Dan Dare

If it's any help, my PJB C4s (which are 4x5, so twice the number of drivers as a Briefcase) have two rectangular ports, each 3cm high, 14cm wide and 24 cm deep). The internal dimensions of the cabs (not including ports) are 29x29x27 cm. I appreciate the Faital drivers won't have the same requirements as the PJBs.

You could always take it to the seaside and dip it in the briny.

Thanks. I'm also of that age, but as I no longer have to get up for work in the mornings, I can sleep in if I have a late one. Have a look at Pinegrove straps. Not cheap, but very good. I've just bought their 4 inch wide padded bass strap and it makes a big difference to comfort.

Is the neck bowed or distorted? If you have buzz at more than one spot, I'd check that.

"What do you mean, you want to be paid? You enjoy it".

Really, all pop music is "mediocre". It may be well, even brilliantly played, but it's a fashion product that, with a few exceptions, dates quickly and ages badly. I'm OK with that. It's the soundtrack to our lives (cliche, I know) and we and our lives are all different. I still like stuff I listened to back in the days when my face left its imprint in the pillow, rather than the other way round, but I don't care whether others like it or not..

I'm the same. I think it's something to do with the clash caused by the wide vibrato so many women seem to employ. Perhaps it's because a lot of choral singers tend to be of a certain age. Anything other than very slight vibrato is a big no-no in choral singing (imho, obviously), where many voices sing unison parts. Men don't seem so afflicted by the desire to go wibble wobble with their voices.

They look like Gotohs (Yamaha have certainly used them). Have a look on the Gotoh website and see if there's anything matching in their current range. It won't have a Yammie logo on it, but that's a minor problem unless your OCD is particularly acute.

If you're tired/run down, things get heavier. I know from trying to carry my PA up the stairs to my flat at 4am after I've driven 100 miles home from a job. I waltz out to the car with it on the way out and stagger back indoors with it when I get home. A wide strap is the way to go.

On being offered the loan instrument (not garbage, but a no name/bitsa) at a weekly jam I'm in the house band at - "No, no. I'll play yours". Oh will you indeed, sunshine... "So what job do you do during the day?" "My mate's a really good singer/guitar player/etc. Call him up for a song". "Can you play Xxx?" "Sorry, don't know it". "You must". "No really. We don't". "It goes ner ner na na, etc, etc".

At least he cited an actual bass player. Could have been worse.

Very well played, sir. I'm finding it impossible to keep track of it myself.

No. There are bands - examples listed above - who don't have a traditional line-up. They do tend to be fringe (nothing wrong with that - it's where most of the interesting stuff is to be found). Buts as a general rule of thumb and in the mainstream, they will continue to be separate.

All it needs is the name scribbled on the headstock with a Sharpie... The instrument looks as if somebody's stuck a bass neck on a frisbee.

True. Virtually all cabs have parallel inputs/outputs, so easy to run more than one if you want.

700w into 2.67 ohms? I'd bet they're using the ICEpower module that so many others do, with their own preamp. Blackstar make nice pre's - they've had plenty of practice building guitar amps - so it should work fine.

I was referring to amps and cabs, not instruments, as that's what this discussion is about. I agree that budget instruments can work very well. I have a couple. They needed to be fettled/tweaked to get the best out of them, but I do my own set-up, so can afford to take the time to do it. Like you, I don't think there's any substitute for spending proper money on amps and cabs, and particularly cabs. You can save money on amplification, especially if you buy used and don't mind carrying a bit of weight, but you need plenty of grunt. Phil Jones commented once that bass is the instrument from hell to amplify. I think he's correct (fwiw, I use PJB cabs, but I run a number of them - four or five of his 4x5s and enough amplification to drive them properly) I particularly agree with Alex's observation that the trend towards smaller, lighter rigs has exacerbated problems for bass players. A bass places stiff demands on gear. We need to shift air, do so cleanly and have enough power at our disposal to ensure its working well within its capabilities. Otherwise, it will struggle when pushed, like that little city runabout does when you drive it hard on the motorway.

Must have shrunk in the wash, too

Very true. I borrowed a rig from a friend whilst mine was in for repairs. I didn't care for the sound when I tried it in isolation - sounded too mid-heavy and spiky for my taste. It was a name-brand/not cheap and I wondered what the fuss was about. Then I tried it in a band context and it worked wonderfully. It's universally true that there's no substitute for spending enough money (wisely, of course) on the right tools. It may not be the best analogy, but that little 1 litre city runabout may be handy for pootling round town, but it will struggle (and so will the driver) if used to drive hundreds of miles on the motorway at high speed. There's a reason the stuff that works is expensive.

Must be hot in the factory where they're made. They're melting.

Signs of abuse...

Grinding disc?

I use a mixer because I can run music into it to play/practice along with. I also use one because I have several, so it's cheaper to use what I already have, rather than buying a Zoom, amp sim, etc. I have pretty extensive sound shaping, courtesy of 4 band all parametric eq (which enables me to remove much of the bass part on tracks) and onboard fx, so rig sim not really necessary in my case.

If you have a day out at the Gallery, treat yourself to lunch at Castle's Pie & Mash, just up Royal College Street from them. The oldest remaining P&M shop in London. I go there once a week and it's ace.

Whereabouts are you? As you mention Dorset, I'm assuming the South West. Don't know what's available in your area, I'm afraid. Barefaced are in some shops. If you're heading for London, I wouldn't go to Tottenham Court Road. It's not what it was. The Gallery in Camden carries BF and all the other brands you list. Anderton's in Guildford carry most of them, as do Bass Direct in Warwick.