chris_b

The band won't want 2 bass players. There's only potential trouble for them if you try to go down that route. Do the gig, ie join and be the band member. Explain that you'll have to dep out some gigs due to other commitments. Don't be specific, then you can chose which gigs you do and they can find a dep for the others.

Not all jams are created equal. I've only been to a Jam where I've been the house bass player, so I get to bring my rig and sound like me. Currently, if you come to my jam, you get to use an Aguilar AG700 and 2 Barefaced SC's. Before that you'd have used a Thunderfunk and 3 Bergantino 112's.

In the BC classifieds there's an Overwater 5 string for sale in Berkhamsted. A fantastic piece of gear, that one.

You sound like you're at the point of upgrading anyway so get that 5 string bass. Also you would appear to be approaching this with the right frame of mind. If you appreciate the differences then do it.

I'm happy if your vote was no, but I'm not sure your man has been listening to the right basses. . . or the right players. Any inaudible, unclear, thin or dull bass sound is just a bad sound and has everything to do with poor EQ and/or playing and very little to do with the instrument.

Could you? Yes. No problem, as I said earlier. Would you? Maybe not. Every bass I've bought has been (IMO) "better" than the last one, so I guess a Squier is probably never going to win that one. Should you? For a few years I've been thinking I've got too much money tied up in my gear. I sold a few items last year but I've still got too much stuff. Finding a cheaper bass that could easily take over from my current bass is an interesting thought and I've been looking around for a couple of years.

I've just worked out Slither, in D, and works pretty well played down on the 3rd fret. But I get your point that open strings can be a "get out of jail" card if you're playing with a riff mad guitarist.

We did a bass cab shoot out a few years ago at the bass bash in Addlestone and out of the ten or so cabs I could have gigged with any of them. If I told you what I would avoid there would be a dozen posts telling you why they were the best cabs in the world! So I'll stick with telling you, in the last 10 years I've used Bergantino and Barefaced and I would recommend either to anyone. With the best one cab solution being a Barefaced. Where are you?

Eb? Good for me. That's just one fret down on my bass.

Could I perform my current role on a Squier Bass? Yes I could. I could also get by on a 4 string Squier bass if I had to. Find me a 5 string Squier that weighs 4kg or less and I'll buy it tomorrow. Also has to be 3 ts with rosewood fb and tort.

I wouldn't confuse "criticisms" as anything other than expressions of preference. These days there are very few "bad" pieces of equipment being sold. A good quality 112 cab and a 300w - 500w amp will easily exceed the capabilities of your combo.

You want a change and a lighter bass? Get another Wal, a lighter one this time.

+1 Except for Grateful Dead numbers. Each one lasts for 3 weeks.

I've gone from bedroom player to semi pro, to pro, back to semi pro and back to (part-time) pro again. But in my head I was always a pro player. This has never been a hobby. IMO the differentiators between all these categories isn't money or earnings, it's attitude, approach and time. Mostly time. How much time are you willing to put into playing and learning your instrument so that you move yourself from bedroom player (everyone starts there) along the line to becoming a world class recording and touring professional. Where you stop on that line is determined by the time you dedicate to learning your instrument. How willing are you to invest the time and effort, usually to the exclusion of everything else, into becoming the best you can be, and then pushing to be better still.

You're all being very silly. Jaco was a bass player. Stop putting your limitations on him.

Get the gig then put the band together. If you know good musicians then this is no problem.

I replaced my Wal, a beautiful mk3 5 string, with a Lakland 55-94. The originals bands and recordings had dried up and the Lakland just worked better in the new, blues and soul oriented bands I had joined.

So the bass player doesn't have any gear? If these guys were serious they'd have their own gear. If they aren't serious I wouldn't lend anything to them.

My rig is used as the back line of a jam night. Most of the guys are not familiar with my gear and might not get the sound they need, so I set them up, ask them what they want and make the changes for them, until they are happy. More importantly, I've managed to stop a few doing things that might damage my gear! Get the bass player to stand with you when you make your changes so he's comfortable with what you're doing.

The band does seem to have a certain fluidity, but all the line ups sound good to me. Love the bass playing and great arrangements.

Sad news. I enjoyed listening to that.

I'm liking this. Get your funk muscles ready. . . . fantastic band. . . Paul Turner. . . great bass. . . new album out in May. Sorry Sound comes up muted. Can't change that for some reason!!! You'll have to change that when you click on the clip.

I had wax completely covering both ear drums. It was suggested I put warm olive oil into each ear and come back in 2 weeks. When I did the one ear was totally wax free and the other was down to 50%.

I've seen lots. Tina Turner, Buddy Holly, 5 Guys Named Mo, The 4 Seasons, the Small Faces, Fela! and the great Rocky Horror Show to name a few. I just love live music and seeing performers doing their jobs well. The West End can be expensive but you can get Groupon tickets etc that make it doable and the out of town theatres on the circuit put on the touring versions of the London shows and really good shows in their own right.

I haven't used a single One10 on a band gig. I'm not saying it won't work, just I'm not brave enough to put my huge sounding 5 string bass (I hit a lot of low notes), through one on its own. I did use 2 One10's on a low volume gig and was complimented on the sound and have gigged a Three10 (One10 on top of a 4 ohm Two10) at band volume with no problems. I have a second Two10 on order. I'm expecting good things.