chris_b

What combo are you using at the moment. I don't know what your definition of "heavy rock" is, but mine would necessitate a lot more than a 110!! Tell us what you are upgrading from and we might be able to give some sensible advice.

They were the first white band on Motown. Nice guys and funky as flip!

How do you choose? First concert - John Mayall, The Georgian Club, Cowley, Uxbridge 1965 Last concert - Keb Mo, Subterranea 2020 Best concert - Doobie Brothers, Rare Earth, Jo Jo Gunne that we opened for 1973 Worst concert - Can't think of any gig that disappointed me Loudest concert - Tony Williams Lifetime, The Marquee 1970 Seen the most - John Mayall Most surprising - Jimi Hendrix, Ricky tick, Hounslow, 1967 Next concert - none lined up Wish I would have seen - Beatles at the Cavern and Rolling Stones at Eel Pie Island

Err. . . . very political!

Regarding the advice to "nudge the neck over a bit". It would worry me more if the neck and body join had any play in it and the neck wasn't held tightly in place by the body. I'd try putting small shims between the bridge saddles to line the strings up.

I wouldn't worry then.

What does the bass sound like?

I guess you were talking to me? If the truss rod was a problem I'd fix it or have it fixed. The fact that I don't find I need to adjust my bass depending on the season is the reason for my reply.

The vocals sounded pretty good to me. Mark King isn't exactly a Pavarotti either.

This. When I buy a bass I take it to The Bass Gallery for a set up and to have the frets levelled. I've never "tweaked" a truss rod on any bass I've owned.

Excellent. I'm not a Level 42 fan, but I liked that. You've put a lot of work into this band and it shows. Also, that's a good video. Doesn't jump around too much.

I have Martin set up and check the frets on every bass I buy. It doesn't matter how good they are going in, they always come back playing better. If the guys working in these shops aren't bass players then they won't have a clue what we want from our instruments. Which is another way of saying poor customer service.

The Blues Brothers, although they cheated by gigging after making the film. The Majestics Billy Mack

I think my last sentence covers that.

You have a signal chain, from your fingers to the cone. Every bit counts towards the final sound. And then you have the audience and the room. All your gear should be good, but the cabs do the heavy lifting and they should be the best you can afford. The rule of thumb in the old hi-fi days was to spend 50% of your budget on the speakers. That's how important cabs are to your final sound. Cabs are still important if you are DIing, then its the PA cabs and your monitors that are critical.

IMO the op is worrying about the wrong thing. It's a cover band and he's the bass player so he should be playing the bass lines and they should be his interpretation of the original. His personality should be in those lines. I always listen to the original lines, then I'll decide how close I want to stick to them. IMO as long as you don't compromise the spirit and feel of the song, get in there and make the songs yours.

As Phil says, it should do. With DSP the sound ought to be better because the amp has been tuned specifically to that cab and driver.

It's a bass line. . . . . . you're a bass player. . . . . . . so you play it.

Tell him your bass lines are better and to keep his suggestions to himself.

If you're only running a 410 at 40-50% what are you going to do with 2000 watts?

I believe multi-scale brings tuning and string tension benefits. It's like the difference between blended whiskey and a single malt. Can you tell the difference? Can you appreciate the difference? There is no right answer, just a personal preference.

Looks like the MM SR5 has been replaced by a Sire. She's sounding as good as ever.

I popped in at about 12.30. Chris May had 8 basses on dis[play, very nice ones too. Phil Mulford and Phil Mann (with his signature basses) were there. I couldn't stay long and it started filling up as I was leaving, with Mo Foster, entourage and others arriving. If I had a gig where I could sit down during the show I'd have bought an Overwater years ago.

It's not really a minefield. These days you have to try really hard to make choices that end up not sounding good. If you're too quiet for the band you'll have to start catching up with unnecessary upgrades. Also you don't want to be pushing either amp or cab hard enough to sound bad or break something. I'd start by looking at 500 watt amps and good cabs, either 2 112's, a 212 or a 210.