Stylon Pilson

Perhaps the MarkBass Nano Mark 300? S.P.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1452004722' post='2945387']I find music theory a very boring subject which is why I haven't bothered. It makes me lose the will to live. I find it is the enemy of spontaneity. [/quote] I understand your perspective, but having been in bands with people who have no music theory knowledge, it makes it very difficult for them to articulate their ideas to the rest of the band. It can end up getting very frustrating trying to figure out exactly what they're looking for. S.P.

And of course, who can forget the Gibson Robot self-tuning guitars? S.P.

This weekend we had our first two full gigs with our new drummer, and I have to say that they went superbly. Saturday night was at a venue in High Wycombe that we've played at before. In the past it's been a fairly small crowd, and this time was no different. Finally got home at half past one. Sunday night was at another venue that we've played at a couple of times before. First time was packed, second was totally empty - last night was packed again! Great sound, good crowd, sold our last few CDs - time to get another run done. Nothing in the calendar now until February, hopefully that gives us time to work some new songs into our set. S.P.

I've got a Zoom H2 as well, and have had it for over 7 years. Very versatile device - I've used it on low sensitivity to record band rehearsals, at which it performs admirably. It's bass response could be better, but I wouldn't be surprised if newer iterations improve upon that. I've also used it on medium sensitivity to capture close-up vocal work, and I'm very pleased with how it performs in that role too. Minor complaints are: [list] [*]the hinge for the SD card slot trapdoor is weak, and has broken. This just means that there's no cover over the SD card slot, it still works fine. [*]I've never been able to get it to work as a USB microphone - I get a lot of stuttering, and have never found out how to fix that. It just means that I'm constrained to recording onto the SD card and then transferring the files to my computer. [*]User interface is a bit awkward. Again, I hope that newer versions have improved upon this. [*]Battery life isn't spectacular - you get about 4 hours out of a pair of AA batteries. I recommend a decent stash of low-discharge rechargeables and a good charger to go with them. [/list] S.P.

If you're playing in a loud rock band with a loud drummer, then I wouldn't suggest anything smaller than the Ashdown combo that you've already got. If you're having difficulty carrying it up and down stairs then you should be considering lightweight alternatives with a similar output. S.P.

Probably Franz Ferdinand at Alexandra Palace in late 2005. Dreadful acoustics and the band just didn't seem to want to be there - I reckon they were bored of hearing their own songs. S.P.

I recently bought a pedal second-hand (Mooer Sweeper) and I've noticed that when I step on the button to switch it on or off, it sends a fairly loud pop through to the amp. Would this be a consequence of a faulty unit, or poor design? S.P.

Threads like this make me sad. Because while I can accept that there are many musicians who, by dying when they did, have left a perfectly-preserved memory, I feel like it's also a bit callous of us to assume that their best work was behind them. colgraff mentions Bowie, which to me is a good example - in my opinion, the quality of Bowie's work dipped quite heavily during the 80s/90s, and it would be all to easy for us to say "that's it, he's past his prime, might as well take him out behind the farmhouse and put him out of his misery" but I think that his last few albums have been some of the best he's ever done. S.P.

Back on topic, I had a similar experience - had some cracked buttons on an RH450 (also out of warranty) and I also mentioned that the master volume knob had a tendency to slide off of its post. TC sent me a whole new set of buttons and control knobs. Good on them. S.P.

I've got a Korg Pitchblack at the start of my pedal chain, which also doubles up as a mute switch. My TC RH450 has a tuner built in, but since I'm usually facing away from it, it serves little purpose other than to entertain the crowd with its blinkenlights. I also have a little clip-on headstock tuner that resides on my acoustic guitar. Fantastic bit of kit, but I doubt I can see it replacing the Pitchblack because obviously it lacks the "mute" functionality. Squirreled away in cupboards I've got a couple of older plug-in tuners and an old Zoom 506. Do they count? Edit: ooh, forgot that I've also got one of the Planet Waves LED strobe thingys. S.P.

I bought a pedal from Mick. It arrived in its original packaging, along with a few extra little trinkets, which are greatly appreciated. I would have no hesitation about having dealings with him again. S.P.

[quote name='ezbass' timestamp='1446207837' post='2897704'] Ouch! That didn't go well at all. I don't know the guy, but your 'leader' does not come off well; just because you lead a band, doesn't make it 'your' band. [/quote] The band leader didn't deliberately go behind our backs, it was a simple misunderstanding. I suppose I could check with lead guitarist, see what conclusion he'd taken away from the meeting. [quote name='peteb' timestamp='1446208274' post='2897710'] Are[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif] [/font][/color]you sure that the problem isn't the attitude of the '[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]singer-cum-songwriter-cum-band-leader-cum-rhythm-guitarist' rather then the (now ex) drummer's reaction to it??[/font][/color] [/quote] It's a point worth raising, but I think that, while I could always appreciate the validity of the now-ex-drummer's complaints, unfortunately the way that he would react to them was universally unconstructive. It makes it difficult to get anything done when every single small obstruction along the way becomes a crisis. S.P.

[quote name='Jonnyboy Rotten' timestamp='1446206102' post='2897680'] Ouch... sounds like the "singer-cum-songwriter-cum-band-leader-cum-rhythm-guitarist" has jumped the gun in sacking the drummer. I suppose he isn't going to want to come back even if you asked him because of the potential politics and bad feeling? [/quote] Indeed, and to be honest I think that the ScScBLcRG would be too proud to ask. Here's an interesting little detail that may become relevant: our drummer's been with us for one year, and our previous drummer was "laterally promoted" to the role of synth & percussion, a role which he holds to this day (though his level of commitment to the band is a fraction of what it once was). It's not beyond the realms of possibility that ScScBLcRG may suggest placing him back behind the kit. [quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1446206273' post='2897682'] In reality the ex-drummer was already an ex. He just hadn't been told yet. The reasons for firing the first guy haven't changed. At the end of the day, life's too short for "bad attitudes" in any sphere of life. [/quote] That's a fair point, but handling things this way round means we may have given ourselves unnecessary continuity issues. [quote name='KevB' timestamp='1446206388' post='2897684'] The guy you've just sacked then becomes first choice dep if he'll do it, sorted. [/quote] I didn't really want to go into too much detail about the exact nature of his attitude problems, because it didn't seem essential, but suffice to say, I can't see him considering this, unfortunately. S.P.

Last week, we had a band subcommittee meeting in the pub to discuss our drummer. If you imagine the core of the band to be the singer-cum-songwriter-cum-band-leader-cum-rhythm-guitarist and the lead guitarist, then I'm like the mantle - not as long established as their partnership, but in the time I've been with them I've proven my worth. The matter that we wanted to discuss did not relate to musical ability, but rather his attitude. The other two want to give him the boot, I want to try talking to him to see if we can find improvement. I am then informed that the drummer from another local band has expressed an interest in leaving his current projects (two) and joining us, and I have to concede that this guy would be a much better fit. We've played on bills with him before, he's got ability and good personality in spades. I start to change my thinking - if we give our current drummer another chance, but he doesn't improve, then we may find that by that time, this other candidate is no longer on the market. At the end of this meeting we're a few pints the worse for wear, but the situation as I understand it is that we're going to audition this other drummer and take things from there. Apparently I misunderstood, because on Sunday I get a message from our now ex-drummer. I message the band leader saying "uh... what just happened?" We're now in a very sticky situation. This audition has to work out - the band leader has apparently decided that it's a done deal already. Fast forward to the audition itself, last night. Everything's good, the songs are sounding better, there's a positive energy in the room that's been missing for some time. As we're packing away, there seems to be a mutual consensus that everyone's happy with the new arrangement. But the drummer drops his bombshell - he's not planning on leaving his other bands, and indeed he would continue to prioritise them above us. To what extent, I know not. If we've booked a gig and then he receives a gig offer for one of the other bands, would he cancel? From what he was saying, it sounds like the answer would be yes. I know that band leader will not be pleased with this, but he doesn't say anything there and then, because he knows that right now, this guy is all we've got, and he seems to be basically saying that he'll do a gig here and there, but that's it. Which leaves us in a fairly undesirable situation, wouldn't you say? S.P.

[quote name='Fabo83' timestamp='1444413356' post='2883156'] I have this board. The Frame is very stable and you can fit up to 5 mxr sized pedals pretty easily. The bag that comes with it is a really cheap, ugly looking bag, but it gets the job done. [/quote] Yep, my first impressions of it so far are good. It's currently holding 4 pedals with a little room to spare, but I've got plans. Here's how it looks at the moment: I've got some EBS low profile patch cables on the way, which will give me a bit more room to play. With the purchases I'm currently considering, it might end up like this: If not then I'll just ditch the Digitech chorus pedal, or look into replacing those two Digitech pedals with micro-sized alternatives. S.P.

Broccoli. S.P.

I've decided to order a Warwick Rockboard Jam instead. Slightly larger than the Pedaltrain Nano+ but that gives me a little room to grow, plus I can have it by Thursday. S.P.

[quote name='Higgie' timestamp='1444061675' post='2879964'] Will the original Pedaltrain Nano be of any use? I have a spare I could sell you! It's a little bit smaller than the Nano+ I think, but if everything will fit on to it you're welcome to have it! [/quote] Thanks for the offer, but I don't think it would be big enough. The difference is fairly significant - about 10cm, I believe. [quote name='BassBus' timestamp='1444062052' post='2879968'] Joyo boards look pretty tough and are two thirds the price of a Pedaltrain. [/quote] As far as I can see, they're all fairly big though. I'm not looking for a huge board - just enough for 4 or 5 average-sized pedals S.P.

What in the blazes is going on with your line breaks. S.P.

Happy Jack is right, it's really annoying when people change their avatar. I'd never do it. S.P.

The number of pedals that I own has now increased to the point that it's worth me buying a small board to put them on. I placed an order for a Pedaltrain Nano+ with GAK, which looked perfect, but it's looking like there won't be any arriving in the country until the end of November - other suppliers are also reporting delays. I'm tempted to cancel my order and seek alternatives. Does anyone have any suggestions? S.P.

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1443797631' post='2877817'] Surely that depends on repertoire, no..? I'd offer as example most of the early Roger Waters stuff; speed was seldom of the essence, I'd suggest. I'd agree for that there flashy stuff, but there's more to bass playing in the real world than [i]that[/i], I hope..? [/quote] Okay, yes. I suppose what I was trying to say was that you need to have sufficient physical practice to give you the necessary context to make the imagined practice effective. For example, I've never flown a space shuttle. If I were to visualise flying a space shuttle, then while I could have a successful mission in my mind, I'd be scuppered once I got into a real shuttle because all the controls would be different. Likewise, you could visualise playing your bass and get everything perfect, but then pick up a real instrument and discover that you just don't have the physical strength/speed/endurance to execute the moves that you were performing oh-so-effortlessly in your head. S.P.

Yesterday I found out about an experiment in which a bunch of basketball players were split into two groups, one of which practiced taking shots, while the other group just visualised it. The second group actually showed more improvement, because in their imagination they were landing the shot every time, whereas the first group would miss sometimes. Which means that OP's method of rehearsing without a bass in his hand actually makes a lot of sense. In his mind, he's a virtuoso. Obviously we all know that in the real world, you need to build up strength and speed in your hands, and there's no way of doing this without physically playing. But I wouldn't immediately dismiss bonzodog's method as worthless. S.P.