fatback

[quote name='LawrenceH' post='1067127' date='Dec 22 2010, 07:33 PM']I'm not the pickup junky some people are but I was very pleasantly surprised by the Fender Vintage AlNicos that come loaded into the Highway Ones and Classic series jazzes - it's definitely a very musical, old-school vibe, and they're not expensive at all. I think Dave-bass5 on here has a Highway One (which would come with these) and also has some Wizard pickups, so it might be worth sending him a PM and asking how they compare. Wizard get recommended a lot on here for an old-school vibe and again they're comparatively cheap, definitely worth considering. By way of comparison, trying a VMJ I felt that the stock pickups were very punchy but a little harsh and definitely lacking in bandwidth (no true top end), they didn't sound at all open compared to a typical vintage jazz.[/quote] Thanks, Lawrence. I'll check those out. Your description of the VMJ sound is spot on. It's that harshness I'd like to lose. And there is a sense of quality lacking, even through a Sadowsky pre that can flatter anything.

Thinking about changing pups on a Squier VMJ fretless. Looking for something not too aggressive, more old school. Sort of musical. Mellow? Rich? That kind of sound. In fact, the stock pups are not bad at all, but the bass has such a nice neck it's probably worth upgrading a tad. I have no experience of anything but standard pups, so any ideas would be very helpful.

Probably a silly Q, but there's no cleaning solvents or anything being used, or exposure to sunlight?

[quote name='willyf87' post='1066736' date='Dec 22 2010, 01:10 PM']yeah been checking out the barefaced series, looks good just worried that an 8 ohm cab through a 300w into 4 ohm head won't be loud enough, may contact him and find out, it's gotta hang with 2 guitarists and a drummer and don't really want to spend more than £500, the schroeder looks good but can I get them in England, with all the import tax etc would end up costing a bomb!![/quote] That's a thought. Maybe you need a 4 ohm cab. My 8ohm Midget is driven by a 550 into 4.

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='1066656' date='Dec 22 2010, 12:16 PM']Barefaced Compact - if you're after loud and light, it's perfect. If you want to go smaller, I've heard great things about the Barefaced Midget but I have no experience with it.[/quote] Midget is fab. I've not run out of oomph with it yet. No wool, and as much bass as I could want. Ultra light.

Check out the Barefaced cabs, and drop Alex a message - he'll give you plenty info. Sounds like the Midget or Compact would be just the ticket.

Sounds like something isn't right. Could anything be damaging the coating? I can bash mine for a year before that happens.

@ 51m0n Is the contribution of neck length to the strength of the fundamental why double bass sounds the way it does?

First gigging rig, a 1968 Jazz through a Peavey Centurion Mk3 and a Black Widow 18. I still miss the parametrics on that amp, and the cab was a beast.

[quote name='silddx' post='1042024' date='Nov 30 2010, 09:53 AM']It can not possibly be a pointless technique. It allows you to play very fast, and will therefore make you feel like a MAN. And as we know, to be a MAN you have to play without a pick, and play very, very fast. [/quote]

[quote name='Tomikaze' post='1065659' date='Dec 21 2010, 01:49 PM']You're probably right, I may give that a go. I have a MIM fretless that I've had for about 10 years, I'd be interested to compare the build quality to the squire when I get it. Already got a set of TI jazz roundwounds waiting for it [/quote] I'd be a little careful if you're buying the fretless. The one I have had some of its plastic fret markers protruding very slightly from the slots in the fingerboard, making for a buzz when you 'fretted' on the mark. Nasty. I've read elsewhere that this can be a problem. So if I were you I'd check by rubbing a fingernail down the neck and feeling for ridges. A good argument for not buying online. I've (almost) sorted mine by rubbing the board down with fine sandpaper and then using a polishing compound (the stuff you revive car paintjobs with). It's much better, but still not perfect on some frets (even though I can't feel a ridge anymore). That might be because I'm using rounds and they show up a problem like that very easily. Having said that, even with flats the trouble was pretty clear before the sanding job. Otherwise, a very nice bass indeed with a very playable neck.

+1 to all of the above. Especially about being a little patient - you're already way ahead of where most of us were at your age. Maybe you could get yourself some keyboards. A lot of the very great players, like Rufus Reid, say you should give the piano a lot of time, if you want to be a really good musician.

Interesting stuff. I feel less and less like i need a fiver. It's like I've just made money.

Thanks all, I'm happy enough with the action. The thing that got me thinking was that the saddles seemed very high and the pups were also as high as they could go. I'll pad the pups, as Jennifer suggests, and take it from there.

[quote name='SteveK' post='1062861' date='Dec 18 2010, 07:54 PM']Give me any reasonable quality amp and cab combination, give me any reasonable quality instrument and I will sound like me. Give me a DI and plug me straight into the board and I will sound like me. Amps and cabs and instruments have their own inherent sounds of course, but in the grand scheme of bass playing that is pretty insignificant. Far too much emphasis is placed on gear. IMO of course [/quote] +100 It shouldn't take anything fancy in the way of kit, but it does need to be right for you. The tone you make can hugely influence what you feel like playing in that moment.

Interesting topic. Our singer loves singing in G and i always wonder whether i should get a fiver for the sake of the low D. But then i ask meself the same question as you about covering old stuff. Even with originals, I wonder if low V is maybe too ponderous. But then i think, down = good, right? I too would like to hear what folks think about this.

On a fretless Squier VMJ, the smallest gap I can get between string and bridge pup on the E string is 1/4 inch. That's about twice what Fender suggest, and I'm wondering whether that means the bridge saddles are overextended. Other strings have the same problem. I have very little relief, no bumps on the neck (I've sanded down those nasty protruding placcy fret markers) and the action at the 20th fret on the E string is 1/4 inch. That's ok with me, cos I dig in a bit. The threaded legs of the E saddle are extended by about 6/16ths. That seems like a lot to me. Does this mean I need to shim the bridge the opposite way to the usual, ie shim at the neck end of the pocket rather than the body end? Or am i thinking wrongly about the whole thing?

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1063918' date='Dec 19 2010, 07:52 PM']That must be ebay's calculation to ship it to Ireland - it's showing up as £30 in mine (which I presume includes insurance). [/quote] Cripes. Wonder where eBay thinks we've drifted to? We were around where South Africa is but that was a while ago.

Love that bass. Good luck with the sale. Dunno where you're expecting to post it at £90, tho'

[quote name='JTUK' post='1060868' date='Dec 16 2010, 06:59 PM']This will depend on the quality of the bass and the set-up, IMV... You might also want to stay away from the bassier type strings[/quote] And on the topic of setup, having very little neck relief is helpful for mwah too.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='1060793' date='Dec 16 2010, 05:33 PM']Does a passive Wal actually "sound" like a Wal ... if you know what I mean?[/quote] Mine sure did. It was a joy in the studio, just plug in and play, and out came this lovely tone.

Mwah is better with rounds than flats imo. I find Elixir coated give more of a sweet singing sound than normal rounds. The coating seems to take the aggressive edge off, but they're still full of harmonics.

[quote name='Dom in Somerset' post='1060641' date='Dec 16 2010, 03:11 PM']W2176 on the neck plate. Single passive humbucker with coil tap, vol/tone It's got a big chunk out of the varnish on the bottom edge and some cracks. It came to me for set up and repairs, I've not seen a passive Wal before , any idea what one might sell for? [/quote] No idea what it's worth, but the early Wal Pros were passive. I had a black one just like this, way back. Foolishly sold it in an episode of brokeness. Edit: Worth about £100. Shall I paypal you?

[quote name='TheRev' post='1060594' date='Dec 16 2010, 02:27 PM']My first bass was a Jedson and to be honest, it was s#*t. I got rid of it after about 6 months. No ammount of tweaking or restoration will make an essentially crap bass sound good, unless you replace the neck, body, hardware and electronics..... If you're really, really not concerned about the sound and just want a retro looking bass to faff about with/spend money on, then fill your boots but it won't sound any better than your EB0 and a lot worse than the Jetking. All IMHO of course....[/quote] +1000 My first bass was a Jedson too, and it nearly put off the instrument for life Can you imagine a Jedson through a Selmer What was I thinking of? Don't waste your time. There's far better japcrap around than these.

[quote name='Martin E' post='1060518' date='Dec 16 2010, 12:49 PM']Going from fretted to fretless was fairly painless – the geat 'leap of faith' is playing that first gig on fretless particularly on a dark stage.[/quote] That's where decent sidemarkers really come in. You can put little dabs of fluorescent paint on (I used the end of the innards of a biro to dab them on. Quite neat.) They're a huge help if it's dark and you you can't hear yourself too well. You need to practice paying attention to the markers not the lines. If you do that, the transition to an unmarked board is easy. I would shift those markers to the right places though. It allows for very quick adjustments if you can;t hear or you've been leaping about more than is wise for a fretless player