Steve's Bass Repairs

30/06/2026

This is the response to AI music that every musician deserves. I've been a supporter of TIDAL every since I started streaming music over 10 years ago. Whilst I still buy physical media wherever possible, there are multiple ethical reasons why I have never had a Spotify or Apple music account.

If you're a musician, or just love music, I really do encourage you to ditch all other streaming services and support the one that best supports musicians (apart from Bandcamp, which isn't quite the same animal, but is also awesome). AI music can go and eat a bag of d!ck5... 🤘

We’re a music platform that puts artists and listeners first. To protect artists and keep listeners informed, here’s how we’re handling AI on Tidal beginning on July 15:

- 100% AI-generated tracks will receive a badge that says “AI” and will not receive royalties.
- Content designed to impersonate other artists gets removed.
- Listeners will be able to filter all 100% AI-generated content out.
- These standards also apply to Tidal Uploads.

Link in bio.

10/06/2026

Hi bassheads!! Sorry it's been a while, I've been a little swamped finishing my Uni degree, but I'm all done now and back on the tools!!

This beautiful beast went home today- a 1983 Wal custom fretless. It's the first Wal I've had on the bench, and it was a pleasure to get it serviced and set-up and back to its full potential. Beautiful timber work, immaculate electronics, and even the k***s are custom machined (check out the metal reference indicators in the body, too!).

Wals are a part of the history and mythology of bass guitars, and this one shows how they gained that very deserving reputation. Sad to see it go home, but I did spend a bit of time making sure it was playing well- purely for quality control purposes, of course!! 😁

Contact me to book your bass into the workshop - whatever you've got, and whatever it needs, I've got you covered! 😁🤘🏼🎸✌🏼

12/05/2026

Hey folks, just letting you know I have some workshop time available ATM, so quick turnaround of any new jobs is guaranteed!!
Same high quality work, same very reasonable pricing, and less downtime for you!
Message me to book your bass into the workshop!! 🙂✌🏼🎸🤘🏼

BTW, if you're heading to Kangaroo Valley Reggae Festival this Saturday, I'll be on the main stage at 3:45pm with the Beatmeisters . Come and say hi, and have a groove/boogie with us!!

11/04/2026

HI all! I hope your weekend is off to a great start. A couple of interesting things from the last few weeks in the workshop...

The first picture is a parallel treble bleed circuit- I think these should really be called a treble-retaining circuit. If you've ever turned your volume pot down from full, you'll notice that as the volume comes down there's a very noticeable drop in treble, too. This little circuit retains the tone regardless of output level, so your volume control does volume, and your tone control does tone- just how it should be! A simple and inexpensive mod, and one I'd recommend for every P bass on the market.

Second picture is a custom 1mm bridge shim for a Sire Z7. The string holes in the bridge are so low that it's quite challenging to install them, and the ball ends dig into the body. I'd personally consider it a design flaw, but what do I know?!! Installing the shim has completely resolved the issue, whilst still allowing for a very low action.

Pics 3-6 are an early 90's Warwick 6-string. It's by far and away the heaviest bass I've had in the workshop - think of your heaviest Stingray or Jazz, and then add another kilo. The neck is enormous, and the 19mm string spacing means it's 95mm across the strings at the bridge - I couldn't get a fret guard to fit past the 9th fret! Fortunately it sounds as huge as it is, and it's also a piece of history from the very early days of Warwick.

Have a great weekend, spend some time with your bass, and contact me to book your bass into the workshop!! 🙂✌🏼🎸🤘🏼

16/03/2026

Hi all, and happy Monday! I hope you listened to some great tunes over the weekend.

I've had a lot of short scale (30") basses coming into the workshop recently, including these 3 Fenders which went home last week (not the same owners).

Short scale basses have some unique characteristics - they tend to sound more tonally "even" across the strings, unlike long scale basses where the D/G often sound a bit thin. They're also kinder to your wrists if you play in the first few frets a lot, as the neck is shorter so your wrist doesn't need to bend as far because your elbow can do some of the work. Thirdly, they're usually lighter, and the slightly closer frets often feel easier to navigate for those with smaller hands. Plus, they don't look like a giant novelty instrument for smaller players! 😁

If you haven't tried one, I strongly suggest giving it a go- there's plenty of options from quite a few brands, and whilst not everyone loves them, you might surprise yourself and find a short scale bass is your new N+1... 🙂✌🏼🎸🤘🏼

14/02/2026

Happy Valentine's weekend folks- did you get your bass a Valentine's Day gift? 😁

This beautiful Daion bass went home yesterday, and the owner couldn't be happier. It's had a new Puretone jack fitted, the pick guard repaired, a sized/rusted bridge screw replaced, a new set of LaBella low tension flats fitted, plus of course a full service and setup. Looks vintage, plays like it just came out of the factory!

There's not a huge amount of info on these, but my best guess is this came out of the Yamaki factory in Japan sometime in the late 70's or early 80's. It's likely the lowest spec of 3 models (a YBP450), but apart from the tuners it's exceptionally well made. The neck is virtually perfect, and it's even got a treble bleed circuit on the volume pot- how's that for innovation on a cheap bass?

Contact me to book your bass into the workshop - you deserve to know just how good it can be! ✌🏼🙂🤘🏼🎸

16/01/2026

I hate barrel jacks!!! There, I've said it- and I'm sure I'm not the only one! They're more expensive and harder to work on than an open jack, and once the spring is gone they can't be repaired. From my perspective, I think a jack plate and a standard jack is a much better option - but what do I know?

This Warwick Rock bass Fortress came in this week - the jack kept coming loose, and someone else had stripped the nut trying to tighten it, and then glued the nut in place, thinking that would solve the problem...

As anyone should be able to see, the real issue is that the nut isn't pulling against a flat surface, and that crazy angle means that tightening the nut was putting uneven pressure on the threads and trying to cross thread it- not to mention if it turned at all, it suddenly came loose.

A bit of carving with a chisel gave it a nice perpendicular surface for the jack to secure against, and now it's got a new Puretone jack (best in the business) so I shouldn't be seeing this bass again, at least not for that issue! The last couple of pics are a vintage Ibanez and Aria ProII, showing 2 different ways of getting it right at the factory- if the manufacturer bothers to try

And to finish on a high note, here's a new track from Australia's own Donny Benet for your edification and enjoyment https://youtu.be/kYOlhaAOomI?si=2ai217KKsl85XPVa
When you need a bass service Donny, look me up!!! 😁✌🏼🎸🤘🏼