moonbass

Well, by the time I'd switched to my rig it wasn't worth trying it with a DI as the Genz has a decent DI (although also has a bit of a hum!) Just wondered about Ampeg for possible future purchasing purposes. The fan noise issue is also a bit of a pain though!

No, I used the same xlr cable to my Streamliner 900 and it was fine. It was a touring Ampeg rig, so probably just an electrical fault it's picked up. Reassuring to know; thanks alll. Those Ampegs do sound gorgeous though! If I just had a van... And a roadie... And a spare couple of grand...

Played through an Ampeg SVT 4 in the studio yesterday, and ended up changing back to my own rig because the DI out, although a great tone, had a horrible hum on it. I've had this before on several amps and it was solved with a ground lift switch, but the SVT doesn't have one. Just wondered if this is a problem with all Ampegs or if it's just this one?

If you're not decided on Fender vs Musicman can I suggest you try a Precision 5 as well; to me it's a closer comparison than the Jazz to a Stingray for sitting well in a mix.
Also as much as I love my Stingray 5 I still find myself endlessly tweaking the tone to sit right on recordings whereas Fender (despite lower build quality generally) are just 'there'.
And Stingrays do seem to still have that weak G string (although not generally as marked as the Stingray 4).

Hi. Yes, still available, but only for pickup from Cambridge. PM me if interested.

Well, despite all the sage advice above I've been seized by a moment of madness and ordered two Mackie HD1501's! (I'm afraid my joinery and electronics skills leave a lot to be desired bertbass!) They have 2 year warranty on speakers and and 3 on electronics so if all goes wrong hopefully there will be some support.
I guess you only learn through mistakes, but so far (touch a lot of wood) all my Mackie stuff has been reliable. The HD1501's just seem to hit the right spot for size, price and power. They should be with me for the next gig in 2 weeks time so I guess I'll let you know how it goes!
By the way, does anyone know if subs like this need running in before first proper use? (I don't plan to have them going full tilt at the gig anyway, but I'd rather play things safe as possible!)
A

Thanks Monckyman, that's useful info - there seem to be a heck of a lot of disaster stories with Mackie subs going back years; you'd have thought they'd have done something about it!
Anyone got any suggestions about other sub makes? Behringer seem very cheap, and they seem to be getting a lot of things right recently!
Or separate power amp and cabs - would need a crossover as well so could get expensive...
A.

Hi,
I'm looking at buying a subwoofer to go with Mackie SRM450 tops. The logical choice would be the Mackie SRM1801 or HD1801 (or 1501). Anybody got any experience of them and relative merits for the price?
I've heard mixed reports on Mackie subs reliability though, so has anyone tried other makes out with Mackie tops and had success?
It's a fair amount of money down the drain if things go wrong so all opinions appreciated. If it helps the band is an 8-piece function band and it would mostly be for supporting the kick drum in medium sized venues.
Cheers, Andy.

I don't think anyone's posted about this before (apologies if they have), but...

Loving Ben Howard's music at the moment. If you get a spare half hour this set from SXSW is well worth a look, BUT...
Check out 11 minutes onwards for his drummer playing bass, drumming and singing simultaneously. Yes people, we could finally rid the world of the drummer menace!:

http://www.baeblemusic.com/concert-video/The-Launch-Pad/Ben-Howard.html

Andy

At the risk of pushing this thread (and some people's tastes) too far, I've always thought this was the essence of pop:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOvcytygY_M&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Just bought a rack case off Martin. Speedy service, excellent communication, perfect nick and the packaging was incredible! Cheers matey.
Andy

If you're using your own amplifier could you get a headphone line out and use a small in ear headphone bud in one ear to monitor yourself? Or find/add another preamp with a headphone out capability?

Hi. I'm up for the bash again this year. Almost completely different gear from last year (embarrassingly!):

Stingray 5
Fender Precision 5
Genz Benz Streamliner 900
Vanderkley 112 EXTs

I think a simultaneous jam band is a great idea. I'm happy to bring guitar/PA gear if it will help. Sounds like an evening gig could be more stress/cost than it's worth; I'm sure we could do some collecting for charity during the afternoon.
Andy

Well, all I'd say is that there are plenty of decent cheap (-ish) condenser mics out there that will record most sounds a lot nicer than a similarly priced dynamics.

[quote name='charic' timestamp='1331024430' post='1566308']
Evil microphones!!

For a condenser on a budget : [url="http://www.dv247.com/microphones/rode-nt1-a-complete-vocal-recording-solution--68605"]http://www.dv247.com...solution--68605[/url]

[/quote]

Yeah, but to be fair they're both £60+ more expensive!
(Don't get me wrong, I know the Rode sounds a lot better, but you what you pay for)

You might want to have a look at an AKG C1000s. If you're new to recording its pretty foolproof as you can use it a bit like a dynamic mic but get the 'breathy' high frequency quality that something like a SM57 would miss on vocals or acoustic guitar, or sax for that matter. You can use it on anything with very acceptable results though ( and I have!) I've had a pair for 12 years and they're still going strong. Most suppliers seem to have them at £99 so a bit of a bargain really (but it's worth making a pop shield out of a coat hanger and some tights if you're going to use a condenser mic for vocals!)

Aw, this used to be my bass. Lovely, lovely instrument. Still the best build quality I've ever seen. Buy with confidence; excellent value.

+1 for Shadows and Light. Hejira is my favourite track - the band working together are just sublime.

For me it was, rather ironically, the synth bass intro to Weather Reports Birdland. The song gets a bit tricky after that like, but the intro, especially if played with a drummer, is a good level of challenge for a beginner with a good ear. I used to play it for hours!

Wow!

I think Jaco usually DI'd into the desk for recording, but for Joni of that era it was probably a very nice valve driven desk!

How about Stone Cold Bush; dead romantic!
Or for something a little more esoteric go for the slap solo from the remix of Higher Ground from Out in LA.

This is quite a nice summary of 12 bars:

http://www.jazzguitar.be/jazz_blues_chord_progressions.html

[quote name='steve-soar' timestamp='1327782840' post='1516819']
T bird, ampeg, job done. Played with fingers.

[url="http://soundcloud.com/steve-soar/02-breathing-underwater"]http://soundcloud.com/steve-soar/02-breathing-underwater[/url]
[/quote]

Lovely recording. Why did you have to press 9v batteries up against speaker cones though? I'm intrigued!

I think it's a nice sound, but from your description it sounds like you're not so keen on the high mids which do seem a little rattley. A few things I'd try:
-I know you weren't so bothered about the playing but perhaps raising the action a hair and using a touch of vivrato would mellow the top notes
-What DI are you using? Sounds like a different one, or even going through a desk with a nice preamp would help. Either that or try the DI out of a 'valve-ish' head (I'm currently getting lovely results with GB Streamliner.)
-In your recording platform try taking out some high mids. As an amateur I'm fairly fond of presets, and for speed I often duplicate the recorded line and in Logic use two different sounds on each. For instance sixties finger style and sixties pick style channel presets work very well together to make tracks a lot more warm. (I guess it's a but like adding a DI signal to a mic'ed signal.)
Andy