Franticsmurf

As has been said by others, I gig because I love playing live music. I love the camaraderie of a band on stage (the 'us vs the world' vibe) and some of the funniest and most enjoyable moments I've had with bands have been with friends on stage or in the studio. I've never lost the buzz I get from a successful gig or a good performance. I'm fortunate not to need the money (although it funds my GAS) and the current band I'm in plays solely for charity, which gives me another little buzz when we do the end-of-year distribution accounts. I've learnt so much from other, better musicians. In the early days I developed a self confidence which I was able to take back to other parts of my life. I'd like to think I've brought some fun to other people along the way.

Several years ago I bought a cheap Gear4Music wireless IEM system (transmitter and receiver plus earphones) to try out IEM before I invested properly. At the time my reason was the same as yours - to be able to hear my vocals. They were plugged in to the headphone out of the PA mixer (which was only handling vocals). I'm still using the same system with an upgraded set of earphones (KZ ZS10s from Amazon) as recommended somewhere in the thread @itu has linked to above. Before wireless, i invested in a Behringer P1 wired headphone amp (with built in limiter) which I had set up in the same way.

I bought a Precision a few years ago following some recommendations on here. That was my first experience of a Precision of any sort. I wasn't expecting an epiphany and (spoiler alert) I didn't get one. But I did realise how well it worked in the mix of other instruments live and later in recordings. No regrets and it's regularly played. It's my go-to bass in situations where I'm not sure what will be needed, and if my main band goes down the Motown route the Precision is front and centre.

I had another recording 'gig' last night (I was the engineer). This time a 'band' - actually two 13 year olds with an original metal song but they wanted a full band sound. At that age, I was expecting it to be hard work but they were very mature about the whole thing with the only distraction being the obsession with capturing everything on their phones for later TikTok release. I had to remind them several times that they were paying for the time! Drums went down with a rhythm guitar guide track with only a couple of false starts. The guitar took a little longer and there were a couple of drop-ins necessary as they were losing track of time (the guitarist wanted to re-do the whole track but most of it was fine). The vocals started out being a bit lacklustre (think 'Disney sings metal') given they were about revolution and rebellion, but once I'd got the singer to tell me why he'd written them, and how he felt, the anger came across in the third take. The guitarist also played bass through the house amp which I recorded DI and with the room vocal mic. It was a nice old Ampeg 15" combo - not sure of the model but great sound DI and with mic. We overran the session by about 30 minutes - mostly TikTok video - and we had to stop for a few minutes while the thunder storm raged overhead. All in all a good session and it restored my faith in the younger musicians who are coming to take over from me. 😀

I bought the adapter following a recommendation on BC. I'd definitely pass that recommendation on. Edit: Being a simple design (no screws or bolts) means you can use the adaptor or go with double ball ends as the fancy takes you. 😀

In my area (S. Wales) there are a few Facebook groups along the lines of 'Seeking band members' and that's how I found my last two side projects.

No pints for the wrong answers. 😂

If they come to see you regularly and know your sound, they would be a good choice to provide a check that nothing was badly out of balance. Not a replacement for a decent soundcheck but preferable to only finding out at the end that something was wrong. And all for the price of a couple of pints.

The Hulla band played a 50th birthday party last night in what is becoming a regular venue for us in Port Eynon on Gower. We've played inside and outside the hall, in teepees and marquees there and, for the first gig I played with them, open air outside the fish and chip shop on the sea front back in 2022. That day we were paid in food. 😀 The stage was cramped but I wanted to play my new 5 string Ibanez. I was aware that it might not be possible without repeatedly stroking the guitarist's lower back with my headstock (not a euphemism) and took my headless shortscale Ibanez as an option. But I managed to find a little spot between drums, keys and guitarist that I was able to make my own. I had planned on using the onstage monitors rather than my in ears but the cramped conditions and proximity to the drums and the guitarist's amp meant that I ended up with the IEM. Our sound man had brought the PA subs and during the soundcheck my bass was booming away but once the hall filled up and he'd EQ'd properly, the sound was good. I kept the board to a minimum - Zoom MS60b giving me a noise gate, compressor and tuner and my Ampeg Classic preamp going into a DI box and into the desk. IEMs were through my Behringer P16 via Ultranet from the desk and a pair of KZ ZS10s earphones on which I've replaced the silicon buds with foam ones for much better isolation. Footwear of choice was the lace up black Skechers which have become an intergal part of my sound. This was my first gig playing a 5 string for several years and there were a few string faux pas but nothing the derailed the night and overall I was happy with my performance, and with the 5 string. I love the narrow string spacing and neck, which suits my hands perfectly. As usual, we had a lot of fun on stage and the audience were up and dancing from the first number. Hiding behind the guitarist.

Option 2. With the proviso that, as mentioned above, if you can do the soundcheck before the punters arrive then that is far better. I had this ongoing argument with our guitarist/singer who didn't think any band needed a soundcheck as he knew how to get a great sound. He didn't, of course, but couldn't admit it. His guitar sound was almost as bassy as my bass. Later, after I'd left, I went to see him play. His guitar was still far too bassy and the vocals were very indistinct. If the soundcheck is brief and done in a professional manner, perhaps even announcing it to the punters and/or making light of it ("Thank you very much and goodnight" after 30 seconds of a song) then no one can complain and it's far better than hoping its ok.

I was in a band like this once, for about 5 years. It was one of the best band experiences for me because we were good, the venues booked us (we had several residencies) and it made playing so much fun. 100% agree.

I guessed it would have. For most of the venues we play, there still wouldn't be enough room on stage but that's more to do with us being a big band with a full drumkit. A robust stand to lift the projector up might work, but any vibration would be magnified by the stand and projection distance. When we were looking into it, I started playing about with what to project. Obviously it depends on the band/genre/taste but a couple of things I tried were a powerpoint presentation of random coloured shapes on each slide with a slow fade transition applied and the video feedback from a webcam pointing at the computer screen while recording. None of these would have been synchronised, though.

I looked into it for our band, using a projector, a few years ago. The problem at the time was getting the projector far enough away from the screen for the image to be large enough while avoiding shadows from the band and keeping the image bright enough to work in anything other than a blacked out venue. We decided against it in the end (too expensive, needs someone to look after it if sits out in the audience, not practical for most of the venues we were playing). I haven't kept track of the technology since but you need to consider how you would place the projector (brightness drops off as the inverse square of distance) and whether the projector can compensate for 'keystoning' (if it projects at an angle, keystoning is the distortion introduced - most projectors can compensate to a certain degree). Back projection would be best as the distance to the screen will be less because the projector is not in front of the band - as long as you have enough distance behind the band which is usually not the case.

I put this video together at the request of one potential booking person. And this is a photo from a year or so ago at fund raiser for the hall we rehearse in - fancy dress as it was Halloween themed.

The Hulla band is a 13 piece with a mix of Ukes, banjo, electric and acoustic guitars, sax, trumpet and trombone, keyboards, drums and bass. The band started as a community social event in the local village hall and they would occasionally play a concert for the village to raise funds for charity. By the time I joined, they had expanded their horizons and the B/L, a dedicated Bruce Springsteen fan, was introducing more rocky stuff. The drummer and I are the only ones not from the village but we have been fully integrated into the 'family'. What separates us from the other bands in the area? Our eclectic setlist, the fact that we are confident enough not to take ourselves too seriously and therefore always come across as having a lot of fun on stage, and all our gigs generate money for several charities - the band members are not paid. What do we have that others don't? Compared to most local bands here, we have a wider range of songs in the catalogue that means we can fit in to any style of gig from wake to festival (both of which we've done). We also have bigger gigs. If I was pitching the band to a prospect, what would be our bast selling point? We're able to do the whole event, including supplying a stage and marquee, sound, lights, a setlist that reflects what the event is all about and we will do requests if they're made in advance. Areas where I think we struggle. A number of the band members struggle with the confidence to do what they can do - as a result of how the band grew up (with the B/L putting a lot of effort in at the start to get people to play), most of the band only do what he says during rehearsals rather than try out new things or make suggestions. We have some very talented musicians (I once listened to our guitarist play a 2 minute improvised Gypsy Jazz solo) but they won't use that talent in the band context. We take up a lot of room as a 13 piece. 😀

My gig last night was a recording session for which I was the engineer. My mate has opened a small studio where he records his music school students, so it's mainly acoustic guitar and singers. His initial attempt to record were, in his own words, rubbish (well, actually he used non-Basschat language which I have translated) so he asked me in to do it properly. Having been recording myself and bands for years (I started on small Fostex 4 track cassette in the late 80's and went through an 8 track reel-to-reel machine and various digital hard disk recorders), I have some experience. Last night was a beginner singer/guitarist who wanted to record a CD's worth of cover songs so it was a relatively simple set up. He wanted to sing and play at the same time, which made getting separation from guitar and voice impossible and he kept moving around, so trying to get a consistent sound was hard. We managed to get through about half of his list before his voice gave out and he started to struggle nailing some of the guitar parts. After he'd gone, my mate explained that he was in his 90s. He didn't look it, and my admiration for his performance went up a notch or two.

That is a very cool photo.

I hear your words and will obey. 😂

I can hit the shop websites for pictures, but this is where the stories belong. I think it's more interesting to hear the process behind the purchase. And I can always use some of the arguments for making the purchase in future decision making of my own. 😀

I heard that Trump said 'the nice 5 string is the best, best 5 string.' And, apparently, he's going to buy the Gear Abstinence Thread. Or take it. Or hit it with a tariff. 😀

I notice that @King Tut got the 'nice 5 string' and @Geek99 and I were left with the ordinary ones. 😂

Last night was the final rehearsal with the Hulla band before our next gig on Saturday - a birthday party in the next village along. It was sounding good as this one was just a run through of the set. Usually the band leader has added, changed or removed songs between practices but only lets us know an hour or so before kick off but last night the set was the same as the previous week. It was tight, the sound was good and for the most part we knew what we were doing. It was a chance for me to try out my latest acquisition - a 2nd hand Ibanez GSR205 5 string bass (my ticket out of the Gear Abstinence league) - and I was very happy with the sound and the playability. The string spacing is a small-hand friendly 16.5mm at the bridge and all the problems I've had in the past (I have small guitarist's hands) were gone. I was still making a few mistakes as a result of the extra string throwing some confusion into the mix, but overall I was very happy. My current pedalboard is just a Zoom MS60b (providing a noise gate and compressor with an option for adding chorus) and my Ampeg Classic pre-amp going into the desk. The sound of the bass was just right - punchy without being overwhelming. I even got compliments from our sound guy ("I loved the sound and turned you up a couple of times")

Yes, reluctantly and with hindsight I realised that the situation I was in actually gave me loads of confidence in my own playing in terms of ability to keep up with the B/Ls whims and mistakes and to deal with curve balls. As you say it also taught me that, for the most part, the audience don't care as long as they are enjoying what is going on. Looking back on my experiences with that particular B/L (which spanned probably 15 years on and off in various duos, trios and more) I now see it as a great learning experience which I've been able to use in the current bands I'm with. I still occasionally dep with that B/L (we remain friends) but my attitude to his gigs are purely what your guitarist friend suggested.

Yes, been there - not with your band leader, obviously 😀 - but in a pre-Covid band it became increasingly the case that a new (to us) song would appear in the set as the singer/guitarist uttered the classic "It's in 'C', follow me". Often it wasn't in 'C'. We realised after a few months that he was introducing songs from his solo set into our set. Shortly after, we all left him. 😂

Just spotted the comment. Just to let you know the pedal and I are still together despite it being a cheesey Valentine's Day thing. 😍 I'm completely out now - as detailed above - as I've had an ongoing affair with an Ibanez 5er. The pedal is happy with our relationship. 🤣