dubkitty wrote:and conversely i'm starting to post here because i'm working on getting a bass setup together. i got a Squier Mustang bass back in July but haven't done much with it because my guitar amps just don't have it going on down that low. so my first question is, recommend me a small-ish SS bass head that's less than $500? i probably don't need massive wattage, but headroom would be good. the bass rig will also be used as part of a bi-amp setup for looping. i'm mostly looking for clarity...i can add character with a preamp or pedal or something. i'll be running a single 15" cabinet, probably with an old all-aluminum Hartke speaker.
second question: what's a brand/model of roundwound (or ground/half-round strings though i'd prefer full rounds) that isn't so zingy it makes me sound like Mike Gordon in the high end? i'd like the clarity of the note attack especially with a pick, but as some of you will have read i'm pretty old-school in my approach to bass. i basically don't believe in treble content in bass, and think 10" speakers (or 8s, god forbid) have ruined 21st century bass sound. my hero is Jack Casady (who apparently has been using a stash of Framus-branded Maxima bass strings for years), but i'll generally be playing in a more restrained style. a lot of the SF 60s bassists, e.g. Phil Lesh, used roundwounds without getting click attack. i know there's some variation by brand because i got Ernie Ball flats for my fretless Jazz Bass (which needs its neck straightened because the truss rod has topped out) which were so bright that they may as well have been rounds. so what's the opposite of that: darker-sounding roundwounds? let me reiterate that these need to be short-scale strings to fit a Mustang Bass.
1. Phil Jones Bass. If you want just a head, check out the PB200 - I've seen them go used for mid 2's.
2. I haven't tried all the strings, but I use D'Addadio's usually and then never change them. Or maybe it was Super Slinky's? If I was to go out and buy strings, I'd probably give String Joy a try...but again, I'm not a good guy to ask about strings as I am one of those never change em kinda guys.