Latest Posts

Bruce Johnson · Nov 27, 2024

TriumphRider99 said:
Thank you! I actually own two routers, a regular one and a small trim router. I haven't gotten brave enough to use the large one, and the one time I used the trim router does not bring back fond memories.

What you said about avoiding the hand method was my gut reaction upon first reading his email. I just couldn't imagine anyone being that good with no prior experience and no examples. Way too scary.

I really like your idea about contacting the wood shop teacher. There's a h.s. not far from my house. Excellent suggestion, thanks for that!

I appreciate receiving supportive comments from people who actually know what they are doing.

Bud

Come on, Bud. If you are going to continue messing around with basses, and you already have a router, then you should learn how to use it. Enlarging a pickup opening is a simple basic operation with a router. It's not difficult or risky, if you get some instruction on how to do it. Rout a couple of cavities in some scrap wood first, for experience.

We have many, many threads here on Luthier's Corner that go over the use of a router to cut pickup openings. Including different ways to make the routing template. We'll talk you through it.

Pyrrho Epoche · Nov 27, 2024

That is interesting. I could definately see myself playing that. Wonder what the weight is. Not digging the high gloss neck though.

PWolverine · Nov 27, 2024

Trying to track this one down as well, have the DVD but no booklet? Anyone have it floating about?

TOOL460002 · Nov 27, 2024

Been toying with the idea of a CB Onward but instead decided to go nuclear on my wallet so I bought another Stingray earlier tonight:

It's a 2001 and will get its nut filed out to match my other 3EQ. Looking forward to getting my hands on it.

Europebass · Nov 27, 2024

Thanks man, I'll do it today. I hope the Dutch Mesa repair centre (West Amp Geluid) knows about this. I'll refer to you! Earlier I was trying to find an alternative pre-out (so not the balanced one) and did try the effects send and inmediately got a immense smell like something really got hot and switched off the amp right away. So there's indeed something going on with the effects loop like i'm reading in this and older posts (where you also commented). Ciao!

bordinco90 · Nov 27, 2024

I know this is an old thread, but I'd figure I would share my experience with the Ibanez SR300Es through SR400Es (pretty much the same bass). I think they sound great, but you're right, the tuners are horrible. I've also never had an SR300E that didn't need fretwork. The frets are always uneven and the necks are not stable even in Louisiana where the humidity is usually the same for most of the year. Mind you this happens on EVERY SR300E that I've owned which is a shame. The tone of the bass is amazing and it sounds great, but I would never recommend them, due to the spaghetti necks that they have. I do have an older 2006 SR500 that is amazing and the neck doesn't budge, but it's also a wenge neck with bubinga stringers. Heck even the GSR100EX that I own is way better than the SR300E. Neck is very stable and the fretwork on mine is great.

Jjango · Nov 27, 2024

Lo-E said:
One of your pickups might be out of phase with the other. Try reversing the wires on one pickup and see if that fixes it.

Well, I did just that, and the problem has been solved! Everything is back to normal!

MANY thanks, Lo-E, you're my hero!

:bassist:

DANIED · Nov 27, 2024

Feeling depressed and defeated. My three month old Genzler Magellan 800 stopped working. I used it once at a gig in July and since then I have been using it at home to practice with headphones. A couple of days ago I flipped on the power switch and nothing happened, no LED's, no power, nothing. I unplugged the power cable from the unit and the Furman SS-6 6-Outlet Pro Surge Suppressor Strip (SS6d1) Then plugged it back in and the unit turned on with no problem and I was able to practice for an hour. Yesterday the unit didn't turn on at all. I tried other outlets and still nothing happened.

I'm so bummed. I think I'm done with class D bass amps. I came to Genzler by way of bad Darkglass experiences. Their customer service is pretty bad and I had to deal with them through not one, not two, but THREE defective heads. The first one had fan issues and the amp would overheat. The second was DOA, wouldn't turn on. And the third crapped out on me halfway through a gig.

I was so fed up with unreliable amps and horrible customer service that cost me a little over a year. When I told them to just give me my money back I had my eyes on Genzler and heard nothing but great things about their amplifiers. From the sound to how reliable they are everyone has nothing but praise for them. And I totally agree with them about the sound. The Magellan 800 is the best sounding amp I've ever used. But as per my bad luck win Class D amps goes this is my fourth Class D that will cost me gigs and money I would've made from playing those shows.

Three months with almost no use and my brand new Genzler is a glorified paperweight

@jeffgenzler

Les Fret · Nov 27, 2024

Correlli said:
The manual says for the Direct Mix, “adjusts the volume of the direct sound.”

So in that case you would say that it is the same as blend. Since that’s how mix knobs normally work. But setting direct mix to 100 doesn’t sound the same as 100 % dry (clean without any compression). So my assumption is that direct mix at 100 means 50% dry/50% wet. But I am not sure and it is not logical to me.

edit: I also notice that setting direct mix to 100 results in a more hollow mid rangy sound, like it's a phasing problem. That's why I always leave at 0.
Especially noticeable on X comp and X bass comp.

Someone else have a final conclusion on this direct mix 'knob'?

Gopherbassist · Nov 27, 2024

buldog5151bass said:
So you want to "sell" things where someone else does all the work and assumes all the liability...

Yes you seem to get the gist.

Mojo34 · Nov 27, 2024

I did a test running my Jazz bass directly into a Tech 21 Deuce Deluxe (so no added flavor), with the Jester on clean boost. After a couple minutes switching on and off, it seemed that the Jester was taking some of the low end fluff off, just a little bit of the attack edge I love so much. I could be wrong, and I'll try again later. I do already have a Sushi Box More on my regular pedalboard, and that's 2 tubes that do nothing but add thwapp or whatever you want to call it! I leave the Jester for guitar, where it is amazing with the Maiden D preamp.

JesterR · Nov 27, 2024

Dan1985 said:
The majority of the posts I see here, people have like 10 bass guitars. If they go up 25%, we’ll have to survive with 7 or 8.

People here horrified by perspective of going from binge buying random cr*p to responsive financial planning.

goran · Nov 27, 2024

The price is in Euros and that seems much too cheap so please make sure you make payment with some kind of protection - scammers just love Paypal with friends option, for example.

SharpCat · Nov 27, 2024

Yeah, those diagrams make sense to me. But in the darkglass setup, the volume and blend are passive, before the preamp, and the preamp is single-input. So they keep working fine when the pre is switched out of the signal path. With the artec, the balance/blend looks like it's passive, and the two wires from it are probably signal and ground. But the volume is part of the preamp circuit, not separate and passive. I don't think you can just change the pot values. That'd make the pre not work right IMHO.

Now, you could pull the volume out of it's hole, set it to full, and tape it so it doesn't move. (or swap in a trim pot.) Wire in a passive volume like in the darkglass diagram. That'd work, but you're still without a tone control. (And you'd have to somehow fit an extra pot in the back of the cavity.)

That seems to be the real issue--you're short a control spot to put a tone control. You could get double-stack pots. Fat Bass Tone has a 50K/250k that you could replace the volume and also have a tone. You'd also need stacked knobs.

So here's the choices I see:

1. Passive blend, with or without double-stack volume/tone.
Use the blend as "Input" on the switch. Run that to the tone control (assuming you do the double stack thing) and also to the switch. The Effect Send goes to where the blend connects now, the OUT connection on the artec board is "Effect Return". Wire the other half of the double pot to the volume wires on the artec. With all that, you can go passive, but volume will be always full on in passive.

2. Make it more like the darkglass.
Use a pot inside the cavity to force the artec into full volume, but wire in a passive volume before the preamp. (basically the diagram above.) Optionally, get a double-stack 250K/250K to add both passive volume and tone. Feed those into the switch.

3. Stay active.
Yank the ineffectual switch and call it a day.

4. Find some other preamp that does what you want.
Downside: $$$

5. Just go passive.
Easy, Cheap. Can reuse the existing blend knob.

I'd probably do 4 or 5. You do you, though.

Nashrakh · Nov 27, 2024

Check out Janek Gwizdalas Youtube channel, he recently posted a video about his new E to C five string, although it's a double reverse P, so I'm not sure how helpful that is to you. But I agree, it's a cool sound. One of the reasons I desperately want a six string P bass (I still need that low B).

TeeSee · Nov 27, 2024

Supernaute said:
Speaking of budget brands, I’ve been hearing some buzz about Gear4Music and their house brands. I think they’re based in the UK. Seems like they’re directly competing with HB. Any of you guys have the scoop on that company?

I couldn’t say they are competing directly with Harley Benton – remember HB are huge in terms of manufacturing and boxshifting – I’d say more like adding to the budget bass gene pool like Glarry etc giving us VFM chasers more choice especially for ‘oddball’ designs.
To be brutally honest I don’t know a lot about this brand other than the 5 string fanned fret I bought last year which I moved the neck pickup closer to the neck and added a different preamp and tuners. Soundwise it was very good before I did any work on it. The basswood body is utter sh*te though as the guy who did the respray for me will attest to. When I visited him while it was stripped it was like balsa wood with lots of holes and cracks, I hear basswood is good for carving but you’d be hard pressed to carve this, in places it was like sponge. Other than that the build quality was excellent especially the neck which was outstanding, but some of the hardware was a bit flakey like stripped grubscrews in the bridge(s) adjustment which I had to replace, although they did a great job of drilling the holes for the wire for the individual bridges ground.
If I was in the market for another bass, I’d not hesitate having a good look at G4M basses and as I live in the UK shipping is only £1 for next day delivery. You’re in the US though so you may want to weigh up the costs for shipping and whether it’s worth it.

JIO · Nov 27, 2024

MARVIN MECKLER said:
Wow! You've done the impossible!

I have always liked that pickguard, but could NEVER find a body or color that it really worked on.

But...

You've found it!!!!!

That looks GREAT!

yes, well played! :thumbsup:

nealw · Nov 27, 2024

Another vote here for Evah Slap E & A and gut D & G. Specifically this D & G. $50 for both strings and they play and sound like a matched set with the Slaps:

New Bass ADGE "Natural Gut" Guitar String Special 40% Off Sale!

Top Quality NGW "ADGE" Upright Double Bass "Natural Gut" Strings......"Natural Color Tone". Measuring about 200 centimeters per strand of high quality Natural Gut Musical String. ADGE CHOICES INCLUDE ALL VARIATION OPTIONS UP TO A Full set of 4 different band diameters measuring: - G 2.1mm- D...

ngstring.com

Joebone · Nov 27, 2024

Nine-and-three-Quarters said:
Guys I'm not sure what's the hold up on the 3k? A 3k is simple two 1.5k's in one housing and it actually operates as a 1.5k in normal use unless you use the second amplifier. Most guys buy 2 amps anyway. One for their main and one for backup. Now you have 2-in-1.

And we definitely can't used the excuse of it being too heavy because it's under 13 lbs. This is absolutely the last amp you'll ever buy. Just go for it! I'm telling you, this is the new Aguilar DB751 without all the weight and lots more power. I highly recommend it!

Holdup? It's complicated. I keep a used 1.0 at home - the preamp clarity and accuracy make it an incredible tool for playing along with tracks on headphones (learning covers, jamming on iReal Pro, etc.). And the whomp factor is a great match with my inefficent Greenboy Fearless cab. But I presently gig in bar bands, in communities where a $2500 amp simply seems off. And for which the double power module would not useful (I'm either carrying just fine with one cabinet,or reinforced by FOH),and for which the redundancy factor also does not seem useful -- what if a glitch is upstream of the power modules?

Weirdly, I can make a case for a hypothetical 1.5 in the $1900-2k range that looks like the 1.0 and does not include an extra module I'll never use or need (although that HPF feature would be great!) This, of course, presumes I also get my pedal act together for some dirt, as the 1.0 (and presumptive 1.5) are clean, dean, clean. Meanwhile, for most gigs I bring out a venerable GenzBenz Shuttle 9.2 that provides 500w. into 8 ohms, and tube and FET preamps that can be mixable or independent.

In the sprit of full disclosure, I've also manifested on Mesa Subway threads about interest in a WD800 (hommage to the Walkabout amps) mated with a higher-powered module. The value of increased headroom is undeniable, as I learned when first replacing a GB 6.2 with a 9.2, and which I also know from extensive home audio experience, and from a backline with a bridged Hartke LH1000 pushing major power into an Ampeg fridge, that blew my Ampeg-negative mind! I might be whistling in the wind, but suspect the first AmpCo that broadly releases a high-powered single-module unit will do well. That said, is this a niche filled by the Ampeg V12, and how are those amps being received by the community?

So, yeah, Bullhead 1.5. For that, I'd sell some other stuff and pony up.

DJ Bebop · Nov 27, 2024

N4860 said:
Part of the issue is that 'popular music' is basically chosen for us at this point by marketers. Sure, you can become successful on your own merits in the music industry but I'd reckon it is a lot harder now then it used to be. Yes, there's platforms like youtube that one can use to promote their own material and get a following but you'd be up against companies with a lot more influence that can easily push some random new artist to the top with a couple of 'hit songs' written by some people in an office. It's kind of unfortunate that we currently have more access to music then ever before but that what is popular is basically so concentrated on a relative few number of pop artists that nobody is exposed to all of the great music being made (when I say no one, I mean the average non-musician consumer who is just happy to listen to top 40 radio). Of course I could be totally wrong about all of this, just my opinion about how I see the music industry today.

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Shawn Luckman · Nov 27, 2024

Thornton Davis said:
Another pic of # 24 just cause.

TD

The burst looks really good on your bass. :thumbsup:

jerry · Nov 27, 2024

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DJ Bebop · Nov 27, 2024

JIO said:
"It's CLOBBER'N Time!" (oops... that was attributed to "The Thing" from the Fantastic Four) Did the Hulk have a catch phrase?
View attachment 7086805

JIO · Nov 27, 2024

60bass said:
I recently picked up the Paranormal Rascal in Sherwood Green. Very nice bass but I thought it would look great with Lollipops. So, I ordered a set of Hipshot USA Ultra-lites and installed them. Very happy with the way they look but the install was not without an issue. See pic.

View attachment 7083287
When something you've done dozens or more times suddenly turns into one of those oh crap moments! These basses have a thick finish but it IS delicate as you can see. Time for repair as the washers for the tuners won't fully cover the ouch. The missing chunk of finish was still in one piece so I grabbed the super glue.

View attachment 7083289

As you can see the end result looks great. If you don't look too close you can't tell it's been repaired. There's just something about the Coronado style headstock that looks great with Lollipops and Fender did install them on some Coronado basses.

Nice save. Yes, if one has patience, a steady hand and trust in yourself you can save an otherwise costly re-fin issue. You just have to watch out for Cyanoacrylate (CA) glue though, it can burn a white fog in a finish. If I want to be 100% certain I won't wreck an otherwise save repair (like yours :thumbsup:

) - I use diluted wood glue as it's water-based, bonds, drys clear and excess is easily wiped away with a damp rag/sponge. "Super-glue"
works great for so many fixes - but it is hot and can easily turn south as far as a "seamless" fix goes.

The small-plate, Fender stamped stubby pops were installed on all '66 thru '69 Coronado basses as far as I know. From '70-'72, small-plate Fender stamped clovers appeared.

Garret Wheeler · Nov 27, 2024

Wow I'm dumb. I posted this from my phone and when I googled it on my desktop I found a nearly identical thread that I started almost exactly two years ago lol. Ignore the double post. If there are any new answers I'd love to see them!

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