, so I've got a really nice Lakland neck, but it's got a back-bow which I'm struggling with. The Big Plan is to make it into a Fenderbird, but first I need to deal with the bow. I've fixed it onto a piece of wood, together with a bridge and strung it up, but even with the the rod slackened off completely, the bow is just about gone with a set of strings tuned up (to F# - B - E - A) to increase the tension. At normal tuning and tension, with the truss rod loose, the strings don't pull the neck even straight, let alone produce any relief. Does anyone know of anything else I can do to get the bow out of it? Can it be rebuilt? It'd be a shame to write it off, because it really is a nice neck. Cheers, Muzz

I should add that I've never had any of the amps above half (probably nearer a third) on the master volume, and my basses are passives. I only go through the PA if the drummer does.

Another Schroeder user here (not the same cab -1515L - but there's a family tendency), and I've never had volume issues with any of the heads I've used, which include a LMIII, RH450, Ashdown Spyder, Streamliner 900, SVT7, and a Mesa M-Pulse 360. Can't help but think there's either some thing wrong with your rig, or you're unbelievably loud. Do you use ear protection? You really should. When we set up, we do it a bit like studio practice: once the drummer's good to go, he and I play through a few bars to get our levels right and possibly EQ for the room, then the guitars and keys and then vocals set their levels to that WITHOUT having us turn up. It prevents the guitards setting the bar far too high (loud) and keeps the volume wars under control. As has been said before, make sure the guitards have their cabs pointing at their heads, that normally keeps them happy without everyone else suffering.

I moved from steel to nickels a good while ago, to get away from too much zing. I've tried a lot, best ones so far have been DR Nickel Low Riders, they settle in really nicely, and the set on my P are still great after more than a year. D'Addario Nickels are much cheaper and still good, but my current testers are La Bella Slappers (I don't slap) on my Dingwall, which are good so far (only a week in), but also not cheap. Never had any skin issues with Nickels in years of use. I guess if you have an allergy there might be problems, but otherwise, no.