thumperbob 2002

I have a Thumb NT 5 that is an amazing bass- dont gig with it though as I think it`ll get dinked. Sounds amazing. Anyone picking up a good one for a low price is exceedingly lucky.

[quote name='simon1964' timestamp='1322744167' post='1455173'] That's how I do it. I do BV on most of our covers, and lead on a couple of songs. I tend to learn the vocals while I'm in the car on the way to work! I find writing them down and trying to learn them actually slows things down (you end up relying on the words being in front of you). Much better to sing along to a CD in the morning traffic (even if you do get some strange looks...!) [/quote] Definitely true- though I sometimes have a cheat sheet which basically shows the arrangement- maybe the first line of a section wriiten out.....See if you can do the whole song with just you and the bass.

I presently use my Bass Pod for tuning- however I have used the Cleartune app on my Iphone. This cost £2.59 and is the most accurate tuner I have seen- all the band use them for brass, guitar etc. Bargain and also not another thing in the signal chain, batteries dying etc. Recommended.

looks like it goes down to 4 ohms so two 8ohm cabs or one 4 ohm cab. I have a shroeder 2x15 which is tiny and very very light- its a 4 ohm cab so something like that would be fine.

I would agree with everyone on here- I have an LM2 and it will go far louder than you could use- I think like me most people use them flat with a little VLE or VFP dialed in, depending upon the cab. Terrific amps- I was always a tube guy but after lugging around too many monster amps I thought I would buy one of the new genearation of new amps. I thought my tone would suffer by this compromise but I was very surprised that if anything, my tone has got clearer and punchier.

You will be fine pal- 300w is sufficient for most any cab. Bear in mind it`ll only put out 300w if your master and input gain are max`d out. most players use much much less than 300w. Bit like motorbikes- I have one that has 180 bhp at the back wheel- but can I use that? Not very often.

[quote name='4 Strings' timestamp='1322604397' post='1453547'] Can someone tell me what makes an amp a 'digital' amp? (Electronics dull here but is there an analogue to digital converter, and, if so, how is a digital signal amplified, and does it get converted back after tonal manipulation or after the power amp?). The LGs can be snapped up at the mo', are there only poor experiences? - I'm wondering that they would still be in manufacture if they were any good. [/quote] I have an LG 1000 and have used this for a few years now. Basically I got one of these new for I think £249 delivered. The main reason I got this was to power two 4 ohm cabs as there is effectively two 500W power sections within it. The pre-amp section is weak I admit and I do not use the EQ- so basically I am using this as a power amp - my pre-amp is my Bass Pod. At this price how can anyone say they are crap- totally reliable- light and nowhere near as fragile as I thought it was- or seemed. Through my bass pod between my Markbass LM11 and the LG there is no difference in sound or tone. The LG will power two cabs which the Markbass will not. The LM11 was twice the price of the LG.,

I think playing to 150+ you will need at least a 1k rig- not really for the volume but more for headroom- by putting everything into the pa you will have more control and will sound better. Your bass rig is fine- no need for anything else but a couple more active speaker cabs- such as the Mackie 450s will make one hell of a difference for not much money- say just one gigs worth of fee. If you sound good it is likely, especially for function work, that you will be re-booked. Makes financial sense and you will play better too, knowing that you sound good- and that the audience can hear you. Nowadays a 1k rig is tiny. My band and the very least uses a HK 1.1k rig at each side- mind you we are a 7 piece soul band with everything going through the FOH- but still have backline for the majority of the bass/ guitar/drums.

gramma pad- you will be surprised.

By the way we found out to our horror that the van, on its urban gearing, only did 47mph!!

A band I was in once bought an old council bus to use in our band- lots of negotiation and we paid up and left. As we drove from the people we bought it from I could see them all dancing about and laughing and really celebrating the loss of that van- they were really happy to see it go. It`ll be exactly the same when you ( with difficulty ) manhandle the ancient cab into your van ( for that is what you will need ) Best of Luck!!

mmmmm good one this- I suppose If you are quiet on stage you could use your own bass amp as a sub and keep the stage volume low for the vox to pitch correctly. My main thought would be to have the best Front of House sound possible with your rig. Start picking up bargains from ebay and sort of cobble together a better rig over time- it wont be expensive and if you have paid an astute price for gear you will always be able to sell it on when you upgrade. When I think of the terrible gear I have had in the past- always seems we were able to get a good sound out of it ( within reason ). I would only buy a behringer if the price is right- however I think this mixer is better than the yamaha 16 track I have- though looks fragile.

Never a problem having more than one band, I think now if you are professional about it it is the only way to make a living as a musician. As long as peoples expectations are managed I cannot see anything wrong with it. Mind you, how someone can have a job and be in 5 bands that hardly gig I can not imagine. I think if I was playing for kicks ( which I do now ) I would rather be in one band and really try to make that one band successful and fun. The grass is not always greener.

had this happen to me- mainly because I was an arsehole ( and probably still am ) Always best to be yourself- dont think I would have took being compared with someone else for two years though!!

[quote name='Walker' timestamp='1322568770' post='1452689'] [b]LawrenceH[/b] - cheers, that is a great price, have kept a watch on that one if we decide to go down the submix route! [b]Thumperbob[/b] - really interesting stuff. Thank you. Could I DI into this setup (not use my cab for reinforcement) or would PA need some sort of sub too? We each have a powered 100w Yamaha monitor so wouldnt need by cab for backline. Something less to lug around We are not a loud band - mainly acoustic, keys and drum and me on electric bass. [/quote] Are you using lots of vocal harmonies?- if not use the monitors you have at the FOH for a bit more pa punch and use , say, one monitor for the band. Unless you are playing really quietly you will need backline. I have used a submixer in the past and this is the lowest cost option- pick up one form ebay for £50 easy. Sometimes I think it is not what gear you have but the way in which you use it.

I really dont think your pa is powerful enough to take the whole band- I have found that gear is really cheap anyway- especially on ebay- loads of bargains to be had. I personally would be looking at a better mixer- I have just picked up a 24 channel desk with everything anyone could need ( fair enough it is a behringer but it was £160 - more or less new and sounds really good )- such as two seperate effects- two further auxilliaries- 4 way subgrouping- parametric eq. Add to this a couple of Mackie srm450s and you are there- you now have a 1k rig for something like £600- including your gear- easy to set up and to pack down and also to transport. A bit of creativity with regards to set up and you can play most places with a bit of headroom.

We are in the 21s century pal- I cannot see why anyone would want to lug around a massive cab anymore. I personally love the feeling that I can make a couple of trips from the car with my full rig- especially after the gig. I remember the feeling of looking at my 2 x 15 or 8 x 10 or 1 x 15 and 4 x 10 ( I have had them all ) at the end of a gig and thinking "bloody hell- I have to move that in a minute" Not a nice feeling. I think there have been some really good suggestions in this topic - especially regarding a two cab strategy. My Schroeder 2 x 12 and 2 x 15 can be carried easily with one in each arm and my bass on my back. And they would murder any rig I could think of- no problem. Each cab is really more than enough whether you have FOH or not. I take your point that the Ampeg is cheap- but there is a very important reason why. They really should come with a health warning.

[quote name='jackers' timestamp='1322564907' post='1452583'] thanks for all the replies i realise it probably sounded like quite a dumb question, lol, but I'm really not very good with the technical side of recording/rig sound etc. my main reason for asking is that, due to unexpected circumstances which require me to raise a sizeable sum of money, I'm having to sell one of my basses, and I've been trying to decide which bass to keep. I've decided to keep my jazz, as at the moment i'm mostly playing bass in my room, with a few small gigs, so recording isn't a priority for me, and the jazz is just better for that. [/quote] Would agree with that - very versatile bass the jazz is. I am all for getting into one instrument and keeping it for years.

I have found the best sound for recording is by using a Bass Pod- the amp modelling is amazing and it is possible to get a very close sound to a massive rig without the volume problems. I no longer have the luxury of having my own sound proofed pro studio ( and have neighbours ). If used properly ( I could write for hours about this point ) in the mix no-one would know that the real thing is not being used. All amps colour the sound and in my experience an amp / speakers must be well driven to give a good sound. At low volumes most amps sound crap.

I had a Jazz Deluxe 5 -great great bass but the string spacing was just a little close for me. I didnt think the B stood out as well as my Warwick but in a band environment it was fine. Listen to Sharay Reed on Youtube- fantastic player who used one of the earlier ones with the pegs all on one side.

I have two basses now, a Lowend Jazz bass 5 string- bought from this site for £750- now they are £2500+ It was set up in the most terrible way- almost unplayable. After set up and the correct strings etc it is my main bass. I play in a soul band and it just looks "right" and sounds amazing. It can do anything- slap, fingerstyle- tapping- can sound like a P or a high end active Jazz. Took the Warwick Thunb NT 5 out of its case yesterday- for one reason or another I havent played this for probably a year. What an amazing bass!! Retail when I bought this new was over £2400. To be honest this is twice the bass the Lowend is- plays so good- for fingerstyle I cannot amagine a bass that plays better. However in my soul band it just looks "wrong" Was thinking of selling it recently but as soon as I plugged it in yesterday I know that it is a keeper.

[quote name='casapete' timestamp='1322355772' post='1449970'] Beat me to it. I was made to love her - Stevie W. [/quote] Indeed anything by Jamerson- who says you have to change your strings every few months? Think I`ll keep mine for 17 yrs!!..... and never clean them. Mind you , dont think I have 17yrs left!! Bob

volume pedal- like on a cheap zoom pedal or line 6 pod?

All the above would do it- I had the Sansamp BDDI which was great. Have you thought about a modelling pod?- I have the line 6 basspod and the basspod live and these do amazing things-not as simple as the options above but the sansamp effect in the pod is easily as good as the Sansamp and the compressor is very high end. Fantastic for recording but live I find I only use a little overdrive- just to warm up the sound - and the compressor. And you can get these very cheap- got one from ebay, as new with a gig bag for £86 delivered.