Skybone

Wheels of Confusion - Black Sabbath

Girls and Boys - Blur

Oooh... New discovery. Found & tried the SVT 4 Pro amp. Wow, fabulous sounding sim, very pleased. Had a more in depth play around with some other effects & settings. Really happy with the results, can't wait to get back into the rehearsal room and see how it sounds in a band setting. It'd be nice to have a bit more selection of bass-specific dirt pedals, preferably overdrives rather than distortion or fuzz. It's great that the 3 that are there have the "blend" control. Maybe meka a few suggestions on Ideascale.

I'd agree with these. Learn the songs as per the recordings, however, if you think you can add to the song as well as adding your own touches, ask them what they want you to do while at the audition. If you can show you can add something, then they'll see that you're proactive as well as thinking about what's best for the song. Good luck with the audition!

Master of Puppets - Metallica

I know I'm in the minority, but I do like the Dunlop Stainless Steel Roundwounds.

No wonder you're getting fuzziness if you're turning the Gain full on. Big fan of Matamp's though.

Doctor! Doctor! - Thompson Twins

The Chase is Better Than the Catch - Motorhead

I Need A Dollar - Aloe Black

I have found some sounds I really like, easily & quickly. I just need to try and get the time for a more in depth tweaking session. Must admit though, I am somewhat underwhelmed by the SVT. Absolutely loved the HD500x version, but just can't seem to get anything close with the POD Go. Saying that, the Cali 400 has definitely taken it's place.

Stairway to Heaven - Percy & Chums

Anyone tried those glasses/screen wipes? Might be good for taking the worst of the crud off. Or switch to Stainless Steel strings and not have to worry about it.

After Forever - Black Sabbth

Zoom B1 Four?

Further forays into the depths of the POD Go, still can't quite get my head around the Snapshots (especially on the Editor). Think I need to spend a bit of time looking into that. Pleased that the Bass-specific drive pedals have a "Blend" function, particularly like the Ampeg Scrambler. A touch frustrated with the effects options though, you can only have 3 selectable effects on each preset (the other 3 are the EQ, FX Loop & Dynamics/Compressor), and then I do like a touch of reverb, so that takes it down to 2. Still, after many years of mucking about with the HD500x, I pretty much only use a couple anyway. Time to look at copying patches and playing with the effects there... Sound-wise, it's very good, though IMO, it's not a huge step up from the HD. There are more amp/cab models available (the only criticism of the HD), which gives a bit more variation. I do need to spend a bit more time playing about with it, but first impressions are very good. Edit: the EQ and FX Loop are always there, you can turn them off, but you can't assign their slot to another effect. The Dynamics/Compressor are assignable, so that's 4 effects slots if you need them.

A Bomb in Wardour Street - The Jam

It's arrived. Had a quick play about with it, very impressed, very easy to use, and the Editor is dead easy too. Fave so far is the Cali 400 Nrm & 6x10 cab. Played with a couple of effects, but mainly trying to concentrate on getting the "basic" sound sorted. Need to compare it with the HD500x and see how it fares. Also, rehearsal next week, so hopefully, I'll have a few presets & snapshots sorted to try out there.

Good to hear that @SumOneis thoroughly enjoying the VT Bass Deluxe. A great pedal (just didn't "do it" for me unfortunately). Kind of agree with @fretmeister, a Helix or a POD Go would meet the requirements nicely, but like I said earlier, what's the budget, and what do you want to achieve sound-wise? There again... Bass Fly Rig V2. If the sounds required are varied, then a modelling multi-FX would be ideal. If you're just after a couple of solid sounds, then one of the pedal options would be a better choice (Bass Fly Rig V2).

Only use SS rounds, so it's generally when either the top end becomes less pronounced on the D & G strings, or when there's noticable wear. These usually happen around the same time, depending on how much use they've had (obviously, over the last year and a half, they didn't get as much use as they would normally get).

It begs yet more questions though... What sort of budget have you got? What do you want achieve with the pre-amp? (pre-amp only? effects? numerous different sounds? Etc.) If it's "just" a preamp, there's plenty to choose from. Tech21 Sansamp or VT would be a good choice, tried and tested. There's a GK preamp in the For Sale section. The Two Notes Le Bass or the EBS Micro Bass II or III. Etc. If you want to add effects, then you are in the realm of a modelling Multi-FX unit, OR, you could look at the Tech21 Bass Fly Rig, especially the V2, which looks great, and has the option of going between the BD and the VT channels. Budget? Aims?

So I crumbled and ordered one... fingers crossed that it'll be every bit as good as it's reputation. Looking forward to playing about with the sounds.

You do have to approach these things as though you were approaching a new amp / cab / effect. Start from the first principles and use your ears to find what sounds good to you. Can't really improve on that. Just ordered a POD Go too, so watching & waiting. Keeping the trusty HD500x though.

That takes me back... those "Hand Clap" pedals where everywhere in the late 80's, then they just seemed to disappear. Quite who bought them was beyond me at the time.