Woodinblack

When I was a kid my piano was a free one that came from someone locally. That was always the way with pianos, they are a bugger to shift!

I had a telecaster that was that light transparent yellow over wood, which my wife called the wooden one, or the unfinished one.

I think you will find that that doesn't need plugging in. I also think (having been a child piano player that people let me play pianos in random places), if you ask and offer the choice between the piano and the cab, you might not need another cab, just another room!

See I had a problem going to a 4 string, for the same reason, until I started thinking '2nd string up', then it was easy (until I gigged with a 6 string and messed up!)

Oh I think it does for me

I try and avoid cowbells. Litterally - our singer often goes for a cowbell session and when he has finished he just throws the cowbell down. It hurts if it hits you!

So are the Elites just the same style as the others but with crazy wood?

No, mine have been good (and mine is the original CTM100). I wonder what they did to them, either badly adjusted or forgot to attach a speaker!

Welcome - your products are very welcome here - I am looking at 5 of them now!

Can look around to see if there is a used Maruszczyk Jake with a J pickup

This seems familiar. We used to practice for 3 hours 1 evening a week, but then I joined another group where I practiced on a different evening (one we never used), so then the guitarist got a job which gave him only one day (at random) through the week so we would miss a few weeks, and a few friday gigs had to start late. Then he got a fixed day, which was the day I was practicing with the other group, so then we didn't practice at all for 6 months (but still gigging ever week almost), now he has changed that job, so we should be practicing again soon. The only difference is we haven't added any new songs in that time.

Yeh, I wouldn't want to show my room 😀

Constant fiddling with the end of tunes, intros, random middle bits. Basically every practice the tunes had changed for some reason. Constant micro management. Had a feeling when joining that this band was never going to gig. Didn't take the fact that the previous bass player had left. after a couple of practices, the singer left, then the drummer left. Thought that was odd. Got another drummer, he left after one practice (pre existing injury). Then finally had a (free - test out the band) gig, it was ok. Then the other singer left. Got a replacement (my wife) but by now was pretty obvious what the problem was (but hanging on because enjoying being in a group with my wife). We had another free gig for a charity that was important to the guitar guy (who wasn't the issue), turns out after 8 months, we couldn't get a whole set ready, so half a set with another band (wtf?). That gig went actually not bad, maybe there is hope. Then more micromanaging emails telling us what we needed to do - drummer just lost it and quit, singer quit, I quit, my wife quit, then got another message saying we were being to hasty and he (problem) was not happy with our progress so he is quitting). So now we have a group, just looking for another couple of guys so we can actually get something together and actually gig for money.

Actually thinking about it now, I have a Gretsch Junior Jet, which weighs about nothing, short scale, really big sound, very cheap. Same as the bloke from Royal Blood played before fender threw lots of free basses at him (actually still uses in one song). I take it along to every gig as a backup, that or the hofner B2V, because it is easy enough to take in case.

I have to do more videos, currently I am using it as backing on a few and notably for fills in Brick in the wall. Obviously with guitar and bass, it thins out on a long solo (and the guitarist is not one for filling back in), so the keys add quite a bit too it. True, those chords would work, its a question of switching sounds and presets to put it back in. I need to get more keys in but sometimes it proves trickier than you think. I did the keys in p!nk, who knew, it added a lot but I almost fell over twice! - not joking on that, the risk of falling over when standing on one leg, playing the bass and pressing keys really is an issue

The ibanezes go from ridiculously cheap to pretty expensive, so if you found them comfortable to play, might be worth going for something like that. Note they also do go from light to very heavy. Quite a few of the squiers / fenders have quite light bodies. Other than that there are chambered basses but they start getting quite expensive.

The time when we first went to a venue with one, we triggered it with the opening chord, so we stopped and the bar staff told us to plug into the extension that was there. Fair enough - well, I saw your video, you are probably capable of a lot quieter than us, its just not an option for our group. We would turn down a place that didn't have a defeatable volume limiter, it wouldn't be in our or the venues interest.

Is there some reason you didn't connect to the same socket as him?

Yep, I have the advantage of never having played at a place where you can't plug in somewhere else to defeat the limiter. The 2 places I have played with volume limiters had they been active we wouldn't have been able to play. One of the places was a pub and saw a girl with an acoustic guitar and a tiny amplifier and that set it off (but the amp was battery powered and the guitar wasn't plugged in).

Not universal though. I always played originals, and now I am really enjoying doing covers, I like making money and people knowing the songs. And frankly, unless you have exceptional songwriting which most people don't, most people came out with a couple of good songs and many dull ones, so you don't have to play your own dull ones! All things make up a world.

I have a 12 step as well and use it at every gig, but it isn't the same at all. Funny I do that song and don't use the 12 step on it. Probably a bit too much dancing.

I have been using those silent plugs for a few years, never had any problem with them, although as I am wireless when gigging they are just there for backup.

I think honestly if I was doing 115 gigs a year I would hate it too. On those months where we do 5-8 gigs I start disliking it, and the annoyances of the band build up. But I haven't got a gig for 3 weeks now so I am going to be really crawling the walls by then. Just cut down, or even stop. I stopped for a while. Or try a different style. If you are doing a 50s rnr thing, learn a double bass. Or something else.