Sean

I've got the soapbar P+Js plus the LHZ in my Euro 5 LX. It's a peach. I liked the DCs but they're bordering on overwhelming and I like a bit more breathing space that the PJ config gives. I had a '01 NS5-XL years ago that I put soapbar P+Js in. The original pre packed up, so I put an ACG/East preamp in it. That was a very good combination and gave me a really versatile Spector. Nothing like any of the ones I have currently. I gigged it a lot. I sold it to raise cash for something. Gone forever now.

That is one of THE classic cabs of all time. These have a following and fan base of their own. It would be helpful if we had some insight and comment from @agedhorse before this goes into the operating theatre for major irreversible surgery. Re-tolexing it and respraying the grill is easy, spares, as far as I'm aware, are available or equivalents easily sourced. I think @Beedsterwill be able to add perspective too.

Lovely figuring. I like that colour combo. I have a Darkglass pre out of a '24 Euro LX if it's of interest but I recommend the LHZ. I've bought 6 of them.

Two of my big valve amps are in The Amp Hospital at the moment so I've had to take then off the list. 1. Rich - Trace Elliot TE-1200 amp, Barefaced Super 12T cab, earplugs , Shuker custom 5, Tanglewood TRB-CE acoustic bass gtr. 2. Woody - Rickenbacker 4004-L5, maybe Sei Flamboyant, Same old basschat 12" with some amp, other stuff TBC 3. Pinball (tbc) - some interesting basses 4. Stubsy - Joyo BadASS, GRBASS AT212 slim - only 50W but that should give 120dB at one metre 😇. (or I bring my TE 1110 combo). Some fun pedals. Perhaps the AVII 1960 precision, the Sire P10 and maybe the Fender Performer and something unexpected... 5. Sean - Laney Nexus Tube 400 [oh jeez], GK MBF500, GK Fusion 550, 2 x LFSys Monaco, 2 x Japanese Market Spector Euros with LHZ-03 preamps, Valenti #005 Super P with Hotrod Nightrain PJ pickups that are coming out immediately after the bash and will be for sale, Yamaha BB1300 (rarity with pickups rewound by Toltec), my small but well-appointed pedal-board (Origin Cali 76, Origin DCX, Aguilar Chorusaurus, etc). Plus whatever I might be selling at the time. 6. Rosie - likely I'll bring my upright, set up for bluegrass/folk/jazz if anyone's not played upright before and fancies a go 7. Phil - BassChat cabs, maybe some sort of shootout? 8. MikeD - Laney Digbeth, Zilla 212, Dingwall Combusion, Revelation PJ, pedals, try to finish home made bass🤞🤞🤞🤞 9. neepheid - G&L CLF L-1000, Yamaha BB1200, Sire D5, Sire Z7, Greco LGB-700, Reverend Triad, Epiphone Les Paul (not so) Standard, Epiphone Thunderbird '64, Squier Jaguar H (with Ibanez CAP double humbucker from ATK200/800 etc), Gear4Music rat bass (with Lace Aluma-P), £150 giggable bass challenge, 1 or 2 amps depending upon space... 10. Jabba_the_gut - Note sure what stuff yet........10. Jabba_the_gut - Status 3000, Status 4000, Stingray 4, USA Sub 5, Markbass Tube, some pedally bits inc Valeton GP5 cheaply thing 11. Wolverinebass - Grainger Hades, HX Stomp, GK Fusion 1200s. 12. Japanaxe - Precision(s) & Dingwall(s), DIY 100W Bassman head if finished by then(!) as people seemed to like my B15 clone, At least 1 other amp (see sig) 13. JohnDaBass - Fender Imp combo, Fender Mike Kerr Jaguar, Fender Stu Hamm Urge 1, HB ThunderStang, Squier Paranormal Rascal, Mark Bass Bronco ( very yellow), Ashdown Capri ( very Pink) 14. Geek99 (tentative) - sire v7 5 string (rapidly becoming my favourite bass ever), vintage est96a (punches above its weight as judged by basschat midlands massive and Stub Mandrel), Tc electronic bh250 and A cab that was dragged out of the sea (Possibly) but only cost £10 15. chienmortbb - Fender Aerodyne AJB65, G4M pretend aerodyne, Sire Narcus M2 (possibly for sale. Ashdown Restoglide 800 and Bugera Veyron 1001M, LFSys Monza cab. Possibley a number of accessories for sale. I might have to rrim the list as I am due an op shortly and am not allowed to lift anything for 6 weeks. You will notice me as the bloke with no trousers. 16. Richard R. - Brawley 4 and 5 string basses, Ashdown ABM C300-100+15"extension, Roland V-Bass COSM system pedalboard plus HB Musicman fitted with hex pickup, headphone amp, raffle prizes. Hopefully my son and his Ibanez. Definitely trousers. V-bass system and bass possibly for sale. 17. Scrumpymike - Gillett Contour ST; Harley Benton MV-4MSB Gotoh BM; Rascal Mervyn-Lyte (Fender Rascal re-bodied a-la P Lyte by Andy Jr); Sandberg California ll SL TM 4 SHORT with recent Aguilar upgrade; Vox Starstream A2S; Ampeg SVT-7 PRO; Fender Rumble 100 combo; BF Super Compact Gen 3; LFSys Monaco. 18. rwillett - Depending on what space @neepheid leaves me in the car, Fender Jazz, 3d printed headless, 3d printed jazz & 3d printed six string (if I finish them both), Jazz Bitsa, Matching Westone 1A Guitar and Bass, Mustang Bass, Gnome Pro V2, some sort of large speaker that was donated. Possibly a Strat and.or Tele to provoke sharp intake of breath, Tonex and Mod Dwarf. If he brings too much, either he's sitting on the roof bars or I am 19. Mottlefeeder - Yamaha RBX765: 5-string '80s solid body. Ibanez EW205: 5-string ABG. Ibanez EHB1265MS: 5-string fanned fret, headless. Hohner B2AV: 5-string active cricket bat. Home-brewed briefcase - battery/mains 175 Watts through twin 5 inch speakers. Eminence Basslite 10 in home-brewed cab *2. Ashdown Mybass Mk I (500w). Warwick Gnome. Vong HPF/LPF pedal. 20. CHYC - BC112mk3, BC110T, GSS 06b400mkd, Ashbory, Warwick fretless, double bass.

https://origineffects.com/product/bassrig-super-vintage/

The Chequers in Marlow tonight and a complete change. Mesa Walkabout. This'll be the first time I've gigged it in a few years and the first time running without a GK in a while too. It's just come back from The Amp Hospital in Guildford and it's all working beautifully again. It's a very different beast to any of the GKs and it gives the Spectors a slightly different voice. I dialled out the low end from about 50hz on the parametric EQ and we were happy with that. You can see it's right in a corner and it's elevated on a pew. It's a very cramped venue, so much so I kept bashing my right elbow on the crash cymbal. Crystal clear sparkly grit/clank all night long and the LFSys Monaco was fab. I'll be bringing this head to the SW Bash a week Sunday if anyone would like to try it. They're amazing and so classic the Mesa based the WD-800 on them. This is one of those amps where it's best to ignore the numbers. It does 165w through 8 ohm and for this gig the Master was between 3-4 out of 10 with the gain at 12 O'clock. Through the Monaco this was plenty for a large pub with PA support. Lots of very fuelled-up posh punters in this venue, who'd obviously been "playing in the snow (hey ho)" before coming out! Next gig is in two weeks and we're going for something completely different. If I've got the strength to lift a near-40kg box of bottles💪 😉

I get asked occasionally, do you play with a pick or your fingers? Yes. I can't really imagine not doing both based on what the song requirements are. There are a few songs in the current cover band set that I switch between pick and fingers from gig to gig. Crazy Train, Panama, Summer of 69, it depends on how I feel in the moment. Picks are so versatile, available in all kinds of materials and thicknesses and can give different tones, feels based on how you use them I'm learning 4 songs for an audition, they are: Saturday Night's Alright - Fingers. No brainer. I Bet You Good on the Dancefoor - Pick held straight/flat Mr Blue Sky - either but pick held flat (Carol Kaye style) makes sense to get the feel of the original. Moving to New York - 100% pick held at an angle so it slides on the wraps and gets that scraping sound. The EMGs + Haz and a DCX Bass make so much sense of using the pick in that way.

I've never had a speaker fail on me. I had two amps fail in the same gig in 2017 with different issues and a third amp fail the following week. I always carry two amps and GK Plex (DI, Tuner, Comp). Having a DI as backup only only works if there's a PA/monitors/channel available. If I had to chose just one, it would be an amp.

It'll be interesting to see how that cleans up.

Get some meths and a tub and they could be the last sets you ever need 😄

I spent years getting paid to "untrain" managers from using that technique. For what it's worth although too late in this case, The "sh1t sandwich" feedback method has several significant disadvantages. One major issue is that it often fails to achieve its intended purpose because of negativity bias; people are more likely to remember and focus on the negative feedback while disregarding the positive comments that frame it, rendering the praise ineffective. This can lead to recipients feeling that the positive feedback is insincere or merely a tactic to soften the blow, which undermines trust and makes the compliments seem fake. As a result, the positive feedback may be dismissed entirely, and the negative feedback may be perceived as more severe than intended. It'll be interesting to see what happens. If he's ex-military it might work.

Both sets back on now and it's magic. We'll see how long they last and whether it works a second time. So, this week I've saved 30% on strings and potentially doubled the life of them, which means an annual saving of a few bottles of wine, I suppose. Whatever, it's a win.

I’ve done the meths soak and it’s works even better than I hoped. It’s quite remarkable. I prefer them to new strings. All the zing and is back but they feel better than new! Brilliant! I wish I knew this years ago.

I wonder how’ll they’ll reposition it?

How do we feel about bands that don’t allow/like you to be in other bands? I get it but if said band does 2 gigs a month on average and one band member has “Martini Availability” ("Any time, any place, anywhere… that’s Martini”), that really puts a constraint on that member. Also hypothetically, and this is an endless debate we’ve had many time, what if said band does rather a lot of charity fundraisers without getting paid or expenses. I’ve played a lot of Charity Fundraisers in the past for the likes of British Heart Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis Trust and they pay full function band prices but what we’re talking here is 50 miles each way to play a gig for a small local cause that you’ve no connection with other than the guys in the band are connected to it in some way. IMO, this needs to be something discussed up front before accepting any offer to join.

Me too. The codes worked fine in the Players Circle.

All of this can be done as coaching conversations if needed. It's established performance improvement methodology and was developed to keep people motivated. There are classic examples of alcoholic repeat offenders who were either given negative feedback and punishment (a night in the cells) versus coaching conversations to get them to reflect on their own performance. The results are something like 5% non-offender rate with punishment and negative feedback, 40% non-offender rate with tailored coaching. Because it turns it round and makes them responsible and puts them in control of what's next. They don't go defensive because they're being attacked, they get constructive because their being supported but in a challenging way.

Off I went to Home Bargains this morning and bought 2 x 500ml bottles of meths (£2.29 ea) and a large plastic tub with a lid (£1.29) and now I have 2 sets of EXL170BT coiled and soaking. I'll get them back on ready for Friday's gig and report back.

My approach in these situations is not to give advice or comment per se but to switch to a purely coaching approach. Asking probing but open questions and getting them thinking in a reflective way. So, how do you think that went? If you were to score yourself out of 10, what number would it be? OK, so what does an 8/10 look like compared to your 6/10? Have you thought about recording the gigs and listening back to spot improvement opportunities? If you could go back in time and play "Wonderwall" again, how might you approach it differently? How have the rehearsals been? Are they as productive as you'd have hoped? How different is that from your ideal? Obviously, you can tailor the language to make it less corporate-coaching but this stuff works and gets them doing the thinking. They don't get offended (usually) and could then see you as a genuine help rather than just giving what they see as negative criticism. Coaching does need a bit of practise, though and isn't a cure-all for everyone but it's worth trying.

A slight variation tonight. GK Legacy 800 head for a slight change 😆. The Fusion 550 is off the road for a small repair. Sounded good at sound check through the LFSys Monaco. Edit: The venue was The Queen's Tap in Swindon. It's a big traditional boozer, high ceilings, wooden floors. I was really pleased with my sound but more importantly, so was the drummer. I had to sit on a stool to play yesterday (foot injury) and was right next to the cab. The sound was absolutely crystal, I could hear every nuance of my playing and gear, all the clanking, gritty sizzle of the GK/Spector combination. The sound of my rig last night was so detailed it helped my playing, gave me confidence and when we played an unplanned and unrehearsed Sweet Child 'O Mine I got goosebumps from the playing the intro. The Monaco is that good! @stevie

Is that one of the Fujigen Made in Japan ones?

On the subject of Neck Through and Korea vs Indonesia, I notice that Indonesia is producing Neck Through Schecter 12s (Stargazer) whereas Korea is doing bolt on 12s (DP-12). This tells us that there's certainly the capability and confidence in Indonesia with NT builds so that might just point toward an Indonesia-built NT Spector. The Stargazer is around £1249 and has a lot more hardware than a 4/5 string Spector would, so the £1100-1200 mark seems achievable based on my simple estimates and that would differentiate from the bolt on and the Euro. And then there's the Euro Bolt versus NT Indonesian... I'm sticking to what I like and know. EMGs, NT, Haz (or clone). An early NS5-XL next for me, enough of the complications of product differentiation 😄

Spector. Job done. Next, please!