chris_b

. . . . anyone making music in their bedrooms.

It's all good. I love the early adopters. We have a great symbiotic relationship.

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1442847040' post='2869948'] Everything works perfectly................don't fix it Something is wrong...........................fix it [/quote] +1 Isn't this the only logical thing?

[quote name='peteb' timestamp='1442906876' post='2870313'] I read an interview with Leland Sklar last night where he said that he still gets excited when gets a call for a live gig, 'even in a bar'! So after playing some of the biggest gigs in the business, Sklar still looks forward to a local bar gig! [/quote] Exactly. Sad I know, but I get a kick out of every part, from putting the gigs in the diary and loading the car and driving to the gig. When people say "worst part of the night" at the end, it isn't for me. I love the load out etc. It means I've done a gig. Of course I'd prefer to be playing with Clapton at the Albert Hall, but I love doing good gigs and, as long as I play well, I'll take a bad gig over a night watching TV any time. The worst part about gigging for me is waiting for the next one.

I thought he made his cabs in Holland!

I would always have a second cab. If one is [i]fine[/i] two will be [i]fantastic[/i].

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1442828471' post='2869682'] That's not the reason. It's because the karaoke is a lot cheaper. [/quote] Also under the old licensing system you didn't need a music license for Karaoke and you did for 3 or more musicians.

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1442798746' post='2869569'] Gigging is fun. [/quote] +1 The reason I learnt to play an instrument was so I could join a band and gig.

There's Bernie Goodfellow who makes GB basses in Brighton. I don't know if he runs a repair shop as well but it's worth a phone call. I took my Lakland for a fret dress/levelling and set up at the Gallery in Camden. Might be a bit to far for you but they did a fantastic job.

[quote name='ivansc' timestamp='1442733970' post='2868992'] He replied that he had never paid more than £70 for music, even if it was a five piece band and h want about to start now. The pub went from being one of the more successful local music pubs to empty on the weekends in a couple of months because of the rubbish acts he had playing there. [/quote] This is what happens all to often when a new guy moves in. Many pubs are subsidised by the brewery so the landlords don't have to make good decisions when booking bands. We've just cancelled a venue (4 gigs a year) because the bands are being made to invoice an agency (the fee has also been reduced) who will then give the bands a cheque after a couple of months. For pub money it's not worth the wait and the hassle. Apparently this system is not being introduced to hit the bands but because the brewery has found lots of landlords invoicing them for non-existent gigs. Bad bands are getting gigs because the guys running the venues don't care enough to do a better job.

What is this thread about? Dressing up opinion as fact? Some Fenders may have issues but to generalise that they are [i]all [/i]rubbish is plainly not true. Some issues with set up doesn't make all of them rubbish instruments either. Just means you have to give them your own set up. That might be annoying but doesn't make the bass bad. Let's have some common sense. That some companies make better basses doesn't mean that all another companies basses are "rubbish". Many great players are using Fender instruments and that proves large numbers of them are fit for purpose and fine to use at the highest level.

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1442673010' post='2868689'] My back is properly f***ed and with the music trust group I'm with, there are a lot of room changes where I have to pack and move every 40 mins. [/quote] That's a BF One 10 (15lbs), a GK MB200 (2.2lbs) and a good trolley. Everything can stay set up on the trolley. The heaviest thing will be the speaker cable.

I agree about the ego. An ego in check is a great asset to a performer. It's when the ego gets out of control and takes over or when it starts to exceed the talent that's when all the problems start.

I used to gig my Bergantino AE112 and my regular 500 watt amp with an acoustic guitarist. Great tone at very low volume. I prefer the sound of bigger speakers so the smallest I'd go would be a Barefaced One 10 and a small 300 watt amp. You need light, as loud as you want and good quality tone and headroom that won't break the bank.

It's a great time to be a bass player.

Not really. A few years ago I got £80 for 3 numbers on the Paul Jones R2 show. Then that was the standard rate, and I guess it was negotiated with the MU. I don't know if TV has a different rate, but I guess that with the coverage that the Beeb provides most bands would agree that the exposure is worth it.

I've seen many bands "having fun" and sounding crap. Whatever your reason for playing, if you're sounding crap you're getting in the way of better bands. So some guys "bounce around" for 2 sets and think that's where it's at. My earlier point was that more playing makes you a better musician, a better player, a better band. It's a different approach. You don't run a mile the same way you run a sprint. The guys who can do it get better the guys who can't, should stop. In my book, either way, it's a good outcome. The money is important. It has nothing to do with being "mercenary", "trying to get rich", "we're only in it to have fun" or any thing else. The bottom line is because most of us are playing in a commercial environment and if someone is making money out of our playing then we should be too.

Jesse Winchester writes some beautiful and poignant songs. There are several that can stop you in your tracks, but I've chosen this one. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wESV43Ks6Zg"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wESV43Ks6Zg[/url]

[quote name='spectoremg' timestamp='1442604126' post='2868230'] And of course the ones who work cheap. [/quote] The BBC pays the same for everyone.

I know, we need to remember our place.

"Solid" also smacks of damming with faint praise. I've been called a "solid" player, which I know was intended in a positive way. I'll take the compliment but "solid" is not where I want to be. "Solid" is the starting point, a given, a basic minimum. "Solid" without any other positive adjectives should not be what we aspire to.

There are a lot of British bands who could do with putting in the time. Many of the guys you see playing in pubs and clubs have no groove and are plainly not listening to each other or playing as a unit. Hopefully if you had to play for 4 hours a night the bad and indifferent players would fall by the way side and the whole music scene would improve.

Thank goodness for hard drive recorders. Some weeks I find I've fast forwarded through the whole program. It's a shame. There are so many good artists and bands touring but Later just seem to have a knack of choosing the people who are not interesting to me. Vintage Trouble are touring soon. I wonder If they'll be on. Somehow I doubt it.

I think the folder at the bottom left hand side puts it all into perspective.

Stu, You've got a pretty good rig already and the simple solution is to turn the volume down, if your back is a concern and you need a lighter, more powerful, modular alternative you could use two 112 cabs. I spent years with two Bergantino AE112 cabs. Together they have a great sound at volume and one works very well in quiet situations. You could add a 112 to your 212 but your amp only goes to 4 ohms. The RH version of your amp will go to 2.6 ohms so you could buy that and an RS112 and run the 2 cabs together and separate. The ultimate modular set up. IMO, the better loud, light and modular cab solution is 2 of the Barefaced 112's.