Aliwobble

I loaned the little vtbass to a mate who has a full ampeg rig, complete with 8x10 fridge. His response was “it rocks!”. I will take that as a vote of approval.

I doubt that it would be bad. Just a question of if you like that particular sound, or not.

Ok, final review. Saturday night was a party in a barn, with just a vocal PA. The little vtbass got the job done, but this did show its limitations. It is not a 30Kg Eden 2x10 cab with a 300 watt head. When pushed hard, a relatively cheap 1x12 can only stretch so far. You can just hear it working hard, and loosing a bit of definition in the last half an octave where a bigger rig holds together. Still sounded fine, unless you were a bass player with a critical ear. So, good for practices, small gigs, or small stages with PA support. Sounds very nice until pushed hard. At the end of the day, it’s only a $1100NZ 1x12 amp, and my serious rig cost three times and weighs twice as much. I’m still very happy with my purchase.

The wireless is the audio teechnica system 10, and works exactly like it should. No drop outs, unless I’ve moved so far away that the time delay of the sound from the amp makes things unplayable anyway. They are discontinued now; I notice that the next generation of wireless stomp boxes are more compact.

Small is beautiful. It is also wireless and battery powered 😃

Ok, proper live gig review! Last night we played at a local up-stairs venue, but this one has a decent size stage (just right for a 4 piece) , a huge PA, and a sound man who knows his stuff. The little vtbass was working hard ( gain at 11 o’clock, master at about 2 o’clock) but was able to keep up. I suspect that it did not have much more to give. The PA was doing the heavy lifting, of course, and the amp was just a stage monitor, but everything worked just like it should. The sound man was happy with what we were feeding him, and said we were easy to mix. At he end of the night it was an easy one-trip load out. Tonight we are playing a party with just a vocal PA which will be the final test to see if the amp is loud enough in that setting.

Well, yes it could. But in that case pretty much all the 2.4GHz systems will have the same problem as they all introduce a few ms of latency. A UHF system has no latency (I think, although I could be wrong) and so might be a better match if your signal chain is running lots of digital pedals in series.

Yep, all valid points. Perhaps yoga or Pilates? It really depends on what Dan feels most comfortable doing. The general principle here is that stronger muscles will be working more within their capacity, and will therefore give less pain, everything else being equal.

Any half decent powered lightweight pa speaker (qsa, Mackie, CV etc etc) and a couple of pre amp pedals should do the trick. For a traditional bass amp , I’m enjoying the portability of my vt bass 200.

Bit of an update. I still haven’t done a decent sized gig with the vtb yet, but it happily keeps up at band practice against two small guitar amps and a light hitting drummer. This weekend for a proper workout, hopefully.

1.5ms of extra latency will not make any difference. It’s like standing 45cm further away from your amp.

Weights, my friend. Being bigger and musclier will help prevent this sort of thing. Also massage can help relieve it. Maybe get yourself checked over by a physiotherapist first to check that there is no underlying problem which is being brought out by the bass playing.

I've never owned a Jazz or a P. Every time I've gone bass shopping the I would start by picking up a Fender, but end up leaving with a Warwick, Schecter, or Ibanez because it felt like so much more bass for the money. I had the option of picking up a mint second-hand G&L L2000 (USA) recently, and while it was absolutely a quality instrument, I could not see it really doing anything my current basses couldn't, so it stayed on the shelf.

How about a Laney R500? Seems to tick all the boxes...

What bass are you using? My (albeit limited) experience of the tonehammer head is that it is fussy with active basses. I tried one in the shop with a high end active G&L and it sounded terrible. With a low-mid range passive Fender P bass it was pretty nice. Hope that helps.

Ok, so my quest for a decent sounding, giggable, lightweight combo has finished (for now at least) with a Tech21 VT bass 200. I tried out various fender rumbles ( I didn’t like the form factor, sound was only average), GK mb series ( very in your face sounding), Markbass cmd121p (not bad, but did not excite me. Quite a bit more money than the others), and Ibanez prometheans ( the p3110 was boxy, the p3115 actually sounded pretty good). The Tech21 beat them all with its great (and versatile) sound, light weight, good looks, and reasonable price. I played on the world’s smallest stage, with full P.A. support with it last night. Good tone, plenty loud enough (although my existing 1x10 can handle this particular stage) and a one-handed carry in and out of the gig 😃. A better test is coming next week a a local bar with good stage and acoustics but no P.A. I’m confident the little VT will get the job done. Hopefully I will get a review up after that. Here are some pics to feast your eyes on. I’ve included a shot of my Frankenstein-amp which is a cab from a Ibanez promethean p5110 combo but with a GK mb500 providing the power. The little ibby-GK am is now on permanent practice duty.

Thanks for your comments guys. Ok, so after trying out combos by GK, Fender, Markbass, and Ibanez I ended up going with a Tech21 VT bass 200. Compact, good sound, and about 12kg or so. I gave it its first outing last night (albeit on the world’s smallest stage, with pa support) and it performed admirably. More detailed report coming soon.

Time to resurrect this thread again! I’m looking at getting a good sounding combo for those gigs where I just can’t be bothered lugging in my Eden 2x10 cabinet at 30Kg. So, way down here in NZ it would seem that I have several options: Markbass cmd12, or Cmd15; Laney Nexus sls112; GK mb210 or 212. I already have an ibanez promethean 1x10 cabinet (powered by a GK mb500 after the original Ibanez head became unreliable) but it just lacks a bit of sonic weight for proper gigging. So my criteria are: sounds good ( my current setup really does sound good ), under 20 Kg, and loud enough to gig unsupported. My current 300W laney nexus into the 2x10 Eden is plenty loud enough, to give you an idea of my gig volumes. I would prefer front-ported cabs so I can stack with the Eden. Your thoughts please...

Small but tasty. I like.

Yummy! How do you rate the Nexus Cabinets? I’m looking at getting a 2x10. Because I’m sick of the weight of my Eden.

Ok, so it’s never going to be a simple fix if you’ve had a dodgy back for years, but working as a physio for 25 years has taught me a thing or two... Balance will be more important than weight. There is no excuse for neck dive in this modern age. A good strap can certainly help too. Instrument set up and playing technique can also significantly reduce your workload. Treat your body better than you treat your instrument. Maybe try some yoga, weights, or Pilates. Seriously. Even a massage now and then to get the knots out. Move around on stage, and try positioning your bass a little forward, or backward, to find a sweet spot. Take a stool, sit when you can. Physio, osteo, and chiro are very expensive. A good one will not just treat your back, but will teach you how to look after yourself, thereby freeing up money for beer and bass gear. And we all want more of those 😃. Hope this helps.

I’ve been gigging the Audio Technica system 10 stomp box for about 4-5 years now. Never misses a beat and sounds good to me. My rhythm guitarist uses the shure system which also works faultlessly. My lead guitarist’s tone is far too delicate to be defiled by a wireless system 😂

Small but perfectly formed. Very nice.

Top sports people become faster / stronger / more capable than the rest by really investing time, effort, practice, and thought into it. Making music is highly demanding, and musicians need to take the same approach. Work on improv8ng your technique. Get a bass that fits you well and get it professionally set up. Show your body some love with healthy living and the occasional massage. Purchase gear that makes your life easier (and your sound louder). Learn how it all fits together - that’s why forums like this are invaluable. I’m too old to work harder, so working smarter is all I’ve got!

How did you get on?