Currently, my primary bass is a Traben Phoenix 5 string. The attention to the visual asthetics of this bass works very well with the Jim Mesi Band hot rod theme. The combination of the single coil neck pickup and the music man type bridge pickup in addition to the three band active electronics provide a large variety of tone options. And the one lb. chrome plated brass bridge creates nearly infinite sustain.

In addition to my Traben, i also have two other basses. They are two custom built 5 strings. The necks (which are made by Warmoth) are maple with rose wood finger board on the fretted and ebony on the frettless. The bodies (which are also made by Warmoth) are swamp ash with a quilt maple top stained black. The electronics and pick ups are Lane Poor. These basses play like a dream and have incredible tone definition.

Of course, both basses are strung exclusively with Gore/Elixir nano web bass strings (.045-.125). The Elixirs are by far the best strings that I have ever played on in 25 years of thumping. They come out of the box bright and warm and they stay that way forever. I always get at least three months of good use out of each set where as i used to have to change my old brand after just one month. Yeah, they cost almost twice as much, but they definately last three times as long. You do the math. Also, it's that much less time I have to spend changing strings each year which means I get more time to practice (or work on my web page).

I currently have two bass heads in my inventory. A Peavey Max preamp with a Peavey DPC1400X power amp, and a Peavey Kilobass. My primary head is the Kilobass. It features two 500 watt digital poweramps, an all tube preamp and a solid state preamp, and 7 band graphic e.q. The Max preamp offers both tube and solid state preamp stages and a seven band graphic e.q. The DPC 1400x is a 1400 watt digital poweramp. Both of these units have digital power amps which provides a tremendous amount of wattage for the weight.

I use several different Peavey cabinets for a number of different sounds and a variety of venues. Most commonly, I use a Peavey 410PRO. It has enough volume for most club venues, it is virtually indestructable, and the tone is fantastic. I also have a Peavey 210PRO and a Peavey 115pro. I use these units for rehearsals, smaller venues, and occassionally to augment the 410PRO when I need to move a little more air.

I have a Digitech BP8 effects unit that i use occasionally when I am called for a trio gig. The chorus, reverb, and volume pedal are the primary effects that i use. They really open up the chord tones and help to keep the bass from getting too muddy while running full three tone chords.

I use Korg tuners, both rack mount and hand held. They are reliable and accurate. In my primary rack i am using a Korg DTR-1000. This unit offers both cent tuning and strobe tuning for maximum acuracy. In my back up rack i keep a DTR-2 and in my bass case i keep a CA-20 hand held.

I use a Furman PL-plus power filter to keep the signal clean and protect my gear from spikes and surges.

I use Levy's Leathers straps, and SKB rack cases.