Ibanez RB 650 & RS 900 out for the night . .

I have had both of these for some time but only recently
gigged with them.




As I have mentioned before, I match up a pair - in other words,
basses that can be set to the same sort of sound.
For example, a T-40 would go with another T-40, my Odyssey
is a good match for my Greco or one of the Blazers, etc.

I took the RB 650 for it's first live outing to an outdoor event,
a few weeks ago and was so impressed with it, it has taken top
billing for a while.
This thing has got a Punch with a capital "P"!
Lovely neck, nice balance and has even got those fancy Ibanez
strap lock thingies on it, which work great but are a bit fiddly!

The RS 900 is a good match - simple single volume, and with the
EQ on the bass and treble about an eighth of a turn from the central
indent, matches up to the 900 a treat.

On it's own, the 900 could match most basses.
I am not entirely sure of this, as most of the pics I have seen just don't
show clearly enough but it is documented that the great Phil Lynott was
a famous user of the RS 900 and I can see why.
The central indent, as on most controls like these, give a flat EQ, with cut
one way and boost the other. Simple but very effective.

I shall leave you with thoughts on a new bass feature, that I discovered
during the gig. . . . . Stealth Bass!! :) :)
During a number with a long drum solo, I pulled out the input lead from
the amp, so I could get rid of Sticky String Syndrome, by giving them a
good wipe down. At the end of the solo - Stealth Bass cut in . . . . . . .
went to pull the E, nothing - all eyes from the band on me . . . oops!
A quick shove on the jack and we were in business again. Sorreeeey!

I know I said on the previous post that there would be some Status but
I thought as the RB and RS were still fresh in my mind (and ears) I
would mention them first.
I will put up some closer pics of each bass, another time.

Cheers. :)

Peavey T-60 in a better light . . . . . .

One that got away.

I came across this, the other day, which is one that escaped but
illustrates how much better the shots are in good light.




This one was a cracker - I had sorted it out for a swap with a bass
but in the eleventh hour it was changed to one with toaster pick-ups
and as I had syched myself up it was going, I decided to re-home it.





Not much time today, so that will have to do.

Next time, Status and perhaps something else.

Cheers. :)

Technology, Monitors and YouTube. . . . .

Sunday morning, bit of a late one last night, so sitting here with
a steaming coffee whilst typing.

Technology! Is it just me? :)
As I get more familiar with the features of this blog, I think I have
just about cracked it but the other day I selected to follow another
blog and ended up following myself!!
I sorted it in the end but still end up following my own blog!
What's that all about??

I took the Urge and a Gordy Headless, last night but learned a
valuable lesson - don't gig without monitors. . . . ever!!
A confusing sound, small venue and bad weather - get the picture??

Finally. . . . . up to now, I haven't really "done" YouTube.
I used it as a tool a few days ago, to learn Ozzy's Crazy Train and
now I'm hooked!
I gigged my Ibanez RB650, a couple of weeks ago, so this morning
I had a look for that and then moved on to T-40 and T-60.
Here's a few I found.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGPVnA_ik8I&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1hx9WEJ2Rw&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbXWEEhiwBA&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yL_87GLNNs&feature=related

This one reminds me of why I didn't get into YouTube earlier - nice
looking modified T-40 but what you see is not relative to the sound!
As broadband speeds have got better, it is not too bad but this
last one is is a good example of the way it was.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8pfRSB3u2w&feature=related

Sorry for the lack of "Collection" content, as I said, it was a late night!!:)

Back with more stuff next week.

Cheers. :)

Fender Urge 1. Stu Hamm . . . . . . .

Fender Stu Hamm Urge 1 Signature Series.

Now, you don't see many of these.

I was going to do this one later on but having used it in
rehearsal, I thought I would do it whilst it was fresh in my mind.

Bit like a sports car, small, light and fast!

It is a 32" scale, with a lovely neck on it.

The controls are Volume on the top and Pan on the bottom of the

front set and Treble on the top, Bass on the bottom of the back set.

The active is simple but you can get some great and varied sounds

from them without a lot of fiddling around.



When I first got this, I tried to find out what year it was but some

of the Mexican serials are a bit vague - this one not even recognised

but come down a few numbers to 32000 and it says this:

This guitar is from the Mexican Signature Series
made at the Ensenada Plant (Fender), Mexico
in the Year(s): 1996 - Present, While this line of guitars was created

in 1996, the serial numbers do not correlate with the subsequent years
hence an exact date cannot be determined from the serial number.

Hey Ho! I guess it's about 15 years old.

While I was digging around for info on it, I can across an image of an

alternative version which may be passive??

Stu Hamm is up there with the very best - a stunning player.

I saw him live with Satriani, an unforgettable experience, top man!
Trouble is when I see someone like that, it makes me think of
taking up the Penny Whistle!!
http://www.stuarthamm.net/

Time to go - Robin Trower on Planet Rock as I sign off . . . . . .
after all this time, some of his stuff still makes the hairs on the back
of my neck stand up. Go Robin, Go - Too rollin' stoned!

Cheers. :)

Reeve Twin - Progtasic. . . . . . . . .

This is Mr Lee!
Can't think why! :)

Mr Lee is a fairly accurate "Tribute" (notice I choose my words
very carefully) to one of America's guitar makers.



It was made for the guy I bought it off, by a a small operation
called Reeve Guitars.
Some time after I bought it, I contacted the original owner,
who very kindly sent me this:

"I'm afraid I can't help with much information.

Reeve were a small family concern based out of a house in Luton.

I was put in touch with them by my local music shop when I needed
my Rickenbacker set up.

A mate of mine at the time had a Les Paul copy made by them soon
after, and though it wasn't to my tastes the actual craftsmanship
was faultless.

I'd wanted a Rickenbacker double-neck for some time but there was
no way I could have afforded one even if I could have found one!

So I had Reeve make me one - they measured up my 4001 and I
gave them a few photos from old catalogues and away they went.

This would have been in about 1986 I think.
At the time it cost me £750, which included the

case, and I was very lucky to see the guitar evolve from a lump of
wood to the finished article over a period of months.

Reeve were always fairly small fry.
They made a lot of guitars for local musos (I remember a Hofner
violin bass for a well respected covers band, the Wellington Bootles)

although I do know they made another double neck and an explorer
copy for a prog band who were fairly big at the time, Twelfth Night.
Funnily enough I saw them a while ago (another band on the nostalgia
circuit!) and the explorer was still being used".

http://www.twelfthnight.info/

"I lost touch with Reeve many years ago.
They were two brothers-in-law - one a carpenter and the other
a musician.
I do know that the musician brother is sadly no longer with us.

I hope this all helps, sorry I can't provide much more info!"








The Twelfth Night are still going and I was very kindly sent this:



Mr Lee has not been out for some time - these are older pics
but I think the time is right to have a quick noodle!
The down side with twins is the weight, not only of the instrument
but add the weight of the case . . . . . OUCH!!
This is not the heaviest twin I have, by a long way!
I'll share that with you another time.

As you can see, I am now on a roll and am trying to keep this
interesting enough for you folks to keep coming back, so sit
tight and I'll come back to you at the end of the week.

Hi to all of you out there - Worldwide - nice to see you popping
in looking for updates - there is still a long way to go!

Cheers. :)

A little more Aria. . . . . .

I have just managed to acquire an Aria Elite "1", to go with my two

Elite "2"'s!! That's a bit of a mouthful if you say it quickly.

The man I bought it from is a lifetime bass player and was a
pleasure to meet up with.
A lot of interesting stuff, which I may share with you at a later date.

I don't have any shots of this one yet but will get some sorted.

So, on an Aria theme, let's have some more Aria!

I have had this one about four years and I bought it at a time I
was into "Oiled" finishes and this one is silky smooth.

SB404

Simple controls - Pan, Volume and Bass and Treble boost and cut.

Hangs like almost all the Aria's, perfectly balanced and comfortable
to wear.

I've also got the five string version, SB505, which is the only five
string that I have, mainly due to the fact that that one extra string
confuses the hell out of me!!
I keep pulling the B, thinking it's an E!! Doh!!!

SB Special II







I bought this for two reasons, the first is the stunning condition it is in
- over 25 years old and the fact that it is an up to date version (sort of)
of the TSB-650 that I have.
The TSB is a 32" scale and this SB is the standard 34".

Stacked volume and tone, with series/parallel switches.

A really nice bass with a good level of brightness, which can be reined in

with the tone controls.

The thing with Aria SB's, you don't have to fight with them when playing
live, they sort of work with you.

In my opinion, a lot of thought went into how they are "worn" when you
are standing up.

Elite Pics.

I thought I would just throw these in - part of my learning how to get some

decent images and experimenting with light.

I took these last year and I'm not sure that my photographic expertise has
got any better since then.

I will get some more shots of these at a later date.

And finally . . . . it's really nice to see people popping in, from all
over the world to see what's happening.

Hi to you all. :)

If you have any questions or just want to drop me a line, perhaps
saying that you had a similar instrument, what you thought of it,
what memories you have, fire away.
contactflateric@gmail.com
Nothing will be posted up, if those are your wishes.

That's all for now, see you next week.

Cheers. :)

Ibanez Studio SB70 - A rare one??. .

Mmm, it's hard to know where to start with this one.

I bought it knowing something about the rarity, apparently only around 300

were made and the great reviews that were written about it.

Although it looks like it has done 20 rounds with a boxer, this didn't bother

me, as all the other ones I had seen, had all looked pretty much the same.

Hard to believe but I have have cleaned this up quite a bit but not restored

it in any way, leaving it with a finish that some guitar makers would charge

you quite a bit of money for.

If you have a favourite instrument that just "does it" for you, then you'll

understand when I say that when I throw the strap over my shoulder and

plug this thing in - notes just appear from nowhere.

I can't explain it, all I can say is, I remember having the same feeling many

years ago, with a Les Paul Junior, at a time when they went for a song!

I plugged it in and basic as it was, what a sound!!

At the time - shame on me - the more switches, pick-ups, knobs, strings,

whatever - the better I thought it was and that battered up old single pick-up

Gibson, changed my viewpoint in an instant.

This SB70 is like that. No frills, a finish that is as thin as it could be, nothing

fancy but boy, oh boy, does this thing sing!

If you get a chance to try one, I think you'll see what I mean.

I'm starting to get into the swing of this blog now - the only thing holding me
up is getting the stuff together and getting some decent pics!

I'll be back soon.

Cheers. :)

Ibanez Old and New . . . . .

I have quite a few Ibanez instruments.
Why? Because they are good! Simple as that.

I could mention John McLaughlin, Sting, Steve Lukather, Bob Weir,
George Benson, Daryl Stuermer, Joe Satriani, Pat Simmons, and
then add to that list, Alphonso Johnson, Steve Miller, Gerry Beckley
Steve Vai and of course, Phil Lynott.
Pro musicians, using pro gear.

You have already seen the Blazers and the Twin, now for some of the
others, including for me, something quite modern.

Ibanez RS 924.



This one is a good, solid sounding bass, with the option of actives.
I'm not certain but the active feature to me, is the same as my RS 900.
The PJ type pick-ups offer what you would expect, big punch with an
added brightness, which have adjustable poles.
These are so useful in achieving a balanced sound across all the strings.
Anyone with the standard pick-up will know that it is a bit of hit and
miss trying to get an equal volume - E booms out but the A doesn't
or the G is louder than the D.
I use the VU on my Ashdown - pull the E open, then 5th fret, then 7th,
so the VU just climbs to the red line, then do the same on the other strings,
adjusting the pole to suit.



Ibanez 2626B Artist.





From what I know there aren't many of these about and if all
works out, I'm about to get my hands on another one.
This is the bass that is leaning up against the Ashdown, in the
post about amplifiers.
Just a really nice bass, that has got sort of a Vintage feel about
it - just look and the back on that!!



This has got the standard issue pick-ups, that are familiar on
several other Ibanez basses but there is another version that
I have seen, which has two pick-ups that are the same as the
back one on a 2495B Destroyer.

There are some very interesting images here.
http://www.ibanezregister.com/Gallery/basses/artist/gal-2626b.htm

Finally, for me, something quite modern and up to date . . . . . .

Ibanez SR 900.



I had a go on one of these, a dark one, which I thought was just great,
so I kept my eye out for one.

This one is practically new, which was bought by the original owner
and only used a few times before an injury prevented him from playing.
I have only gigged this one once but it is a joy to play and brings out
my funky side, which is not good - slapping and popping in Classic Rock
is not a good thing!!
The neck is slim and very fast, the body is curved at the back, so it fits
around your "Steak, chips and a couple of pints"!!



The design and finish is high quality and the actives are all that you
would need - I tend to fiddle with full actives far too much!!



That's all for now, I'll come back with more Ibanez next time.

If you want to drop me a line, or have any questions about the
collection, you can reach me here: contactflateric@gmail.com

Cheers. :)