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[quote name='littlebraith' post='1030857' date='Nov 20 2010, 08:47 PM']Right, so I need to upgrade my weedy little Stagg 40watt bass amp so that I can actually be heard at practices. I've been recommended this amp by somebody, the Behringer BXL 3000, but I'm really uncertain about what to think. The reviews for any Behringer are SO mixed that I'm not sure what to believe, some saying how horribly unreliable Behringer is, others saying it's a great quality bass and at an amazing price (Lowest I've found is £185) My guitarist has a Behringer Amp and Cab setup and it really is amazing quality and he got that fairly cheap.[/quote] The Behringer amp will certainly give you more headroom than the little Stagg amp you are currently using. But there are a few things to consider here. 1) The stated output of 300W may be technically correct, but misleading. The measurement is in RMS and there are a number of different ways that this figure can be measured to create a larger number (input frequency being one of them). In the same way that a Vauxhall Corsa *could* do 180MPH (if you were to fire it out of a big enough cannon). 2) I have experience of Behringer amplifier products failing when driven too hard and certainly don't even consider Behringer when selecting power products. 3) I have never spoken with Behringer support, but they do seem to have a pretty poor reputation. So, whilst I would happily say their outboard stuff apears to be reasonable, their power products aren't fantastic. Looking at the overall spec of the BXL3000, and if budget is important - if it was me, I'd take a look at the 100W+ Hartke kit and pay a few quid more for a lot more peace of mind.

[quote name='Lozz196' post='1030797' date='Nov 20 2010, 07:58 PM']Think most people would recognise the bassline to Another One Bites The Dust. With many other basslines, such as New Years Day by U2, or Town Called Malice by The Jam, these may be generation specific, but ABTD has been played so much over the years, on radio, tv etc, it has to be the most recognised.[/quote] Yep, definately agree with ABTD - even if they call it "Ohitsonthetipofmytongueohmygodwotsitcalled thatqueenone". Certainly generational and probably musical taste specific as well - I haven't heard of half of the tunes or bands that appear in this thread - and it only started about 10 minutes ago!

[quote name='andyonbass' post='1030731' date='Nov 20 2010, 07:11 PM']Found myself in this situation a couple of times. Arrived at the gig, gear set up and waiting around with the band in the dressing room. A couple of last minute changes to song endings, or perhaps or a new song that needs a bit more polish so the guitarist brings his guitar along to the room and runs through acoustically. Its just about loud enough to do the job, but there's no chance hearing a bass, as you will know. What I'm looking for is something like a fag packet sized, battery powered amp thingy, that wont sound like a fart in a cullender, if such a thing exists. Anyone got any ideas?[/quote] How about something like this... [url="http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=226013&TabID=1&QV=Y"]http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?Module...abID=1&QV=Y[/url]

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='1030733' date='Nov 20 2010, 07:12 PM']If you eBay that bass, I think you'd be very lucky to get anywhere near the £50 mentioned earlier.[/quote] I was tryin' to be nice...

[quote name='SaxxyBass' post='1030044' date='Nov 20 2010, 12:39 AM']Oh and I meant to say - I think you should do what feels right for you![/quote] Obviously keeping some semblance of self control though... I saw it get totally out of hand back in the mid 90's and the world has to endure Riverdance ever since...

[quote name='Count Bassy' post='1030649' date='Nov 20 2010, 05:48 PM']Well whether it was the collective thoughts of Bass Chat or not I managed to stay calm, and, to my great suprise, actually quite enjoyed it. BUT, I didn't get the gig! . Apparently my bass playing was fine, but they wanted someone ready to hit the ground running on the vocals which, to be fair, I wasn't.[/quote] I was wondering yesterday how you'd got on! Your bass playing was most obviously up to scratch and that was your major concern - so no need to panic about that again the next time eh? Auditions can be nerve wracking but you kept it together so a very sincere "well done" regardless of the final outcome. You just need to work on the vocals a bit from the sound of it - you need to track down a Bass Chant forum... Ian

[quote name='siggi' post='1030558' date='Nov 20 2010, 04:10 PM']I presume this means its an 8ohm cab and 200 w max ??? or have I got this all wrong[/quote] It'll certainly be a 200W cabinet but the impedance of the cabinet depends on the way that the speakers are wired. Unfortunately, TE have had both 8Ω and 4Ω cabinets in their product range over the years and it's hard to ascertain where this cab came from in the history of TE. It is possible to work out the impedance of the cab by following the wires from the speakers to see how they are connected up but the quickest (and certainly easiest) way of identifying the cab impedance is to grab a cheapy multimeter from somewhere. Just set it to "Ω", plug a lead into the back of the cab and measure the resistance between the tip of the plug and the earth part of the plug.

[quote name='4 Strings' post='1030142' date='Nov 20 2010, 08:53 AM']I have a little Portabass 112 which needs a beefier driver. The speaker in it is not the original but works well, bit sensitive to signal (needs a good strong one with plenty of bass in it to get an deep tone, which can go nice and deep). However, I'd like to use it for rehearsal for a particular band but it needs a bit more volume without breaking up. Can anyone recommend a 12" that's not going to cost me too much which is going to punch out a good volume with plenty of depth that I can use as a substitute. The cabinet is around 13cu in (ie about 14 x 14 x 12) with a 3" port - don't know the tube length, could measure it if necessary - in place of the tweeter. I've been looking at the Celestion BN12 300X or the BL12 200 (bit heavier) and the LOOK suitable but I'll never know what they sound like unless I buy one and put it in. Fane Sovereign looks good too. Any ideas?[/quote] Couple of things spring to mind here. In a tuned cabinet, which this is, the cabinet dimensions, port size and pipe length were all selected to match the original driver. You can probably get away with just swapping drivers in bigger cabinets but in a cabinet this small the margins are going to be so much tighter. The dimensions (volume of airspace used up by the cone and magnet etc.) of the driver are taken into account in the cabinet design so just sticking something else in there may cause problems. If the speaker isn't the original then I'd be more inclined to go and find an original driver to replace it with - thats the only way you're going to get the whole thing back to the original spec and give it a chance to perform in the way that the manufacturer intended. If you do decide to swap the driver then a BL12 200X is no good - the amp is rated at 300W into 8Ω and you need a speaker that can match this.

[quote name='Mikeg' post='1030190' date='Nov 20 2010, 10:12 AM']When I first started playing bass I bought this [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/LINDO-BLACK-RED-ELECTRIC-TIGER-BASS-GUITAR-FREE-LEAD-/220615169915?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&var=&hash=item7912d721bb"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/LINDO-BLACK-RED-ELEC...=item7912d721bb[/url] I bought it because it was cheap and it looked shiny. I put some new strings on it and it sounded great. But i'm thinking off upgrading pretty much everything because all the hardware seems tacky. Its made out of spruce, which I have never heard about for bass. Do you guys think its worth upgrading?[/quote] Be careful. Given that the RRP on this bass is only £89 it would be very easy to spend another £150 replacing the hardware and electronics on it. After doing that you would have a Lindo that has cost you the best part of £240 and would probably still only fetch £50 on ebay. If you put that £150 in a jar on the shelf and sold the bass on ebay for £50 you could go out and buy a new Squier or a used MIM - both of which would be better instruments than the Lindo could ever be.

[quote name='MoonBassAlpha' post='1030454' date='Nov 20 2010, 02:27 PM']Are you sure the rings were chromed and not bright polished aluminium? Caustic soda has ally for breakfast![/quote] Pretty sure they aren't ally, they feel too heavy for that.

[quote name='1976fenderhead' post='1030080' date='Nov 20 2010, 02:08 AM']I've been having a couple of weird issues with a 12 inch Adam Hall patch lead with Switchcraft plugs. First of all, I started getting the following: if using the lead with an expression pedal, I could never reach the maximum value of the expression. So I could see in the M9's display that the bar representing the parameter I was affecting would stop shortly before reaching maximum. There was no way I could take any parameter to maximum, so for example pitch shifter would always reach only +21.5 or something like that, never +24. Why could that be? The lead seemed fine otherwise, I could twist and turn it and would never get any noise or anything. The expression also worked fine with any other lead, just not this one. Anyway, after a few months I DID start getting sound cut off and the lead was actually broken on a soldering point. I fixed it and it seemed fine, now working well with the M9, but while AB'ing it with another lead that's exactly the same (Adam Hall, Switchcraft), except 9 inch, I noticed the 12 inch one sounds slightly duller. I don't know if that was also the case before I fixed it and I can't guarantee the cable used for both is exactly the same but it sure looks like it!? So what can cause this? The way I soldered it (I have other cables I soldered the same way and they sound fine)? The cable is maybe a different make? Surely not the extra 3 inches??? And again, technically, what was limiting the expression from reaching maximum? And if it does that with an expression pedal, what's it doing to my sound if I use it between effects instead?[/quote] The inner cable that goes to the "tip" of the jack plug - they often have a thin black sheath covering the white\clear insulation that covers the copper. You need to ensure that you don't let that black sheath layer touch the tip connector of the jack - run a craft knife over it as far back as you can reach and remove it. It's conductive - albeit with a high resistance.

[quote name='markuk42' post='1029845' date='Nov 19 2010, 08:06 PM']Finally taking the plunge and purchasing a bass. After many reviews etc.. i've decided to go for a Washburn T14 or Ibanez GSR200. There seems to be around £50 difference in price although its not a major issue. Is anyone able to tell me is there much of a difference between the 2? I'm a real novice so will be learning from scratch.[/quote] Washburn have been around for years but have never really bought anything out that "set the world afire" so to speak, whilst the GSR neck profile is pretty much renowned as being one of, if not the, fastest and sleekest available on a production bass. If it was me, I'd go for the Ibanez - I've owned one (although not one of these) for a few years now and wouldn't be without it. The necks are nice and slim, they're well made, the electrics are (usually) pretty good and they make good all round instruments. The setup straight out of the factory is probably amongst the best I've seen - minor tweaks purely because I'm such a picky b*st*rd. . The only real negative point is that not everyone feels at home with the neck profile though, so you really need to go try one and see how you feel about it.

[quote name='shippo' post='1029639' date='Nov 19 2010, 05:17 PM']Hey This thing is like brand new and looks to have never been touched/set up. Nothing is rounded off. 1/16 will not fit in it its too big. Does anyone know what allen key is in between 1/16 and 5/64? Otherwise I'm guessing I'm looking for a 1.4 (if either of these things exist) TA[/quote] M1.4 doesn't exist as an off the shelf item. M1.5 is the nearest standard gauge you'll find. I got a complete set of keys with my MIM JB - they were tucked in the plastic bag with the instruction manual if that helps?

[quote name='iconic' post='1029644' date='Nov 19 2010, 05:21 PM']I keep getting told to tap my foot to the beat...something I have never done...until an hour ago... ...tried it today to my favorite Duran choons....Rio, Last Chance on the Stairway and Night Version of Girls on Film, then Just Jack Writers Block and even Le Freak and tappin my plates puts me off and makes my leg ache too! ...if this regarded an essential part of bass playing?[/quote] I find it useful - particularly if you are playing without a drummer - but if you don't like it, don't do it! There are no hard and fast rules

[quote name='far0n' post='1029697' date='Nov 19 2010, 05:51 PM']How badly out of tune is his low E ? Shocking ! [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DF-qxbwO40c"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DF-qxbwO40c[/url][/quote] Somebody must have played a trick on him. There's absolutely no way that anyone would play something that badly out of tune!

[quote name='Rogueporn' post='1029992' date='Nov 19 2010, 11:19 PM']I played a fleetwood once, It was identical to a tanglewood rebel. I have a feeling theres a connection between the companies. Possibly the same company?[/quote] There are a lot of guitars coming out of a handfull of factories so could very well be.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='1029096' date='Nov 19 2010, 11:48 AM']Oh I don't know - most of the time I'd be happy with a 15-fret neck! [/quote] I'll apologise now before posting the pic

[quote name='BurritoBass' post='1028978' date='Nov 19 2010, 10:35 AM']I think my posts must be invisible! [/quote] Bl**dy hell !!! So sorry Burrito I read your post twice and still didn't see that URL Sorry guys - it's been a long week and I think I'm having a senior moment! I will go and lay down somewhere dark and quiet - Coventry perhaps?

[quote name='The Bass Doc' post='1029376' date='Nov 19 2010, 02:25 PM']Most Mex bridges I've encountered adjust with a 1/16th - perhaps your grub screws have been worn by use of the wrong allen key in the first place?[/quote] Just to confirm - MIM Jazz Bass bridge is 1/16". Can pretty much guarantee that oversized allen sockets would have been caused by someone in the past using a 1.5mm allen key on it and rounding the edges ever so slightly.

[quote name='Wil' post='1029186' date='Nov 19 2010, 12:39 PM']I've recently bought a set of four heavy duty casters to affix to my Schroeder 410L. They didnt however come with any fittings. Now, where woodwork is concerned, I havent got a clue. So, a few idiotic questions: What do I need, in terms of fixings? Self tapping screws? Do I need to drill pilot holes first? What size screws will I need typically to take the load and where can I buy them?[/quote] Definatetly [b]not [/b]self tappers - they'll rip themselves out of the wood the first time you wheel the cab into a bump. A lot of cabinets tend to use T Nuts - this sort of thing... [url="http://www.fitscoindustries.com/product.aspx?c=bb148bee-9d2e-45ba-ae8f-15481b8c4097"]http://www.fitscoindustries.com/product.as...8f-15481b8c4097[/url] You drill a hole, place the nut "teeth side against the wood, bolt the wheel into place and as yo utighten the bolt the teeth bite into the wood and hold the nut in place. They spread the load over a wider area of wood than a plain nut and bolt and allow you to remove the castor for repair\replacement in the future without having to dismantle the cabinet a second time. Size depends on the size of the mounting hole in the castors you have bought, but the bigger the better IMHO...

[quote name='spinynorman' post='1029345' date='Nov 19 2010, 02:04 PM']coughs up furball ....[/quote] Ewwwwwww Charm, wit [b]and[/b] sophistication... ... so unusual to find all three missing in one thread

I'd like to add: [url="http://www.pianocoversonline.co.uk/"]http://www.pianocoversonline.co.uk/[/url] Don't be fooled by the company name - they do a hell of a lot more than just piano covers. Had dealings with them recently and managed to order the wrong cover (my fault). Contacted them and they agreed to swap it for the correct one and even waived the slight price difference. Superb people to do business with and being a miserable old git, I'm not easily pleased Ian

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='1028768' date='Nov 19 2010, 01:14 AM']I like Jazzes but I wish they had 24-fret necks.[/quote] Totally agree. You'd think that, with the money they cost, Fender could spare another 2" of wood and a scrap of fret wire...

[quote name='nalasurf' post='1028762' date='Nov 19 2010, 01:05 AM']Just joined and need help identifying a P bass made by or model name "Fleetwood" on the headstock - it's a typical P bass in all respects made of what seems like solid wood- Has anyone come across one of these before or know the make ,origin etc[/quote] Hi Al. Not come across these before. I'd guess that the likely origin is China.

[quote name='BTS_Spacebass' post='1028555' date='Nov 18 2010, 10:00 PM']I'll probably more than likely pick one up in addition to the 5 and i can always move it on if its not for me. I did find it funny though that for about 9 years I'd played a 4 and didn't even think abut getting a 5 and then get a 5 and immediately want a 6 [/quote] [i]"My name is SpaceBass and I'm a stringaholic..."[/i] I did around 20yrs with 4 strings, got my first 5 string about 9 years ago and 6 string appeared about 2 months back. By my reckoning I should be upgrading to seven string in 2022 and then moving to eight string in 2040...