Ed_S

[quote name='Thurbs' timestamp='1328255703' post='1524361'] Wow some interesting wattages quoted there. I practice with a LB 30w valve amp and the BFB Midget-t 112. You are not shaking the foundations but perfectly audible. IMHO practice shouldn't be about volume and also tends to mask a multitude of sins. I like to practice at just over talking levels so you don't need ear protection and have the clarity and definition of all instruments. I tried this with a rock band once and had some interesting results. I got everyone to try it out for one rehearsal, they were so uncomfortable about the clarity and space given that they thought our playing was "wrong". When I repeatedly questioned what this meant they both could'nt articulate anything specific, just that it was wrong. We then turned up to stupid levels, played the same songs as well if not slightly worse than before and they felt so much better. Doing this made me realise how for some people playing is just as much about the 'feel' rather than the 'technical' part of playing. Whilst I am barely better than a beginner, I try to approach making music with both in mind. Having said that, as the DB is much more of a physical instrument, I do tend to 'feel' playing it more than the BGs I have, but the feeling isn't about volume as amplifying them is a real challenge! Do you need loads of watts to play well? [/quote] Interesting experiment with the rock band. My own personal feeling (as a heavy rock / metal bassist) is that rather than masking your problems, rehearsing at (or even above) gig volume highlights the issues you have with tone, timing, technical ability to play parts, managing feedback etc. Of course, the caveat is that you have to fully accept that if you sound discordent you have issues that need addressing; it's not acceptable, inevitable, or happening just because you're loud. If you really work to iron out the problems, you'll find that as the band gets tighter and the performance gets cleaner and more polished, you start to almost sound 'quieter' anyway because you've lost the dross in the sound and people aren't competing for the same frequencies as much. It seriously depends on what your overall sound as a band consists of, but I know that if we'd rehearsed our material at just over talking volume then taken it out on a stage and cranked it up, we'd have had a terrible shock! Do you need loads of watts to play well? Not necessarily, but in some contexts (and beyond the writing phase) I genuinely think it can help... To the OP, I'd say a good quality 1x12 with a couple of hundred watts behind it should suffice.

I wouldn't be too concerned that there's a lack of info - whilst we've always provided information overload for auditionees in our band, we've also usually made our decision about suitability within the first 10 mins of conversation without instruments. Skill is fairly easy to gauge once you know you can actually stand to be around somebody; maybe these guys have an evolved sense of this fact and once they know that you all get along, it'll just be a run through 'Smoke on the Water' and hired. Take the P, and don't stress stuff they've decided ain't important. Of course, if you subsequently decide they don't even have an evolved sense of the difference between arse and elbow, it's cost you a couple of hours and they can keep on looking

I guess if you were setting up and wanting to really spend once and protect that investment, you'd stick power amps and any other 'set and forget' equipment for the guitars, bass and PA in a locked rack in the corner / in another room, all pre-set to a reasonable maximum volume, then run out to the speaker cabs in the room via wall boxes and have a patch bay and rack mixer for people to plug mics and preamps into. Couple of basic WYSIWYG rack preamps as the provided 'rigs', and maybe the option to hire more adventurous ones at a price. I haven't given this more than the last 10 mins in though, so I'm sure there are things you'd need to work out, but it's got to be harder to screw equipment up if you can't access most of it, and I reckon the pre/power idea would mean less stuff (and less expensive stuff) was out of action at any one time. Just a thought

Well, my XLS just turned up. Provided it's all working as it should when I get it home, it'll be interesting to see what 1550W* does for a Super 12 [size=1]*who knows, I might get it to '2' before the neighbours are all congregated outside with pitchforks...[/size]

I've been in some total dives in the name of rehearsal studios, one in particular was noteworthy for the smell of very strong ganja and the Peavey TKO combo which went up in smoke (literally, but I was told "that happens sometimes.. be alright in 5 mins")! Sadly it was in the days before camera phones, so I have no evidence of a Peavey in this state... The one we use now is pretty good for electrical safety, but it's still AVT150 2x12s for guitar and various old peavey / laney / trace offerings for bass. Fortunately they offer a lockup for bands with regular weekly slots, so I leave a cheap rig (HA5500 and ABM410t) down there and just turn up with a bass. We also keep a couple of 1936s and rack power amps there for the guitarists to just turn up with guitars and preamps. I'm sure we look like the most pretentious of t*ssers wheeling everything into the room and shoving their gear to the sides, but if we're paying for the time, we don't want it screwed up by bad gear. As for offering induction on how to use the gear in a rehearsal studio... never going to work. Kids rocking up to that sort of place will at best ignore the advice 'because they know better' and at worst do the exact opposite in defiance because 'nobody tells [them] what to do'! I dare say some of the 'young adults' wouldn't behave much better. So yeah, a place with a gear store and some lockable cases for a cheap but serviceable rig, that'd be my advice 'cos I know it works.

[quote name='M-Bass-M' timestamp='1327927370' post='1518814'] Hmmm, liking the look of that a lot. Variable crossover too, allowing for some mental Entwistle-esque frequency manipulation. I'd be very interested to hear how it works out for you. [/quote] Yeah, it looked like about the best features/price and power/weight ratio bit of kit I could hunt down, and from a semi-respected name, too. I'll be sure to post back when I've had it for long enough to formulate some opinions!

I got a W-Audio Horizon 600 on the cheap a few months back, and whilst I never intended it to be used for bass (I'd got it to make a basic rack for our hard-of-gear rhythm guitarist!) I tested it out with a bass and found it to be pretty nifty but rather quiet for its rating. Sadly it doesn't bridge at 4ohms, but if you over-spec and run at 8ohms, I can see it being handy. I should be getting a very lightweight new 2U power amp that was bought for bass use tomorrow, though; a Crown XLS1500 Drivecore which goes down to 4ohms bridged and should knock out 1500W doing it. Got rave reviews elsewhere but seems not to have been talked about much on BC from what I could find. I'll let anybody interested know how it goes when I've had it a couple of weeks...

I can't say anything of its vintage or authenticity, but last time I went into Richtone that thing was in its open case on the floor by the door, and I very nearly (and quite literally) put my foot in it! In hindsight it'd have been an expensive faux pas, but still an act of mercy...

Aright Connor, mate! Sure you'll like it 'ere... Aye, Len, a lot of the decent metal venues in Sheff are up the spout; Boardwalk, Grapes, Casbah.. but the South Sea in Broomhill is geared up for gigs now and we've still got West St. Live and the Dove and Rainbow. Corp's great fun - played there a few times, but only the small room so far!

We came fairly close not too long ago! Got offered a gig at a city-centre bar that we'd never heard of, which in hindsight should have told us all we needed to know, but we did as we normally do and went in on a quiet evening to get a feel for the place, find out how big the stage was, see what kind of backline would be appropriate etc. On arrival we noticed the unnervingly clean surroundings, mirrors on every wall, little faux-fur trimmed bean-cubes to sit on, extensive cocktail menu served by a bloke in a suit, and Peroni at £4.10 a pint. We went to the bar and asked to have a word with the guy who organised the gigs, and the conversation between the suited guy with the cocktail shaker and us in our usual denim, leather, metal band t-shirts and new rock boots went something like: Me - Can we speak to your gigs and events guy please? We'd like to ask about a booking. Cock Tail - I'm afraid he's very busy and, not being funny, I really don't know how well you'd go down here! Me - No sh*t! Your guy's already booked us, though, so it might be worth his time to come and talk. Cock Tail - Oh! Erm.. hang on... (goes to fetch Ents. guy) [5 mins later] Ents - Hi there! I've just checked through my email and I see what's happened - I thought you were a [i]soul[/i] band! Me - Yeah, the band name has the word '[i]soul[/i]' in it, but we're more "I will eat your____" than "sweet ____ music" Ents - Well, thanks... I guess I'll get somebody else... Part of me still wishes that we'd not asked, rocked in with as many marshall 1960s as we could borrow from guys we know and started erecting a full wall, but it could have only ended one way, so better not to have the aggro.

Fender every time. I'll hold my hands up and say I just had to browse round Fodera's website to get a flavour for what they do, but having done so, they are exactly the kind of thing I started playing Fenders to get away from.

I have a Terror Bass (and a Markbass) that both suffer from that, so I use a square of non-slip matting, specifically [url="http://www.maplin.co.uk/multi-purpose-non-slip-mat-217606"]this stuff[/url] from Maplins - never had a problem since.

If he fancies Engl, how about the E530 preamp and a power amp? Picked up second hand they'd be well within budget. I had one for a while - used it with a Rocktron Velocity 100 and it sounded great through my Marshall 1936. There's a nice upgrade path to louder / better power amps, too... I ran mine through our lead guitarist's Marshall 9100 and 1960B a couple of times and it sounded amazing.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1327516880' post='1512794'] Most people trying to learn tracks don't listen anywhere near close enough or for long enough to an original. When you listen at what I call the 'forensic level', nine times out of ten the bass player is playing something [i]different [/i]to what you thought[i]. [/i]Even on tracks you thought you knew. [/quote] ...therefore, if most musicians who 'know' a song don't even know it, the average punter who knows some of the words to the chorus and therefore 'knows' and enjoys the song isn't going to care one way or the other how I choose to approximate the bassline, because as far as they're concerned I'll be playing the song! What about when your fellow muso types who notice the variations on said theme say that your take on a track is better than the original, then? Should you take it as a backhanded insult because your part wasn't exactly as good as the original?

[quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1327449641' post='1511617'] The MIM Fender Jazz 5's have 5-in-a-line tuners; well, at least mine does. [/quote] I believe it's a case of 'used to', unfortunately. I tried to get hold of one like that towards the end of my "it's not a bass unless it has 5 strings" phase, but they just weren't there to be had by that point, replaced by the current 4+1 model.

[quote name='pantherairsoft' timestamp='1327496862' post='1512261'] This takes some doing and I treat the board as part of the instrument. To me the bass is a set of oscillators and the board is the rest of the synth, so tweaking stuff does not seem a chore, it's part of playing. [/quote] Yeah, that's sortof what I though, but didn't want to presume Cheers for the insight - appreciated! Assuming you have some footage out there in the public domain I'll have to have a gander when I'm not getting blocked by work's TMG box...

[quote name='pantherairsoft' timestamp='1327428568' post='1511112'] My pedalboard is STRICTY a 2-man lift. I appreciate it if a 3rd person is handy too. Though I don't use a clean bass at ANY point of a set. Would you laugh? Or seem it acceptable? [/quote] Heh, nah mate - that's totally acceptable! If you use the stuff then it's perfectly sensible to have it there I have, however, quite literally seen a board like that come in, get unfurled and patched in, and remain[i] completely [/i]unused for the entire duration of the gig. I freely admit that with my beer-drinking-punter head on, that amuses me! Out of genuine interest, do you enjoy using a big board as an integral part of your performance rather than just a necessity to achieve your sound? Do you 'engage with it' (for want of a better description) and alter the f/x parameters in real time, or just turn things on and off that you've carefully pre-set? I only ask because if I were doing f/x on a big scale, I reckon I'd want to put them all in rack drawers and use a GCX or something to switch presets. But then, I suppose that might be taking away an integral element of your live performance..? If I'm appearing clueless, it's because I play standard rock / heavy metal and my trademark thing is to set the EQ flat, strap on my wireless kit and head off to rock out on the floor with the audience, so I'd find it a real pain to use anything pedal-wise for more than an intro, and don't really feel it'd enhance much if I went to the trouble!

I've always worked on the principle that even if I have to pay the shop to arrange the return courier (ok, you shouldn't have to, but even if you do...) it's worth it on the grounds that if their goods arrive back in several pieces, they get to claim against their own courier on the basis of their own packing materials (provided you send it back exactly as-was) because they are the customer. The fact that they need to make an insurance claim has nothing to do with your right to a refund.

Personally, I just don't like what being a 5 does visually to the proportions of a Precision. The Jazz doesn't seem to look quite as bloated for the extra string, but as I don't much like the Jazz body shape that's a non-starter irrespective. What I find least aesthetically appealing all round is the 4+1 headstock layout. All of which adds up to mean that my one and only non-Fender is my 5 - a LTD Surveyor, which I think looks well proportioned and is 5-in-line up top.

I use about half a minute of chorus for the intro to Widowmaker by WASP... does that count? I have nothing against people using f/x, but I must admit it makes me laugh when somebody rocks up with a pedalboard that's almost a two man lift and proceeds to use one pedal, once.

I got one in the sales just before Xmas - the workmanship is fantastic (not far off my USA deluxe) and the rosewood board is particularly nicely figured. Yeah, it's quite heavy and the neck is a bit like half a baseball bat, but it somehow feels very 'right' for the instrument. The only bad thing about mine was the almost unplayable factory setup (sufficient to keep it on the wall at DV for long enough to land it in a clearance sale) but half an hour of tweaking and a pack of new strings got that ironed out. The pickup height took a couple of band rehearsals to get right and has ended up a little more radically angled than on my other P's, but not so as it's in the way. Looks great, feels great, plays great, sounds great... I say do it!

£1500 is about my mental ceiling, and the most expensive I currently own has a list price of £1400ish (although I paid a couple of hundred less than that). I wouldn't want to take anything any more expensive than that out of the house because I know how narked I'd be if it got damaged. It is indeed all relative, though... if you can shell out several grand in the name of retail therapy and nobody's going to go hungry because of it, then go for it!

[quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1327321982' post='1509202'] This post isn't directed at you personally Ed... [/quote] No worries, Shambo.. no offence intended or taken on my part.

They're damn good cabs, aren't they! I went tweeterless too, and haven't regretted it at all. When I first plugged my S-12 in at rehearsal, it was aimed straight at our lead guitarist and I'd forgotten to turn the master down on my HA5500 from its usual '3' to something more befitting a sensitive cab.. made the bugger jump

[quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1327242515' post='1508188'] Not one thing posted in this thread has made me reconsider my opinion on this matter. [/quote] Really? With respect, you asked... [quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1326730289' post='1501144'] I was just wondering, am I missing something about ciggarette smoke [...] do basses aquire a smokey smell? Just wondering. [/quote] ...and the vast majority of us said "yes, they do".