FinnDave

In the 1980's I played in a band which consisted of 50% shift workers from the BBC. There were two shifts - shift 1 and shift 2. We all worked on shift 2, and that was the name of the band.

To be fair, my Orange LBT vibrates even though I use a Barefaced Super Compact. The amp's feet are hard plastic which does absolutely nothing to help the amp sit still on the cab. The amp is also very light, but I don't have a problem with my TE Elf, which is even lighter. I am sure that the suggestions of a rubber mat are better than my piece of bubble wrap, but it was just there when I needed it, so it is now folded and in the carry bag with the amp. A rubber mat would be better, but becomes another thing to carry. Better feet for the amp would be the real answer.

I have an Orange Little Bass Thing which has the same problem - the feet of the amp are fairly hard plastic rather than vibration absorbing rubber. My rather inelegant solution is a couple of layers of bubble wrap between amp and cab - looks cheap but it works. I keep the bubble wrap in the carry case I use for the amp

I never thought that a Rickenbacker could be made any worse, but apparently, it can.

Is Joe Dart an actual person or is it rhyming slang for flatulence?

When I was a fresh young bass player long ago, all I wanted was a Precision. I have had quite a few basses since then, including an Alembic & a 2 grand Sandberg. Now I have a couple of Precisions and a couple of Jazzes, but the Precisions get played more. If I'd trusted in my teenage opinion, I could have saved a lot of money - but missed out on a lot of enjoyable experiences. Have also learnt (very expensively) that I never keep a maple fingerboard bass for long. So my ideal bass is a rosewood fingerboard Precision. That's one out of four of my current basses.

I have a 1x15 ABM combo with a 1999 serial number, but I've only owned it since last Saturday! I'm not sure how old my 2x10 ABM combo is, it is currently facing the wrong way to check and has another cab stacked on it. I'll check it out later.

I have an Elf as well, and also use it through a Super Compact - simply amazing for such a small piece of kit. It is basically my back-up to my Orange LBT, but I have played several gigs with it. It has a very low current consumption, so have been able to play outdoor rehearsals and gigs with it powered by a 12 volt battery and inverter.

If I keep seeing bargain ABMs I'm likely to run out of space!

After a couple of hours working on the allotment this morning, I reckon I hate gigging as well. Bloody hard work, and I had to carry the spade and fork there and back. Hang on - it's digging I hate, not gigging - my mistake.

I can only say what I have said before, my insurers insist that it is necessary to disclose my musical activities as there is no other reason for me to be carry a car load of relatively valuable stuff into some potentially dodgy areas at night. Seeing as my wife works for the insurers in question, it is unlikely that they would make it up. It adds very little, if anything, to the premium, but means they cannot wriggle out of paying up should I suffer a loss.

Thanks, my wife will be delighted to know that! She's been working at the Witney branch for over six years now.

I've bought a Fender Precision and two used Ashdown combos in the last two weeks, so have no chance of surviving the year unscathed.

I have been so impressed by the ABM 500 2x10 combo I bought from a Basschatter a couple of weeks that I have today bought an ABM 500 1x15 combo also from another Basschatter. The combos aren't the lightest gear around, but they are very rugged and sound superb. The 1x15 will probably live at our rehearsal room (in a private house) so I can enjoy using it with a band without having to carry it about. Both deals have been very straightforward, and meeting other bass players in the process just added to the pleasure.

The only info I can find about my ABM 500/2x10 combo suggests it weighs 38kg. I will look into the barrow - can't see me lugging that very far these days. Forty years ago I was carrying a Trace 4x10 combo up and down 3 flights of stairs every time I took it out of the flat. I was young, fit, and stupid back then. Now I am no longer young or fit.

I think I have come to the same conclusion - at least for as long as I can still get the heavier stuff in and out of the car without having to call an ambulance. In fact, I am buying another ABM combo tomorrow so I can leave one at our rehearsal place (private house of one band member) and not have to carry more than my bass for rehearsals.

Mine are .095 - I gave them a quick wipe down with some brasso 😜

Can't see how that helps lift a cab into the back of a car, though - that's when I'm most likely to do myself an injury. Having said that, I have been leaving my Barefaced 1 x 12 and lightweight amp at home in favour of a heavy Ashdown combo because it sounds so good.

I think (from memory because I'm too lazy to pop upstairs and check!) that the LaBella FX are .039-.095 - I have them on both my Jazz basses, but use .045-.105 on the Precisions.

Just back from an evening rehearsal with the blues band - played my Fender Precision that I recently restrung with .045 - .105 LaBella flats through an Ashdon ABM500 2 x 10 combo - sounded great, the rest of the band loved the deep clear bass. I'd better leave these strings on then!