mcnach

I finally decided to do something about the lack of shielding on my Sue Ryder fretless. I bought this bass 3 years ago, I think, and removed the frets and had a luthier I know fill the gaps with a sycamore veneer and plane the fingerboard etc. I also changed the pickup and added some cosmetic touches. Very inexpensive bass, but I liked it more than a Squier VM Jazz and a Japanese Fender Precision I used to have... One problem: it buzzed like crazy. It wasn't helped by the fact I put some nylon tapewound strings on it, so I'm not physically touching any metal on it when I play it. I assumed it wasn't shielded. I didn't remember doing it. So yesterday I decided I should do something about it, and I opened it. Well, I didn't remember it, but I had attempted to shield it!!! Lots of copper tape. Looking neat... but clearly not doing the job. I started checking continuity with my multimeter, and the connection between the bridge and the tape was poor. Also, the pickup cavity and the control cavity did not appear to be connected at all. Strange. I checked further and I realised that the glue must not be a conductor: I get continuity when a piece of tape is over another... but it often is a poor connection. Add another layer (not necessarily on top of each other, but elsewhere, attempting to join two areas, for instance, and it's gone. I'm pretty sure I used to have some adhesive copper tape with some glue that was able to conduct electricity, but clearly not this one. I suppose I can get around it by making sure I create overlapping flanges when I shield an instrument... but, does anybody know *for sure* of a source for copper tape, adhesive, whose glue conducts electricity? I fixed the bass by soldering the bridge wire to the back of a pot, as originally, and added aluminium foil to the back of the pickguard, which then joins both cavities, and the bass is dead silent now. Result! So no, I do not need adhesive copper tape, but it's very handy, so I'd like some.

I hate you. You see: I'm not a big fan of Jazz basses (except the sound)... yet I own 6 of them: Three Fender 75RI, a fantastic Squier, a beautiful J&D, and what was my first real bass: a Vintage brand clone. I dislike their thin necks, the huge bodies... but they sound great and look great too. Oh, and a Cort MM/J which to all intents is a sort of a "super Jazz". In addition, I am waiting for a P/J I ordered from Maruszczyc, which will give me the compromise I like between a P and a fat J. But damn, that is a thing of beauty, and it looks like the preamp instead of being a gimmick as it's often the case in cheaper instruments, it's actually useful! So... I find myself wanting one, really wanting one. I hate you. Lots. But I loved the clip, can't get it out of my mind now.

I only had one Eno pedal. The switch started malfunctioning within weeks... it generally felt very cheaply made (surprise! )... I may have been very unlucky, but I would go for something more reputable.

[quote name='Fisheth' timestamp='1429311248' post='2750446'] Guess what... The gig was one of the best of my life. Ever. More to come tomorrow. Also supporting Risen Prophecy on their EU tour. It's official! [/quote] Ha ha! great! sometimes the most fun gigs are the ones you least expect to be!

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1429307779' post='2750408'] That's usual. The promoter sends an open email to all concerned with an invitation to 'reply to all' regarding equipment share and so on. Then (as you say) the bands organise everything themselves and get as many people as possible along to the event. Or not, more often. 'Promoter' is just a nominal title, it doesn't imply any actual promotion of the bands or organisation of the event. Just as long as you know this an accept it, you are likely to have a better time of it than if you don't. [/quote] The thing is that I can walk. But someone else invariably will take my place, so the "promoters" continue and survive. When I joined my current band we did a few of those multiband crappy gigs, playing slots of 30min, bringing equipment, often becoming hostages waiting till the end... I was a little older than the rest and I said "look, I don't really want to be playing these gigs". So we stopped saying yes to every offer. Guess what? We didn't stop playing. The opportunities are there, but if you're not a little picky you get stuck in the worst kind of gigs. Sure, we still play some less than ideal gigs, but they are the exception now. One interesting thing we noticed was that, as you say, the promoter did little else beyond booking a venue and send a few emails around. So we started doing that ourselves. It works remarkably well. Well, better than when someone else who doesn't give a sh*t "organises" it We even made money some times We book a decent size venue a few times a year to make a big party, invite a couple of other localish bands we like/are friendly with... and it's always worked really well. More bands should do that, and that way get rid of the false promoter (there are good ones too!).

[quote name='uncle psychosis' timestamp='1429198687' post='2749131'] These multi-genre gigs are always a nightmare in my experience, but for a first gig they're fairly standard. I try to avoid them now, unless the bands are utterly fantastic everyone tends to go home a bit disappointed! With regards gear sharing, there is no "right" answer. What is expected varies from bass player to bass player, band to band, venue to venue, promoter to promoter and gig to gig. The only golden rule is "sort it out in advance". Contact the other bands, contact the promoter. Arrange in advance exactly who is providing what. So long as all the planning is sorted before the night and everyone knows the score then thats the important thing. If you don't want to share your gear, thats fine---but make sure you state that in advance, because the other bands may have been given a different impression by the promoter or even by whoever it is in your band that does the bookings. If you are going to share gear, brilliant, but arrange it in advance so that there aren't three drumkits and four bassamps sitting at the side of the stage taking up precious space. My own experience of gigging the originals circuit is that if you are completely unwilling to compromise on gear sharing then there's going to be problems. Its just not realistic to completely tear down between every single band at multi-band gigs. You just have to make sure that the compromise is acceptable to everyone. [/quote] what pisses me off is that it's often the "promoter" (spit) just leaving the bands to sort it out. No. It's your event. You're organising it. You mediate then! You *organise* it and make sure there will be the required equipment on the night!

[quote name='Fisheth' timestamp='1429186873' post='2748905'] So guys, my band is playing our first gig tomorrow and there's been a couple of issues. One of which is it's a multi-genred night. With a so called accoustic act that dubs his work as a "Journey chronicling his depression over the last few years" an Indie band and somebody else. Now we're a Metal band first and foremost with older influences (So no chug, chug breakdowns) I've never really been a fan of multi-genred nights mainly because people tend to leave after their mates band has finished and doesn't support everyone (Which they should, but it's not an issue for us) Another thing is lack of space and gear. We're playing somewhere which isn't a venue. It's a pub that puts on gigs because the promoter can get the function room above there. Apparently it is the size of a shoe box and the organization hasn't been great. Thus far, we have been told that there's a drumkit (but bring your own pedals and breakables) and I was originally told that a band would be providing two Marshall Bass cabs for me to use, then I turn up at rehersal last night and the guitarist of my band is convinced he told me that I was going to use my own set up and band share it for the last two bands. I'm not exactly keen on loaning gear out, due to the story in a Glenn Fricker video about the Day Glo Abortions who blew up a kids JCM 800 in the eighties, just left and didn't pay the guy compensation for it. Twenty five years later. And another thing is, we've got good gear if we are going to loan it out and a guitarist in another band is adamant on using his Marshall MG and cab (ew) so we may need to loan his God awful cab. He's on the verge of getting sacked from his band though. But I'm guessing leave that to the guitarists to sort out. What's your thoughts on multi genred nights and loaning out gear? [/quote] Pass. Multi-genre events are rarely a hit. Like you say, people go to one band and move on (I disagree with what you said that they should support the other bands too: when I'm the audience, I go to watch whatever damn band I please and I am there for entertainment and enjoyment of the live music, not to make a statement for live music ). These multi-band events with sharing of gear... shudder. I do let others use my amp, but only in situations I have certain control of: I know the bands, etc. One reason I bought my little MarkBass combo is that I can walk in with it pretty much anywhere, and have a decent sounding amp + stage monitor (it'll always be DI'd to PA, unless it's a tiny venue), and when I'm done I walk out with it. If we play a festival or some event where gear is provided, I still bring my little amp because then I know I'll be happy with the sound. It's worth considering having a portable solution, it saves a lot of hassle. I prefer playing through my bigger rig, but sometimes you need to compromise. I say "pass", but then you say it's the first gig for your band... so I might just go along with it, to test the water, so to speak... Nobody is going to know you if you don't play out. Play, and hopefully you'll be able to play better gigs soon. Whatever the situation, don't let technical issues spoil your gig. Know your songs well so that you can play them even when you cannot hear yourself and barely make out what the guitar is playing, and have a good time

Trial and error... I used to turn the mid control all the way up, and then sweep to hear what frequencies were being affected. Then turn it all the way down, and repeat. That helped me zero in a particular range that I could then boost or cut. I usually only ever needed small amounts of boost/cut, but experimenting with the extremes to get a feel for where each frequency was (not in Hz but in "honk", "growl", "boom" ) was useful for me.

Nice!

Well, I went and got myself one of those Stagg stands too for my little MarkBass combo. Excellent. It makes the little beast even better as a stage monitor.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1429202075' post='2749206'] Don't want to make this into a 'thing', but [i]in my humble opinion[/i] and [i]in my experience[/i] I have not found that replacing a BBOT increases sustain to any measurable degree. Plus, sustain is a highly overrated characteristic anyway. Does anyone really need a lot of it for bass playing? [/quote] same here. I never encountered a bass that made me think "hmmm, sweet, if only it had more sustain..."

PA is not backline some "promoters"

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1428825120' post='2744770'] Thanks for the suggestions folks, the rubber mesh sheet seems like a great idea, as I don't want to make any permanent mods to the cab or head. I will head off to Wilko's this week. [/quote] I was annoyed with my Shuttle 9.2 because the plastic feet just don't have any grip, so it was too easy for it to slide around. I ended up replacing the feet: it's cheap, non-destructive, and really easy. You can reinstall the original ones anytime, no fuss. I made a thread about it, it includes pictures... maybe that will work for you too? It certainly did the job for me thread below: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/231593-replacing-feet-on-a-genz-benz-shuttle-92-with-pictures/"]http://basschat.co.uk/topic/231593-replacing-feet-on-a-genz-benz-shuttle-92-with-pictures/[/url]

[quote name='Billy Apple' timestamp='1428836292' post='2744971'] And my recommendation for best bit of kit for the day.. The TKS 1126T. Outstanding. Thanks Barrie! [/quote] Whilst I haven't tested the competition as extensively... all I can say is the TKS 1126 is really good. I have two, a T and a "sans T" version. I'm very happy with them: weight, portability, sound... I also thank Barrie for all his help while I was considering the various options.