Dan Dare

A piece cut from one of these

"Bob Daisley whom is Heavy Rocks most distinguished and respected of all Bass Players and Songwriters"? Never come across a band called Heavy Rocks. Are they any good?

So true. A guy I used to work with did exactly that. When a customer was difficult, he charged them more. His motto was "Don't get upset. Take their money".

No. They are no better or worse than any other amp. Have a look at film of your favourite rock/metal bands performing. The bass players will be using many different brands. Wasn't it you who was asking about EBS recently? I note you are talking about returning the combo you bought. I and others tried to warn you at the time not to buy gear without trying it first. However, there is something far more important for you to consider. No 30 watt amp will be adequate for rock and heavy metal, once you add a drummer to the mix. Please don't waste your money buying small, low powered practice combos and hoping they will serve your purpose. They won't. They are not designed to do what you want them to do and they are nowhere near powerful enough.

I think it could be more a case of the other man's grass being greener. Fenders and Gibsons are the common or garden home grown US brands, so they hanker for something different. We have traditionally looked to the US for inspiration when it comes to pop music and that includes their instruments.

Don't waste your money on Auralex and similar. They work, but they are massively expensive for what they are. Get a few of those heavy duty rubber tiles/mats that are used in playgrounds to prevent the kids from injuring themselves when they fall from the swings or the ones used in gyms, which will withstand weightlifters dropping weights on them. Google 'Rubber flooring for playgrounds/gyms' and you'll find plenty.

I'd be cautious, as Paul suggests. Behringer have likely fitted a 4 ohm driver to maximise the output (the fact that there is no extension speaker jack suggests this to be the case), so adding another could be risky. If there is a preamp out, run that into a power amp and drive an additional speaker with that,

Thanks. It's fun when someone says "Nice sounding p bass" and then looks at the decal. Usually gets a smile. I made it with good parts and it actually does the Jamerson thang perfectly with a set of worn out La Bellas. I originally intended to put a 'Hotpoint' or 'Electrolux' logo on it (it is an electrical appliance after all. You can get decals from firms who supply repairers/refurbishers), but the body is red, so the red Dinky logo matched it better. If I build another, it will be a Hotpoint 😁.

You worked with Buddy? I envy you. He's a tremendous player. I love his remark, too and it's spot on. I enjoy taking the p over branding. I made a Bitsa P bass and put a 'Dinky Toys' decal on the headstock.

Exactly and I feel the same way. But there are quite a few who do chase the spectre of FRFR. I tried running my bass, via a channel strip/preamp, through my PA, which is pretty clean and powerful (Fohhn). It sounded fat, smooth and rather characterless. I prefer the sound of it through my bass amp and cabs.

That's interesting, Bill. I've noticed the sound of my PJB cabs is very consistent wherever I stand and, having heard someone else playing through them whilst sitting in the audience, it's also true out in the room. Now I know why.

You’ve pretty much answered your own question. If you want true full range, flat response (FRFR) amplification of bass at realistic performance volume/distance, you’re going to have to spend a LOT of money to achieve it. Please note that I’m not saying the following to show off or drop the names of high end manufacturers. £100 is not a lot to spend on a high quality compression driver. Have a look at products from companies that supply the pro audio market – ATC, Precision Devices, d&b audioteknik, Martin Audio and similar. Then take a look at the price of their mid and bass drivers. They’re what you’re going to need, in a properly designed cabinet, for true FRFR at volume. Then take a look at the cost of suitable amplification from the likes of Lab Gruppen, Powersoft, d&b, Martin, MC2, etc. Pro audio companies don’t spend the money on such products because they like to splash the cash. They do so because that’s what they need to get a proper result. The term FRFR has to be one of the most mis-used in audio. It makes me smile when I see a plastic box with a 10 or 12 and a horn that costs a few hundred quid described as FRFR. It might be that (just) at very low volume, measured a metre away, but crank it and expect it to give FRFR to people sitting 30 or 50 feet away? No chance. Have you measured your “ruler flat” cab? I’m not disrespecting Stevie, who knows his stuff. I am grateful to him, Bill Fitzmaurice and others who share their hard-won knowledge with us and help us to achieve good sound on a budget. However, I doubt that your cab is “ruler flat” and would be surprised if Stevie designed it to be so, given that it’s a bass cab and not a PA speaker. There are limits to what can be achieved with a couple of hundred quid’s worth of Eminence drivers in a DIY box, no matter how cleverly designed it is. That’s just a fact of life.

That's why you Di for out front and let the engineer decide what works in the room, which leaves you free to set an onstage sound that suits you.

That's exactly my point. I like a certain sound from my gear because it gives me confidence and makes me happy, which hopefully means I play better. I spent the time and money choosing my rig because I like the result it gives me. However, I have to recognise that what I like won't necessarily be best in context - type of venue, room acoustics, numbers of people in the audience, how it interacts with other instruments, etc, etc. I'm happy to give an engineer a feed from the DI out on my amp and to trust them to decide how to mix everything for the best overall result. Obviously, I will want him/her to have general regard for what I am trying to achieve (am I aiming for Jamerson, Chris Squire or Geddy, to name three pretty contrasting tonalities?), but how it sounds and works in the out front mix is his/her decision and I trust him/her to do his/her job. That, imho, is the best way to ensure an audience is happy. It would be different were I a solo player, but I'm not.

No. It's better to DI in that situation and let the engineer determine what works out front. What matters to us as players is the sound we hear onstage. That sound may not translate well for the hall in the mix.

Exactly. Try running your bass through your hi-fi. It sounds clean, but characterless and sterile. It would also be enormously expensive to amplify a bass to realistic levels whilst achieving a truly flat response.

I used an Ampeg 1x15 with a Peavey Black Widow in it for years (the original driver died). Sounded great. Sadly, some little scrote nicked it.

It depends what type of paint was used for the over spray. Odds on, if it was a DIY job, it was a rattle can from a car accessory shop, which probably means cellulose. That can be hard to remove without damaging the original finish underneath. I'd take it to a repairer for an opinion if it was my instrument. It would be easy to make it worse.

I used 2x10 plus 1x15 for many years and liked it. On the occasions when I've played through a 4x10, 8x10 or 2x15, I've been happy with the sound. Ditto 1x12, 2x12 and 4x12. These days, it's 8x5, 12x5 or 16x5 (I've become a PJB user). I like them, too. So I guess there isn't an ideal cab set-up for me. I find amps and instruments are much more important when it comes to making a noise I like. I do like an onstage rig and don't find, when I DI, that monitors alone work for me. Not keen on in-ears because they make me feel isolated from what's happening, no matter how good they sound.

If you are concerned, get a dummy load box (guitar players use them with valve amps when recording). Palmer make a decent one that isn't too expensive. Plenty of other makes available.

Some good advice above. A decent trolley can be a godsend, too, even with lightweight kit.

Hover the cursor at the bottom of the screen over the bar (red, with yellow marks denoting different sections) showing how much of the vid' has passed and click further along. It's bit hit and miss in that you cannot preview/find specific parts of the vid' but you can skip forward.

It doesn't sound like a simple matter of neck relief. A lot of rattle against the upper frets is normally due to the action being too low at the bridge end. You need to adjust the truss rod and the bridge saddles in tandem to ensure evenness throughout, aka a full set up. Doctor J is right.