Stub Mandrel

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2020/aug/20/tour-lost-money-live-music-broken-covid-19-concerts

Ha! That's exactly what I did. I still have to swap the G. To be honest I haven't got over the way the strings stretch, one of them easily dropping a quarter tone in five minutes 😞

Icky. The worst bits of an Alembic plus the tackiest neck inlay ever... <Googles> Egad! It is an Alembic... Do they write scripts for QVC in their spare time?

Wasn't he the only one who couldn't play?

In order of acquisition, all totally different from each other: Hohner Jazz bass, Korean (Cort), mid-80s. Now with my brother. Hohner B2, Korean (Cort), mid-80s. Maya Fretless Precision copy, Japan, Mid-70s Fender Performer, Japan, C.1986 Squier Jaguar SS, Indonesia, 2018 Hohner Jack V Professional, Korean (Cort) date uncertain. Westone Thunder-1, Japan (Matsumoto), probably 1980s. Squier Jazz, Korean, 2002 Tanglewood TAB-2 NAT Acoustic bass. Fender Flea signature Jazz, Mexico, 2019 Harley Benton P-Bass (from a kit).

I suspect what is OK in a safe corner of a studio is very different from wobbling around on stage surrounded by rapidly moving bodies...

YouTube randomly threw a video at me. I must admit, this guy is a really good teacher.

Wow, that's Trace Elliot land!

To be fair, John Deacon spent the last 20 24 years trying to avoid going near a bass guitar.

Yes, and I've discovered a lot of unexpectedly enjoyable music, but there seems to be a lot of stuff out there that simply isn't very good. I'm also discovering stuff I missed first time round. I think I'm less likely to have a strong view based on the genre these days, and more likely to judge music on its own merits. As for what I buy, most of it is pretty focused on my core musical interests.

Alembic's pointy bits.

And there's always...

Featuring guest death-metal vocalist - Alvin the Chipmunk...

LOL! I read the first three pages and then posted... ah well, great minds etc.!

Anything by Dio. The sheer crushing brilliance of Ronnie, including his theatricality and ability to mesmerize an audience collapsing into utter cheese on video. It's the contrast between the music and the imagery that makes them so bad. And what the hell does a pervert in the park have to do with an anthem of hope and joy?

I never had a problem with a small Antex iron, since the 70s, I just used to fit a bigger bit and be patient when required. These days I have an Antex rework station with thermostatic hot air gun and low voltage temperature controlled 40W iron the size of my old 15W one. It's the dogs, but will set you back the price of a decent bass (or two if they are Hardly Bent-Ones). https://uk.farnell.com/antex/760rwk-uk/rework-station-60w-230v-uk-plug/dp/2422171

That's the benefit of hindsight, at the time it was neither clichéd, nor 80's rock. Well if it was, it was ahead of it's time in '79...

Glad you followed my advice on 'how to organise a pedal board'. 🙂

Clapton. Once he was brilliant. He lost his way with drugs and mental health issues. That racist rant can be, perhaps, forgiven but not forgotten. Not for being in a different context, but because he was screwed up. The worst aspect being that it was a kick in the teeth for all the people whose shoulders he had stood on, and others who were (and some who still are) his friends. It was certainly a nadir for a life that's had some ups and downs. But I'm willing to believe that wasn't the 'real' Clapton. It was sensibly, if not fully, explored in that recent documentary. I don't think his views were as deeply rooted as, say, Wagner's anti-semitism, but that doesn't stop me appreciating Wagner's music - it does help give it a context. But for Clapton, that rant doesn't seem to make any sense in the context of his life and music. Ironically when Clapton got his stinky poo back together, he had completely lost his edge, musically, at least as a songwriter. He can still achieve brilliance as a soloist, but like Mark Knopfler he's wholeheartedly embraced the middle of the musical road for his own output. And if we are all going to have any chance of living in harmony, we have to remember to 'hate the sin, not the sinner' and accept that people can change and redeem themselves {all said in a religion-neutral way].

Magnificent band, but I've only just realised that Demis Roussos is one of US

Sounds nice and rich.

If you're standing in front of a combo next to a drum kit your wrist may get more volume than your ears.

It's Lidl... so they tell you in the instruction booklet. A-weighting only. +/- 1.5dB @ 1kHz 'standard source'. And they give the A-weighting and tolerance in octave steps from 31.5Hz to 8Khz. It's +/- 1.5dB from 125Hz to 1Khz.

I picked up a sound meter at Lidl for £9.99. It claims to be accurate to +/- 1.5dB. Has the features you would expect including min/max and hold. The microphone appears to be 'unidirectionalish'. If its as reliable as most of their electronics it should have a number of practical uses, from checking on stage sound levels to comparing amps and speakers to tuning bass ports, especially tasks where comparisons are more important than absolute accuracy. May be off the shelves soon but I don't expect it to sell out rapidly...