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The best advice that I could give is find a pick that you're comfortable with (I like any between .60 & 1.25mm, preferring .73mm), hold it between your thumb & index finger & practice. Then practice some more. Start with one string playing something like "With or without you", then add the next string ("I feel love" is one suggestion for this). Once you get the hang of that, practice string skipping by playing octave jumps (a bit of disco?). Like anything, you can't expect to pick it up & instantly be good, so have fun when you practice.

I don't know if it would be loud enough in any of it's formats, you'd need to try one out. I know for pub rock, the Markbass 121 & 102 & the AER Amp 1 are loud (I've used them).

If you're willing to go 2nd hand, you may get a Markbass combo in budget. There's a few good things 2nd hand.

I think you've miscalculated something. A 15" has more surface area than 2 10"s (which has more than 2 8"s). But there's another parameter to take into account, how far the driver travels back & forth (xmax). The chances are the TCE combo uses the same brand of drivers in the 2x8 as it does the 1x15, therefore the 1x15 is most likely the louder. This isn't to say that the 2x8 is not gigable, far from it. I've gigged with a 1x12 30 watt in the past, though the venues were not noisy affairs.

It's also worth getting the guitarists to turn the bass down on their amps (to near enough zero) & pointing their cabs directly at their heads. I've got a guitard who likes to stand at the side of the cab & turn it up. The amount of times I've wanted to go & turn the cab to face him or the wall (or make him face the wall). If your drummer will rehearse with hotrods (or learn to play at different volumes), then you might find it's easier to get the twangers to turn down too.

[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1394899750' post='2396484'] The Downsides are enough to make it a non starter for me unfortunately [/quote] You should still try one before writing it off. A bigger board & a PSU is worth it for the sound it has (IMO, of course) & it actually adds low end if you keep the resonance down.

Moog MF-101. If you want quacky funk, it does that with the follower even with the dirt at the front. If you want synth swells, plug in an expression pedal & away you go. Has CV & it's based on the LPF from the Minimoog. Downside, it's not small & it won't share a PSU without squealing about it.

I've put recorded music through mine & it sounded just like it would on a decent PA. The only colouration that I know of is on how you set the EQ or filters.

I'm not sure what a transparent speaker actually sounds like, but they do sound more like a good quality PA speaker than an Ashdown or Trace Elliott (which is a good thing for me).

It looks like this when it's out the combo... & when I was looking for that pic, I found these... Replaced with a LM Tube... Replaced with an Aguilar TH500...

[quote name='cliffyspliff' timestamp='1394812930' post='2395549'] I had the 2x10 combo ..the CMC102P..in fact i had two of them from brand new .....the first one blew a fuse on the main circuit board ...The one underneath where the kettle lead goes in ..... Was repaced by GAK .... The second brand new one from GAK then did exactly the same thing after about 6 months use. They did send a new one which I the traded on here as i lost my confidence in the combo lol. I play in a rockband and I used to to use the combo with the NY 112 extension cab (traded on here also) and to me the whole set up lacked bottom end ..... you could never get that feeling where the bass playing really his you in the chest sort of thing. Im actually still using a Markbass head though .... The all valve Markbass classic 300...( Traded for the combo and cab) which paired with a 4x10 and 1x15 cabs is much better .... but I guess its much more expensive kit too. The new stuff isnt made in Italy now either. Best of luck. [/quote] What rotten luck. I've never had any issues with mine in the past 6 years & I've never found it lacking in the low end. If you still feel you need more low end, you should maybe change the 1x15 you have for a matching 4x10, as they usually go lower than a standard 15. [quote name='spaz91' timestamp='1394822897' post='2395689'] [b][i]No soldering. Just unplug the cab from the head, remove the 4 bolts that hold it & then make a lid to stop things getting in it.[/i][/b] So the amplifier doesn't have its own casing when removed from the combo? [/quote] It has a casing, but no lid (it doesn't need one when it's in the combo, so they leave it off). [quote] So does anyone have opinions on the Phil Jones amp? [/quote] I tried the Briefcase. Sounded nice at low volumes, but started to fart a little when I turned it up.

No soldering. Just unplug the cab from the head, remove the 4 bolts that hold it & then make a lid to stop things getting in it.

I've got the 2x10 version. Had it for 6 years now & it's been all I've needed. It's 19kg. You can replace the head. Someone on here replaced the head in their 102P for a LM Tube. I made a lid for the head so I can remove it from the combo & I'll take it to rehearsals & use a cab in the rooms if I'm getting a lift from a band member & there's no room for the combo.

My previous bands have all been originals bands & the last one was something different to what I'm comfortable playing, but I really enjoyed it (it was a mix of folk, country & jazz). We used to throw in a couple of covers, like a folk version of "Rocking in the free world" & we'd not play them anything like the original. The new band just want to do covers as they are on the record & maybe become a function band. I've no problem with this as I can learn bass lines easily enough to any of the songs suggested. I was trying to find 1 or 2 more challenging ones to throw in there & keep it mostly good songs that folk can & will dance to if we're to pull this off. I do enjoy writing songs though.

About 1 1/2 years ago I started to look for musicians here in Perth to put an originals band together (preferably to do some songs that I'd written that just needed lyrics, but it didn't have to be them) & went through the slow process of trying to find musicians. Finally after many folk coming & going (some I kicked out, some left due to other commitments), I got a band together that all gets on & can play. We started writing, but every time we started, things happened & we got sidetracked & we've been getting nowhere for the past couple of months. So, I called a band meeting. cancelled the rehearsal room a couple of weeks ago & we met in a pub tonight. The singer isn't comfortable writing lyrics as this is the first band he's been in (he's a good singer & works well, so understandable) & one of the guitarists can't write to save himself. So we've decided to be a covers band &, depending on how it goes, get into the function scene. Funny how things change. I'm happy enough to do this, but I dare say I'll end up starting a side project that does the things that I originally set out to do. So here's the songs we're gonna try next week... Mr Blue Sky - ELO Local Boy - Stereophonics The Circle - Ocean Colour Scene Crazy - Gnarles Barkley Breakout - Foo Fighters Superstition - Stevie Wonder Whisky in the jar - Thin Lizzie Staying Alive - BeeGees Johnny B Goode - Marty McFly (I think)

So by "out grow" you don't mean as a kid, bought a cheap short scale bass & then grown up & need a longer scale?

[quote name='gjones' timestamp='1394586812' post='2393129'] I use a single 4 ohm speaker cab with mine for the full 550 watts. Or if I wanted I could use both speakons, to connect two 8 ohm cabs in parallel, which would also bring the impedance down to 4 ohms and allow me to utilise the full 550 watts. [/quote] That really depends on what cab you're using & if it knows what to do with that "full 550" watts.

The back panel does make for confusing reading & there's not much on the web. I'd get an amp that I could rely on.

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1394537462' post='2392324'] Trouble is, the onus is on you to inform the insurance company of any 'material facts' and the standard advice is that if you are in any doubt about something then you should inform the insurer so they can clarify their position. In general, house insurance is for personal items and not for items used in connection with a business. Do paid gigs constitute 'a business'? - well who knows how each insurance company will treat such things, hence the advice to tell them. If you tell them and they still offer cover then fine. If you tell them and they decline cover then it might be annoying but not as annoying as having an actual claim refused because you didn't disclose a material fact - not to mention the waste of money paying premiums that won't actually cover you in the event of a claim. I'm no apologist for insurance companies, but fair's fair - they have to know what risks they are insuring. [/quote] Correct. The onus is on the customer to make sure the insurer knows everything. In the event of a claim, you then have to provide proof (which isn't hard to do). IME business use is defined as a source of income. Under my insurance, as the gigs that I currently do don't amount to more than the cost of fuel, it's not deemed as business use. Phone the insurance company though, as each underwriter has different criteria. Let them know exactly what you want & see if they can accommodate. Make sure that they put it in a note saying what you asked for & what was offered, on the system (the insurance quote system that is).

I used new moon a couple of years ago & you get PLI as standard all for a good rate. But I never had to claim, so can't say if they're any good. [quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1394476854' post='2391737'] That's an interesting point and could mean that home insurance wouldn't cover [u]any[/u] 'music gear' at all if they find out the person concerned plays paid gigs, no matter that the gear in question is only rarely used for gigging. [/quote] It really depends on who you insure with. It always makes sense to check what the claim side of things is like.

I insure my gear through my home insurance. What you need to check is for the restrictions. what is covered for theft from an unattended car, venue,etc & if covered for gigging. The cover you need is called Personal Belongings/Possessions cover & you need to check it covers gigging. This depends on the level of gigging (paid, etc) & whom you are insuring with. Some even allow musical instruments to be insured for gigging (classed as "tools"). I don't go through a broker & insure directly with the insurer (whom I work for).

It really depends on the effects being used & the type of music. In my current band with 2 guitars & a drummer it's this... I don't have my distortion or chorus fully cranked. The dirt is at @ 3/10 & the chorus is about 7/10 on depth (speed varies). The octaver is 100% wet at -1 oct & depending on the song, I'll add 50-60% dry (which still goes through all the other fx). Also the Bass Murf isn't fully overdriven, it just has a little grind to it. You don't hear it in the mix, but you know when it's turned off. The LPF is 100% wet. My previous band which was acoustic guitar & mandolin/penny whistle, you could hear everything on the bass. So most effects only needed to be mild.

She's done a great job on the colour. I take it will now be slung round your belly!

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1394298173' post='2390048'] Why buy an amp which has inferior sound? That's one trend I won't be following. [/quote] +1 You can get some awesome amps 2nd hand for the same a new cheap.

I grew up listening to most of the 80s pop music from Depeche Mode & The Human League to Talking Heads & Marillion. Just about anything you could mention, I was subject to it. I really enjoyed the early electronic era & loved Tangerine Dream, J M Jarre & most of the techno/house from the 90s. Who knows why I took up bass? I loved my synths! I suppose it was my love for rock & metal as a teenager.