dmccombe7

Have to say WoT thread was one of the best reads on BC. Really interesting thread and some cool pics too. Dave

Most people over here prefer a live band at their wedding if they can afford it. Typically bar bands will make anything from £200 to £500 and then moving into larger venues or clubs you are up to the £1k upwards and as you get more noticed on the circuit you can slowly increase your rates. We have been offered £1k for our first gig even tho the venue has only heard a few rehearsal recordings taken on a phone plus they know the singer from his other band. With regards your checklist i recognise most of the things you mention on it and my current band all sat down at first meet in a coffee shop to discuss basically what you had on your list. Mainly everyone's idea or expectation of what they wanted from this band (Glam Rock covers band) other commitments with their other bands all booked a year in advance and everyone accepted the band was more a side project to fit in around other commitments. We discussed the set and songs possible with only gtr, bass, drms and Vox. We did discuss possibility of a 2nd guitarist or kys but would wait until we had a few rehearsals under the belt to see how we sounded. Eventually we had the opportunity of a kys player with similar attitude that singer new from other bands. We each took a list of songs we thought would work as a 4 piece and the main point was that we all got along on a more social level hence the coffee shop meet. It al went really well altho the other commitments has meant slow progress on the rehearsal front. The guys that play in other bands have now realised that this band could potentially make some good money as well as having lots of fun and are now leaning towards this band being their priority band. We have been offered good money for our first gig which will be a in the New Year due to delays in rehearsals but we all knew that from the first meet that it would be an issue. Altho you post is long i did read all of it and it makes a lot of sense. As you say we really should make up a checklist for any audition. Dave

Only caught the 1st two acts last night Jungle and Robyn i think they were and i thought they were pretty good. I'll watch the rest of the show on catch up today at some point but that was the best start to a show in a long time for me anyways. Dave

Still a great song when you hear that more recent live version. Its never aged. Dave

That was weird but brilliant version. What a voice that guy has.

The more i listen to the original the more i like it over the Buggles version. Its more musical to me. More modern sounding too.

Gorgeous bass. Hope it gets fixed to your satisfaction. Bit worrying that a 1/4 turn did this to an expensive bass like this. Something wasn't quite right with it to start with i would think. Dave

I've never heard the original but its good in its own right. The Buggles version is much more commercialised but both are versions of a fantastic song. Like both of them. Bass line in original is better IMO. Dave

Remind me never to buy a bass from some of you guys 😕

I bought those singles as well and always liked his music and of course his image played a big part of that too. I remember watching him on a TV series where i'm sure he lived on a canal boat. He was / is a great actor too. Might just have a look at his albums now. What do you recommend ? Dave The River was the canal boat series

My Overwater i use Pledge or equivelant on a duster for the body and back of neck and use a little teak oil on the fretboard as instructed by Overwater. My warwick i used to use the Warwick beeswax but was told about Briwax by luthier Chris McIntyre and now use that on Warwick. It doesn't leave any stickiness or feel greasy like Beeswax. Goes on the same but polishes off a lot easier. On my other lacquered basses i use Gibson lacquer polish. On fretted basses i'll use Duraglit to give a very light clean on the frets but only just to remove tarnished stains. Usually the polish will clean the fets I think i need to invest in some new cleaner for my lacquered basses as the Gibson one is getting a little watery looking so this thread will be interesting to see what's most popular. I always polish the full bass when changing strings. In between string changes its just a quick clean with a duster to remove finger marks. Great idea for a thread. Dave

ACS 17's for me too altho current band doesn't rehearse too lud and we can talk over it most of the time. However i think i will start using my plugs now before we start gigging. Dave

I'm like you and really take a lot of care with my gear when its just me that's moving it but i've been in bands where others have helped me take gear to either car or van and they just don't take the same care as myself. Dave

I went for the canvas as i tend to find vinyl can scuff quite easy but have to say it does look more professional looking in the vinyl. Dave

No probs. Happy to pass on the help i've had from all of you guys on the Mesa gear. Just ordered a new padded canvas cover for it from local manuafacturer Hotcovers. They make some great covers in canvas or vinyl. They have the contract for Blackstar and Barefaced i believe. Not overly expensive IMO for the fantastic quality you get. I bought their covers for my Markbass rig few yrs ago and was very impressed. Worth a look if you are in the market for a cab or amp cover. Dave

That was running it into 8ohm cab tho. When i sued my Berg HT322 at 4ohm the master was a bit lower probably around 9 o clock. At those settings on the 8ohm cab things were starting to vibrate on the walls I was surprised my wife wasn't thru telling me to turn it down a bit Dave

Is your 15 cab 4 or 8 ohm as the 212 cab i got is 600W but its 8 ohms altho to be fair i think that will be more than enough for on-stage monitoring and if bigger gigs i can swap with my Berg HT322. Let me know how you get on with the cab. I'm quite curious now Dave

Depending on how i get on with the cab because its still reasonably heavy i might still end up looking for some 2nd hand Subway cabs but at the moment i'm really loving the depth of tone from this wee rig. Many thanks for your help and advice on BC about the Mesa gear. Its good to know someone with a fair amount of experience of Mesa gear. Dave

Doesn't even ring a bell for me. I'll need to dig the album out

Think its Coldplay's first album i bought too. It obviously had a dramatic impact as i couldn't tell you any tracks from it nowadays altho it might be worth a 2nd listen now its been a few yrs since buying it.

Finally went for a Mesa rig. I had been planning on buying the new Subway rig but lack of availability to hear this new lightweight gear and the ridiculus prices Mesa charge kept putting me off the idea. At £3k for a full rig its a bit extreme even for me. I then started looking at Mesa gear for sale on BC and ended up buying the Mesa Mpulse 600 from our very own "The Greek" on BC and a very big thanks to Mick for all his help and advice. The PH212 cab i got reduced (ex-demo) from Guitar Guitar. The amp is heavy but not unlike my GK1001RBii and far lighter than my Ampeg SVT4 Pro that i just sold. The cab was a bit bigger than i expected and quite heavy at 34Kg but still a one man lift if no other option. Heavy duty removable castors (ingenious idea for locking them in) certainly helps moving it about. The amp arrived yesterday and i was playing it thru my Berg HT322 cab and it sounded so sweet, smooth and very warm compared to my GK1001RBii. That was it all flat with just a hint of compression. The EQ section on the amp provides a huge variety of tones but none of them come across as harsh or in your face. All very dignified tones and all usable for something or other. I was very pleased with the full Mesa head and Berg cab. Today the Mesa PH212 cab arrived and on plugging in i found it quite different to my Berg. It has a similar depth but the clarity is far superior. Very bright sounding to the point i took the horn all the way back (off) and it still sounds clean but retains the low end depth. Tried switching the cross-over between the 3 settings and that does make a significant difference too with the horn in mid position. Cab is extremely well built much same quality as my Berg HT322 cab. It would be an ideal cab for slap bassists is what came to mind when i started using the Mesa cab. After adjusting horn i found it a far more acceptable tone for my needs. Deep but still having a very clear mid / hi end. Very nice and i know it will cut thru a mix in any band. I was using my Fender Precison P/J bass set flat for the test. It sounds just incredible. The cab is 8ohm and i thought that might be a prob but playing in the house the amp running flat was around 1 o clock on Gain and Master at 10 o'clock. It was quite loud but i live in country village in detached house so i get away with ramping them up a bit. From experience with my other gear i think the Mesa rig will be more than enough power for my needs. Looking forward to next rehearsal when i'll take it along for a wee trial run. Dave

So.......no strong feelings about them then

At this stage in the proceedings i must point out that altho i quite like Nickelback........I'M NOT A MUM. Dave