NancyJohnson

I'd concur with the friend of the original poster, certainly there's loads amps that do sound the similar, the nuances are quite minor and I'm pretty certain in a blindfold test people wouldn't really be able to tell one from another. Over the years I'd used Trace, Laney, Tech21, Ashdown etc and in truth it's always been a case of dialling in a desired tone and leaving it at that. Insofar as emulation goes, I used to really like the much derided kidney shaped Bass POD - I think there was a rack version too; there was a lot of great sounds on it, but I'm genuinely unsure as to whether the sounds it made correctly emulated the amplifier/speaker combinations it claimed to or if it was all advertising rhetoric. It was a very handy tool live and in the studio.

We played with a band cslled Dronningen on Friday. No bass player, but lots of keyboards doing bass stuff. For the record, they were just incredible. Highly recommended.

I'd also go with the 'you don't need 1000w'. Sure it's there should you need it; I'm unsure whether the output pots are linear or logarithmic but to be honest I've never run the Matrix more than half way into 8 ohms and it's been more than adequate (and we play pretty loud live).

It's a weird one, that Flea bass...I did like the look of it, but I'd feel a bit conflicted at the exclusivity of it. No idea how many they made, but it would only be a matter of time before you're gigging with some funkster upstart using the same bass chip for chip. I have been having a drool over the US Jaguar; it just seems on the surface to have a bit more versatility when you look at the switching options, although I would suspect once you find your desired tone, you'd probably just leave the switching alone. Jaguar here.

I'm a sucker for Tech21 stuff, I really am. I've been running a BDDI for a long time now (and an RBI and a VTBass DI), but you know, I bought an old GT2 off here a while back and that's pretty much doing it for me at the moment. I didn't know they'd updated the BDDI until a few minutes ago and I'm (at this stage) a little indifferent about whether it's an essential purchase. I'll give it a bit. Wait for the pound to recover.

Feel free to put another scrape on it. Be my guest - it all adds to its mojo! P

Cheers Richard! I was going to give you a set of strings as well, but I'll sort that out next month at the Bash. Looks amazing considering some of the frets looked like speed bumps and I couldn't get the action down lower. Hopefully, this will see things straight for the next 38 years or so...I think you really need to post a full photo of was an old bass looks like when it's been battered about a bit. Paul

You want to go: Bass> Tuner> ABY Box. If the [u]guitar[/u] side is going through channel A, put crossover (a Rolls SX21 is a good, reasonably priced option) as the first pedal (really just to weed out the damaging low frequencies), then follow with whatever effects you want, routing this into channel A on the power amp/2x10 cabinet. Channel B can just be a regular bass signal into a pedal of some kind (something powerful enough to drive a power amp), into channel B/1x15.

A [quote name='AndyTravis' timestamp='1470376337' post='3105521'] If I get 5 minutes with the laptop I'll embed, been doing these as they happen from my phone - new baby and two busy siblings are not very forgiving at the minute [/quote] Ack, no worries. Embedding simple on the PC and from experience, too thumby on the mobile. Loving the updates all the same!

I'm enjoying this immensely, but any chance you can embed the pics in the thread rather than having to go through a different site?

[quote name='Meddle' timestamp='1470170604' post='3103882'] I was impressed by his playing here. Mick wasn't on the studio cut, but he absolutely nails it here: [media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhhMwwfaXNM[/media] RIP Mick. [/quote] Hadn't seen that. Wardrobe malfunction.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1470160076' post='3103736'] Gus GAS! [/quote] Holy crap. Where's the tissues?

In the past I've owned both a Jazz (Geddy Lee model) and a Precision (old '79 model). I never really felt that with the neck pickup isolated the Jazz sounded anything like the Precision. I'm unsure whether the Precision has more presence because the pickup is effectively two units wired in series or whether the Jazz wiring loom is contributary in any way. Either way it's not something that particularly worried me in any way as both basses had their own unique characteristics tonally...any time I've owned dual pickup basses, I've always operated them (rightly or wrongly) with both pickups at 100% anyway.

Backwards and in the wrong key? That might actually save me time when writing new material. Two for one specials!

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1470058114' post='3102950'] Sounds more like crappy venue and/or engineer than a reason to rely on a cab of your own, if you know that can't happen (i.e. You have control of the PA like most function bands) that's not going to happen, failing that you need to do a JTUK and get written confirmation that there will be six db or d and b monitors at every gig! [/quote] The venue is fine and I've no qualms about their ability to put on gigs; they've been doing it long enough and will continue long after I've stopped playing. The bone of contention here was that we were given an assurance there'd be a bass enclosure and I stupidly gave mine the evening off (and in truth had a little jump of joy at the prospect of leaving it at home), although en route I did keep questioning that logic.

I've never used IEMs; in general I've just used my good ol' ears(!), which together with a combination of backline, monitors and live drums has worked pretty well for the last three decades or so. Sure, there's been the odd instance where things may have gone a tad awry using this combination, but it's generally been in a situation where things are stacked against us (like last night), but we know our material backwards, are experienced enough to make the best of things and will grind through the set. We, like many bands, play small venues where the sound guy is simply there to cover vocals, plus the bass and snare drums, so there's no logic in saying that IEMs would have resolved anything last night. I'm not pooping on IEMs in the slightest (I was citing my experience from last night only), but horses for courses as they say.

I haven't read the whole thread here, but from the perspective of gigging without an amp (or rig) is a definite no no from me. Last night we were the opener at a gig in Reading. Four bands. I'd been assured the headliners would be providing the cabinetry to aid a quicker turnaround between bands, so (in hindsight, stupidly), I left my 4x10 at home. Consequently, I ended up running a Sansamp RBI direct into the PA and frankly, it was a disaster. Although I was assured by people watching us said it sounded OK front of house, I know for a fact that I played a good chunk of one song in the wrong key as I simply couldn't hear what I was playing and I failed to notice I was two frets higher on the neck than I should have been. I can't actually see how IEMs would have improved the situation either as I would only have been monitoring myself as the venue (and I suppose most of the venues we play too) wouldn't have had any kind of way to facilitate IEMs.

I played a place a few years ago with a single limiter, it was a fairly plain unit, albeit some distance from where we were playing. Apparently, the venue did a load of gigs with bands setting up in a certain area and the limiter was installed in that vicinity. After it was put in, the venue simply moved the staging area about as far as they feasibly could from the unit. They also told me they'd worked out a way of switching it off (!) and blocking it somehow (with a strategically placed plastic ice-cream tub with a towel in it).

[quote name='dood' timestamp='1469623166' post='3099790'] my 76 is a Aria-Pro 'Professional'. I'm not sure if yours is the same, but I have been very lucky I think. It is an amazing player, even for 40 years old. Actually feels nicer than the current Nate Mendel P, which is based on Nate's own 71 P. [/quote] I got it as part of a £50 job lot (three guitars/practice amp) on Gumtree. It needed a load of work, but body and neck are sound. I'd like to stick a different pickup in, but ultimately it's the type of bass no one looks at twice.

If you're from the rock/metal/punk/emo area and confident to buy online, there's a place called EMP ([url="http://www.emp-online.co.uk/"]http://www.emp-online.co.uk[/url]). They sell on Amazon as well. As a punky band (well, the musicians therein, forget the singer), we tend to favour black, which is easy. All I really want to find is a well cut leather or denim/cotton jacket that has a little shizzle about it, but sadly most of this stuff is cut for males with the pysique of a 15 year old boy. 38" chest anyone? No one seems to cater for the people with a heavyweight boxer frame.

I've got a beater that I use live periodically, this being largely dependent on the level of dive the place is that we're playing (it's an Aria Pro-II Primary - a Precision copy). Generally though, I'll take a Gibson or my Lull. P