chris_b

I agree about the ego. An ego in check is a great asset to a performer. It's when the ego gets out of control and takes over or when it starts to exceed the talent that's when all the problems start.

I used to gig my Bergantino AE112 and my regular 500 watt amp with an acoustic guitarist. Great tone at very low volume. I prefer the sound of bigger speakers so the smallest I'd go would be a Barefaced One 10 and a small 300 watt amp. You need light, as loud as you want and good quality tone and headroom that won't break the bank.

It's a great time to be a bass player.

Not really. A few years ago I got £80 for 3 numbers on the Paul Jones R2 show. Then that was the standard rate, and I guess it was negotiated with the MU. I don't know if TV has a different rate, but I guess that with the coverage that the Beeb provides most bands would agree that the exposure is worth it.

I've seen many bands "having fun" and sounding crap. Whatever your reason for playing, if you're sounding crap you're getting in the way of better bands. So some guys "bounce around" for 2 sets and think that's where it's at. My earlier point was that more playing makes you a better musician, a better player, a better band. It's a different approach. You don't run a mile the same way you run a sprint. The guys who can do it get better the guys who can't, should stop. In my book, either way, it's a good outcome. The money is important. It has nothing to do with being "mercenary", "trying to get rich", "we're only in it to have fun" or any thing else. The bottom line is because most of us are playing in a commercial environment and if someone is making money out of our playing then we should be too.

Jesse Winchester writes some beautiful and poignant songs. There are several that can stop you in your tracks, but I've chosen this one. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wESV43Ks6Zg"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wESV43Ks6Zg[/url]

[quote name='spectoremg' timestamp='1442604126' post='2868230'] And of course the ones who work cheap. [/quote] The BBC pays the same for everyone.

I know, we need to remember our place.

"Solid" also smacks of damming with faint praise. I've been called a "solid" player, which I know was intended in a positive way. I'll take the compliment but "solid" is not where I want to be. "Solid" is the starting point, a given, a basic minimum. "Solid" without any other positive adjectives should not be what we aspire to.

There are a lot of British bands who could do with putting in the time. Many of the guys you see playing in pubs and clubs have no groove and are plainly not listening to each other or playing as a unit. Hopefully if you had to play for 4 hours a night the bad and indifferent players would fall by the way side and the whole music scene would improve.

Thank goodness for hard drive recorders. Some weeks I find I've fast forwarded through the whole program. It's a shame. There are so many good artists and bands touring but Later just seem to have a knack of choosing the people who are not interesting to me. Vintage Trouble are touring soon. I wonder If they'll be on. Somehow I doubt it.

I think the folder at the bottom left hand side puts it all into perspective.

Stu, You've got a pretty good rig already and the simple solution is to turn the volume down, if your back is a concern and you need a lighter, more powerful, modular alternative you could use two 112 cabs. I spent years with two Bergantino AE112 cabs. Together they have a great sound at volume and one works very well in quiet situations. You could add a 112 to your 212 but your amp only goes to 4 ohms. The RH version of your amp will go to 2.6 ohms so you could buy that and an RS112 and run the 2 cabs together and separate. The ultimate modular set up. IMO, the better loud, light and modular cab solution is 2 of the Barefaced 112's.

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1442460550' post='2867119'] I joined my band for years ago because it was a job, a paying job. Not wishing well of creativity. Now, while it's a job, it's a very fun job. [/quote] +1 If you think that music is on a par with a round of golf you'll probably have a different view. I've played with people who weren't very good players, were awful people and played numbers I didn't particularly like, but working, earning, enjoying it, staying match fit, networking, none of these things happen if, for whatever reason, you're sitting at home. This is not a hobby, but by doggedly following a "glass half full" philosophy, I have managed to play more fantastic numbers with good players and in great bands than bad. One thing always leads to another and great things can emerge from hopeless situations. You've got to use your judgement and make sure you're there when it happens. IMO, there are enough problems out there in band-land without us making anything more difficult for ourselves than it already is.

I'm fine with a band being a total dictatorship. I was in one of those a few years ago. The good players, interesting set and considerable amounts of dosh made it all worthwhile. I've found that if you respect the fact that it's not your band most band leaders are open to positive and helpful suggestions.

Good news. What 12 did you go for? Are you still using the 2x8?

In my experience it's spaghetti junction on the guitarist's side of the stage and neat and tidy on the bass players side. The guys in bands I play in are always running cables across "my space". I have to rerun their cables if they do that. I can't stand treading on cables when I'm playing.

MJ used to own the Beatles songs, but sold them on a long time ago, I believe to Sony, to try to pay off some of his massive debts.

You're climbing stairs. Every so often you find yourself on a landing. Then you start going up stairs again. Joining a good band, or buying a good bass, amp or cab can do the same thing. You can also force the issue with lessons. A good teacher will open many doors to a player wanting to learn.

. . . . neither is Ringo. I would imagine it's Apple, whoever puts their music and videos out and their publisher, who I believe is Sony, who made a business decision to tidy up all the old video tape and put them out as a collectors package. I'd be very surprised if Paul or Ringo would have any input.

The Berg IP range were fantastic sounding cabs. I have not seen one comment that says otherwise. The B|amp is an implementation that puts the IP/DSP technology into a head. I have no doubt it will be yet another Berg innovation that moves bass playing to another level.

That Frank Sartre always had his finger on the pulse when it came to drummers.

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1442281334' post='2865746'] I no longer car about musical input. I don't care about what songs we play, musical direction of the band or what I like or dislike playing or what other people in the band are doing in terms of the strengths of their individual performances. None of those things have anything to do with my role and place in my band. Month's where we don't have much booked, that's something I'm concerned about. [/quote] I know exactly how you feel. I go through patches where I feel the same, but, to quote Lee Sklar, "I give a sh*t", so I try to push, cajole and suggest ways of dealing with "problems the band might have. The cover band just lost a drummer we've been playing with for nearly 10 years. He was good, but lazy, and was getting lazier by the week. He [i]didn't [/i]give a sh*t, but we (because I made us) spent 3 months trying to get him back up to speed. It didn't work and so he's gone. That's going to be a very big change to my playing life, but he will be replaced and the gigs will (always) go on. At this point in my playing life the motto is "Never give up".

Not for me. I like single cuts but only along the lines of the Anthony Jackson Fodera, or the Rob Allen Deep basses, or, at a pinch, the Ken Lawrence Brase series.

+1 I'm a long time Berg cab user and fan but while I was initially very interested in this amp, the more I find out the less bothered I'm feeling about it. I'm just not interested in flipping through screens to set up, alter or adjust the amp. I got rid of my RH750 because I didn't want 2 tier controls and sadly this amp is doing exactly the same thing.