mcnach

wow! I love the colours... but I'd be afraid of stabbing myself with it if I used it It looks great 'though!

[quote name='mentalextra' timestamp='1481232360' post='3190905'] Might not be the 'party line' but I sort of feel sorry for the shop? [/quote] me too, but didn't want to say anything. I wonder if the mistake relates to the actual model they are selling rather than the price.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1481196703' post='3190375'] As someone whose band has been releasing vinyl there are pros and cons... Pros: It looks and feels great. An album on 12" vinyl is big serious statement of intent. Even a 7" single looks more impressive than a CD, and with my graphic designer's hat on, you really can't beat the enlarged canvas that vinyl packaging allows you. It's popular. I'll be the first to admit, that one of the main reasons we've been releasing our music on vinyl is because we sell more copies and make more profit per copy sold, than if it was released just on CD. Cons: It doesn't really sound very good. Admittedly the quality of vinyl these days is substantially better than it was back in the 70s and 80s when I was last buying it. I dug out some albums and 12" singles from the early 80s in order to play them the other day, and compared with even a modern "low quality" 120g pressing they felt flimsy and insubstantial. However a well produced and mastered 16Bit 441.1kHz digital file will always out-perform even the best vinyl from a sonic PoV. The CD version of the Terrortones album sounds better than the vinyl version when played back to back. Each version was specifically mastered for the intended delivery medium, but unfortunately vinyl simply can't compete sonically. There are all sorts of technical limitations to what can be reproduced on vinyl when it comes to bass, stereo imaging and phase effects. None of these affect digital files. You need decent (and expensive) playback equipment to get the best out of it. A digital file just needs a good quality DAC, and these days the gap in quality between consumer grade and professional DACs is not very big and it's getting smaller all the time. While it's perfectly possible to enjoy your vinyl on a junk-shop Dansette (although these are by no means cheap any more), to get the best out of it you need to invest in a good quality turntable, tone arm, cartridge etc. and get them set up properly and keep them maintained. Even then, every time you play your vinyl you are damaging it. A good deck and careful handling of the medium will minimise this, but ultimately every play wears the record slightly. A properly backed-up digital file will last forever and sound exactly the same as the day it was digitised. It is expensive to produce and therefore expensive for consumers to buy. 500 copies of the Terrortones album cost £4000 to make including the recording. We could have had 1000 CDs for around half of that. On top the increased production costs of the actual vinyl over CD, there was the increased printing and production costs for the larger 12" packaging, and finally there was the cost of the extra mastering optimised for vinyl cutting, as well as the standard digital master for downloads. It's heavy and bulky to store and easy to damage. Both for the producer and consumer. My large collection of CDs occupies the wall one side of the chimney breast in my lounge, and if I really wanted I could pack them all away in a handful of boxes, and just listen to the versions stored on my iTunes server. I dread to think how much space (and what sort of re-enforced shelving) I'd need if it was all on vinyl. The first Terrortones release - 500 CDs came in couple of easily lifted cardboard boxes. 500 copies of the album on vinyl was 6 very heavy boxes on a pallet! Also because of the size and weight of the vinyl, they had suffered damage in transit and I had to replace the paper sleeves of a whole box worth of records. Then when it comes to mailing them out, CDs can go in a small jiffy bag with a bit of extra bubble wrap. Total P&P cost for a UK address under £2.00. The vinyl needs a proper album mailer with a cardboard stiffener, and is a lot heavier with a total P&P cost of around £4.00. All of that has to passed on the the consumer. So, as an artefact vinyl is great. Even a 7" single is big and impressive, but as a delivery medium for music - which after all is what it is designed for - there's a lot of better ways to do it nowadays. BTW. For those who are analog purists, almost every record release made in the last 20 or so years will have gone through a digital stage somewhere between when the instruments were mic'd up and the vinyl being cut, so any perceived inadequacies of the digital process will have been added to those of the vinyl medium. [/quote] great post.

Silly loud practices was the main reason I quit one band and I announced my quitting on another (but the guitarist accepted playing at lower volumes so I didn't have to go... and amazingly he stuck to it for 4 years!)... It's nice to play with some volume, but there's not much point if it's causing ear fatigue and you can't hear everything everybody plays clearly. "Diego", are you there? Those guys drove me crazy. The answer to playing like sh*t was play louder so that the wall of sound covers everything. Pity, as the singer/guitarist was decent and had some cool songs... but the other guitarist was clueless and he kept complaining he couldn't hear his guitar and kept turning louder. He used a very scooped kind of sound with lots of distortion and with the amp on the floor aiming at his knees... My suggestions about positioning the amp differently and dialling in some more mids were completely ignored... he was one of those guys that feel personally attacked if you dare suggest changing anything they do. It was only a month but...

We had that a couple of times. Sometimes someone thinks it would be great to have a band regularly playing at their venue, but they had not thought about noise issues and after a gig or two they realise it's not suitable for their purposes. Once it was the first time they ever had live music. Neighbour upstairs complained during our first set, it seems, and we turned right down for the second. They only do acoustic duos and the like now. The other place was meant to be a cool gig, every Friday, decent money, local and easy access, good food included... we played twice. I was surprised to be asked back after the first, really. They normally had a guy playing a piano. It was not a music venue, really, but more for background music. An 8-piece energetic ska/funk band wasn't a good match. Sometimes the person in charge just likes a band and the idea of the band playing at their venue, but they haven't really thought it through. It sounds to me like you have been caught in a similar situation.

Good to know. I'd love to see the Urban in the flesh. Even if it's more expensive, if it's as well made and a little less bulkier and lighter, I might go for it. And in a prettier colour (vain? moi?) The keyring... not sure that would sway me, unless it has a beer bottle-opener function

[quote name='DaytonaRik' timestamp='1480769292' post='3186995'] Surely that's an indication of the venue and the area, not the fee? On topic - our take is the normal £200-250 for a four piece . What we get paid has no impact on what gear we take including a pair of Gibson Les Paul Custom Shops '57 reissues for one of our guitarists. If that's the rate for the product in the area then that's the rate and I can't see that changing much for a generic covers band. [/quote] That's my thought as well. The bar won't care whether my gear is cheap or expensive, only that it works. I bring what I bring because I like using it, and if I don't feel safe n a ny given venue... I just don't play there. I don't play warzones As for the fee... £210 is not much, but if it's reasonably local (meaning easy/short transport time) and that means £70 each, that's not too bad. I'd like to get a regular local £70 a head for our 8-piece originals band Bars that get bands playing covers often have a flattish fee. They rarely care whether it's band A or band B playing, so if you don't play, another band will. If you've got a better gig, take it, but meanwhile it doesn't sound like such a bad deal. To be paid more you'll have to show the bar it's worth their cash, usually by being a band people go to see especifically resulting in a higher drinks sales. Only a small proportion of covers bands achieve that. Originals bands may have the unique selling point of doing what they do and nobody else does it... but usually not enough people care enough for venues to pay a huge amount more, and in fact it can get harder to get gigs at first. It's tough out there!

[quote name='Chienmortbb' timestamp='1480720988' post='3186795'] After 10 years with hardly any wear, I clipped my Aerodyne on a mic stand and a chunk of lacquer flew off, [b]exposing bear wood[/b]. [/quote] some very surreal and inappropriate images came to mind... I need my meds

[quote name='anzoid' timestamp='1480759993' post='3186914'] Alcytes could be your man: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/293263-pink-westfield-p-bass-with-an-extra-p-pickup"]http://basschat.co.u...-extra-p-pickup[/url] - and it's got an extra pickup too. Or if you're not fussy about the brand and just want a pink bass: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/279517-pink-phil-pro-p-bass-offers/"]http://basschat.co.u...-p-bass-offers/[/url] [/quote] thanks, but it was just a phase... now I'm cutting down

[quote name='eude' timestamp='1480694070' post='3186518'] If you don't mind the colour, I'd say go for it, it's about £50 off, no? [/quote] yeah, about £20 off the normal F1 price, or £50 cheaper than the new model, the Urban.

[quote name='Mykesbass' timestamp='1480406591' post='3184023'] Could be the new Sue Ryder basses [/quote] ha! could be... I wanted a pink Westfield for ages, but fortunately I did not find it They're pretty cool instruments 'though. I have a Jazz and it's very good.

[quote name='eude' timestamp='1480687764' post='3186435'] The F1 certainly feels a little more substantial, however I think the improvements in the design for the Urban negates that, and also means it's a little lighter. I can't quite compare apples with apples, as my F1s are bass bags and my Urban is a guitar model, don't worry though, I use it with my short scale headless. The Urban is equally well made, I wouldn't worry about it compared to an F1, as good, if not improved They do still have some F1s, but in a bit of a nasty colour way >> [url="https://www.fusion-bags.com/collections/guitar-gig-bags/products/f1-bass-guitar-gig-bag"]https://www.fusion-b...-guitar-gig-bag[/url] Eude [/quote] Ha ha! I have the green one too... not because I liked it but because I could not get the blue or orange that were my first choice Tempting to secure one of those... especially at that price

[quote name='ped' timestamp='1480682452' post='3186353'] You could still easily extract your bass in that way - although you'd have to make sure that the neck isn't secured with the velcro block. The internal bracing can be arranged so it doesn't interfere with the taking out of the bass. I've only got my internal dividers around every contour because I wanted to see how well it kept it's shape. I wasn't aware of the F1 and only recently discovered these bags but I know they tend to change designs based on feedback and developments in materials so it's probably worth giving one a try bearing in mind their returns policy. [/quote] Thanks Ped.

any clips for how it performs as a 'kick in for slap' pedal?

Nice review, thanks Ped! I've been using a Fusion F1 for 3 years now. Still going strong and it's a fantastic bag/case. I was a bit disappointed when I heard the F1 was discontinued and the closest new model would be the Urban, as it seemed to me that they reduced the peripheral protection but I guess it's because of the new inserts that hug the body. Eude, how do they compare, the Urban and the F1? I'm thinking about having a second case and I'd love another F1, but I guess the Urban will have to do. One thing I enjoy about the F1 is that between sets etc my bass is in the case, upright. Often between bass cabs and a guitar cab with a wall behind. To get my bass in/out all I do is unzip the case about half way and slide the bass in/out. It looked to me the Urban makes this harder. Am I right?

[quote name='Twigman' timestamp='1480672676' post='3186231'] I went to see The Cure again last night. Simon Gallup has the poses...he also skips about the stage in fits and starts....i have no idea how he manages to not miss a beat (other than the fact his basslines are simple)...the way he looks like he's trying to push his bass into the floor all the time impresses me. just saying [/quote] probably the fact he's played them 10,000 times is a factor

[quote name='thepurpleblob' timestamp='1480604856' post='3185784'] You can get a bass with FIVE strings now? [/quote]

[quote name='thepurpleblob' timestamp='1480589612' post='3185627'] I'll learn slap when I can remember all of the scales and modes.... that'll be never then. I can't even play with a pick. All this technique stuff is a matter of priorities unless you really do have 12 hours a day to work on your bass playing. It always looks like a great deal of pain and effort just to look like a smart-ass 14 year old. [/quote] will you wait to try 5 strings until you get all that mentioned in a 4 string first?

[quote name='Ghost_Bass' timestamp='1480337618' post='3183427'] Yesterday i took some time to try repairing the tweeter in my cab. Removed the grill to gain access to the cab and mrs G_B calls me to help her out with something. I return to my work and find these two little helpers: Fortunately tragedy avoided, the drivers got out of it unharmed, except for some bashed in dust caps. Out comes the vaccum cleaner and a kitchen funnel and they popped out again, like new. I couldn't bring myself to be mad at them as it was my fault for letting the door open and they looked so cute in there. But it could have been a lot worse... lesson learned, if it fits they really sits! [/quote] what is it with cats??? you draw a circle on the ground... and they'll sit in it.

the 10-15 week wait for a Maruszczyk suddenly feels so much bearable

Two identical basses? Why not? If you gig... you have a backup/ If you dismantle one for maintenance or tikering of any kind, you're not under pressure to finish the job, as you still have a working bass. You can try different strings on each! If you don't need the cash... I'd keep both.

[quote name='WalMan' timestamp='1480423510' post='3184213'] Happy days. We're supposed to be recording a new album across the continents this year, though it's hard work herding the cats to get it all together. In the meantime a load of old live videos are being dripped out on a weekly basis. Can't remember what amp I had at the time. I have a sneaking suspicion that it was a Peavey Megabass biamped into a Peavey 1516 cab (2x8 +15). All things considered for a video from 26 years ago and the sound rescued as best as possible it doesn't sound too bad. We had some bloody good fun [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vl4ys-zeYkI[/media] [/quote] love it!!!