Sparky Mark

Cheers. Hopefully you won’t need to do too much disassembly to get to the underside of the PCB. Old solder joints and connectors can be rather fragile and crack when disturbed, causing more issues. Desoldering large caps can also be a bit of a PITA, due to needing a fair amount of energy from the soldering iron to melt the solder sufficiently to remove without lifting the PCB track/pad. You are very lucky to have a friend with the knowledge to help fix your amp.

That's good information; no disrespect intended towards your friend. I recently replaced some swollen but still working capacitors in a 1980s NAD amplifier because I could see they were damaged. The good news is that new capacitor technology has moved on and you should be able to find replacements in smaller packages.

That's good news re the front panel illumination; I guess it's possible a previous owner preferred the panel unlit? Is 100Hz hum a known symptom of failing PSU capacitors? Before doing any desoldering or replacement of parts, I'd recommend you get a knowledgeable amp tech to take a look. Of course, it may be impossible to get that head to be completely silent or hum free simply because of noise on your mains supply or other radio frequency interference. On a gig, additional noise is very often present for various reasons, but isn't a real problem because of other background noise.

Is the pedal definitely the correct one for the head? (there may be different versions for different generations of head). I would expect that once the pedal is connected that it takes precedence, and probably best not to use the head's switches. Are all of the switches on both the head and pedal momentary or latching? (The type of each switch on the pedal should be the same as the one on the head). If all the lights on the head are on, what happens when you insert the pedal connector? (Do all hot switching tests with master volume at zero). If certain pedal switches don't work every time they are pressed, it could be they need their contacts cleaning. It could also be worth cleaning the pins and female pin sockets on the head. Although there are many switch cleaning products available, I'd recommend Deoxit D5.

I expect the Chinese Hofner (Contemporary and Ignition) violin basses outsell the German built ones many, many times over, which couldn't have helped. As an example, out of curiosity I bought a couple of the cheapest Hofner Ignition violins to decide a) whether I liked violins at all, and b) which pickup positions I preferred. I chose the Ignition basses because their construction is a little closer to the hollow body originals, not having the full maple centre block of the Contemporaries. I then very briefly owned a genuine German violin bass, but to be honest, the Ignitions got pretty darn close sound, feel and weight-wise so the German went back and I still have the Ignition. It may get gigged when I need a featherweight shortscale in my old(er) age. It's a shame when anything "iconic" disappears, but such is commerce.

Yep

Could all law abiding Basschatters keep an eye out for this bass stolen from a mate's local pub in Harlow this week please? It was the pub's bass used by all at their open jam nights. Unfortunately, the manufacturer isn't clear from the photos but it should be recognisable, especially if offered for sale online in the near future. Any info, please direct message me, many thanks.

I had a bass collected by Lenspeed when I sold it on here. The purchaser arranged it, and everything went to plan. The chap that collected was really nice and explained they do a lot of moving of expensive guitars for an auction house. If you go on their website I believe it explains prices for fully insured shipping. Probably the only company I would consider for £800 +++ instruments. Single Guitar Delivery from just £55 - Lenspeed Logistics https://share.google/qkd6eyxpC2fGs5uhX

Also true.

True, maybe Cozy just wasn't considered innovative enough to be included?

Having tried LM2 and SA450 heads in dealerships in 2008 a couple times I just didn't hear what all the fuss was about. However, the first time I played through an LM2 was at an open jam night at The Square, Harlow. It was driving an old Laney (or Peavey, the memory fades) 410 and sounded amazing in the mix, with the trademark MB punch. From that point onwards I've gigged MB ten times more often than my other amps.

I guess it could've been difficult to include Cozy without some of the circumstances surrounding his tragic premature death?

I'm definitely a fan and have bought way too many cheapish secondhand so I'll never need to use a Markbass authorised repair service. I gigged an SA450 and TRV102P last night in a large pub to decent effect. I was on the limit however, so really should've taken my pair of NY121P cabs, but just about got way with it. I also use a Markbass Compressore and Rafferty HPF to reduce wasted low end amp power. The Compressore also adds a nice 12ax7 warmth.

Since feeling a little disappointed by the lack of imagination shown in this series, I've restored my fascination with bass by rediscovering Graham Maby's brilliant playing on Joe Jackson's first two albums, Look Sharp! and I'm the Man, both from 1979. A change in my circumstances has enabled me to retrieve my teenage vinyl collection after decades in storage, and these were there, unplayed this century. I was 16 when I bought these albums and was inspired then, and even more impressed 46 years later. At only 26, Graham had pretty much mastered what he was doing. Every track on these albums is worth listening to in my opinion, for his catchy, skillful, melodic basslines that are front and centre in the mix. Each album is under 40 minutes long, with influences from new wave, reggae, rock, blues and probably more, so if you've never done so, have a listen, Graham is one of the best IMO.

I remember the Art of Drumming series featured more than just rock drummers and was really interesting. Although I am glad it's been made, I think the heavy bias towards rock a bit unimaginative.

Only seen episodes 1 and 2 so far. I found episode 2 pretty boring with mostly "agricultural" Grade 1 level playing. Maybe that's why they shoehorned in Larry Graham and Mark King, to counter the impression it was giving that bass can be mastered in a couple of hours? I did appreciate confirmation of my excuse for not singing anything more than oohs and aahs backing however; it's bloody difficult!

I've just watched the first episode. Not a massive PH fan, but enjoyed all the contributions. Definitely worth watching because it covers all styles, not just PH.

You're welcome. It only takes about 5 to 10 minutes and saves a fortune unless you have to start each gig with super bright zingy strings.

Loosen each dull string, one at a time, until you can pull it up from the fretboard about an inch to an inch and a half. Let it slap hard back down on to the fretboard, repeat this moving your lifting position up and down the fretboard about 20 times or more. Then retune that string. It will then be brighter than before. Compare to the brightness of the other strings before moving to the next string. I think it has nothing to do with removing dust/grime, it's more to do with relaxing the outer roundwound wire from the central core. Then repeat for the other strings.

Deleted. Didn't read the first post correctly. Doh!