chris_b

On the other hand. . . . these optimistic, exaggerated or just plain false specs didn't stop Eden and many of the other makes sounding great. I get that to many the paper work is important, but it's not as important as what the thing sounds like.

The benefit of moving manufacture to Asia is cheap labour costs. Some companies want to skimp on other costs so the quality and reliability of the product can suffer. The Chinese can build anything you want, but don't blame them if there are problems that get to market. Blame the commissioning company. And those guys are invariably Western.

We play Get Lucky. It sounded very average until, after a lot of coaching and some hassle, the penny dropped with the guitarist. He didn't hear the point of the guitar part, which was strange because he's a good guitarist and that part makes the number. Get it wrong and there is no number. Everyone has limitations but I'm always disappointed when people don't fight them.

I haven't had any boom to speak of since I started using Bergantino cabs.

I would want to know what cab was being used in this test.

As everyone is at a different level of development and ability there can't be a generic "hardest". Your definition of hardest seems to revolve around technique. For me it's not what you play it's how you play it that matters. Most pub players don't flow, groove or swing.

We've just been dropped by a gig. We drive between 30 and 50 miles and play 3 times a year, and no we don't bring a load of mates. The owner likes us would like us to play but says he needs to book local bands as they bring in the punters. I would argue that there aren't 20 quality local bands so he should be filling his pub with locals on a live music night anyway. We always get the punters singing and dancing but he doesn't get enough through the door. It's true we don't get them flooding in, but whose fault is that? He's been open and above board with us but he's no promoter and relies on word of mouth to get people in. How can we sort his gig out when we don't play within 20 miles of him and are only there 3 times a year? I know nothing about running a pub and he knows nothing about live music. The kids go to the disco bar over the road and the oldies stay at home with their cheap beer. He spends £40,000 a year on bands and has just spent a lot on refurbing the inside and outside. It seems to me the economics of running a pub are broken and as too much live music (especially cover bands) is tied to pubs we are going down with the ship.

We've just come back from a trip to China and we had a big problem with the Chinese smoking everywhere, even in the non smoking hotel rooms, where the management thoughtfully provided matches and ashtrays!! Back on topic; I hate fans on stage. The best gigs are the hottest and sweatiest.

Presumably you knew it was a £150 gig and [i]x[/i] miles before you left home? I wouldn't do a 3 piece gig for that money. The economics of a 5 piece band have never worked in pub gig land.

If you can't lower the action on your bass as much as you like because of fret buzz have a fret stone to level the frets. The bass will be set up as part of that process. I just had my Lakland fret stoned. It plays so much better now.

[quote name='JimBobTTD' timestamp='1416060023' post='2606493'] ....The key is not to change it too much!.... [/quote] Unfortunately hanging on to parts of a great sounding rig and replacing others doesn't usually work. If you upgrade just one thing you'll change your sound. There is so much great sounding gear out there. I'd change the lot and get another, better sounding rig that is also kind to you back.

[quote name='Roger2611' timestamp='1416050321' post='2606393'] ....We now send a confirmation of dates email to all landlords that have booked us and we follow that up with a phone call the day before the gig to confirm we are still playing.... [/quote] We do between 80-90 gigs a year and have been double booked several times over the years. We now send the posters about a month in advance, email with about 2 weeks to go and phone a week before. That's a 3 step process that is designed to cover all eventualities. But the idiots we have to deal with in these pubs can still screw up. Before now, we've had the thumbs up for the first 2 stages and the been told we're double booked with a week to go. Sometimes it's straight incompetence but we know other times a local band, with a following, has been put in! If it's the latter we tell them to stick their gig. Most of these "problem" guys aren't even good at running a pub, which is why there is such a high turnover of pub managers, and they're even worse promoters. Unfortunately it's the word cover bands inhabit.

I'm on TB. All I look at are the Basses, Amps and Basses For Sale threads. It's a good source of info, although a few good and knowledgeable members are posting less these days. Which is a shame.

I'd play a single cut. If I was in the market for a new bass and one came up that I liked the look of, sounded great, played well and at the right price I'd jump at it. Err. . . but that's what I did when I bought all my basses.

Yep. We're stuck with sounding like us, so we'd better start doing it better.

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1415709914' post='2602860'] ....but aren't "pub" gigs where gear is all thrown into a trailer or van?.... [/quote] No. If you don't look after your gear and it gets damaged as a result, that isn't the fault of the gear!!!

You may or may not like Brian's music (or his videoing style), but he always used the best bass players on his records. These guys are just top quality. Alex Al [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRAMBbDZ3oE[/media] Nathan East [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts7HsaE2IB8[/media] Nathan Watts [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hl-bVs1INtY[/media]

Don't confuse light with weak. If you want to break a Mesa Boogie cab you can. Barefaced cabs are braced and are strong enough to survive being dropped, several times, down a flight of concrete stairs. Which is what Alex did when he tested one of the original Compacts to destruction.

This is all very cleaver stuff, but he always sounds to me like he needs to hire a bass player for the band.

[quote name='Kevin Dean' timestamp='1415563488' post='2601520'] If you were in a regular Pub/club gigging band & wanted the best transportable rig you could get & didn't want the hassel of external pedals, just plug in & play what would you get ? [/quote] I already got it. A Lull PJ5 into a TH500 into a Berg CN212, and sometimes a Thunderfunk 750 into a Berg 112 and 212.

No definition? I'd look at the way you've eq'ed the amp. I've played my Thunderfunk through 1 and 2 gen2 Compacts and IME you get out what you put in.

Guys, good choices.

Don't worry about all the advice about re tuning the cab. It probably wasn't scientifically designed in the first place. How many cabs out there were built to the "wet finger in the air" principal, and still sound pretty good in a band? Quite a lot. I'd replace both speakers with the ones Korg is suggesting. They should sound better than the originals.

There are many things I would not buy because of the price tag. It doesn't make them "not worth it" or a waste of money. If you can afford a Fodera, and can [i]appreciate[/i] what it is, buy one and play it every day. It will be one of the best basses you've ever picked up.

I'm running a TH500 with a Barefaced Big Baby 2. It sounds great but hasn't quite knocked my Barefaced CN212 off the top spot for the louder gigs yet. 2 BB2's might just do it though. Molan is right, the TH500 will make any cab sound great. Same as Bergantino cabs make any amp sound great. I heard a generation 3 Compact awhile back and it was like listening to a Motown record. I loved it. Why is the 18" deep SL112 a problem? The Berg 12's are 15" and the Compact is 12". Why is that extra 6" a deal breaker?