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Absolutely! First gig when I was 16, still gigging at 73 and not done yet.

Careful Blue, you're starting to smile in that photo! 👿

If you don't want to take a flame thrower to a body the stain mixed with grain filler route works quite well. This is an ash body, grain filled with filler mixed with dark brown stain to the desired darkness. Apply the filler, wipe of the excess and when fully dry sand the body.

Pretty early on I realised that the gig is the only reason I play bass. It's not why I picked up the instrument. After that first gig I was traumatised, but after the second gig I was hooked. The bigger the audience the bigger the buzz when you get it right. Trying to be a better musician and come together and excel as a band is the challenge and when you get it right there is no better feeling. When an audience is enjoying itself and you know that's because of you, it just brings a smile to your face. The journey, the idiots you meet, the miles you have to travel, unsocial hours, the years of practice, getting ripped off, cheated and treated badly by agents, managers, promoters and other band members etc. . . all fades away if you get those few hours on stage right.

Bit late to get upset about that. JJ Burnel: Worth reading the whole article too - I'd love to have heard the 6-part prog rock suite that Golden Brown (that one that alternates between 12/8 and 13/8) came from. https://www.loudersound.com/features/rick-wakeman-meets-jean-jacques-burnel Also always felt very strongly that JJ might have had the occasional sneaky listen to Chris Squire, to end up with such an upfront, technically dynamic & attacking style. Have the same suspicion about my other big bass influence from that era, Bruce Foxton. I sort of think, @Barking Spiders, it would be good if we could raise our discourse above the playground rivalries of 1977. I play bass because of JJ Burnel - I probably would never have picked up the instrument if I hadn't heard Peaches. I play guitar, and was motivated to compose music because of Stuart Adamson, whose band The Skids (as you probably know) got their big break when JJ invited them to support The Stranglers at the Battersea show mentioned upthread. I'm (broadly speaking) a prog rocker but the punk era is a huge part of my DNA. It shouldn't upset anyone to understand where music comes from.

Or not quite seamlessly, hence the topic...

I respectfully disagree, many of the punk pioneers were very competent musicians and song writers, it almost like Sid Vicious was punk in many peoples eyes, yes there were many bands who lacked even the most basic skills but on the flip side punk also brought us some very talented musicians and song writers who still hold their own today, some 40 years later

Here is mine I didn’t capture the roasted neck very well!

hmmm From your perspective, if it's not making you happy, don't do it. S'fine. I have a very different perspective, but we're all different and that's what makes the World an interesting place But also think of it from the band's perspective. I've been in bands where one band member has not enjoyed gigging, or hasn't wanted to do as much of it as the rest of us, or doesn't want to play gigs more than half an hour from their front door, or has come up with cunning excuses of why the band isn't really to play gigs. And it's never ended well, even when they've reluctantly played the gigs - the whining about every little thing that didn't go right is really tedious and spoils what everybody else is getting out of it. Don't become that guy. So I'd suggest letting them know that you're really not enjoying it and then give them the option to find a replacement. Drop out gracefully

Pertinent copyright infringement alert... Yes, I know my enemies! They're the teachers who taught me to fight me! Compromise! Conformity! Assimilation! Submission! Ignorance! Hypocrisy! Brutality! The elite! All of which are American dreams! All of which are American dreams! All of which are American dreams! All of which are American dreams!

I have their Motown DI, it’s great. It’s not the definitive Motown tone people search for, but it’s a step towards it. Way too expensive though. For what it’s worth I don’t think Motown bass tone is that difficult to work out. Booze, P-bass, rosewood board, dead flats, high action, tone down a bit, pluck in front of the pickup, straight in to a D.I., then a bit of tape saturation, or if you want it to be a bit more legit, actually record to old tape, then you’ll get all the dusty artefacts too. There’s not much more to it than that. The breakup you hear is the signal clipping, it goes way past the threshold on the lower notes in some places. The transformers, tubes etc that people obsess over when trying to recreate that sound have far less to do with the fundamental character of that tone than we think, and they will only really make a difference to engineers listening on super high end monitors. They’re just the cherry on top. You can get to 99% of the Motown tone even with a fairly basic setup. Don’t forget the booze though.

That's a sarcastic smirk.😁 Blue

I've played big stages before, but not to crowds like this - two or three thousand folks, and they kept on coming - the Craft Beer Stage at the Silverstone F1 Grand Prix Campsite - Silverstone Woodlands with my 70s Disco Funk Band - FUN.K. Top sound guys - we couldn't get there early enough to do a sound check and had to make do with a line check during the 20 minute switchover between the bands - got the 10.00-11.30 Friday night slot and the crowd were on it big style singing and roaring for more. Still coming down.

So I finally got a chance to play this and I put a quick video together with my Gibson LP DC Tribute bass played with a pick. It's my first time using a loop pedal so forgive the sloppiness. I'm really happy with it. It's pretty easy to find a sound I like, even with the most anti-geddy bass ever, but as well as it being easy to get a good sound, there's alot of tweaking you can do.

Ordered this a few weeks ago from PMT and it finally came today, I've already got a honeyburst one but being in a UFO tribute band I wanted to get the right colour, I know the bridges are different but what the hell. These 760 humbuckers are fantastic, plenty of tone and bags of power, the neck feels to be a slightly different profile to my other one but its still slim, neck dive is negligible and the finish is flawless. Overall I'm very happy with it and tonight is it's first gig.

Esperanza Spalding too. Pretty much full scale so no deep note issues, just quieter ...THIS could be your solution. There was a bloke on here trying to make one from a normal laminate bass ....

Had a punter trying to give the band a tray full of shots while we were playing. We were actually mid song and he was trying to hand them out. During the break a barmaid told us a punter had got a round in for us. Great, we thought, so we started to tell her what drinks we wanted. 'No' she said 'he's already ordered them'. Oh.

Did a wedding in a castle on sat night here in Ireland. Savage venue and great crowd. Half Irish, half Scottish. Brilliant dance moves on show 😂

Last night. Played a lovely venue on the river. Nice owners, great welcome. good crowd. We were told they'd all be gone by 9.30 as it was a Sunday night. Still dancing on the road at 11.00 PM. We were all shattered from the night before and it felt quite subdued on stage but we actually played better than the previous night. Three "this is definitely the last song" encores with the last being an extended Pride, in the name of love. Smashed it. Think it's our new final number. They went crazy.

Got it

I bought a Dubster 2 from a member on here last year and I think I've used it on about 4 gigs. Two were when it was twinned with a Big Baby II and powered in bridge mode from my Crown XLS1502. The sound density was ridiculously thick but the addition of the BB2 enabled more upper frequencies to come through. However but I think next time I take it out I will have the two cabs on different sides of my power amp so I can balance the sound between the two cabs better as in bridge mode the dubster does tend to over power the low end and I think it would work better if I was able to use the BB2 for most of my sound and let the dubster add heft without taking over the volume loud. The other two times, I have used it as a stand alone bass cab which was rather good. Just to add, all gigs were reggae which it is deal for. The only other time I think it would be suitable is if I was gigging outdoors. If you can find one, it's a great addition.

Jamming and writing music is where the fun's at for me. Gigging I can take or leave. Fortunately my current band plays originals, and we mainly play small festivals, which is usually good fun. I played in crappy pubs on and off for years and, with the odd exception, I really can't be arsed with all that any more.

The other side of it is the countless number of folks who think they can upload and do what they wish with someone else’s music. Those who show no respect for the work of creative artists, not just for big acts, but for us bottom-dwellers too. For example, I released some music recently, recorded with a mate. Ahead of the full release date, we released one song on youtube and, a couple of days later, another song on bandcamp. A few days later, we released the third and final song on youtube (we do very low tempo stuff so our three songs clock in at just under half an hour 😂 ). The next day, my mate sent me a link to a youtube video asking if I had put it up. I checked the video. It was our three songs in one video, compiled by someone in Poland who had ripped the audio from bandcamp and uploaded our music, ahead of our chosen release date, using the original artwork we paid for, without our permission. It’s small potatoes, I know, but to have someone wrestle what little control you have of how your music is released and presented is a pretty crap feeling and takes a lot of the fun out of what should be an enjoyable event. Checking the guy’s channels, he had more than one, all he did was upload other people’s music from all genres randomly and try to monetise it. Around the same time, we received an email from another guy asking permission to upload it. His channel is also just music he uploads, but he promotes the kind of genre we operate in and he asked first, so we gave permission. To get onto Spotify, itunes, etc, we had to go through a broker service - we chose cdbaby - and also published through them. A few days later, I noticed the licensing information added to the second guy’s video, see below. This was done via the clever algorithms called out in the OP’s video, no doubt. While I think the situations outlined in the OP’s video are extreme and pushing things a bit too far, it should be remembered that there are plenty of people using original music without permission for their own gain. It’s not just The Eagles who won’t miss another ivory backscratcher, but us nobodies, too, who are getting screwed. There is merit to both sides of the arguement. As with everything, some balance is required to find the appropriate solution. We’re not there yet, though.

I’ve always thought that men in suits do more damage than men with guns.

Alternatively, sell it and have a nice holiday. Japanese Boss pedals command a premium, old and boxed ones even more so. I think the cardboard traps the tone and mixes it with the space-time mojo and then they sound better than the same pedal not old and boxed. There is a hipster somewhere who doesn’t know he needs this in his life yet. To ebay with you!

I insure my gear with Musicguard and get £1m PL cover as standard but it only covers me. When asked to provide evidence of cover the certificate for my insurance has, up until now, been enough to satisfy a venue's requirements.

Yup - that's very much my conclusion too! I think we're in agreement that the new Marcus Limited range has finally nailed it on the EQ centre-point front and I look forward to buying Fretmeister's new amp off him when he's getting his next 'must have now' toy 😂

I heard about this two months ago so, although the press release has only just come out, it isn't sudden or unexpected. They've taken the last couple of months working out their way to bypass the issue (slight body shape redesign). If they had just made the occasional Tbird shaped model they would have probably been OK but the DBird was becoming a key line in their range and to Gibson's mind a threat. I'm just glad I got mine when I did and it'll retain its value nicely :)

I have a Little Marcus 800 and love it. The five band EQ is superb, and the VLE is pretty much the same as the one found on the Litte Mark range (slightly different EQ points). The Millerizer function is a band pass filter than only passes frequencies between 5 and 12kHz. I find it to be very musical: it just adds a nice treble sheen to the sound IMO. That said, if I had the choice of a band pass filter or the para eq on the new version of the Marcus, I would choose the latter in a heartbeat.

I only ever liked playing outdoors at festivals n' ting but hated pub gigs. For starters I don't like pubs. I like pub gardens but still never go inside other than to buy beverages. The types of band I used to play in tended to be upbeat, with a party vibe, lots of movement, a fair bit of badinage and sometimes gimmicks. That didn't really work when stuck between the ladies toilet and the dart board

Sounds like you need "the talk" with the bandmates and manager. "It's not you, it's me" is a good line... Seriously, if you don't say something you'll end up with midweek gigs too at this rate and everyone else will assume you're ok with that.

That is the biggest pain, right there. I generally "accidentally" tw@t them with the corner of a cab......

That’s what mine is now, it’s hanging up in my summerhouse, at the top of the picture, 😀

I recently got a Stingray special and hands down can say it’s the best stingray I’ve ever played I think it sounds completely different to say an older three band eq and of course the classic. I’d say it nails both the sounds but has it’s own sound of that makes sense. The neck is fantastic and the improvements they have done may look like nothing but you sure get a lot more tones out of the special

I'd quite happily settle for the fee paid into my bank account and cut out all that tiresome nonsense too! Roadies that's the answer. Years ago, it would have been groupies but these days having my equipment lifted for me has a far different meaning! 😂😂😂😂

Love playing with people and for people. Hate the travel, loading unloading etc etc

I love the gigs, it’s the band politics that are a pain, the ‘yeah we are 100% going to do this this and this, then come rehearsal time they haven’t learnt any of them but suggest some crap that doesn’t fit in at all but they happen to like, claiming it fits perfectly (last time it was a 70s funk disco song in a band that plays 80s-00s alternative/ rock). Yes that will fit well..........

I like playing guitar or bass/double bass. I love playing with other musicians. I’m fortunate enough to play with some wonderful musicians. I’m fortunate enough to be asked to record with some wonderful artists. Most of the gigs I’m asked to do aren’t grotty pubs. Most of the gigs I play I’m driven to. I just don’t enjoy gigging. Playing in front of people, performing, never have done. I don’t think I’m less of a musician, or should have swapped guitar for golf clubs. The reason I started playing was because of the albums I listened to, not the bands I saw. I rarely went to gigs, still don’t. Some people just don’t enjoy gigging. It’s not a disease. 🙄🤪

I treat the load in and out as a bit of a workout. Some people pay to go to a gym and do a workout, this one pays you.

But it's only a Florentine cutaway, a shape that predates Gibson

My darling! I've simply found 'the one' after years of trying many, many, many basses. Tonally the most versatile Stingray i've ever owned, it's very light and looks proper bling in the lights!....yup best bass ever for me.

Hi there to all you BC members ! Yes lets hear about your favourite players famous and not so famous and I will look forward to showing you around the factory here in Sevenoaks to show you how the strings are made. I am sure you will find it interesting.... Here's a cool ad from the 1970's featuring a few more Rotosound artists ! Regards, Jason How

Jean Jacques Burnel. 15 seconds into Hanging Around, and I knew I wanted to play bass. An epic bass tone that defined the band, and, for me, has still never been bettered. I've spent the last 35 years trying to get that sound juuuust right... 🙂

Oh my days, that looks beautiful...

For the last few years I've been a devoted user of EBS amplification and honestly never thought I'd find something that would tempt me away. The furthest away I'd got was using a Crown XTi 1000 power amp along with an EBS-1 v2 pre amp. Being the owner of an EBS HD350, Fafner and TD650 it was clear to see that I was a BIG fan of the EBS tone. That was until this beauty came to play... The Genz Benz Streamliner 900 (STM-900). [b]SPECIFICATION...[/b] 500w @ 8 Ohms / 900w @ 4 Ohms Class D power amp with Class A 6-stage tube driven pre amp Modified Bandaxall EQ for highs and lows Active tube driven mids with selectable frequency Mute & high gain switches Studio quality DI out 2x Speakon out connections Headphone out, aux out, effects loop & tuner out Advanced switching power supply for use anywhere in the world! [url="http://www.genzbenz.com/?fa=detail&mid=2663&sid=675&cid=95"]Link to manufacturers site.[/url] [i]For the purpose of this review and all gigging/rehearing/recording I've done with it, the amp has been used with my Roscoe Century 6 fretless bass into a Barefaced Big Twin T bass cabinet. I also throw more effects and textures at the amp than you can shake a stick at.[/i] [b]FEATURES & BUILD QUALITY: 9/10[/b] The Streamliner has a great build quality. It's tough and robust with good quality knobs and solid inputs and outputs. The tubes are contained far enough back that an unfortunate drop of the amp wouldn't cause the pots on the front to jerk back and damage them (god forbid) and while that are not set up to be quick to change (removal of a number of screws and the top plate of the amp) the tubes are much more securely seated than those in any tube amp I've owned before. My only niggle with the build is that the additional rack kit (which can be purchased separately) is a horrid rack try set up which weighs a ton and costs far too much, rather than nice rack ears like the Genz Benz 'Shuttle' series of amplifiers. I know it's a minor niggle, but a niggle all the same. Features wise the Streamliner delivers what it set out to do - offer a slick and streamlined approach to bass amplification. it has a minimal EQ set up, but one which is very musical, with a choice of three selectable mid frequencies (220hz, 600hz & 2.5Khz) and shelving-style bass (at 55hz) and treble EQ (a single knob which boosts BOTH 4Khz & 12.5Khz). Compared to most modern high end amplifiers this is a somewhat stripped back approach to EQ, but really does work to the Streamliner's strengths. The amp also has a high gain switch for pushing your tubes into audible overdrive if you desire a classic overdriven rock tone and a mute switch to make the of swapping instruments on stage a little easier (and quieter!). The back panel is somewhat more feature packed than the front sporting a very high quality DI with post/pre EQ, ground lift & mic/line level selectors. It has two Speakon outs for your cabs and will run in both 8 Ohms (at a very decent 500w) or 4 Ohms (at an unbelievable 900w!!!). Yes I said 900w into 4 Ohms. In an amp that weighs less than 3kg!?! LOUD. Need I say more. The amp also offers as auxiliary output, tuner output, headphone output & an effects loop as well as having a rather impressive switching power system - flick the switch and the unit will work in countries with either 230v or 110v mains voltage. Perfect for those on tour who don't want to have to rely on (or remember to use!) a giant power converter. The Streamliner has a cooling system that sucks air in one side and blows it out the other and boasts what Genz Benz call 'P.H.A.T. (Proprietary Heat Abatement Technology) topology'. This is without a doubt the quietest cooling system I have ever had in an amp... to my ear it is totally silent and I have to say that the amp hardly breaks a sweat. I have used this now on some fairly major Drum & Bass/Dubstep gigs and have thrown some huge sub-bass wobbles at it and the amp has never felt anything above lukewarm. I'm impressed. Even my drummer is impressed - and he's a drummer! While it's clear to see that the stripped back EQ may put some people off (Genz Benz make the 'Shuttle' series for people that want a little more), the amp carries almost all the core features of a seious pro bass amp, with the exception of a dual channel set up (the 'Shuttle' series does have a 2-channel option, but the Streamliner does not). [b]TONE/SOUND QUALITY: 9/10[/b] BASS!!! That's the 1st thing that hits you - massive bottom end. Coming form a man that plays Drum & Bass, trust me, that means there is a lot! This is in fact the first amp that I have used in 2 years that I run with the bass EQ at noon/flat. If I was to be playing most genres and playing with a clean bass tone then I honestly think the bass knob would be rolled back to around 10 or 11 o'clock! The overall amp tone is warm and fat with some serious punch. The tubes add some real character to the sound which is obvious from the moment you turn it on (it is worth pointing out that the amp can do the whole 'hi-fi' thing well while remaining very clean and with great clarity) as its natural voice is that of fat finger funk (almost the flip of the 'Shuttle', which has an immediate hi-fi tone but the ability to dial in a warmer fat tone if desired). The musical strength in this set up comes form the mids - the 3 selectable bands have been well thought out and the EQ cut/boost knob is very interactive as tiny increments have quite an effect. When the mids are selected at 220hz overdrive & fuzz pedals really come alive, as well as making the mid EQ become suddenly more interactive when used in conjunction with the bass EQ. Flick the mids over the 2.5Khz point and it comes more interactive when used with the treble EQ allowing you to add some great body to slap tones. In some ways I would personally prefer a broader range of centre EQ's on the mids (like on the EBS amps I have been used to using) but the frequency options here are very musical and well thought out. The treble is lovely sounding, not abrasive or clanky, but smooth and glassy. In all honesty this was one of the reasons I had stuck with EBS for so long as the styles of music I play require a very full range sound with lots of top end clarity (I need to fill the space of a guitar and of synth pad's at times) and I can honestly say that the Genz is the only thing I've used which does it just as well. One thing worth pointing out though, which will not be noticed by many, is that is you have your tube pre amp gain past 1 o'clock and boost the top end as well as playing though a set up with a tweeter (I did say this was not going to effect many people), any dirt you add to the sound attracts some tube compression and grit before the rest of the sound... For most players and set ups you would still hear a solid sound with no change, but the extreme top end does take on a whole new character. Again I stress this is only when you are using sounds and tones not characteristic of traditional bass tones... I must also stress this is not really a negative, rather an interesting tonal characteristic that I am able to exploit due to my amp/cab set up and effects. It just apprears as though the tubes will compress/overdrive super highs (that most cabs won't reproduce) much earlier than the rest of your sound. Finger funk players will love this amp. Hi-fi junkies should be excited by the fact they can get a clear & clean tone while still dabbling with a genuine tube tone when the mood takes them. Many bass player will need to be prepared to do the un-manly thing and roll that bass EQ back though. If you are a little more interested in what the core of this amp's tone sounds like, here is a fantastic review from the Bass Whisperer: [media]http://youtu.be/d-27szg61bw[/media] [b]VALUE FOR MONEY: 9/10[/b] The price - WOW. This is 900w in a tiny box and is selling in the UK at [url="http://www.bassdirect.co.uk/bass_guitar_specialists/Streamliner.html"]Bass Direct[/url] for £689.00 (£589.00 for it's 600w little brother). In today's world of professional amplifiers this represents FANTASTIC value for money, even with its stripped back features section. For an amplifier of this power and build quality you would usually expect to pay double form most big brands. Best bit it though, this is far from a budget amplifier - this is real high end professional stuff. Value for money. Yes. [b]CUSTOMER SUPPORT: 10/10[/b] I'll start this section by saying that I have not needed to contact Genz Benz directly regarding my amp and so I can't score the company with regards to answering emails and solving issues etc. When I first received the amp I did however experience a few pops and bangs when unplugging my jack lead even when using the mute switch on the front panel. I did some googling and could not find anyone experiencing similar issues, but did come across a member on Talkbass.com answering a few questions on other Genz related issues. It so happened that this chap was one of Genz's engineers so I dropped an informal message over on the off chance he may be get back to me. I'm happy to report that within 24 hours I had a reply, direct from someone that deals with these units on a day to day basis with a few things to try and with the suggestion that it was most likely static which had built up from my amp being stored in the cold for a long period of time over winter (which can happen with all electrical equipment and is no way a fault of any unit) - guess what - the weather has got warmer and pops have stopped! He may of been answering as an individual in reply to a casual message outside of work, but was a great example of someone being a true ambassador of the brand they represent. If this that level of service is anything to go by then Genz Benz deserve nothing short of a 10! [b]OVERALL: 9/10[/b] As a long time lover, supporter and owner of EBS amplification (3 amp heads & 1 rack pre amp) I'll start this by saying I no longer own a single EBS amp! In fact the Streamliner is now the ONLY amp I own. I've sold everything else... this does it all. I have gigged with in it, recorded with it and spent day after day in the studio with it and it has done nothing but perform and impress over and over. The Streamliner offers a compact, lightweight, silent running 900w with almost faultless performance. Its versatile, interactive and has more volume that I could ever know what do do with while being happy to take the massive sub octaves and ear splitting LFO wobbles that I throw at it without any sign of struggling, complaining or clipping. Truth be told I'm pretty much in awe of this awesome bit of kit and it will be by my side over the coming year and out European tour which is being planned for October. If anyone interested in trying one of these out I would urge you to do so. Anyone near the Midlands, UK is welcome to get in touch and come try mine out.