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Yep. It doesn't like £ signs and it gets a sulk on if you try leaving out the decimal point.

Here he is depping for Acker Bilk...

Easy to see what's happened there. The band are from the UK, the bassist is from the USA. He probably thought that everyone in the UK dress up as though they've just been fox hunting.

Hitting 50 has made bugger all difference to me. I still run circles around younger band members when it comes to lifting and shifting kit. Having over 30 years of playing experience under my belt grabs the attention of younger musicians and singer songwriters when they have a space that needs filling. That 'space' is usually bass related, but not always. I don't wake up with aches and pains after a gig and my drinking days ceased about 20 years ago, so no hangovers either. Although I'm primarily a folk and roots musician, I play in a rock band and a functions band and the only raised eyebrows I get are related to 'how the hell did he do that?' No problems here.

[quote name='Skinnyman' timestamp='1408320175' post='2529024'] Can anyone think of anything I've missed? [/quote] The longest mains extension leads you can grab hold of - it'll still be 4" too short but at least you'll have tried.

I've optimised mine. It's now 6' x 8' and 470Tb. I reckon Discreet should be able to read this message by... mid September?

Looks good but autoplaying sound files when you enter the site isn't a great idea.

[quote name='Skinnyman' timestamp='1408300021' post='2528803'] Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I'm going to get me one of them [/quote] Works well for us as we have 50+ XLR cables to contend with at bigger gigs. I cut an MDF 'circle' and slid it onto the centre spindle so we have long cables on one side and shorter ones on the other. The XLR connector on the end of 'the chain' is simply secured to the carrying handle with a velcro tie to make it easy to find later.

[quote name='John Schoen' timestamp='1408273167' post='2528455'] My single coil Precision has developed a strange problem: when I turn the volume on the bass down the hum gets louder. It has always hummed a bit but the hum that I get now is much louder than normal. I have not changed anything, can someone suggest what the problem may be? [/quote] There should be a wire running between the volume control casing to the tone control casing. Is it still connected securely?

We bought an empty hose reel for our XLR cables, we just snap them end to end and wind them on.

[quote name='seashell' timestamp='1408133684' post='2527560'] Yay! I live in the right area! But ...oh and....ah....oh bugger :-( [/quote] Blimming heck Shell - you're 6 months too old.

Plenty of work this summer. Main band have played weddings and various functions most weekends - we have work all the way up to 20th Dec. Second band have just started gigging again and are filling in the weekend slots not taken by the main band. Three recording sessions, dep work for various bands and a healthy smattering of folky stuff mid week most weeks. Trying to get something in my diary for NYE ATM.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1408034213' post='2526493'] Some smoke detector heads are optical not ionisation triggered, I would imagine those would not be able to distinguish between actual smoke or fake smoke? [/quote] Ah that'd be it.

[quote name='The Admiral' timestamp='1408041967' post='2526600'] And the Blackbeard's Tea Party session is an audience 'dress up as a pirate' theme apparently - should be interesting! [/quote] Shhhh! It's taken years to nurture that 'arran sweater and finger in the ear' image. We don't want [b]everyone[/b] joining in the fun...

I didn't think 'smoke' from machines set off smoke alarms? Totally different chemicals involved (i.e. glycerine not carbon).

That's some lineup! If I [b]had[/b] to make a choice I'd go for the following: Bellowhead - big brash and loud. Great fun to watch. Seth Lakeman - Everyone knows this guy, I'd definitely go and see him. Lau - Really interesting Scottish group - fantastic musicians. Steve Knightley’s Wake the Union - Not seen Steve under this banner, but he always does a superb performance. The Full English - Really interesting project through the EFDS. Seth Lakeman, Fay Hield, Martin Simpson and Sam Sweeney (whose Mum is the practice nurse at my local surgery!). Got to see. Martin Simpson - Lovely guitarist. Karine Polwart - Definitely worth seeing. Steve Tilston Trio - Really nice songwriter - Fairport regularly nick his songs. Jim Moray - Another must see. Really interesting modern takes on traditional songs. Huw Williams & Maartin Allcock - Not familiar with Huw Williams but Maart is always worth seeing. Rex Preston & Miranda Sykes - Miranda and Rex have recorded some lovely stuff over the last few years. Blackbeard’s Tea Party - They appear to have far too much fun to be a real band. Check out their bass player - he's Timo on here.

Many years ago I worked in the service department of a sound and lighting company. We had a LeMaitre smoke machine bought in for repair. The LeMaitre machines used a compressed can of smoke fluid that screwed onto the machine. Using compressed smoke fluid, these things were quite powerful and only needed a 5 second press of the release valve to create a room full of smoke. I replaced the element, attached a canister and switched it on to heat up. The thermostat neon lit up and I jabbed the release valve to check all was well. The release valve stuck. Within seconds the room was full of smoke and, being summertime, the door to the street was open. I tried to unscrew the canister, but it was jammed (I later discovered the O ring had perished and slipped into the thread). Working on a compressed canister, even unplugging it from the mains doesn't stop one of those monsters. The emergency services were wonderful though - police, fire and ambulance were there within minutes as it was obviously a major fire...

Ah right. Bearing in mind that not seeing the amp means that this has to be a 'best guess', it's almost certainly a faulty relay. If you have trouble finding the same one then Korg UK are the UK distributors and hold spares. The Spares Department can be reached on 01908 304670.

[quote name='SpaceChick' timestamp='1407869514' post='2524930'] I'm currently working with a guitarist who plays an old battered guitar and mics up a practice amp which is probably nearly as old as me.... [/quote]

Bassection

[quote name='MoonBassAlpha' timestamp='1407099108' post='2517377'] It's clearly not fubar then, good news! It will probably be a dry joint somewhere or a slightly iffy socket. Any decent tech would be able to go over it and make it good as new. [/quote] Absolutely. Those old TE amps used 'off the shelf' components that any tech will be able to get hold of as well.

For some reason I watched a documentary about Chas and Dave a while back. No idea why I decided to watch it, but I'm glad I did! Those guys have a musical pedigree going back decades and are seriously good musicians.

When I get involved in a shared stage gig I make it perfectly clear before the gig is accepted that I won't be using venue provided kit and likewise won't provide mine for that use either. Musicians are there to do a job in the same way that a plumber is and I don't expect to book a plumber and then provide him with a spanner. It's usually accepted with good grace and on the odd occasion where the organiser grumbles about it, I just don't get drawn into negotiations over it.

The anti thump mechanism works around a relay, so there's a chance that it's sticking (they don't last forever) - you should hear a little 'click' a few seconds after switch on? That's the relay firing. However, before you grab your screwdriver there are a few other areas where the problem could be coming from. 1) Intermittent short in your head -> speaker cable. Take it apart and look carefully - even one loose strand of copper wire could cause a problem. Easiest test is to substitute the lead with another one. 2) Tarnished Send\Return socket(s) These are switched and not always reliable. Try linking the Send and Return sockets together with a spare guitar lead. HTH

[quote name='bonzodog' timestamp='1407777596' post='2523932'] Its a very old HA3000 and last week, although the power light was on there was no sound. All of a sudden it came to life then stopped again. I am local to MAJ who has repaired gear for me in the past so will drop it into him. I have now borrowed my nephews LG1000 until I find one. Don't get me wrong, I know my priorities and am blessed with health and family. It just gets you down sometimes when you struggle to even afford basic stuff. [/quote] I use one of those as a backup and rehearsal head and guess what? Mine did that as well. Hartke had a rather large batch of circuit boards delivered in the HA3000 days which had some very poor soldering - I spent about 10 mins with a soldering iron repairing the bad joints and it's worked ever since. There's a rather fair chance that you've got the same problem.