Russ

Probably because of the sheer size of them, and the fact that they can't be sent via the post or couriers cheaply. It'd have to be a local bidder who could collect, and, even then, 8x10"s don't fit easily in most cars! What kind of 8x10" are you selling?

As someone who's previously owned both, personally, I'd go with the Ampeg. The ABM is a nice head, plenty of power and lots of adjustability (although I found the sub-harmoniser a bit useless) but, overall, a little clean and characterless for my tastes, even with the valve drive dialled way up. If you're going from an all-valve Ampeg head, you'll notice far more of a difference in character between the ABM and the SVT-3. The SVT-3 has 90% of the all-valve Ampeg tone (including that lovely fizzy midrange and huge low-end punch) for half the cost and a quarter of the weight!

Cheers David, I'll have to look into that! I found a 405 for sale on a French message board - I dropped the guy a line (thought it'd be a good chance to brush up on my French!) so hopefully he'll get back to me. If I don't hear anything, I might have to grab one from that website.

I think everyone should strive to be in their own favourite band. Whether it's originals, writing songs you prefer to listen to to anything else, or covers, where you feel your version of a particular song is the best, that's always something to strive for, even if you don't always achieve it. Cake please.

I've checked out GAK and Sound Control, and neither of them seem to have the new ATKs. Anyone know of anywhere stocking them? I always wanted the old ATK405, but they're rare as rocking horse sh*t now, so one of the new 305s will suffice...

My Sei has a pair of custom-wound Kent Armstrongs in it - Aaron Armstrong will wind pickups to your specifications. I specified a 70s-style MM pickup for the bridge, and a 5-string P pickup in a 40DC-sized casing for the neck. They sound great - thick, punchy and clear, and they capture the essence of the tones I was after. Highly recommended - they're vastly underrated pickups.

Cheers guys, plenty for me to think about here!

I've been on the lookout for a looping box, as it might be a fun thing to play around with... anyone got any recommendations? It needs to be easy to use in a live situation and versatile. I was looking at the Line6 DL4 and the Boss RC-50 (pricey, but rather good, apparently). Suggestions?

We need a decent cheap cab company over here, like Avatar in the US. I was reading a thread over on TB about "cheap rigs of doom", and some of the stuff these Americans have bought for less than $1000 is outrageous... you never find amps and cabs that cheap over here.

Most of what we hear as "growl" is in the midrange frequencies, and, from my experience, Peavey cabs with the 10" speakers and tweeters are quite midrange-shy. Apparently the newer TVX cabs are a lot better in this regard, but I seem to recall reading about a mod you can do to the TX cabs where you can liberate some more mids by changing the crossover frequency for the tweeter.

These ones... [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=010&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=200116205993&rd=1&rd=1"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...p;rd=1&rd=1[/url] ... I was thinking of grabbing one, just to plonk around on occasionally and have sitting looking nice in the corner of the living room. But does anyone know if they actually sound any good, either unplugged or through an amp?

His fretless bass video is well worth picking up - he shows off all his various techniques, including his three-finger right hand technique and sliding harmonics, and various bizarre ones, such as scraping scrings with fingernails to get harmonics, and pulling the strings completely off the neck (!). Awesome, awesome talent, and, in terms of innovation, pretty much equal to Jaco in my eyes. I'd love to get some bass lessons from him, if he fancies earning a few quid!

It'd be a Status of some kind. Possibly a 5-string model of the new version of the T-Bass, with transparent black finish, graphite scratchplate, Sadowsky guts and white LEDs. In fact, I had a rather interesting chat with Rob Green the other day... that's all I'll say for now.

The cabs with the paper cone speakers aren't too bad - a bit lacking in low-end wallop, but you can't expect everything at that price. Their 8x10" is quite impressive though - plenty of punch and low end, and better sounding than some more expensive cabs. Basically, their cabs are a lot better than their amps.

Right, been thinking about this... what features would a site like this have to have? It would obviously have to have listing of jam/open mic nights, but what could we put in to make it more user-oriented and (buzzword alert) "web 2.0"-friendly? I've got a little musicians wanted site that I coded up a while ago and haven't really used or promoted... just been trying to think of something better to do with it... it's at www.muzos.info - could this be something we could incorporate? All it is is a quick and easy musician search with a fancy AJAX user interface.

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='10154' date='May 31 2007, 08:33 PM']I smell a business opportunity for someone to make a separate website... [/quote] Hmmm... not a bad idea, that... been trying to think of a website project to get my teeth into!

[quote name='subaudio' post='9791' date='May 31 2007, 11:45 AM']Hey all, I was wondering if there are any specific sites for covers bands wanting musicians in London, I have looked on the general musofinder type sites but mainly find bands doing originals, and is own transport a necessity for these type of gigs, I have done a good number of original gigs in central London and have managed on the tube. Any info much appreciated.[/quote] To my knowledge, there's nothing out there specifically for covers bands... you could keep an eye on Gumtree though, there always seems to be openings for covers bands on there. As for transport, being able to haul your rig around is always a good thing, and shows professionalism, especially since most venues don't supply backline gear. This might not be so important if the gigs you get don't require large amplification, and where you might be able to get away with a light 2x10" and small head that you can drag around on a dolly or something. Personally though, I still wouldn't entrust stuff like that to the Tube, escalators, etc. If the band you join has a member with an estate car or van, and who doesn't mind carting your stuff around along with their own, then that's a good compromise, but it then precludes you from doing stuff without them!

I'm surprised nobody's brought back the swappable magnetic fingerboard idea from a decade ago or so... that would have been perfect, as you could have different thicknesses of fingerboard for fretted and fretless, thus compensating for the setup change required. I reckon there'd definitely be a market for replacement necks with this feature.

I'd say yes, if only because of the instrument getting worn in through playing. The woods in the neck often settle as well, making for a more stable neck, and often subtly altering the overall "feel" of the instrument.

It's true that piling loads of effects on your bass won't make up for bad playing. If you're playing with sloppy time and bad note choices, there's no effect that can save you. But a good player will use effects almost like an accompanying instrument, "playing" the effects and the bass at the same time - see Bootsy and his army of Mu-Trons, or Justin Chancellor and his whammy-drenched craziness. It takes talent to make the most out of effects. Back on topic for a sec, did Peavey discontinue the BAM combos (they're not on the Peavey site any more)? I've been Googling reviews of them, and they're almost universally praised...

[quote name='MB1' post='6814' date='May 25 2007, 09:11 PM']MB1. Whos got a nice pedalboard then! you spend all that money on a nice bass, then defeat the object entirely by adding mush, a couple of hundred quids worth of mush? or is that more arse???how many settings have you actually used on this pedalboard can you make your bass go ya ya ya ya!or whooosh whoosh and why the f$$k would anybody want to? or is that the highlight of your set ? too many effects does not a great band make nor a great bassist for that matter. MB1.[/quote] Sorry, had to jump in here. In answer to your question, why not? Maybe some people like the mushy, overly effected sound - maybe it suits their music and it's exactly what they want. Playing with sounds can help create different atmospheres, and there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with giving yourself that option. Granted, it lends itself to some kinds of music more than others, but for those who do experiment with different tones and effects, don't question their validity just because it doesn't work for you. Sure, you might be able to get the tone you want from just a bass, an amp and a cable, bot some people can't - they might hear things differently to you. For examples of gratuitous-yet-tasteful effects usage on bass, check out anything Doug Wimbish has ever done. Or Pino's 80s fretless tone with gobs of chorus and octaver. Or Entwistle's and Cliff Burton's distortion...

[quote name='nash' post='6707' date='May 25 2007, 06:26 PM']...and my marshall 8x10 in a ford ka (that was tight)[/quote] How did that work? I've seen someone having trouble getting a 4x10" in the back of one! I can't be driving with the driver's seat all the way forward and my knees up under my chin!

I'm thinking of taking the plunge and getting myself an 8x10" cab (either the Ashdown MAG 8x10" or the Eden Nemesis one - the Bass Centre have great deals on both right now) - there's nothing like that trouser-flapping punch of one of those beasties behind you at a gig. I suspect, though, that I'll have to get a new car to drive it around in! So, my question is, what's the smallest car any of you 8x10" users have managed to squeeze one in? I used to get my old Ampeg 6x10" in the back of a Punto, but we're probably talking a box that's a foot longer... I've no problem changing cars, but I'd rather not get an estate if I can help it... suggestions?

Marshall's bass highpoint had to be the Dynamic Bass System range - they were awesome and HUGELY loud. I played through one not so long ago and they still sound good. I believe Chris from Muse still uses them... they should bring those back, I'd buy one....

I've played with the Line6 Lowdown combos, and the LD300 does a pretty accurate SVT model... it's suitably gritty when pushed and, as an SVT owner, I was impressed. Some of the other models weren't so good... the B-15 wasn't great, and the clean sound (based on an Eden, I think) is a bit flat. I'd be interested in their stuff if they'd do them in head/cab configurations - I've kinda outgrown combos.