mcnach

The place is open until 5am, people will come back (Bombskare is playing after us, they're the main attraction)... but they might not be back until they're due, is my fear... Like you say, if people break for the fireworks they tend to continue being distracted. In our venue, the bar is physically in the same place (elevated stage placed centrally, dancing space in front, two bars one on each side - and then the top floor), so I hope some will come soonish, since they paid etc. But I would not be surprised if they do not come back until 1am when Bombskare is due. We save the best for the end, maybe we shouldn't this time!

You'd be surprised how many don't feel that way. You just need to give it a try, and you realise that you are not becoming the 'weirdo' you might have thought you'd become for going out and not drinking... and that you're not alone. But you're right...let's not derail too much. I hope you have a great NYE's gig! I hope mine goes well too... we're scheduled to play through the bells, which is ok, we'll insert our little welcome to the new year into our set at the right time... but I fear the place will empty significantly to watch the fireworks outside, 200m down the road... and that many might get distracted and never come back We will see!

There's lots you can do whilst not drinking... or is drinking a goal in itself for most?

So, before you had an idea, but now you have confirmation of why they can't keep a bass player. They sound like a charming precious lot

If I had a 55-02 that I liked, I really would not spend time trying other basses. To me the electrics are 'consumables'... you can change, modify, replace. You can restore to original if you wish too. I used to own a 55-02, and I thought the electrics let it down a little. A little. That thing felt great in my hands, it was beautiful, one of those rare instruments that feel just right. Had I kept it (not really into 5 strings after all) I might have replaced pickups and preamp: for me 1st the bass must feel physically right, then I'll deal with the electrics. That's just me.

But the 55-02 just *feels* fantastic and it's extremely well made. It makes sense to me to apply a simple mod like that to get it just right.

Ooops, there was a chrome leg stand behind the ASAT and I thought it was an extension screwed into where the strap button normally is. Shows how much attention I was paying

You can phone up and book, no problem... but it'll cost you more.

They generally bring in the number of staff needed for the expected audience, and they count on having a certain amount of drinks sales. It's because of that, that if they know your band is going to attract enough people, you often can get a reduced booking rate.

I see you also dislike the neck dive on those basses, eh? I have a similar bodied bass (not an ASAT) and I'm considering doing something similar. How deeply into the body did you drill?

I have to say that him and his girlfriend had a 'vibe' that reminded me of those Forensic Files type of TV shows...

You're right assuming there are decent monitors onstage for bass, which is not always the case for many of the bands we are in here. Having some kind of amplification able to serve as stage monitor is maybe not absolutely necessary, but almost.

What you are playing seems just fine to me. More than fine. Perhaps you will find that a 100W combo ends up being short... but in most cases you're only likely to need a stage monitor, which it could probably do just fine. I'd save the £600, keep them safe, and... play, practice, and find a band, find two bands (you can be in more than one band, it's allowed ) and then if/when you find there's a particular bit of gear you need, you already have some money stashed away for it. Maybe get a few lessons to open up new avenues for you and help you improve... Really, I would but nothing at this point.

I don't think there's any generic vs matching bass characteristics. If you look around, there's all kinds of designs both in amp EQ points and preamps designed for specific basses. I think it's more a personal preference. Some have very high treble points and are only really useful to remove finger noise on the strings etc... others bring it down from 10KHz to 6KHz which is more useful to 'sculpt' your tone... Same with bass controls. My personal preference is a passive tone control (treble cut), and an active mids control with selectable centre frequency (something like the John East one, covering 100-1000 or 200-2000 Hz.

I put a John East MMSR preamp in my 2-band Stingray. Essentially a classic 2-band with an additional mids module with a control for the centre frequency in a concentric pot.

Good call. The ATK again does not sound quite like a Stingray but at least it is very close and can be made to sound closer, as the pickup is at the right spot. However, the ones I've tried are big heavy monsters. I had a beautiful natural/maple ATK300 and I had to reluctantly let it go because it was just too heavy so I always ended up choosing to play other basses. But it's a good sounding bass.

Yes.

Hi, here's a mostly Stingray player with Precision as second favourite, who owned an L2000 for many years. Natural ash and maple Stingray is exactly what I've got. You sir, have got taste It is my number one bass, the bass to rule all basses, the bass I'd go back into a burning building to save, etc... so if you detect a preference for a Stingray in my comments, there's that. It has the nicest most comfortable neck of any bass I've ever played, for my taste. The HH Stingray never appealed to me, but there's no denying it is a versatile machine. You get the same you get from a single H, and more, so if versatility is your thing, it's not a bad call. Personally, I find the single H versatile enough thanks to its preamp and the second humbucker gets in the way a bit. But that's my personal preference. I don't think it gets you a Jazz-type of sound, but it is a great sound. The L2000 is *nothing* like a Stingray HH. It is a great instrument, whether USA or Tribute models. The electronics are the same, but the USA comes in two different neck profiles. I loved the L2000, and if anything I'd compare it to a Jazz than to a Stingray. A Jazz that went to the gym and took a few illegal substances and returned with huge biceps. The L2000 has passive EQ, and the preamp is purely to change the impedance (and it has a bright switch as well). The bridge pickup is too close to the bridge to get you the Stingray sound. Yes, the pickup *looks* a bit like a Stingray one... but that's all. The pickup is very different, in a different position, and it sounds like a very fat Jazz. With the series/parallel switch and various pickup combinations, you get a really wide range of sounds. The neck alone has a bit of a Precision vibe, just like a Jazz neck has... but it's distinct enough and *not* a Precision. To me the L2000 is its own thing. Based more on the Jazz design, and you can get sounds that resemble a Jazz, but a really fat Jazz. It's just... not a Jazz either. Versatility? A two pickup bass is a good call. Both Stingray or L2000 would be cool. I personally would go for the Stingray because... I personally prefer the Stingray... but I gigged the L2000 for some time and I was very happy with it too. If you really want a Jazz style sound... get a Jazz. If you want a versatile bass... both of your choices sound good to me. But try them first... one might just call you a lot more than the other.

I find the MB Octave to be much cleaner, lacking that dirty synthy vibe the OC2 has. The OC-10 does have that kind of sound, although I've not been able to compare it to an OC-2, since I haven't owned an OC-2 in years.

My favourite one too.

Is there a reason you specifically want a guitar wah to mod? There's a few dedicated bass wahs (and some with dual modes) out here to choose from.

For the Microsynth it really is a shame. You can get a handful of completely different kinds of sounds but you need to stick to one for live use... or become really good at tweaking sliders in between songs, but again that doesn't allow you to have two sounds in a single song. Still, what it does, it does really well, in my opinion, so I love it. Presets and an assignable expression pedal, and I'd have to buy it. Hear me, EHX?

Oh! That 8-string Stiletto is sexy! I've always been interested in an 8-string but I also know I would rarely use it... however, they do make a fine noise those things! The Stiletto shape is very attractive, however they seem to only make it with thinned necks, so I used that to convince myself that I should move on. Black BF grill on BF cabs... It took me a little bit to get used to their peculiar design, well the Two10 in particular, with those two semicircles... and the label sideways... But once I played with them a couple of times I stopped caring. My quest for cabs stopped when I found the Two10. The WD800 looks VERY interesting, doesn't it? But the truth is I can't fault the D800+. So I made a point of never trying a WD800, just in case. I'm experiencing a rare period of bliss where I am not looking at new cabs or amplifiers... and I'm enjoying this situation. Long may it last!

I used to have a Microsynth... loved it, but ended up not using it much and sold it... 10 years ago. Back in 2015 I bought a Future Impact. Impressive range of sounds. As a 'synth', it is superior, no question. But as something that goes with bass rather than substitute it, I prefer the Microsynth. That's why the Future Impact was sold after just a few months and... I've just bought one of the newer EHX Bass Microsynth pedals that run at 9V. I just wish it could store presets. Seriously funky pedal. To me, obviously Now, to the point... best 2018 purchase? It's got to be the Schecter Model T bass... The worst... the little Eno TC-61 envelope filter. Just... terrible on bass.

I think up to Somewhere In Time they were ok... and then they just used a machine to make songs, which were all very similar indeed.