thumperbob 2002

Sold my Marshall VBA 400 as it was getting a little (lot) heavy for me. It would have been OK if I was only doing 1-2 gigs per month but our diary is full so it had to go. Been using a Markbass LMK through a Schroeder 1212l and used the Marshall to power the 1212L and 1515L for bigger gigs. Both systems sounded great. I have bought an Ashdown little giant for to power one cab with the Markbass powering the other and dealing with the tone. At £249 delivered its the bargain of the century. I really like this head so it looks as though I can power both cabs with the one amp- 500w at 4 ohms each side. Overall I can see that its really cheaply made and I`ll have to care for it otherwise it will simply fall apart. The EQ seems a little thin but my bass- with everything flat -sounds great!! The input seems a little weak- bit like the old trace stuff but overall it goes LOUD. I`ll try it out at the gig on Thursday- and take the Markbass too just in case. For this price- even for a back up you cant go wrong. Really surprised. And its tiny. Bob

Theres loads I can think of but the two that always get me are the Beatles at Shea Stadium- the start of I want to hold your hand George plays in like a totally different key. Mind you they cant hear themselves too well and have a good laugh about it. Bob Marley- no woman no cry- terrible, terrible feedback in one part. Oh and a record called Zoom- cant remember who the band were- was it fat larrys band? Singing way off key in the chorus- everytime!! To be honest the audience would really never know a bum note from the bass- but from a singer or timing error from a drummer- thats different. When I was a young lad I was in a duo with a much older attractive lady ( she must have been in her late 20s at the time and had a great voice ). We were doing this Streisand number I think and it went from quite a high note to a low one for the verse. This lady missed the note quite badly and the audience- in this quite well know cabaret club all went "OOOOOOOh!" I still remember that and laugh. I always have thought that when a band member makes a mistake these are the most enjoyable parts of playing a gig- I myself and my band members are expert at it!! Bob

Really really sad and shocking for the families. God bless them. My brother died very suddenly very young and something like this brings back terrible memories. It will take time to get over this. Bob

[quote name='chris_b' post='730248' date='Jan 31 2010, 01:38 AM']How did you daisy chain the amps? Did you "send" from the MB to the "return" on the Marshall?[/quote] Out from the Markbass- from the effect send- into the input on the Marshall. Could have sent it simply from the line out or tuner out too. It just seemed as though it was clearer and certainly more punchy and louder. Not that the Marshall was lacking though. I think the Markbass is less bassy than the Marshall and more transparent- so that is probably the reason. Bob

I usually use two rigs for different gigs- one a Markbass LMK into a schroeder 1212L and for bigger gigs use a Marshall VBA 400 valve amp into a Schroeder 1212L and a 1515L ( this amp does down to 2 ohms unlike the Markbass. Used the Marshall last night with both cabs in a large hotel for a function and the room being totally dead and rather large I wasnt happy with my sound too much- fine close up but the room just sucked out the volume- using a 4k rig too- fine out front. I was up to 2/3 on the master and 2/3 on the input which is a bit more than usual. I play in a 7 piece soul band with a loud drummer, guiter , brass, keys- you name it. Tonight for a bit of an experiment I used the Markbass powering the 1212L and sent my out signal to the Marshall into the 1515L. Unbelievable tone- I could set exactly what I wanted for the fairly modern clarity of the Markbass and the old school vibe of the Marsahll rig. Really , really powerful with loeds of headroom. Totally filled the room. Lots of comments from non-musos who actually noticed the bass player. Was thinking of selling the Markbass but as usual dont know what I want- was thinking of buying another Markbass amp to power the 1515L- but I really liked my sound- fairly transparent but with that warmth that S/state never really gives. Does anyone else do this?? Bob

Dont waste your time over this. I am in financial services and I am amazed how rational, serious people have the wool pulled over their eyes so easily. One client to the tune of £100K- with a boiler room scam. Main reasons fear and greed. They come to me hoping that I can get their money back- no chance. The old adage is right- if it sounds to good to be true.....etc There was a message on this topic saying wait until the bank has confirmed its in your account- this is not always true- it takes a bank sometimes 14 days to find out a cheque has bounced- up til then the bank will say its cleared. Its this process that most of the scams use. Bob

We use Diary4.com- theres seven of us plus deps - works really well Bob

I was in bands years before I met my wife- in the years gone by it was my living so my wife understood, but when we had kids I had to stop as I would never have got to see them grow up- I was away so much. Change of Career- 15 years later I`m doing OK with my own business but have started playing again in the last two years- aiming to do two per month- now doing 8. I dont need it financially and all the gigs are local. I find as long as there are not too many Saturday nights, although there is a bit of moaning my wife is great about it. Mind you I either take the family out with my band earnings or give it to my wife. I am not too bothered as I really do it for the enjoyment- I`m happy and the wife is too. Bob

I would do it fast- whatever way its done- dont burn any bridges though. You`ll feel great when its done, nothing worse than staying in a band you dont like to be in- every gig is like a really bad chore- do something new and fresh Bob

Been in a few tribute bands- from beatles to ska- PLAY THE LINES ON THE RECORD- no doubt the band are probably into Oasis and believe me they will know what the bass does on each track. Bob

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='719141' date='Jan 20 2010, 03:41 PM']Can someone please explain to me how this is achieved? Doesn't this mean that the lowest point of the body of your bass must rest on or above the hips, so it can hang in the same place regardless of sitting or standing? Or do you practise on a bar-stool with legs forming an angle greater than 90 degrees with the body? Maybe I've just got an extremely short body, but I'm pretty sure that if the bottom of any of my basses was above my hips, the top horn would be choking me. [/quote] If you are sitting rest the bass on your right leg ( for righthanders ) close to your body. Put your strap on so that the bass is held just above where it would be with no strap. Stand up - play . Done. Always been OK for me- for 30 yrs anyway. Bob

Nordstrand NJ5Fs through standard Fender Jazz Deluxe 5 pre-amp. Best sound I have had from any bass. Bob

Think there is a clip of meshell playing one of these on arsenio halls show on youtube- sounded great!! Bob

I have two schroeder cabs- a 1212L and a 1515- both cabs sound great with my LM11 in isolation and sound massive with my Marshall VBA 400- ( goes down to 2 ohms- the LM doesnt. ) However I have a problem with the tweeter or crossover of the 1212L- strange sound coming from it on some notes- so at the mo` I dont use the horn- still sounds great!! Shaun at SHX is on with it- but I have been waiting far too long at 3 months since I reported it. With the Mark bass amp you can counteract the mid hump by using the VPF filter a little. Not really a Reggae type sub cab but if you want to be heard and you want to hear what your bass actually sounds like I would recommend them. I would agree the cabs sound miles better in a gig environment than in practice mode. Really the weight and size does it for me. I can get my Marshall, both cabs, two mackie SM450s, mixing desk- loads of stands, my bass and gig bag in a tiny mercedes A150!! Bob

John Entwistle - My Generation Marcus Miller- Bebop Bridge solo on Jean Pierre Willie Weeks- That one !!! you know. Many Many more- no one mentioning David Dyson which is a surprise Bob

[quote name='The Bass Doc' post='714640' date='Jan 16 2010, 10:28 AM']. Glad u took my adice. Lol Congrats. - I bet you played a blistering set (oops). Stick to those fat JJs and your fingers will eventually comply. H.[/quote]

[quote name='Sonic_Groove' post='713880' date='Jan 15 2010, 03:21 PM']LOL at thumperbob uses Jack & Jamerson{s} to get him through a gig [/quote] Many a time Bob

As its the last song of the night build up your drunkenness ( bottle of Jack onstage )so that by the time you play it you wont feel anything anyway. Or a bit of foam under strings to mute - was OK for Jamerson. Bob

[quote name='maxrossell' post='668896' date='Nov 29 2009, 04:53 AM']I'm not really sure I see the point of thru-stringing. It's always struck me as one of those "magic" options that people throw money at when they're looking for a perfect instrument. End of the day, you can have thru-neck, thru-strung spalted bollockwood basses with 24 fanned frets and nine strings and active preamps and five pickups and ramps and D-Tuners and stereo outputs and high-mass bridges and elixir strings, and all that won't charge the fact that the best recordings of all time were made by some dude and his beat-up old Fender Plank-o-caster.[/quote] Absolutely +1