chris_b

Phil is right. With your own gear you are in control and you have consistency every time you play. You don't have to fight your sound which lets you focus on playing better lines. If you sound good you'll work more than if you don't. I've played on many gigs with FOH but many more that don't put bass through the PA. Even with a good PA you don't always get good monitoring, so if you're doing this properly you need to cover every situation you're likely to encounter. My intention before I bought my first bass was to gig. Everything I have done is to that end so an amp and a good sound is critical for me. If you're only going to live in the studio you need a different focus. You have to play the bass with the best sound, but IME even the best studio guys gig somewhere.

My 68 P has the A neck. I bought that off the shelf in Brussels. Not the best bass I've ever played, but what did I know back then. I was happy as.... When I took the covers off I discovered that the bridge was quite a bit off centre. It took another 3 years to wear out the frets and have the nut break! And the pickup always sounded weak. I fixed all that and added a J, which was a wast of time, money and value. This is why I'm usually against trying to make a good bass out of a bad one. Just cut your losses and buy the bass you want.

". . . . worth the premium price tag?" I always think that when I see someone driving a BMW. It's so unreasonable that Bmers aren't the same price as my Volvo.

Here's hoping for a speedy recovery.

[quote name='moonbass' timestamp='1474610649' post='3139157'] if you have a bad back (they fit nicely on a folding sack-barrow though). [/quote] +1 I always use a trolley, even for Neo cabs.

[quote name='bassmayhem' timestamp='1474620604' post='3139235'] When it gets so "original vintage" it is unplayable, it gets rediculous. [/quote] No, that's when it becomes a collectors item. It really depends how much this bass is worth on the open market and how much the owner wants to maintain the value of the bass. An old Fender does have value over and above its worth as a bit of wood and its ability to produce a good sound. One of my earliest recollections of a P bass was on the wall of Pan Music in Wardour Street in the 60's and someone had carved the body into a sitar shape, and that was in the days when a P bass was the same price as a Ritter is today, and on Talkbass they are currently bemoaning the fate of a 52 P bass that's been broken up for spares. Owners can and will do what they want but there are [i]good[/i] things to do to a bass and things that you [i]have[/i] to do to maintain its playability, I don't think that I'd put a respray on either of those lists. Whatever the amount, a little or a lot, a respray [i]will[/i] affect the resale of this bass by reducing it's value. That reduction will increase over time as this bass becomes older and more sought after. So there's the answer to the original question.

When a bass gets to vintage, rare or collectable status any work that changes it in any way will devalue it. Chipped paint? People are paying extra for that!!

I understand back problems. I'm currently suffering. I had a couple of 112 Bergantino cabs for years then a 212 which I sold for 2 BF Super Compacts. These are as back friendly as you can get and still fill a large room with fat clear bass. I would check out a couple of modern 12's, IMO they'll sound much better than an old TE. Are you anywhere near Addlestone on Saturday? You'll find more quality gear on show at the SE Bash than anywhere else in the UK.

Right decision but he should have gone right away.

[quote name='Zummerbass' timestamp='1474379200' post='3137509'] Bergantino NV1156 has caught my eye [/quote] What interests you about it?

As the question is; who had the biggest and most enduring impact, there really is only one answer. While Bob Marley wrote some good songs, he wasn't as influential on other artists as Smokie Robinson, Bob Dylan or Paul and John and his band (while making good records) didn't change much in the industry. On the other hand The Beatles instigated many of the changes seen subsequently in every aspect of the music business; the writing of songs, band management, the recording industry, publicity and merchandising, so enduring is a very good way of describing the impact the Beatles are still making. Anyone who says The Beatles was just another band (as someone did here last year) hasn't done the required homework.

I have 2 amps that go to 2 ohms, a Thunderfunk 750 and a Mesa D800, but my main back up for the TH500 is another TH500. It just made more sense to me that a backup should have the same tone as the main amp and the extra benefit is I can daisy chain both amps and run up to 4 cabs from 4 ohm amps.

Walk this way. . . we've opened the second set with this for ages. I just play a funky line at about half that speed. IMO it works better as a funk number with a rock guitar over the top rather than everyone overplaying and getting messy trying to match the original. Come together. . . never do the slide, or the top F come to that. It works just as well (even better) as a moody rocker and played lower down the fret board.

[quote name='mr.noisy' timestamp='1473191192' post='3127910'] As far as I know it's all going to be in original keys, [/quote] Sorry, "As far as I know" isn't good enough. Get the confirmed set list, with keys, and find out which versions they are playing. How long are the sets? How many numbers do you really need to learn? All 40? That's a lot for a function. If you're going to assume anything then you risk screwing it up and that might just be the end of your function band career. A few weeks ago I was told to learn a version of a song which was in a different key to the set list. It turned out the set list was right. You've got to catch these things before you start to put the work in.

A sold out event has reached the safety limit set by the council and emergency services for that space.

I changed cabs from a 212 Bergantino to 2 112 Barefaced cabs and I had to turn the amp down, from 12 o'clock to 10, to get the same volume. Some cabs are better than others in turning their power into SPL, but volume is the easy bit. Getting a cab that sounds good is the goal. Alex has smaller cabs that will be louder and clearer than your current 610. Your sound will change (IMO probably a significant improvement) so I'd drop him a text and discuss your sound.

Why pay someone to cut up your bass when you could upgrade your outboard preamp (which is more easily replaceable and upgradeable) and get the same effect at half the cost.

If 8 ohm is half of a 4 ohm load and 12 ohm is less than that where is the percentage split between the two cabs? I know the cabs are well within their limits but as to the actual numbers? Dunno!

I saw them on Thursday. What a great band. Joey Dosik left me cold except when he was playing with the band. I've never seen such a happy looking bunch of guys on a stage. They were having fun all night.

Only your sound. . . ! Swapping speakers might improve the sound of the Ashdown (also might not) but it won't sound half as good as the SC, because they were designed to work together. Why isn't your Super Compact enough?

Do you need better monitoring? Get a long lead and get out front to hear what the sound guy is hearing. Then you can give the orders. If you need to be louder then tell them. No problems with that.

A good strap is essential if you have back issues. Mine are 3-4 inches wide, but the area where you can make a real difference is getting a light bass. I'm comfortable with 8 1/2 lbs. Anything heavier is a problem even with a good strap. Tonight I'm sitting on a stool as my back problem has flared up this week.

Depends on the band and the gig. I'm off to Worthing tonight on a 100 mile round trip. The gig's OK but the band is good so it's no problem for me.

An 8 ohm cab and 12 ohm cab will look like 4.8 ohms to the amp, so there is no problem there. The 8 ohm cab will get something like half the power and the 12 ohm cab will see less than that, maybe about 1/3rd, so at 500watts (are you really going to run the amp at full power?) the 112 will get 250 watts and the 210 will get less than 200 watts. I'd be surprised if you run your amp even that loud (I can't even get my TH500 to half way on the volumes with my SC cabs) so whatever you put into those 2 cabs they'll be well within their tolerance levels. Nothing in this signal chain will be stressed at all. If I wanted to add more to my SC I'd be looking at adding a Super Midget but the 210 is an interesting option. My Berg 112 and 210 rig sounded fantastic so mixing 12's and 10's can sound good. For accurate descriptions of the combined sound of various BF cabs I'd email Alex and start a discussion with him.

I don't know what kind of music you band is playing but I do a lot of trio gigs and never boost the bass at any time. When the guitarist stops there are no holes, gaps or spaces to fill. We leave those spaces empty (just bass and drums). It's called dynamics and dynamics makes the music more interesting for an audience. If you and the drummer are rocking or grooving well there should be no drop in energy level, which you have to make up for by changing tone, increasing volume or number of notes or anything else, when the guitarist stops playing or does a solo.