FinnDave

When I was a long haired 20 year old, my main, in fact pretty much only, interests were playing the bass and trying to get young women into bed. Forty years later, as a long haired 60 year old, my main, in fact pretty much only, interests are playing the bass and trying to get the bed to myself so I can get a decent night's sleep.

I generally leave my glasses off for gigs like that, if they're sufficiently out of focus, they're not distracting me!

Yeah, for some reason your post floated into my head while I was setting up last night and so I tried it, and didn't touch the amp again until I switched off at the end of the gig. Lot of compliments on the bass sound from band and audience.

As an ex-employee, I couldn't possibly comment. But if I were to do so, it wouldn't be to disagree with you.

I'm one of those fortunate people that doesn't feel the need to be entertained by moving pictures. Television is complete garbage - even when I was working in the industry, I didn't have a TV. It's just a manufactured product like packs of sausages, and about as tasteful and of equal questionable morals.

Tried this at last night's gig, I've never used the pre-shape before in my many years of Ashdown use, but it certainly worked. Ibanez SR506, ABM 600 evo iv and Barefaced Super Compact and the result was a rich warm sound that sounded great on stage and out front, apparently. Good tip!

Just got in from a Wirebirds gig in Swindon. Late booking, we were asked if we could play this gig only last Tuesday, but it went well. Had to wait until some football thing finished on the TV, but at least the pub didn't become empty as soon as it finished, as has happened to us before. The pub had large screen TVs all over the place, and when we started paying was still showing stuff about the football, and then switched to a music channel showing a gig somewhere. It took a while for us to realise that it was us - they had a camera mounted on the ceiling near the stage and were showing us all round the pub! Fourth gig for my 3 week old Ibanez six string, it's rather shocking that in that three weeks I haven't touched any of my four string basses at all, not even my lovely Alembic. Played the Ibanez through an ABM 600 and Barefaced Super Compact, sounded great on stage, and some friends in the audience said it sounded good out front as well.

Probably more diplomatic of me not to say, but she features in a few Wirebirds clips on You Tube. But I didn't tell you that

Just read through this thread, and have to say that what I have read doesn't tally with my experience of bands in the UK since I moved here from Finland in 2012. I am currently in 3 working bands, one I joined when it was forming in early 2013, and apart from a rhythm guitarist who couldn't play and was asked to leave after a year or so, and 18 months of trying to assimilate a former rock star singer (eventually also asked to leave), the four of us have all been there from the start. After depping with another band playing similar music but with a slight more traditional bias, I was asked to join them last Christmas. They needed a second guitarist, and so I recruited the guitarist from my first band, as we work well together and are good mates. I run bookings for the first band, and the leader of the second and myself regularly update each other on availability. My third band is not local, it's a 90 mile drive each way to rehearse, and has members from London, Nottingham, Leeds, Leicester, Northampton and Oxford. We rehearse approx every other month, and gig when and where we can. The only person that I am aware of having been unreliable about rehearsing was the bassist I replaced in January. I get asked to join bands about once a month, but turn them down as three sets to remember is enough for me. I do not consider my playing to be anything special, whenever I look at videos posted by people here I have no idea where to start to play like they do. All I do is learn my parts and turn up with solid and reliable equipment. If there are people who can't even manage to do that for something they love to do, then they must really struggle with the everyday necessities of life.

Wasn't he the guy that invented the Hipshot bridge? I'm sure he was into bridges.

Same here, once relief and action are set, they stay set unless I change to a different type of string.

I bought a 2017 EB4 new a year ago, and it is a damn good bass. Babicz bridge, two humbuckers with coil taps, I've used for a few gigs and it sounds great. Very light as well. Surprised it was so badly received by the bass playing world, I think they condemned it without playing it or even seeing it in the flesh.

I pay £60.00 for a string change and set-up (four string bass) and I supply the strings. That's in Oxford, so 65 doesn't sound much different.

I've been playing bass for nearly 45 years, still try to practice/learn new material 2-3 hours day and I'm still improving too! When I stop improving, I'll probably be ready to give up.

I had a Gibson and an Epiphone last year. I sold the Gibson because the Epiphone was a better bass all round (I bought it second hand and it did come with a Babicz bridge, to be fair).

The SR 506 I bought two weeks ago came strung with Elixirs. Now strung with LaBella flats, though.