Newfoundfreedom

I wouldn't worry too much about rehearsals. When the pubs eventually open again, everyone will be so gypsy's kissed they won't even notice there's a band on.

I consider it a good deal of I don't lose money. I don't think I've ever had a bargain as such, and everything (not just instruments) I've ever bought, and later sold on, I've lost money on.

Another vote for PreSonus studio one here. I'm a total noob to recording too. I'd never touched a DAW until a week or so ago. I tried Reaper first and just couldn't get my head around it. Studio One on the offer hand feels much more intuitive, and graphically the interface is much nicer to my eye. I've already managed to lay down some tracks and send some vocals to someone else. There still a fair bit of a learning curve if, like me, you're totally new to recording, but you'll have that with any DAW. I spent several days just watching YouTube videos on different DAW's. The whole thing is a total head thrash, but in the end they all do pretty much the same thing. So try a few out and see which one you get on with the best. Most of them have free versions of free trials, so there's nothing to lose by trying a few different ones.

We had our first rehearsal last week since all this kicked off, but I'm not planning on doing any gigs at all this year. There's a band playing at a local bar in town next Saturday and a few of my mates are going but I'm giving it a miss. Even though were pretty much Covid free here I don't fancy being indoors with dozens of other people.

Sounds great. I've just started trying my hand at a bit of home recording as I'm currently in awe of anyone that can make a decent mix, especially (presumably) sending sound clips backwards and forwards remotely. I can't even work out what I'm doing recording parts on my own sitting in front of the computer.

I've tried a few and always found them to be totally pointless. I love the idea of being able to join in with an acoustic jam, it would be great for barbeques and small parties etc. But they just don't work. They're totally inaudible if there's anything louder than a fly within a hundred yards.

Apparently it explodes and tries to kill you.

Close to death.......metal.

Mine is when you sell me that Conklin for £350.

I'm going to put him on my gate post, and put a picture of what he did to me on the gate to keep the burglars away.

Can't argue with good sense. They're ridiculously good for stupid money. The only other brand I've ever tried that comes anywhere near is Vintage.

It was certainly a relief because they wouldn't remove the tube until I did one. After 4 days I was considering faking it.

No. It was to stop the build up of gas. Because you can't pass wind for a few days after surgery they put I tube down into the stomach to stop you exploding. 😂

Ooh that sounds nasty. Yeah they did the rebound test, and a lot of pressing and prodding which was really painful at the time. The worst thing for me though through the whole ordeal, even worse than the pain before and after the surgery, was having a tube up the nose and down my throat. I felt like I was choking for four whole days and nights after the surgery. Definitely something I don't want to experience again in a hurry.

Ooh! I know they're not to everyone's taste, especially people who like "traditional" (i.e bland Fender) basses, but I think some of the Cort stuff looks well tastey.

Forgot to say. This is the bugger that caused all the problems. Garry gallstone. Don't be fooled by his size. I'm 6 feet tall and 15 stone, and he kicked my ar$e!

The weirdest thing about that whole story is having noodles with bacon and eggs.

Yeah it must have been pretty scary when I started to send here bank details and passwords at 4 o'clock in the morning "just in case". It wasn't helped by the Covid situation which meant she couldn't even visit.

Every cloud.......and all that. 😂

Get a black and white one. The license is cheaper.

......but to be fair, I have a good excuse. I almost died! I doubt anyone noticed, but I haven't been around much the past few weeks. About 5 weeks ago I went to the doctors in agony after being up all night with chest and stomach pains, he sent me to the the local hospital just around the corner, where after an examination and explaining my symptoms as best I could (I live in Bulgaria and I'm not exactly fluent with the language) the head doctor said I had to stay in for three days for observation and intravenous antibiotics. Not the worst thing in the world I thought, and sent my wife off for a few supplies. The next couple of days are a bit hazey as there was a fair bit of pain and a lot of drugs involved, but on the second night I was in agony. The Doctor came in late in the evening, gave me a quick examination and immediately bundled me into an ambulance to the main regional hospital about 45 minutes away. I remember I arrived there some time just after midnight, and within an hour or so, I'd had blood and urine tests, x-rays, an ultrasound, and an MRI. Then another Doctor came and examined me yet again and looking extremely concerned uttered the word "peritonitsia". Now, as I said, I'm not exactly fluent, but it didn't take much working out that I had peritonitis, which I'd heard of, but I didn't exactly know what it was. So I whipped out my phone and Googled it, and saw that it has a mortality rate of up to 40%. At which point I thought, oh poo, this is serious! They moved to to a ward and I got to bed about 4 a.m. Then a doctor came around at about 8 who luckily spoke a little English and happened to be the head surgeon. He explained that my gallbladder had burst, which had in turn given me peritonitis and appendicitis, and I would have to have my gallbladder and appendix removed. So at 2 o'clock that afternoon, one day before my 45th birthday, I was in the operating theatre and opened up like a duffle bag. I could go into a lot more detail, but suffice to say the following few days were rather uncomfortable, I couldn't move and had several tubes coming out of various places. Then, after 10 days, just when I thought I was finally going to get to go home, I had to stay in another week in quarantine and have a Covid test. So I eventually got home about 3 weeks after my initial doctors visit with a nice zipper from breasticles to testicles, and strict instructions not to lift anything heavy for six to twelve weeks. As my sixer weighs over 10lbs.....as far as excuses for not practicing go, I think it's a reasonable one. But I'm alive! I can't praise the Bulgarian healthcare system enough. They don't have much funding, the hospitals are run down and resemble Victorian asylums. The bedside manner could be better. But the actual healthcare was superb. I'm thankful that everyone was in the ball at every step of the way. From my GP, to the local hospital, the A and E department and my surgeon. I reckon another 24 hours and I'd have been a gonner. Not exactly how i'd planned to spend my 45th birthday. But at least I was surrounded by beautiful women in nurses outfits being given copious amounts of free drugs.

Cracking job that Stew. I'm just trying to get into home recording and it's absolutely thrashing my head! This sound (to my ear at least) nicely laid down and mixed.

So he's doing joined up lessons so students know where they are? Kind of beggars the question, what's he been getting away with doing up until now? I very nearly signed up for the free trial once, but before I actually started it, I made the mistake of watching several of his YouTube videos and decided I couldn't stand another minute of his inane waffle and constant pointless jazz noodling. If it works for you then great. But it's definitely not for me.

That looks like a cracker, but I really wish Ibanez would drop the SDGR headstock logo. It makes every bass they put it on look cheap and tacky.

After wine?