chris_b

The only active pickups I've heard of are EMG's and I don't know what advantage that brings, so passive pickups for me. This also gives you the option of switching between active and passive modes.

I've played a Squier Jazz in a shop and for £300 ish it was way better than the £600 Fender Jazz they also had on the wall. I've modded basses before and everything depends on how good a bass you start with. I'd sell the MIM and try as many Squires as you can. You might be pleasantly surprised.

[quote name='alexclaber' timestamp='1435243264' post='2806919'] It's in black and white on their website. Any three 8 ohm cabs or any 4 ohm and 8 ohm cab, or indeed a 5.3 ohm and 8 ohm cab. [/quote] Thank you Alex.

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1435236676' post='2806823'] I think the only saving point is as above; TC know the exact (or virtually exact) specs of THEIR cabinets and thus know that the impedance will be safe with the RH amps when running three at once. You can do it with other '8 ohm' cabinets but there is no guarantee that the other manufacturers have the ratings of the cabs as TC do. [/quote] Jeez, this myth is hard to knock down!!!!! I wish I could type louder. . . . . they can run 3 8 ohm cabs, anyone's cabs, because their amps run at 2.67 ohms. The cabs are not special, they are no different to anyone else's cabs, the cabs are not the issue. It's all in the amps.

[quote name='lemmywinks' timestamp='1435233167' post='2806753'] TC's cabs were over the stated impedance weren't they? [/quote] No. They wanted us to think their cabs were special, so we would buy lots of them, but they are bog standard cabs. Really. What really gets me, enough to labour the point again, is that someone will ask a question and they will get a reply. In this case, with the best intentions, they will be given the wrong information. And that wrong and misleading info has been gleaned not from the marketing blurb, but from the User Manual and label on the back of the amp. I know there is a "shadow dance" around the watts vs power of the cabs and power vs RMS of the amps, but that is a well known game. Most people know where the line is on that one. In this case, where TC's marketing ends and false representation starts is a very blurred line and it shouldn't be because the facts are clear. The annoying thing is that TC is hiding the facts in plain sight and doing their best to perpetuate the misinformation. I'm boring you all now. I'll stop.

I should clarify. . . I owned a TC Staccato which I sold to upgrade to the RH750 which I sold to upgrade to a Thunderfunk. I have no problems with the volume or tone of these amps. They are good products. I just don't like being told I have to buy TC's "magic" cabs to be able to run 3 at a time.

[quote name='Count Bassy' timestamp='1435175847' post='2806313'] But I think that putting that very thorough explanation on their web site, for those who care, does them credit. I certainly wouldn't expect (or want) that level of detail in a user manual. [/quote] No credit to TC. They only added this information when they were forced to come clean after getting a lot of seriously bad press on Talkbass after Tom Bowlus discovered various [i]interesting[/i] facts about the amps in a review and test his online bass magazine ran. And no credit to TC because while they hid the information away on the web site they left the documentation and labels on the amps as they were. They still state that the amps are 4 ohm minimum and you can only run 2 of any other manufacturers cabs to 4 ohms. That isn't what the clarification says so, sorry, no credit to TC for lying in their User Manuals so that they can sell more cabs to unsuspecting customers. That's selling under false pretenses, So sorry, NO CREDIT to TC.

There's a calculator on the Sadowsky web site which says that together 8 ohm and 5.3 ohm cabs present a 3.1 ohms load to the amp. Which is OK. I used to run 4 ohm and 8 ohm cabs with my Staccato and RH750's with no issues. If you read the manual, your general safety net is that the amp will go into HEAT protection mode if it gets too hot. This from the manual: [i]Notice that due to RH750’s protection features the amplifier will NOT be damaged if a wrong load impedance setting is selected[/i].

As soon as someone else is relying on what you do you need 2 of everything. If you gig, or play with others, you should cover yourself, cos stuff happens. I carry the last set of strings I took off the bass, just in case, and I have never broken a string. In fact, the last time I had a breakdown on a gig was the last time I used tubes.

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1435154198' post='2805994'] I think TC say only that to use 3 you have to use their cabs. [/quote] TC said a lot of things. . . . which they then had to clarify after the sh*t storm they got on Talkbass. They haven't put the clarification they issued in the User manual, but it is on their web site under [b] [url="http://cdn-downloads.tcelectronic.com/media/914735/tc_electronic_bass_amp_power_rating___active_power_management.pdf"]RH750 Power Rating & Active Power Management [/url][/b] You might attribute the fact that they haven't put this information in the User Manual to Marketing, but the fact that they are still actively misleading their customers might also say something about the integrity of TC Electronic. Anyway, the "real" specs are on the last page.... under Min Load 2.66R. That is 2.67 ohms.

The RH750 at 4 ohms is as loud as any amp rated at 750 watts. 5 ohms would be slightly less and 8 ohms would be around about half. The RH750 can run any cab load from 8 ohms to 2.67 ohms. There is no magic in the cabs, they run 3 because the amps can go to 2.67 ohms.

How can you say some key changes are OK and some aren't. IME the singer's limitations will always be worked around at the expense of the other musicians. That's the way of the world. Our job is to make it work. I feel your pain, but I wouldn't quit just because of this. I'd think of it as a different song and work out a different bass line that approximated the record. But I'd have to do that anyway as I don't slap. On the other hand, I am at an advantage because I play a 5 string bass, so I could drop down (to Eb I believe) without problem.

If this is a restriction on what was previously the norm, and if this change is reducing the earnings of photographers, then I'm on the side of the photographers. Corporate bullying from Apple, Tesco, Taylor Swift Inc or anyone else is never justified or acceptable.

If you have a separate battery compartment this doesn't apply to you: if your battery is in with the preamp, always keep a small screwdriver in your case for getting the cover off when you need to change the battery. Work out if the bass has a passive mode and what controls will work if active mode goes west for any reason.

Many years ago I saw Ry Cooder and David Lindley at the Hammersmith Odeon. Great night of guitar picking, but they must have had 50 guitars on stands on stage, and then they only played a small number of them. I thought that was a tad excessive and just showing off really. My thoughts on this as a player who not only uses 1 bass per night, but usually 1 bass per decade; if you find yourself playing 2 or more basses on a gig, you're playing the wrong songs and probably in the wrong band.

[quote name='ubit' timestamp='1434977130' post='2804300'] you will try but you ain't gonna sound like him, well, ok, maybe a bit like him [/quote] No, you were right first time.

I bet the prick that's running Apple didn't work a 3 month trial period and without pay.

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1434964667' post='2804129'] I thought it was rather dishonest of Apple to decide to pass on the "loss" bit of their loss leader to others rather than taking it on themselves. [/quote] Standard business model these days. All the "offers" in your supermarket are funded by the manufacturers, not Tesco, ASDA etc. "Free music" is never free. Someone has paid for it.

The bottom line is; you as a player will make the most difference to the sound you get from an instrument. Another player will easily sound different on the same bass. That is your technique making the difference to your sound. Your style of playing underpins the contribution any EQ or gear makes. You can see this in action at every Bass Bash. The shorthand for this is, "The tone is in your fingers". My experience is when I rocked up to the first gig with my Lull. I asked the guitarist what he thought of my new bass. He said, "It sounded good, but it sounded like you". Believe it or not, you will sound like [i]you[/i] on an SX bass or Alembic, P bass or Jazz. Of course those instruments will sound different but you will sound the same on them. The gear will sound good or bad, depending on what it is and what you do with it, but take lessons and practice. . . . a lot. That's the only way of significantly improving the sound you make on your instrument.

It's a short hand for; the important thing being the player and what and how he plays, and not the gear.

[quote name='UglyDog' timestamp='1434707345' post='2801998'] There's really no excuse for it, all it takes is a diary and a pencil [/quote] No excuse at all. They wouldn't book in 2 beer deliveries on the same day, double up on the staff rotas or book in 2 quiz nights at the same time. Shows you how much some of these guys care about the band nights they put on.

Lardy, buy a couple of Wals to take with you. They fetch a good price in the US. Bring several all original, custom colour, pre CBS Fenders with you when you come home.

[quote name='grandad' timestamp='1434523187' post='2800324'] [url="http://www.vulture.com/2015/04/brown-sugar-still-tastes-good.html"]http://www.vulture.c...astes-good.html[/url] [/quote] This is the downside of the internet. Anyone can put up the most ridiculous and fanciful bullshit and people will believe it. Edit. . . just re read that .. . . Vulture not Grandad

It seems you sound check at a different volume level to the gig.

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1434353044' post='2798761'] But a pub running bands once a week is investing £13,000 in a year. they wouldn't do this without thinking it through in any other area of their work [/quote] We got dropped by a pub last year. The landlord said he spent £40,000 a year on entertainment and needed to put bums on seats, and we didn't bring enough. Several of his bands didn't. IME cover bands generally don't bring a ready audience, especially when they are doing 80+ gigs a year, but he wanted young local bands who would pack the place with their mates. I really don't see that happening twice a week for 52 weeks of the year. These places need to generate their own audience for band/music nights who will be loyal to the venue and turn out to see the bands, week after week. The guy liked us, we did several of his private parties, but his town center pub didn't hold on to the punters for very long. The band is an easy scape goat.