JapanAxe

Briefly met Mr K and the rest of the band backstage at a Steeleye gig in Middlesbrough. Factoid: he nearly became a Spider From Mars!

I like the sound and feel of the strings that came fitted to my Sandberg, and would like to stick with them. Unfortunately it seems it's not that easy to get them in the UK. Thomann supply them, but their minimum order kinda kills the price! Somebody started a similar thread on Talkbass last year - any comments, do we think they're right? http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f16/what-strings-come-stock-sandbergs-842466/

I have stayed with Snow Leopard. Can't justify paying out for 2 cans of turd polish (one for each Mac). One day I will be forced to upgrade, but then I'll look back sagely at all the OS revisions and bug fixes, and with any luck find the combination that still lets all my important stuff work.

One word: COFFEE TABLE

[quote name='alembic63' timestamp='1361573731' post='1987947'] Not sure this is rock but love this bass riff [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Da9sc6YDBo[/media] [/quote] No, it's pop of the best possible sort.

Although the Midget gets plenty of references throughout Basschat, I can't see a review thread devoted solely to it, so this is it! I ordered a Compact in late September, then almost immediately bought a used one from Shockwave, so I changed my order to a Midget. I paid the extra for the vintage silver grille cloth to match the Compact, and because it looks cool! Anyway, it arrived last week. I plugged it in briefly just to check it was working, and wasn't surprised to hear a predominance of upper mids. Then I ran a 25Hz signal (from an iPad app) through it for 8 hours, though I probably only had it loud enough for the last hour or two. Took it to a rehearsal in the guitarist's home studio - sounded damned fine after dialling in a touch of extra bass and a tad less upper mids. Gigged it last Saturday with my Sandberg Cali VM4 through my TC Classic 450. The band consisted of me (bass and vocals), female singer, guitarist (electric / steel-string acoustic / nylon-string acoustic), and drummer (electronic kit). The venue was a high-ceilinged hall built in 1860, and we had to keep the volume reasonable. For the first two sets the amp was still a little 'forward' in the mids, but by the third set it had attained a lovely plummy fullness. The sound from this tiny lightweight cab housing a single 12 is astounding! I had my amp on 3 and it was plenty loud enough. I have also tried the Midget/Compact stack at home, and that simply rocks! Can't wait to take that rig on a louder indie/punk gig. Here's the stage setup: [attachment=129142:P&H_CornExchange.jpg] And here's the stack at home: [attachment=129143:BF_stack.jpg]

Saturday night I played at the Corn Exchange in Faringdon in a 4-piece country outfit. The singer was suffering from some kind of stomach upset, and when we went on stage for the 3rd set, she hadn't made it back. I was doing about 1/3 of the lead vocals, so we pulled a couple of my numbers forward, then I had to whip out a couple of standards that the other 2 guys would know... then she came back and we finished the evening. Phew! Afterwards a lady of a certain age put her arm round my waist for entirely too long, then a cowboy fella did the same, and 'accidentally' brushed my butt with his hand. I blame Brokeback Mountain...

Well... everything got plugged into a socket off-stage that wasn't controlled by the Devil's Traffic Lights, but we didn't trip it all night anyway! Vocals and acoustic guitars went though Bose L1, electronic drums through small PA. The Midget acquitted itself admirably (full review to follow) - you can just make it out in the pictures! [attachment=128976:2013-03-02 19.30.37.jpg]

[attachment=128852:Laughed.jpg]

A small wire brush is useful for cleaning up corroded battery terminals.

∧∧∧ You can't beat a nice bit of Fanny! What?

Not sure why we're owning up to our ages, but what the hell, I'm 52. I play guitar and bass and I sing lead and harmony vocals. Not many days go by without me doing an hour's playing and/or singing practice, usually in preparation for an upcoming gig. If I don't have something specific to aim for, I will work through stuff in Guitarist magazine or transcription books.

The latest?

At the risk of re-railing this thread: For the last 20 years, my gear acquisitions have been funded by gig money, occasional birthday/Christmas gifts, and an inheritance. Thus they don't impact on the household finances. Mrs Axe has occasionally commented on the resulting large number of instruments in my box room of a man cave, but I need only remind her of her bag-buying habits to be reminded in return of the frighteningly huge CD collection occupying a large part of our living room wall. Conclusion: dunno really, but if it's a choice between venting GAS and feeding the kids - well it won't hurt them to miss a couple of meals...