Dan Dare

It would have been designed and built by Grommit, of course. I wonder if someone will reverse engineer it, as has been done with other highly regarded amps - Dumble, etc.

The NEC ought to do the trick. I haven't had a telly for 30 odd years, so I can honestly say I never watch it, but if it makes people happy, who am I to criticise?

As Downunder, Jonny and Jezza point out, you and your band mates need to be on the same page. Both approaches - taking it seriously and doing it for fun - are equally fine, but there needs to be agreement as to which is the way the band rolls. Different strokes for different folks and all that. Sounds as if a sit down and a discussion is in order. The upshot of it may mean you have to seek pastures new, but there's little point in staying if you are not in agreement.

I have both Roqsolid and Hotcovers. Hotcovers are of better quality and more thickly padded (I use them for my PA speakers). Roqsolid are perfectly decent - if a little less abuse-proof - and cheaper than Hotcovers. You pays yer money and takes yer choioce.

10,000 is an arbitrary figure, but progress depends very much on how you spend the time spent working on acquiring a skill. When learning an instrument, quite a few people focus only on the instrument itself and neglect musical theory. That's OK (sort of) if they merely wish to play parts learned note for note, but they can find themselves all at sea when they need to improvise, because don't understand the "why", as opposed to the "how". You don't need to have a comprehensive understanding of orchestral arrangement, but it's helpful to know why something works. It will speed up the learning process immensely.

Self storage companies - Big Yellow, Shurgard et al - sell large strong cardboard boxes. I bought a couple of dozen for my recent house move and they did the job.

Same here. I originally went to VCK because my previous insurer wouldn't touch me once I wanted to change from being a civil servant to a civil servant and weekend warrior musician. Vic was originally South East London MU branch secretary whose day job was in insurance. I find them very helpful and prices are competitive.

PJB? Not cheap, but compact and high quality.

"The band's image is that of a gang of individuals". Righto then, That's why the requirements regarding appearance are so specific...

Made by the same company - David Reeves's Hylight Electronics. He had learned his craft working for Marconi and Mullard. Sadly no longer with us.

An easy way to get what is effectively a 3 way rig is to use your amp with a small main cab ((10+horn or even 8+horn) and add a powered sub. I tried this once, using one of my PA subs and the sound was quite impressive. You retain the character of the sound from the smaller cab and add low end weight via the sub. I wouldn't go to the trouble of taking it on gigs, but it did sound rather good at home.

Exactly. Many artists leave a lot to be desired as people, but that's fine. We don't have to associate with them and can just appreciate their art from a distance. "Shut up 'n play yer guitar", as Frank Zappa (someone you probably wouldn't have wanted to meet if some of the stories about him are true) put it.

They project surprisingly well (as all MB stuff seems to do). There are limits to what any single 12 can do, but for the use described, I'd say it would be more than up to the job.

Good point. I have a Kiloton and there isn't a lot of room in the cavity. It's well named, incidentally. I had to buy an extra wide strap for mine. It may not weigh 1,000 tons, but it doesn't feel far off... Maybe think about an external preamp/line driver? It will save performing surgery on the instrument and affecting the resale value.

Modern bass/mid drive units and tweeters/horns extend into the midrange so well that a dedicated mid driver is a bit redundant these days. As BigRedX says, the need for a complex and power absorbing crossover (if you go passive) makes it difficult to do well. An active system is probably best if you really want to go that way, but you need additional power amplification and an active crossover, which can work out expensive. Unless we're trying to be Billy Sheehan, many of us tend to roll off mids anyway, rather than boost them.

Keep paddling. I hear bass guitars

Yep. Count Basie's too.

Orchid are excellent (I have 4), but they're active, which may not always be what you need. The Palmer is my choice for a cheap passive.

I'm quite happy if an instrument I go to look at is in a bit of a state. It gives me a lever to negotiate the price down (assuming I want it). A quick strip and clean isn't difficult to do. When I bought my '72 Jazz some years ago, it appeared that the fingerboard was worn. The instrument was very grubby and there were what appeared to be small, oval indentations in the fingerboard between the most used frets. I pointed them out to the seller, said I would probably need to get the board levelled and suggested we agree a price to allow for that. He agreed. I got it home, removed the strings and got to work with the meths and 0000 wire wool. It turned out the board was covered in years worth of crud/dead skin and that the indentations were in that. The wood beneath was fine. Result.

I'm not good enough to play any of my fantasy gigs. I'd be fired in short order.

String manufacturers have to allow for varying distances between nut and tuner, plus different headstock types (4 on one side, 3+1, 2+2) and different bridges (through body, Fender type - little distance between string end and saddles and so on). So they tend to make them a little over long. Something like a Wal has a short distance from nut to tuner compared with, for example, a Fender. The unwrapped section is designed to be cut back if needed. It won't harm the string. Ideally, the wound length should not wrap round the tuner post. I've found with some string makes on 34" scale basses and Fender-type bridges, which leave little distance between the string end and the saddle, that a medium scale string is better. The silked portion starts behind the nut. It's a case of suck it and see.

Lev... Level... Le... No. Sorry. I just can't.

Good advice. However, in the case of a new instrument that has issues, I'd be wary of doing anything to it in case the shop tried to tell me I've invalidated the guarantee.