Skinnyman

[quote name='uncle psychosis' timestamp='1408372009' post='2529524'] Depending how cheap "cheap" needs to be the Zoom B3 is an excellent piece of kit (I use mine for headphone practice). [/quote] Ditto. Brilliant. Built in looper, rhythm box. Stunning value provided it meets your definition of "cheap"...

[quote name='brensabre79' timestamp='1408452910' post='2530273'] I replaced my Shuttle with a Carvin BX500 - they have stopped making these, but introduced a slightly upgraded version. Best amp of this type (Class D) I've owned and waaaayyy louder than my 6.2 despite being officially 100W less power. Much more versatile pre-amp too in my opinion as it'll do the Hi-Fi clean of the Shuttle or the growly dirty drive of the Streamliner. They also do a more powerful model with the same pre-amp in case the stadium in the next town needs to hear you too. Worth checking out. [/quote] Interesting. And exactly the kind of info I was looking for - thanks! Looks like there aren't that many places that keep them but a trip to Twyford may be on the cards.....

[quote name='tonyclaret' timestamp='1408427200' post='2529971'] What about the 6.2? I have one for sale on here :-) [/quote] They're brilliant - I know, I have one :-) But I decided that sometime I would upgrade to the "full fat" version of the 9.2. Not that the 6.2 is underpowered - but there are times when I need to run it a wee bit harder than I'd like. So it probably sounds weird but when I started this thread I wasn't looking to change. But with GB going down the wotsname, I wanted to know if there are good, viable alternatives in the same price/quality bracket. As in, would a MarkBass or Orange Terror be comparable or are they very different animals? If there's nothing else that really compares then I have to decide whether to take the plunge now and upgrade while there are still good, newish examples of the 9.2 around - in which case, I need to decide if I should just go bigger (to the 9.2), or go silly (to the Shuttlemax). Of course, if Fender had left well alone I wouldn't have this problem.....

We used a PMP4000 powered mixer for three years without an issue. Behringer is decent kit at a decent price. Don't expect it to compete with top end, boutique equipment but, and here's the point, if you use it properly and don't abuse it then it'll perform. HTH

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1408368820' post='2529462'] Do you have 1 or 2 assistants, preferably with at least a modicum of competence, to do the on-stage work (moving mics around, patching into the multi, keeping things tidy and coping with emergencies such as mic stands moving...)..? If you've cables (multi-pair, power or speaker runs...) where there could be public access, the ideal is to cut a slit trench (side of a spade...) and bury them a bit, or, if not, try to get some carpet off-cut strips and cover the cables with them. Watch the weather forecast a couple of days beforehand, then every 6 hours or so. If the event finishes after dark, have torches and lanterns for tearing down (and coping with power outage; it happens...). If it's baking hot, have a good supply of fresh bottled water on hand. See if you can obtain a large bucket of patience. It may come in handy. Good luck with the venture. [/quote] I have a young lad helping out as my runner. He's reasonably smart so I think we'll be okay on that front and all the cables to and from the desk are being run overhead using a couple of convenient trees (having blocked off that entrance to the car park first of course! There's been some really good and valuable advice to my original post so thanks. I'm reassured that I'd covered a lot of this already but even more reassured by all the little hints and tips that will hopefully allow me to do a halfway professional job on the day. In some respects, I'm not too worried about getting criticised for everything that goes wrong, irrespective of who's fault, but I do want to make sure things go well and we raise as much money as possible for Stoke Mandeville. So, again, thanks to all for the insights. If it goes well on the day, much of the credit will be down to the collective wisdom of the BC community. Which I will claim for myself, of course....

[quote name='ern500evo' timestamp='1408382934' post='2529655'] http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/171416718410 I was watching this out of curiosity, starting bid of £300. It ended with no bids, may be worth sending the seller a message to see if they still have it and If so what sort of price they're looking for. [/quote] I've dropped him a note but it's shown as ended because it was lost or broken. So I'm guessing it was sold off of eBay. Worth checking out though so, thanks!

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1408366921' post='2529427'] If you're talking about half a dozen rock bands, all with pedal-fixated guitarists, then you need to give some thought to sound checks. Hard to get everyone to turn up before the event kicks off, so most bands will be lucky to get a 30-second line check. Similarly, if some acts are going to be amplified acoustic guitars plus double bass then there will be people wanting to use their own DI boxes (Fishman etc.). Are you providing a secure area for bands to leave instruments etc. before/after their own set? What about parking for bands to do their load-in/out? Just random thoughts ... [/quote] And good ones, too. We were fortunate enough to play a festival earlier this year which was really slick so I've tried to learn from their organisation. Parking and a waiting area/secure storage for instruments is sorted - although I'm trying hard to let others deal with those kind of details as I think I have enough on my plate just sorting out the sound!

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1408364523' post='2529382'] IME 15 minutes change-over isn't enough time unless the drum kit (minus "breakables") and back line cabs are shared between all the bands. Don't let the bands run over their allotted time. Tell them when there's 5 minutes left that they only have time for one more song. [/quote] We're using one kit for all the bands along with one bass head and cab as onstage monitor for the bass. Guitars will use their own amps or, ideally, just a pedal board that can DI to the board. Thanks for all the input, guys. The point about an RCD is a good one as is the comment about having a sub or two. Which brings up a question I asked in a different thread. My amp has a stereo sub out which is actually full frequency. I know that if I send that to a sub with a crossover, that will filter out the mids and highs. But do I need another crossover to the mains that will filter out the lows?

Our singers approach is to do the elbow wrap thing. But if a cable gets caught as he's winding it in, he just yanks till it comes free. Despite repeated advice to the contrary..... I have a nice collection of loose XLR and jack plugs waiting reattachment.

The Genz Benz shuttle 9.2 was on the list as my next head. I know I could keep my eyes open for a used one but I keep missing them on here. So I'm wondering what's a good alternative now that GB are no more? I'm after something that has the same kind of sound and flexibility of the GB, about that kind of output, same kind of size and weight and price.....

We're doing a charity mini-festival at the Bank Holiday with our band and about six others. All proceeds going to Stoke Mandeville as a thank you for the support they gave to the guitarist's wife after she had a spinal stroke about six months ago. The big draw will be the auction (a day with the merc f1 team anyone?) and the local radio celebs but there's also half a dozen bands plus raffle, etc. Anyway, I've volunteered (been roped in) to do the sound on the day for all the bands (with a deputy leaving everything well alone for our set). It's quite a small venue - basically a pub car park and beer garden. Stage is a flat bed trailer (donated) and a gazebo shelter. There's another small gazebo that will be set up in front of the stage, offset slightly to one side and this wil have the mixing desk. We've no money to hire equipment so we're making do with what we have on hand or can borrow. Because this is the first time I've engineered a multi-band event and the first time I've done one outdoors, I'm looking for hints and tips from anyone with experience of these things. My basic assumptions are: 1) it will rain on the day 2) it will blow a gale on the day 3) something will break/blow/up/short out at some point. 4) most bands will over run their allotted time Any more you'd add to that list? We've allowed 15 minutes to change over between acts but there are slack points built in (fund raising appeals etc) which will hopefully allow us to claw some of that back. To be honest, I'm not to bothered about the stage management aspect - that can be someone else's problem. I just want to make sure that the sound is reasonable and everyone can plug in to something. We have two powered mixers available (one as spare but also to act as a slave if needed). I'm planning to use two pairs of passive speakers mounted one above the other at each side of the stage, plus a pair of actives in the beer garden part - the thinking being that I don't need to run everything flat out if I have multiple speakers. I've got a multicore to run from stage to desk and sufficient monitor sends to give individual mixes to the four stage monitors. I'm miking the drums and DI'ing all the instruments. I've checked that I have enough XLR cables and speaker leads, etc and can get power to everywhere I need it. Waterproofing will be with copious numbers of bin liners, cut and taped appropriately and wind proofing is with lots of 20litre containers full of water and tied strategically. Can anyone think of anything I've missed? Or give me any suggestions on the getting a decent outdoor sound. If it sounds okay to me at the desk, is it safe to assume it will be okay elsewhere? And there's going to be a couple of acoustic acts using electro-acoustic guitars - do they present any specific, feedback-related kind of problems? This is one of those situations where if it all goes well, no-one will say a word. If anything goes wrong, it'll all be my fault. In the great words of Charlie Brown, doing a good job will be like wetting my pants in dark trousers. I'll get a warm feeling, but no one will notice..... All advice gratefully received.

[quote name='cameltoe' timestamp='1408302129' post='2528833'] Me too! It always amuses me when the band ask for a monitor tweak mid-song, like I can just stop playing and sort it for them. [/quote] The tweak generally being 'can I have more me in my monitor?'. And usually just before the one bit in the song where I might actually be heard....which I invariably miss or screw up because I'm wondering how to make the relevant change (which is never 'more him' but always 'less everyone else').

[quote name='goblin' timestamp='1408298130' post='2528770'] For band work I prefer 15s. I've got a pair of HK Actors which are 15". I've only been using one with a 1500 watt vocal PA, and it just takes a bit of pressure off the tops (EV SXs) and adds a lot more depth. You do need a good system controller / crossover though. Otherwise you're just giving a sub a full range signal, and they tend not to like that... [/quote] Ok, dumb question.... How do I prevent the bass signal getting through to the mains? We have a Yamaha PA with a main stereo line out and a separate sub out (which actually gets the full signal so would need an external crossover to feed a pair of subs). Which is fine - but how do I stop the bass going to the mains? Another crossover?

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1408289861' post='2528652'] We bought an empty hose reel for our XLR cables, we just snap them end to end and wind them on. [/quote] Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I'm going to get me one of them

[quote name='Count Bassy' timestamp='1408294162' post='2528721'] Coil it properly (as seen in vid) then I put two velcro ties opposite sides of the coil. Generally works- but doesn't help when other band members don't bother. (of course being the bass player I end up supplying all the PA kit!). We have two boxes for cables, one clearly marked Instrument & Mic leads, the other speaker & power leads. It would seem that most band members can't read either. [/quote] Is this a common thing? Bass players supplying the PA And doing the sound? I have exactly the same role in our band, the unspoken attitude being that I only play one note for very thousand that the guitarists play so I must have time on my hands to sort out their monitor mix, adjust the balance, make sure nothings peaking, etc, etc. oh, and change the lighting presets on cue as well. And I also get to spend a happy hour or so on a Sunday morning re-coiling all the leads that the singer just bundled into the (wrong) box.... And I thought it was just me.

[quote name='uncle psychosis' timestamp='1378583494' post='2202201'] Are there really people out there who think that being deceitful about purchases worth hundreds or thousands is a good way to behave in a committed relationship? Or who think so little of their wife that they reckon she can't tell one red bass from another? I really hope that it's just tongue in cheek jokey bravado, [/quote] Yes. That

Every gig we pack up all our cables. Neat and tidy, held together with Velcro straps. Next time we get them out, take off the Velcro and watch as they twist into knots that no amount of Boy Scouts could undo. Cue hours of untangling before we can run them across the stage. How does this happen? And has anyone found anything that will keep cables neat and tangle free? I'd put them onto cable reels but can't find anywhere that sells empty ones at a reasonable price.... Does this happen to everyone or is it somehow just me?

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1408130541' post='2527519'] if you're adventurous, a multi-tone capacitor selector like an Aria bass. [/quote] I like that idea....

I've now had chance to have a proper look at this and my suspicions are confirmed. It's a lovely bass with really nasty after-market electronics. The bass itself has cleaned up nicely - fingerboard soaked up a load of fretboard oil and the frets have cleaned up nicely with a bit of elbow grease. The body has cleaned up OK. It's certainly not bad enough to strip and respray, and, one of these days, will benefit from a session with some cutting compound and a DA polisher just to get the fine scratches out. When I've got a DA polisher, obviously. But the wiring is a different matter altogether. Where there is any, the soldering is awful, but mostly wires are just twisted and taped, nothing is cut to length and although it kind of works, the pickups are very grotty and sound horrible. So, Entwistle P/J pickups are ordered (well, they will be as soon as I get a price for them) as is a wiring harness from AxesRUs - I'm going to make this a passive bass and that's where the one little problem/opportunity lies..... The bass has four holes cut through for the controls. As standard, these are for master volume, pickup blend, bass and treble EQ. The cowboy who threw the replacement electrics on this had a three way switch (pickup selector) , a volume, a tone and a small LED. In order to fit the 3-way switch, he (or she) made one of the holes bigger. So when I've fitted the new controls (volume, volume and tone), I'll be left with a chuffing great big (ok, 12mm) hole. I could put the jack socket there - but I don't want to. Or I could just put a 12mm blanking plug in it - but that's kind of boring. So...... any suggestions as to what I can fill it with (no sniggering at the back there)? Bearing in mind there's now a big cavity at the back of the bass with hardly anything in it, does anyone do a sound-sensitive pulsing LED that would drive a 12mm LED? Or some kind of plug with a moulded figure on the end? Ideas?

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1408088833' post='2526902'] I've no experience of them but I keep reading very good things about Entwistle pickups, esp the PBXN and JBXN models. Complete thread here [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/235314-entwistle-bass-pickups/page__hl__entwistle%20pickups"]http://basschat.co.u...istle%20pickups[/url] EDIT: I believe this is the official UK stockist http://stores.ebay.co.uk/The-PickupsPlus-Store/Bass-Pickups-/_i.html?_fsub=3616628011&_sid=1021113631&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322 [/quote] Thanks, that's exactly what I was looking for. I'll be getting a pair of entwistle pickups plus some new pots and away we go!

Played my first gig at 52, loved every minute since (conveniently ignores previous rants about over-loud guitarists). Enjoy, you won't look back....

I just bought an SGC Nanyo Bass Collection bass off of FleaBay for not a lot of money. Nice... The seller just described it as a "bass guitar" and I assumed from the pics that it would be the entry-level, passive bass. Turns out to be active which implies it's a 310 although it looks like the pickups have been swapped so the active circuitry may be non-original. It's in pretty good nick, nothing that a good clean and setup won't fix, but the electrics are a bit ropey and, given that I paid next to nothing, I think it's worth replacing them. So my question is, what with? I'm tempted to go with passive electrics (I already have an active 310) and would like to keep the p/j configuration. So I'm looking for recommendations for pickups that are good value for money and that are likely to perform well in a small but perfectly formed bass like this one. I recently put an iron gear pickup in my strat and love it but unfortunately iron gear don't do bass pups. I guess Wilkinson would be the obvious choice but I've no real experience with them so any recommendations, suggestions gratefully received..... Ta

Carrie Melbourne. Played on a couple of Mike Oldfield tours, plays Chapman Stick. Awesome. Maybe not quite as good a sense of musicality as whatshername from the Pixies but she manages okay. Better than me any road

At the risk of veering very slightly off topic, has anyone else noticed how difficult some wedding venues make it for live bands to play? We've had several this year that have insisted on us playing with an ultra-sensitive limiter, one that demanded to see our liability insurance and one that wanted to see our PRS licence (I know, I know). All the above venues would quite happily recommend their preferred DJ and I know for a fact that one of them turned the sound limiter off for him. Is this the hotels wanting to book everything including the entertainment? Or they just don't like bands? Or am I paranoid?