neepheid

I know what you said. It's your blanket assertion that the topic is interesting that wrinkled my nose. The rest of it didn't interest me...

Is it?

I had a moment of weakness - I tried to track down a bass I sold about 6 years ago. Got as far as speaking to the guy I sold it to. He had moved it on, it's in Manchester now and he said he'd ask the current owner to get in touch. They haven't been in touch so I guess either the guy didn't pass on my details or they don't want to sell it. So I'm still in. Phew!

I have one of those Beringer BDI21 preamps/DI boxes in my bag in case of amp/cab failure. Tested it in rehearsal but never had to use it in action.

Pays better though. Apart from the miniscule number of people who "make it" in original music, there's FA money in it. That's why I do both originals and covers. It's also easier in the gratification department. Instant enthused people, just play songs they like and already know. Originals, you've got to build up a following, and even then you get a bunch (if you're lucky) of people watching and chin stroking rather than dancing. It's a harder sell than ever in today's world of reduced attention span.

I am no fan of playing Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" as I think it's a terrible song which doesn't go anywhere or do anything but I just get on with it. People at our gigs like it, know it, sing and dance along to it. I just have to take some satisfaction from that, because the song gives me nothing.

Which is a cover of...

G&L Tribute LB-100 in white/maple/blocks - £299 at guitarguitar - https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/product/210305367331025--gl-tribute-lb-100-olympic-white-maple-fingerboard - 2 left People in the US are paying > $500 for these at the moment so I think this is a pretty good price. It's also cheaper than a Squier Classic Vibe in the same shop. Have at it if you fancy a P bass that's just a little bit better than a P bass

Haven't most bricks and mortar shops pivoted online anyway? If I buy online from a wee shop somewhere rather than going route one to your generic online box shifter then surely I am supporting bricks and mortar without having to go to the ballache of actually going there (come on, I live in Aberdeen, going almost anywhere in the UK is a ballache).

Not the P bass per se, but I've always played over the middle/neck pickup. I despise bridge pickups, I detest how they sound on their own, I hate that in 95% of the basses I've owned they've sucked the life out of the sound in a scooped, gutless way when combined with the neck pickup and I revile the twangy sound of playing towards the bridge. Not content with simply ignoring the bridge pickup, now 3 out of my 4 basses are single pickup. None of them are a P bass in the strictest sense, the G&L Tribute LB-100 comes closest, but even it can't help piddling around with the formula (chief departures are the 21st fret, the G&L bridge, the subtle reshaping of the body). It's probably as close to an actual P bass as you'll ever find me (except for a bitsa Squier P I put together in my formative bass years) - in many ways it is what I think a P bass should be. It took me many years to get this militant about it, but I've always subconsciously felt this way. Still have a weird draw towards 3 pickup basses though. Must be because they're unusal. Would still play one over the middle pickup though.

Try as I might, I can never get my strings al dente.

I bought my first bass because of Jack Bruce. It was an Epiphone EB-3. What became clear in various degrees of rapidity: 1) I am not Jack Bruce 2) an Epiphone EB-3 is only like a Gibson EB-3 in the most superflous of ways 3) I don't like the Epiphone EB-3 4) Come to think of it, I don't really like EB/SG basses (only took me a subsequent Epi EB-0 and a Gibson SG-Z to figure that one out) After all that, I did my own figuring out.

In my covers band there are some songs I dislike, but the crowd love 'em. You have to derive some satisfaction from getting people to dance/sing along to mitigate another tiny piece of your soul escaping As for the arguments - sounds more like you were in a band with the wrong people, rather than it being a generic feature of being in a covers band. Our singer put forward a list of songs recently and between us we vetoed 3 of them. No problem. No diva strops. I would say between us we use the veto sparingly - either there's a good technical reason (it's in drop C, and I CBA with a 5 string/stringing one of my basses BEAD/retooling the song to fit EADG) or we actually try the song in rehearsal and it just doesn't feel like it's happening for us. Songs also get ditched if we feel they aren't doing well with the punters. It can work!

Pretty sure those (and most) EMGs use blades instead of individual pole pieces which may explain the uniformity of the pattern.

I doubt very much that I will become notable enough for a signature bass. I don't stick to one particular bass long enough to ascertain what that signature might be. I already use a signature bass frequently (JC Sig). That's an awfully long winded way of saying no, sorry!

Not a hope in hell - these chancers are rich enough to send a roadie or tech out to buy them a bass. They can do one.

This sounds very familiar to me

That's almost the same situation as me, except my link between the two bands is the drummer.

I play in 2 bands, 1 original and 1 cover. Perhaps I manage because I don't have kids, and I don't think about my work and very rarely do anything about it between 5pm and 9am.

I think I am from your neck of the woods, I'm pretty sure I recognise the venue from your pic in the "how was you gig last night" thread and honestly my level of surprise would be determined by who was doing the sound...

Pish. I'm no sound engineer but even I know they'd go into separate channels, each with their own gain and level controls. "Blow the PA", bwahahaha

I don't get it - when we play they don't force the keyboard player to use an amp, just use a DI. What's the difference? TWO DIs? Is that the objection? Me = confused

I don't need them, so I don't have 'em. On the side of the pickup when playing the lowest string is fine for me. Also I don't wander around the length of the strings looking for changes in tone that not one bugger listening to the band is going to notice. I'm a lazy neanderthal bass player, more power to you technicians.

No, you don't need one. But if you want one, crack on. I don't think you'd gain much in terms of sound. What you might gain is an increase in care and attention applied to the bass's construction, hardware, fit and finish. Whether or not it's worth the price premium is really up to you. In G&L land, I have a USA CLF L-1000 and a Tribute LB-100. They are both fine basses which I am more than happy to gig. The USA G&L cost approx 4 times what the Tribute did. It is not 4 times better than the Tribute. If G&L did a Tribute L-1000 I would have bought that. What I do appreciate is the little differences - like the side dots on the USA made bass being installed into the neck exactly half way between where the fingerboard wood ends and the neck wood begins instead of being pre-installed as part of the fingerboard. The better tuners. The hard case vs. no case/bag at all. Although my situation is slightly different in that USA was the only way to go for an L-1000, I certainly don't need it - it was purely a want thing and there's nothing wrong with that. Just stay away from the Koolaid...

I don't have a #1 bass in terms of favourites so I'm going to talk in terms of expense. For someone I know and trust, I'd lend them my least expensive bass. For anyone else - big fat no.