Dan Dare

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1510060451' post='3403605'] I haven't the room to store or the desire to cart around all the heavy old fashioned kit never mind a spare desk and power amp no matter how cheap they are. [/quote] + 1. Age and decrepitude would prevent me from doing so, even if I wanted to. In response to the original poster, I do think £500-£600 could be pushing it a bit for a complete PA that is any good, unless you get very lucky buying used. Itsmedunc's suggestion of used JBLs is worth following up (the old EON15, if you can find a set that haven't been abused, are decent). If it was me, I'd go for used active cabs (most have class D amplification built in and are reliable and not overly heavy) and an analogue desk with some kind of on-board reverb/FX (I picked up my spare, an Allen & Heath PA12 in mint condition, for less than £200). That's the main components sorted, but you do need to factor in mics, stand, cables, etc, etc and they add up.

[quote name='taunton-hobbit' timestamp='1510079193' post='3403835'] Can you buy virgins armpit hair on E Bay? [/quote] You're in luck. I have just one hank left. The last one in the country I'm told. Yours for a grand. On a related topic and in response to Discreet's accurate observation that esoteric hi-fi cables get used on the end of a supply chain built with stuff from Wickes, I do find one of those mains power conditioners worth using. The one I use is a 6 way plugboard from Lindy - https://www.lindy.co.uk/cables-adapters-c1/audio-video-c107/6-way-av-mains-conditioner-power-strip-p8835. Not expensive at a little over £50 and it does make a difference - less background noise. I bought it to use with my PA, but find it helps the hi-fi and my bass and guitar amps

Not just the drumsticks that need putting away. A pal left his beautiful vintage Martin 0042 on a stand whilst waiting to play at a wedding (silly of him, I know). Whilst he was out of the room, some idiot picked it up and my pal found him strumming/thrashing away, singing to his mates. Said idiot, being of a clumsy disposition, had scratched the top quite badly with the pick.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1510053058' post='3403506'] I suppose they are serious musicians, in that they're not very funny. [/quote] Spot on

My maroon 1975 Telecaster Custom, black scratchplate, maple neck. The Keef model. Sold in a fit of poverty 20 years back. Got a good price, but that's not the point.

Good quality components - Neutrick, Switchcraft, Sommer, etc as mentioned above - properly soldered and put together, will be better than El Cheapo sh*te. However, forget all the esoteric snake oil stuff (gold plugs, silver cable, sleeving woven from the armpit hair of virgins). That's just male jewellery.

Fan should be any easy/cheap replacement for your repair man. Looks a nice little amp and in good shape. Good find.

Have a look at other MB combos - the 102P for example. There is a definite MB sound in my experience - smooth, quite weighty and not bright/clicky (if that makes any sense) - that they all seem to share. If you like the MB sound, one of their other combos may suit. The JB is £800-£900 new, so you could save yourself quite a bit if you can find something used that you like.

Coming down in price from PJB, BF et al, the small EBS Session 60 combo (there is a 30 watt version but it may be too low powered for your purposes) is well reviewed and is a kickback designs, so you can hear it easily when it's on the floor. Single 10" driver and light/small.

I had one in the 80s, with the matching 2x15 cab. I replaced the crappy Fender speakers when one blew with Peavey Black Widows and that improved it enormously. Big and heavy, but looked and sounded the business. Traded it against the inevitable Trace Elliot (well, it was the 80s).

Have you tried a genuine Fender part? Most eBay sellers, in my experience, don't offer genuine Fender parts, but PRC made copies and they are often smaller, made of thinner materials and generally inferior. Google should find genuine Fender spares.

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1509846045' post='3402091'] Presumably the builder had never heard words like "aesthetics", or, indeed, "truss rod". [/quote] Or "musical instrument"...

A pal has a JB combo and I've used it. Surprisingly pokey for its size and smooth sound (without being dull). Very musical, as guybrush says. You'll probably need a pedal or two if dirty/overdriven sounds are your thang, but aside from that, it's a great little combo.

Hilarious. I hope NG was being ironic. Apart from anything else, a dynamic mic like a SM58 (as in the photo) would be useless for picking up something as quiet as that on a noisy stage.

Your Suitcase + C4 will be a fine combination. I have two C4s and a 4B (the Suitcase is effectively a 4B with amplification added). The 4B and one C4 makes a great compact rig.

Gotta be a home brew. Up to £92, I see.

Re-badged D'Addarios, not doubt

Make sure you're using genuine Neutrik Speakon plugs. Speaklocs and other cheap substitutes don't always mate properly with the real thing (although the manufacturers claim they do, of course). PJB kit uses the genuine article.

You could try filling the drums with that cavity wall insulation foam. Just pump it in via the little air holes on the sides of the shells. Once it solidifies, it's job done.

To answer the original question, yes there is bad stuff out there, but the average quality level is a lot higher these days and the cost is much lower. When I bought my Jazz Bass in 1972, it cost several months wages, for example.

Hilarious. I suppose some idiots fall for it (like the fools who pay a fortune for soiled bed linen used by stars and sold by the hotels they stay in).

Suspect it could be a rebadged Squier. That headstock decal looks well dodgy - too far from the fingerboard.

70s style headstock logo. Maybe a misprint and should read 72?

If you like the Aguilar sound, maybe a more powerful head of theirs would give you the extra headroom. If you have plenty lolly, a DB751 should suit (although not a true lightweight). failing that, an AG700 (which I use) is pretty pokey.