Paul S

I considered it only recently. One of my bands decided to start playing Steely Dan's 'Josie' which makes much use of an open E string. Trouble is the singer also decided he couldn't sing it unless it was in D. Capo on the 3rd fret of a 5er would have done it but in the end I just decided to cut short the low D a fraction to give me time to get up the dusty end for those little slidey bits. Although I still miss occasionally It has a greater impact on the guitar parts, though and doesn't quite sound the same.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1495220512' post='3302304'] Good move. I use 1 or 2 SC's depending on the gig. [/quote] Ditto. Brilliant cabs.

Tim bought my Godin acoustibass in the most straightforward of transactions - drove here, tried it out, handed over the cash! A pleasure doing business.

I have 2 hearing aids and haven't found a good way around taking them out, putting in ear plugs, putting them in again. I use IEMs when gigging which gives a totally controllable volume in your ears but then as soon as we finish the first set/stop playing/whatever have to put the hearing aids back in again. All a bit of a nuisance, really.

Yes, thanks for that - both are on my radar. I think I'll sit tight and see what comes along.

Thanks for the heads up - I'll do a bit more reading! I'm in no rush - have to shift some gear first, too.

Thanks folks. I did a kind of 'test' at the gym with a 20kg plate and I think that taking my dodgy back into account anything close to that would be too much for me to manoeuver. Probably time to start saving for the Mesa Boogie - which weighs about the same as my current rackmounted Trace Elliot head - or forget it! Appreciate your input - for one thing I was unaware of the Mesa Boogie!

Thank you. A lot of amp for not a lot of money. Not as small or light as the Mesa Boogie but it is a grand cheaper!

That does help, thank you. Every little bit of info helps as I know nothing!

They are both interesting. I wonder if the Handbox would be loud enough? The Mesa Boogie wins on pretty much all counts except it is very expensive. Hmm.

The Rheingold is interesting and I particularly like the look of the Mesa four:88 but they are both quite expensive. Not sure the Ampeg would be loud enough for what I have in mind. Any other contenders?

I am toying with the idea of getting an all tube head but couldn't live with anything too heavy. 20kg would be about my limit, I think. From what I have read I could do a lot worse than the Stoneham Y1200 - [url="http://stonehamamps.co.uk/product/yi200-head/?"]http://stonehamamps.co.uk/product/yi200-head/?[/url] - it ticks an awful lot of my boxes. I am after an 'old school vintage tone' whatever the heck that is - nothing too broken or distorted. But what would be other possible contenders at that power/size/price/weight?

I used luminous stickers for a while and ended up putting a coat or two of clear nail varnish over them. That kept them in place but was still easy enough to remove when I moved the bass on.

Bizarrely I have come up with the names of all the bands I have been in. Some current, some lasted longer than others. Usually it has been after a brain storming with Mrs S. Old bands - 'May Contain Nuts' always got people's attention. After a couple of personnel changes we became '5 Shades Of Grey'. Classic rock covers band 'Xerocks' which some people got, many didn't. Current bands - Illegal Tender. A different classic rock covers band started as The Wayward Sons but we never got around to playing the Kansas track as we have now morphed into a Bon Jovi tribute called 'Just Jovi'.

Gosh, they are interesting - I am still enjoying my Bassblock and often use it with a BF 110 for rehearsals for a light carry in. Love the look of the Bassliner 1x12, and to be able to connect it up into a combo would be very convenient. Not in UK yet?

Indeed. A few years ago I had a sore bunion joint on my right foot so ended up walking on the outside edge of my foot. This threw my knee, hips and back out of plumb and I had all sorts of issues. A simple latex toe spacer between big toe and the one next to it straightened the joint, everything else went back into place. Once it was cleared up I stopped using the spacer. But I find it is not so much the lifting of heavy objects but usually the little silly things done unthinkingly that hurt my back, once the weakness is there. I have been locked up for days after twisting slightly whilst pulling out a tape measure, cutting my toenails (which I don't do any more) or even reaching round where the sun doesn't shine to dry with a towel after a shower (possibly too much information). But I would also add that knowing about something isn't the same as doing it. I knew posture was important but didn't dream mine was bad, especially after years of going to the gym. After a recent bout of lower back pain I went to see someone different to my usual team of osteopaths - a sports injury therapist who recently opened a practice at my gym. She took one look at me and said it was all down to my posture - hips slumped forward, back rolled over, shoulders hunched - typical bass playing stance! This, she said, was causing my buttocks to tense (!) which then pulled on my hips which dragged my back open etc etc. After so many years of so many different people saying so many different things I wasn't hopeful but she actually made more improvement than anyone else. Strong fingers (she is a power lifter) breaking up the muscle knots wasn't much fun, though! However ever since finishing a 6 week course of treatment I feel so much more mobile. For the first time in about 15 years I can touch my toes and rarely get the pain in my back even after long rehearsals. So my recipe for a pain-free lower back is lightweight gear and regular buttock massage

Is it any good for metal?