Jackroadkill

Not much difference between these two, other than colour and scratchplate type the main difference is that the black bass has a Himass bridge and the white one doesn't. I've added a thumb block to the white one and if I enjoy it will do the same to the black. They're just bog standard Player basses and I love them. Simple, effective and they play and sound great. The black one is for standard tuning and the white one for full D / weird tunings (one of the guys in the band keeps talking about Soundgarden covers and I'm hoping the bass can cope with the demented tunings required).

The XL one that I mentioned above is properly XL, Adey. I use mine on its shortest setting. I'm only a mere 1.8m, but I reckon it would probably do for someone your height.

I use a Rosedale extra-long padded leather strap that I got from Ebay for thirty quid; UK designed and made, and very comfortable. It's 60mm wide, padded but not too thick and is made of nice soft leather: I also have an old leather Levy's strap which I love but it's just a bit too short, so I think I'll order another one of the above straps for my other bass.

I think a family of ravenous hamsters lived in it for a while, and somewhere along the line the back half of the casing went walkabout. I inherited it as a project and haven't done much with it yet. That said, I'm beginning to think about getting it up and running, at which point I'll give it back to the original owner.

I've got two-thirds of a Mutron III in my attic, where it's been for years waiting for me to rebuild it. Sod's Law says that when I investigated it last week with a view to actually getting it going it made this happen.

Thanks for all the suggestions - I'll have a butchers at the videos suggested this evening.

I use a T-Rex Fuel Tank Classic; not the cheapest but very reliable, solid as a rock, has no impact on tone or function of pedals, creates no interference or anything like that. They can be had for about a hundred pounds new, and supply 1.5a of current, so you can run plenty of pedals simultaneously without sucking it dry.

Thanks very much to everyone who's contributed. I'm slowly working through all of the suggestions and watching Youtube videos (if only every video was clear and simple, and wasn't just an opportunity for endless widdling...) to get my head around what I actually need. A decent DI driven by a proper pre-amp section is probably the most important aspect as I have an overdrive pedal that I can stick in front of it if needed. I'm tending towards the Laney Digbeth DB-PRE, the Tech 21 VDTI or the Bass Butler at the moment, but will keep looking because I want to get the right pre-amp. I'm not really interested in one as a pedal, it's to replace my amp when space is at a premium. Again, thanks very much to you all - I really appreciate the time you've taken to help a newbie out. JRK

I bought some strap locks from Alain and can't speak highly enough of him - he even went out in the snow to post them to me so that I'd get them as soon as possible! I thoroughly recommend dealing with him. Thanks, JRK

Thanks chaps, I'm at work now so I'll have a proper read of your suggestions when I get home this evening. Thanks very much for your input - it looks like there are plenty of candidates for consideration.

Rock covers, mainly from the last 30 years, so a bit of growl would be welcome. Budget can be up to about £300 if necessary but if what I'd like can be had for less that would be ideal.

Hi all, as a newbie to both the forum and the bass I was hoping that some of you might be able to help me regarding a pre-amp with DI to replace my stage amp when playing small gigs. What I'm looking for is decent tone (subjective, I know....), some gain/overdrive for certain songs and an XLR out to the desk. I know there are lots available but this is something I'm not au fait with at all, being a refugee from six-string land where plugging into the PA is Just Not Done. I'm scouring YouTube for ideas but it can be hard to avoid the sneaky sell. I have played the Orange Bass Butler and quite liked it, but that would really be the top end of my budget. If any of you have any advice or experience please let me know what you'd suggest. Thanks very much, JRK

Our singer's name is Dave Jackson, so we are The (Dave) Jackson Five, or (D)JV for short.

Those strings must be flats, right?

Hohner Arbour series (plywood P-bass copy) Hohner B Bass V (awful pointy thing) Westone Thunder (brutal, especially with Trubass strings; I ended up giving that one away to a young lady. Should have kept it) Aria roundback electro-acoustic (again, awful, but Paul Barker played something similar so it had to be cool, right?) Fender Jazz MIM (great bass, sold it to buy a PA....) Fifteen year gap Squier Jazz (plywood MIK jobby, doesn't play that well but sounds great) Fender Player P bass (black, superb, slightly modded) Fender Player P bass (white, thanks to @dmc79, again, superb). I think I'll stick with the three I now have.

Were you in Dirtbox Disco, too?

I bought a lovely Player Series Precision from Dave and it arrived safely today. Dave is a pleasure to deal with; the sale was agreed on Saturday night and the bass was in my hand on Tuesday afternoon. Can't say fairer than that! Cheers, JRK

I'm in the process of putting together my first "proper" covers band with my friends and my brother. When we first floated the idea we all suggested a ton of songs (mostly '80s and '90s alternative rock tracks) based on what we liked that wasn't typical pub-covers-band material. When there was a pool of about 60 songs we started getting rid of the ones that anyone said "Sorry, I can't bring myself to play that" about, and then we learned the three that were left! No, I'm being silly, of course... We ended up with a core of about thirty five that we judge to be really solid, interesting, unusual, fun etc etc and are working our way through them. No gigs lined up yet (well, not until the summer), so we reckon we'll have time to get a pretty decent set/sets together before we inflict ourselves on anyone. We'll have to prune out any which get negative reactions, I suppose - guaranteed to be all the ones I like the best. What's wong with the extended Canadian Club Mix of the 1984 version of Temple Of Love, that's what I want to know?!

Yes, that would have been her. Quite a forthright lady, as I recall, but she was nice to me when I asked for her autograph. Incredibly sexy black Jazz Bass, too.

Not as cool as your story, but I managed to get Patricia Morrison to sign my copy of Floodland.

I'm fully aware that you lot will be able to play this in your sleep, but hey, I'm a beginner! I'm absolutely loving playing this in my living room, and it's coming to band practise with me for the first time on Monday night. Wish me luck...

Yes, it's not a bad start. I mean, it's not an SVT but I'm only a beginner! Thanks very much for the welcome.