Skybone

Jeez, I keep going round in circles here. Been looking at various active participation speakers, like the RCF ART & the Yamaha DBR, but then I'm back into dedicated bass combo territory. Where you could pick up a 300w+ combo for the same money, if not less. I have seen the Headrush FRFR for a reasonable price, but it's obviously designed for our guitar playing colleagues. Is it good with bass? Who knows. I'm predominantly wanting/needing something that will give some bass on stage, so the rest of the band can hear what I'm playing. A PA speaker setup would be ideal, but there again, so would a decent combo with an effects loop.

Will have to search for the Mk3 at that price. Haven't found any yet.

Good for thought indeed. Seen a good deal on the RCF ART310, is it comparative to the 312?

And that's the quandary... With the HD, I have got a sound that I am very happy with, as well as a bunch of effects that work with that sound. All of the bass amps I've owned in the past were merely ok means of projecting a sound, but I wouldn't call any of them that great. Admittedly, that was some time ago, as I've not needed a bass amp in 20 years. I do have a Hartke head & a 2x10 cab at home, but I've not used them since I bought them (that band went belly up). That does sound reasonable with the HD plugged into the effects return, but was hoping to find a single unit that would accurately reproduce' my sound'. We did some recording in the middle of last year, where I just DI'ed the bass from the HD, and I think it sounded great.

Plenty of food for thought... just have to work on the budget now. Any opinions on the Mackie Thump?

Seen a Mackie Thump 12A for a decent price, ant the blurb say they're designed to handle extra bass.

Currently using the rehearsal rooms old Peavey rig (Century head I think, through 2 4x10's). I plug my HD into the "Power Amp In" which bypasses the preamp. It sounds decent, but you do lose some of the top. Cuts through the mix, but we're not playing too loud in the rehearsal room. We've done two gigs so far, first one was last week in a pub, PA but no monitors. DI'd the bass, but obviously, no one on stage could hear me. Second gig was last Friday. Full PA with monitors, but the sound guy was somehow unable to get a bass sound from a DI. When he did get a sound, we started a song, lo and behold, no bass again. Had to then plug into the venues bass amp (thankfully, it had an effects loop). The quandry is whether to get a dedicated combo, or an active pa speaker. Basically, this is down to wanting to do a single trip load in for me.

Been back & forth on this one for ages, I'm seriously undecided which way to go. I'm running a Line6 HD500x, and really like the sounds I'm getting from it, however, after the last gig and the sound problems, I really think I need to get something. As I said, the HD is great, the amp & cab models are fantastic, as are the effects, I'm really happy with it. If I get a dedicated bass amp, I'd have to bypass the amp's preamp and plug I to the effects return, but the amp could still colour the sound, and it would also be a bit of a waste of an amp if you bypassed the preamp. The two main contenders are the Fender Rumble 500 or the Ampeg BA210. Was only really contemplating a combo, not a head & cab. On the other hand, an Active PA speaker would retain the characteristics of the amp & cab models, but would it have the power or move the air as much as an amp & multi speaker cab? Seen a few Active PA speakers that seem like they could do the job, but it's the power ratings that confuse. They appear to publicise the map's peak power rather than the RMS rating. How much power do you need in these things? I've seen some rated at 80w, some at 150w, some at 300w and some at over 1,000w. Is bigger better? What size speaker would give the best range? Can't really afford anything too expensive, so was looking at something below £250, more than likely an Alto or something similar. The band is a 4 piece, classic rock band, playing original material, but we'll probably not be going to play big gigs outside the local circuit.

The big question is, what type of aircraft were you flying in? A jet is better insulated and therefore more quiet in the cabin than a turbo-prop. I used to do a lot flying in turbo-prop's, and found that I had to wear earplugs because of the noise (I have tinnitus anyway, and the noise in the cabin made it slightly worse after flying). Also carrying a supply of chewing gum helps with the ear popping / cabin pressure thing.

Played a local "Battle of the Bands" heat last night, the venue puts on loads of bands, but the soundman was crap (had trouble DI'ing the bass FFS!) and the provided equipment was more than crap. As expected, there were the usual shenanigans from the other 2 bands playing, jostling for position on the bill, rent-a-crowd, "buy our EP"/listen to us on Spotify etc., guess we're just going to have to play that game as well. TBH, we did go into it as more of an "experience" thing, it was only our second gig as a band, and the singers second ever "proper" gig. We were on first, so loads of sound problems to start off with as the winning band got the soundcheck. Had a couple of false starts, as the sound was chronic (no bass!). I went DI instead of their provided amp, after much faffing, there was bass, but then we re-started, and the bass magically disappeared. Ended up plugging my HD500x into the return loop on the amp, hey presto, bass. Anyway, the songs went down well, but obviously not well enough to please rent-a-crowd.

We were asked to do a 20 minute set, 4 original songs, second act on out of four.

The las band that made me go "wow" was Maggot Heart's "Show Them Your Teeth". Wonderfully dark, but without conforming to the cliché's of "heavy" music. https://youtu.be/dxs-iqW7kOM

First gig with this band, and first ever "proper" gig for the singer. Small pub with a regular clientele. We only did 4 songs, went by in a flash, "on stage" sound was non-existent (I went direct into the board, no monitors, and I could barely hear the guitar), thankfully I was next to the PA, so I could hear the bass, drums (un-mic'ed) & vocals. Made a few mistakes, and I can tell I haven't played in a while! Overall, we had loads of good feedback from folk, so it can't have been too bad! Next gig is next week.

Wondered what sort of bass Bedders was using, great find anzoid.

Beautiful looking bass, I too saw it on FB, and again it was a bit too expensive for me (given the time of year etc.). Enjoy it.

More like a Harley Davidson. They do the same thing as other motorcycles, but they have a loyal following (maybe too loyal in some cases?). Each to their own.

Helix Effects (HX-FX)? I suppose a lot would depend on whether you want the amp/cab modelling facilities, or just the effects. If you want to recreate amp dynamics as well as effects, then a Helix or Helix LT would be ideal. If you just want to use your current amp, and just add effects, then the Helix Stomp would be ideal. Very tempted by a Helix LT myself, but I'm currently using a HD500x, which more than meets my requirements, and would makes moving to a Helix an extravagance. Maybe one day I can justify buying one, at the moment, I can't really (still want one though! ).

Borrowed one of these from a friend for some recording many, many moons ago. Great sounding amps & cabs.

The only downside to wall hangers is that if your instrument is finished in nitrocellulose lacquer, as the rubber on the hangers reacts with the lacquer. Used to have mine hung up in one of the old houses, can't do it here though unfortunately.

Used Roto 66's from the late 80's to the late 90's when I started experimenting with other brands, both nickel & stainless. Now Fender have stopped making stainless steel round's, I have to find some to replace them. Tried Elites in the past, trying some again (got some new old stock ones cheap). Tried Warwick Red's in the past too, good long lasting strings, but a bit rough. Very good price though. Tempted by Picato's if I can get some for the right price, or going back to Roto 66's. Dunno.

Only took me the best part of 20 years of prevaricating before I bought one. Superb bass, congrats on your purchase and enjoy it. Though I would consider changing where you play it slightly. Instead of playing near the bridge, start playing by the neck pickup.

My Christmas pressie to me... :)

Well worth a punt

Wonder if the Bass Gallery or the Bass Centre could help here???