Nicko Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 4 hours ago, Cat Burrito said: In 34yrs of playing I have only ever broken one string and had one amp let me down so I am very much a bass / amp with a few spare leads / cables etc if I remember kind of player. I only ever had equipment failure once when the jack socket disappeared into the bass - typically it was when I failed to take a spare bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 If venue has tolerable back line: Bass, strap, preamp/DI pedal plus PSU, two leads. All in one gig bag. No spare strings. This is is what I will be slinging on my back for Hope & Anchor gig on Saturday. If rubbish or non-existent back line: Above plus one loud amp (Orange TB500) and one loud cab (BF Super Compact) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr.Dave Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 Bass in a gig bag along with spare strings ( old ones boiled ) ,.Strap. Small tool kit inc fuses. Stand. Goes on the back seat. 2 barefaced cabs , tc amp , all cables in spares of each type , extension reel, 2x akg mics. All that in two cajon bags. Chucks in the boot with a mic stand. CDs for the trip. Probably something like Steely Dan on the way there but definitely Leonard Cohen on the way home to help switch me off. Can of febreeze , so my sweaty clothes don't stink the car up. Carrier bags. You never know what you can blag. Beer and the remains of the buffet being favourite but I'll take anything - came home with three radiators once ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteb Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 46 minutes ago, Nicko said: Two basses One Amp One 2 x 12 cab Small pedal board Case full of leads, picks, spare strings and a few tools Guitar stand DI cable, just in case A towel and spare T shirt Pretty much this for most gigs these days. Both basses are in single gig bags with stuff needed for stage stuffed in one bag plus all spares (including a spare micro TE Elf amp and my own DI box in case of emergency) in the other. When I fist joined a band that gigged regularly all over the place in the early 80s, I just had the one P bass before that, which served me well for several pretty good bands and occasional gigs . When they asked me to join, they said that I had to get a spare bass, even if it was just a beater, 'just in case'. In nearly forty years since then, I have done maybe a thousand gigs or so and needed a spare just four or five times. But, as luck would have it, each of those occasions has been a pretty important gig and I have been really glad to have a spare bass available. It depends on logistics / importance of each gig, but I take spares whenever possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacDaddy Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 As others have said - depends on the gig. Especially as to taking a rig or combo. But the minimum is still bass, and Snapdragon folding bass as a backup. Fully charged wireless, plus a lead. FX pedals or multi FX. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silvia Bluejay Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 Doesn't it depend not just on the type of gig, but also on your role in the band? Of course for plug-and-play gigs where backline, PA, lights and sound engineer are provided, it's just a matter of carrying an instrument, a lead and a tuner. When the gig is in a pub or club and the stage (or corner by the gents') is bare, that's another matter entirely. For our main band @Happy Jack and I carry absolutely everything except the drumkit. PA, backline, desk, cables, microphones, bass guitar and double bass, all stands, lights, recording equipment, cameras, band banner with name and logo, plus the frontman and his two guitars and combo. We also always carry spares for most of the above - although not for the frontman... 🙄 😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T-Bay Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 I may have missed it, but can’t remember seeing gaffer tape. I always take a fat roll of it and a few cable ties Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gazhowe Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 Excluding PA and lighting gear, I always take: 2 basses 1 amp 1 cab Pedalboard Leads (including spares) DI box (in case of amp failure) 2 Hercules stands Spare strings Spare batteries Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted March 3, 2022 Share Posted March 3, 2022 Charisma, talent and a boyish charm! Oh and delusion, definitely delusion. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nail Soup Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 Last band (on guitar/vox) One Guitar, spare strings. Wireless kit plus extra lead as backup Pedal board Normally amp simulator pedal, only take amp if PA not suitable Mic and stand Not much in the way of spares really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newfoundfreedom Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 (edited) 18 hours ago, Cat Burrito said: In 34yrs of playing I have only ever broken one string and had one amp let me down so I am very much a bass / amp with a few spare leads / cables etc if I remember kind of player. Same here. One bass One amp 2 cabs. One fx pedal One wireless system One spare lead in case the wireless system plays up One spare battery. That's it. Oh, plus one guitar stand. Edited March 4, 2022 by Newfoundfreedom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nail Soup Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 In terms of more auxiliary items........ Big water bottle. Set list marked up with a few 'cheats' Stage clothes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyJohnson Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 (edited) I haven't gigged for about two years now, last one I did I just took a bass, headstock tuner, strap, a Sansamp of some sort and cables. I used to take a lot of kit, but in truth it was unnecessary to do so. [Edit] Earplugs. Edited March 4, 2022 by NancyJohnson What was that you said? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Edwards69 Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 (edited) Bass x2 (sometimes just one if the gig is close to home - I know, it doesn't make any sense). Helix LT Headrush FRFR-112 Line 6 G10s wireless - sometimes TC Helicon Critical Mass vocal processor (crowd vocal simulator / octave up and down) Mic ipad or Kindle Fire tablet with bandhelper and mic stand holder. Leads inc spare extension power leads IEM pack and earbuds Mini guitar stand Plectrums Earplugs Baby powder (essential on hot gigs) large sweat band (so my forearm doesn't stick to bass body) Water bottle (we all use a sport top bottle for water - saves any dangerous spillages) Business cards Change of clothing (depending on gig) Cash, just in case. Phone (useful torch feature) Keys so I can get in when I get home Regarding backups. I used to bring two amp heads before going frfr. I had a disaster one evening when my old Markbass LMII suffered a small drop in its case that caused microfractures and it went into protect mode after 20mins. My trust in class D being roadworthy went down since that day. Me and both my guitarists all use a helix and an frfr speaker each. One of them also bring a stomp as a backup with a couple of basic presets saved for any of us to use. This way, we have a backup if one of the helix devices craps out and each frfr speaker has a spare input so there's redundancy if one of them fails. We also go direct to FOH as well, so it's not a huge deal. We need to upgrade our IEM system because it's crap, but when we do, that will make the on stage frfrs even more redundant. Edited March 4, 2022 by Greg Edwards69 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EBS_freak Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 For me, this is more of a case of what don't I bring? Gigging was never meant to be this hard! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dclaassen Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 One or two basses, the second left in the case unless needed (I am also one of those old-timers who cannot remember breaking a string in 40+years of playing) Combo Amp Gig bag has tools, spare strings, batteries, leads, tuner, a couple of rags, etc Small bag with spare kettle lead, fuses, mics and clips, guitar stand, direct box, Zoom, gaffer tape, 2 mic cables Maybe a mic stand and a music stand if needed (I cannot remember lyrics) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neepheid Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 While I play fast and loose what with not taking a spare bass to the gig (I know, my place in hell was reserved long before I started playing bass), my bag o stuff is probably overcompensating for something... Cables (instrument, XLR, speakon, power, misc small ones like pedal interconnects, DC power daisychain, USB power, 3.5mm aux audio in/out) Stand (foldy Hercules thing) Spare strings Tool kit Notepad Wee towel Spare T-shirt Duct tape Behringer DI/preamp thing (for amp emergencies) Pedal PSU Earplugs Clip on tuner (for pedal tuner fail) String winder Pedal tuner OD pedal 9V batteries Zoom audio recorder Phone charger (doubles as PSU for Zoom) That's all I can remember without having the bag to hand. Do I need all this stuff? Probably not. Perhaps I should consider a bag o stuff lite edition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacDaddy Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 @neepheid earplugs, yes! But they are a given for me, as I have the little case attached to my keys so I always have them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjones Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 (edited) I never had an amp go down on me yet but the head I use was bought secondhand and initially had a slight distortion issue that I managed to fix (loose connectors attached to the board), so I bring a backup just to be sure. I also bring strings, a small toolkit, spare lead, batteries, etc. I don't bother bringing a spare bass as basses are pretty sturdy things (of course if I was playing Wembley I might think about it but usually I'm only playing the Dog & Duck). Edited March 4, 2022 by gjones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyJohnson Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 14 minutes ago, gjones said: I never had an amp go down on me yet Chortle. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SumOne Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 (edited) Bass, Amp, Cab, Pedals, Cables. I worry about forgetting the little things - it's quite hard to forget the Bass or Cab! but quite easy to forget small but cricial things like the speaker cable, strap (a downside of using flush dunlop straplocks - can't just borrow someone elses strap), guitar cable, amp & pedal power. I've never had a Bass string break so until reading this thread never even considered needing to carry around spares. Perhaps I should though?! I've never had a Bass or Cab break and imagine it's a rare occurance. The Amp is the thing I'd assume is the most likely to break (although how often does that actually happen with fairly new, fully working class D amps that are used with the correct Cab?), if I get a new Amp I might keep the old as a backup. Edited March 4, 2022 by SumOne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ander87 Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 Bass with gigbag Strap, 2 cables, power lead and Eich T900 fits in the gigbag alongside picks and ear plugs HX Effects If I can/logistics I'll bring my Barefaced Big Baby 2. That is all I have not counting on my other bass! Very important for me to have 'only' what I need - that's how I afford to get the basses I like most, otherwise my budget is spread into too many things...! Ander. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 Bass of choice, small bass as backup Pedalboard Amplifier 2 x Bass Speakers (1x12s) Wireless transmitter all cables and spares in bag, all power leads and extensions Microphone Stand & Microphone bass stand IEM sender, reciever and in ears iPad 2 x 12" PA Optionally 1 bass bin Legs for PA X18 Mixer X-Control for mixer Wireless stuff for mixer Pair of Lights Some kind of recording device, little zoom audio or video recorder Phone, wallet, keys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 1 hour ago, neepheid said: Wee towel Most of the places we go have toilets so we are ok with that. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neepheid Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 57 minutes ago, Woodinblack said: Most of the places we go have toilets so we are ok with that. Ahh, thanks for reminding me, I forgot to mention the urine sponge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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