uk_lefty

13 hours ago, NHM said:

I wouldn't feel right without a stack behind me. Having gear on stage is part of the show / image. I can see the obvious benefits of going 'In ears', but is it rock 'n' roll?

I know what you mean. The guitarist having a few small briefcase sized flight cases behind him and a Coop bag for life isn't the image, but once the smoke and lights get going I'm not sure it's so relevant. On Fridays gig I was getting good sound from my on stage rig, muddy sound from my wedge, went on a walkabout and heard the bass sounding perfect through the FOH. It's that conflict between the different sound sources that is starting to p me off, standing in the sweet spot to get the right balance isn't always an option.

On 30/05/2024 at 22:05, super al said:

Felis Leo

Following 

6 minutes ago, David Cook said:

If you don’t have an amp or at least a monitor how do you hear yourself?

By having the PA mixer send a signal to a wireless box that transmits a custom mix to in-ear-monitors (posh headphones). Problem is that these set ups can be very expensive and make you feel a bit isolated.

This way you can keep stage noise to a minimum but still have the PA pumping out good quality sound. 

I have done gigs with no amp but using the stage wedge monitors as my way to hear my bass sound, that works but isn't ideal.

It's the one top notch bass all day long for me. My yardstick of quality is my US Stingray. The Stingray sound isn't for everything though, and I do like to mix things up to keep me interested but it's got a bit silly (6 basses, 4 amps, too many pedals...). One of my basses is a Harley Benton fretless jazz and it's great for the price, but it's not the same quality as a Sire or MIM Fenders. It's still perfectly giggable though and it does come out on gigs as a first choice instrument sometimes. 

But loads of cheaper options and no single great bass? No thanks. I don't see the point. As someone already mentioned there's the bonding and familiarity with your "number 1" bass, then the reliability, then forming your own sound, and I'd rather do that with one special bass than be constantly rotating multiple functional but not special instruments.

So I've gone backwards and forwards and all the way round again several times. Last night had a good chat with the soundman at our venue and he is persuading me. I think I should keep some form of good quality gigging amp but also allow myself the option of in-ears. 

Guitarist has gone IEM for ages now and runs off a Blackstar DI pedal. Soundman complimented him on how great it sounded for a modeller pedal. I had fantastic bass sound out my amp, ABM600, but quite a muddy sound from my foldback and at times struggled for the clarity, especially when moving around. Where I think this will really help is the gigs where we need to take our own PA. No more lugging monitors, getting monitor mix right, fighting feedback...

On 30/05/2024 at 12:45, NHM said:

With thanks to AceBassMusic's recommendation, I'm now the proud owner of a RTX TRT. It seems very sturdy and great value for the money.

That is a lovely looking amp set up

On 28/04/2024 at 19:17, Happy Jack said:

 

Bloody consumer electronics ... almost certainly cheaper to replace than to investigate / repair / fail again.

Well, we replaced it with something from a credible brand this time, I think it's a Mackie 18" sub. So, the failed Amazon not-so-prime sub is up for sale at the paltry sum of £25 because the cabinet is definitely in good condition, the speaker might be ok and if someone was looking to build their own bass cabs this could be a good option for them.

So our band PA sub gave up a while ago. This was bought off Amazon just over a year ago, an active sub with 15" speaker. At a recent gig the bass sound went distorted then all power stopped in the sub unit. We replaced the fuse and still no joy. We've already replaced the sub for the band PA system so this is now needing a home. This could be ideal for someone doing a self-build bass cab, or someone who likes to do electronic tinkering.

What works:

Rock solid cabinet, cloth covering, side handles, grille has band logo spray painted on but easily covered over, vgc.

What might work but I can't tell:

15" sub speaker

What definitely doesn't work today:

The electrics do not register any power going into them

Drop me a PM if interested 

What's the difference between the 7200 and 7400. And don't say 200 😉

I saw a 2x10 Marshall DBS cab and I really want to buy it but the seller wants to sell it with an amp head that I have no need for. Sad times! Think I will just stick to my Ashdown 15s

I often DI my ABM head and there is no issue adjusting the master volume for on stage sound only. It's playing with the EQ settings and input gain that can p!ss off the soundman IME.

28 minutes ago, Bleat said:

I think Marshall made excellent bass gear. I had the DBS 7200, and is absolutely the best sounding amp I have played through, sounds great at any setting, but it really needs to go into 4ohms to get the most from it. The compressor didn't work on mine which seems to be a weak point on these amps, so be sure to get that checked. 

Thanks will be sure to get it a full service. I'd like to get quite an aggressive tube driven sound out of this one, my Ashdown ABM is a fantastic amp but the valve drive doesn't quite do it for me, for some gigs I'm playing with a lighter setting on a drive pedal always on so would be good to get that from the amp and leave the pedals for the big texture changes.

9 hours ago, maidens97 said:

I used to have the 7200 and 7400 at one point using a marshall DBS 2x15 cab and it sounded incredible! Definitely one of my favourite amps i've had. I did a bi-amp setup with a Marshall combo too for a little while.

IMG_1903.HEIC

You must have needed a forklift to move that cab, and then to put the combo on top!!! I had that 150watt combo when I was 17. Unfortunately I don't think I ever got the best out of it. I do remember having to carry it up a pedestrian zone though and that was torture.

7 minutes ago, SimonK said:

Out of interest how loud is the fan? I sold one recently as the fan was a bit of an issue at all but gigging volumes.

It's louder than I'm used to (I bought a brand new Ashdown ABM last year or the year before) but having a bit of a noodle around and I didn't notice it. It didn't bother me at all. 

So, as a teenager starting out on bass I'd see the Marshall stuff in the local music shop and drool over it, safely knowing I could never afford it. Well, many years later, a cheeky eBay bid, I've got it. It fires up and it's working well, had a little noodle and everything is functional but I want to get it serviced before I trust it on a gig, the previous owner has had it in storage for ten years or more. Will try to get it to the amp tech ASAP along with some other stuff I want him to sort, then it may be unleashed soon!

I really want to glitch!

...and does the Octaver make the glitching noise you get with an OC-2? 

8 hours ago, bassbiscuits said:

I once got an Epiphone Jack Casady bass dropped off at the gig by my keys player and I plugged it straight in and used it for the whole gig. No point hanging around is there. 

Well done on finding a practical use for a keys player!

1 hour ago, Bonin-in-the boneyard said:

The fretless HB and fender Jazz look very nice 👍

I've said it so many times but that fretless Harley Benton is a fantastic bass. The US Jazz is lovely too, pictures don't do the colour justice and the neck feels fantastic.

Left to right:

Epiphone Jack Casady

Mex Fender P

USA Stingray

USA Fender jazz

Fretless five string Kramer Striker

Lying down: Harley Benton fretless

I often have to explain the meaning of some lyrics to our singer. He's great, but he just doesn't get into what the lyrics are about, the stories in the songs, etc. I accept it's just the way some people are, but they're missing a whole new world IMO.  

I'd love to get a four string one of these to try out, really like the finish on the fretboard and with that active EQ it must be incredible. I'm a big fan of the Sire jazz basses having owned two. Get a decent thick strap and the neck dive shouldn't be an issue. But if you play a four hour gig in a sweaty club in Amsterdam with this over your shoulder you'll end the night feeling like one leg is much shorter than the other!!

I've been thinking about trimming down the number of basses recently.... Now I've seen this 

7 hours ago, msb said:

Single Coil Precision Bass , the original style before the split pickup in 57.

Aaahhhh I get it.

Loving the matching headstocks!!