Latest Posts

Just stumbled upon this thread - excellent! I’ve got a mix of automatic, quartz, and mechanical.

Welcome to the club, Bass Compressor is a classic by now hope you enjoy the pedal! Bass ParaEq next?

If you are desperate for gigs, your hand is pretty weak and you have to suck some things up.

That could be that you are basically told what to do, what to wear, play etc etc etc.
The more they want or need you to do the gig, the less you have to deal with that ...until you hit a more 'professional' contract gig where there is a Boss who decides but the good pay should somewhat make up for it.
The worst of all worlds is the BL whose only gets a say because they run everything.
If you get a guy who does that but is great to work with, has good gigs and can really play..you've struck gold

thanks Pep, i am getting somewhere. rel-eveled, crowned and polished. i used a longer beam this time it has four grits starting with 600. my other beam had just 1000 grit and is shorter. i sanded more agrressively this time but also stopped to check a lot. i also did more passes on the higher frets since they were the culprits and i had room for fall away. also did qa couple of single fret spots using the beam sideways. used a sharpie again before crowning and then used my baroque square crowning file watching the line carefully. interesting note: i checked my fret rocker against my automotive machine edge tool and it's edges are not even machined! put a new set of labella 760FL on there and the buzzes are gone and it plays nice now! i really like the now lower frets so i can use the capo without pulling it out of tune.

One Way said:

View attachment 7562206View attachment 7562207
Here’s the HB7 installation on my MIM P bass using the non replaced OEM bushings

Click to expand...

The chrome bushings look just fine with the nickel

Thank you, guys, for all the help....

J Wilson said:

Crocodile tears.

Half the guys reading this will wear a local store out trying this or that, then buy it online for 10 bucks cheaper, and make wistful remarks about disappearing mom and pops.

BS.

Click to expand...

I agree, but had to choose like because it was the only option. I do not like this trend, but then I'm old enough to remember going into a crowded little cubby hole jammed between two disparate retailers, and being amazed at the impossibly wide selection of instruments taking up almost the whole shop, and the usual crowd there trying out the latest offerings. I found this place when I was in the beginning of a return to playing after more than 30 years of not touching an instrument. It was humbling to see kids not old enough to be allowed out alone, shredding like they were born with a guitar in their hands, and occasionally catching some local legend home for a minute, fresh off a tour with some famous artist, looking for something special to to spend some of their earnings on. We still have a local independent music store that does good, but sadly I have not darkened their door in a couple of decades as life and unwanted responsibility took precedence over all other things in my life, and now my time as a player has passed as age and casual misuse of my hands for seven decades have robbed me of the most joyous thing I've ever done with my misspent life.

When I lived in Montgomery County, Maryland, I used to shop the GC in Rockville almost every weekend, solely because of one salesperson there who was always polite, never rushed me, and would often get me better deals the posted price. I bought mostly used gear, as the new stuff was, as has been noted, sort of bland and generic.

He quit, I moved and I have not been a GC in years now.

jpbicknell said:

Found some used cobalt flats in my stock and took it to a rehearsal tonight. cuts through the pop punk project like crazy!! “Wow I’ve never heard your bass driving like that before!”

Click to expand...

I've got some old Cobalt Flats- I'm gonna try them on my 34ca for Saturday's gig. Interesting!

BassicJazzy said:

Yeah, there aren't many shops like that anymore. Hard to imagine there is enough sales volume to generate a decent ROI when you consider the overhead, costs of insurance, risk of theft, plus the opportunity cost of the space itself. I know of one little shop in the Valley that has vintage gear but is only open a couple days each week, or by appointment.

Click to expand...

And the plan could well be to simply move the entire inventory to Nashvegas.

Here's one I hope you can find. Years ago I happened to catch Rory Block on PBS doing an (almost) acapella take on "Summertime". It was her singing and a guy accompanying her on a jazz bass. I'm pretty sure it was Mr. Pappalardi. I have since scoured the dub dub dub several times looking for this bit of film/tape, and have yet to find it.

DeltaPhoenix said:

@31HZ
Are you still digging your Fin? I play Dingwall multiscale basses so I have had a few daydreams about the Fin.
Have you landed on a couple of sounds that you prefer? Did you get the battery issue solved? Did you do anything about the smaller side dots? Any other feedback after having it for awhile now?

Click to expand...

I'm absolutely digging it, and it has a LOT of good tones that work for me. But it's my only multi-scale, and I haven't had time to get as comfortable on it as I'd like (busy is good). I'm hoping to 'shed on it this fall.

Battery issue totally resolved, NS was absolutely great about taking care of that. I still need larger fretmarkers though!

Somewhere along the line... I must have enabled email notifications. They are driving me up the wall. Can someone direct me on how to shut them off?

Update: Tonight is the first game of the season, and she is excited because they gave her a solo! I unfortunately have a gig tonight but will catch the next game for sure!!! It is kind of cool that she and I will be playing bass tonight at the same time at different venues!

I have these on my Mikro. Fit perfectly and sound great.

Ernie Ball Power Slinky Flatwound Short Scale Electric Bass Strings 50-110 Gauge (P02817)​

Thanks to ChrisDev for editing this.

Login to view embedded media

iiipopes said:

I am not fond of many of the SD stack pickups. Most like the one discussed have so much wire on them they are muddy, because a stack setup inherently has deficient bass response. I would get a Lindy Fralin Split '51, which will retain tone and kill noise and hum. You can also choose options for both output, tone, and aesthetics. There is a disclaimer on the website to measure your pickup to make sure it fits the pickup cavity.

Click to expand...

Nothing wrong with having your own preferences. But you haven't heard mine. It lacks neither the lows nor the highs. Both are loud & proud.

The seller I bought from was on Reverb. "Guitar Store"....thats as basic as it gets.
The heel thickness was perfectly level and like I mentioned earlier, it's level with the headstock. The thickness is like having a Fender or Squier neck and it bolted right on with the right amount of tightness to my JB body neck pocket.
I did hear back from the seller this morning and he's willing to reimburse a portion, how much right now is unknown. Regardless, his communication is great and he realized the mistake. I would buy from him again based on THIS neck's quality and his willingness to work things out. Of course there may be a dead dog in his kennel so investigate the living hell out of any neck before pulling the trigger.

All things aside, the neck I got it really good and I'll be happy with it now that it's on the body and ready to go (not 100% completed). I have 2 active only fretless basses so having a passive JB fretless should fill things out with my collection.

One side note on this. If anyone is questioning if these are truely flamed maple or even being roasted; these are 100% legit flamed maple and roasted. When I drilled into the neck the smell of caramel and spicy meatballs was evident. You can't fake that smell no matter how many robot break dancers China has made in which to invade the USA.

Mighty Thumb said:

Stopped by the shop today to pick up my Century 5 P/J; it needed a check-up. New output jack, new active/passive switch, replaced two knobs, checked electronics, Plek and setup with new strings (Dunlop Nickel Super Brights). I also asked if he could write a new build letter. Since it’s one of the basses featured in the video on the website I thought it would be good for it to have one. Perhaps because it was a NAMM show bass it didn’t come with one? @JOME77 any idea who the original owner was?

We talked 6 strings a little bit and I got to try a really nice LG 6 that was on its way overseas. Lots of options to consider….

Then there was a little trip down memory lane.

View attachment 7562065

View attachment 7562061

Keith is such a wonderful person and a treasure of the bass world!

Click to expand...

Looks like you had a Fun day Nate!
Keith is so accommodating!
I purchased that Roscoe PJ from Chris Lykins and it didn’t come with the letter. Not sure if he was the original owner.

So after many years I am adding a EQ pedal to my pedal board.
This has been brought about for me by two things I have added, 5 string passive and active bass guitars and a sub to our Pa system.
The low end rumble is nice to hear, but in a band situation it got tough to control with just Sans Amp di out to the FOH (no amp on stage) without adjusting away all of the feel for me in rooms I play in.
I purchased a 10 band EQ, so I can really control the complete eq of my mix. I spent weeks educating myself to what does what and suggestions of what works best to reach my goal of cleaning up my end of the band mix .
thanks for staying for my story. RTS

NKBassman said:

Unless I'm misunderstanding something, you can't "coil split" a P pickup. Both halves of the P work together to make a complete circuit. You can wire the halves of it together in either Series (standard) or Parallel (very unusual), but there's nothing to "split" on a typical P pickup.

Click to expand...

OFF TOPIC: Westone Thunder IAs had a series/parallel switch for the P, which was quite useful. On at least some Magnatone pickup versions (later ones) you could put in more pole pieces and make it a full traditional-style humbucker.

derbis said:

I’m a day late but here it is! When I first saw the orchid pink, I knew I had to have it, but by the time I had the cash the new colors were out and nobody except this shop ~3 hours away had a pink one. I got them to ship it to me, but for some reason, UPS returned the package to the store on 2 separate occasions, so I drove ~6 hours round trip to get it. So far, it’s been worth it, I love this instrument.
View attachment 7562062

Click to expand...

That’s beautiful man. Well worth the 6 hour drive!

monkeyfinger said:

I just put a set of David Allen pickups in my 60th anniversary. I am very happy with them. I have also tried Fender 60's custom shop, Bill Lawrence, Fralin, and Nordstrand in this bass. The D.A.'s really nail the tone I am looking for. I also ordered the NOS mil .47pF cap for $1 additional. Very nice cap.

Login to view embedded media

Click to expand...

Very nice! I like that.

Yahboy said:

Ti Jf344 and EB Cobalt flat .

Click to expand...

I have (over time) added Dunlop flats to your short list. Difference? They do mellow over time a bit more than those two.