lownote

Wooly mammoth tusk nut? Damascus steel bridge? Wow, there can only be so many guitar playing hedge fund managers in the world...

No really they are... What's bottom end? Squier? Sire? What's top end, Fodera? Price wise that's a range between say 300 Trumps and 25000 Trumps. You won't get a custom Fodera for much less than 8000. Whereas a top end Zon is around 4-5000 and a bespoke Overwater can be had for less than 3000. When's that not midrange? lol

If you're a Hairy Porter fan you won't need to look far when looking for a ghost

Well it's hard but not too bad. For some unknown reason I can still get into the campus despite having left SBL two months ago. So I am haunting the corridors just to upset people - even changed my users name to match my new shade-like status! Incidentally, in my post above I did say 'most' of the Campus members were exquisitely avoidable... you aren't 'most', just to be clear. Plus my troll-talk probably says far more about me than those I malign

Hehe, lowfrequencykiwi i do believe. how are you?

I have been with SBL since it started six years ago, pretty much. Scott trickles out short lessons, a live show on Facebook and tasters from courses for nothing - or a sign up and no more, but all the serious stuff is behind the Academy wall. IMHO you won't find a more comprehensive learning resource on the planet than the Academy and for the money it is crazy value. Hours of expert video learning on every aspect of bass from beginner to grown-up, plus guest seminars and lessons from a growing faculty of other bass gods - even Gary Willis now! - plus you can send Scott a video of your stuff for him to evaluate. By comparison I have paid close to £100 for three hours of personal tutition from local tutors who taught me sweet fanny adams, frankly. But there are downsides to SBL:[list=1] [*]I have found a lot of equally useful material for free on other sites like Talking Bass.net. [*]Scott has taught himself to be a thoroughly professional and charismatic presenter but at times he tries too hard to appeal to all ages and his attempts to dress, act and talk like an American 18 year old (when's he's actually nearly 40) do grate after a while. [*]The forum community (or Campus as its called) can be very helpful, especially for beginners. However, it's very earnest, a bit twee and heavily regulated by 'campus managers'. Not everyone's cup of tea. [*]SBL is increasingly commercial. Scott has already made his first million and is clearly determined to make more and it won't be long before the marketing gets too much in your face. [*]Don't expect to be spoon-fed. This is like uni, not school. To some extent you have to figure out for yourself what you need to learn, find the stuff and then organise your learning. Some would say that's an upside not a downside, unless you need spoonfeeding. [/list] So, in a nutshell, my advice is if you're new to bass and seriously want to make a go of it, think of SBL as an online university of quality yet cheaper than any real uni by a factor of 100. But if you've already got your stuff together it's not worth joining, just watch out for his freebies in case anything comes up. And if he's trailing a must-have course you can't miss, do the 14 day free trial and take copious notes over a wet weekend. Edited to be less rude to people.

You may be lucky with Gumtree and Join my Band etc I wasn't . The few responses I had were from people you'd run a mile from if it was a dating agency. If you like music which lends itself to jams and open mics, like blues and jazz, go, get yourself known and offers will come. They can't not really. The other thing that worked for me was going to see bands and looking out for those with a sound and vibe I liked. Then if they had a bassist I'd offer myself as a potential dep (taking care not to upset the incumbent), or if they didn't have a bassist, then ask for a try out. They may be looking for someone just like you!

Now heard from Alex, which pretty much deals with the issue: "When people ask me about it on the phone I usually say something like 'it isn't complicated but it is a time consuming pain in the neck because you have to take the grill off, the speakers out, gaskets stick, etc etc'. "The instructions do cover how to remove speakers without denting anything, how to feed the wire through the insulation without tearing it out, etc etc. In future I'll ask that instructions are sent before anyone buys a kit thinking it's going to be an effortless process." Shame I didn't get any, but I've now had a fulsome apology from Bareafced. And a belated copy of the instructions. Geez, it's probably 'easy' if you're an electrician or plumbing engineer at Sizewell B, but for a muppet like me... no way. People, be at peace with your impedance and meddle not in the affairs of wizards or cabs, for they are subtle and quick to anger. I've sent the kit back.

Nope, it's a whole new loom. Otherwise life would indeed have been easy if it was just a question of swapping in a new back panel.

Thanks beely, and all who've shared my problem.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1485013184' post='3220419'] Alex says swapping the loom is a simple job on the website. What you were describing doesn't sound so simple to me. Are there no instructions with the replacement loom? I'd call Alex and find out how to do this. [/quote] I was promised instructions, which didn't happen. It's not hard, but you do need to take the whole cab apart to replace the loom on both drivers and the back panel. If it was a knackered old cab I'd just rip it apart, no worries. But when its new and you're trying to keep it that way comes the problem, especially when it's likely the journey is non-mission critical.

Thanks for all the help guys. Being bored out of my tiny today I tried swapping the looms but gave up. Not because its technically difficult but you have to disembowel the cab to do the swap, and on a brand new cab things stick to things, and split when you try and seperate them. Plus when you do get the drivers out the loom lurks behind a stapled pile of nylon floss which I suspect will never be the same again if I tear it from its staples. It was starting to feel and look like a bodge and not a new cab anymore and I stopped before doing too much harm. So, curiosity assuaged, I shall, as everyone suggests, use it as a 12 ohm cab until we get invited to play Wembley - which can't be long now - or it otherwise runs out of puff. Cheers, assist-folk.

I know the generic arguments on this topic but need a steer from a grown up who has been there and done this in practice. I just bought a Barefaced Retro 210 off Lozz. It's rated at 12 ohms. I am running it with a Markbass LM2 which technically kicks out 500w @ 4ohms. With the cab in its current config apparently the head only puts out about 200 of those 500w. I don't want or need another cab, and have bought a BF 12>4ohm conversion kit to unleash all those foaming, effervescing extra watts . But in your view, for a blues band playing in small to medium size venues (band hall type size), is it necessary to fit it? Should I leave well alone at 12 ohm?

Very helpful, thanks people. What a great forum this is.