BigRedX

Appears to be made by ABM who have an excellent reputation for their bass bridges.

All the software is available for Windows and Mac, so I think it boils down to which you need the best experience from. If it is Office, then get a Windows machine and if it's iTunes get a Mac. Simple.

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1436182352' post='2815621'] Townsend did an interview where he said he was surprised at how much freedom he had without John playing and that it was good to have A bass player just holding down the bottom end. [/quote] And now that he's got that, he's found that the band needs a second guitarist the make the songs sound right again. I watched what was on the iPlayer and for the most part was pretty impressed. However, looking at the set list, for a band whose main creative member is still alive there is a noticeable lack of new material. Nothing from the most recent album (which itself is almost 10 years old now) and only one track from the album before that (from 1982!). And while I appreciate that most of the audience will want the old familiar material, I does make me wonder why they still bother. And singing "My Generation" when you are in your 70s has gone beyond irony...

Hi there! Yes this is mine. I've been having a bit of a clear out trying to get by collection down to basses that actually get used. Yes the nut is quiet narrow and the bass does weigh a bit, but I can't say that either have actually been a problem for me. In fact the weight of the body means that this version balances a lot better on the strap than the much lighter 4-string SBV and coupled with a comfort strap I find it very easy to wear.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1436179622' post='2815565'] That is true, but they couldn't convincingly replicate a Steinway or a Hammond at that time. [/quote] TBH I'm still not convinced that an electronic keyboard can accurately replicate a Steinway yet. And IME at least 75% of the sound of a Hammond is being able to play in a way that works with it's limitations as a keyboard - essentially one sound with no sustain. and only two fixed vibrato speeds. You have to have spent some time playing a real one to be able to make a replicated one sound the same and an expert Hammond player with a well programmed DX7 will sound more authentic than a piano player with a modern replica. Also in many ways a synth is a far more useful instrument for the average keyboard player to use in a typical rock ensemble since it has a lot more opportunity to be adjusted in such a way that its sounds don't tread in the other instruments sonic spaces.

Actually shorts for the drummer are acceptable provided that they have so much drum hardware that their legs are completely hidden from view throughout the gig.

Keyboards have been ironing-board sized since the early 80s. Electronic drum kits have come on a lot in the last 10 years, but unless the whole band uses IEMs the amount of extra amplification you need to make them work on stage pretty much negates the savings in size a weight, and IME they seem to take just as long to set up as a traditional kit.

There are some garments that are pushing the definition IMO. Shorts at their very longest should come down to just below the knee. Anything longer just look like normal trousers that you've grown out of. You really need to get your mum to let them down so that they fit properly again! And despite Mr Venom's on-stage attire you'll never catch me in anything as ugly as shorts at a gig. Leather jacket and trousers all the way whatever the weather.

I haven't bought any basses, but I did buy an amp and 4 cabs. I have only sold one bass on here and the process was such a pain full of tyre kickers and people who said they wanted to buy it and then disappeared never to be heard from again, that I've given up trying to sell here, and use eBay instead where my potential audience is much bigger, and more open-minded when it comes to the weirder end of the bass guitar market. I don't have any problem buying basses without first trying them. My tastes are two esoteric for many instruments that I would be interested in to come up for sale anywhere where I am likely to be able to get to them before parting with my money, and the last bass I actually tried before buying only lasted 3 months before I stopped using it an put it up for sale.

Short enough for you? [IMG]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n249/BigRedX/Dick%20Venom%20Live/429529_388574501158296_726468916_n_zpspbett6av.jpg[/IMG]

[quote name='spectoremg' timestamp='1436074357' post='2814693'] Mp3va. Used it now for a couple of years. Cheap as chips and no problems. [/quote] However at those prices I doubt that the artists are seeing any of the money you spend. In fact looking at the legal info it appears that the company running the site is based in the Ukraine and is probably using the Russian copyright "loophole" to avoid paying royalties to anyone. As musicians we really shouldn't be using these sorts of sites.

[quote name='Pinball' timestamp='1436036198' post='2814534'] Thanks all, Does anyone use Reverbnation as we're already on there? [/quote] We have a ReverbNation page, but except for updating gig info we don't use it anymore as the interface is too slow and clunky. For Facebook gig integration we've started using Bands In Town instead.

We have a web site, buts mostly a gateway to our other social media sites and a page from which we can sell records and T-shirts. Like it or not most people use Facebook as their main point of contact with a band, and a web site looks good and can act as a hub for all the other site that you are on, but don't expect it to be your fans' first port of call. One thing that is interesting is that we have our merch for sale on both our web site and Bandcamp, but the current trend is for most of our sales to come from Bandcamp despite the fact that it works out slightly more expensive for some items than buying directly from our site! Regarding getting VFM from your own web site, the best deals come with the free hosting packages when you buy the domain name. So provided that you don't need loads of space (or bandwidth) for your site or multiple email addresses you should be able to host your web site for the cost of the domain name each year.

After a long hot day in the studio we have 9 songs mixed (bar one or two little tweaks). We also had some fun with some last minute overdubs and a guest vocalist for one of the songs. We'll be back in just over a week's time to do the final tracks and then fine tune everything. Then it's off for mastering. Looks like we've found a pressing plant that can turn the album around in time for October. Unfortunately it probably won't be coloured vinyl this time around.

I don't see what the problem is. It's a P Bass. Fender churn them out in hundreds of thousands. If you don't like this one another more suitable one will be along for sale very soon.

Add a DI box - there are plenty available that simply take a line level signal and convert it to balanced mic level.

All I would say is that on the few occasions when I've had to go the DI route (usually down to equipment share misunderstandings) the monitoring has never been up to the task of letting me be able to hear myself.

Just back from Monday's studio session. Recorded a few extra overdubs and then got to work on the mixing. We've got the basic sound sorted for all the tracks and have started detailed mixing on each individual song. Just been listening to the first two (almost) finished mixes. Very happy with the results. Back again on Wednesday to hopefully get everything apart from the very fine tuning done. Just have to find a pressing plant that doesn't have a 6 month turnaround time for vinyl...

It would very much depend on what I was after at the time of commissioning the build with regards to looks and sounds who I would pick... However if I had unlimited money to spend and I had to spend it right now on a new bass it would be a very custom Gus 5-string fretless... Or get Warwick to make me a 5-string Star Bass with a more elegantly shaped headstock than the "paddle" abomination they insist on using.

Personally I think the audience are at least as much to blame as the artists for the stagnation of "classic" bands. I believe that a lot of these bands would be far happier if they could move on and leave much of their music of the past behind them. I know that the music I play at the moment has little in common with what I played and listened to 10 years ago let alone what I was into back in the 70s when I first started playing.

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1435568057' post='2809988'] I sometimes think that the extent to which we venerate and congratulate that generation of bands above all others gets a little unhealthy and starts to resemble the culture that they were kicking against in the first place. [/quote] Very much this.

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1435564382' post='2809944'] Rather than below 40 why not just stipulate that they must still be alive? Or still playing? [/quote] And still producing interesting and exciting music. Unfortunately most of the bands that I grew up with in the 70s and 80s if they are still going haven't produced anything of worth in the last 20 years.

No Peter Hook or Mick Karn….

Interparcel's insurance only goes up to £1000. If you want more you'll have to deal directly with someone like UPS or Fedex which will be a lot more.

On the whole angled stands are best provided that the angle can be adjusted so that you can get the speaker pointing at your head even when you have to stand very close to the amp. However on amps with controls mounted on the top at the back, they make adjusting them unnecessarily difficult. I've played with a lot guitarists who have amps built like this and they look so awkward hunched over trying to get at the controls and identify what they do. Why to manufacturers still build combos like this? I get that it's retro styling, and also that it can be a cost effective layout in all valve amps, but it dates from times when the use of amplification was completely different to today - these amps were designed to be placed on the floor in front of the performers and then the control are easy to see and reach. Things have moved on and this control layout is an anachronism that needs to die out swiftly.