chris_b

It does sound good but it's not a live sound. The whole band was recorded and remixed in the studio afterwards.

Yep. But doesn't make for such a good headline, does it. I've played instruments at bass bashes that were lovingly exhibited by proud owners and felt like crap to me. Tried friends basses that I wouldn't play if they gave them to me. So yeah, I'm sure Fender made quite a lot of bad basses over many years, but what does that mean in terms of numbers? Probably quite a few. In terms of percentage of overall production? Not a lot. So what do we say? For every 10 basses Fender sends to market one might be a dog, one might be exceptional and the rest will be somewhere in the middle and are still capable of doing a good job? Sure it's a guestimate but my feeling is that this is closer to the truth than the line, "Every bass Fender made in the 70's was crap". I'd bet that most of these basses (even the bad ones) eventually settled and matched up the preferences of an owner and they both lived happily ever after.

Yep. If you don't want to play a number, try to get it shelved before anyone else has put in the time to learn it. If you just turn up, make a mess of it and just shrug your shoulders saying you never likes it anyway, you'll have upset everyone.

If you have more gear than you can use on one gig then you have too much gear. Keep the bass you've played the most in the last year and sell everything else. Never regret selling what you don't need. With the money buy a better bass than the one you kept, which now becomes your backup. From this point on, your sound is good, so just think about your playing and technique. Do you do bv's? Focus half your time on that.

Me neither. Instrumental bands have to search around and sometimes they chose numbers based on hope or maybe just desperation. I was in one a long time ago, with good guys and good players, but thankfully it never got out of the rehearsal room. We played Cause We've Ended As Lovers amongst a lot of other old tat, including a rocked up version of Apache!

So they say. . . I also get stick from drummers when I question why they all like John Bonham so much!! Don't get me started on Geddy Lee!!! Me too. . . . or I did. I have never been a Pink Floyd fan, until I saw Dave Gilmour's Albert Hall gig on his last tour and I came away loving this song and most of the others he played.

I guess the band leader is a guitarist? I honestly don't know what guitarists see in Jeff Beck. IMO his high point was the Truth and Beck-Ola band! So, think of it as a slow blues, then it's pretty straight forward to play.

IMO you should sell the 410. Keeping gear because "I might get a chance to use it a some stage " is not a good reason.

So what is the comparison between the sound of your Metro and your chambered NYC?

These Studio Jam videos are great. They are a warts and all performances with the best players in the world just jamming. You don't have to like it, but I generally do. Even the ones I don't like I can appreciate the talent on display. Wooten is one fantastic player, but as with the all these "super slappers", IMO they sound much better when they switch to finger style. Locally I've heard a few guys sounding good on Sire basses, but the bottom line is, if you are a good player you'll sound good on anything.

It's good when a plan comes together.

I don't take this story at face value and I would imagine there have been many "issues" with LB which have yet to come out. LB has been a PIA personally and professionally to the band since the 70's. There are years of back story here (some things we know, many we don't) and I guess he has used up all his goodwill. Personally I would have voted not to take him back after the first time he flounced off. I know that when Dave Gilmour was recently touring, on some stages of the tour, they were travelling with nearly 70 people. A world tour like this is a massive undertaking and demands the total focus of everyone involved. That LB wants to do gigs with his own band in-between probably indicates a lack of focus and commitment to FM, which has the potential to put the tour in jeopardy further down the line. How can the organisation that is Fleetwood Mac take that risk? Maybe they did him a favour. Now he has plenty of time for his band! About the "proposed" album? FM has been a "heritage" brand for 40 years and they have all been following solo creative paths since. Seems like the other "creative" guys want to keep the two separate. Why put a lot of modern songs into an FM tour? Nothing to be gained by doing that. It's difficult to judge what's going on. Lot of people jumping to conclusions here. No doubt there is enough material for another Fleetwood Mac documentary.

Good job I didn't make any comparisons or discuss the value.

I've been playing a Metro for a couple of years and there is only one drawback. The weight is slightly more than I'm comfortable with. So I've been on the lookout for a chambered NYC. Last week I finally played one in Guitar Guitar Epsom and I didn't like the sound. It just wasn't as full or punchy as my Metro. I need to take the Metro in and do a direct comparison but that has put me off. I've also tried other Metros and haven't liked the sound as much as mine. What's the polar opposite of a Friday bass? Whatever it is, I think I've got one.

I'm a Fender guy and always have been. A few years ago I played Clarky's CS Pino and liked it a lot. A very, very nice bass but unfortunately I don't play 4 string basses and IMO, Fender haven't yet hit the spot for me with any of their 5 strings. IMO if you want a 4 string workhorse Fender is the place to go. For anything else, shop around. It doesn't surprise me to see that people have not had positive experiences with my favourite basses. That's preferences for you!! From a 5 string perspective, it seems to me that my Mike Lull P and Sadowsky Jazz are basses Fender could only dream of making. Both these basses are a pleasure to play and make just about the best sound of any bass I've owned. Sadly, for my requirements, a Fender seems like a backwards step these days.

Listen to any CD by Keb Mo. Intelligent and well crafted songs, oh and he uses the cream of modern bass players.

I'm very happy to see that you are all back on track. Great news.

If my EQ was set as usual and I wasn't "punching through the mix" I'd start by getting the other guys to turn down. If that didn't work I try turning my master volume up. I use one bass per gig, so I don't swap between active and passive basses. I can't see any advantage in doing this.

Doesn't sound like he's out of tune with the keyboard player.

All the macho and overly aggressive comments have a certain amusement value, but in the real world, if it is his band, he's fronting it and he's getting the gigs then (fact of life) you don't have to be on the same page, you have to be on his page. I'm not saying they don't exist, but I've not met many (if any) successful democratic bands in the last 50 years. It is a necessary evil, but there is always someone who is a driving force in every good band. So breathe, clear the air with him, settle things down, make him happy and (as we are hearing it's a good band) get on and enjoy the ride.

No upset at all. At this level of bass gear we're talking about preferences, often based on the smallest things, which add up to a decision that goes one way or the other. Making the right choice doesn't make the others bad choices. Markbass often gets forgotten in these conversations, but I've heard some players getting a great sound out of that gear.

If the band is as good as you say I'd need a better reason than the rantings of your singer to throw it all away. Seems to me that the singer is asking for commitment from the rest of you. Tell him you are committed but there are things that will get in the way and as long as he has enough notice you don't understand why there is a problem. This is why the better/more sensible bands use deps. Then the band can have a life of its own without the band members putting their lives and the lives of their families on hold for it. I can see some of his frustration. Some gigs won't wait a week for an answer. A text saying yes or no to a gig can be sent at any time. As I say, if the band's that good, work out the problems. Leaving is always an option but why put it on the table before the talking starts? That should be the last resort.

The watts "thing" was a load of ill-informed internet nonsense. I had a Staccato and the RH750 and these amps were certainly as loud as they claimed and sounded pretty good too. So there was no "con" just a lot of noise from people who should have better things to do with their time. If you use your ears then these amps are very good and do exactly what they say. The only issue I have with TC is they "forgot" to mention the fact that the amps that could run 3 cabs were actually 2.67 ohms. There was nothing special about their cabs and you don't need to buy TC to run 3 x 8 ohm cabs. I did that for a year or more with Bergantino cabs.

Keep the bass you have used the most. The others can be replaced.

My first "retirement" came when my world of pro bass playing imploded and I realised I had very little to show and no money coming in. On the advice of a friend, I got into the fledgling IT industry and started a shift job, a good move as it turned out. I refocussed my thoughts, sold my amps and cabs but I never considered selling my Precision. I always felt that that bass defined me as a person. It sat in a case for the best part of 10 years, only coming out for infrequent gigs. I was a musician who wasn't currently playing, but would at some time in the future. And I did. Sell everything else but don't sell your bass.