Dan Dare

Did someone mention K&M? They make for many others - Beyer, etc. You can also get spares, so don't have to chuck them if something breaks (which is rare - they're well built). I've got 8 - the oldest is getting on for 40 years old. Love 'em. can't go wrong.

I had a TE AH350 head back in the day. Great piece of kit and Trace were excellent when it needed repair. I took it to them, left it with them and had lunch in a local pub and collected it fixed (and for a very reasonable charge - was well outside guarantee) a couple of hours later. Need it for a gig, so had to get it done in a hurry. Using an EBS these days, which reminds me of my old Trace in many ways - clean, pokey and fuss free (and a lot easier to carry...). Hope Trace do well with their new kit.

Cryogenic treatment may or may not be snake oil, but as Mickster says, you have to try valves really (which can be expensive if you try a few sets, to see how they work in your set up). Watford Valves are pretty good, in my experience and their advice is sound. Re 'military' valves being better, they may be tougher, but that won't necessarily make them better at sound reproduction.

Get one that's twisted already? The old telephone cable style is still available. Or wear lead divers boots to stop you jumping around...

Agree with others about EVs, but more important than the speakers is what you drive them with. I've heard EVs driven by El Cheapo stuff sounding really horrible - in fact, the better the speakers, the more they show up any deficiencies at the front end. PAs need to be balanced to work well.

Shop demos can't really give you an idea of how something performs in a live environment. Afraid there isn't a cheap, lightweight solution if you're working with a drummer, unless you can route the bass through a PA. I've tried to find it for years and failed. The physics dictates that you need to move enough air for low frequencies. I've gone the multiple smaller cab's route. Easy to carry individually, but add up to plenty of poke (properly driven, of course). the cheapest way to get the power you need is to buy a used PA power amp and drive it from your combo pre-amp out.

Why not go for two 2x10s? If you like 4x10 sound, but not the weight, that's the way to keep it, but have something easier to handle. 2x12 won't move nearly as much air as 4x10 (226 sq in of cone area, as opposed to 314 sq in). And of course, you can take just a single 2x10 for small jobs. I use 2x10 and 1x15 and find it a good combination.

The problem with playing loud is that, unless the equipment is capable of delivering clean signal at high levels, the distortion can be enormous. Ignore claimed ratings of 900w, etc. An amp processing a simple sine wave may heat an 8 ohm resistor sufficiently for a few milliseconds for the manufacturer to be able to claim that, but a complex real world musical signal is a different matter. It's not the volume alone that is the problem, but all the nasties caused by overdriving the kit. DJs can be the worst offenders. They often have real El Cheapo stuff that they overdrive.

Swings and roundabouts. have one in my 72 Jazz. More powerful and wider range of tonal options are the pros. Loss of that classic warm but crisp JB sound is the con. Makes it more versatile but sounds more generic. Not sure whether I'll keep it or not.

You don't actually specify a budget, as far as I can see. As others advise, you can't generally get decent sound out of small, cheap bass amps (you need to move air and cleanly for low frequencies and that takes a bit of power/quality). If you can stretch to it, the smaller EBS combos are nice and the advantage of buying something better is that you can recoup part of the cost when you upgrade. The amps you suggest will get you virtually nothing back on resale, I'm afraid. I'd steer clear of pawnshops, too. They don't give stuff away. eBay a better bet. Good luck.

Your enquiry is slightly unusual. You refer to not being able to "memorise songs". I would suggest that, until you can do that, there is little point in attempting to learn to play any instrument. Can you sing, even to a limited extent? Do you sing along with the radio, etc? You need top develop your ear and appreciation of music (not intellectual understanding or theory - it's pointless attempting to learn music theoretically without practical application, which it appears you may be trying to do).This is vital and is especially important for playing the bass - because the bass is responsible for laying down the harmonic and rhythmic foundation of any piece, the player must have an appreciation of those things. Until you have developed your ear, you cannot really learn any instrument. I'd suggest taking some basic singing lessons to start you off.

As others advise, quality is variable. I have a '72 Jazz that is lovely - sound and playability - but I've had it 30 years and have done a lot of work on it. You have to treat any instrument on its merits, regardless of age, make, etc. Good hunting.

Good to hear customer service is alive and well.

It's a well known teaching aid. Necks on children's violins, for example, are often marked with coloured dots. If it helps you, it's good. Ignore criticisms and do what's right for you.

I got the impression funds didn't stretch that far.

Another vote for fishing trollies. They have large wheels so deal with bumps, are tough and dismantle, so they fit in the car. I use the Preston Innovations one. Works well.

It's so unfair. She sings well, too.

Ah, the Grateful Dead rig. Nice to see it again.

I'm struggling to understand why one has to do one or the other thing - scales, notes, etc - first. It sounds a bit mechanical/programmed. Surely learning is a cumulative process and you acquire/learn combinations of pieces of knowledge as you progress.

If you like flats, try Thomastik. Expensive, but nice. Use them on my fiddle, too and just converted to them on the bass.

New drive unit? I put a Black Widow 15 in an old Fender cab and it was great until some toe rag pinched it. Ampeg cabs tend to be well built/worth repairing.

KT88 similar to the 6550. Made by many different companies.Both tend to be used in high end hi fi amps. Can be amp dependant as to which is best for a given purpose. Suggest asking someone like Watford Valves for advice. Have found them very helpful.

Companies tend to offer products at a variety of price points. Probably hope if you start with a budget item and like it, you'll upgrade to one of their belter offerings. Some make their own premium products and sub contract budget items (EBS). Instruments the same - G&L for example.