High score

Sold some gear to funkgod this week. Really good guy to deal with, payment as promised. Highly recommend him to any BCrs. Oh and funkgod? I never let first or last go............they all go down..........harr harr

[quote name='mrtcat' post='913918' date='Aug 3 2010, 02:43 PM']Hey High Score, Thanks so much for your help. As it happens I'm going to be in Leeds next week so will give them a call and see if it's worth letting them take a look. Much of what you say tally's perfectly especially the tripping out the electrics on start up. Thanks again Tom[/quote] Your Welcome 'Cat, Tripping on start up can be cured. There is actually a thread on this site about it already. Audiolabs do a permanent internal fix but not exactly cheap - especially when the parts cost around £1.50. Interested how you get on with this mate........... HS

Have one and they are monsters. Usual issues are: - noisy cooling fan - tripping out mains supply on start up - USA got a free 'softstart' upgrade due to design fault, UK have to pay for it..... - taking out their own power supply or output stage - very terminal. The noise you describe sounds like valves - have you changed them? Has the jack socket been damaged in some way? Takes a lot to snap off a jack plug IMO and wonder if the unit has been dropped? The UK repair shop for Ampeg is in Leeds and they are very good. Suggest you contact them - if you can't get details from your muso shop, I can dig contacts out for you - got them some where. Ok, found them: Audiolabs, Leeds, 01132440378 Hope it helps Cat HS

Just wondered, saw a new Grabber 2 for around £700 and wondered if it was any good or Gibbo simplying re-hashing some old chat. HS

Seen Gibson bass called a Grabber. Some sort of 70's or 80's re-issue. Anyone tried one? HS

[quote name='Marvin' post='829849' date='May 6 2010, 05:39 PM']I posted a thread about tone several months ago. In it several posts referred to the mids in getting their tone, specifically cetera. Since Christmas I've been playing through a zoom pedal and got a little sidetracked, however this afternoon I was twiddling with my practice amp and remembered what cetera said about inverting the usual U shaped eq that many of us go for. And.......oh yes, push up those mids, turn down the bass and treble (but not too much) and what a difference. Literally a tone I've been looking for. Two problems though. The zoom pedal is not needed (although I suppose I could try and get the same result through it) and the amp I was using is only a 35w practice job so not really suited to anywhere outside the living room . I just wanted to share that. Don't forget those mids. [/quote] Ha ha, a bass player who is a sound mans dream. Not only will you have more definition but you will most likely be far clearer and sit in the overall band mix better as well. Just my tuppence worth HS

[quote name='Me And My Bass' post='755862' date='Feb 24 2010, 10:04 AM']Thanks for your reply Phil, Yeah the XTi 2000 does clip (and sometimes cut itself off altogether when we are pushing it!). The problem being the vocalists level is hot as well, we have compressors in place though for him. I think possilby adding the bins is the best way to go then just for the bass rig and kick drum, that would free up the main rig for all Vocals, accustic guitar, sax, electric guitar & some kit. I do the sound live from the stage (we are only playing bars and small/medium clubs), l would love a soundman to do it though! Am l on the right track if l was going to go ahead with the extra bins, using an Aux channel for that mix to them? Any ideas for what l should be looking for? Im thinking two 500 bins and an 1k amp for them. Im currently using an Agulier DB410 & 500SC amp which can hold its own onstage. Anyone selling any bins? Cheers, Jab![/quote] You got your work cut out doing the desk from stage so all credit to you. You got a really good rig however a good rule of thumb is having bass power twice that of your tops so it may be a little underpowered if you ever need to stretch the PAs legs in a larger venue. You can add more bass to this rig fairly comfortably but may need another speaker, amp and cross over to do it. I would also suggest experimenting with the bass eq on the desk before investing in more expensive (and heavy) gear. This might allow you to place it better within the mix and certainly help reduce clipping. Remember that when you add more on the EQ the signal is hotter - less is usually more so try cutting and not adding on the EQ. I would also suggest you read up on gain structure as you may not be optimising the gear you have. The indication that you are tripping through overload means you have not set the gain structure up properly for your PA and will sadly burn it out eventually. I can post you some good guides if you can't find this info. Good luck. Iain

[quote name='AttitudeCastle' post='627688' date='Oct 16 2009, 10:22 AM']Hey Guys, I just spend almost all my money and plan to spend the rest of it on gear, so i want to have it insured just in case! my families house insurance only covers your stuff over £500 when its at home, once taken out the house the contrcat is seen as broken, i went through all this with my trombone, but when i joined an orchestra they had insurance that covers every member all the time that was that sorted, so i want to insure my Bass and amps and all that jazz where do i go? how much will it cost? etc anyone? Adam,[/quote] Use specialist cover such as Endsleigh. I tried to cover my instruments and amps on my home insurance and was quoted over £50 per item. Just a ridiculous figure at the end of the day. Iain

[quote name='budget bassist' post='711739' date='Jan 13 2010, 06:53 PM']in the sound engineering world, reverb on bass is generally a bit of a nono[/quote] +1 if mixing a band I would urge against it due to the potential to muddy the mix - especially in closely confined venues. Heard it use effectively on other instruments and vocals but feel it's use on bass should be used selectively in a live environment Just my thoughts.......

Try Audio Labs in Leeds. Audio Laboratories T - 0113 244 0378 [email protected] 3 Kildare Terrace Industrial Estate Leeds LS12 1DB Do just about all the servicing and warranty work for the main importers including Ampeg. Iain

Main issues with sound limiting systems is that they are based around one small section of the ring main so it is a complete power trip and not a controlled shut down so any programmable equipment tends to get wiped out. It also not unknown for it to reboot itself which is not clever either. These sytems are usually forced on the venue due to noise complaints so that when the venue applies for it's next entertainments license, the local council/ police will consider the objections and push for an installation. The main trouble is the level the system is set at. What has been stated in previous threads shows is set it may be the same as ambient noise which is bizarre. I have tested a venues system and found the traffic noise outside to be higher than the sound level control system inside the room. I hate to admit it but I have bypassed as well but be warned, local authorities can and will do random monitoring and if you have tampered with the small pickup (usually in the ceiling) or bypassed the system by using power outwith the controlled ring main then the penalties are pretty stiff for both the performers and venue. Unfortunately, it can only be bad for live music.............

Just sold Dave the very last of my mics - smashing guy to deal with, good communications with no nonsense payment and comes highly recommended Iain

[quote name='beardybass' post='559378' date='Aug 3 2009, 04:31 PM']Don't think that qualifies as a winge mate, that's a genuine case of U.K. customers getting the unsanitary end of the stick once again. Did you end up buying one? If so, did you go daft expensive U.K. one, or less expensive but more complicated U.S. one?[/quote] I ended up buying one but through Thomann in Germany and saved over £50. Took them several months to get it for me from the US but worth the wait and they were exceptional to deal with - did not even want a deposit for it up front and called some months later to say it was on it's way. In between, I ''borrowed'' one from a shop that subsequently went bust. Always nice when there is a happy ending.............phnarr phnarr On another winge trail, was looking through some of my older guitar mags recently and the price rises from the Importers have been horriffic with a Gibbo Les Paul going up over £600 in a little over three years. Something wrong with this picture...........Perhaps it is about time the Uk stopped being ''treasure island''...........

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='559335' date='Aug 3 2009, 04:05 PM']I don't think there's really much you can't get here, it's just that stuff in the US seems a lot cheaper than here.[/quote] too true. needed an orginal foot pedal for an out of production mesa guitar amp (Nomad 55). Price in the US was $75, cost in the UK was £185 and this was when we were nearly 2 $ to the £. Land of the rip off.......what made it worse was that MESA will not deal directly with any punter outside the US meaning you have to use the distributor. winge over now

[quote name='woolleydick' post='307577' date='Oct 16 2008, 08:28 AM']Thought I had better share this. I know there have been previous threads but when it comes to this sort of thing there is no problem repeating the advice. In mid song last night (first track of the rehearsal) I went to move the mic' on it's stand in front of my amp as I was not happy with the tone. I experienced a serious electric shock which caused me to spin round holding the mic' stand and fall over onto it. At this point I stop remembering anything until I came round surrounded by freaked out band members calling for an ambulance. They tell me they first thought I was having some sort of fit until they touched me and also received a shock. They then "pulled the plug" on the stage power. I was probably live for around 10 seconds max (to them it seemed longer). Any longer than this and I suspect I would not be telling you about this. I reportedly stopped breathing for a few seconds after the power was disconnected. I suffered multiple burns to my hands and chest (from falling on the mic' stand/mic' and still being in the circuit). We locked the rehearsal facility (which was designed and built by the lead singer), and the full investigation starts today as to where the fault comes from. I will let you know the results. NOTE - I did not have my own RCD in the circuit nor did the PA. I suspect the rehearsal facility does not have a functioning RCD. Always check you are properly protected before you start. I was seconds away from death last night - please do not repeat my experience Thanks. PS the Status Streamline survived unscathed although I did change the strings and clean off the scorch marks from the neck once I got home.[/quote] Sorry to hear about this but you had a very very lucky escape but at least you live to fight another day....... I have done live sound for many years and would always insist the band used my connecting cables to connect their kit to regardless of what the venue had because I ensured the wring could handle heavy current without overheating and always used rcd on every single extension. This might sound a bit anal but I lost count the number of times I saw players with pints on their amps as well as the inevitable piss head wandering around front of stage with beer in hand !! If your mate wired this up as an installation, he clearly does not know what he is doing nor has he had it checked out by a qualified sparky. Something seriously wrong if the stand and mic have gone live................ Lastly, you should still get checked out cos severe shock can create irregular heart beat as well..........

[quote name='bassman2790' post='547295' date='Jul 22 2009, 08:45 AM']Last night's rehearsal started like any other. I plugged into the bass rig provided in room 3, a Behringer HA3000 through a Peavey 410TVX. I fiddled with the parametric eq until I achieved an approximation of 'my sound' and the rehearsal began. Now I'd heard previously about bass frequencies hanging around in corners like a bunch of chavs with a spiff and also seen 'corner bass traps' advertised in the Studio Spares catalogue but, half way through the rehearsal, the vocalist vacates his spot in the corner to my right and drags his mic and stand to the centre of the wall opposite the drums. Being the wandering minstrel that I am, I moved over into the vacated corner and [b] [/b]. The effect was immense. No more volume from the bass but so much more clean low end. Stepping forward four feet defeated the effect. I got both the guitarist and the drummer to experience the effect with similar huge grin results. Simply dialling in more low end on the amp just made the cab sound boomy and wooly not like the sound in the corner. This just demonstrates to me the complex nature of bass frequencies. Even with a cab with excellent off-axis response, there's always going to be someone in your audience either sat in a bass trap (they'll be the one telling you your bass is too loud at half time) or in an area where out-of-phase reflections cancel out your cabs output causing a bass void. The only way forward is for the audience to all wear headphones .[/quote] +1 totally right but unfortunately we don't live in a hifi designed world and instead gig in pubs that are designed for kids playrooms instead. This means there is invariably a trade off due to sound reflections and available 'postage stamp' space you are given for setup!! At least you have recognised that increasing the bass level (vol and/or eq) may give you a woolly effect. As well as exploring sweet spots with levels, try exploring the eq range as well and perhaps cutting the low end slightly and increasing mids - often less is more. You should also be aware that finding sweet spots in practice will be different from venue to venue but now you are aware of it. This is why a soundman will commonly be placed where he/she is but they are also aware that it is not 100% in all corners of the room. Enjoy exploring the sounds your gear gives though - lots of bands don't............

[quote name='beerdragon' post='539870' date='Jul 13 2009, 11:13 PM']Talking to a couple of mates who are in a band last night and they were telling me that a guy who runs a pub that both their band and ours play at has had a visit from the tax man and for some reason he given the tax man contact numbers belonging to all he bands that have played. this apparently is for the year 07. we played there once that year. i am going to get all of the story if i can before i say any more. this could be interesting. does anyone have any experience of the tax man and their band?[/quote] Bands are a hot topic for the tax man and classed as a bit of a black economy. One the respondents said keep all your receipts - this is essential cos the tax man will go back approx 7 years. They may estimate a bill then have you challenge it. Guilty until proven innocent and ''name giving'' seems to be more common among the larger chain pubs. It sounds to me like the landlord has been rumbled for something and then spilled his/her guts. It is unlikely the taxman will go through all of the names but more likely pick those that have been identified previously or are recurring. I wouldn't worry about it to be honest but take a lot of care from now on that you keep a diary of all your venues, how much paid, distance travelled etc. That way you will at least be partially covered.

Like a lot of people on this site, I have amassed a fair music collection - most of which were originally bought on vinyl, replaced with cd and ultimately loaded onto iPOD. Cruising through it I have been revisiting King Crimsons RED, STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK and to be honest I was blown away all over again. I had completely forgotten how ferking awesome this stuff was with bass playing to die for!! I concede to being an old fart and bought this in the early 70's (1974??) on vinyl but still love it............ Anyone else rediscovered hot stuff that has been hidden away for too long?

[quote name='Dmanlamius' post='518744' date='Jun 19 2009, 07:03 PM'][url="http://mrlamius.blogspot.com/2009/06/bass-lesson-archive.html"]Bass lesson archive[/url] It covers everything from beginners riffs, the major scale, Slap and pop lessons, tapping lessons, introduction to chords, hand and tendon exercises, explanations of what's what on the bass, advice on buying on bass, history of the bass, advice on playing with a pick, advice concerning musical ruts, fretbuzz, tips on timing, time signatures explanations, how to read tabs, how to learn the notes on the board, the role of the bass player loads of songs to learn, including: Seven nation army Under the bridge Creep If you want me to stay Territorial pissings Play that funky music Come together Cannonball Roxanne Stand by me As well as this, I teach funk lines from my own repertoire. I show the line, teach the line, and then there is a beat for you to practice the line to. My interviews with great bass players, including Dave Ellefson (megadeth), Jeff schmidt, Jean Baudin, MarloweDK and others. Also my "Jam with D'man" series. Here, I play guitar along with a beat for bass players to write lines to. We already have some great replies here, via my youtube channel. There is loads of other stuff you guys may want to check out as well! I sincerely hope it helps you. [i] Take care.[/i] Kris [/quote] Had a quick scan and looks good. Going on holiday but will dig into this on my return in a weeks time......... Thanks !!

[quote name='Mr.T' post='515048' date='Jun 16 2009, 10:05 AM']During our last few gigs, there has been a booming/feedback sound coming through the bands PA every now and again. It seems to be when our singer isn't standing between his mic. and my bass gear. I can't seem to get him to physically 'shield' his mic. and stop waving it around.... so I am wondering if he has set-up his amp differently, and what I can do about this.[/quote] Your songster will probably be using a basic cardioid mic which, due to it's pick up pattern, will be obviously sensitive to anything that feeds directly into or to the side of it. In addition, smaller venues will reflect sound so if the feedback is low level then it is likely your rig. You have asked the songster to help and he has ignored it and I suppose smacking him is out of the question so I suggest you: - position your rig so that you are off centre to him with the bass speaker slightly turned away from him - may only partially help because of the omni directional effect of bass. Try cutting the low level on your amp EQ a little - If you are going through the desk as well, make sure all mics are behind the pa and any monitors are in front of the singer (cardioid type mics). You might also want to cut the lowel level on the desk EQ a little - buy a basic rack 'gate' for the desk that will effectively close off the singers mic when he is not directly singing into it and effectively block your low level input. Cost around £45 upwards. The last one is probably your most realistic approach because songsters tend to be wired differently to the rest of the world and after all you should not be adapting your setup cos he is a Songster !!

[quote name='KASH' post='511149' date='Jun 11 2009, 01:13 PM'][url="http://www.flightcasewarehouse.co.uk/music/typeproducts2.asp?id=3860-4334"]http://www.flightcasewarehouse.co.uk/music...sp?id=3860-4334[/url] quite cheap, anyone has one?[/quote] used these guys for aluminium type flight cases and they are very good indeed to deal with. Not tried them for abs cases but I have a few (gator etc) and this one looks pretty well made with the benefit of being a reasonable price and will probably be fairly light weight - a bonus ball when lugging gear around venues!!

Had another painless, no nonsense deal with Keith. Pleasure to deal with and would highly recommend him. Iain.

[quote name='GM10' post='501791' date='May 30 2009, 05:38 PM']Hi All I've split my garage in half and built a practise room/poor man's studio. It's double brick with breeze block splitting the garage from the music room. I've used std insulation, sound insulating plasterboard on the false ceiling and four walls and concreted the floor. The music room has seperate access through an external wood side door. I am planning to hang my two electric guitars from the wall but I'm also thinking of putting an acoustic bass and guitar in there. I was thinking of some kind of heater with a thermostat to warm the room when it got below a certain temperature? The room does stay cool in warm temperatures so I'm not that worried about it getting too warm. Could anybody offer me any advice on this?[/quote] Congrats on getting your own muisc room...........I would kill to have my own space........... With most gear it is not the temperature but the combined effects of humidity and temperature variation. If you are using an electric heater this will give you a ''dry heat'' so you will need to think about controlling the humidity as well. I don't think I would store my gear in this environment. If I did I would keep it cased at the very least.

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='500557' date='May 29 2009, 07:29 AM']Sometimes people don't have the flexibility to move cabs around if they're on a crowded or small stage, Alex. Parametric eq is also used by every competent sound engineer with access to a mixing desk at a gig.[/quote] Totally agree. The ability to place gear on stage is more often than not space driven instead of best sound. Main issue I see is the wooden decking or hollow floor you are playing on. This will create a very low ''rumble'' as certain frquencies resonate so try experimenting with any EQ you have on your amp and lightly cut within the 40-100hz band. If going through a desk, the Sound Man can either use the 80-100Hz pad on his desk (not normally used on bass and little severe) or will certainly exploit the swept EQ available to him by cutting the lower band and possibly slightly increasing the lower mids to place you in the mix. Ideally he will EQ the room for your channel anyway because if the bass rumble is as bad as you say it is, it may swamp the stage sound.