OldGit

[quote name='12stringbassist' post='470180' date='Apr 22 2009, 11:13 PM'] Ooops! Not a bass! Ah well....... never mind! [/quote] Hey you know your "12stringbass" Does it have really, really thin strings?

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='470162' date='Apr 22 2009, 10:57 PM'][url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Bass-guitar-cab-with-2-x-15-Subs-no-head_W0QQitemZ220401369588QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_MusicalInstr_Amplifiers_RL?hash=item220401369588&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2|65%3A10|39%3A1|240%3A1318"]Dammit.[/url][/quote] No no no, look away now ...

[quote name='thebeat' post='470100' date='Apr 22 2009, 10:10 PM']Looks more like a Bison to me [/quote] Q: What's the difference between a Buffalo and a Bison? A: you can't wash your 'ands in a Buffalo

Brilliant idea to shift his broken bass. Attention getting or what?.

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='469729' date='Apr 22 2009, 04:40 PM']Probably not. My NAD system still has the original mains cables - I'm not convinced that this upgrade would make much diff. However decent interconnects really do make a difference - after you've splashed out on crazy speaker cable of course.[/quote] ha ha Then all you need to do is shut the kids up long enogh to actually sit and listen to something

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='469704' date='Apr 22 2009, 04:20 PM'][url="http://www.russandrews.com/product.asp?pf_id=1540&src=froogle"]Here's[/url] a cheapo 85 quid job. Any good for you? [/quote] Make any significant difference? Just after we got together my partner bought a pair of connector leads for her Hifi that cost more than my entire HiFi It did sound massivly better than mine but I'm not sure the connects made that much difference ......

[quote name='sixshooter' post='469676' date='Apr 22 2009, 03:34 PM']Isn't that the same as a Jam night? I know of at least a dozen bands that have been formed from the local Jam nights around my area...[/quote] Yeah, Jam nights are great for many things when you get back into it - having a go in front of people again, getting known in the area and networking for possible band mates. Sus them out for a few weeks before volunteering unless you are very confident or know the organiser. Sometimes you can't hear a thing on stage - you can't hear the vocals or guitar or whatever to follow and the jammers often have no idea how to help out a struggling bass player trying to play some Blink 182 tune he's never heard before (I know !!!) .. Takes a bit of getting used to, that, but if you saw the guy play the same thing last week you have a chance, especially if took notes of what was played and went home and learned them off youtube or spotify Work out who's running it and say hello. Some organisers make up scratch bands on the spot to play some 12 bar or other well known song and some have house bands only and some have a series of complete bands or solo singer/guitarist with little opening for bass players on their own. Other than that there may be a night class around for blues playing or even jazz. Also bass tutors know loads of people so get a few lessons and hook into the network.

Anyone got a £200 kettle lead on their amp? Just wondered

[quote name='dlloyd' post='469623' date='Apr 22 2009, 02:24 PM']What sort of a band are you after? It might be an idea to put your own advert up, saying you're looking for musicians for a new project. Be fairly specific, but realistic about what you can expect. If you put up an advert asking for blues guitarists aged between 30 and 50 (or beyond), you should get loads of responses... some will be from people who can actually play.[/quote] Just doing that myself. Advert on gumtree has netted a sum total of 3 replies. but, because I was VERY specific about all the important stuff, they are all on the same page as us and sound good, so far anyway, auditions start tomorrow However doing that will mean [b]you[/b] are starting a band and that means everyone will look to you for all the non playing stuff like set choices, organising rehearsals, getting gigs , hiring or buyimng a PA, Lights, and all the money management ..... You may like that stuff but you may preper option B: Put up an advert saying you are looking to join a band and detail your skills, avalability, age, attitude, desired frequency of playing and prefrence for music types. Something like: Bass Player available, 45, just back from a 10 year breeding break looking to join a band who rehearse weeknights and who aim to play gigs a few times a month. I like blues, rock, soul and Shirley Bassy. Not adverse to a bit of punk or young people's music as long as it rocks. Own gear, transport, hair and sence of humour. Non-alcoholic. The more specific you are the better the matches will be....

[quote name='tauzero' post='469600' date='Apr 22 2009, 01:54 PM']I liked mine. Not a Cobra though, never tried a Cobra bass amp but the Cobra PA amp was woefully weedy.[/quote] I have a weedy Cobra PA amp. It's fine for driving monitors for a small PA.

[quote name='Dr.Dave' post='469485' date='Apr 22 2009, 12:17 PM']Moaning old git content follows........ Anyone here below the age of about 35 doesn't know what cheap tat gear is. When I started out if you didn't buy a Fender or a Ric the chances are it would be a plywood plank with a neck that would exhibit distinctly musatoid (look it up) behaviour in 6 months. Ray's were just coming in , Yamaha were making the only real effort from Japan and Mr Alembic was starting to make expensive boutique basses. Miserable sod that I am I don't count Gibson so other than what I've listed you got rubbish to an extent many of you wouldn't believe. How any of us older blokes managed to learn on some of the stuff we had I'll never know. Bass amps - by and large - were bass versions of guitar amps with the only exeptions being high end stuff like Ampegs. Now - you can buy a Jazz bass cheaply - maybe even one that says Fender on it - and gig/record/whatever with it. It's decent quality for a weeks wage. Big names in bass amplification manufacture proper bass amps - GK , Ashdown , Trace etc and they are nothing like the cost a pro's amp would have cost you 30 years ago in terms of how many hours overtime it would take to buy one. I buy the odd fancy bass because I can. I'm middle aged , no kids to support and I'd fall off a motorbike. If I had to I could gig quite happily with a Squier bass and a mid range combo that would cost me way less than 500 spots if I went with used gear - not much more new. We do this thing to make music - not to sit back admiring our aquisitions. Joe punter in front of you doesn't know a vintage Fender bass from a Vintage brand bass - and more to the point doesn't give a sh*t. Neither does Mr Music Industry exec. , Mr Promoter or even Mr Producer. They care about interesting (saleable?) music and sounds - not what it costs to make them. As with any tool - it pays in the long run to buy the best bass gear you can afford , esp if you've made a decision to take playing music seriously. It will give more control over sound and will last longer if looked after. (my own tip would be if money's tight - spend the majority on the bass and don't worry about the amp as long as it works) But - I guarantee the lad or lass with the crap bass and rubbish amp who knows how to play it beats the clueless rich kid on every level , every time. Edit - re. para 1 , last sentence. That was a lie - I do know. We wanted to be musicians more than anything so we took what we could get/afford and made it work for us.[/quote] +1 (apart from sitting back and admiring the wood grain - I do a fair amount of that too ) Listen to your doctor.....

[quote name='martinbass7750' post='469513' date='Apr 22 2009, 12:43 PM']Hi Si, Would you be kind enough to pass comment on my band's website please? www.jacksborohighway.co.uk I know very little about website design, I've just managed to cobble a few together. Cheers Martin[/quote] Sure. If you have had a read through the thread and had a look at the info there, and can tell me your objectives, I'd be happy to. PM me? Nice Meteor ... Not a bad site for a cobble up A couple of general points that others may benefit from (these are in the thread but I realise it's getting very long now ) - When choosing a name always google it ... and check there isn't already a band using the same name: [url="http://www.jacksborohighway.net/home.htm"]http://www.jacksborohighway.net/home.htm[/url] If there is you have to make it very clear that they are not you or vice versa, especially if you are operating just 50 miles from each other and have "separated at birth?" bass player lookalikes Not everyone will check and you'll get confused punters trying to book the wrong band. - Always make it abundantly clear on every page of your website what you do and where you do it "The Jacksboro Highway band, Classic soft rock, Gloucestershire and thereabouts, UK" Easiest way is to add that to your header graphic. That appears on every page and therefore so will the info. You need to say where you are as, not only is there band with the same name in the Midlands (UK) but also, of course, it's a place in Texas and the Web is [i]World Wide[/i] ...... - Always have a "contact us" page on your website, even if you do have your phone number and email address all over the site. The one place everyone knows it will be, without reading the whole site, is on the contact us page. if you don't have one they may well just go back to Google and book the next band in the results page.

Thanks for the pics Review please! PS that bit of marker on the heastock should polish out with t-Cut

[quote name='JPAC' post='469325' date='Apr 22 2009, 10:03 AM']As a bass noob, I've found out that the QA passed sticker is meaningless. The one guitar that had the sticker was manufactured badly and the one that didn't was still faulty, both being the same Ibanez GSR200. It must take a certain amount of money to make a guitar and build it to a decent quality but what that cash value is I'm not sure. You could be lucky and get a good one or have a serious amount of time and effort getting a bad one put right. At the moment I'm still trying to sort out my first one but it might mean going to court to get my money back.[/quote] Sale of goods act 1979 "Key Facts: • Wherever goods are bought they must "conform to contract". This means they must be as described, fit for purpose and of satisfactory quality (i.e. not inherently faulty at the time of sale). • Goods are of [b]satisfactory quality if they reach the standard that a reasonable person would regard as satisfactory[/b], taking into account the price and any description." Government info website (in understandable English) [url="http://www.berr.gov.uk/whatwedo/consumers/fact-sheets/page38311.html"]Here[/url]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='469252' date='Apr 22 2009, 07:55 AM']Aha! I'm quite new to passive basses and have been discovering the joy of the tone knob. Regarding the pickups, on most dual pickup basses the soloed front pickup is closest to the natural sound of the instrument, that sound you'd get if you could mic it up acoustically. The back pickup gives you a whole load more growl and punch courtesy of increased upper midrange content. However when you use both pickups at once you don't get a halfway house between the front and back pickup sound, you get a totally different sound with a scooped out midrange. This is because the two pickups are most out of phase in the midrange so their output cancels there. So I generally use the front pickup as my default sound, the back pickup as my more aggressive sound and both pickups together as my more subdued mellow sound (although it has a touch more growl and treble than the soloed neck pickup it's rather a sweet growl and the midrange is much more subdued without all that grunt and barck of the soloed neck pickup). Where I used to use overdrive I now just switch to the bridge pickup and dig in. The further spaced your pickups are, the deeper and wider the midrange scoop will be with both on. Alex[/quote] Ah ! Thanks Alex. That explains a lot about me and Jazz Basses ....

[quote name='casapete' post='468577' date='Apr 21 2009, 02:37 PM']I'm always amazed by the price of PA mixer amps compared to bass amps. PA amps -6 ,maybe 8 channels with full tone controls,maybe 2 graphic eq's,digital effects,2x300 watts output etc etc,yet costing same or even less than bass amp head- 1 maybe 2 channels,1 graphic eq,no fx,1x300 watt output - you get the idea. Is this just economy of scale or what? A while ago I had to use an old Peavey XR600 PA amp into my bass cab, and it sounded bloomin marvellous! Loud as hell, great tone too! Think I remember a well known jazz/blues guitar player using similar set up too - clean and loud, thats whats needed. So if you see a bargain PA head anywhere, bag it for a spare bass amp,and you may be impressed.[/quote] Yup I've used an old HH Pa head into a 1x15 in a former life. Sounds fine and only about 3 knobs to worry about.

[quote name='4000' post='467766' date='Apr 20 2009, 07:25 PM']Horses for courses really. I've always hated the older Peavey bass gear; the Black Widow is arguably my least favourite speaker that I've ever used (had one for about 2 years and hated every second of it, but I generally like a very papery-sounding speaker). I love Trace though, and would be happy to use it now if my back could cope.[/quote] My Mileage Varies, indeed. I've always liked 15's and Black Widows specifically, in the bargain bin department anyway, and Trace and Ashdown just don't do it for me. I probably could do with a lesson in how to get a decent sound out of trace heads as they seem to be the de facto gear for jams around here ..

[quote name='4000' post='467785' date='Apr 20 2009, 07:46 PM']The venue is already paying the rent and staff whether we're there or not. I've been doing this for nearly 30 years so I do have a vague idea how it works. As I've already said, we're happy to support someone else, anybody, which means they can have their cake and eat it. They also tend to have covers bands on at weekends anyway, and used to have originals bands one night in the week, which most have stopped doing, so we're not strictly speaking competing with the cover bands anyway so that argument doesn't stand up. Oh, and we've never played a local venue where [i]less[/i] people have turned up as a consequence of us playing, so that's not it either. For the most part, they just don't want to take a chance. It's like the old job chestnut; need a job but no experience. No experience, can't get job. In this case, need audience, can't get gig; no gig, no audience. I don't know if I posted this earlier, but we once played a week night when a major festival was on and many of the people we knew were away at said festival. That night we had an audience of about 20 or so. The pub we played never, ever got more than 5 people in on any night during the week (it was round the corner from my mate's). We were told we hadn't pulled enough punters so we couldn't have another gig, despite the fact we'd pulled 15 more people than he would have had otherwise in less than ideal circumstances. The pub closed a year or so later.[/quote] Ok, I'll shuddup now Seriously, let us know how it goes blagging a gig ..

My bargain recommendation is always the same: Peavey Combo 300 Seies one or two, 1x15 Black Widow speaker, free Swartzenegger body building course thrown in. You get a fine sound for rock and club work, more ooomph than you'll need to scare the guitarists and they are really cheap - now that is. They were mid range when new about 25 years ago. Oh and any that are still around really look rock and roll It's just like Hi fi stuff. The difference between rock bottom and midrange is huge. The difference between midrange and top of the range (in terms of sound) is marginal and subjective, and very, very costly. You can see below what I gig with and I'm happy with all of it in different circumstances.

[quote name='hivez' post='383895' date='Jan 18 2009, 01:29 PM']I've got one I thought it would be handy for chucking in the boot security wise rather than loading a cab and amp on the back seat. To be honest I never used it again after I tried it out I found the sound a bit uninspiring and would rather take something heavier that I enjoyed playing.I thought it was a bit underpowered as well.Its at the side of the chair and I plug it in occasionally when I think I need to buy an fx pedal after half an hour playing with the COSM version built into it I decide I don't need one. Regards Dave[/quote] Dave Do you want to sell it? OG

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='467407' date='Apr 20 2009, 01:04 PM']Actually, that's not bad for Camberley ...[/quote] I'm confused .. His other advert says "100% Woking"

[quote name='NoirBass' post='467325' date='Apr 20 2009, 11:38 AM']Just popped over to Cardiff for a lovely cup of tea and a chat with Simon and walked away with a fantastic Valenti P bass. Result! Simon was very easy to deal with and was very helpful in changing viewing dates due to my last minute gigs. I couldn't help but have a go on his rather wonderful Shuker P though, might have started an immediate fresh GAS attack. here we go again! Thanks again Si, really pleased with the Valenti, I'll keep you posted how i get on.[/quote] Nice to meet you too, Chris. Sorry I left the Shuker out too Tell him I sent you .....

Post eQ for me It's one of the awful facts of life that bands and musicians that work with sound engineers depend for their FoH sound on people who's ears spend their working life in a soup of 100 dB ...