coasterbass

Yeah we did it. The audience were plastered and kept tripping over stuff. In the end I think we just had the monitors on and no FOH !! Despite the fact that we'd cut our fee as it was a charity gig they announced at the end that they'd actually made no money for charity because everyone had drunk too much free booze. Delightful.

I got thinking about this following a comment by davebass on another thread. Have you ever turned up for a gig and immediately thought 'we really shouldn't be doing this gig', or to put it more accurately, 'how do you expect a band to play in there??' I'll start with one: A couple of years ago we were hired to play a gig up north which was billed as a charity ball. The venue address was given as 'The Barn', on xxxxx Farm. We're travelling up from London so there was no chance to check the venue beforehand. We were also told that there was a chance of more gigs if we put on a good show. So... I called up a local PA company and requested a rig, suitable of playing a venue called 'The Barn'. I believe I also mentioned that it was a 'showcase' for our band in the area and that we'd be rebooking the PA company if things went well. We turned up on the day to find the PA company already unloading, and looking slightly andry/bemused. It very quickly transpired that the description of 'The Barn' was a pseudo-middle-class description of someone's conservatory on the back of their house. It measured approx 10m x 5m at best, and contained everything you'd expect in someone's front room. The PA company had gone slightly overboard and had turned up with the rig used the night before at Nottingham Rock City. It was a 30kw Martin Rig with 4x 12foot towers. The Midas Desk they had brought with them was approx 12ft in itself!! Needless to say, most of the kit got left in the truck, but some was unavoidable including the 20" diameter cable snakes : ) The Midas Desk they had brought with them was approx 12ft in itself!! So, the moral of that story is to always ask for dimensions before you book the PA!!

Well for my twopeneth, I've got the 410HLF and I really rate it. Its the only 410 that can deal with the power levels you're talking about. I run it solo with an SVT4 and it copes fine. I think I'm right in saying that the SWR is only slit ported, whereas the Ampeg has some fairly cavernous holes in it. Thats quite a difference. Curiously the Ampeg is only 5lb lighter that the SWR - they are built like tanks. I know what you mean about the look of the SWR, but I echo the points of other posters when I say it IS all about the sound, and lets face it, you aren't going to lose too much streetcred with an Ampeg logo behind you!?!? In my experience the HLF cabs have attracted some interested parties themselves - generally from bassists/guitarists who can't believe you're getting that much sound from a single (heavy) cab. Its all about the partnership with the head that you've got. Go demoing, its fun. (and by the way I've got my SVT rig for sale at the mo if you're interested) [shameless plug! ]

Hi I didn't cut it myself - mine are 2nd hand and came pre-cut. However IMO the foam was cut specially for each bass. These pics show the case for my lefthanded Thumb bass, which is a unique design and it fits perfectly. My other is for a Jazz. I think its a case (no pun intended) of getting your bread knife out and sawing out the shape you want. As for the previous question about the weight, they are fairly substantial. The 1750 clocks in at 11kg. I'm glad its got wheels!!!

Afternoon flightcase fans! I checked the Pelican and mine are 1750's. Photos are below. The foam works as follows. There's a bottom layer - the full size of the case, and then another layer which can be cut to surround the bass. I also attached a photo of the air-valve. Any questions or queries?

This is also a glowing endorsement, and quite fun to watch: [url="http://www.peliproducts.co.uk/videos.html"]http://www.peliproducts.co.uk/videos.html[/url] They really are the mutts nuts and I'll get my photos up tomorrow. As for retail, all mine came from the ebay.com - they came with the guitars I bought, or i bought them separately. You can get the 1750 series (which is guitar sized) for BIN $150-175, or the same as a Hiscox case, and at least you know it won't get destroyed by USPS on the way over. www.peliproducts.co.uk must have a list of uk retailers though. Geez I should get commission...

Will do then. Should get some pics up by tomorrow afternoon, hangover allowing.

Happy to post pictures of my Pelican 'gun' case, and the internal foam stuff if anyone's interested/wants a break from looking at pretty bass guitars and interesting stuff (??)

[quote name='geilerbass' post='178891' date='Apr 17 2008, 02:53 PM']coasterbass - your tale of airport security bass discussion made me smile. It's funny when bassists end up meeting each other in the most unlikely of scenarios.[/quote] Cheers - I agree, I think there's much more of a bond between bass players than any other instrument. Hence why this site rocks and guitar forums suck

[quote name='Geddys nose' post='178852' date='Apr 17 2008, 02:08 PM']Had a nice afternoon in Bass Central yesterday and will prob come back with something off this page- [url="http://www.basscentral.com/musicman/sterling_fretted.shtml"]http://www.basscentral.com/musicman/sterling_fretted.shtml[/url] The Sterling H/S is one sweet bass. [/quote] I could spend ALL DAY EVERY DAY here [url="http://www.basscentral.com/musicman/lefties.shtml"]http://www.basscentral.com/musicman/lefties.shtml[/url] [swoon]

Another tip is that if you phone the airline in advance theres a chance that they have somewhere in the cabin. Certainly transatlantic sized planes have special guitar cupboards up front in 1st class. (not just 747's, but 777's etc) Ask... you just might get. Last time i was in NY i bought my jazz deluxe (in lefthand of course). I got to JFK and asked if I could take it on board as hand luggage and they let me. I then had to take it through security. This gigantic bruiser (picture Mr T meets Abe Laboriel) asks me to step aside... He asks if he can open the case, which obviously I let him. Turns out he's an ex-session player and loves fenders. I must have been there for about 10mins whilst we chat cr*p about what guitars we play and love... all the while this huge queue is building up behind me. Classic.

Copy of my post from another thread: I use Pelican cases for serious (ie. plane hold) travel. They are absolutely indestructable, you can cut the internal foam to suit any bass which means nothing moves around inside, they have wheels, and they have pressure valves on the side in case of any in-flight nastiness. The US army use them to transport weapons, and do air-drops with kit inside these!! [url="http://pelican.com/cases_detail.php?Case=1750"]http://pelican.com/cases_detail.php?Case=1750[/url] [url="http://pelican.com/cases_detail.php?Case=1720"]http://pelican.com/cases_detail.php?Case=1720[/url] They crop up on ebay quite a bit, and at least you know they'll arrive safely if you buy internationally!!