Musky

Ampeg are pretty honest with their power ratings, where others will list the thermal rating of the voice coil. Nothing especially wrong with that as it's how almost all manufacturers do it, but it doesn't tell you too much about how the speaker will handle signals in the real world. A while back I was trying to figure out what Ampeg were using for speakers in one of their 15" cabs. Ampeg often mix and match parts from Eminence, and they helpfully give voice coil sizes in their specs - the only one I could find of that size for a 15" speaker had a thermal rating of twice the rating that Ampeg were saying their cab could handle.

I thought your gig was tomorrow night - I was going to come along to that, so sorry about missing you. I've played through the same combo, and like you I was pleasantly surprised. Ashdown had always been in the 'ok' category for me, even the ABM stuff, but that combo is very good.

I'm a bit confused over who has registered what. Am I right in thinking that only you have registered the songs with PRS? Did you register yourself as the sole songwriter or as a co-writer, and are any of the other co-writers actually registered with PRS? Anyone can claim a credit on a composition (even a Rolling Stones song) and PRS will open a dispute until it's resolved, though I doubt that would take long in the case of the Stones. The guitarist is entitled to royalties whether he's a PRS member or not, although obviously most people go with PRS because it takes so much of the leg work out of claiming. You don't need to pay him as that is the venues responsibility - he will need to contact the venues you've played, find out the set list and try to pry the money out of them. Good luck to him with that, and is exactly the reason why people go with PRS in the first place.

Didn't someone on here pick up a Smith from CC for something like £300? Dood maybe?

Dirty jack socket in there somewhere? Unplugging and re-plugging them could clean the socket enough for it to work properly. Powering up a SMPS without the effects connected can also cause weird artefacts, although it's more usually a high pitched whistle.

I have absolutely no need for one of these and yet I find myself wondering what shape I'd replace the truss rod cover with if one happened to land on my doorstep.

I'm guessing this is a business/marketing degree rather than an engineering one, so unless it's getting marked by someone who understands speaker design he should be able to get away with the drawbacks of the design. The costings are more problematic, although it would again depend on who's marking it and how the work is assessed. If the guy happens to be a guitarist (for instance), has some experience in related manufacture or does some basic research it might be noticed things seem a bit on the cheap side, but otherwise if the figures given are accepted at face value things will be fine. If I'm understanding things correctly this is primarily a degree project - it's the process that's important. Others here might have some experience of similar Uni projects and have some insights into how they are assessed, but otherwise I'm going to assume the OP is best placed to know how the assessment is carried out. It's also worth noting that changing your original idea is no bad thing. I've no experience of taking a product to market, but I've seen enough of The Apprentice to realise that ignoring market research often ends unpleasantly.

These look really nice. Any idea when they'll ship, or is it just a case of getting enough pre-orders?

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1424808146' post='2700731'] That's the ticket! A very positive suggestion and a good idea. Perspex SS practice combo. [b]Maybe it could change colour along with the notes[/b]. People would buy that. [/quote] Now there's a cool idea. Perhaps a tuner function where the LEDs light up the whole amp. Or something along the lines of the strobe tuning on the old Korg DTR2000.

Ferrite beads on the input to the circuit board should help things. You can desolder the lead to thread them, or use a clip on one.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1424762464' post='2700039'] Tone **is** all in the fingers. And the strings. And the pickups. And the bass. And the amp. And the EQ. And the mix. [/quote] Well said.

What are those figures for - the 1x12? Presumably the SPL figures are 1w/1m with the higher one for the 4x10, although it seems to be a bit higher than I'd expect. I like the concept (and judging by the photos others have posted there are bands that like the idea too), but I can only really see two markets for this sort of product: Touring bands and home users. The touring bands will have their equipment roadcased and the roadies to shift it, and may well just be using for show with other monitoring options. It's also likely they'll already have a preference for the type of gear they're using. Home users would probably be happier using something much smaller and this really points towards a practice amp or small combo. So while I think the idea is good I think you're targeting the wrong market. You might find more purchase by offering a custom cabinet service for the touring musicians, building them to rehouse their amps/speakers, and/or building lower cost practice amps.

Really sorry to hear about this. What were the mods on the Geddy Lee - it'll help in tracking it down.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1424081266' post='2692235'] For The Beatles, tunes such as Misery or Anna (Go To Him) are ultra-trivial to play. Except that I do too much playing of bits and pieces. Remembering a whole song in order is something that I'm now getting used to again. [/quote] Isn't Bits and Pieces a Dave Clarke 5 number?

Just thought I'd add that there are lots of Photoshop templates of band flyers/posters available online that will take the leg work out of the design - the biggest pitfall for novices.IMHO. You'd still need to provide your own quality photos of the band (another potential pitfall) if you want to include band shots in the artwork, but doubtless you can find templates that work without images, or at least a template that works with a more generic image. Bear in mind that you'll need to be aware of picture resolution particularly for large artwork.

Gimp is a freeware photo editor that is well regarded, although I haven't used it as it's Windows only. Illustrator and Photoshop CS2 are also available as legitimate free downloads as well. They are both considered an industry standard, and although CS2 is now relatively old they still have all the features you'd need (and a lot more that you'll never touch).

Personally I think I the "tone is all in your fingers" line is hyperbole - it would be more accurate to say "much of the tone is in your fingers". I know that when the keyboard player in my last band picked up my bass, using the same pick and settings and even picking in the same place, it sounded very different to when I played it. He was much heavier with both his left and right hands, and for what it's worth also had much thicker fingers than me if that makes a difference. BTW, he was primarily a bass player. It is of course possible to replicate another players style, and that will go a long way to replicating another player's tone. but I do believe that you'd also need equipment that is capable of getting that tone. It doesn't necessarily have to be the same equipment, but it should at least be able to get you into the ball park. No one's going to be getting JJB's tone without some kind of distortion going on, no matter what they do with their fingers, but similarly you're not going to sound like Steve Harris without digging in.

[quote name='skej21' timestamp='1424544501' post='2697606'] Seriously, you got nothing better to do on a Saturday afternoon than pass comment on people who post about the poor grammar of a bunch of kids who can't even be bothered to construct a half-decent band member advertisement? ;-) [/quote] Having been trawling around Gumtree for a project that takes my fancy, I can assure you that this ad is better than most of the ones that I've seen. If the grammar of your band mates bothers, don't apply. If being seen to be associated with a band that might accept someone who has played guitar twice as long as bass rankles, don't apply. If the bands mentioned baffle or irritate, don't apply. I genuinely can't see why this ad would be singled out for derision. Is any one really upset that a band might even consider someone that has greater experience or ability on another instrument?

Good god, I shudder to think that any band might even consider taking someone on who may have more experience on another instrument. Who knows, maybe they advertised for one of those bassists that can't play anything else and found them all wanting?

[quote name='Marvin' timestamp='1424518395' post='2697176'] http://www.musiciansfriend.com/amplifiers-effects/ampeg-scr-di-bass-di-with-scrambler-overdrive-bass-preamp It'd be very tempting if this is the price [/quote] I'm guessing that if it's similarly discounted in the UK it might be about £175 with VAT and other charges.

Interesting some of the Zappa albums mentioned here - with the exception of One Size Fits All none would even make my top 10. No love for Grand Wazoo, Zoot Allures, Hot Rats or Sleep Dirt? Although that was part of the beauty of the guy, a disparate set of of albums all linked by the man's genius. As for my favourite ( and I will stick to just the one), I haven't made up my mind yet.

I might be wrong but I think the OP is talking specifically about active pickups rather than adding an active EQ circuit. The EMG P pickups for instance are low impedance and require a battery to power them. Now being a traditional kind of guy I'd steered clear of the EMGs because I really didn't like the sort of descriptions I'd read about them - a more balanced, smoother sound. So when I picked up a '74 P with them installed I set about changing the pickups. 3 sets of passives later and the EMGs are back in - I've got other Precisions for that hot, aggressive sound and I'm rather liking the tone I'm getting from the EMGs. Unmistakeably the P bass sound with the classic low mid bump, but sounds more full and rounded at other frequencies. Oh and it's quiet and very versatile. I'm not 100% sure I'd leave them in there if it was my only Precision, although that's probably more to do with me worrying that somehow I'd be missing out on having a classic passive P - part of me still thinks that having a battery in a Precision isn't quite right. It's 100% a DIY job as even I've managed it, although it does require changing pots, and everything fits without any routing on mine.

Since no one has replied to this I thought I'd take a stab at it even though I don't have any experience of either of the basses you mention. Personally I'd be more tempted to go for the Squier for two reasons: firstly it has a Precision pickup and I just happen to love the P bass sound(!), and secondly (and more pertinently) it is much cheaper and [i]is[/i] well reviewed. It has to be said that the Modern Player had passed beneath my radar, which could be for all sorts of reasons but it does seem to suggest it hasn't set the world alight. That could be just because of the price differential though - after all the Vintage Modifieds have a great reputation for bang for the buck. You'd do well to post you question as a separate thread in the Basses forum - the pinned threads can get over-looked as they become so much part of the page 'furniture'. Oh, and welcome to the forum!

Just thinking out loud here, but if a mains transformer can be replaced with a SMPS is there any reason the OT of a valve amp can't be replaced with some similarly new fangled electronic wizardry?