colleya

Bought a HX stomp from Stefan after he responded to my wanted ad. Another stellar advert for the lovely people on Basschat. Tip top comms, speedy postage and a great deal overall. Highly recommended.

Odd, I play a vm5 with the P pickup slightly favoured on the blend knob and whenever I hear live recordings I always think it sounds quite mid forward! Of course YMMV. Possibly because my picking hand rests quite close to the bridge?

At the risk of derailing this thread, I've not been to Stubborn Mule yet, any good?

If this is Al you're talking about then seconded. He does excellent backdrops, banners and bass drum heads too.

Thanks Dave. We're stopping for a couple of reasons. The drummer has moved to Coniston, a 4 hour round trip for gigs. The guitarist now really suffers the day after a gig, it pretty much a write off for him, so he fancies a break too. I'm hopeful for a new band, but it's one of a few hobbies for me, so I only gig once a month. Most of the bands I've had contact with want more than that. It's just a case of finding one where we're all on the same page.

Probably my last post here for a while. Last night was the final Jump The Shark gig after 13 years. As I've been reading on other threads, finding a new band is tricky, and I've been incredibly lucky with this one. We finished at our favourite venue, it was packed and they were dancing from the start. A load of our mates had come along and the atmosphere was brilliant. We played well. Very, very well. Everyone found an extra gear. Sound was good, we were really cooking. And then. Halfway through set 2, a drunken punter tripped over the monitor and knocked the singer's mic right into her face. At first we thought it was a broken cheekbone. Fortunately not, but she had a big cut just above her eye, a pounding head and the beginnings of a quality shiner. Gig over. Not the way we envisaged finishing. Everyone was incredibly frustrated, but nothing we could do. No way we could finish the set as none of the rest of us could hold a vocal well enough. Bugger. Anyway, videos from before the stoppage. Gear report - Ibanez SMS 1005, Ashdown RM 500, TKS 212 VID-20231210-WA0008.mp4 VID-20231210-WA0006.mp4 VID-20231210-WA0005.mp4

I had this, but from people who messaged me first! They responded to my ad, I replied and then..... nothing. Including the one who said "we're finding it really hard to get a bass player who we can rely on". Wonder why?

Saw that and on JMB and wondered if it was you. Good luck fella. I'm on the hunt for a new gig as my current one is coming to an end, so I've probably had the same messages as you. I've been spoiled with this band and had forgotten how hard it is to find others who are on the same page musically and commitment level wise. How picky do you get with this? I'm not sure if I'm turning down decent opportunities waiting for a great one and will end up with nothing. Hmmm......

The drummer and I use in ears. Singer & guitarist don't like them. With only one gig left before the band wraps up that's not going to change. I'm looking for a new gig, but I'd really like to just turn up & play for a bit, rather than be chief gig getter, pa wrangler etc. That barefaced is fab, for me the TKS takes up a bit more sonic space, if that makes sense. If I could combine the barefaced's size & weight with the TKS' sound.......

Cheers, it's a great cab, I'd love it to be a wee bit smaller & lighter but I'm not for swapping. The mixer on cab situation is born of necessity. I need to be able to make on the fly adjustments and it's the easiest place for access. As for cables everywhere, the less said about that the better...... 🤐🤐🤐

Penultimate Jump the Shark gig was a weird one. The Railway in Royton, usually a great gig. It was busy (not as packed as usual) but the crowd didn't seem as into it as normal. As a consequence we never really got into the top gear you find when you're getting a great reaction. Sound gremlins meant I had half an ear out for feedback all night too, which probably affected my ability to relax and properly enjoy it. Rig was my Ibanez sms1005, Ashdown RM 500 and TKS 212, which sounded reliably great.

A couple of nibbles but nothing serious so giving this a little bump.

Hi all, I've spent the last 13 years with Jump The Shark as the bassist, gig getter, PA wrangler, promo/poster designer and social media promoter. We are winding up at the end of this year so I'm looking for something new. About me: Early 40s Based in South Manchester School teacher (so no odd shifts) Own transport Own gear Reliable, easy going etc etc Can sing backing vox Can work a PA and do sound (to pub gig standards) Contacts with venues around the North West 15+ years gigging experience Ideally I'm looking for: Covers band, not too fussed on genre 1 gig a month (within 1hr of home would be brilliant) A couple of rehearsals a month A band that takes pride in performance but has a laugh too I'm still playing with JTS until December, but I'd like to get the ball rolling with finding a new band now, so could do some overlap if needed. If this sounds like what you're looking for, drop me a DM. Cheers, Andy

Coniston Sports & Social club last night. Our drummer has retired up there and so we made a night of it, brought the families and had a good time in the rain. Really happy that my kids got to see us play before the band wraps up at the end of the year. Got them up on stage for a couple of pics too. We played well and the dancefloor was full all night. Although I can't really drink and play, I had a couple during the set and it was nice not to worry about driving home after. My rig was the usual: Ibanez 1005sms (loving the low weight of the ibby), Ashdown Rm500 and a TKS 212. It was a really easy room to eq and the sound was good.

Our 80s band: Punter "Do you do any Coldplay?" Drummer "No, but I think I stepped in some once." His finest hour.

@SamPlaysBass It's still my main gigging bass, and that means keeping a delightful Sandberg VM5 out of my hands. Loving the low weight and the compact & headless design is a godsend on small pub stages. I've got a hankering for a stingray after watching glasto, but there's no way I can afford one! I've read that some people find the pups a bit muddy. I can see that in isolation, but it seems to blend really nicely with the band mix. Here are a couple of live mobile footage vids so you can judge for yourself. Video 1 Video 2 Video 3

Agree completely. Their 2017(?) set was a different level. Chvrches putting on a great show on the other stage. Mind you she's just painted herself red as I type this!

Another really enjoyable, busy gig at the Railway Hotel in Royton (near Oldham). The whole band is squeezing every ounce of fun out of our last year together. Excellent LL who looked after us (and paid us extra as he was so happy with the performance). My setup is very settled now. Ibanez SMS 1005, Ashdown RM 500 and TKS 212. Got some folk to get video on my new phone and I'm really happy with my tone and the overall mix. Even a stress fracture in my leg that curtailed my dancing couldn't take the shine off. https://youtu.be/njBUH1kJeCM https://youtu.be/rzJweF9AxM4

If you like the sound you're getting with your Mesa patch, they do a class D amp - the D800. I've not tried one, but folk on here seem to like them. The only setback is that they're more expensive than most other class D stuff. For reference, I play in an 80s cover band that is a mix between IEM and not. I use amp/cab for the room and have iem as earplugs and to bleed a little bass, kick and my BV. It's a pretty simple setup that even my limited tech ability can handle. I would fully agree with @Lozz196about Ashdown customer service too. Cab wise, I'd quite like to swap my 2x12 for 2 1x12 for a bit more versatility, but it's not a deal breaker. I've had a couple of Barefaced cabs and they're great, but my TKS just sounds more 'full' to me. I can't comment on using helix etc as I've not been in a band that made it worth investigating. Would be interested to try though. Andy

Hi Jeff, Welcome to BC. I think you've got a pretty realistic idea of what to look for in a decent gig rig. I've tried a few of the class D amps from different brands. Of course it's all subjective but for me the Markbass LM3 and Ashdown RM 500 have been the best. I keep coming back to Ashdown as a really solid choice that gives me a very usable tone for the band across a variety of different genres. I'm currently running a RM500. I suspect lots of folk will say that you'll get more for your money buying used, and I agree. You can pick up an RM 500 for about 250-300 on the for sale boards here. Cab wise, I'm not as sure. I got a TKS 212 a while back and it's not going anywhere. However it's not especially small or really light weight compared to the stuff from Barefaced etc. It does sound ace though. Good luck with the hunt, it's half the fun! Andy

Yep. Mostly just for kick drum but I've run bass through it in bigger rooms and once when my amp output went pop but the DI still worked.

We swapped our Alto sub for an RCF 702 sub. 12" speaker, sounds great and is significantly smaller & lighter. I get the full PA and my rig in an Octavia estate with room to spare and the passenger seat free too. Cavernous cars.

Top night at the Bowling Green, Horwich. Busy all night with a decent dancefloor from the first song, moving to packed from about halfway through the first set. By the middle of the second set we were moving mic stands backwards and I had to give a few dancers a gentle nudge to prevent them from joining us onstage. Punters were very well oiled and right on the edge of crashing into us, but it was all out of enthusiasm. With such restricted room, the Ibanez SMS 1005 came into its own. Our singist, who has become used to avoiding the bass headstock on cramped stages was most grateful for the headless. I've mentioned before that this is our last year, and we're all milking every ounce of fun from it. Combine that with a great crowd and we found that extra 5% you get sometimes. Best we've played in quite a while. I still can't take a decent selfie though!