BottomE

Its not easy working out the nuances of Jazz Bass pricing. There are usually some nice ones going in the For Sale section here though (i got both of mine from here) and buy from someone with decent feedback and you should be ok.

[quote name='Doddy' post='1332106' date='Aug 8 2011, 02:11 PM']Why do you feel you should learn some scales before you have lessons? If you go to a good teacher you will learn these early on anyway and will be more likely to learn how they work and understand them rather than copying a finger pattern off the Internet,which is what a lot of people do.[/quote] I think that scales are fairly easy to comprehend at starter level. I can't help think that paying someone £25 + per hour to show you a C Major scale is a bit of a waste of money when it is something that can be acquired with a little effort.

[quote name='guildbass' post='1332153' date='Aug 8 2011, 02:48 PM']Well, I sold my Guild B302 for a very good price to what appeared to be an American lawyer. After 24 hours with no contact whatsoever I tracked down the lawyers phone number and called only to discover that she was allowing a Kazakhstani buyer use the account. Naturally, alarm bells started ringing and I told her quite firmly that if i didn't get payment via Paypal (no Western Union etc etc ) within 12 hours, I'd let it go to the next highest bidder. To my surprise the money arrived, The bass has been posted (very well packed and insured) to Kazakhstan. A couple of things... If you have a rare or unusual bass, this buy might bid. His ebay name is vl.den and the ebay account is in the name of Elena Paremsky 993 Bray Rd Williamston, MI 48895-9771 United States. They are genuine. The guy from Kazakhstan, VL.den, otherwise known as Denis Trussevich is a keen collector of kit including valve Hi Fi and has a bit of a thing for Guilds... Elena was very apologetic that the money hadn't arrived and was very quick to sort things out... Anyway...Just thought I'd pass the info along in case others have to go through that process of crapping themselves when it looks like a foreign scammer has just trashed a ten day listing! Next, my Bird Golden Eagle Amplifier and maybe the Fretless! regards Jon (no longer Guildbass...Sob!)[/quote] S,nice

[quote name='Gaffophone' post='1331418' date='Aug 7 2011, 09:42 PM']Well I must say that Pau is a beautiful town and the whole region is gorgeous. Paris is cool for a few days but I can't imagine living in such an environment ![/quote] Yes, the whole south west is beautiful. We just had a holiday around Capbreton, Anglet, Bayonne and then a visit to Pau to see old friends. Paris is fantastic. I didn't have children at that time - just me and my wife so we really enjoyed our time there. We lived in the 13eme near Chinatown and Place D'Italie. I was lucky enough to have played in a 7 piece funk band in Paris - my French is rubbish but we communicated by funk! Happy days. Here is me and kids at the Fete de Bayonne [attachment=86508:bayonne_with_dada.jpg]

Get a bit of knowledge before lessons if possible. There are some great resources on the net as some have mentioned. At least learn major and minor scales then find a teacher. Take time to find a bass teacher and not a guitar teacher masquerading as a bass teacher. Chord tones are essential to creating bass lines so if you are creating your own bass lines a knowledge of chords and how they are constructed is extremely valuable.

Hiya based on the £75 Squier Precision i got off of Ebay and have gigged i would say YES go for it. Worst thing that could happen is you hate it then you sell it again for around the same kind of money. I had a spell on 5 strings and the transition didn't take long at all. A day or so and after that it was pretty natural playing a 5 string. I ditched my 5's though as i didn't like the feel of the larger neck. It wasn't a problem to play it was just unatural to me. All my fav players are mainly 4 string players so if its good enough for them its good enough for me.

[quote name='Gaffophone' post='1331272' date='Aug 7 2011, 07:24 PM']Merci à vous tous ! Thanks a lot ! Next step: try to answer in an existing thread @ Dad3353: je suis à Dijon depuis peu, originaire de Besançon... toujours dans l'Est quoi. Merci pour le piège avec "terrible" [/quote] I lived in paris for 3 years and Pau for 2 years. Les annees parfait! My first child was born in Pau and is officially Basque! As you can guess i love France. A +

[quote name='4 Strings' post='1330577' date='Aug 7 2011, 01:58 AM']So do the better players have the boutique gear? Does boutique gear mainly get aired in bedrooms with a sequence pedal for company?[/quote] I have found no correlation between the price of an instrument and the players ability in reality. There are some really tasty players i know using "normal" gear and some players who are at the lower end of the ability spectrum using boutique stuff Last night i did a gig on a £75 Squier

[quote name='steve-bbb' post='1331085' date='Aug 7 2011, 05:18 PM']AND if you go for a hartke you get serious bang for your buck without shelling out huge amounts of beer tokens recommendation for gigging for anybody wanting a good solid clean sound and tone whilst watching the budget would be a squier P or J and a Hartke combo [/quote] Right heres the downside. I was telling my goodly Mrs BottomE about this and she was delighted. She said i can sell my expensive basses and replace them with Squiers

Buzzin - played a cocktail bar in centre of town we have been doing for 4 years now. Got a pay increase! Yes, they said we were one of the best and most reliable bands that they have. Two encores, queues to get in all night and though i am happily married i enjoyed watching all the young girls strutt their stuff. Nights like this make all the practice worth it. Peace.

[quote name='Gaffophone' post='1329119' date='Aug 5 2011, 07:14 PM']Hi everybody ! My name is Anthony aka Gaffophone, I'm pretty shy, especially on boards in english, that's why I did not register before. Now it's done and I hope you won't be afraid by my english Anyway, I'm a french bass player since nearly twenty years now (ouch... I'm so aged ?) A few years ago I bought a BN5 (natural grain) which was dream for me since a loooong time. That's my only bass since I'm not this kind of player who needs many models. I can play just one at a time and need months and years to really know a bass (who thought "like a woman" ) I played a long time in a Big Band and many little pop/rock bands. Well, I don't really what to tell you... if you have questions, please ask See you ![/quote] Bienvenue mon ami.

Heres the lowdown. Checked the tuning before playing and the bass had been standing on the stage in an air conditioned club for about 4 hours. Needed no adjustment as it was in perfectly. That was a major surprise given all the mucking about i did with it today. First song was a Stevie Wonder song, I Wish, which i normally play on a jazz bass towards the back pickup. We start it on the bass so its moment had come. It didn't let me down. The bottom end was so phat i had to take some off on the amp. In retrospect i forgot to lower the pickups after lowering the action today and the strings were probably too close to the PuPs - had to take the gain down as it was clipping. This bass sounds massive. In the end i used the Squier for almost the whole first set and have to say that i am in a state of shock at how an instrument costing £75 can sound so good. Whats going on? The jazz bass came out for the second set as there are a couple of covers that required the slap tone and i need to experiment with the Squier as far as that is concerned. The Jazz imediately felt less present in the mix then I remembered to re-EQ back to flat. What a strange experience - after years of lusting after high end Fenders, Stingrays and such i am finding love for a beat up old Squier

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='1330343' date='Aug 6 2011, 08:55 PM']Done loads of gigs first set on the pre EB Ray then the Squier Jazz for the second (or vice versa). If it's good it's good, Enjoy [/quote] + 1 its just so damn ugly but i like it already in the same way you get attached to a mangey old dog. All my usual analaty (is that a word) has gone out the window about finish and condition etc. Gonna go gig now. I'll report back and let you know how we get on.

[quote name='Matt P' post='1329996' date='Aug 6 2011, 03:37 PM']i guess i must be a little luckier than some, i live just 10 minutes from the bass doc, popped in on tuesday and came away with all the bits i needed to finish my build, are you trying to get branded fender parts or just parts to fit? i'd say that fender branded parts would be harder to get. Matt[/quote] Hi Matt Yes it was branded Fender parts i was looking for - in particular the machine heads as they are the screwless type. I don't want to drill into a lovely US Precision neck i bought that has had this type of tuner removed. All done now and awaiting delivery.

[quote name='Evil Undead' post='1330224' date='Aug 6 2011, 07:19 PM']You do love those Squier Precisions don't ya mate? [/quote] Its only a recent thing though Mel. And your old Affinity is getting the treatment with US PuPs/Neck/Bridge and Machine heads. This revelation came from playing a Squier at a jazz funk night and it was superb - i turned down a Wal to play the Squier! Glad to see that there are other equally crazy people out there.

I spent today setting up a 1986 Squier Precision, made in Korea that i bought off of Ebay for £75. After getting the action down and the intonation sorted i plugged it in and recorded a couple of tunes. It sounds great to my ears! I loaded it in the car and took it down to the soundcheck. Again really surprised that it was punchy through the amp and sat so well in the mix! This means that i am going to gig a bass that costs a 10th of the price of my other basses! And its pig ugly with chips out of the body and scratches and dents all over it. For some insane reason i really like it How many of you gig cheap sub £100 basses?

He used a Jazz Bass cos they are great basses. I bet he found his sound and was more than happy that it gave him what he wanted. As for Jeff Berlin - hes a great player too.

I am doing the same thing. Squier Affinity is the basis of the build then add US Vintage PuPs - A US Precision Neck - Fender GOTOH tuners - Bridge undecided at the moment I am a complete klutz in terms of wood and drills but so far haven't had to drill anything. I am going to have a go at soldering the new PuPs when they arrive. Thats the bit i anticipate being problematical but if i completely screw up i can take it to a tech

For the last 10 years I have used phones to practice. I've never had the pitch problem you are getting. The only negative is that i have to get my ears syringed every few years.

I did try Allparts who have promised to get back to me. The guy on the phone was good and knew what i was after but was pessimistic about my chances :-( I have ordered the machine heads via Ebay USA. Even with postage they work out about £30 cheaper than ordering from the UK with a supplier who cannot give a delivery time!

[quote name='TheGreek' post='1328842' date='Aug 5 2011, 03:28 PM']Due to the recession fewer shops are carrying stock - those which do have stock have probably had it for a while. I think that most people shop for parts on eBay nowadays anyway. I'm pretty sure you could have got the parts you were looking for there. Seems like a sign of the times that we shop on line rather than walking through doors..[/quote] You are probably right - though personally i like going into shops and having a good browse sniff and touch. I am surprised though at not being able to get stock parts for a Precision bass. If theres one thing you might keep in stock it would be for perhaps the most popular bass in the world. And how do these shops plan to carry on without stock? If they don't stock anything they why don't they become an internet retailer instead and forget the high street?

He's excellent and always comes over well in interviews. There was a recent one on Marlowe DKs you Tube site. Hes thought of as a one trick pony but has a lot of bass playing vesatility in his arsenal. Larry is great. A real character.

Finally yes. Its the lightest and most transparent rig i have owned. No colour on the tone when flat so i had to ditch a couple of basses that had previously sounded ok on other rigs. My back loves it and though it is light it has incredible power when needed with no loss of quality - sounds great in the studio and through a PA. One thing i would change is the DI on the amp so that it had a preEQ switch. 120 gigs over the last couple of years with this rig and no intention of changing.

I just wondered where you all get bass parts from in the UK. I recently needed to buy a standard US Precision pickup and four machine heads for a Presicion neck. Given that it is probably one of the most common basses around why is it so difficult to get these from local or national suppliers? The pickup was available "to order" from 3 local Fender dealers at a cost higher than buying in from Germany with £10 postage. The machine heads - standard on all new US P basses have proved impossible to find - the only local shop that could be bothered to help assumed that the bass was stolen and broken up for bits. They just wanted the serial numer so that they could check it on a list somewhere. Whilst i applaud the fact that they are looking after musicians i did resent the assumption that i was someone who may have been buying stolen guitars and am frustrated that none of the 3 authorised dealers could supply any of the parts or even give a guaranteed delivery time. Is this just bad luck or a sign of the times?

[quote name='SisterAbdullahX' post='1327866' date='Aug 4 2011, 10:00 PM']Marcus doesn't have high standards of tone, you say? It doesn't take much effort for you to get a better tone than him, you say?? Go and dig out "The Nightfly" by Donald Fagen, have a listen to "Maxine" and "The Goodbye Look" and reconsider those statements. Then post something you played on that demonstrates how you get a better tone.[/quote] yeah great tracks from a great album. Certainly one of my desert island CDs. I have seen Marcus live twice - his tone is amazing - massive yet not muddy or shrill. Great definition. I think he is saying that its more about the player than the bass - and hes right. Marcus/Victor/Stanley will all still sound great on a Squire bass.