msb

It appeared last week on kijiji for a market price , a blue reissue Samurai , the Yamaha SBV500. I have a yellow one , and spent some years looking for it. It’s one of the few long scale basses I regularly play , I think of it as being like a Jazz bass on steroids , but much funkier. And today got a call from some friends that work at our local L&M , the big music retailer in Canada. The blue Samurai had appeared at the store , they were going to move it for a really good price , and was I interested … 

Now I have a yellow one that I love , but I could not turn down the deal. I’ll pick it up tomorrow. And I’m flattered that they called me before they put it out! 
Sold!

Beauty , I love a nice Ric , I still get a little weak in the knees when I see one.

I found a Barefaced One 10 I’ve been using for rehearsals. It’s not much bigger than the C2 , and it will fill a room. 
 

Quite an amazing little cab. They are rare over here.

The MB200 is a great little amp , I found the HoTone underpowered , but gave it a lot of use as a headphone amp.

Darkglass e500 and C2. Also use a PhilJones BigHead for headphones.

I mostly play mid sized bars downtown , and in many venues am not in the PA.

No rack. Small stages. Amp , preamp , small cab and I’m good to go.

A friend , and great player.

I always ask my wife what she thinks before I buy something. She usually gives a big thumbs up so when she doesn’t I pay attention. It’s usually cabs that she doesn’t get. It’s hard to sell another black box coming in …

My condolences to you and your family.

I picked up a TMB30 as a mod project. I liked the shape , it reminded me of some of Paul Barth’s designs in the late 50’s. I had mixed first impressions. Neck dive , heavier than the basses I had been using ( to be fair I had been playing some very light short scales) and quite a wide chunky neck.

The neck is still chunky but I quickly became accustomed to it. The weight doesn’t bother me , and the dive is not severe.
Try the Gretsch G2220. Good price , not a bad little bass.

This getting older is not easy. 
 

BCDEG all end in eee and that’s all I hear all too frequently. My sense of mis direction was legend so that’s nothing new. I’ve learned not to panic when I don’t have signal. It’s usually operator error.
I simply try to get the job done without any drama.

Still love a good gig. Thankfully modern gear is light and manageable. And I no longer have to lug an Ampeg fridge around. 

I’d think so , you can run them clean , or grot them up , the tone stack is surgical. They’re very flexible , and with the various heads there’s a lot of choice. There’s reason for so many to swear by them. I know they weren’t available in the UK , but that is apparently changing. Try one out. 
I run a Bergantino rig , and a tube preamp. I also love Mesa. 

Don’t forget Mesa. 

I’ve heard the TH 500 has just been discontinued , many dealers still have stock , but there will be no more.

It is a great amp.

Rics are mid weights , not featherweights , but far from the weight of the heavy mid to late 70’s Fenders. 

I have a 4000 too , a burgundyglo set neck. And a 4001 , they have very similar necks. At first I thought I’d miss the neck pickup but I quickly came to appreciate the 4000 just as it is. I was an old Pbass guy and was accustomed to changing my hand position when I wanted tonal changes , rather than reaching for a knob. 
 

The 4000 is a beauty.

There is something about the Ric necks once you are accustomed to them , it’s probably the slight taper. I find whenever I pick up a Ric there’s that revelation. They really do feel like home. And they will be among the last things I ever sell.

But I’m sticking with the shortscales. 

Longhorns are great little basses. And the new ruby is a sight.

There’s still many that are playing fours. Some with a low B. 
 

I’ve had a number of fivers , but have never bonded.

They seem to have just about everything in Japan. 

Are those tuners on the front?

Recently turned 72 and still gigging. One local mentor has some years on me , and is still going strong. My barometer , if he can still manage some dignity and grace on the gig I feel there’s still some hope for me. 
He still nails it.

I remain optimistic.

4 hours ago, ossyrocks said:

Having been asked to join a newly forming band a few months ago, we’ve now got two hours worth of good material and a dozen gigs in the diary, the first being on Good Friday. I assembled my gear at home this week to do some assessment. I think the two 10’s with the Bergantino are reliably ample and are going to get the most use, but the Bassman has a great vintage valve tone and I’m hoping it will work too if I’m DI’d into FOH as well. 
Rob

Both wonderful setups , especially the Forte !

The big music retailer in Canada , L&M , apparently carry Darkstar , but I’ve never seen anything of theirs there.  

I picked up a used TMB30 , the short scale version. It’s got inherent neck dive , and the neck is fairly chunky. I replaced the bridge pickup with a Tbird humbucking pickup. I bought it to mod , I liked the basic shape as it reminded me of Paul Barth’s designs from the later 50’s.

I replaced the pickup and then got distracted and put it aside. Recently picked it up again and this time found the chunky neck quite comfortable. It came with black tape wounds , I think I’m going to replace those with LaBella light flats. Might replace the pots , I’d prefer something with a more even taper , we’ll see …

Mine sounds pretty good , no issues with fretwork or any build issues. I’ve been enjoying the time I spend on it. Surprisingly nice bass at that price point.