bonzodog

Just arrived back from a week at a well known chain of caravan sites. Very kid orientated so my two had an amazing time but I was very shocked at the poor level of evening entertainment.
The resident kids entertainers did a great job early on but the 'featured LIVE act every night' was not what I would expect from a caravan site of this size and price. This was the 9.30pm slot so was supposed to be for the adults and older children

Day 1 was a vocal duo who were on X factor apparently 7 years ago and spent most of the time talking in between songs about how famous they were 7 years ago.
Day 2 No show - Resident team took it in turns to sing some songs
Day 3 - Age 3-8 Kids talent show (9.30pm start??? Most kids had gone to bed)
Day 4 - Advertised LIVE BAND was a female singer and a guitarist and keyboard player stood behind her. No backline and everything went into 2 x 12" speakers with no monitors so I questioned whether the two guys at the back were miming or not to backing tracks
Day 5 - Advertised LIVE BAND were 3 male vocalists singing Motown. Actually very good singers but disappointed at too many on stage in-jokes about how no-one was dancing and they would rather be elsewhere which I always think is not professional.
Day 6 - LIVE BAND and we actually saw a drummer, all be it on an electric kit. Accompanied by a female singer and acoustic guitarist, so all bass and keyboard parts were being played via backing track on click.

I am well aware why lots of these places have these sorts of acts on, (cost and ease of set up etc) but it was a shame to go a whole week without seeing a pure LIVE band, and not one bass player in sight.
I used to be a self contained singer myself years ago but that was only in pubs and would never have felt good enough to play at a caravan site in front of 1000+ people.
The fact is none of them brought the house down, but then again would a live band do any better in that environment. Either way I just thought it was a bit sad

Maybe I was expecting too much and this is what all holiday park entertainment is like nowadays.

Pmd

Does this have the power lead. If so i will take it

We agreed only to do every other Saturday and weve been able to maintain that all Summer so we are happy

[quote name='BanditSid' timestamp='1407912808' post='2525193']
Our PA isn't big enough to cope with me as well so I have bought a GK MB200 as a backup amp - it's small, amazingly loud and capable as an amp - I could probably cover the majority of our gigs with it.
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This is what bothers me and maybe someone can answer the question. Most of our gigs are in smallish pubs (we can hire a big PA for larger gigs), so we only use 2 x EVZLXps-12" tops for the vocals with no subs and just one powered monitor. I am also considering getting a DI box as a back up but am concerned about the bass just going into 2 tops. It would only ever be as a back up to limp through til the end of a gig if my amp died, but not sure if I'd be better spending the cash on a SH old amp head so at least I can still use my cab.

As far as I know its allowed but down to pubs discretion. Some pubs we play at like us to use them and others don't. We actually use a hazer which gives a finer mist and I personally think since the birth of LED spotlights they look better than ever due to the pencil beams given off by the LEDs. We have three spots on a T bar pointing at us and then a moving head DJ type thing on the end of the bar to point out into the audience if needed. This light especially works well with the Hazer

I love playing this song. Great Bass line through out and like above I just finish on the B then hammer high F# down to E and back up

[quote name='KevB' timestamp='1407941674' post='2525554']

I still have a pair (currently out on loan actually) of 'MAJ' wedge monitors, very well made and bomb proof.
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Yes there was a time when almost every band and singer had MAJ speakers around here. He doesn't make them any more though

[quote name='MoJo' timestamp='1407885891' post='2525152']


Howdy neighbour. We rehearse at KATZ and know Jane well
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Cool. Youve done well to get in there. We have tried but its always booked up. We rehearse in a converted garage the other side of Trysul

Cheers guys...it would seem that there are more people out there than I thought that use budget gear.

Its made me remember last year I was in One way music in Wolverhampton buying some strings and there were two oldish guys in front of me. One of them was asking the chap behind the counter if he could urgently repair the bridge on the guitar he was holding in his hand. The guitar itself was as battered as could possibly be without if falling apart. On closer inspection it was Bruce Watson from Big Country, and Mark Breziski with him. They were playing at the Civic on that night and that was his main guitar

There is nothing wrong with my gear (apart from amp failing) and I didnt mean that I should expect to have better gear. My point is that all my gear bas been bought because thats all I could afford. I really like my JHS vintage but I didnt buy it because I liked the sound, I bought it because it was the cheapest I could find. The same goes for my amp and cab. I think it would be nice to be able to go into a shop and by a bass or amp after liking the sound.

I agree on rehearsal fees too. I try to get a gig every week which means we rarely have to pay for a rehearsal to learn new covers

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1407778220' post='2523943']
I use one of those as a backup and rehearsal head and guess what?
Mine did that as well.

Hartke had a rather large batch of circuit boards delivered in the HA3000 days which had some very poor soldering - I spent about 10 mins with a soldering iron repairing the bad joints and it's worked ever since.

There's a rather fair chance that you've got the same problem.
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Yes you could be right. I will get Mike at MAJ to have a look

BTW this is not a plea for people to offer me cheap gear, but thanks for the suggestions. I will look into them.
Thanks for the advice

Its a very old HA3000 and last week, although the power light was on there was no sound. All of a sudden it came to life then stopped again. I am local to MAJ who has repaired gear for me in the past so will drop it into him. I have now borrowed my nephews LG1000 until I find one.
Don't get me wrong, I know my priorities and am blessed with health and family. It just gets you down sometimes when you struggle to even afford basic stuff.

Does anyone else get frustrated not being able to afford half decent gear?
I play a Jhs vintage bass and whilst I like it I would prefer something a bit higher quality. My amp set up is just a mixture of second hand Hartke stuff off here or ebay. Last gig my amp head died so I am currently trawling the web looking for cheap second hand heads which I know is a false economy as they probably wont last five minutes. The gigs pay well but that usually gets spent on the kids. Think its made worse that the guitarist and drummer have no commitments so are always buying new gear. I would never expect them to chip in for my gear but cant help getting a bit down about it. I look at prices of decent gear and its like a different world to me.
Anyone else feel the same?

Thanks for the replies so far. Going to set it up tonight to have a play around with it before gig at the weekend

Thanks JTUK. Unfortunately neither manual gives any set up advice with regards to levels which surprised me. Previous gear ive had from Mackie and Yamaha always suggest how to balance the levels and gains. I have just never had 5 level dials to deal with before between mic and speaker

Now my band have our own vocal PA I am looking after the levels of the mics for me and the guitarist as we share vocals. Within the mixer and the active speakers there are 5 gain/volumes to deal with and I want to ensure I am getting the best out of the PA but not sure which ones I should be increasing more than others.
Its only a basic alto mixer and has a gain dial at top of the channel and then a level dial at the bottom of the channel. It also then has a master level for the whole mixer. Then on our EV Zlxp12s its has an input level on the XLR input and a master level to increase the Db level from zero to 10.
I know on the gain of the mixer i should turn it up till it just clips then back off but on the other 4 level dials I am not sure which ones should be turned up and which ones should remain lower. Or is it a case of having them all at 12 oclock and adjust from there. I have tried playing about with them on stage but soundchecks are always a bit of a rush so any advice would really help.
Thanks

[quote name='rogerstodge' timestamp='1406918917' post='2515951']
Apparently Geddy practices his basslines whilst reading a newspaper out loud,
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Great idea!! Learn to sing, play bass and be informed of current affairs all at the same time. Cool

There is also the issue of peoples level of hearing being different from others so they not be turning up on purpose. The guitarist may have inferior hearing to the frequency he plays at

2 x 60mins for us plus a handful of encores. I think I would struggle with anymore as I am knackered by the end of it. Then again all of our songs are quite up beat

Our guitarist uses a capo on 2 songs and tunes up afterwards but I dont see it as a problem, but then again he does do it rather quick. I am the front man to our band so use this time to have some banter with the audience

Like others have said you just have to sit back, relax and enjoy playing. You will find its the worrying about it that is part of the problem. At the first gig with my latest band I totally cocked up Modern World by The Jam and now a fair few gigs later its still my nemesis as I panic when playing it, even though I know it and its fairly easy.
Used to be the same when I was a solo singer. If I ever forget the words to a song on stage it would take me ages to build the confidence to sing it again.
Just don't be too hard on yourself

I think both versions are amazing and never quite sure why people dislike wasp's version.
Only got into The Who in later years but have written some of the greatest songs around IMO

Yes I saw it a few months back and enjoyed it too.
Its on you tube if anyone wants to watch it

[quote name='Matt P' timestamp='1403609263' post='2484357']
in our band we split the cash up with a set amount to each member and then the rest goes into the kitty, but we're a group consisting of 3 very close friends (the drummer was my best man and the guitarist/vocalist is my fishing and drinking buddy) the PA is spilit between us as and when we've managed to find stuff and had a few quid in our pockets.

as far as our own kit goes everone buys their own stuff, our overheads are pretty low so no-one minds, we're in it for the sheer pleasure of getting a pub full of people dancing, any money that comes our way is a bonus.

the band kitty is in an account in my name but that's only because i was the one who had time to go and open an account, the cash from our last gig is going to pay for the repairs to our guitarists amp, we had to almost force him to take the money as he's a bit skint at the moment (self employed gardener so seasonal cash flow) if he pays it back then that's great, if not then we don't care, having his amp working is the main thing.

Matt
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I think this is a good point. If a guitarists amp fails and he cant afford to buy a new one or have it repaired then the band cant gig. Therefore should the band step in to pay for a new amp from gig money?