colleya

I've just ordered a Nordstrand 2 band preamp replacement for my VM5. Everything else about the bass is phenomenal but my Fender absolutely bosses it tonally. The Sandberg wins hands down on playability, just want it in the same league sound wise. Of course YMMV.

I found that signing up for one of the SBL courses has improved my practice. I'm practicing more because I've bloody paid for it and the stuff I'm working on is more focused.

Get the ball rolling properly with my band Tea Time Funk Club I think we've got something really good going and they're a super talented bunch. This year I want us to find the right venues and get our foot properly in the door. We've got 4-5 bookings already so hopefully things will snowball from there. Personally, I've been working hard on my playing and practicing a lot more, so I want to keep that up. Gigs in the calendar always helps me with motivation in that department too.

Double gig bag. Fancy strings. Plus my present to myself - a couple of SBL courses that I bought back in November. Time to bite the bullet and make a conscious effort to improve.

This is really helpful, thanks!

Does anyone have any experience with swapping the preamp in a VM5? I bloody love the bass, it plays like a dream but the tone isn't as 'alive' as my Fender jazz 5. It feels a little sterile to me. I'm thinking of popping an East pre in there and was wondering if anyone else has done the same. YouTube has an example done on a TT but no VM. Cheers!

@dmccombe7 you have, but thanks for taking the time to say so again. Very lucky to have chanced on a band with some very talented individuals, plus two of them can mix audio and make my bass actually sound like the tone I've got in my head.

Well, it was bloody freezing, but it scrubbed up quite nicely in the edit. Can't upload the clip to here for some reason, so here's the link to the instawotsit version. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DRhlyzXjFx1/?igsh=MW5iOXRiMGZoejVvOA==

I nearly went for that myself, but it was a bit much on top of the funk accelerator in one month. Would be very interested in your thoughts on the fretboard accelerator course. That would be next on my list.

I'm usually almost pathologically resistant to paid for courses. However after years of playing in rock/indie I joined a funk/soul band and felt painfully exposed. Phrasing wasn't right, felt awkward and not in the pocket etc etc. I bit the bullet and realised that spending money on a new bass/amp/pedal wasn't magically making me a better player (still fun though) so I signed up Three weeks in, I'm pretty impressed. I like the structure that releases a section a week rather than full access to everything. Resources, videos and backing tracks are excellent quality. The live sessions are fun and focused. Feels well scaled so far - lots of stuff I've seen go from root notes to 7/8 mixolydian Swedish folk fusion leaving a massive 'how the hell did they do that?' gulf in the middle. Am I motivated to practice more? Yes Is my practice more focused? Yes Is my timing improving (probably as a result of the above)? Yes Is my phrasing improving? Starting to Can I do stuff I couldn't before? Yes Could I have learned most of this stuff for free piecemeal on the Internet? Probably Do they send waaaaay too many emails? Good lord yes Was it expensive? It felt it, but if I break it down into 14 (the length of the course in weeks) then probably not really. Has the rest of the band noticed? Very funny (but it's only week 3 so I still have hope) If anyone else is doing the course then I'd be interested in how you're finding it. If you're thinking about these courses then hopefully this might help a bit.

Unheated.

I'd agree with all the comments about practice, but be kind to yourself too. If you make a mistake then you make a mistake. I make loads every gig, and that's without an emotionally loaded situation like it sounds like you'll be in. I'm really sorry to hear about your brother, but I'm sure he'd be unbelievably proud of you. Everyone there (and here on BC) will be rooting for you too, break a leg.

Another excellent basschatter. Bought a pedal from @jezzaboy. Arrived next day with possibly the best packaging job I've seen. Highly recommended, thanks!