dmccombe7

Had a fantastic night in Tinto Hotel Biggar 1.5 miles from my house at a biker rally. Played it last year with Emergency Exit punk band and this year they asked for BLOCKBUSTARZ Glam covers band. Sound was excellent with just vocal PA being used. I thought we were a little quiet but my wife said no it was just right and it sounded really good out front. Feedback was excellent with 8 people asking for booking details including an enquiry from a Swedish biker asking what we'd charge for another rally in Sweden. Will see if anything comes from that one. Others were Cumbria bike rally, and one of the Naval bases but not sure which one. One of the enquiries was form a booking agent for several venues so all good. Usual pleasant comments about an amazing set and the band were first class including comments from the band that used to play it every year but unfortunately their singer guitarist was very unwell and can no longer play. The Hotel itself was also very interested which would be nice for me. The organiser said he was stunned when we first came on with all the costumes and gear and spent the first few songs mesmerised and taking pics and vids. Lots of mobile phone vids being taken all night. Dancers up from about 3rd song to a packed dance floor on 2nd set. Organiser said they were used to the usual AC/DC covers bands playing but we put on a full show and that's what made the difference for him. He has also booked us for his brother birthday party later in year. Used my Sandberg VM4 into Roland GRGB and into Handbox WB-100 and Mesa SW210/115 cabs. I use the mfx pedal for a Ric style tone in some songs plus a funk-wah sound for mid section in Virginia Plain. All in all a great wee night. Dave

I stole it from your vid cliips

I've found that slower natural moving as if you're doing something around the house looks more professional than simply jumping about like an idiot or a flee on heat. Sway with the beat, take a few steps forward or back every now and again, If you have a big enough stage walk over to the guitarist for a little status quo style swing. Dont rush about like a demented dog, just take your time and it'll look as tho you know what you're doing. This is only my own observations i've picked up in recent years. I used to be called a John Entwhistle clone glued to floor looking at my bass neck all the time and so focused. Now i just enjoy what i'm doing, i know the songs well enough i'm not concentrating all the time and i've been using the same VM4 bass for past 4 yrs so i'm used to the neck. PS I'm no expert in stage movements and if you're in a younger band i'd expect a more erratic style of movement. Age plays a big part. I'm not getting any younger LOL Dave

That's pretty good and might be a better fit than the Fender P basses i've tried over the years. Dave

what;s the nut width on the electra P bass. I struggle a bit with my Vintera P bass neck width. I've always preferred the J neck width altho my VM4 is a great in between neck. Dave

Oohh that's nice. I do like tort pickguards on my basses too. Dave

Me too, had it since Mon last week but its been no more than a sinus ache and blocked nose. I've had worse colds. Hopefully you dont get it too bad and good to see you back out again. Dave

Brought the WB100 into house and tried your settings above with gain at 12 an WOW it doesn't half make a difference in tone. Will try it at gig tomorrow night with the berg VM4. Biker rally in a hotel with vocal pa only. Thanks for that little tip on set up. Dave

I'm playing the venue i held my reception in 1995. Its a Xmas gig 22nd Dec. Dont think i'll be recognised tho. Dave

Yep me too altho in the last few yrs i have enjoyed it a lot more because i know the songs better and not concentrating as much and can smile more. Dave

Are you wearing a flower in your hair in that pic Daryl Def something there. ? Dave

WOW that's stunning. Love the bound neck and MM style headstock. Very nice indeed. Dave

More gear pics especially the bass. The neck looks nice. LOL Dave

What bass are you using there @Merton ? Might as well list your gear too, its always nice to know for us geeky types 😂 Dave

All getting a bit too political and serious so bringing us back to the topic in hand. I still use TB for getting Mesa info and details cause i love what Mesa do ....... build great gear IMHO. Look forward to hearing more details about the OP band and upcoming tour over here. Wish you every success with it and keep us all posted maybe start a new topic for the tour. 👍 Dave

Above and beyond and very personal touch i thought. I've not seen that in UK. Dave

Few yrs back i was buying a couple of Harley Davidson waterproof leather jackets at £600 each in UK. Out of curiosity i contacted HD in Topeka, Kansas and asked if they could supply. The guy was immensely helpful and said to try the jackets on in my local dealer and send him the sizes. I got both for £550 plus import tax etc of circa £100. That included postage. They were sent from Kansas to Chicago and flown over. I kept in touch with him for many years and he even gave me advice on places to visit if i decided to come over. He did not recommend touring on a bike and suggested i would have a better experience touring with a car. Unusual for a Harley Dealership to say that. US has some amazing shops and some amazing people who are very genuine and helpful. If you dont mind the import tax and a possible wait then its worth a shot contacting them. Dave

You can set the Keeley up solely as a limiter with no compression however i use it more as a compressor than purely limiting. Some of the youtube clips show you the difference between the two functions. No matter how i set it i like the fact the tone itself doesn't change. The signal can change with over compression and additional sustain like any compressor but with this i'm not seeing tonal changes. I'm very happy with it. Dave

The Handbox WB-100 is an all valve amp and i use mine more as a limiter for when i hit a string a little bit hard. I dont have it set in a way its working all the time. I occasionally see the compression light flicker when i hit the strings that bit harder. With regards the tone. I honestly can't hear any difference when i switch ON/OFF. Recently in the punk band the guitarist said he liked to hear the changes in volume when i dig in as its more expressive in some songs. So last gig with the punk band i didn't use it and it sounded good. Another reason i wanted one was that when i use my P bass the volume change when going from tone ON to tone OFF was significant and i had to adjust volumes to compensate. With the Keeley i set it on the lower volume and if i turn the tone full up the compressor limits my volume to keep it all more even. Its by far the best compressor/limiter i've ever used. Dave

You forgot to ask in an American accent ? Dave

Nice one, well done and pretty good response from the US contact you had. Oddly enough i asked Andertons when Mesa was going to start supplying and waited that long i contacted Mesa direct. I got a reply from Mesa within a day and it took Andertons approx 2 weeks to say they haven't heard anything but when i told them Mesa replied to me within a day and that was 2 weeks ago they apologised and thanked me for the update. In the past i found them reasonably good at getting back to me so i still like them. I was very impressed by Sweetwater in US tho when i enquired about the TT800. Dave

I emailed Traynor about their bass amps but they never replied. Have to say i was disappointed in them. I emailed thru their own website page so no excuse as far as i can see. I had an Ampeg SVT4 Pro that i really liked the tone but the weight was a big issue plus the fact it kept breaking down so moved it on. If it had been more reliable i might have kept it and put up with the weight issue. Dave

Afraid my knowledge of Aberdeen is the guy from Scottish Amicable setting up my mortgage to buy land and get a house built. He arranged it with BoS in Aberdeen. I had to drive up to go thru the paperwork and sign it. Best thing i ever did as far as houses are concerned. The guy had the same issue when he was trying to self build so he set it all up with his Bank Manager mate in BoS. My own BoS branch wouldn't provide a mortgage to buy land. And of course the Dead Sea scrolls show that was up there in 90's i drove up to see that. I'm not a big fan of driving thru cities. Glasgow is easier because i used to frequent Glasgow for bands etc. Dave

Thought i'd ask just in case there's a shop in Glasgow i wasn't aware off. Its odd but i've honestly felt that attitude in some music shops. Its as if you're taking up their valuable time and they could be doing something else rather than watching me walk around a bass dept. Much sadness. Dave