Nicko

Is it any different from evading any other tax? I guess it depends on the volume and value of the stuff you are bringing but talking about quarterly trips taking two days and paying £30 per trip would suggest it's not the odd £50 quids worth of kit that you are importing. Personally I don't think VAT on used goods is moral but that's not the point.

Just a quick update. I ended up buying a laptop from Music-PC with 2 x 16GB Ram, 500GB SSD C drive and 1TB secondary SSD. They were really helpful and the laptop was delivered loaded with Cubase Elements and the Focusrite driver. A bit of a strange way to work as I had to order Cubase and then pass the activation codes and more worryingly my Steinberg login details to them to them - not sure why they couldn't buy it on my behalf but no great problem once I'd convinced myself it was legit. There was a slight delay when they realised they'd loaded it with Windows 11 even though I ordered Windows 10 (which I ordered because I couldn't see an option for Win 11 on the website). For some reason rather than asking if that was OK they rebuilt it with Win 10. Ordered 12 Dec and arrived today which is pretty good considering the bank holidays, the Windows 11 issue and faffing around with Steinberg accounts. Had that not been the case I suspect they might have got it shipped before Xmas I haven't used it in anger yet but there was nothing similar available for anywhere near the price and comes with lifetime support.

I agree. The point of the show should, however, be presenting a decent output rather than giving Jools' band a regular paycheck. It used to be a show that had sets by musical legends and introduced new talent. Trotting out Ruby Turner every year doesn't really fit that bill no matter how good she is.

Mrs Nicko and I had exactly that conversation. The whole thing was a bit Z list wasn't it?

This may be heresey but I was very disappointed in Muse at Wembley (Resistance tour). Oft cited as the greatest live band on the planet the show was a bit sterile, and they played the music exactly as it is on the recordings. I might as well have stayed at home and listened to the CD. RHCPs at the O2 Stratford was also disappointing but more because the venue is all wrong. I was seated at the back and so far away from the stage the band were virtually invisible and it was far too quiet. I refuse to go there ever again to see music.

Seems to me that you need to use a music scoring program, then create a collage from the score using a different piece of software. I'm a MS user but would create the score, PDF it, then take snapshots of the bits you want and drop them into a graphics program that allows you to rotate, stretch and add text.

I pretty much disregard the politics of the artist, as long as the music is good. I don't like Eric Clapton because his music is crap, not because he right wing, and I like Billy Bragg even though his politics stinks. Everyone is entitled to a view, even if it's wrong.

Does the site change with the $ to £ exchange rate? The pound has recovered since Trussanomics was cancelled and rose more than 10% against the dollar since then.

I've always found it a bit strange that Fender have managed to maintain the policy of standardised advertised prices throughout their dealer network when it is clearly anticompetitive. I'm equally baffled as to why the CMA fines the manufacturer but fails to pass on the fine to the affected consumers. I bought 3 Fenders in that period but suspect, as with all these class actions, that unless the instruments were extremely high end the solicitor will take so much of the compensation that it's not worth signing up.

As an equally sad BH addict, most of the incidental music is chart music, but whoever chooses it sometimes pulls out some quite cool stuff.

Intel state that any Intel Core chipset gen 8 or later includes onboard TPM 2.0 compatibility, so it shouldn't be an issue.

I'm only looking at going from Cubase 7 LE (which was free with the interface and quite restricted functionality) to Cubase Elements which should more than satisfy my needs. I did consider going down the Reaper route but I know some people really don't get on with it. Most of the options I'm looking at are win 11, although I've seen a few that aren't and I think the point you make is something I hadn't considered. I was veering toward this with 32GB and a 2nd drive, but may have to think again. Ultimas 1600

Saw this photo on the BBC and thought there was a bit of a similarity

My computer is packed up awaiting a move so I squeezed this in at the back end of last month. I'm leaving London, so wanted to do something that reminds me of the big smoke. What better than 2 minutes and 47 seconds of late 70s modfather. I think this song is criminally underrated but shows just how to write a great song with only 3 chords. Its a fairly straight cover, although I think the B fill has fewer notes when Foxton plays it, I use palm muting on the guitar from the 2nd verse to fill it out a bit and I simply lack the ability to make my vocals sound angry. I struggled to recreate the feedback at the end of the solo where Weller uses the pickup toggle switch to cut the sustain in and out so it's actually a second track with as much gain as I could muster to drive the feedback. As usual it recorded in Cubase using a Fender Tele and Squier PB through Amplitube. Drums are MT Power drums, but that doesn't have a cowbell of hand clap so they are from Xpand!2.

I don't plan to use the computer much at all for anything other than music. I have a chromebook for internet and can use that for any simple documents and spreadsheets. I have a digital music collection and wifi speakers so the music will need to be on the computer, it will work with Apple if I change the mobile app. I've steered clear of Apple mainly because I don't understand the OS jargon as I do for PCs, and have always been under the impression that they are overpriced. I'm not anti Apple as such but haven't ever been convinced that they are worth the premium. I should say I don't think I've touched an Apple computer since I was at school in the early 80s so that was pre Macintosh.

See, this is why BC is the best.😀 I'm currently using a Focusrite driver for the interface, and the keyboard is class compliant according to Alesis website. Using an ASIO driver for the interface introduces quite a lot of latency. I'll need to download a new driver for Windows as I'm going from Win 8 to Win 10 or 11, but there is a download option for that on your website. Just spoken to Mrs Nicko regarding the Scan DAW Laptop option and when I mentioned the cost it was a short conversation.

Yes, it's a minefield. I'm normally reasonably decisive but the more I look at it the more worried I am that I'm going to end up with the wrong thing. I didn't even think about it when I bought the interface and already had a PC other than the basic system requirements, and it all worked out fine so I guess I was just lucky. I'll basically be running a new version of Cubase, a 10 year old 1st Gen Focusrite 2i2 and an Alesis Midi Keyboard. I suspect any info on the interface and keyboard compatibility that I can get will be pretty meaningless as the PC hardware is newer than the audio hardware.

External drive for archive and or backup.

I take your point but I'm currently using an off the shelf AIO without too many problems on latency. They currently only have standard large case towers for audio on their website. That isn't an option even if they weren't 50% above budget and if I go desktop it really has to be small form. I might speak to them about whether one of the non audio laptops would be suitable. Really appreciate the recommendation as from teh website they clearly know what they're doing. Edit: Just found the laptop options under custom configurations.

Thanks I'm sort of aware of the USB bus thing, but if buying off the shelf no one seems to specify what USB busses are fitted only the external connectivity. I'm assuming though that USB 3 will be on a different bus to USB 2. I'm only really needing: One for interface One for Midi keyboard (there is no midi on the interface) One for storage external drive Mouse and keyboard if not Laptop (wired or wireless) And anything else I might want to plug in when doing something other than music

Actually they have some interesting looking deals on laptops that would be within budget - though not specifically listed under the music laptops.

I should say that the budget is around £1000 and is more matrimonial than financial. I could spend more if necessary.

I'll shortly be upgrading from my existing All in One PC which is a few years old and is running out of puff when using VSTs. I'll have to upgrade from Cubase 7 as it doesn't run on Win 10 or 11 - I'll probably stick with Cubase. The new space for the unit isn't huge and a space saving solution would be preferred, but isn't essential so I've been looking at Laptops, AIO and Small Form Factor PCs. I can get something with 16GB RAM, 10 core i5 and min 1TB SSD laptop or all in one, but the clock speeds seems slow being laptop processor (1.3 GHz but 4.5 GHz turbo), and the choice of laptops is a bit restricted because a lot have limited numbers of USBs. I do have a number of external drives I could use for storing projects once completed. For a similar budget I can get an 8L SFF with a similar spec - the big advantage being it comes with 500GB SSD plus 1TB SDD and the clock speeds are higher (2,4GHz) but 8 core rather than 10 so similar turbo boost speeds. I would, of course have to buy a monitor separately so it works out a bit more expensive and takes up more space (although I might be able to blag one as my wife is retiring and has a work monitor which they may or may not want back). The question is slower clock speed with more cores and convenience or higher clock speed and fewer cores or is the turbo boost speed the defining performance factor? Or does the dual drive trump the processor?

Almost the same for me. I deliberately steered clear of Fenders when I bought my first bass, but at rehearsal one night I was forced to borrow a bass from the studio. It was just a cheap Squier Precision but from that point on I knew the active (Indonesian?) Peavey Cirrus was living on borrowed time. I bought a US P, then traded in the Cirrus for a Squier P as a backup. Full disclosure, I'd already had a Mex Fender Telecaster six string guitar since the mid 90s which wasn't played much, but after becoming a Fender bass player I got the bug and the Telecaster is my go to guitar at the moment too. Do you need one? No. Should you try one? Yes. Should it be 'burst and tort? Absolutely not.

I think Niails observation may have something to do with it. My important life moments have been punctuated by some rather bland music - some that stick in my mind are Holidays in the Sun by the Sex Pistols (the first time I saw a band play live - admittedly my brothers punk band in his bedroom), Without You by Harry Nillson (which was playing first time I hooked up with my wife), Last Night a DJ Saved my Life by Indeep (which was playing when I lost my virginity - I'd like to claim it lasted longer than the record but sadly not) and Cocaine by Clapton (the first song I ever played live to an audience).