Conan

It's funny, but it's very rare that someone says "I've got a budget of £XXX, help me choose a four string bass!". Fives are still kind of regarded as a different instrument and approached with caution... I guess that mindset is a big factor here. If you approach it with an attitude of "I'll give it a try and see how I get on", you will quite probably enjoy five strings less than four, stop playing the five and subsequently sell it on. This is one of the reasons why there are so many low-to-mid range fives for sale in the used section! On the other hand, if you make the decision to switch full-time to a five string, go the whole hog and get the best one you can afford! That way, you are far less likely to find the change as challenging in that you are unlikely to be held back by the quality of the instrument. Obviously, there are some differences that are down to personal preference - tone, balance, string spacing, etc; but most manufacturers that make four string basses also make fives - so the choice is enormous! I envy you your budget, but as others have said - you could get a very decent instrument for a quarter to a third of that, especially if you buy a used instrument. And with the range and quality available on here, why would you not?! Good luck in your search and enjoy the journey!

[quote name='JPJ' post='1014155' date='Nov 6 2010, 12:22 PM']I find that only active basses with 18v preamps need the built in pad on the active input. All my 9v actives run better through the passive input IMHO. That said, I tend to leave the eq on the bass fairly flat and use little tweaks to compensate for room dynamics etc. This might not be the case if you whack everything on full on the bass.[/quote] Totally agree. Even my 18V Status is fine through the passive input on my LH500 - but I tend to have the tone controls set flat (i.e. centred - no cut or boost). Some active basses seem to have pretty low outputs while some passives can be pretty loud! As WH says - use your ears. If it sounds OK it's highly unlikely that you are doing any damage.

[quote name='chris_b' post='1014200' date='Nov 6 2010, 01:02 PM']Active and passive inputs on an amp are there to help people who haven't managed to master the gain control.[/quote] Maybe... but there IS no gain control on the LH500!!

Back in the market!! Any serious offers considered - one can but ask.

[quote name='Doctor J' post='1016167' date='Nov 8 2010, 11:15 AM']Just see how it goes first. These guys might put in on energetic and engaging show which will make all your worries vanish.[/quote] Yes. Have the other band members played many gigs or are they quite inexperienced? On a personal level, I do think that if there are no butterflies before a gig there is something not quite right... I also think that you have just been unlucky in your experiences with the NE band scene so far. Having said that, my band is now struggling after losing our singer and being unable to find a decent replacement!

How often do you gig? How long are you planning to give the new bassist to learn the set? How many tracks are in the set? Do you play pubs or clubs? Any original material? Etc, etc. I may well be interested - but would need to know a bit more!

Classic quote on the subject. I believe it was credited to Wilko Johnson: "If you make a mistake, just look brash -and the audience will think they heard it wrong!".

[quote name='jonthebass' post='1011633' date='Nov 4 2010, 08:05 AM']I'd seriously listen to this advice. Bill knows his stuff and it makes me wonder about my setup now...[/quote] Why? If you like the sound "and presumably the lightness) of your set-up, why change it?

[quote name='skychaserhigh' post='1010778' date='Nov 3 2010, 02:00 PM']Perhaps i'm just not as much of a gear junkie as some of you !! Cheers , Dave.[/quote] There's a very strong possibility of that being true!

[quote name='skychaserhigh' post='1010609' date='Nov 3 2010, 12:01 PM']I'm taking my name off the compact tour list. Seems the 2 week maximum time for keeping it has been totally ignored and i have lost interest due to the long wait since it was first announced !! Cheers , Dave.[/quote] Some of those delays were caused by logistical problems, and some as a result of pretty horrific personal injuries to one of the guys further up the list - so your comments seem slightly heartless and crass IMO...

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='1007897' date='Oct 31 2010, 09:46 PM']Neither head felt like it was working particularly hard, to be honest...[/quote] Agreed. When I used it, my LH500 was only on a volume setting of around 6 - and that was against a very loud drummer and two guitars! Sensitivity would appear to be the key...

I've never noticed any hiss on my LH500, but I mostly use it at full band rehearsals at pretty high volume, so any background hiss would not be noticeable anyway.... I have heard other users refer to hiss from these amps, but I can only speak as I find! Then again, my Status is beautifully screened and uses quality components so it doesn't produce any hiss. I don't use any effects either, so there's another source of noise eliminated. I would have thought that it was only a real problem if you were recording the bass through a mike rather vthan DI'ed - particularly if the speakers themselves are contributing to the hiss...

I'm fairly sure that Stringbusters do...

Looks like a 1950s radio.... Not keen.

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='995370' date='Oct 20 2010, 10:02 PM'] Still, better to find out now than when you're trying to judge whether you can make the leap over a 200ft george filled with ravenous alligators. With lasers on their heads.[/quote] I think that most of us would be able to estimate that 200ft was rather too far to jump - alligators or not! Besides, who's this George of which you speak?

[quote name='Chris2112' post='994967' date='Oct 20 2010, 03:43 PM']I generally don't like it so low that it's flapping and creating buzz. A little bit of tension can be nice to help you get those finger funk lines grooving! Like here we have a video of a lovely Status S2 classic and it just sounds like a load of crap because the strings are buzzing and clacking off the frets. If the action were raised a tiny bit it would sound so much better![/quote] A lot of that fret noise and clack is acoustic and wouldn't be heard at gig volume, but it does indicate that the action is set too low - which will inevitably result in loss of tone and sustain. Just because the action [i]can[/i] go low, doesn't mean it [i]should[/i]! I'm another heavy-handed player, so I tend to have the action on the high side. But it's an interesting point that people have raised about the amplification that you have played through. As I guess most of us started on small and low powered amps, does that cause you to dig in more while you are still learning? Does that then become part of your technique? I'm guessing that it does.

[quote name='purpleblob' post='994471' date='Oct 20 2010, 09:31 AM']I like the shape on the Monarch but I'm not mad on the whole Yin Yang look, it's a little pretentious to me (obviously VW can get away with it, but I don't feel I could ). But each to their own.[/quote] Me too. Was that design inspired by/for VW or was his Yin/Yang album inpsired by the bass? Either way, it seems like a kind of signature bass without the signature. True though, only other bass players (and even then, only some of them) would know who Wooten was. I like the body shape, but don't like this particular option. Horses for courses though I guess.

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='994535' date='Oct 20 2010, 10:39 AM']It was made in the 70s though, so it weighs a ton.[/quote]

[quote name='Sibob' post='994215' date='Oct 19 2010, 10:50 PM']Might I point out that weight is subjective depending on ones stature! Chill out all! Si[/quote] Not quite! Boffin head on now... Weight is not subjective. It is absolute unless either a). the mass of the bass changes or . the earth's gravitational pull changes. As I assume that neither are about to happen, then the weight is a constant. However, the perception of weight is definitely subjective! Takes off pedant's hat. WoT, that bass looks like your colour! Not fancy it mate?

[quote name='Delberthot' post='988715' date='Oct 15 2010, 12:56 AM']I use 3 songs for my right hand workout - Phantom of the Opera, The Trooper and Parallel Universe by the Chilis[/quote] Doesn't Flea use a pick on Parallel Universe? If you play that with your fingers you must be a glutton for punishment!

IME many players who use tapping a lot have low actions and fairly light gauge strings - makes the whole thing a lot easier if you think such things are worth doing (which personally, I don't! ). If lack of "strength" was a factor, I think you might be fighting against a bass that is set up wrongly for this style?

Is it normal for the machine heads to look so dull and oxidised in a Fender of this age? Or is that some kind of "custom finish"?