Skybone

Make sure you have enough time to get to the gig, make sure you're fed & watered. Take time to warm up your fingers and run through a few songs, tune up etc. Most importantly, breathe slowly & deeply, try and relax, "centre" yourself.

Yes, most Ric 5 strings were 4 string conversions. IIRC, the current 4004/5 has a wider than standard neck, but they're not only bloody expensive, but also rare as rocking horse doings. Retrovibe made a few 5 string Fakers that had a good reputation, but again, because they're Fakers, rare as rocking horse doings again, but at least they are reasonably priced. If you're after the Ric look, but with a low B, find a Faker 4 string & put the low strings from a 5 string on it.

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1506760521' post='3380893'] Aside from sounding better do fancy expensive earplugs actually offer better protection than standard 5p foam plugs? I grab the foam ones from work and they are supposedly designed to be used on building sites so must offer decent protection? Or am I just kidding myself and I might as well be using nothing... [/quote] I used the foam plugs for years too, but I had to stop using them for music as you couldn't actually hear what was going on properly. The ACS ER's have a filter in them, so that they not only attenuate the sounds, but they don't drown out certain frequencies, and allow you to hear what's going on better. I stopped using the foam one's on the bike, because I got sick of having plugs that either never fitted properly, or just lost their "elasticity". The reusable "Christmas tree" one's are much better in both situations. My only regret is not using them sooner, I might have fended off the tinnitus for a few more years.

I suspect that the "dead" pickup is actually a dead pot. The soldering iron has lingered too long and killed the pot, the pickup should be fine. If you have a multimeter, you can check the impedance on it. Back on topic, I must admit that for guitars, alnico magnet pickups haves a certain "warmth" over ceramic magnet pickups. I tried a load of different guitar pickups a few years back, and always kept coming back to alnico magnet pickups. TBH, I've never really noticed that much difference on bass pickups, though I'm pretty sure that the "warmth" of alnico pickups will come across on bass as well.

Another vote for ACS ER20's. I've looked into custom made earplugs, but I never have the spare cash for them, or can never find a set that can offer a similar level of attenuation to the ER20's. I use some 3M industrial ones while on the motorbike, and there's not one custom made option that comes anywhere near their level of attenuation.

Excellent set list, hope it pans out for you.

Sounds like "Beyond the Lighted Stage" to me. There is another one out, post split, can't recall what it's called though.

To be fair, a programme like this has been lacking on TV ever since TotP was taken off the air. It certainly beats the numerous channels that air the same awful videos over and over again (speaking as a parent who gets subjected to them on a regular basis!). Not sure about the "sketches" bit though!

[quote name='bassace' timestamp='1505899533' post='3375021'] And let the drummer set up first, don't get in his way while he's doing it. Otherwise they can get very irritable. [/quote] But always offer to help

I've used both the Dunlop & Schaller strap locks for years, and like Rich said, functional engineering is good design. That said, I always found the Dunlops to be really clunky & awkward, the Schaller's just work. Never had a problem with them either.

The general consensus is that it's better to be the worst in a good band than the best in a rubbish band. Like a few have already said, it's great to work with people who have more skills than you, as they push you to improve & reach their standard, rather than trying to drag other people up to your standard. As much as I hate to admit it, Coldplay are actually good musicians who decided to peddle their bland blend of self indulgent music on society. Someone has to do it I suppose... As for watching an episode of Car Pool Karoake with Chris Martin & James Corden, a) I'd rather watch paint dry and if ever there was an episode where you really wanted to watch a car crash, because they were too busy being egotistical bell-ends, it would be that one.

Try to enjoy the experience, but don't forget the bass-lines you've been rehearsing with the band. Deep breaths and go for it.

Line6 HD500X or Helix/Helix LT

Nice bass FinnDave, though I must admit to liking the 2013/14 EB more than the current version. Must check one of these out sometime.

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1504961700' post='3368585'] Bridge is back, neck is front [/quote] This.

Good video and a good tune too.

I was going to suggest buying the Squier, but it seems like you've beaten me to it. It would be a shame to mod the Road Worn P into a P/J. Keep it standard and use it. The Harley Benton is another issue altogether, you could spend a fortune modding it, and it could be worth less second hand than it would be as a "standard" P. You could sell it on, now that you have the Squier (maybe with the little Fender amp?) and get a few quid back. Or keep it and mod it. Either way, enjoy your new Squier.

A post set game of Draughts? I thought it looked familiar Wood, nice bass.

Entered the "Win a Sire P Bass" competition on the Facebook page, and have been inundated with tons of spam messages from SBL... Not impressed in the slightest.

I am disappointed that the screens are smaller on the B3n than on the B3. That was one of the things I really liked about the B3.

There have been a few interesting Fakers for sale recently. Seen a few more "slip through the net" on eBay, Gumtree and the like.

Has anyone had the chance to compare the sound quality between the B3 & B3n yet? That would be an interesting comparison IMO. Although the Line6 POD HD's had less effects & amp models available, they were certainly better quality than the preceding XT & X3 range, and now the Helix is out, the amp & effects models are better than the HD range. I had a B3 for a while, and although it was a great piece of kit, I found it a bit too limiting in some respects, the number of effects you could use at any one time being the biggest. If only Zoom would bring out the Bass equivalent of the G5/G5n, that would be great.

If you want to keep the bass as a passive, then why not look at adding an EQ pedal? Does the same thing that you want, and you can easily switch it off when you've finished solo-ing, without the hassle of flicking a switch on your guitar.

I record some of our rehearsals and then share with the band. For originals, I think it's a great idea, not only for songwriting and arrangements, but to see how it all fits together in a band context whether we need to add something/take something away/do something differently/etc., it does also show up mistakes, but instead of using it to "point the finger" at someone else in the band, I would hope that we're grown up enough and "professional" enough to realise them, and practice so as to avoid mistakes. At the end of the day, mistakes happen. In my last "proper" band, we recorded rehearsals for the same reasons, and it worked. The writing got a bit tighter, the mistakes were still there, and it gave us all an idea of how we were "gelling" as a band too. I bought a Tascam DR-05 a while ago, and it's really good for rehearsals, small enough to fit in a gig bag, but has really good mics and can capture the music well. Plus, you can share the mp3's with friends and whoever may be interested. It gives them a really good idea of what you sound like as a band.