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tdvt · Aug 13, 2026

Kevlanco said:
This is the deal I got when I ordered at Alto Music a couple months ago. Looks like you can still get it with the SUMMER15 code. I had to pay taxes as well, but still a great deal!

View attachment 7553564

8/13/26

This offer is still current as of 8/11. Have one incoming in the next day or so.

600 Ohms · Aug 13, 2026

Interested in this topic. I notice that you can still get the occasional XJ-1T with Fralins, new.

600 Ohms · Aug 13, 2026

Tong Cherd said:
I have the XTCT with Oxalis pick-ups! I'm not if I can control the mids with the in cavity mid control, I don't see one like what I found online the little blue circle. Found a big blue circular thing right above the low frequency control though but too scared to touch it

I became a bit of an expert in the XTCT and TCT recently and have installed both several times now. Don't fear the "mid trimmer".

Jeff Farley · Aug 13, 2026

I'm sure Joe Macho is playing on It's All Over Now Baby Blue. There is a very melodic upper ocatave bass part kind of buried in Dylan's rather boomy rhythm guitar part. There's also a youtube video of the song broken down into the separate tracks but it seems like the guitar & bass ended up on the same track for some reason.

LowWay · Aug 13, 2026

I loved my sonic research tuner. It was lost in a move, and I’ve been using Peterson since. I’m going back to SR as soon as the new pedal drops.

Reedt2000 · Aug 13, 2026

Flying B said:
I've traced the vol pot issue to a faulty pot, the eBay seller I got it from quite some time ago has kindly agreed to send me another one. Still examining the treble issue.

Treble pot should only connect to the preamp. Maybe re-flow the solder connections to it. And/or look to see if a wire is broken. That can happen stuffing the setup into a cavity if the wires get strained where they enter the epoxy encased preamp board.

BassicJazzy · Aug 13, 2026

Pep said:
I prefer a blank fretboard with no inlays or dots, just side markers.

I agree on a fretless but on a fretted bass I want something at the 12th on the face. Just, something.

GTHintz · Aug 13, 2026

I’ve done that before just playing with it until you start causing a different issue. That’s how we learn sometimes. I’ll look for that feed n wax. The climate in my area is very dry so I’m sure that it’ll be useful. To fill in the divot that was made I used some putty that fills in and is sand able when dry. Just took a small dab of it and I pre shaped it to get close before letting it set. When it was at that point I took a dab of paint and hit the putty with it. I tried using the saw dust created from filing back the mushroomed part to darken it but it looked too light so I just finished it off with some dark brown paint I had. In daylight you’ll see something is there but especially from the front side it’s very close. I don’t know how it would do if it took another hit but if it happens to come off I can always fill it with something else and redo it. I’m usually good about not hitting things. For some reason I bump the headstock on my mtd k5 when I play with things on my tablet but it’s the only bass I seem to touch anything with. No pointed ends however and it’s built pretty solid. The previous owner already put a couple dings in it way worse than I would.

coreyflecha · Aug 13, 2026

Hi, with Flex prime , is it possible to use a pitch shifter to go up half a step? How is the result? It would be shifting from E to F, thanks.

Mark_T · Aug 13, 2026

evanrunyon said:
I’ll just say, anecdotally, I have an excellent bow made of Katalox and of the dozens of incredible players that’ve had in their hands, not a one of them has taken it for anything other than a particularly dark piece of Pernambuco.

Beyond tradition, purism, clout, etc. part of the enduring appeal of Pernambuco is that, from a bowmaker’s perspective, it’s incredibly satisfying to work with. Any amateur woodworker can tell you some woods just wood better than other woods.

I have a bow made of Bloodwood. In one of the Discover Double Bass courses, David Allen Moore describes bloodwood as a "super-pernambuco". My bloodwood bow is not as nice as some of the better pernambuco bows I've tried in the past, but it's a perfectly reasonable bow that could easily be used by a high level player. I have heard that bloodwood is hard to work.

For instance, this website Bloodwood

Extraordinarily hard, dense, and tight grained. Bloodwood often holds a lot of tension in the wood, making it unstable and prone to twist or cup. It's best used in small pieces. However, woodworkers like the way it finishes and polishes, and the vivid color is always eye catching.

And here: Bloodwood | The Wood Database (Hardwood)

Bloodwood is extremely dense, and has a pronounced blunting effect on cutters. The wood tends to be brittle and can splinter easily while being worked. Those persistent enough to bear with the difficulties of working with Bloodwood to the finishing stage are rewarded with an exceptional and lustrous red surface.

And finally there's this:

Top Ten Most Overrated Woods | The Wood Database

www.wood-database.com

I still think alternative woods are worth exploring and if people can be openminded about it, we can find good alternatives. Ie, people are making good bows of katalox, bloodwood, purpleheart, etc.

odarellmc · Aug 13, 2026

Following....

Iommian · Aug 13, 2026

For those in the Greensboro area, DJL Vintage Audio is awesome for amp repair. Tuned up my Laney AOR to last another 40+ years. Also fixed one of my buddy's old Deluxe Reverbs. I'm from the Asheville area but I travel through Greensboro from time to time and his work and turnaround is worth the travel. Western NC it seems a lot harder to find good amp techs, or at least ones that you can get in quickly enough.

paul · Aug 13, 2026

You’re absolutely correct, just use the “contact us” link in the page footer to put in your request to sell personal gear. Thank you for taking the time to reach out!

Lammchop93 · Aug 13, 2026

BassBeginer64 said:
I have a classic 400 coming in soon, going to be a home/studio only head, so I been trying to figure out what cab to match it with in tweed, a 810 and 412 are just too big, the only 410 I found is the Aguilar DB410 which are rear ported but deep enough for that 97 lbs steroid svt , being told that is will work but needs to be 6 inches plus away from a wall, also looking at a 212 3 way head .
is there any one else that makes a tweed cab x 17 inch plus deep x 25 in wide and build like tank.
View attachment 7556697

You could find a used Fender NEO410 and recover it in tweed. I have seen people do that before.

UNICORN BASS · Aug 13, 2026

I just got a 2 year old rescue. He is interesting to say the least, 18lbs of solid muscle and a bit bitey at times! Tuxedo cat!

dave_bass5 · Aug 13, 2026

The KZ's and similar were my first go with IEM's. They put me off bothering for a year or so. Hated them. The issue was not the sound (although I didnt like it much), but I have quite flat ears and they were just too bulky to stay in. Therefore I got no real seal so they just didnt work. I tried other brands but ended up with Sennheriser IE100 pro, and then (now) IE400 pro. These are the slimmest I can find combined withComply foam tips are almost perfect for me. I also play keys and these sound really smooth compared to the cheap Chinese ones.

Neil Pye · Aug 13, 2026

I use Leatherwood for most of my ensemble playing, but Jade for solo stuff. I've had my current cake of Jade for over a year now, kept in the container it was supplied in. I've noticed no deterioration in sound or performance, and the colour is exactly as new. Maybe yours has been contaminated with something?

AndyMopley · Aug 13, 2026

Know none of the tunes? Join the club

konoyaro · Aug 13, 2026

I really liked Me’Shell’s Playing with Pat Metheny at the Montreal Jazz Festival many years back:
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DCCat · Aug 13, 2026

Ritter667 said:
Get a simple cheap capo, like this one, attach it on the head of the bass, just behind the nut, problem solved:
View attachment 7552793

Of course remember to slack off the strings abit first, tighten up and attach a capo of similar design as the above one, and tune up, there you have it!

Can also be used on otehr basses if one wants to kill sympathic vibrations of the stings behind nut, or instruments where the witness point around the nut is hard to impossible to set.

Good idea. Or this, even cheaper and lighter:

robert_stuart · Aug 13, 2026

Turnaround said:
It's a bit off topic here, but I will answer because I don't want to start another thread right now.

Multi-scale basses present a way to deal with the "floppy B-string"problem. In order to get decent string tension on an electric bass with a low B string, there are basically two options available - you can use a heavier gauge string or increase the string length, both of which will require a higher tension to bring the string to pitch. There are compromises with both solutions.

If you increase the string gauge, you increase the string's mass per unit length. The compromise here is that as the mass per unit length increases so do the unmusical overtones, and the note definition diminishes. And increaseing the gauge of all the strings will result in a lot of tension on the G string and even the D. But if you use just a heavier gauge on the B and E strings and leave the upper strings alone, the tonal difference between the lower and higher strings becomes more pronounced.

If you increase the string length you also increase your stretch to reach the lowest notes. And you increase the string tension on all of the strings simultaneously, likely giving undue tension to the D and G strings.

So the compromise is a fanned fret system which gives a longer scale to the low strings and a shorter one to the high strings. You can get a better definition on the B string than by using a heavier gauge, and you get more even tonal quality across all strings. Sounds Ideal - except for that "extra reach" problem.

And that extra reach and the geometry of the fanned frets is something that I really dislike. First consider the natural position of the hand in a resting position - stress free:

View attachment 7556434

When holding an electric bass it looks like this:

View attachment 7556435

It is a relatively natural position when playing mid-neck - the arm and hand are in a relaxed position, the elbow just slightly closer to the body than a fully relaxed position:

View attachment 7556436

But when you reach for the first position your hand takes an unnatural position, you must angle your wrist and push your elbow forward to make the reach. And if the reach is 36" rather than 34" the position is more extreme. And when you are dealing with frets that are angled away from your natural hand position the problem is at its worst:

View attachment 7556453

View attachment 7556450

Not onbly does the wrist have to be twisted and angled, but the elbow is pulled into the ribs while simultanously extending the arm. Try it and note the stress in you hand, wrist and elbow. You don't have this problem when playing double bass - the hand position is much closer to natural:

View attachment 7556454

After decades of playing the electric bass (regular 34" and 35" scales) I have developed tendonitis and arthritis in my left hand and elbow. These days I play far more double bass and am not finding the same stress levels.

My analysis is that the fanned system helps to alleviate some shortcomings of the electric bass while adding to the stress on the human body.

My opinion is that the advantages are outweighed by the risks.

Fascinating, thank you.

bknop · Aug 13, 2026

They were using line arrays way back in the day! Now line arrays are mainstream PA, what comes around goes around. Rigs used to be cool and big, nowadays a child can carry a 1kw head and possibly the cabs.

gusrb5 · Aug 13, 2026

BassicJazzy said:
IMO Sadowsky MetroExpress J's or PJs are much better deal and sound better.

Nowadays I'm super into Japanese handmade 5 string Js. Especially Bottomwave. They were previously "Fodera N.Y.C" iirc but now they are making basses smth like 50% Fender tone 50% Fodera tone. I tried their basses once and couldnt believe how good they were.

Gosho · Aug 13, 2026

Great price! I just hope they also offer the option “Congratulations! You won this product completely free of charge!” That way, at least youll have something to show your wife and a solid excuse for why you bought it.

Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati · Aug 13, 2026

Little update and OT —> the neck (J-neck) of my self-made P with the underwound Fralin pickup has publicly thanked me for switching back to the TI JF344 Flatwound strings - setup is now Ferrari style.
The pickup works decidedly better, taking full advantage of the crispier sound of these strings (however I shall experiment further)

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