ThomBassmonkey

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='787688' date='Mar 27 2010, 10:10 AM']Maybe they're recorded direct with no amplifier. If you listen to those two I've put up, they sound very clean and direct. At any rate, it gives you an idea of the bass' sound. Better than nothing [/quote] Don't get me wrong, it's definitely better than nothing! Thomann are the only company (I know of anyway) that puts up samples on their website. It can help as a comparison between two basses to get an idea of the difference in sound. It would be useful if they said what was used to record it though as even if it's just straight into the computer, what preamp and digital converter etc was used can make a difference.

JWP played a great gig last night. It was a charity event for Help for Heroes and we played 4 songs in the middle of various other acts (only one other musical act doing the mime version of Torn). Was a great night and everyone had a laugh, not to mention we earned a fair bit of money for a worthy cause.

One from our last photo shoot (that inspired this thread). This is just the first one, many thanks to the might Chris Seddon in Derby who took these shots and was a top bloke.

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='787674' date='Mar 27 2010, 09:47 AM']Here you go - The sales page for the EDB on Thomann has sound samples. While you're there, have a listen to the SR500. It's stonking! [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/ibanez_edb555wnf.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/ibanez_edb555wnf.htm[/url] [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/ibanez_sr500bm.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/ibanez_sr500bm.htm[/url][/quote] Is it just me that finds the sound samples on Thomann fairly useless? Maybe it says somewhere on the site and I've just missed it, but with no idea of what amp it's running though, I don't feel confident listening to the sound for anything more than a rough idea. It's the same with the amps, without knowing what bass is being played, it's hard to judge the sound of the actual amp.

Bump because new promo shots are on the way, here's a sneak peek:

It's not just a singer thing. My band once turned up to a gig and were there for a few hours and finally we were due to go on stage and had no drummer still. Turns out he'd forgotten to mention that he was going on Holiday and was skiing in France while we were trying to get hold of him. Luckily (if you could call it that) we hadn't been able to get in contact with him over the last week anyway and knew what he was like so we had acoustic instruments at the ready for the gig.

The GK 1001RB-II runs at 460w at 8ohms and the GK head/Ampeg Cab is a pretty popular combination. In terms of what you're looking for, have a look at the back of your cab. If it's 500w at 8ohms, ideally you want something a bit under 500w driving it. I suspect that an Ampeg 410 is going to be a fair bit over 500w though so I wouldn't worry too much about what wattage the head is unless it's a really high powered one (even then, there's a good chance that the cab will be higher rated at 8ohms).

[quote name='Musicman20' post='785831' date='Mar 25 2010, 01:54 PM']BUT, I think the prices Ive seen are very good for what you get. The tweeter control is a neat idea.[/quote] Though it has been nabbed straight from GK. It would be good to see other companies make cabs that'd work with GK's bi-amping system though.

I stand corrected then, my mistake.

[quote name='Doddy' post='785206' date='Mar 24 2010, 09:44 PM']I'm unsure about this,but anyway........... I don't know if through body or top load stringing makes that much of a difference. On a standard instrument the strings are put up to pitch over 34" from nut to bridge-I don't think that the length of string beyond either of these two points actually makes a difference. People can talk about 'perceived tension', but however long the string is beyond the nut and bridge is pretty irrelevant.[/quote] If you have a string that's 36" long from anchor at the the bridge to the machine head (on a 34" scale bass), it'll only stretch a tiny amount more than the length of nut to saddle (which is the length of the string that affects pitch). If you had one that was 38" long, there's more string either side of the nut-saddle length that will also stretch, making the string seem more flexible. To be honest, that's more logic that professional opinion. I don't know how much difference it would make in the real world, but assuming the OP's basses are both the same scale with a similar setup and the same strings, it would make sense that the through body stringing is responsible. Ultimately if the strings are identical (mass, length and pitch) then they should be the same tension and if the action is similar on both, nothing else on the bass would affect the perceived tension.

[quote name='Kohpnyn' post='785078' date='Mar 24 2010, 08:08 PM']Can't say i've ever used soundslive, for guitars etc I normally use [url="http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com"]http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com[/url] Everything i've bought has been well set up and arrived in a timely manner. Very good prices as well.[/quote] You must be one of the lucky few. I've had a nightmare with these and after several posts on the forum, you're the first person I've seen say they have good service.

Your drummer must be built like Arnie if he can keep up with 2 4x12 mesas. Tell your guitarists to turn down IMO. There's no need to run guitar amps at such a volume that a 600w 8x10 bass amp can't keep up. I hope you're wearing ear protection. I know from several of my bands, Mesas are seriously loud and they only used 50w 1x12 combos. Unless you're playing stadiums, half stacks are overkill by a very long way. Sounds very much like you need less noise IMO.

That looks HORRIBLE! Good job, love it.

[quote name='gelfin' post='785301' date='Mar 24 2010, 11:00 PM']OK no'one has suggested new gear so I will. See if you can try out any Gallien Kreuger heads. I use one. They have a reputation for being tone monsters and have very versatile EQ, especially the "boost". RB 400 RB 700 or bigger. If you can find a used Fusion 550 all the better. This has a tube front end and ss power stage. Normal retail is about £1K ish. I've seen used go for from 500 to 700.[/quote] I have a 700RB-II and it is a great amp and sounds AWESOME with a 210RBH cab under it. I've had some problems with volume at big gigs but more cabs or a 1001RB-II is always a possibility. Really fat low end, clear high end and so much punch it'll spark out Ali with one pluck of your open E string.

[quote name='Conan' post='785326' date='Mar 24 2010, 11:16 PM']That would be Thorneybank.... [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=70563"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=70563[/url] Not sure how much of it is left though![/quote] Nice one. Even if he doesn't have anything of any use here left, he seems pretty knowledgeable about TEs and might be able to offer advice.

I'm a firm believer that after you've spent much more than £500 per (new) item (so £1,500 for a head, cab and bass) you're not getting the value for money you would be for around that. Ibanez BTB4**, Squier VMJ w/upgrades, various Yammies etc can all be had for under £500 and are perfectly usable and high quality instruments. Yes, there's better for more money, but for around the £500 mark you can get an instrument that'll never let you down and still represents value for money.

There was someone that had up loads of TE stuff in the for sale forum recently. And I mean loads. A quick search should tell you who it was and they might be able to help you sort your problem or supply something that'll fix it. In saying that though, I wouldn't dare take a rig that I don't trust on stage. If you can source what you need to be confident in it, cool. If not, get something new (though if you sell your TE stuff, make sure it's clear it's on it's last legs).

t looks like it could just a be a slightly higher cost for convenience then in the UK? i.e. rather than plugging in lots of protection between mains and amp (which I have to admit, I don't at the moment), a slightly higher range one of these could have the safety features built in? Could also be useful for touring other countries which we do from time to time. Definitely worth having a look into. Thanks guys

Can someone explain a little more about what power conditioners do? I've seen them around and always been curious since obviously power's something that's always worth making sure you have right. Do they purely just even out the power or do they provide various safety features too? Does the more even power actually give a difference to sound or is it along the lines of having a gold speaker lead (i.e. theoretically yes, but not audibly different)? What's the difference between the cheaper ones and the more expensive ones?

[quote name='Mr Fudge' post='784121' date='Mar 23 2010, 10:54 PM']The "more tense" guitar has through bridge stringing and "less tense" through body. This I think is the most obvious difference on reflection. They are virtually the same bass, scale, strings, skinny jazz neck. I modded the maple board one with some wizzards that are great. thanks.[/quote] So the string lengths are different. Strings stretch slightly while you're playing them, the longer they are, the more "give" they have. That'll be what makes the through body strung bass feel like the strings have lower tension (though at rest and after the initial attack they'll theoretically be the same tension and length). You could just try getting slightly thinner strings on your bridge strung bass.

Are they both the same scale length? Other things like action, truss rod setting and set up can all change the feel of a bass.