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Hi! Some time ago I modded my Ray 24 for series/parallel operation with push/pull pots. It sounds great at home, but depending on the band I'm playing with, sometimes I find it lacks presence; it's hard to cut through the mix at gigs.

Looking at Lobster's thread, it seems the problem could be because the stock pickup has very little winding, since it's designed to be played in series. Perhaps a pickup swap, maybe an Alnico V, could give more mids and solve this problem? I don't want to spend too much on the "experiment," so one option I'm considering is a Roswell MA4.

Other options I've thought about are Donlis, Fleor, or Wilkinson (this one is hard to find in stores).

What do you think? Any advise?
Thanks.

Chuck M said:

I went through a period of using preamps and power amps. I tried Trace Elliott GP12 SMX, V-Type, Alembic F1X, Demeter VTBP-201, Yamaha BP1, Ashley BP-41, Peavey TB raxx, Ampeg SVT IIP and probably one or two others I have long since forgotten.

My favorites were the Alembic and the Demeter. Both sounded fantastic and were very reliable. I remember buying the V-Type and thought it sounded like it lacked detail in the tone. I don't think it ever went to a gig because the Alembic and Demeter sounded so much better to me.

Of course the power amp and cabinet used will be a big part of the tone you get so opinions, like mine, are always best taken with it firmly in mind that your opinion may not agree with mine. We all have our own goals in the tone we are after.

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I used the Ampeg SVT or SVP I forget the name pre amp with a power amp and it provided good tone but it had an audible hiss. Pretty loud hiss actually. I wonder about the Avalon pre amps and if they might be good for bass? I heard a pro bassist comment he used one for recording and loved the results. I appreciate your answer and opinion about all those pre amps thank you. I was using a Crown K2 power amp.

NotJayKay said:

Anyone here use a Mantle + Highpoint?

I’ve being using a BUS Compressor and a Tone3000 Mantle Capture on my Anagram, and I like it a lot. It makes me want to GAS for the real deal.

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They go nice together. I think the Highpoint really compliments the Mantle. But, then again, I think the Highpoint would compliment any preamp. It's a great compressor. I wouldn't mind having the Mantle on my board, but ultimately, I've decide that I can't move on from the Noble.

I've seen a luthier specialising in romantic and Torres types saying that mahogany isn't particularly suitable for a classical guitar. Maybe it's his own taste, but it gives me some confidence in trying some very light steel strings as on an arched-back Guild. I'll likely start with pure nickel 9s as they have similar tension with classical strings, and the material should give a complementary sound to a mid-20th-century parlour, no?
Now for a "proper" classical, I'll stick strictly to an all-solid full-scale. I'm now thinking of a maple standard type or a rosewood romantic type. I believe the former will give me a more "standard" sound with sweet bass, while the latter looks better and will have a punchy midrange.

kcducttaper said:

My main head is a Markbass Vintage D2 (though I just traded a Mesa for an Aguilar, so we'll see how that works out). The MB gets closer than anything else I've tried, but the Nemesis just sounds better. Wish they still made them!

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I have a Vintage D2 as well and love it! That dual/sweepable mid control is great. Another amp they already discontinued.

Vibrato takes a long time for many of us.

Ill pour myself a drink too

Eli_Kyiv said:

View attachment 7564315

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If you're wondering how that might sound...

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irakliszs said:

I think a top tier made in Japan TRB is missing from their range.
I don't understand why they predrill pickguards in these basses. They could include them loose like sire do.

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Yes! A made in Japan TRB would be a bass I would really consider

Thanks to ChrisDev for editing this.

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crazycloud said:

The only Wayback is Jan 28 this year and also says luminescent.

MDM1605 | Mode | ELECTRIC BASSES | PRODUCTS | Ibanez guitars

MDM1605 at Ibanez. Ibanez offers electric guitars, bass guitars, acoustic guitars, effect and pedals, amps, plus guitar accessories like tuners, straps and picks.

web.archive.org

My guess is that people have misread luminescent as luminlay and that has just been repeated with no one actually looking at the specs.

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Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
I just checked a file I prepared on 4/23/2026 on the MDM1605 and found luminescent rather than Luminlay.
I apologize for my error.

I usually prefer keeping a cake of rosin in my apartment and keeping one in my lesson room/studio so I recently ordered a new cake of Weidoeft.

Compared to the Eastman, it has a little more “sizzle” to the tone and isn’t as smooth. Definitely more grippy and usually one swipe is enough whereas I might do 2 or 3 of the Eastman. The Weidoeft also seems to produce more dust as I notice quite a bit on the top and bridge of my bass when I’m done practicing. For these reasons, I may actually prefer the Eastman and will leave the Weidoeft in my studio.

I recently got a new cake of the regular Weidoeft after experimenting with the Eastman/Leatherwood and will reiterate that I think Weidoeft is a good substitute for the Kolstein Soft. That being said, the Eastman isn’t a world away, though Pops is probably a closer comparison.

One thing I had forgotten is LESS IS MORE with the Weidoeft. Seriously, a little bit of this stuff goes a long way. Another thing I’m not a fan of is that the Weidoeft seems to produce more dust than the Eastman.

Matt Liebenau said:

That’s part of the balancing act with acoustic instruments, the closer it is to exploding the better it sounds. There’s some hyperbole there but… yeah…

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What about 0760M on the acoustic please ? It seems there are so thick like the upright ones...

Here is a long interview with Felix. In it he explains how he got his sound:



“I think my wattage is dangerous, I`ve got so much of it and the bass is souped up. The amps were originally experimental Hendrix amps that he originally used but I don`t know how I ended up getting them. Our guys have done some work on them and I`ve got a very powerful instrument, the pick-up itself is very powerful and my basic sound is always wide open on the amp. My amp`s always on 10, bass is completely off and treble is always full, conture`s completely full. All the dynamics are being done from my bass, so I`m playing what I`d guess you`d call completely distorted all the time, but it`s distorted with tone.”

Kubicki Fan said:

Your post and the pictures really cheered me up! Thanks!

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Same!

Bunk McNulty said:

Been a few years since I last played a pool party. Our drummer participated.

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And this one too. XD

Chicoalexi said:

Hi all,
I am obsessed with Brazilian modern jazz along the lines of Hamilton de Hollanda, Arthur maia, nico de assumpcao, or Latin fusion like carlitos del puerto played in "antidote" by chic corea.

I'm just about to be learning and am wondering what main bass people would recommend or if anyone from there knows what I should look for as a five string bass.

Chatgpt has almost convinced me that since I play at home and don't need to cut through a real band for now a jazz jazz pickup five string would let me play the lower notes and be a bit warmer. I'll be playing through a Phil Jones bass cub pro and tonehammer preamp.

Since I live in usa I figure I could get something nice here without paying import fees. Chatgpt keeps recommending a sadowsky metroexpress for me but I am curious how that might work vs I see a lot of videos of Brazilian players using passive fender jazz basses.

Thanks all

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You into this fella:

Michael Pipoquinha

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He’s a little more jazz fusion-ey

Hi all!

Thanks, I was looking at the drum machines or the apleton software was on sale so I asked pretty quickly thinking there might be a more standardized way.
I think the apleton is more complex then I need now but I may grow into the future. So I will spend some time looking at realipro or ez drummer a bit more and once my skill level is higher in a few years am sure there may be a new answer.

I did order a BD-90 metrenome for really disciplined practice.

Thank you so much, very kind.

agedhorse said:

I worked with her maybe 25 years ago.

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Or

Bass4ThePublic said:

You got a 66 rick and a 53 P in one week? Sweet…

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No, I've had the Ric for a couple years. Bought that one in 2024.

joe.wimberley said:

Thanks! The rectangular ones look pretty close!

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Might be worth asking if they did an OEM version for AI. Decent quality stuff in any case, I’ve used them a few times for my DIY builds.

6thplanet said:

Use Super 92 if you're thinking spray can. Much better hold and copes with heat.

So the tweed you used didn't have a backer coating? Good to know. Thanks.

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Sorry I forgot to answer that part. No backer but very nice tweed. Got it from Amplified Parts.

deepestend said:

I use a JHS Prestige Boost. Simple and warm sounding. Very full and you can run it at 18v.

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Their website only mentions 9V. Can I ask where you got that information?

Pontiac Thrasher said:

I settled for the Genzler pedals for much the same reason, had to draw the line somewhere.

: )

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hmm

That is an option!
Especially after my success with the new Subway pre.

wellthenhey said:

I don't know. I've looked at all the pics and schematics til I see double. I even picked up from Low End Lobster's review video that the front coil is the one that is supposed to be muffled. I am about to undo and resolder the switch to see if maybe I missed a step.

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Are you still having trouble? If so please let me know. I’ve recently built a PCB based wiring harness for the L-1000 including a PCB topper for the on/on/on switch implementing parallel/single coil/OMG. I’ve spent a lot of time looking at this circuit recently and I feel I have a good feel for it now. Note that there were several variations of it through the years and I’m partial to the version that has the 6.8K ohm resistor on lug 1 of the treble pot (to provide a floor to the treble cut and prevent muddiness). Like many G&L things they were not always very consistent in how they implemented things.

As far as which coils are affected, here are the three positions on the pickup mode selector switch:
* Parallel - OMG capacitor bypassed
* Single Coil - bridge coil only - OMG capacitor bypassed
* OMG (Series) - both coils, OMG capacitor active across neck coil only

My website has information about the pickup as measured on my bench. I measured two recently manufactured pickups, so not sure if earlier models differed in wire colors (though they seem to be very consistent from what I’ve seen).

I will very shortly be offering complete solderless wiring harnesses for L-1000s if people are having a hard time implementing the circuit.