casapete

You’re right - just amended mine. Cheers.

I've used the 'power amp in' of a bass amp before in similar circumstances with no problem. As I remember, the amp's controls were bypassed, the power amp being full on with the overall output being controlled from the mixer. Only got a mono feed though in my case, so the mono / stereo thing needs to be taken into account for you.

Fabulous player, and a lovely fella too.

OLD spoilsport, please

Not quite, according to this. https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2016/sep/29/seasick-steve-session-musician-ramblin-man-book

Forgot to add my favourite gig of the year was the Reload 80's Festival in Norfolk in September. Great lineup including The Christians who were mega, as were Odyssey.

Around 150 this year, of which probably 80 with my main band, and 70 being pub residencies / deps / functions etc. Slightly less than usual maybe, but 2018 looking okay so far despite losing one of my monthly pub gigs.

Good call - save some poor kid wasting his hard earned cash over Christmas. Cheers.

Mmmm, Vintage V96 MM style bass anyone? £600? Thought not...... https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/ernie-ball-music-man-bass/1280248962

And there was me innocently thinking Ampeg may have being trying to be thoughtful by putting a speakon and a jack speaker output on their amps to cater for people who are still using older cabinets because they can't afford newer versions.....

I had exactly the same setup for a while, and loved it. Amp was £100, cab £70 IIRC. Only thing was the Peavey weighed more than the van that transported it I think..... Used it with a Jap Squier Precision which cost around £120, so a proper rig for less than £300. Gigged this for ages, and sold everything at least for what I paid for it too! Probably a big mistake though but the dreaded GAS had struck me badly.

Excellent post with some very valid points.

Time for a Satnav Blue? 🙂

Motown Chartbuster Vol 3 (silver cover) is a classic compilation. Hearing this when I was in my early teens was a lightbulb moment for me. To be honest, all the Motown Chartbusters albums are great, although if you're just discovering this stuff the 'Motown Gold' triple cd is a great place to start, but beware - you'll get hooked.

Same for me, lighter gear has been a godsend really. Wish it had come a bit sooner for me, but better late than never. I'm coming up 60, still touring and (just) making a living from playing bass. Done around 150 gigs this year, all over the UK and local pub stuff as well. I find the worst time for me is if there are any gaps in my schedule - a week or more off and I really feel it on my next gig. Hands / arms and mainly lower back start letting me know I'm not 25 any more. Can't see me stopping any time soon though, it's what I do

Advice from Fender on using guitar leads for speaker connections - If you use an instrument cable as a speaker cable, you’re probably OK at low signal levels. At high signal levels, though, trouble brews—all that amp power attempts to flow through the instrument cable’s too-small conductor. The unhappy result is that a lot of amp power is converted to heat and never even reaches the speakers. You get reduced speaker output, some probable distortion and, in extreme situations, heat-induced cable or cable connector failure. And you definitely don’t want your amp overheating. Rest of the article here - http://www2.fender.com/experience/tech-talk/instrument-cables-speaker-cables-arent-interchangeable/

I have a Countryman Uke bass, and love it. Best £150 I've spent in a long while. Sounds massive amplified, but almost inaudible unamplified. Fun to play, and the punters always comment on it. As the last two posts above, a good alternative to an acoustic/electric bass.

Agree with TheGreek, the Nanyo Bass Collection are light and great value for money. What about a Fender Precision Lyte? Mine is around 7lbs, MIJ build quality, active controls and a fair amount of tone variation from the PJ pickups. Good s/h ones go for upwards of £300. Since a shoulder injury a few years ago, mine has been great, with long sets not a problem.

Yup, agree with you on the sound they make. Not for a minute to be mistaken for a DB, but have an 'acoustic-ness' which does suit certain situations I find. I've never tried an electric bass like a Stingray with the piezo bridge option, wonder if they have that quality?

If you can be bothered to read it, usual controversial list etc! http://www.musicradar.com/news/the-17-best-bass-players-in-the-world-right-now?utm_source=Adestra&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20165&utm_term=1272076&utm_content=360580

Of course, totally agree. However, let's not forget that before the Speakon was introduced in the late 1980's, 1/4" jack ( and occasionally XLR) sockets were used by everyone, including big pieces of kit (200/300 watts) manufactured by Ampeg, Marshall, Sunn, SWR, GK etc. Was just making the point for the OP though, that using a jack connection on one end of a speaker lead for his purposes is not going to be a problem for him.

Not sure about louder, but the one I tried was more middle biased which may cut through a bit more. Still not enough unamplified though IMO.

Some interesting stuff here should you decide to go ahead. http://www.musicradar.com/news/10-of-the-best-acoustic-bass-guitars

Apart from these ^^^ !!! Tried the one in Hobgoblin in Leeds a couple of weeks ago - was actually quite loud!

Can't remember seeing any nylon strung acoustic basses TBH?