Truckstop

Hello all, About to take the plunge and buy a Sennheiser E606 microphone for live use. I'll be using it to mike up my cab. I'd like to own my own live sound gear and I simply don't trust the equipment that some soundguys might have. It'd also be handy to have my own mic for recording and practicing as I don't have DI in my amp. This way I can tweak my sound on the amp depending on how it sounds coming out of the PA etc. Does anyone have any thoughts on these before I grab one? Are they good? Bad? Is there something better for similar money etc etc? Cheers Alex

Quite right. I used DR Millers for 2 or 3 years and just got bored of getting duff strings. In one pack, the A and the G were bad. I use Ernie Balls now; guaranteed quality and they cost less. Sure they sound different, but to be honest, fannying about with the tone controls on the J East retro makes more of a difference than the strings. Truckstop

I would put forth to you all that that is one of the nicest double necks I think I've ever seen! It looks understated, classy, clean, simple and classic. Im pretty sure the pricetag is as eye-watering as usual though! Truckstop

I'd buy an 80's Fender and keep it for a while. Soon enough, in a few years everyone's gonna want a YOB bass! Truckstop

I slap on my 5 using the 'thumb-pointing-up' technique. It's easier than whatever cack-handed self-learned method I used before! Truckstop

I reckon you should have [b]insisted[/b] that you organise a few one-on-one practices with the guitarist and the singer on their own to really iron out inconsistencies. Coming from a tech/death/prog metal background; missing notes, playing out of tune etc etc was ironed out by meticulously playing the same riffs over and over again at varying tempos until everything was perfect. If anything, those sorts of sessions highlight to poor musicians/vocalists that they simply can't hack it/need to practice and it makes it easier for other band members to point out that persons shortcomings. I just think you could have made more of an effort to save the band. But, whatever, you already have another three bands that you say you prefer playing with for various reasons. Truckstop

Sold me a Peavey Milestone Mk.1 for practically no money at all! Very helpful, kept me updated and the bass came well packaged and with all the gubbins. Cheers! Truckstop

Hello, Whereabouts in Central/South London exactly? Anyway, a little bit about myself: I'm 24 and I've played in metal bands all my life (AKA last 10 years or so). Recently I've been looking at more commercial/shoegazey kind of stuff (I love Mogwai and Elbow) but I miss thrashing out to be honest. I'm not a pick player, but I really can play extremely precisely and powerfully with my fingers. Having said that though, I [b]can[/b] play with a pick, I just prefer not to. There's some stuff that I recorded with my old metal band here: [url="http://www.myspace.com/purenegative"]Pure Negative[/url] My gear's in my signature. If I audition and you decide you might like me to join, I'll look at upgrading so I can keep up with the guitars! At the moment, my rig might be a little quiet! Cheers Alex

There is no Stingray.... Truckstop

Yeah, MIM Jazz's are great! The B perhaps not as focused as a £1000 5er, but as Bubinga5 recommended, fit some DR's, some better pickups (I went for a J-East Pre-amp instead) and the result is fantastic! I got mine in a trade worth £300 and spent £100 on the pre and I have a great sounding, great looking, comfortable bass. Truckstop

Paisley P and Seafoam Jazz I reckon! Truckstop

Depends on what you think makes a bassplayer good. Truckstop

If you want to get somewhere with this group (and you say he's quite talented), then get out of it. How lopng before he gets all of you into some trouble? It's never worth dealing with someone else's bullshit. However, if it's going to be a casual local once-a-month ti=ype thing, stick with it. It might even be quite funny! Truckstop

Rackmount gear with all the jack sockets and DI's etc etc in the back. Pain in the arse! With the obvious exclusion of power supplies and amp-cab sockets, why are they always in the back? This means you have to take the lead out of the front of your amp, and feed it into the back at the risk of crushing the lead or looping it round the back which is annoying and sort of defeats one of the reasons of buying rackmount gear. Truckstop

Yeah, I'd say it's more of an EQ'ing issue with the band as a whole. Do you have to crank it right up for practice too? That sort of volume must be unbearable! As a band, you should sit down together and work out who's filling out which frequency. You should set your cabs up the way you would live (logistically, that is) and practice like that and keep working until you get a good sound that doesnt involve you having to buy another head. Also, this is completely serious, have you considered that you may be going deaf? Those sorts of volumes cant be helping and it may be altering your perceptions of how your rig sounds. Truckstop

Git! I had to work last night and I would have loved to have gone and picked up some tips on using a plectrum (as well as winning some gear!). Truckstop

I think the band were making things much more complicated than they had to be. Why detune a semi-tone, and then play a semi-tone up from that? I'd be confused also. If I'd learnt Sweet Child O' Mine in Open E tuning I think I'd find it tricky to play it a fret up on the fly, I think anyone would! But can I ask why you didnt just leave your bass in standard tuning if, in effect, that's what the guitarist was doing? Truckstop

If he can get to St. Albans train station I'd be happy to pick him up and take him the rest of the way if he supplies the drive with cigarettes and booze? Truckstop

Here's some advice I wish I'd been given before I refinished mine: When you're spraying, make sure you're pressing down on the button as hard as it will go; otherwise, the paint will go all misty and it'll dry before it hits the bass. Very annoying! Truckstop