Leaderboard

I left the last group because I asked them what chords they were playing and they couldn't answer me.

If you rehearse in a small room, in a circle, with amps pointing at each other and at gig volumes, then I'm afraid you don't understand the purpose of a rehearsal and you''ll always cause/have problems. However you set up in a rehearsal room turn the volume down (because this isn't a gig) and you'll a be able to work on the detail of the songs. This is where the selfish and incompetent hide behind the 2 great excuses. . . . the drummer has to play that loud and I need to play this loud to get my sound. Anyone who is so inadequate that they resort to using these 2 cop outs should be fired forthwith.

Hopefully we will have a great 'special guest' chat/clinic to announce shortly - just firming it up!

The biggest problem with pretty much every rehearsal room I've been in is volume. You have a room roughly the same size as a single garage and you fill it with stacks by Marshall and Ashdown, plus a PA that could handle the main stage at Glastonbury, and then the band plays at gig volume. Well gig volume only works at a gig, in a decent-sized room with carpets and furniture and stuff, and above all with dozens (perhaps hundreds) of bodies absorbing the sound. I've never understood why so many bands are so stupid about this. The only thing that gig volume is good for at a rehearsal is hiding the mistakes ... so why bother rehearsing? Grumpyguts, try insisting (just once) that the whole band turns down to a sensible level. Turn the singer down on the PA to the point where he's at home stereo level, you take the bass down to match, force the guitarist(s) to follow suit, and then the drummer has no choice. I believe that you'll be very pleasantly surprised at the result. And your ears won't be ringing the next morning.

I have plenty of time to play now as my boys are in their twenties. Cherish the time with your kids Your time will come

Yep, we`ve been together for almost 5 years now, have released 3 albums, 3 eps/singles, played festivals, done overseas gigs/tours, and it`s all still incredibly good fun. I think a lot of it is to do with age, similarly we are all 40s/50s with no illusions of being stars. As such with the ego malarkey out of the way this is the most successful any of us have ever been, probably due to it being a hobby, albeit a very time-consuming one, and primarily done for fun/the love of it. We don`t take any money from the band, it all goes back in to the pot to pay for recording, flights, ferries, hotels, more merch etc. This coming week we`ll rehearse Mon, then got gigs on Tue/Wed/Thu in Bristol, Manchester and London respectively. Later on this month we have another 3 gigs in 3 days, Stockton On Tees, Edinburgh & Doncaster. That`s off the back of releasing an EP at the start of this month, at The Rebellion Festival in Blackpool. Were I to be in my 20s doing this I don`t think I would have appreciated it at all, probably would have just got riotously drunk at all the gigs (which is what I did in fact do at the smaller gigs I did back then) whereas I realise now that I`m incredibly fortunate to have my hobby enabling me to do all of the above. I reckon being able to do all of this in my 50s has made me appreciate it all the more.

I haven't said 'Yes' yet mate ...

Just got the Zenith back. All I can say is OMG. It's gorgeous. Simon at GUS has managed to fit a 22 fret 5 string neck to a 21 fret 4 string bass and you'd never know. The passive EMG's and greasebucket tone mod sound lush with a threeway switch and wired in series and parallel. The piezo only has a volume pot but it's got a hidden secret. Instead of being battery run it's powered by a capacitor that takes only 1 minute to charge and this will last 16 hours. I've put the original brass bridge logo on the headstock instead of where it should be. In my opinion it just looks better on the headstock (it looked good on the original rosewood bridge but now that has been made larger it looked out of proportion and 'wrong'). Anyway, I know I didn't do anything to convert it (unlike some of the skilled people on BC I would have just ruined something that, in my eyes, is probably one of the best looking basses I've ever laid eyes on), but I knew what I wanted and luckily had one of the finest luthiers on the planet just down the road from me who managed to transform my thoughts into a work of art

Always fancied the idea of trying Thunderbird pickups, so when a coupla chinese clones came up for sale, I did this, with some bits I had lying around . I really, really like it. Great punch.

I just can't deal with loud rehearsal. It seems like such an antiquated way of working. We use a decent electronic kit, amp modelling and in ears to rehearse. The clarity is awesome and by plugging a laptop into the mixer we can record the whole session. At gigs the only difference is an acoustic kit instead of electronic and a pa speakers so no boomy wall of sound there either.

I know there will be recommendations that this or that 212 will outperform a 610, but I`m yet to have the experience of one that does. Sure they`ll go loud, most possibly louder, but that huge all enveloping sound you get from a 610 imo is due to the amount of speakers all going together. Again I reckon that there will be disputes on that based on science/technology/efficiency etc, but I know that of the high-end 212s I've had they didn`t give that same all enveloping sound. However they did deliver on the low-end punch, no loss of that - they were Neos as well.

Tsk! Pah! Far too late to complain about lack of time now. One has to commit either to being a good bass player and keeping one's pants on, OR banging it on the table and rogering anyone within grappling distance at every opportunity. Unfortunately I did neither.

Maybe. I have a day job tho which brings in most of my income, so I don't need to stay in a band with a##eholes just for money. That's why playing solo works well for me - I can be an a##ehole all by myself then!

Same as Blue: never quit until you have something else (hopefully better) to go to and don't do "personality clashes". They are a pointless waste of time. I have just one bottom line, I'm in bands so I can gig. It's always a bonus if the band is made up of good players but as long as the gigs are good then I have no problem playing with anyone. I mostly play with great guys anyway, but over the years there have been a few very unpleasant people. I make sure I''m friendly with everyone. I treat everyone in every band and every gig with a "professional" attitude. It helps that most of the guys I play with are professionals, either making a living from gigging or teaching their instruments, so I see very few personality problems. Most ex-bands have folded and just broken up, so how to leave wasn't an issue. I've been fired a few times, usually so the band leader can get in one of his mates. C'est la vie. I've left a few to join a better band. Twice I left because I just didn't have enough time to juggle the number of bands I was in with a young family and a job. I've only quit one band, that I can recall, about 10 years ago, because the band leader started messing me about, ie cancelling gigs and not telling me. I emailed him after the second time and told him where he shove his band.

Funnily enough, nor is mine!

18 at the moment: Aria SB700 (1981) Aria SB1000 (1984) Aria RSB Deluxe II (1986) Aria SB Black ‘n’ Gold I (1984) Aria SB1000JT (2006) Peavey Cirrus USA 4 (2002) Fender Jazz Geddy Lee MIJ Fender Precision 1962 replica Fender Jazz Bass Special (1986) Fender Jazz Bass Special (1987) Fender Jazz Bass Special (1993) Philip Kubicki Ex Factor 4 (1988) Yamaha BB1024X Yamaha BB1025X Shuker Custom Sandberg VM4 HCA Warmoth Fender Jazz Maruszczyk Elwood Custom

1st pickup template done, I am pretty happy with the design although will tweak the top curve to better follow the body.

Watched a Rush documentary last night about their last tour (think it was called ‘Time Stands Still’) The overriding impression was that they’re phenomenal musicians, and I can’t wait for Geddy Lee’s bass book - he had some beautiful gear on stage, All custom colour Fenders, a Zematis, a Thunderbird and of course a Ric or 2 (a 4005 in fireglo was a pleasant surprise!)

I liked DuranDuran. The songs were good, the singist can sing, the bassist played some fantastic basslines & the keys guy made me want things I couldn't afford (hence taking up bass). I've always loved synths & synth bands. I don't know how any of Depeche Mode would fare against a good pianist, but that's not what synths are about. It's sound creation.

Just to let you folks know that the first pedals from Malcolm Toft's Bassics have started to ship to UK retailers and have a are RRP of £199. They are made in small batches with loving care. All Bassics pedals* and are road friendly …they have a unique feature in that they will work with any power supply from 9-18 volts, A.C. or D.C. and any polarity. We'd love to hear what Basschatters think. Visit http://bassics.co.uk for more information Bassics Cruncher Pedal The Cruncher distortion pedal can be switched to 'hard' or 'soft', with the hard setting adding extra harmonics, and could become a favourite with guitar players as well as bass users. Bassics Omni Pre The Omni Pre preamp/bass switcher is just the right foot stomp to instantly change from one instrument to another, say from fretted to fretless, or upright. Heck, Malcolm Toft has even done the unthinkable and put in a mix switch to run both channels at the same time! RRP £199 Bassics Squeezer The Squeezer compressor pedal is a studio quality VCA with a sound much like the revered dbx160. The controls allow the player to control the levels of drive, compression and overall gain. RRP £199 Bassics Tone Ranger The Tone Ranger EQ pedal is a three band preamp with sweepable frequencies. The illuminated controls come in to their own on a dimly lit floor! RRP £199 *Excluding the daddy of them all, the BPA-01 Floor preamp which is AC powered only.

Came across these on Facebook the other day and subsequently searched Youtube and there's plenty there too, absolutely awesome. Here's their version of Distant early warning:

The odd thing to me is that the black ruby fish was / is named Barbus Nigrofasciatus rather than Nigerfaciatus. Though I am no etymologist I understand that the N-word is a corruption of the word negro which is Spanish for black and itself derives from the Latin word niger (also meaning 'black'). Opinion appears to be divided as to the etymology of niger before its appearance in Latin. Familiar modern descendants of niger include nero (Italian) and noir (French). By contrast the English word for black derives from the proto-German blakaz (burnt) which may descend in turn from the Indo-European bhleg. Funnily enough the defunct Old English word blac meant 'light or pale coloured' and derives from an alternative reading of 'burnt', referring not to the blackened quality of the burnt item but to the flames or light generated by the burning process. The Old and Middle English word for black was swart as in the English word swarthy and the very familiar German word schwartz. It is not just obsessive pedantry that leads me off on these ramblings. I believe that a wider understanding of words helps to understand and to de-fang troublesome examples such as the N-word. In the broadest historical context the root of the word has no inherent meaning beyond its function as an adjective; the issues we must prioritise are the hateful beliefs which have accreted around the word and the actions which spring from those beliefs. The fact that an adjective became a noun is significant but not critical, and agonising about Elvis Costello is of secondary importance

As soon as I know I'll drop you a message on here!

Are we talking bass amps or partners now?

That's a refined looking instrument. Respectfully modified. I agree with your placement of the brand plate. Its shape reminds us of that beautiful bridge at the other end. I wish you lots of joy with it.

This makes no sense. Are you tired for some reason??

I'm in Friskney (about 10 miles south of Skeg). Having moved here from Blackpool, where pretty much everybody I knew was either in a band or knew somebody who was in a band, hence it was easy to make those contacts, I've found the Lincolnshire music scene challenging to say the least - I guess the fact it's a helluva big area with a shonky road network doesn't help matters. Anyway, since we moved here a couple of years ago I've had a few false starts after responding to ads on JMB - one for a band in Lincoln (that was before I realised just how long it would actually take me to get to Lincoln and back!!!) and another couple in Boston led to nothing more than a series of messages being exchanged and then it all going quiet, while I did get as far as going to see and having a natter with a band from up your way (Chapel / Sutton) but that came to nowt as they were after somebody a bit more adept / experienced than me who could just step in straight away. I did eventually get involved with a Spilsby-based outfit, though we never actually reached the gigging stage and split up a few months ago for reasons I still don't fully understand! As for the ads I've placed on JMB myself, I got no responses at all to the first, but did get a couple of replies to the second. One of these was from a guy in Boston who was actually looking for a rhythm guitarist (nope, sorry, I don't play rhythm guitar... ), while the second was from a couple of chaps up in Huttoft. Now, I've seen your ads on JMB - I don't know whether they have or not, but if things don't seem to be working out after our first rehearsal (scheduled for a couple of weeks time), I'll point them in your direction! 👍

My understanding is that the lower wattages on the RH series are due to something called 'Active Power Management', but this is not the case on the BH550 / BH800. This is my source:-http://forum.tcelectronic.com/topic/16804/new-bh500-and-bh800-tech-spec-and-wattage/, it's stated by Morten Ehlers, who works for TC.

I agree..there are plenty of 2x12 and 1x15 which will do "enough" - the audience is unlikely to notice the difference - after all we are only bass players. 😉😉

Not going to disagree with Lozz that an excellent 212 is going to "out perform" a 610. But a 212 will hopefully perform very well indeed; and more importantly should perform more than well enough. And your back will love you forever...

Not to mention young Mr 40Hz's USA Sub.

I thought you were mad with the Flashback idea, but that might just work!!!

Well...if that was my number one I’d shite cubes of gold and have no issue

No it wasn't Mine was built for me by Sander. Different pickguard, dots + binding. Nice bass though

Here's mine still going strong. 🙂

The pickup looks to be in the right place, from the images I've seen... so it will probably have a Stingray-type kind of sound. It's a different pickup though so that accounts for some of the sound too. The preamp is not that important. A 100% passive Stingray has an unmistakeable Stingray sound. The preamp only allows to to 'access' other Stingray sounds. If you really want a good Stingray equivalent without the price tag... look for a USA made MusicMan SUB, the ones made between 2003-2006. The range of finishes is limited among other things, but they are true Stingrays in anything but name. Around £400 for an excellent condition used one, and they're not hard to find. I have a white one as well as a 'proper' Stingray, and it's not going anywhere.

My two year old says “bass song” and then does her “bass dance” very odd

You wouldn't want to look at the audience in some of the places I play...

Reasons I have quit tend to be around members I want to beat to death with their own shoes... I have generally taken the shithouse way out via group message as I don’t hold my tongue well when I’m angry. It’s usually down to laziness, wanting the world at their feet but without putting effort in. Turning up late, not helping move gear, losing gear on packing down. I don’t need to gig to pay bills so I’m probably not as patient as some might be.

Ha, I think we could mount quite an impressive DDOS attack using the collective equipment of basschat to build a botnet 🙂

I've heard some people describe wenge as a bunch of splinters held together with snot. I've never worked with it myself though

Knowledgeable and passionate about synths, witty, droll and hugely successful. He may not be able to plinky plonk like Rick Wakeman but I know which would add more to a band's sound IMO.

Once Magnum Sound in Wishaw shut down, that’s all we were left with. I work in Edinburgh, but seem to prefer going into Glasgow ( was in there on Saturday to try out an something ). Merchant City across the road from Guitar Guitar have a decent selection too. It was unfortunate for Magnum Sound, people went in to get advice and help with all sort ( PA’s, instruments, amps etc. ) but bought online, to save money, once they knew exactly what they wanted. Some people complained about the owner closing the store, but when he pointed out the main issue was some people hadn’t spent anything in there for years, how can they complain?

Try those bergs with an EBS head 😉