Bobo_Grimmer

Let me start by saying I may go on a bit. If you get through my ramblings then I thank you for your time. I haven't been active on the forum for a few years, life has been manic, but I wanted somewhere to release some thoughts with likeminded folk and maybe have a little bit of advice from someone wiser than I. I'll start with a bit of back story to help things make sense... I'm around 31 and been a bass player for not very long really, 12-15 years or so. I've never had lessons or learned anything too impressive but used my heart and ears to play what I feel. I started to get back into music after a bike accident and haven't looked back. I've been through a couple of bands, 2-3, and ended up in, what I feel is the best thing I've ever done. Now we're not the biggest of 3 piece bands, heck we don't always get paid for some gigs or have large crowds, but we enjoy what we do and the people that see us are mostly blown away. (regular comments of 'bigging up' and 'wow what was amazing' etc) We haven't a genre really, just jam and play whatever happens. I guess we're like Rush mixed with Tull and a bit of 90's grunge. That's nice for me as I tend not to be able to play the 'Normal' sounding bass parts and end up having a very unique style in some ways but still comparable to the likes of Geddy/Foxton. Quite aggressive, toppy, slightly dirty tone and have regular comments on how lovely my bass sounds. I've been with these guys since 2006-ish. They are far better than I technically so I had a pretty steep learning curve to get up to speed with what they had already written. It took me almost 3 years to fully understand the quirks of the other two and how to really lock in with them. We’ve never had decent recordings of our songs so to get a real feel for us is to see us live. We started recording 9 tracks over 2 years ago! And still haven’t finished them yet… plus we have another 30-35 tracks halfway finished plus a tone of jams that are worth saving or turning into songs. The guitarist/singer and the drummer are brothers, 40 and 30ish of age respectively and have been playing their whole lives. Our drummer is amazing. His playing is incredible, steady, different and mind-blowing. I've seen him do things either while teaching, performing or jamming that some of the top greats would be blown away by. I feel very lucky to be able to play with the guy and sometimes feel my lack of understanding holds him back. Our guitarist and I have a very similar head space so his self-taught style is not like anything I've seen from other guitar players but offers us an understanding of the odd riffs, (Fripp/Claypool). He's a wonder to play with. Both interesting, technical yet simple and full all at once. We jam every week and have done almost without fail, illness or a gig or Christmas of cause, but it's not often we'll play through and actually practice anything in particular. I mean there is the odd occasion obviously... They've had their fair share of 'life' with mental breakdowns and drug issues etc, some of which are still prevalent but manageable... myself included. One member doesn't work, well does his minimum 16h a week or whatever it is and the other teaches for a living. The third component of the make-up of the band is their Mum. She books our gigs and helps us promote as we're all not great or have little spare time so it's a great help and we probably wouldn't gig much if she wasn't around. I have a wonderful wife and a house of my own, first step on the property ladder in the first part of the year and a full time job in charge of managing people building parts for aircraft. (It’s a lot of work let me tell you... bloody paperwork...^_^ anyone say 50-60 hours a week some months...) [i][u]I've realised, reading back through, I'm going on a bit so I'll cut to what is relevant now...[/u][/i] I've recently begun struggling with gigs. I've never been one for 'going out', I can't drink because of medical issues and being around people is hard for me. Playing shows hasn't really ever been an issue before. I can get up on a stage and play for anyone, blimey I've played to two people in a backstreet pub and thousands at festivals but being in amongst them... *shudder*. I am one of those people that can get to a gig, setup, sound check and then sit back stage or in my car until it's time to play and feel absolutely fine about it. Being at the bar or talking to people I don't cope with very well and never have. We NEVER have a set ready for a gig. Ever! Normally we get to a place, find out how long we have to play, and then work out 'oh we haven't played that for a while' or let’s just jam that, before we go on stage. Also we hardly ever know what gear we need or a time to be at said show or how long we are playing for or who we need to speak with or where exactly the show is! These are the most basic of needs for the muso to know in advance of any show imo. The main issue here is that we have gigs booked for us and then this information isn’t even asked for as far as I can tell. It feels like many of the locals on the music scene don’t like us in some way or another. Whether that be because of who they’re dealing with to book us or a lack of communication I don’t know. There is a feeling of awkwardness when interacting with the people in charge of the show, not just from my end and my insecurities. This may be a normal thing for any music scene… I've been finding that now if I find out I have a gig tomorrow or in a month I begin to feel sick. I panic, over think and stress about it like I've never done before. The day of the gig comes and I feel even sicker. I shake once I arrive and can hardly speak fighting back my insides that are trying to escape my face. The whole experience isn't fun. Don't we all do this because we enjoy it? Leaving this band doesn't feel right though as the time invested and the jealousy that I would feel having some else have the amazing opportunity to play with such amazing musicians I don't think I could bare. I am now at the point where the disorganisation and lack of communication is killing me. I feel ostracised and alone. This has all finally outweighed the 'fun' part of playing in a band, so much so that I haven't wanted to and haven't played in over a month. I haven't been to jams or any of the gigs that I mostly didn't even know about. It's feeling like my bass playing time has come to an end with a spare room full of thousands of hard earned pounds worth of basses, amps, recording gear, keyboards and synths that I can't bear to look at let alone touch. I don't know how to feel or what to do next. Lost in a head space that is both crippling and hard work for those around me that I love. I have thought of maybe having a few lessons. Maybe talking to someone that's playing is far in advance of my own that could advise me in a positive direction? I don't know. Maybe I need a break... Maybe I have taken on too much in my life... Maybe I need to grow up and be a man...

[quote name='Huge Hands' timestamp='1412583698' post='2570028'] Hi Bobo - I bought one for mine, but I haven't really used it yet other than trying it on the day it arrived. I can have a look at it for you if you have any specific questions. I woiuld have thought the answer would be to somehow dismantle and turn the central mount around. Not sure if this is possible - I can check for you tonight? [/quote] Hey, Yeah that would be helpful sir thank you. All I'm after knowing really is if the main part that the bass connects to is square or if it's angled to one side or the other.

Thanks guys. Yeah I'll wing them an email about it.

Hey, I have a question for anyone who knows anything about these Shoulder strap systems for the NS Design EUB. I'm left handed and my concern is whether or not this strap system is going to work for me. I can't find any pictures of these things straight on so the part of the strap that the bass connects to you can't tell if it's angled at all. Is the strap 'universal' in any way or is it angled slightly to one side for a right handed person? Here's a link to the strap [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/ns_design_strap_system.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/ns_design_strap_system.htm[/url] Any help would be great. thank you for taking the time to read my post. Bobo

Love this thread. there's some great stuff and sparks some great ideas. ^_^ Here's my latest tweak. [url="http://s296.photobucket.com/user/Shawn_Grimmer/media/pedalboard2014.jpg.html"][/url]

Evening guys, I've ran a multi effects unit in my board, amongst my other pedals, for quite a few years and i've always been happy. As of late my korg ax3000b is getting tatty, well gigged and after one or two 'fixes' and then 'get arounds' it's at that point where i need to replace it. I have a flight case for all my pedals and this unit will be going in there. I play a lot of gigs with my amp because there's often little or no real fold back but i also will play shows where backline is provided or bands will share gear. Sometimes i may play a gig where i will have my EUB and one or two guitars or maybe a small intimate gig where i'll only need to go into a small PA. So i'm looking for something that can do a lot of things and cover a lot of bases.... ha!... but still work well for live through an amp and handy for programming set lists and working in the studio. Maybe i'm asking a little too much from one unit? Anyhoo, I've been looking for an upgrade from the korg and have come to two that i can't make my mind up about. I have picked these two because of what they do and what they can do for me and the things that i want to do... if that makes sense. I am still open to suggestion though. ^_^ : Boss GT10B [url="http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=942"]http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=942[/url] : Line 6 HD500 [url="http://line6.com/podhd/multi-effects/specs.html"]http://line6.com/podhd/multi-effects/specs.html[/url] Any help would be really great. Thank you for taking the time to read my post. Shawn

Hum... well during sound check today it popped. When distorted and the two au7's blew. Off for warranty I guess...

Morning, I've given them a dink and nothing noticeable happends. Ive changed all 6 power vavles and put the original 12AX7 back in and biased them. Still the same noise. It varies in volume and stops and starts. It's made a pop sound only once, that caused the service light to flash. Hasn't done that since. I've ran the amp with both cabs, one can and left it on for a hour or so and no change. It's not doing it when sat on stand by. I am headed out to play an open air festival in b'mouth today and I guess we'll see what happends.... I have to say I'm concerned. it's still under warranty so I can see about gwtting it looked at. Thank you for all you help guys. I appreciate it a lot.

Cool ok I'll check that. As long as it's not going to go pop on the gigs I have this weekend that's ok.

Yep thats the sound. The amp is 7 months old...

I emailed Ampeg to ask just to see what they might say and got this response. Tubes are a great way to “customize” your SVT. Every brand has its own sound and flavor of tone. As long as you use the correct type of tubes in their respective sockets, feel free try out different brands of tubes. If you are happy with the sound of the stock tubes, the brand is Sovtek. If you are replacing tubes in an SVT CL it will have power tubes which are 6550 type (the big ones), and must be replaced at the same time with a matched set (6 tubes). It is recommended that you replace the 12AX7 tube located in the back of the amp whenever changing the power tubes. This is the Phase Inverter which is one of the hardest working tubes in your amp. It is not recommended to use KT88 type tubes as there will be inadequate cooling for tubes that size. For instructions on biasing please refer to page 9 of the manual here [url="http://www.ampeg.com/pdf/svtcl_om.pdf"]http://www.ampeg.com/pdf/svtcl_om.pdf[/url] Some common names for 12AX7 tubes are – ECC83, ECC83S, ECC803S, 7025, 7025S, B759, 12AX7-A, 12AX7-B, 12AX7C, 12AX7WA, 12AX7LPS. Some common names for 12AU7 tubes – ECC82, ECC802S, ECC82EH, 12AU7A, 5814A, B749, 6189, 7316, E82CC, E182CC. [b]Technical Support Team[/b] [b]MACKIE | AMPEG | CRATE | BLACKHEART[/b] [b]LOUD Technologies Inc.[/b] This is kind of a generic answer from them and an expensive option IMO. I ended up getting 6 new 6550's and replaced the three on the left so now i have three spares. I also picked up a new gold lion 12AX7. £180 delivered from [url="http://www.hotroxuk.com/"]http://www.hotroxuk.com[/url]. I've let it warm up and biased the valves. everything seems great except one thing. While the amp is on and not on standby you can hear what sounds like some static from the cabs. I haven't heard this before. It doesn't get any louder or quieter with volume change on the amp and is there without anything other than the cabs plugged into the amp. Does anyone have or have heard this kind of noise? is it normal?

[quote name='SimonEdward' timestamp='1372431421' post='2125713'] Hello Bobo! .. It might be obvious to some people, but could you just tell us about your chain? and.. how are you getting on with the Trace Comp?? Best, [/quote] Hey, yeah. first thing is it's bloody awesome! It makes everything sound great imo. My chain starts with the tuner and next is the trace comp. I have to say i don't ever switch it off. It sits there and does it's thing superbly. I'd never want to replace it. Next in the chain is the big muff followed by the smaller muff. (i like having the fuzz stuff there) Then onto the microsynth then off to the phaser. after that it goes into the korg multi thing. the ibanez distortion is on a side chain from the korg because it's noisy plus i like to run it there for other effects options and switching from the korg. hope that makes sense.

Thanks for the advice guys. i had the valve tested and it is duff. Next thing is to find a replacement. Thing is i guess valves are in matched pairs. Now the new svt cl has two bias controls. one for the left hand set and one for the right hand set. now if they are in pairs how does that work? Does that mean i need to find out how they are paired and replace the pair or do i need to replace the three on the left? Can you get matched sets of three? I'm confused as to how this works...

Super. i'll look into it. May invest in something a little more rugged.

Wow there's some mad thing on this thread. Here's my current board.

Hum... ok. Might be an expensive thing to gig regularly with after all. I was wondering then if i could replace them with something a little more reliable? I see the 6550's aren't that expensive compared with some like the KT88's from the trace elliot V series amps. ([size=2]i may be mistaken as i'm still learning about these things[/size])

Ok cool i might do that then. Should i be concerned that the valve has done this after 7 months? or do these things happen?

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1372345486' post='2124625'] Could be matching, what brand? See if you favoured valve supplier that stocks that brand can make anything of it. If there are two bias controls, only need to replace the 3 on that control. Edit: now I see pics, the 10 12 isn't to do with the bias matching, that would be hand written or on a sticker. [/quote] Good good. I'll look into picking one up.... replace 3? would that be if they were matching groups or do i need to replace the three anyway?

Ok i moved the non-glowing one with another and the problem has stayed with that valve. so it's not a fuse issue. Like i said i didn't hear any difference last night so maybe it is ok...

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1372343284' post='2124581'] Not working like turned white, or lost its heater glow? Most of the time valves still glow when they are dud, its possible the valve is ok but not getting its heatier current, might be individually fused. Swapping about will tell you what you need to know. Is there just one bias control? Are the valves in there marked with an indicator of their matching? If it is written on them, you might be able to order a matching one. You could just sling one in, its one of those 'chances are you'll never notice' sort of things. Ideal is replace with a matched set, and the ones taken out as spares, or sell as a used quad and one spare. [/quote] Thanks for the replay. It's not glowing anymore. I'm about to go swap the about to see what happens so i'll report back. There are 2 bias controls on the back and 6 6550's. As far as i know one control does a set of three and the other does the second set of three. They have 10 12 written on them is that a matching number? brb

Hey guys, This ampeg is my first valve amp and i have a couple of questions that you might be able to answer for me. I bought the amp back in november, brand new, with a redundancy check. ^_^ I've gigged it ever since but last sunday after i'd set up at jam i couldn't bias one set of tubes. Looking inside i could see that one of the sovtek 6550 WE's was not working. I don't want to sound silly but: Does that mean that the valve has gone? or could it be another problem. ( i was going to swap it with another to see if the problem moves around with that valve) Do i just purchase a replacement and then re bias the amp? or Could i buy a different make of valve? (tonal variation may be...) I have two weeks off gigging now so i have a little while to get it sorted. I did have to play a gig last night but it sounded fine. Any help would be great. Thank you for reading.

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1353261223' post='1872997'] I think it's an experience thing. If you are gigging regularly you soon start to rationalise the amount of effort you put into carting gear versus the amount of pleasure you're getting setting up and fiddling, and breaking down versus the amount of fun you get when playing. For me the multiple trips to and from cars in lifts and up stairs and ages fiddling setting up gear got boring real quick. Who wants to spend an hour setting up when you could be arriving later or chilling with the rest of the guys. At our last gig, I was set up in under 5 mins then helped with the PA and lights while the guitarist spent ages messing around with 4 guitars and countless pedals. We were all changed and having a beer while he was still tuning his last guitar. Then there is the cost versus leaving gear unattended issue. I was about to buy a £2k bass when I thought whether I was going to be comfortable gigging such an expensive bass. The answer was no and I could still get the sound and live with a sub £1k one. [/quote] I can see your POV but for me setting up and fiddling is always fun. I have valid reasons for each thing i bring with me too. I think I can get fully set up and all basses tuned in about 10 min's or so. In any case i know i can get sorted waaaay before the drummer!

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1353091885' post='1871640'] Trust me when I tell you that even if other musicians are making judgements about you based on the gear you use at gigs , they are not likely to any more rational in those judgements than you are being irrational in fearing their judgement . Who are they anyway , and whatever judgement they were to make about you , what possible difference could it make to you ? Who is listening to their opinions ? Try having some faith in your own choices . If you like a particular piece of equipment for whatever reason that should be reason enough for using it . Let other people have whatever opinion of it they like- you will never be able to control what other people think anyway, no matter how hard you try . Excessive worry about what other people think of us is another classic symptom of various neurotric psychological disorders , including social phobia and much more rarely, scopophobia . It's always a good idea ( within reason ) to resist avoiding the everyday things we are frightened of , because in avoiding them they become more powerful in our imagination and more frightening over time . If you feel self -conscious about your equipment choices then make a point of using it and enjoying it . You will soon feel better about things as a result. [/quote] Hit the nail on the head the man. Thank you. I had a gig last night and all this was still fresh in my mind. the head lining band didn't bring any bass amp nor did any other band so everyone used my rig. I have had a very busy time in my head caught up in thoughts about all this but today i'm feeling better. (main because of things people have said here. I love BC. ) [quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1353096754' post='1871698'] Personally, I like seeing lots of gear behind the band My approach to my own gear though is to try and make it as easy as possible to carry my own into the venue. I've got it down to two quick trips now! Trip 1: Backpack with amp, tools and leads, two basses in one hand, pedalboard in other Trip 2: Carry 4x10 in on my own Job done! [/quote] Ha ha! yes! i love seeing this. I do just the same. Although my gear is heavy it does condense down into about 4 things plus basses. [quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1353116505' post='1871897'] I think sometimes gear can become a crutch - all this fancy gear makes up for a lack of confidence in our playing. [/quote] Yep. I know i have a huge problem with how i see my playing ability but the gear i have helps me get what i hear in my head out to people's ears. ( and no i'm not the bassist equivalent of edge... that could be an interesting mix though...) [quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1353153169' post='1872113'] Two points: if it's the sound for you, why are you changing it? If you change anything you [i]will[/i] sound different. If you [i]have[/i] to change any part of your rig then you’ll just have to get a [i]new [/i]sound out of it that you love as much. [/quote] True sir. changing things will change things but as i said i am after a slightly more low mid growl i'm not getting in live situations with my Trace head. But After thinking on things, talking to the band and this thread i have made some adjustments and i have ideas on what i need to do to: 1. make myself feel better and 2. Have a more modular rig for a wider variety of gig, stage, venue ect. [quote name='Spike Vincent' timestamp='1353155099' post='1872139'] Bass lead Amp. Works for me. [/quote] He he! if only i could get away with that. saying that i do something similar for acoustic gig's. Upright Lead Head Cab.