deepbass5

We should keep this going as it may save a life because people are thinking about it. How do you guys wrap up your wires - gently in nice loops or end over end then tie them in a knot? There is always someone in the band who doesn't give a sht. Cables cost money and they work harden pretty quick. Extension lead sockets are crap these days and I have had some that do not work after a while due to being smacked about because the pin contacts inside are just push fit onto brass rods. It could be your amp plugged in the fourth socket down that just happens to have lost its earth connection. Basically Look after your gear and it will look after you - buy a Martindale socket tester - and check every wall socket you plug into, and the extension leads you run just to see if the Live /neutral polarity is correct and you have an earth. I have been too many venues with bad sockets and no earths, as well as different phases each side of the stage brought together with extension leads = PA on one phase back line amps on another = Lips tingling on the Mic whilst holding your Axe. I got electrocuted on stage some years ago. The Band leader made up an extension board a row of metal clad sockets. After the gig I went to unplug the leads and one rubber plug top was missing the screw so as I pulled it the top came off leaving my index finger across the fuse. My other hand was holding the metal sockets and I couldn't let go. Checking gear as you pack it away and when setting up, can pick up these things, it has also taught me to switch off extensions before pulling other people plugs out. Stay safe Guys

just to close a couple of points down. I have been asked several times to send copies of my PAT testing records and public liability insurance to venues ahead of the Gig. Civic Halls run by councils are a favourite and some hotel chains. They are just fulfilling their duty to the public attending a function on their premises. They have a duty to ensure their fixed electrical system is safe and has been tested and certificated. They now need to worry about a bunch of jean clad beer swilling junkies wanting to plug guitar amps into the premises mains supply!!!! . What if they Kill someone - we had better ask if they have PAT tested their equipment that should slow um down. People still think bands electrocute each other and throw Tele's out of hotel windows.

[quote name='ML94' timestamp='1391510420' post='2357841'] But when your in an exam situation playing what you think is right for the part will definatley give the examiner something to think about ! The worst peice/the one I hate is YYZ by Rush. Not a big rock fan so you can see why ... [/quote] That would be great wouldn't it just go in there and busk away and say I didn't care for the exam part so made my own up.

As I own most of the Band gear - PA and Lighting as well as my Bass gear, and we run the band, Public Liability insurance and PAT testing is something that falls to me. But I am a qualified Spark although not working as one, so the decision was easy Buy my own PAT tester about £250 the basic one is OK just says Pass or failed and indicates If an earth fault and continuety etc. But as stated above the responsibility comes from also visual examination of the lead, plug top, fuse etc. You are assessing its ability to do the job safley for another year. I say year but a competant person would also be able to make a judgement and say 3 years. e.g. the extenion lead under your desk at work may not go anywhere for five years. So will not be exposed to mechanical stress or overloading. Band gear takes a real hammering and I am suprised at how quick things deteriorate. So You can do it your self ( but who is deeming you competant?) The main thing is to keep records to prove you have been regularly inspecting the item. Seward do provide a program to down load a spreadsheet, but there is nothing wrong in making up your own Excel sheet with your band name on. If you are working twice a week or more and others are packing the gear away you may need to inspect things even more frequently this would be the responsible thing to do. The main thing is that someone is responsible that understands the dangers of allowing equipment to become unsafe that may give rise to endangering other peoples lives. A competant electrician is an obvious choice.

Best thing to remember - Tone is volume - and to get the tone you want means altering the volume of specific frequencies. The realisation that, this selected attenuation will change everywhere you go should help prolong a life GAS

Two interesting points I used to take occasional lessons from a Pro bass player, to cover off a few issues as and when. My question to the Pro = If I am to play this difficult passage where would you start on the neck? This was to check my approach was on the right lines, more relevant as a 5 string player. This was a tricky four bar counter melody covering an octave and a half. The answer = I wouldn't play that, But its written, surely if you were in a pit orchestra in the west end or touring with a name you would have to play that. Pro = No I would make up what I felt fitted the part. Hope some of you disagree but there you go I still try and learn everything as it is written but my approach is now my approach, I do not get hung up that there is one right way to play something. One thing I did take away is its often best to start with your middle finger on the root of the key centre and everything should fall under your hand, until it doesn't anymore then you had better have worked out where you are heading before you start playing it.

As above, but important not to rush and get a phrase wrong in your head as it will take a lot longer to put it right later and the wrong phrasing will pop out later in performance when you are under stress. So go slow and only speed up when correct. If you are not sure of the phrasing grab another Muso - any good brass / string / piano player of a good standard you trust to sing it to you first. Rather than learn it wrong.

Peaveys do a heavy pair. But I have the Proel air assisted ones; have used these with 15" full range speakers for some time with no problems. These are the more expensive pair but look the same as the cheaper type, they also have a safety pin. Basically web sites use the same picture for both but the air cushion units are best.

will they let you leave a deposit on one at the show

After the show you will see adverts for used Vaginas

One trick I read and have successfully applied is reducing the number sound sources that are being reflected or reduce the chance of them being reflected. Sounds crazy but by putting both PA speakers together on one side of the stage works wonders. The other would be use a bigger PA and not use individual amps on the back line and use monitors. As I guess you are stuck with what is listed the main thing is keep the volume under control, don't push the hall beyond that point of intelligibility. Another - you could avoid facing the opposite wall, set up in the corner so the sound is going round the angles. Good luck

Do you need the 1st edition to know where all the wires go Just imagined buying this and it starts at the sound check

I think it is or can be a great head start but you need to listen to the track (youtube) and figure out where the original bass player went. A Band I am doing stuff with uses or buys in Piano music and I try and tell everyone to be a little cautious. These are sing-along at home arrangements and often do not follow the original recording, but listened to in isolation sound fine. Ok to lift chords from and sort the general structure but I also find the keyboard player will trample all over your bass part instead of picking out what the keyboard is actually doing on the track, and you can’t stop them as it has been arranged for them to be doing everything. I have photocopied these parts and the cut the copy up and pasted the lower register onto one sheet to get three pages down to one. My main tip would be trust your ears

I have had similar issues when typing fast, which is good for two fingers, but not just on this site ? just speed the systems can transfer your key input into I & O's. i guess

Agree Steve. I think the Government could introduce legislation e.g. to ensure invoices to non-VAT registered businesses are paid within 4 weeks. Should be easy, and maybe all non PLC registered companies within 8 weeks. There must be some way of keeping the economy moving.

Update - 3 weeks and in the Bank phew.... New management chain, shows it can be done.

[b]www.stevekendallguitars.co.uk[/b] could try Steve, makes nice basses too

I have thought for sometime, they have too many products now. Maybe if they had rationalized these down they could have kept it all in Italy. The ones they have discontinued were better than some of the line that remains, Has Marco lost his way. 3 Amps and 5 different cabs would be enough. Any one here about to rush out and buy a programable Amp. Or have spare MoMark modules they swap over between Gigs ?

I find it disappointing as a loyal MB user. I admired Marco for his commitment to Italian manufacturing. MB used to advertise "100% Made in Italy. The only way to maintain the growth and worldwide success of Markbass is to keep manufacturing in Italy, where we control the entire process from the quality of our materials to our rigorous testing procedures."

Funny, I have just been doing the same with my Markbass LMK and my GK MB500fusion. They are both the same size and take them both to gigs as back up, always placing the GK on top of the LMK. I now run one bass clean through the GK valve head and out of the line out into channel one of the LMK. this amps power section feeds both my wizzy M-lines = 4 ohms. I have my back up bass via effects board into channel two of the LMK. I can use the markbass footswitch to change over basses. This way I keep nice clean valve rich tone for most numbers. and then when i need pedals i switch these through the funkier set up EQ on the LMK. this also gives greater EQ capability as the low mid & high mids on each amp have different centre freqs.

I was gonna say, Van, PA, monitors a mate and a sack truck.

Yep - I have had a couple of issues with PP3 similar no connection to one of the poles. I usually buy a large box of these at a time from Battery force. I used to get through a few with Radio mics, 18v basses and an electro acoustic guitar. I Have a battery tester and found whilst testing twisting the battery just gently on the test pins clockwise and anti clock the voltage would disappear, assuming a faulty connection to one of the pins.

Yes Dingus + I Know a few first call muso's who may be OK now they have had years of royalties that still drop on the mat, but in those first 10 - 15 years you can't get a Mortgage due to sketchy income and accounts, telling the tax man you earn bugger all, and the Building society you have made it big. People naturally think you want to be pro, but actually a subsidised hobby and a good PAYE job ain't bad.

At Christmas my eldest lad finally made us a DVD copy from a video of our band playing in 1990. The comments - Look dads got black hair. I then made the mistake of pointing out, ya mums got brown hair but she's been dying it for 20 years. Are you still tempted to do silly things - put sausage rolls into saxaphones, fill Trombone slides full of beer while they're not looking, or empty the dried up plate of band sandwiches into the raffle ticket tumbler.