Monckyman

The foam inside the grill solidifies and makes the mic sound dull and lifeless. A new foam is the work of seconds. New baskets are also cheap. Beta 58s should last forever.

Hiya, well done on making the decision. I think you`ll get more value for money second hand,and you`ll get that back if you decide to sell. This forum regularly has DBs come up for sale, and they`ve usually been looked after. I advise you stick an ad up. Then you`ll need strings, a pickup, a bag, some bandages for the fingers, another pickup slightly better than the other one,a rubber bung for yer spike and a big corner of the house that needs propping up. MM

OK have a look at the ME50 again, but I thought there were certain limitations in what you could choose between, like reverb OR delay,not delay with a hint of reverb , pitchshift OR octaver sort of thing, synth OR fuzz. can anyone shed light on this?

I think Behringer gear has improved vastly over the last ten years, however I would say if it has moving parts, watch out. As for interfaces that just sit there and don`t get any physical abuse, then go for it. Best bang for the buck. MM

I`ve used the stereo ambients in the audience and some guys like it a lot as applause is what turns them on, but drummers seem to like that open kit sound. Also, that ambient sound can muddy your mix as the FOH turns up/adds more bottom end,and it ends up being hard work keeping your mix clean. A 609 high over the kit looking at the snare sounds excellent, I suppose something at the back of the stage with an omni-directional response should get you that onstage vibe back. As for the twin setup, yes it`s crap. I had to stage manage/mic tech recently and had in ears on an LD system to get instructions from FOH and also had a headset mic so they could get confirms from me etc. ball ache with two packs, two cables and stuff all over my head. For what it`s worth, I don`t like headset mics on performers. My reasons are, 1/ you need a completely different technique when you can`t move away from the mic,ie you can`t move away from the mic to even out your dynamics. 2/Because you cant move away from the mic, you get breathing, coughing,sniffing,mumbling,laughing,gurgling, cursing the drummer/what song is it type stuff. Also gets in the way of a pint pot.. 3/you have to spend a bit to get a decent sounding headset mic, or they sound a bit coarse and thin.A 58 will cost £50 and last longer than you. 4/ You will look like Madonna.Not good. 5/You will need batteries. 6/A good one this, a lighting engineer I work with insists that if you can`t see it on stage, then you can`t hear it. Obviously this is cock, but what he means is,like an unlit solo going un-noticed, backing vocals won`t be noticed/appreciated as much by the punters, if they can`t see you singing into a mic! (discuss..) If the only reason to wear one is to avoid missing your cue because you wandered too far away from the mic,that doesn`t,in my opinion justify the arse of wearing a headset. Just move quicker, fatties! MM

Most of Colin Mouldings output (XTC) was recorded with a fretless WAL. Good enough for me, though I don`t like the look of them much. I suppose if people post of known recordings with WALs on, we can get a good idea of how they sound and who used them. MM

+1 for GT6b. I don`t know why they have a rep for complication. Anyone used to using sub menus (phones computers cash machines!)can breeze through this and it took me very little time to put some great multi patches together. They also have a good amount of hands on controls for quick tweaks. The full manuals for this and the Boss ME50 can be found online and I recommend reading through them for an idea of how they are set up. MM

Try adding an ambient mic to your mix, and roll off the bottom end. Don`t use a lot, just enough to get a feel of the room in your ears. Works well with drummers used to hearing all that cymbal splash etc.

Are you going to be getting any more in?

edit due to pointless post.

Ah! Green matching paint then!

Once you`ve filled any holes or bumps, where there is going to be a visible seam in the tolex,spray the cab black,this will help make the joins less visible. MM

Subscribed. The high camp quotient just makes it more fun.

My keyboard player is very fond of the "we`ll do our own interpretation" phrase, meaning he can`t be arsed actually learning the song at all and relies on me to show him the right chords and lead lines. He gets a bit surly but I`m f***ed if I`m letting him bang out triad chords on a sh*t piano sound like the Phoenix nights in house band while the singer drummer and myself are concerning ourselves with accurate patches and exact recitals. I`ve taught him how to use the keyboards he has to zone sounds and layer things up but he`s resisting me connecting all his sh*t up via midi so he doesn`t have to individually find all the patches whilst referring to an old notebook. Takes ages and he often uses the wrong patch. Gah!

I don`t have a rug, but it`s a great idea. it`ll really tie the room together.

Have a good listen to the fan first, the bearings do wear, (if they are like all the other amp fans). Are you sure it`s mechanical and not electronic? If you are sure, and it`s out of warranty, open it up and find a replacement fan. I did this with the two on my Ashdown abm, and found direct replacements at a PC parts outlet. They were marketed as being silent. Made a massive difference to the ambient noise. Looking at the fan on mine, it appears to be the same standard mini size available in every pc shop,just take yours and compare the voltage and polarity and make sure you put it in the right way so the fan pulls the hot air outwards.(label outwards). Will cost app £5.00 for a "silent" one. Heres a pic of the LMK II with the top lid off On this one you cab see the fan power cable and connecter (small black and red cable that splits off at the right of the cable run. You`ll have to snip the two cable ties that keep this bundle tidy, and put two new ones on once the new fan is in place. On this one I pulled the Neutrik NL2 socket cables away from the fan, and the power cables up so they sat on the ali heat sink,you can see the gap the fan just about fits through. Finally I pulled my fan out to see how hard it would be, and it`s a bit fiddly, but not difficult as such. I included the fan pic so you can order a direct replacement without removing yours. HTH Good luck! MM

I was going to suggest the old bit of foam under the strings near the bridge for that muted dub sound.

Excellent choice!

Willkommen! No way are you a St Pauli fan with all that gear, so i`m saying FC Hamburg?

Cubase and Reason.