I’m with you 100%. But I can’t get interested in a bass that I don’t like the looks of.
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If it was a guitar made in the Matsumoku factory (as most MIJ Aria’s were) it will be one of the best instruments made in that era, way way better than a Fender or Gibson of the time.
This particular one, though, seems kind of messed up. Like, why is the bridge at a funky angle?
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It looks to me like it’s got a metal bridge stacked onto of a wooden bridge and pups stacked on top of pups. I’d want to see how high the action is compared to the height above the pups.
Here’s a similar bass, probably somewhat older and in better shape 
Bridge and pups seem similar.
https://reverb.com/item/6874050-vintage-conrad-hollow-body-bass-guitar
Could it be a floating bridge like for the Hofner?
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OK that 
looks much more like it’s how it’s meant to look! So I guess I was wrong, the other photo somehow looks like it was cobbled together!
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I thought it looked cobbled together, too! But found some pictures online and some YouTube videos and saw other bases that looked the same. Weird looking pickups for sure.
I sent them a message asking if they knew what was meant by the the “neck pickup needs fixing”. Is it a mounting issue, like it’s not attached well to the instrument, or does it not make sound when you use it?
They saw the message two days ago and haven’t replied anything. Eh. I don’t like that. I want to buy it, but I’m not interested in chasing a buyer that ignores basic questions. A simple “I don’t know, sorry” is an acceptable response.
I’ve tried to buy several basses off marketplace in the past. They’re always eager until you say you’ve got cash and can head that way now, then they suddenly stop responding. Two of those basses are still listed. I think it’s a scam to have people send money then they bounce. There’s no reason to ignore someone ready to bring you cash immediately.
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I’m not really sure about the floating bridge, but the chrome lever hanging beside the bridge cover appears to be a mute switch from what I can tell.
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Thank you!
Yes, I will be recording at some point. Sorting through mouthpiece / reed ligature setups and playing in tune. But having fun so far!
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Never used them but if anyone is looking for a 25-key MIDI controller these look pretty good overall for the price. They come in around the Akai pricing range but have some nice features like full size keys even on the two-octave.
https://nektartech.com/products/impact-lxmk3/
I’d personally go for the 49 or 61 and Novation or Arturia, but that’s one of the nicer 25-keys I have seen.
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The stupid Bitwig Connect now has me GASsing to trade out my mixer for a combination audio interface/DAW control.
Presonus used to have one but it is discontinued. SSL has some very expensive ones. M-Audio a giant one. Behringer might have something similar as one of the many Xenys. What I really want is something like a Novation LaunchControl with an audio interface built in.
My KeyLab 61 has perfectly fine DAW controls but no audio interface. So, I have literally everything I am looking for already, just not in one unit. Which makes this some seriously fringe and needless GAS.
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I have the 49 version of this Nektar keyboard, but hardly use it (because of space issues). For what I need, mostly I can actually get away with this one:
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Like that but with an audio interface built in. They used to make one.
Hmm actually they still might, just not in Japan.
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So weird. Definitely gone from Japan and marked as discontinued. Like, the page on their Japan site even 404s.
I am guessing it’s discontinued everywhere and they are just selling down remaining stock.
Anyway, something like this, which is a combo of a Presonus FaderPort and one of their nicer 2/2 audio interfaces.
The other thing I am really resisting here is a NI Maschine Mk.3. It’s just too much of other stuff and just sort of tangentially what I want on the side. The light show would be cool though. It’s just that I feel like if I bought it, I would disappoint it and it would judge me 
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I hear you. It’s the biggest reason I got a producer desk.
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I’d love to get one… alas, as I am sharing the “office” with my wife (with two similar desks), this would seriously look off, and so it’s a no-go.
Dreaming of building a little “shed” in the garden as a studio. Sounds nice, but it’s really a serious committment to actually do that (costs, permits, etc.). It’s not just a bit of plywood that I can take down again in a few weeks when I realize I’ll never be a “producer”
Speaking of which: mastering.com is doing a free 5-day workshop on producing a “radio-ready single”. They started yesterday with a demo track (vocals, guitar, a little bit of keyboard) and used 3 hours creating a drum track - very interesting. Today will be bass, keys and guitars; tomorrow vocals, Thu & Fri is for mixing and mastering.
It’s in the middle of the night for you, but once registered you can watch the sessions at any time…
Mastering.com Event Info
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Interesting. Kind of surprised it took the three hours to explain doing a drum track though 
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(Drum programming is one of those “quick to learn, lifetime to master” kind of things. No pun intended )
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Well, it’s not so much “explaining”… you watch him do it in real time. And he wasn’t just slapping it together either. Selection of drum samples, playing a rough version on his keyboard, tweaking the timing, the sounds, putting BitCrusher on some of the samples, and so on. He even recorded himself scratching/swooshing (is that a word?) over his jeans to make a nice percussion sound. I was a bit “bored” initially, but it was really interesting…
While he is doing it, he is talking about choices, EQ’ing, various samples, various plugins etc.
The event is sponsored by NI and iZotope, but he uses all kind of stuff.
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Sounds cool!
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