Steff

Do you play coated strings? Is it a constant buzz, which goes off when you touch the bridge or the pickup? Because I am playing coated elixir for years and sometimes, if something's wrong with the amp grounding, I get a little buzz, especially when the strings are new and the coating is undamaged. Did you try to plug the bass in another amp or PA to see if there's a difference?

Well if you are doing a full revalve, you should buy a set of 12 matched valves for Mesa/Boogie Bass 400+ - Watford Valves sell a set like that. In that case it won't need biasing. If you are buying only one or a pair of valves, that should be a temporary solution, because they won't match the old ones and that might shorten the life of some of the valves, and there might be some other faults in time (not sure about that).

It is said in the manual, that the bass 400+ has a fixed bias... Doesn't that means that you can't really make any biasing?

As far as I know - yes, if you pull out the bad tube and its opposite. As you see, there are two rows of six valves, so just pull out the opposite one as well and I guess it should be fine for a while. I wouldn't guarantee that though. As for revalving - I will be doing it myself, as for you - up to you . It's not really a big deal, just pull out the old ones and replace them with the new, unless I'm missing something.

Hmm... as I have noticed, after reading reviews on the net for a few hours, there are some various types of Harma 5881's... Wondering which ones exactly are yours, because if they are the cheapest ones, the guys from Watford Valves recommend using the Sovteks instead...

Thanks dude... so that's +1 for Harma now ...

Thanks Jon, I was really hoping someone could say the difference between the two types of valves... I've purchased a pair of Mike Hill's sovteks, because I am gigging this weekend and I can't afford to buy the complete 12 set before Monday, and they have already sent them to me, so I am pleased with Mike's services so far... Probably will keep that pair as a spare from next week on.

I recently bought a Bass 400+ which needs a revalving. The budget is really limited, so I found the cheapest offers, but the thing is, there's two options. 1. Set of 12 matched 5881's Harma valves from Watford Valves - £144.00 + p&p 2. Set of 12 matched 5881WXT Sovtek valves from Mike Hill Services - £144.00 + p&p What would you old valvers recommend? Cheers, Steff.

Well putting it that way you might be right, I never thought about it, because I always clean them after installing, I hate to see fingerprints on a clean shiny valve...

No joke mate... It's just my crappy English that makes it looks confusing. Sorry about that .

Hmm... As far as I know, there's no harm of touching the glass. Will check that later with a friend of mine, who's a valve maniac. Be careful when pulling out, because they're usually fit tight in the socket. Don't try to pull it straight up, better combine pulling with gentle left-right moves, and watch not to bump the valve into another one or an edge when it finally comes out. Just had a word with my tech friend - no harm touching the glass part.

I can share my experience with the Mesa I bought 3 days ago, it has similar problem. At a rehearsal yesterday after playing for an hour, I thought it started being quieter, but then I thought it's just my ears. Then I heard funny cracking noises through the cab and I saw a miniature lightning storm from the back ... It was still running though... There was no smoke or smell though. I couldn't really see where the blue lightning comes from. So I went home and opened it. Checked the sockets for loose connections or signs of burning, but there were none. I've pulled out the valve that I thought I saw blue sparking earlier and first knocked it with my finger, and it was making this clinking noise. At closer inspection I saw little white particles inside, like burnt at a high temperature metal. So I guess it's just that valve has gone bad, already ordered two and will replace them as soon as I get them. You might wanna do the same - take the valves out and check them by gently knocking them with a finger or a pencil, there shouldn't be any "ringing" sound and take a close look at the inside, if you see any loose particles - that's a good sign a valve's gone bad. And the one that was bad on mine, was still "working", if I didn't suspect the sparks have come from that one, I couldn't tell there's something wrong. Sorry for my English and I hope that helps.

Just decided to post a link to my beloved band I used to play with back in Bulgaria... Check it out! We've recorded live the last gig I have played with them... If there's a similar band in London that needs a bass player, I will gladly join! Enjoy! [url="http://www.facebook.com/steffmarinov?v=app_2392950137#!/video/video.php?v=1186906327709"]http://www.facebook.com/steffmarinov?v=app...v=1186906327709[/url] [url="http://www.facebook.com/steffmarinov?v=app_2392950137#!/video/video.php?v=1187222895623"]http://www.facebook.com/steffmarinov?v=app...v=1187222895623[/url] [url="http://www.facebook.com/steffmarinov?v=app_2392950137#!/video/video.php?v=1190532218354"]http://www.facebook.com/steffmarinov?v=app...v=1190532218354[/url] there's more videos in my profile at facebook.

Hello fellas I am pretty new here, but I already have some gigs lined up, so if anyone wants to come, have a listen and chat, or just to hear how my setup sounds (Ampeg power amp + Ampeg pre, Mesa powerhouse 2x10 + Mesa 1x18, MM Stingray5), I am posting my gigs list. Everyone's welcome. Some of the venues are free to enter, for the others you might wanna contact me to put your name in the guest list, where possible. Fri 02 - O'Neills at Cannon Street - covers Sat 03 - Queen's Arms pub in Kilburn, 1 Kilburn high road - covers - free entry Fri 09 - O'Neills in Richmond - covers Sat 10 - Queen's Arms, 1 Kilburn high road - covers - free entry Mon 12 - will add details later - funk-rock originals Fri 16 - O'Neills Blackheath - pop-rock covers - free entry Sat 17 - The Frog and Wicket - Eversley - rock covers Sat 24 - will ad details later - funk-pop-rock originals Tue 27 - Shoreditch House, Shoreditch - funk-pop-rock originals Sat 31 - Queen's Arms, 1 Kilburn High road - covers - free entry If you need more details, contact me. Cheers, Steff.