4 Strings

Very nice to meet Jonnyboy, here's one taken by the present Mrs 4Strings as an option [attachment=149937:P8050127.JPG] The bass will hopefully be a-groovin in the next shot

Sounds like it's getting there…...

You're All I Need to Get By (Aretha version)

[quote name='BassTractor' timestamp='1386007202' post='2294556'] Wow! One or two more analogies and this has to be moved again - now to the Humour in Music forum! [/quote] What about putting Amir Khan in the ring with Mike Tyson?

It's all very easy to be saying how we would and wouldn't be doing stuff, but in pubs gear sharing is part of the process. Is your cab actually blown (I know you say so in the title) or are you just miffed that you've been walked over by a clown (as your message reads)? If it's damaged definitely try to get hold of him, although I think you'd be lucky to get anything more than half the costs from him, after all (looking from his point of view) you've lent him your dodgy cab, it just happened to blow when he was using it, why should he pay for your repairs? Beyond polite and less than polite requests and demands, unless you want to risk getting some of your mates round him I honestly don't think there's much you can do. However, unless he's an absolute *rse he should trump up something. I suspect he'll be a lot less lary on his own.

Its a bit like saying 'my car can do 120mph, will I cause damage if I drive it at 100?' To carry on the car analogy, overpowering would be like putting a lorry engine into a go-kart chassis. Apply any real power and it will twist it into a knot. Underpowering would be like putting a go-kart engine into a lorry. It won't have enough guts to really get it going. You're asking about putting a 1300cc engine in a 1500cc hatchback. It'll be fine, just would work a little harder if you pushed things to the limit.

[quote name='Donnyboy' timestamp='1385539057' post='2289356'] We could make it happen and bring her back to Scotland for a holiday. I've got a gig on the 20th which is the bands 30th anniversary & is likely to be our last, and may be my last gig - hope not though. I'll pm you. If noone is ripping 4Strings arm off after 13th Dec I'll make arrangements for it to come back up & we'll try & get some Scottish action going . Someones bound to have a Hogmany gig. [/quote] Great, let's get it up there, especially for Hogmany! (I'll be ripping my own arm off for the 14th Dec! That's the main gig for it, the 13th will be a bonus if I have it)

Ok, I know no-one wants to see any more words without pics, but I am unbelievably busy at the moment, which is a good thing. BUT, I am also unbelievably happy, I've got the D nice and punchy by some simple pup adjustment. Played with them before, of course, but went for it a bit more, just winding the bass side away and lifting the treble side. This has made the G loud, but I'm taking that as a blessing and can adapt for it and, in fact, find it useful (to get those little octave pops on Thinking of You, for example). Really looking forward to a gig on Friday when I can give it another go. They are a tight fit in their cavities and I might need them to tilt a bit more to finally settle on the right position, but I'm feeling quite relieved at the moment. Pics to come as soon as I get a moment to do them - I'm liking it a lot more now!

[quote name='Jonnyboy Rotten' timestamp='1385335379' post='2287215'] No takers? I will be in Nottingham next weekend if anyone wants to use the baton? 4Strings wants it within a couple of weeks though. [/quote] He does! Also the time he wants it is getting closer and so the likelihood of someone else taking it in the meantime is reducing so maybe he should just come and get it. Last call for any takers before the 13th Dec!

Heath is doing his best all the way along. He's a really great guy. Had a great gig with it on Saturday (Supersonic Funk Band - covers in a pub). It plays beautifully and gives a lovely punchy sound, an I love that I can flick the pup switch to P or MM. Whack up the treble and there's the slap sound for Ain't Nobody. Also the finish is robust - it took a knock there but with no effect at all, my old red Stingray would have shed a little flake of red lacquer, I'm sure. It's proving itself as the Utility Bass it was intended to be, just need to solve the D! The good news is that I made it worse by fiddling, so, presumably I must be able to make it better! Been thinking about those Fat Fingers, they apparently work, but I can't see how they're different from my grabbing hold of the neck, even the end of it. I want to go for a different pup switch to get the coil configuration I want, already been talking to Heath about that, he's suggested a Strat 'Superswitch' with 20 odd connections so that any configuration of coils and switch positions can be set up. When this happens (probably when the tuner gets fitted - when it finally arrives!) the electronics will all be rewired anyway, that would be a good time to review things. In the meantime we're heading into another busy week of rehearsals and gigs, more use for the UB! Yes - I will get some pics sorted!

[quote name='Jonnyboy Rotten' timestamp='1385111399' post='2284505'] I can either meet Grangur in Hemel or meet 4 Strings at say, South Mimms services on the M25? PM me if you want to collect it. [/quote] Does anyone want the bass between now and the 13th Dec? If not I'll arrange to pick it up.

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1384700789' post='2279613'] I could collect it tomorrow from Johnny in Hemel. I travel about a bit and can arrange to drop it with anyone else who's doing a gig in the South, South-east, London, Anglia area. Any takers? [/quote] Yep, I'd like to confirm my desire for it on the 14th Dec in East London (I'm in Romford, Essex). I also get about a bit and so, unless someone needs it in the meantime, I'm sure we can arrange something to pick it up. (I could also use it on the 13th Dec)

For me, however interesting a R********r bass may be, their CEO has made himself so objectionable I could never enjoy actually owning one.

Isn't there someone on here who has an arrangement to source those? Just get a copy, easy to find, you may find it better than the original. And have the satisfaction of flying in the face of the world domination desires of a certain 'CEO'. Let us know how it goes when you contact him, won't you.

Yeah, good point. (I've been up to my neck in work and mixing an album for my band - spare time is very short. However, I've been busy playing and the bass is getting all the use). Heath came round for a morning, sorted out the wiring with no problem, had a go at the frets and solved the G buzzing in a couple of places. (as mentioned, the original set-up was a bit rushed) At the moment though, it's all about the sound. I don't know if everyone else finds this, but it takes me a while to get the sound sorted with any new bass, especially one with a complex (well, certainly for me anyway!) preamp. I wonder that I'd rather a single pup! To cut a very long story short I've had a problem with trying to balance out the strings. The G seems loud, the D quiet, the E is an almighty destroyer! What could be more awkward, a singing G and E but pups which can only be adjusted at the ends. The cutting the story short bit jumps straight to taking out one of the two batteries. The extreme bass boost from an 18V East preamp was more than I could control, 9V brought things back to normal and I have an ace sounding bass! The neck pup (a P winding but in a J shaped box) sounds like a great P and is very powerful. I've wound it into the body and the volume between the two have balanced out. The MM pup is very funky, gives a good clear sound with that MM punch. The J coil in the MM pup does it's job and sounds like a j! I don't know why the P should be louder than a twin coil humbucker, I will pursue it with their maker. I have to say the E gives a resounding, clear tone. The construction and the wood, or whatever physical things contribute give this a string, deep, non-boomy tone down the bottom there. The D has improved with the removal of the second battery but it is still quiet. It's like a the flat spot on the G at the 5th/6th fret on Fenders but on the D. I've tried a different string, top loading the string to no difference. I'd like to try a Fat Finger, but don't have one, and when I get time, I'll experiment with blue-tac and coins (or something similar) to see if I can change the resonant frequency of the neck and, if so, whet edit improves things. I've let Heath know and he's come up with a couple of ideas. It doesn't stop me playing the bass at all, but I'm just lacking that bit of 'pow' from the D. (I will try a completely different make of string It has Newtones at the moment, Heath's fave and mine too, but I'll put a Roto on and see what happens.) The G really goes, compared to a Fender it hs not dead spots at all and sings all the way. This appears more pronounced than it is being next to the quieter D. Sort the D and I'll be a happy bunny. Other important things, like the body being lighter than my Stingray, very comfortable and the whole nicely balanced on the strap, the asymmetric neck, the semi-sunken controls etc are all good but kind of taking second place to the D. It's a sensitive bass, needs a soft touch and can express a lot of feel, makes my old P seem a little agricultural. I'm getting progressively happier with the bass with use and sorting, it gets gasps from other interested parties when they see it. I love the green, the neck really looks amazing and it is beautifully made. I'm using it for everything and it's getting on with its job as a Utility Bass as intended, albeit probably too pretty for that! Any ideas for reducing the effect of a flat spot gratefully received. Of course, the best way would be to have the sandwich neck construction on most custom (and all other Ruach) and high end basses. The one piece was my choice, may be not the best? We'll see.

Just bought a Selmer Treble n Bass 100 for the boy, desperate for a valve amp. Works fine, sounds great, knobs quiet etc. But, if it's turned up beyond half way (which is pretty loud to be fair) there is a horrible clipping/overload sort of noise, a loud, high pitched crack sound which sounds quite destructive. Any ideas? It's obviously 40 odd years old but has JJ EL34 output valves and electro-harmonix pre-amp valves and so these are not going to be too old. (There's another valve next to one of the transformers, can't see what that is, nor know what it does!). Any ideas? A capacitor on the way out? I noticed the plastic covers to the connections on the output side of the mains switch have become hot at some stage and are browned. Apart from that it seems to be in good nick, with a Precision sounds really great!

[quote name='wombatboter' timestamp='1384419482' post='2276371'] Always been a fan of bridge pick-ups... couldn't stand too bassy tones and I needed to cut through with my Wal basses, Alembic, jazz-basses, etc... My hand reached for that bridge position whenever I picked up a bass and felt comfortable there. It was only because of nostalgia that I bought this '71 Precision here on bass-chat (Fischer Z, The Pretenders, Joe Jackson.. they all had these white Fender-ish basses) and I saw it as a present for my own birthday. I hadn't expected how much it would change my way of playing... found myself playing with a different feel and was surprised that even with those flatwounds (which I associated with blues-players who absolutely wouldn't want to be heard, not even by dogs) the sound was very present and lively. It's like again a door has been opened by a great instrument and I feel a bit more like a "bass" player again without "sacrificing" anything.. Can't wait to see how it will affect my playing in different bands.. Recorded a bit of noodling in the key of G. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKKXQMD_Xn8[/media] [/quote] Sounds like you're having fun! Would the next stop on the journey be rolling to tone control off...?

Yep, read through that bass chat thread, some great advice in there and then do it! If you don't want screaming distortion a lower gain valve in V1 makes a huge improvement to the amp and its useful output, but will still give you loads of overdrive, if you want it, with the button pressed. I can thoroughly recommend it, if this is what you want.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1383908788' post='2270606'] The magnet damping the string because the pickup is too close because of people trying to raise the g volume is the chief suspect, lower the whole pickup right down and raise the treble end until it gives a nice clear output with no magnet damping then in a band setting (most important imo) raise or lower the bass side until the bass has an even output, simples as annoying people say [/quote] This. I suppose it could be considered a fault but it's really not a problem if you do this. I have another bass (not a Stingray) with a weak D and A. Awkward (any advice welcome!)

Get on with using your bass and stop fussing about things like not slacking off the strings.

I was finding that after a gig my voice sounded like I'd been at a football match. I put it down to useless bv technique, but the same was happening when I wasn't singing. 'Er indoors pointed out that I sing the bass line as a play. I didn't know. I had to consciously stop, but I'm not sure I have.

Looking a bit old now. Thing is, the unknown kid with decent chops would have required all sorts of investment of time and patience from a number of people there and, in the end you get the playing of a kid with some decent chops. With Pino there came no baggage just first class playing with little rehearsal and lead in. I'm no NIN fan, but it seems a bit boring to have Pino even if thebass sounds really good (I still baulk at him being in the Who for similar reasons) but there's is a professional world with different values and timescales than ours.

We dreamt of a school bass. Our music block was a piece of rolled up newspaper left in the middle of t' road.

Nothing to report as yet, rehearsal got cancelled earlier in the week so it's straight in with a gig tomorrow night for that set. In the meantime I've been playing at home every day and fiddling. Slowly getting the action sorted and sounds organised. However this is all a little bit of a waste of effort as Heath is popping by tomorrow to go over the frets and to check the wiring, and we think one coil of the MM Pup may be out of phase so action and sound is likely to change (improve?). It's difficult to 'love' a new thing because it's expected to do everything perfectly. Only when it has shown to be faithful etc does it become loved, just like the faithful old banger that always got you home at night years ago! It's going to take a while to become 'mine', I've learnt that first (usually enthusiastic) impressions are not the most important. The bass will become mine once it's been played in for a while longer and fiddled to suit my every nuance and loved when it can be relied upon to do the business. I've no doubt it will reach these stages, every reason why it should. (Just been doing some editing/mixing on some recordings earlier this year, my Stingray was so twangy! Big eq changes required for soul music. The Utility bass has an exceptionally big, mellow P sound from the neck pup, can't wait to use it in anger for soul. Have to wait a week or so for that, get some gunk in those new strings in the meantime.) Will post up some pics when I get time to do them. It has an unusual 'look' about it in real life, almost as if it's a cartoon caricature of a bass.

I've used Stingrays as no.1 bass for a while now, 1980, 2002 and 2007. Soft 'G'. The pups have very strong magnets, if they get too close to the string the sound weakens and has a sort phased effect to it. Set the pup further away and set it to optimise on the 'G', then set the 'E' side of it to balance. It is a common mistake to move the pup too close to the 'G' to make it louder, but the optimum point is not as close as possible, but 4-5mm away. Unless someone has posted it before, this is the worst place to go for GAS. However, you can find out almost everything you need to know, including the likely age of your bass. I promise you, you will pay anything for an old 'Ray having spent too long here. http://www.musicmanbass.org For me, the most important change was the necks. The early Pre-EBs have wonderful slim (front to back) necks that I love. The recent basses seem to have baseball bats in comparison. Also they have man size string spacing, which I also love. Maybe I just I love pre-EB Stingrays! Oh, and the 2007 one I had weighed a ton!