Dan Dare

Bob Babbitt's bass part on Tears of a Clown.

Look 0n the bright side. He could have used galvanised clout nails...

Seems to me you need to be clear in your mind about what you want. You obviously enjoy the band but, more important, do you feel it has a future, or are you just playing in it to keep your hand in/until something better comes along? Given that you and the drummer obviously don't gel, seems you might not be finding it too rewarding. That isn't likely to change, if my experience is anything to go by. You say your point of view is ignored - another bad sign. It appears that you have been talked into reconsidering by the "manager". Do you think you "overreacted"? If you said what you honestly felt, that isn't overreaction. It's just the truth and no point in denying it to yourself. You obviously don't want to trek 350km to play to nobody (nor would a lot of us). Why not tell them you won't do that job, but that you are still interested in playing with them provided some things change (like your views being heard and proper discussion and action about the future) and see what the response is. You've nothing to lose if they say no.

[quote name='bonzodog' timestamp='1488006020' post='3244916'] As you know i have the same battle. Sometimes i think i should have kept my tony butler but it was never getting played. I now have a vintage modified precision but still use the jazz at every gig because i prefer the feel and the tone. Just bought an SPB3 to try on my precision to hopefully convince me to use it more. [/quote] I find the SPB1 is more Precisiony. Have one in my bitsa.

I don't think it's the Ampeg per se, but the 8x10 configuration that works so well. The rehearsal room I use has a Peavey 8x10 with the larger world tour head and that has that effortless oomph, too.

[quote name='bazztard' timestamp='1488255505' post='3247242'] DJs are the real talent. the way they press "Play" on their laptop is amazing, what talent ! [/quote] Dead right. The way they understand "beats" leaves me slack jawed with amazement, too. How can anyone just know how to find the first beat in a bar without consulting a music textbook? Much respeck, bro, etc.

[quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1487969862' post='3244767'] What about white enamel then? Like ye olde style kitchen bowls, enamel (which is glass) on metal. [/quote] I like that. For the real vintage look, how about ye even older blue and white enamel?

People love labels. They find them comforting. Much of the music genres thang appears to be down to music journos desperately trying to find something new to say, imho.

Agree. You just can't escape from the P bass. The sound is ingrained in the psyche, probably because it's everywhere and on so many classic recordings. Best to keep one handy. If you want something else, add it to, rather than replace, your P. You know you'll have to buy another otherwise.

I originally played the fiddle, which was not cool 50 odd years ago. I wanted to play in a band with my pals, who played guitars, so bass was the obvious choice. I did find that I tended to gravitate to the bass parts on a lot of the records I listened to. The first one to really knock me out was Bob Babbitt's mighty playing on Smokey Robinson's 'Tears of a Clown' (although I didn't know it was Bob, or who he was at the time).

Provided your budget will stand it, I agree with others who suggest a small head and separate cab. The advantage of that over a combo is that it will be scalable. You can add extra cabs (and even a power amp) if you do need a gigging rig. An all in one small combo is not flexible in that way. You'd most likely have to sell it if you needed something larger. I'd steer clear of the small Phil Jones combo for that reason (it's also an expensive option). I had a PJ Flightcase, which I used to scale up with a power amp and a couple of extra PJ cabs. Sounded fine, but a bit of a faff. In the end, I sold the Flightcase and bought a separate mini head, keeping the PJ cabs. I still have a small, light rig - I just use one cab and the head.

[quote name='Yank' timestamp='1486464563' post='3231966'] O.K. The guitarist wrote the music and the singer wrote the lyrics. They should stick to that.It's arrogant of them to tell the bass player what to play. If they don't like his style, fine, find someone else. This is pop or rock, not an orchestra or Broadway pit band. Bunch of w***ers. [/quote] You said it - "The guitarist wrote the music". It doesn't have to be an "orchestra or pit band" for there to be arrangements and it isn't "arrogant" for a writer of a piece of music to visualise the entire piece, rather than just a simple melody/top line and to want parts played in a certain way. Why, because it's "pop or rock", does that mean it has to be a free for all? Afraid you're being naïve.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1486392169' post='3231354'] You sitting down with the bass player and "discussing the situation" is the worst advice ever! It's not your place to discuss band personnel or politics. Keep well away from that. It's down to the band what they want to do and they won't thank you for poking your nose in!! And as I say, the guy is gone anyway, so why should you want to give the gig away to someone else when you could be doing it? [/quote] This. I gather the bass player is not a friend of yours and also that you are not looking at this as a long term thing (and therefore won't lose any sleep if the bands finds someone permanent after you've helped them out for a while). If the guy isn't up to it, he isn't up to it and will be gone one way or the other. If you fancy the job and the band is happy to be open about the possibly temporary nature of the appointment, what is there to lose? You wouldn't fret if a band approached you out of the blue and asked you to play bass and yet they could have gone through this same process before you knew of them. From their point of view, they want someone who can hit the ground running, hence the request to learn the stuff before you start. That's sensible of them. If they have an album to promote, they can't afford to wait around whilst a new bass player learns the material. There's no moral issue, despite what others think. We all get most jobs, whether in music or elsewhere, because someone has moved on - they may have been sacked or left of their own accord. That's just life.

If you want a simple decent passive DI box, Palmers are good.

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1486388511' post='3231303'] What is actually wrong with the Speaker? The capacitor is almost certainly being used to stop bass reaching the tweeter so if that was broken it would mean the bass unit would still work the white 22ohm resistor will be part of that circuit too. The coil is to stop treble going to the bass unit. If nothing is working then the fault lies between the crossover and the amp or in the amp itself. Start off by checking your leads and then the sockets. [/quote] Phil's correct - probably a bad connection, although I don't think there is any "almost certainly" about the cap being used to prevent low frequencies from reaching the horn. It will be. That looks like a simple first order crossover with a resistor. As Moon says, a cap won't give you a reading like a resistor or an inductor will. If you have 2 PA speakers, try swapping the drivers between them and seeing if any have failed.

Norman, but don't know about the sweat...

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1485290044' post='3222876'] I do find this rather a strange topic. If my wife wants to go and see something I don't want to see, she happily goes on her own. She doesn't need accompaniment or chaperoning as she is quite capable of getting around by herself. [/quote] This. And I don't expect her to come to stuff she doesn't like.

Joe Hubbard's book is good. I bought a copy online. Around £40 from memory. Plenty in there to keep you interested. You get offered loads of add-ons and extras, but you don't need to buy them. I also get the free stuff from SBL and watch his Youtube vids.

Are Sunbeams flat or round wound? Just looked at the DR site and it isn't clear. Thanks.

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1485259622' post='3222511'] I usually drive around London in the van until I see someone carrying a guitar, bass drum etc. Then I just bundle them in the back... ...I use a similar strategy for meeting women... [/quote] Good plan. you could also place large quantities of beer and curry on a table and suspend a large net above it. When they pile in to the goodies, pull a rope to drop the net over them and there you go.

Probably around what it's worth in market terms (with the proviso that its utility value is greater, as others agree above). Try offering £300 and see if the seller bites? You can always agree somewhere in the middle. I'd say it would be a decent buy, but not a bargain at that. Buy a nice wide strap for it and away you go.

[quote name='timmo' timestamp='1485271793' post='3222659'] My wife wanted to go to a Westlife gig at the NEC. I bought 2 tickets and told her too take her mate. There was no chance I would go to that. I went to Lionel Richie though. I didn`t think I would enjoy it, but he was immense. Great bit of banter, and you could tell he is a seasoned professional [/quote] +1. The perfect solution. She and a pal have a treat on you, you earn brownie points and you don't have to stuff cotton wool in your ears/wish you were dead. Genius. Oh and don't expect her to come to your gigs unless she wants to. That's only fair.

Real US built instrument - solid with excellent tone for not a lot of money. Great buy if you can find one. Er, I mean, they're rubbish. Don't bother. Where did you say you've seen one for sale?

I wonder, if you have smaller hands, whether you're forced to play more on the edge of the finger rather than the pad because of the stretch. You mention that it affects he last two (assume you mean the ring and pinkie). If you are playing on the edges, the skin there is not as tough and it may be that a shorter scale instrument would be the best option in the long run, but I appreciate that's not the cheapest way to go. As far as strings go, agree with suggestions for Cobalts, Elixirs and Pressurewounds. Afraid you may have to spend a bit experimenting. Good luck with it.