I happened to be in the local music shop this morning buying some strap locks, and wondering where I might find the â,¬300 they wanted for an unsold pre Infinium model Bugera 6262 . . .

Anyway, I was window shopping the guitars as well, as is my wont, and noticed something. The various model Gibson Les Pauls on display all looked a bit poorly finished - specifically the maple on the bodies was not very well book matched. To be honest, on a par with my cheapo Harley Benton 450L. Emphasising this they had, hanging next to the Gibsons, a single Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus Pro which had a perfect book matched top and just looked better finished all round.

Makes you wonder?

Still loving my two favourite Les Pauls - the Epi Prophesy and the HB 1000

Morning all.

I had an email from IK this morning linking to THIS PAGE

For those who want or need a portable recording system smaller than a laptop and stereo USB interface there is now the option to use the latest Samsung devices.

I admit it: I've got a thing about cheap guitars.

I sold my HB 2005 Bass, because I didn't get on with the C shape neck. I have bought a different Harley Benton 5 string bass, of which more later. Being a tight individual I didn't want to pay carriage on the bass, so I added a little bit extra to the pot and bought a second 2 octave neck cheapo to go with my Prophesy.

THIS ONE

Talk about serendipity - it's bl**dy excellent. It plays so easily and smoothly I was frankly amazed. I've posted an initial impressions review over on the Thomann site. I'll do a review for here later, when I've worn it in, so to speak. I have seen a rumour that this model is not made in China, but rather comes from Indonesia. There are no 'made in' markings on it or the packaging, so I don't know one way or the other.

The only thing I might ever do to it is upgrade the pickups, but for my purposes the slightly gruff sounding HB ones that are supplied will do nicely for now, thank you.

Joyous Grooves

Tal Bergman (drums), Joe Bonamassa (guitar), Ron DeJesus (guitar), Mike Merritt (bass), Renato Neto (keys), and Daniel Sadownick (percussion)

Thomann. Thomann, as you probably already know, is the German online music store where I get most of my music software and equipment.

They give a 3 year warranty. But, as I am sure you will also know, online stores can be a pain to deal with when something goes wrong.

Not Thomann. I have a pair of studio grade headphones, but unfortunately the connecting cable has developed a fault. Yesterday I sent a repair request. They usually email a prepaid return label, but this morning they got in touch and said they were just going to sent a replacement. All I had to do was keep the broken 'phones for 60 days, in case they want to examine the fault (they probably won't), then do what I want with them.

Oh, and by the time I had finished typing this they had already sent a shipping confirmation.

Customer service is alive and well, at least in small pockets. 

I was lucky enough to get this for Christmas.

Or should that have been I was UNlucky enough to get this for Christmas.

The first thing is that the box only contains a key,a lead, and a download link. Only the link doesn't install Rocksmith; at least not to begin with. It installs something called 'Steam' which had never heard of (life is, IMHO far too short for computer games). Anyway, after hours and having to create accounts and passwords for what seemed like ever, Rocksmith 2014 was finally installed.

It has run on maybe 1 in 10 of the occasions I have tried it. There is no response at all from the help desk, that is assuming that you manage to get them on a good day when it is actually possible to even submit a support request. Today is not one of those days . .  Anyway last month it did deign to work for a while although I find it hard to get used to an on screen tab that is inverted and a what note to play next 3d view that changes the lane for strings at random. And the latency is horrific. Anyhoo, when I tried again this morning the unavoidable 'Steam' decided it needed an update, and now Rocksmith won't run again.

Basically, my advice is AVOID.

Well, you know how it is . .

I've had my stock HSS Affinity Stratocaster for a year now. I still love the way it plays, but . . I'm not so impressed by the electronics. Fine to start with, but now, when up against my Gibson equipped Prophecy, sounding a little lame.

So, after several minutes of deliberation I have decided to give the guitar a couple of little tweaks. The process started today with ordering a set of Wilkinson hot single coils and all the pots, capacitors, switches and knobs to go with a new scratch plate. I intend to keep the original HSS plate ready wired to either go back in if I completely muck up the new set up, or perhaps to sell if it turns out that I am a guitar customising genius.

I have also ordered a set of Elixir strings and, possibly the most important modification, a Wilkinson billet bridge. AFAIK all the Fender and Squier bridges have cast tremolo  blocks; the Wilkinson one is solid steel and shouldâ,,¢ give more sustain.

The stuff should be here in about a week. Updates will be posted (there is no escape!)

Harley Benton HBZ-2005

Description (from Thomann) Harley Benton HBZ-2005 5 string bass guitar, mahogany body, neck through body, 7 piece maple/nato neck, rosewood fretboard, oval abalone shape inlays, 24 frets, nut width 45mm, 864mm long scale, string space at bridge 16 mm, 2x ceramic bar pickups, active preamp, black hardware, die cast tuners, 5 single bridge, finish natural satin.

You can buy one HERE














Plus points:
Thomann's excellent customer service. The first example I had was an escapee from quality control and had to be replaced. This was done quickly, and with a very helpful attitude. The second example, the one I have kept, needed a little remedial soldering to fix a broken connection.
It's a beautiful looking thing, better in the flesh than in the photographs. The combination of woods works well. It is cosmetically very attractive.
Very little, if any set up will be required. The neck pick-up is arguably a little low, and appears not to be adjustable, and the  truss rod will need a little tweak as the neck is not quite concave enough. This is not a big deal, I've have had to adjust the truss rod on just about every guitar I have ever owned.
D'Addario strings. Apparently not everyone's cup of tea, but they are the brand I currently favour, so I won't be changing them, except for another set of D'Addarios when they wear out.
Smooth operating control knobs that have a very subtle but definite centre notch (not the volume control).
Reasonably quiet electronics.
Very good tonal range, as you would expect from an active bass â€" have a listen to the samples on the Thomann site. I have seen reviewers grumble that the bass is not as deep as more expensive basses, or that the treble is not as bright. To which I would say, learn how to play the thing. There's plenty there.
The through neck is obviously wider than a 4 string, and the strings are slightly closer spaced. It is, however, pleasant to play.
The balance is good.
The machine heads are precise and seem rather better quality than I had expected.
There is no significant fret buzz anywhere (what little there is high up the neck on the B string will go when the neck is adjusted properly).

Minus points:
The first example had a body in three pieces. The lower part of the bottom wing was a separate piece of mahogany. The joint was solid, but inevitably you could see where the grain changed. My current example of this model has single piece wings.
The bridge pieces are individual for each string, and not quite perfectly aligned across the guitar. They were differently misaligned on the first example I had, it looks like the manufacturers just can't get it right. I doesn't matter other than visually. The bridge pieces are steel. I can't help feeling it would have been better to have a billet bridge and tailpiece.
There is no instruction sheet. I have labelled the picture below with what I think the controls are.



For me, the lack of a thumb rest is a big deal. Luckily I have some hardwood and will make my own.

Conclusion:
My experience of Harley Benton instruments is that they are of noticeably cheap construction on close inspection, but sound unexpectedly good and play unexpectedly well. This is the cheapest bass I have ever owned by a significant margin. That it is so capable for less than £200 is an indicator of how much better cheaper instruments are these days. So for a first dabble with 5 strings my immediate reaction is that really, for so little money, you can't go wrong. I play quite forcefully with the middle cut and through the Hartke A100 this bass really growls â€" I like it. The acid test is would I use this bass live? The answer is yes, I would, but I'd still stick with the Hohners as my main instruments.

Well Christmas is over, and our visitors for the holiday season have returned to the UK.

One of the friends who was stating with us brought his vintage Les Paul with him, and I got to play it a little. It was, of course, a beautiful thing, with a very low action and a lovely tone. It sounded wonderful through my Roland Cube 60 - but then everything does.

And, as it goes, far too good for the likes of me. Seriously, I could never do it justice. It reinforced my view that for most things in life the very best quality is often wasted on the needs and abilities of the average user (ie me). As it happens I have a guitar that is close to the top of Epiphone's range, my Prophesy GX. I like to play it, and it is certainly as good a guitar as I will ever foreseeably need. It's the same with my cars; the Mondeo is a good a family car as I want or need. A BMW 5 series is better, but not worth the premium when speed limits are so low, fuel so expensive, and the roads so crowded. My 'toy' car, a 13 year old Corvette, is no Ferrari (it starts in the mornings for a kick off  ) but it's fast enough to be better than I am.

So while I have always lusted after a Gibson Les Paul, I now know that I am not really missing that much.

Happy New Year one and all 

 . . with some excitement.

A few months ago I discovered that my much loved and well used Hohner B bass had suffered some damage. Everyone in the house denies having knocked it off of the guitar stand, of course, but it has a deep impact impression in the body and the lacquer has split. So I decided that I would keep it for high days and holidays. So I then embarked upon an intensive savings programme with a view to finding myself a cheap everyday replacement.

So on Monday I ordered one of these: http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_hbz2005.htm

Fingers crossed it arrives tomorrow, which would be nice because it's supposed to be raining and I won't be able to do any gardening 

The reviews say quality on these seems to be variable, but with Thomann you can just throw defective stuff back at them if you need to.

I use Cubase, one of my best mates uses Ableton.

Both of us being oldish farts and therefore from an age of analogue multitrack recording have been through really steep learning curves (I still can't see the top of the one I'm on).

Getting Ableton Lite working was pretty easy  - it came with my Mustang 3 and has step by step interactive help. But it is very limited, and Ableton's prices look rather on the steep side to me.

I have finally got Cubase Elements 7 working, but that was struggle. It would have helped if there were clear 'how to' instructions in the manual for basic set up. The advanced stuff seems pretty well described, but the assumption even in the getting started section was that the user was familiar with DAW recording. The Amp Rack VST is very impressive and my little Behringer Xenyx 502USB mixer is doing sterling work on the in/out front. I need a better midi interface than my eBay £2.95 one, but even that is doing well at my current level of knowledge.

So, the to the point - are these two really much of a muchness, or do you have a preference? If so, what are your reasons?

Seek and ye shall find - got a patch for my Mustang 3 called 'empty' so it can be used with effects processors with no amplifier modeling, and as a clean USB recording interface. Result!

Fender Fuse is bl**dy marvellous 

Does anyone else on here use Fender amps that are Fuse compatible? My delight with my Mustang 3 continues to grow, not least because of the Fuse software.

Looking for any advice or opinion whatsoever on a decent bass combo for practice at home and the occasional al fresco gig. I did buy a Harley Benton HBW80 from Thomann, but learned from that that it is really important to see the letters RMS after a power rating, and, given that it was as cheap as chips, you get what you pay for sometimes, and no more!

It actually sounds reasonable, but the specification plate on the back says output 20W RMS, which is not enough for my purposes. Maximum SPL is only 110db at 1 metre.

I have been looking at Behringers, the 180w and 300w, but some say they are unreliable, and I reckon the rating is not RMS. I've also considered the Warwick BC80 and the Hartke A100. Does anyone have any experience of any of these, or a recommendation for something else? Currently I am using an old Trace Elliot 200w head and a dying Celestion Sidewinder Cab.

Forgot to mention, I will be using it with my Mustang 3 stacked on top, so it has to have the control panel on the front of the cabinet.

Fender Mustang lllâ,,¢ V1 Review



What do you get?

Amplifier:

100W, 1x 12" Celestionâ,,¢ G12T-100 Speaker, 8 Ohms, 1 channel with 100 presets.
Controls: gain, volume, treble, middle, bass, reverb, master, data wheel, soft keys for amp select, stomp edit, modulation edit, delay edit, reverb edit, utility, save, exit, and tap/tuner.
12 amp models* (with editable cabinet emulations as well as all amplifier parameters): '57 Deluxeâ,,¢, '59 Bassman®, '57 Champ®, '65 Deluxe Reverb®, '65 Princeton®, '65 Twin Reverb®, Super-Sonicâ,,¢, British '60s, British '70s, British '80s, American '90s, Metal 2000.
7 stomp effects*: Overdrive, Fixed Wah, Touch Wah, Fuzz, Fuzz Touch Wah, Compressor, Simple Compressor.
11 modulation effects*: Sine Chorus, Triangle Chorus, Sine Flanger, Triangle Flanger, Vibratone, Vintage Tremolo, Sine Tremolo, Ring Modulator, Step Filter, Phaser, Pitch Shifter.
9 delay effects*: Mono Delay, Mono Echo Filter, Stereo Echo Filter, Multitap Delay, Ping Pong Delay, Ducking Delay, Reverse Delay, Tape Delay, Stereo Tape Delay.
10 reverb effects*: Small Hall, Large Hall, Small Room, Large Room, Small Plate, Large Plate, Ambient, Arena, Fender '63 Spring Reverb, Fender '65 Spring Reverb.
*All of the above are fully editable

Effects loop, 2-button footswitch.

   

Illuminated LCD on top panel

 

*please note that the 'basic clean' preset at 00 in the picture above is one I created - just a '65 Twin straight through.

Aux input, headphone output (mini-jack, jack doubles as speaker emulated line out), speaker emulated USB out.

Dimensions: 45.1 x 52.1 x 27.3cm
(H x W x D).
Weight: 16.3kg.

Ableton® Live Lite 8 Fender® Edition studio-quality recording software compatible with Mustang USB recording output; AmpliTube® Fender® LE edition with free Fender® FUSEeditor/librarian software for Mac and PC


Does it work?
Hell yes. Frankly amazing value and so capable. Loud as you like with an SPL: C (music) weighting, flat out before distortion, at 1 metre - 126db + (that's as loud as my meter will measure). Maxing out probably around 130db. I wore ear defenders to conduct the test. This is one loud amplifier, which would explain why I have never turned the master volume up above 3 in my practice room.

The tuner is fast and accurate.

Editing parameters is easy and easier still with the Fender Fuseâ,,¢ software installed on your PC.

Being a Fender there is naturally a tendency to a bright default sound; some may not like this, but I regard it as a basic underpinning; the foundation on which the other sounds are built which needs to be as pure as possible. The open backed cabinet contributes to this clarity and does result in there not being a thunderous bottom end, but there is enough grunt there for the heavier models.



There are some dubious choices amongst the factory presets (every manufacturer is guilty of this in my experience) and they are arranged in what seems an illogical way, with screaming metal presets adjacent to clean and gentle sounds. Not much of a problem as they can all be easily moved around to suit. I have seen comments on various YouTube demos to the effect that the heavier distorted sounds are all very similar; this is, however, not the case. Used with both a Squier Affinity HSS Strat, Antoria ES335, and a Harley Benton 450L Vintage (Les Paul copy) the sounds are all distinctly different. That said, I feel that someone into more extreme metal sounds might struggle a bit to find the sounds they are after.

I only have the included 2 button footswitch â€" the optional 4 button footswitch has programmable functions, puts the tuner on the floor in front of you, can be used together with the 2 button footswitch and is not very expensive â€" a must buy that is on my 'saving up' list.

The quality of the modelling is superb in the case of the Fender models, and not at all bad for the others. I would have liked to have a Mesa Boogieâ,,¢ model in there â€" this is my preferred heavier sound which fortunately my Zoom G3Xâ,,¢ has available. In all cases the sensitivity of the modelling to how you play the guitar is outstanding.

Now, to the software:
I will have to be brief here, as I have not used the Ableton Liteâ,,¢ installation at all, but I have no reason to suppose it won't do what it says on the tin. I am, therefore, unable to comment on the USB output modelling.

The Fender Fuseâ,,¢ site is not the best or fastest in the world, but there is a community who share modified presets for you to play with, and the local Fuseâ,,¢ software enables you to edit the amplifier parameters from your computer including parameters that are not accessible from the controls on the amplifier. It's quite fun to watch the graphical interface dials move in sync with the controls on the top panel. Childish maybe, I can be easily amused

Good points:
See above, just about everything really.

Bad points:
The 'manual' provided is just a quick start guide and not very helpful, you have to go to the Fender Fuseâ,,¢ site to download the full manual.

There is no balanced DI output, just the use of the mini headphone socket. However, there is the USB output also with speaker emulation which I would use in preference anyway.

The auxiliary input is -13db. When you add to that the EU's regulation nobbling of the output volume on MP3 players you have a very quiet backing track. I actually use the aux input on my practice bass amp if I want to play along with anything on the MP3 player, it's much louder.

There are no protective corners, so if you plan to gig it you would need to add some or be ever so careful lugging it about.

Summary:
I can't praise this amplifier highly enough. It is incredibly versatile, capable of incredible volume, doesn't weigh much and is small enough to be extremely portable. It is probably more ideally matched to a Fenderâ,,¢ group manufactured guitar than other brands; that said I use it with two twin humbucker guitars as well as the Squier Affinity HSS Stratocaster.



At this price it scores 11/10 for value for money. But if you are death metal fan, you might want to look elsewhere for your ideal modelling amplifier.

NB - V2 version of the Mustang 3 has 18 amp models, and an expanded stomp box section with more overdrive models including Big Fuzz, Green Screamer and Intelligent Pitch Shifting. And no, I can't afford to upgrade. Dang.

There are still some examples of the V1 Mustang lll in the shops at a slightly lower price than the newer V2, the latter being more capable (according to the specifications) of producing more convincing heavier and distorted sounds. Depending upon your preferences it may or may not be worth spending the extra for these features.

Squier Affinity HSS Stratocaster Bundle Review
Like THIS THIS THIS or THIS
What's in the box?
Guitar:   Alder body
   Maple neck with rosewood fretboard
   21 frets
   2 single coil pickups
   1 humbucker pickup
   5 position selector switch
Frontman 15G amplifier with mains lead
Fender branded strap
Fender branded lightweight gig bag
Fender branded tuner
Fender branded 3 metre jack to jack lead
Two Fender picks
DVD - Getting Started on Guitar â€" The First Step
Allen key
Spare tremelo spring

Guitar:
Summary: I couldn't be happier with this guitar. A quick play in the shop was enough to persuade me that my â,¬200 would be well spent. As I already owned a Fender Mustang 3 I wasn't really interested in the amplifier, but more of that later. The guitar itself is well finished in a cherry red and is blemish free, as is the varnishing on the neck. The chrome hardware looks and feels relatively cheap, but is quite functional, with the exception of the machine heads which seem thickly chromed and have a good positive action. The guitar holds its tuning well. The strings are presumably Fender, and are light gauge, probably 008s. I have not tried the tremelo at all, so cannot comment on how the guitar responds to its use, ie does it stay in tune. I have been obeying the dictum for tyro guitarists of 'avoid the Floyd'.

Plus points:
So easy to play. This is function of the light standard strings and what is a superb neck and fretboard for a guitar of this price. Classic Fender clean, detailed and bright sound from the two single coils and a more distorted sound from the humbucker, although the latter does not pump up the output in the same way it does on a Yamaha Pacifica for example, and it is also noticeably quieter than either of the humbuckers on my Antoria ES335. Low output is I suspect a characteristic of budget guitars; my Les Paul copy isn't very loud either. This means that although you do not get a wall of sound from  switching to the humbucker it is in better balance with the two single coils and the very positive five position selector switch can be swung back and forth with no large variation in volume, but a fairly wide range of tones.

The body is solid  alder, which albeit not from North America (my example was manufactured in Indonesia) does give that characteristic Fender sound, one which I was not sure I would like that much, but having become accustomed to it I currently prefer it to the thicker tones from the ES335 and my Wilkinson pickup equiped Les Paul (Harley Benton 450L Vintage) copy.

The fretboard on my example is rosewood, which I prefer. I suspect that the sound might be overbearingly bright if the varnished fretboard option is chosen instead.

Minus Points:
The built down to a price hardware. The jack socket on mine came loose within a few weeks, and looks a likely candidate for early replacement with something more up to the job. But that really is my only criticism.

Amplifier:
Not a huge amount to say about this, other than it has found a home in my study for occasional use. It looks workmanlike, but again it was obviously built down to a price as the loud 'click' whenever it is turned off testifies.  It is nevertheless gamely loud, very definitely has the clean detailed Fender sound without the drive engaged, and what is more the drive circuit is the best I have heard on such a bargain basement small amplifier. When you add to that the headphone socket (1/4”), the stereo RCA input for your MP3/CD player to play along with, and the fact that it is pretty much free with the guitar, you have a bargain. After I started using this I sold my old 20w practice amp, because of the two this was easily the best.

Accessories:
The good:
The DVD â€" I found this a very useful supplement to my 'larn yousel guitar' manuals.
The clip on type tuner is a joy to use and very accurate as well as very portable.
The 3 metre lead â€" above average quality, nicely made

The so so:
The picks are OK, a bit on the thin side as befits the light strings
The gig bag is a bit on the thin and insubstantial side, OK for keeping the dust off, but I would not want to transport the guitar in it â€" I'd use something like the Thomann gig bag instead. I have these in two different sizes for my ES335 and HB 450 Vintage and they are excellent, both in terms of quality and value.

The dreadful:
The strap is thin with what are probably imitation leather ends. In any event, my strap lasted less than three weeks before it snapped. Luckily the Strat is not a particularly heavy guitar and I managed to catch it on the way down. I went back to the shop and was given a much stronger, if rather unattractively camouflage patterned, non Fender replacement. I have now replaced the strap with the old one from my ES335 which is much more sturdy. The camo strap is on the acoustic now.

OK,

So I have decided upon my new bass practice amp - Warwick BC40, but as a budding six string player my question to you more experienced chaps out there is this:

Modelling amp (Vox VT40+, Line 6 IV, Fender Mustang II) or clean amp (Behringer 30VTX, Fender Frontman 25, Stagg 40) and modelling pedal like a Vox Stompad?

My current guitar amp is a cheap as chips Storm 20 with a farty 8 inch speaker and a distortion circuit that only does anything faintly useful when turned up to eleven.

My guitars are an Antoria ES335 copy and a Lidl Electro Acoustic (which sounds and plays unbelievably well considering the source and the price). The little Storm actually sounds really good with the electro/acoustic running through it, but doesn't do the Antoria any favours, especially on the bridge pickup.

I have to admit to a tendency towards the Fender Mustang because it does clean really well, and I might buy a Squier Affinity Strat to muck about with too. If I do that the bass practice amp will have to wait, but no problem, I've got a basement full of Traces

Yesterday I decided to try to find a chord dictionary for my Android fondleslab.

So I went on to the playstore and did a quick search. I went for the free version of CHORD!

Obviously I have only had it to play with for 24 hours, but it is impressing me. I didn't buy the full version because even playing the standard B fingering is proving a bit of a struggle at the moment. 

Hi,

I'm Howard, retired old f*rt living in rural France.

I'm a bass player, never played a 6 string until now, although I got a folk guitar for Christmas last year and I am making occasional forays into trying to play it.

I've been playing since I was a much smaller and younger person, some 40 odd years. I had a few stabs at going pro in the 80s but nothing much came of that apart from a bit of touring and recording. I then moved on to a pub band, which was a lot of fun and kept me largely out of mischief for quite a number of years. I also had an 8 track studio in my basement which was used both for the pub band and some other local bands to record demos. One band even put a couple of singles and one album out that were recorded there.

I play Hohner active basses through one of two Trace Elliot heads into two 1x15 Sidewinder loaded ported cabinets.  I used to use Peavey stuff, which I still rate very highly, but the 4x10 was a bit big and heavy and I replaced my long suffering head with a Trace when it got too tired. The Hohners replaced a Rickenbacker 4003 and a Status Graphite, both nice to play but too heavy and frankly they just didn't sound as good to me.

I haven't played in public for three years, and have no desire to do so again - for one thing the tinnitus is not getting any better.