chris_b

If you are in a band where those are 3 things you have to worry about then your tone and the sound of the band are the least of your problems.

I believe Charlie and Doug had the first Plek machine in the country and were responsible for a lot of the development in the early days.

If this were the case people wouldn't be trying to sound like Cliff Burton and Steve Harris etc. Heavy bands are no different to any other band. Your tone is the most important thing you can get right for you and for the band. All band members making their sound fit into the band mix is the next objective. Sounding good on stage and bad in the room, and vice versa, is a fact of life. . . . occasionally. . . . but if you get that on every gig, there is something wrong with your signal chain.

Sorry but I disagree 100% with that. Having a good balance in the band has nothing to do with each musicians sound. If you don't have a good balance then you have to get one. If you have someone in the band who won't compromise on tone or volume fire them. If you can't fire them drown them out. Once you fix the band issues you'd better not sound bad. So your tone does matter. I know from experience that if you sound good you will play better. IMO every part of the signal chain has an effect on the sound of your bass. It's accumulative, one thing can't make you sound great, but one thing can make you sound bad. If you've made the right decisions and your signal chain is working well, you've got yourself a unicorn rig. Now you just have to combat the room!!

All OK for me Windows 8.1 Luddite

Other normal stuff people can't do. . . . We've been asked to put digital clocks up during University exams. . . . because many students can't read the time from traditional clocks!!! Sounds like something is missing in their education.

My wife still laughs about my dance moves from the 70's!! Strange, cos I'm certain they were the height of cool.

Really? Most professional PA systems are powered by D class amps.

I'm a Precision guy, so I want fat, warm, articulate and clean. Thump and low mid fullness required in spades.

Guys, has anyone experience of replacing the standard pickups on a Sandberg TT5 Jazz bass with Bartolini Dual In-line Hum Cancelling pickups? I believe these are the 59J model. I have a Sandberg TT5 which sounds OK, but I need better than OK, so I'm looking at these Barts as a replacement. Any comments. Cheers

Sire, @Merton's ACG and Lakland Skylines would be on my list.

The French don't call it the English Channel but that doesn’t seem to be an issue, so if everyone calls it the Gulf of Mexico, that's what it is.

I haven't seen any gigs restricting the number of musicians! I do a lot of guitar, bass and drums gigs. The money is better but there's no room for other musicians in the arrangements.

I have bought basses that have been Pleked, but never had a bass Pleked, so I have no before/after experience. I've owned several basses that I thought were the best and played like a dream. I had a full service and set up done by the Bass Gallery, and my fantastic basses came back playing even better. Now, whenever I buy a new bass I take it to the Gallery for them to wave their magic wand.

I've used a bar stool as well. Depends on the band, sometimes it doesn't look right and other times it doesn't look out of place. Like most things bass, no one else seems to care.

I have Pro 17's and Pro 26's, for when I'm playing with a certain guitarist!!

My solution to extend my gigging life was to get a Barefaced 112 at 10kg/21lbs, a folding trolley, a D class amp at 5lbs, and as a backup, just in case I need to go even lighter, I have 2 Barefaced One10's at 7kg/15lbs. I now have 3 basses that weigh less than 3.2kg/7.1lbs and use a bar stool if my back is playing up.

Glad to hear you finally have finally resolved your back issues.

I've heard good things about the Alexander Technique. Coupled with a good work out routine, to strengthen your core, should resolve most problems.

ACS, ACS, ACS

We had a guitarist do that, except no message. One day he was here, next day he wasn't. Didn't answer any calls or other forms of communication. It was a good band but without him it just folded! A waste of a good band.

65? Tut. . . . a mere youngster.

Those 4" heels were killers. I was glad when I stopped wearing mine!

I hope the floor is reinforced!

Shame you're thinking of hanging up your bass. Bass has never been a hobby for me. Even if a band felt like work, it was always a million times better than w-o-r-k! I've worked with some a-hole band leaders but the a-hole managers were always worse. Good luck. . . . don't sell all your gear. . . . you'll be back.