Dan Dare

Ah. Missed that.

Spot on. Terror does funny things to the vocal abilities.

Many years ago, I was in a band that played a lot of the Irish ballrooms and dance halls (now sadly all gone). Anyone remember the Hibernian in Fulham, the Galtymore in Cricklewood, the Gresham in Holloway, the Ardri in Manchester, etc? Great places. I miss them. Our singer was a something of a lad, who used to put it about a bit. We were playing one night at the Ardri (managed at the time by the father of the Gallagher brothers. Yes, those Gallagher brothers. This was long before they became famous). He had invited a woman, with who he used to play away when he was in the area, to the gig. For some reason, his missus decided on the spur of the moment to come up with a couple of her pals to see us play. She rang him to tell him the good news and he was forced to call his squeeze and tell her not to come. She was not best pleased and left him with the distinct impression that she might turn up anyway. He instructed us to keep an eye out for her and tip him the wink if she showed up. Being evil, we decided to have some fun at his expense. She hadn't shown by the time we went on, so he told us to "keep 'em peeled" and tip him the wink if we spotted her in the crowd whilst we were playing. We took it in turns throughout the gig to turn to him with an "uh oh" expression on our faces, followed by "Oh, sorry. Don't worry. It's just someone who looks a bit like her". His usually excellent memory became unreliable. He mixed up the words and titles of songs and occasionally sang in gibberish. His vocal delivery, normally powerful and confident, took on an attractive vulnerable quality and we played a lot more instrumental breaks than normal. We got through it OK, but he aged several years. We never did tell him it was a wind up.

That's what I'd expect and, in that case, a 2FX should work (I omitted the - from pole 1 above). If you've made up the cable yourself, open it up and check that there aren't any stray strands going where they shouldn't, which could create a short in the plug. You need to push the plug into the socket and turn it clockwise until you feel it it click. To release it, pull back on the silver locking tab and turn anti-clockwise.

I think he's probably an idiot, rather than a crook. All his previous sales (for which he has decent feedback) are for small items costing a few quid. I just hope he hasn't been conned into buying this for a lot of money in the hope he can sell it at a profit. As Clarky points out, there is a mint one going for 50 quid on eBay at the moment.

Speakon connectors should be universally compatible with each other, provided they are all genuine Neutrik Speakon products. I assume, as you have a Mesa, that it uses the real thing and not a cheap knockoff. The 2FX plug is a newer version of the older 2MP. They should substitute for one another. The NL4FC is a plug. I would expect your amp to have a NL4MP, which is the panel mount socket. The number refers to how many poles the plug/socket has (2 versions have 2 and 4s, 4). Normally, poles 1 and 1+ are used for two core cable when using a 4 pole Speakon connector. Does your manual say which poles are connected?

Looks nice, but remember that's only a starting price. I doubt anyone will end up buying it for that.

That's likely because the recording was mastered and mixed using some sophisticated and probably expensive kit. Realistically, you aren't likely to be able to duplicate that with a stage rig and a dirt pedal.

I wonder whether the venue is trying to steer the couple in the direction of using one of its "approved" bands. The venue will then book one of its "approved" bands and take a cut of their fee. The insistence that the band turns up on another day to "soundcheck" is ridiculous. It guarantees nothing. There would be nothing to prevent a band from turning everything right down at the so-called "soundcheck" and then cranking it on the day. I reckon the venue is trying to scam a few pounds extra for itself. I agree with others who suggest turning it over to the couple to negotiate with the venue.

Reminds me of a gig my bluegrass band did at Pontins, Camber Sands many moons ago. It was a wild west/country music festival. The place was full of blokes dressed as Wyatt Earp and a lot of the women were circular. Grown men were having mock gunfights and quick-draw contests n the car park, stalls were selling all manner of tat and you could feel the life being sucked out of you the minute you walked in the place. Most of the bands were dodgy country outfits, playing Blanket on the Ground and similar. We had been booked as a nod to something more traditional. We played a set at a Sunday lunchtime/afternoon concert in a massive dining hall that could have doubled as an aircraft hanger. We were treated with complete indifference, which was fine. We didn't care as we had been paid upfront. The thing that stuck in my mind was the MC and "comedian" (I use the term loosely). His spiel and choice of material was indescribably filthy. As it was Sunday lunchtime/early afternoon, the place was full of families, with kids running around. This bloke's routine would have got him chucked out of a few stag do's for being too near the mark. Nobody batted an eyelid.

I feel your pain. I now carry a 50 metre extension cable and a power conditioner, so I can hopefully find a clean power socket or at least limit the problem.

Cost (a single reel of carbon cloth can easily cost thousands), complexity of manufacture (carbon has to be laid up in/on a mould and baked in an oven to cure/harden it, which is labour intensive and difficult to automate) and the fact that, although it has great tensile strength, it does not take impacts or abrasion well. Instruments tend to suffer knocks and bangs - manufacturers would be hard pressed to offer any kind of guarantee. Add that to the cost/complexity of manufacture and it wouldn't be worth it for the small weight saving.

Ah, agents. A so-called agent (I use the term loosely) booked a band I was playing in into a VERY tiny bar. Band was a 5 piece, with a healthy amount of kit. All of us were of a certain age (OAPs) and we played classic rock, with the occasional soul standard thrown in. The agent in question booked us out as a soul band (he had our demo and set list and had seen us play several times, so he had no excuse). We arrived at the bar and saw a poster advertising live soul music. We had a quick pow wow outside and reckoned we might we able to get away with it with a bit of re-arranging the sets and busking stuff we vaguely knew. We went inside and were directed to the "stage", which was seven feet square at most and would barely have accommodated the bass rig and drums. There was room for maybe 40 punters in the bar itself. It was an obvious no-no and we apologised to the bar owner, told him we simply couldn't fit in the available space - we would have just about halved the capacity of the place and the few people remaining would have been right in our faces. He was understanding and we got in our cars and left. The next day, the agent called and berated us for not honouring the job and telling us we owed him his commission. He threatened to take it out of the next gig he booked us into. We didn't get much work from him, so told him to forget it. He became a bit threatening, so our drummer (who owned a building firm and was a martial arts instructor in his spare time) paid him a visit and had a quiet word. He never called us again.

I agree it's not necessary (or even possible in many cases) to slavishly copy an original. It often can't be done if you don't have the same instrumental or vocal line-up available. Ditto changing the key. What suited the singer on the original may not suit your singer. However, changing the melody or harmonic structure/chords is another matter, especially if it's done to make it simpler to play. That's a major no-no.

Musically, the fiddle was my main instrument for a long time. I also play guitar and mandolin. I originally took up bass because the fiddle was not cool 50 years ago and I wanted to play in bands with pals. When traditional music became popular, the fiddle came into its own and I even played it for a living for a while. I'm lucky in that I've owned various nice instruments, although I've been rationalising in recent years. Rather than have several nice mandolins, I sold them all and bought the one I'd always wanted. Did similarly with guitars and fiddles. Non-music addictions include angling, bicycles, kayaking, golf and air rifle shooting. Outdoor boys toys, really.

I've always wondered why they did. They do work, but are expensive and heavy. Although a 2x12, they are effectively a 1x12 (a good one, granted) in terms of output. You can buy a 1x12 from companies like BF, Bergantino, Epifani and others for similar money that will be lighter, less bulky/heavy and give equivalent performance.

Isobarik cabs run two drive units in parallel - one behind the other - in a sealed cabinet. The idea is to prevent standing waves from the main/front driver from reflecting from inside of the cabinet and striking the driver cone out of phase. It is supposed to enable the main driver to act more pistonically, increase bass extension and give a cleaner, greater output than a single driver would. The disadvantages are that Isobarik cabs are usually heavy, bulky and power hungry. Because the drivers are paralleled, they have low impedance and make greater demands on amplification. The principle was invented in the 1950s and a few manufacturers of hi-fi speakers, notably Linn Audio, made them. Modern bass reflex designs and drive units have made them pretty much unnecessary nowadays.

Combos are convenient. Separate amp and cabs are more versatile and expandable - you can add cabs or an extra power amp if you need more volume - and you can upgrade one without the other. You say you are a noob, so you may not want to throw a lot of money around. Don't buy on the basis of recommendation or reviews. Go shopping and try some stuff. Used is cheaper, so answer a few ad's for used gear and go and have a look. No reasonable seller will object to you trying things. It also gives you the opportunity to sum up the seller and decide whether he is a hooligan who has hammered what he's selling or not. Don't buy the first thing you see. If you envisage gigging, I'd suggest 200w as a minimum requirement. You can always turn it down for home/practice use.

Agreed. Three bolt neck makes me wonder, too. Apparently, it was introduced on J basses in '75, so not impossible, but added to what you've pointed out, it's not confidence inspiring.

Reproducing a P bass with a 20 watt practice amp with an 8" speaker is a big ask, other than at very low volume. That applies especially to the low E string, which may explain why the problem reduces when you dial back the lows. The poor thing is probably struggling, either, as others point out, because you are overloading the input or because it just doesn't have enough grunt. It isn't crap per se. It's just a low powered budget starter amp that isn't up to the job.

A pal uses one and I'm always surprised how well it fills the room, even without the extension cab. MB stuff seems to have the ability to project. I saw a band last year and the bass player was using the 2x10 combo, in a loud setting (there were two guitar players with Boogies) in a large pub. The bass had a real punch in the chest quality and it wasn't routed through the PA.

My favourite BC joke was this one. A woman sees a parrot in a pet shop and falls in love with it. She asks to buy it and the shopkeeper warns her that it had previously lived in a brothel and that its language was a bit ripe. "Not a problem", she says. "We're all adults in our house". She takes it home, puts the cage on the table and her two daughters come into the room to see it. The parrot eyes them and the lounge. "Oh yes", it says. "Very nice. Classy place and the girls are pretty. I'm going to like it here". The woman calls her husband to come and meet the new member of the family. He walks in, the parrot takes one look at him and says, "Hello Steve".

Me too. In my 20s, I used rounds, played with a pick or fingers. I preferred a bright, clean stringy tone and a pick. Nearly 50 years later, I'm playing flats with my fingers and only use a pick occasionally. I think that is due in good part to the fact that modern bass amplification is so much cleaner, with a more extended high frequency range. I'm simply hearing things that my old gear wouldn't reproduce (which is probably why I don't like tweeters for bass these days), meaning I no longer have to compensate. It also has to be due to my changed taste in music. I don't play prog any longer. I do find it a little surprising that I like it less bright now, given that we lose the ability to hear high frequencies as we age. I can no longer hear bats, although my partner could still hear them when she was nearly 70. But then, she didn't play in loud bands for years.