Nicko

Always adapt to the band's style, but that often means dumbing down really complicated stuff (because the band doesn't do "fiddly") and sometimes embelishing simple lines as we're a one guitar band and sometimes need to fill it out a bit. There really is no point in playing covers so that they're identical to the original because we're not a tribute band.

Yes - entirely my fault as the nut has come loose several times before.

We played a short gig at a school for charity. We were luck enough to be able to set up in the hall on on Thursday, set levels and and simply turn up to play on Friday. It wasn't a particularly big space but I'd decided to go with a backline as well as DI and used my old Ashdown Mi10 rather than my Markbass 102. It sounded great from where I was standing at least. As everything was working fine on Thursday I didn't bother taking my spare bass. Whoops. As I plugged in five minutes before we were due to start the jack socket disappeared into the hole and I was left bassless. While I frantically tried to remove the pickguard to fix it the drummer turned up with a borrowed bass from the school's music department. An Encore PB copy. Currently availabe new for about £100. The fingerboard was a bit narrow but it sounded OK and the levels weren't massively different from my own Squier CV Precision (available new at around £340) which I use in preference to my American Special PB (no longer available new but around £900 new). The Mi10 was around £200 while the Markbass is about double that. So the important lessons are 1.take a spare bass 2. Inext time you buy something start with trying the cheap stuff.

Haing gone though this experience recently we ended up with a Behringer X12 (very much against the advice of the BC collective which said a XR116 was the way to go*) and some 12" Mackie thumps. There is little cost difference between passive and active speakers and the cost and portability issues with a powered mixer with a decent number of channels sealed the deal. The XR 16 offers additional choices for monitoring which our band didn't feel were needed. In retrospect there are other features which are absent from the XR12 which would be very handy such as graphic eq level monitor (theres an eq function but its not possible to see what frequencies are feeding back).

I play a precision with a 250 blackline. I get good feedback from the audience on the sound but it doesn't sound great on the stage.

Theres numerous threads here about whether 15" is better than 4 x 10" or 2 x 12" but does it really matter? Is an Ashdown cab going to sound different from a Markbass one? If so what am I losing if I go DI via my amp through the FOH 12" PA speakers instead of my Markbass 102P?

Does this mean I can sue the big F for illegally forcing me to pay an artificially high price for the last guitar I bought? No, thought not.

Teamup for calendar and whatsapp works for us. We have not used the reminder facility but there is one there. You can lead a horse to water etc etc.

My memory for songs is the same as my normal memory. I retain what I need and discard what I don't need. So the current set list is OK, last years is gone. When I was at work I could quote specification numbers and paragraphs for each proect I worked on and was pretty much the go to guy if someone wanted to know what was written and where it was written, but when I moved to the next project I'd be hard pressed to remember who I used to sit next to.

I'm currently working on Just A Girl by No Doubt which is a really nice song to learn, but the tabs available online aren't great. I'm aslo polishing Ignorance by Paramore which is a great song but not much of a challenge and She's Electric by Oasis (no comment!)

"Classic rock" doesn't really exist as a genre because its just old rock, but if someone says classic rock I assume they are talking about the kimd of music that predominated rock before punk. More accurate would be 60s and 70s rock with too much focus on guitar widdling (ie The Beatles don't really count as they are a pop band) I would have no problem putting a set together withh that kind of music and including Van Halen, Whitesnake, NWOBHM bands, and the likes of Guns and Roses whe were pretty much continuing the same kind of stuff, albeit doing so clad in spandex. Its quite possible to put stuff by the Jam, the Police and Green Day in a classic rock set but IMO those bands are forging a slightly different path which actually, for me. sit more comfortably in an alternative/indie rock set. My own band play mpstly 90s and 00s rock, but include a cover of Kids in America, some Billy Idol and Roxanne by the Police because we think those songs fit with the other stuff we're playing, We also do songs which IMO don't fit at all, but as someone said above you have to pay what the punters expect to hear,

Thanks, that absolutely answers the question.

Yes, we are running FOH. Using two aux channels into a single MEI 1000 doesn't do much for us, other than if we want a stereo signal to the IEM or am I missing something? We could use two MEI 1000s, one on each aux channel, but the question is whether we can run one MEI 1000 with four receivers, saving the cost and set up time of two transmitters. The U308 does appear to support "unlimited" beltpacks from a single transmitter. This might be the best bet.

I think there ar 6 aux busses and the headphone out can be selected to match one of them.

We are running a Behringer XR12 and have been beset with feedback problems (through the floor monitor) mainly. We currently use a single floor monitor with a feed from the vox, BVs and bass only. The band, who were against IEMs when we bought the XR12 re now discussing IEMs. Knowing that we now only have two aux channels enabling two monitor mixes, everyone (and heres the heretical statement) seems happy to have the same monitor mix. I've seen various Wireless IEMs that come with one,two, or three beltpacks. Is this because you can't drive more than three beltpacks from a single transmitter. The details of every system I've looked at fails to mention how many belt packs you can run, although I have seen a youtube review of the Xvive system that says four is possible, and if we're all receiving the same signal I don't see why the number of receivers would be limited. Question 2. Are the cheap and cheerful ones to be given a wide berth?

I used to do it in my last band, but the guitarist in my current band took ownership. We all have a bit of input and if it works don't try to fix it.

I'm not feeling the love for my current bandmates in the same way I have with previous bands. I don't dislike them, just haven't that much in common and they don't share my sense of humour. This lot are strictly colleagues.

I thought it was more than a trial, I think he was on their yoof squad. As a happy hammer, I live in a constant state of disappointment, apart from today having got one over on Chelski away. Don't much like the London Stadium although its easier for me to get to than The Boleyn but I do fancy one of those shirts.

I was under the impression that that never goes away ☺️

I agree. Having payed guitar badly for 20 odd years I became a bass player by accident and dropped into a situation with some fantastically talented people. I played my first gig about a week later using some very simplified bass lines on a borrowed bass. Most of my guitar playing previously had been learning little bits of a song, but thats not an option in a band. Obviously my guitar background helped, but part of being in a band is that you are taken out of your comfort practicing and you are put under some form of pressure to get a new song right. Also, part of being a musician is being able to communicate with other musicians verbally and musically. If someone says that doesn't sound right, and you ask what they are playing you then have to work out what notes you can play and what you cant play. Although I still haven't played guitar in a band my ability has improved massively as I'm better at practicing it and more determined to play things that seem too difficult when I try.

Thats one of them.

The exercises I have are called nerve sliders, intended to prevent further damage to the nerve, rather than address the problem with the disc/vertebra, although if the disc is collapsing and putting pressure on the nerve I'm not sure how they will help. The issue with my neck is long standing - probably more than 10 years, although there was a specific episode last Xmas that has led to the current issue.

I'm actually suffering the same problem with my left hand, index finger is numb, and often painful due to problems in my neck. Fortunately I haven't lost strength yet. This has been going in nearly a year now, and I'm currently doing exercises which I hope will at least halt any further decline. Time will tell. I think the exercises are specific to the nerve which is causing the problem, and yours would appear to be a different one to mine but if you haven't already seen your GP you should.

On a lighter note, theres some what say hanging around with musicians is what drummers do, not bass players.

Why don't you just take some bass lessons and join a band - its the best way to improve your playing and you can learn the rest as you go along.