T-Bay

I know a few bands locally then whenever you ask if they have any gigs coming up it’s always ‘soon’ or ‘yeah we’re looking’ and it’s the same when you see them two years later. Quite often they are looking for people as the ones who want a lot of gigs have left. If they aren’t a new start and if they have no gigs in the next three months then you may on to a relatively safe bet.

If you don’t enjoy it, and you don’t need to do it to make a living, then don’t do it. What’s the point? Everyone is different. I see people doing all sorts of hobbies I would never do, they probably wouldn’t want to do what I do.

Mine is nearer to my knees on a strap! No way could I play it tucked up under my chin like Mark King does.

Another for number 1, least hassle.

Right and right for me.

This x1000, the guy working there passes you the bass and instantly every song you ever knew disappears, for me I can only remember Pearl Jam Alive (not too bad) and sweet child o mine - that always goes down soooooooo well.........

And whilst comparatively ‘safe’ they can and do explode if abused/ coupled to faulty circuits. Having been three feet away from one that went bang, my underpants will confirm the energy released when they do go. I have been a target shooter for many years and it sounded very similar to a rifle report.

I don’t own one anymore and it’s definitely true AS STATED which isn’t the same as saying it’s actually true. What is probably accurate is Trace Elliot’s way of calculating watts isn't the same as others that have followed. Presumably this is for marketing reasons to sell to a fickle market. We don’t need a comparison of which is louder, we need a comparison of output decibels for a given power consumption and that would then show if the rated ‘watts’ matched reality and an insight into relative efficiency (sorry for the minor butchery of elastictrickery rules and terms but it made it easier to explain).

We play a pub where I have to lift up the neck every time the driver from the attached Indian takeaway wants to go past. There is also a great moment we recorded on our last visit where one of the takeaway guys walks past with a massive bag of onions on his shoulder. It is one of my favourite venues though, great landlord and great crowd every time we play.

Played a new pub for us in Lichfield, very nice but tiny space to set up in. Small but keen crowd. I just took the supercompact due to space but it sounded good on its own.

I have a supercompact and midget set up and it sounds amazing, would recommend to anyone. Very handy combination as well, played a (mostly) acoustic night yesterday and just took the midget which worked brilliantly.

Look on here at the reviews for Warwick Reds, stupidly cheap and good strings. Not the best, but very good and reliable. I tried them after a recommendation on here and now they are all I use.

You mean you haven’t yet? I assume you bought it yesterday? Being a serial car fettler, with a best mate equally afflicted, our one and only experience of the ‘quality’ of a jag was littered with horrendous stories, and that was one that had been looked after at great expense prior to our time with it. A friend has an XF and apart from being the ugliest car ever to wear the badge, it has spent nearly as much time at the dealer as on his drive. The weird thing is that I would still buy an XJS, but my logic now is to buy the worst, not the best, I can afford. That way it will still be broken most of the time but my bank balance will be considerably healthier.

A bandmate of mine has been playing 20 years, I taught him to change strings last year. I asked him what he did if he broke a string mid gig or rehearsal - he brings a spare guitar in case of that happening! Whilst I wouldn’t stop a set to swap a string, I would do it at the break. I don’t think I need to say that he had no idea regarding truss rods etc.

Just Burnel - why? One word - Peaches

Thanks guys, I will have a nose around for the best place to get a hiscox.......

Bananas really do work but you need to eat them more regularly than just at a gig, I used to target shoot competitively and you would be out in all weathers and couldn’t wear anything on the trigger finger. Bananas never failed me and became a bit of a joke with some fellow competitors. I always take a couple of bananas to gigs, much to the amusement of my band mates, the rhythm guitarist isn’t laughing when my arthritic fingers are still going when his are giving him serious pain. I eat at least two every day and it also helped my overnight toe cramps ( horrendous things) due to arthritis meds.

City powder coasters in Birmingham have done alloy wheels and motorbike frames for me, good prices, good turnaround time, reliable. Quality is good but not perhaps the best of the best (price more than reflects this and unless it was for a £how much! Ferrari it would be fine).

My orange terror has the perfect tone for me, we play a lot of grunge/ punk and it fits in very well. Mine is the 1000w variant but your budget would get you the 500w version which is more than enough for almost anywhere you would play.

Nothing like that buzz (well nothing legal) of that moment when everything is working well, the crowd love it, you are on fire and it’s what life is about. I wouldn’t bother with all the other crap otherwise. If it wasn’t for gigs I would probably noodle a bit now and again and then do something else.

Third year on the trot at a local school leavers event, odd really as we play 80s-90s mostly rock covers but always seem to go down well. Another fun event with about 100 plus of the 200 there dancing for last few numbers and about 80 odd up for every song. We did it as a favour the first time but really enjoy it, been asked back next year.

Any suggestions for decent hardcases for a Fender Jazz? Gator? Fender? Fender deluxe? What are people using and would you recommend/ avoid them? Thanks

I love the gigs, it’s the band politics that are a pain, the ‘yeah we are 100% going to do this this and this, then come rehearsal time they haven’t learnt any of them but suggest some crap that doesn’t fit in at all but they happen to like, claiming it fits perfectly (last time it was a 70s funk disco song in a band that plays 80s-00s alternative/ rock). Yes that will fit well..........

I had an issue with them prior to this and they were fine with me as well, however that was for a small value item and the seller was happy to refund. They could not have been more different, and it wasn’t just one person, We dealt with a wide range (you try speaking to the same person twice ever!), many of whom promised it would be sorted, it never was, they didn’t give a sh1te who had purchased the item or the impact of their actions. For the amount of they made on one item I know of at least two hundred staff, parents, friends, relatives etc etc who will not touch them with a barge pole.This occurred before the various revelations about their dealings so I wouldn’t use them now anyway, but they must have lost a couple of thousand in sales from myself alone.