TimR

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1416819037' post='2613781'] Interesting one: I don't want to join a band and be hit with a bill to cover a repair on the PA, on day 1, for wear and tear from the last 10 years use. Isn't it better to simply agree that the owner of the PA (as there is inevitably a single owner; the guy who would keep it in the event that the band splits) should charge an agreed "rent" for the gear for each show. [/quote] That's what I always propose. Alternatively if the PA is funded by the band out of money we have earned as a band I just walk away in the end. I see it as a legitimate expense. I'm not interested in stumping up several hundred quid to get a PA for the band to start off.

[quote name='Count Bassy' timestamp='1416789235' post='2613674'] If you read the second paragraph of my second post I think you'll see that I have already covered that situation. [/quote] You've covered the situation where no music was being played. There are plenty of situations where people have lived next to pubs for years with no issues, but the music has got louder and the people leaving have got rowdier. Most people will put up with an acceptable level of noise. The proposal would take away someone's right to complain that the noise has become unacceptable.

This is a more realistic way forward. http://mobile.morningadvertiser.co.uk/General-News/Noise-law-changes-urged-to-save-live-music-pubs#.VHJUstkgGc0

So you could move next to a pub that does occasional light jazz on a Sunday lunchtime. The landlord changes and the new landlord decides to have mid week heavy rock bands playing until midnight? An extreme example maybe but bands are getting louder. It's all about what constitutes a nuisance. Good luck in trying to introduce a law that takes away people's rights. Think about unintended consequences. .

They're selling the whole warehouse by the sounds of it. The gear has to be picked up by date A. The racking by date B. The forklifts by date C. Anything not picked up by those dates will be forefitted.

I sometime wonder what the people who start these petitions are thinking. There's a big difference between a band in a pub and a stadium rock event. If bands are unable to recognise this then they're going to lose venues to play in. We play in a couple of venues where the landlord has had complaints and knows how loud we can play before causing a nuisance in neighbouring properties. Generally if bands refuse to turn down they're not asked back. Bands are getting louder and louder.

I would avoid fixing lights to speakers. Lights need to face across into the band. Speakers need to be positioned to face out to the audience while being out of the way. I had this argument with a drummer for many years as he kept saying we should fit the lights to the speakers to save on stage space. When I left the band I heard one of the first things he did was fix the lights to the speakers. They lasted one gig when he found. a. The lights didn't point in the right direction. b. The venue ceiling was too low to have the speakers at ear level with enough space on top for the lights. We have 4led pars and two TBars. In the old band we had a DMX programmable mixer but we did functions. In my current band I just let them do their own thing. .

No Basschatters in Merseyside to give you a hand?

Those box things were fairly standard in the late 90s. Don't know if they still are. I'm guessing fader style mixers are cheaper now. Peavey, yamaha, phonic, behringer etc. All did pretty much the same thing.

Probably something in your subconscious links the sound of the guitar to a song you've heard or a style of music. Something similar happens to me if I plug my bass into a multi FX unit and run through the different FX.

[quote name='gadgie' timestamp='1416487983' post='2610709'] We have an old PV copy powered mixer...(a "pod" or something) ... [/quote] Phonic Powerpod.

Check you're in tune with the guitarist Does it wobble when you play on your own? Move the cab so its back is flat against the wall and if possible in a corner. .

I had the same thing with a guitarist using a flanger on a band I was running the PA for.

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Parametric EQ is a difficult beast to master. Set all level dials to their '0' position ie no cut or boost. Then set one to full cut and while letting a note ring, slowly sweep It's frequency dial from low to high. Then repeat with full boost. Then set the cut/boost back to '0'. Repeat with all four frequency ranges. At the end of the process you should have a good idea of what each frequency range sounds like. You can use eq for two reasons. Cut problem frequencies in certain environments Shape the sound. Don't get the two confused. Try not to cut or boost any frequency by more than 3-6dB. Hope I'm not teaching you to suck eggs.

There are some English guys at the musicplayer.com keys section.

[quote name='Adrenochrome' timestamp='1416408332' post='2609890'] I'm sure the pros are. For us pub players we barely break even when all costs are taken into account. [/quote] That's exactly my point. If your costs are £50 and you're getting paid £50 that £50 is actually closer to £80 as that's how much you would have to earn before tax in your day job to get £50 cash in your pocket.

Not many businesses own their properties. Most rent. Businesses don't last 25 years+. Pubs may have several different landlords over the years. The change of use is relatively easy to get. All you have to do is show that the pub has been on the market for a couple of years with no takers. Immediate neighbours will usually be for a change of use so the planning doesn't get much resistance.

The pubcos own the pubs. So unless the landlord can afford to buy the pub (very unlikely), the pub will be sold off for flats or housing.

Landlords to be allowed to buy their drinks on the open market. http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/business-30110742

One point that's probably slightly overlooked is this money is all cash. Erm. Obviously we're all declaring any profits we happen to have made by the end of the year. However, for me to pay for a set of £25 strings (legitimate expenses) I would have to earn getting on for £45 in my day job... Legitimately that money you get paid is worth 30-60% more in real terms depending on your tax position.

I think part of the problem with getting people into pubs and getting pubs to put bands on is appropriate volume. I've seen some ridiculously loud bands in what is essentially someone's front room. A lot of Pizza Expresses do live music.

Is that a 200mile round trip? I suppose I'm quite lucky living 25 miles from London but North London is about my limit for a pub gig and only because the pay is better and the pub we play is well known for music and good bands. The other pubs we play are 20minute drive tops. That means I can leave home at 7pm and be home around 1am. It takes about 40mins to set up and same to pack down. Even for £40 it works out £10 for each hour of 'work' and travel. We do a minimum of £160 as there are 4 of us but some pubs pay more.

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1416259170' post='2608470'] That's what truly professional musician do though, isn't it? They sell their skills. I really can't see any line that is crossed and it suddenly becomes a 'sell out too far' I suppose there might be some bricklayers who refuse to work on anything other than neo-gothic revival architecture, but in the main they just lay bricks in accordance to the drawings for whoever is paying them. Pro musicians are the same aren't they? Especially the ones who read music and are paid to play the exact notes put in front of them. [/quote] You have lost complete control over what you play. If you join the Royal Philharmonic, you turn up in the morning and are given the day's music. That's what you're going to be playing. No choice. As you say. That's what you're paid to do. This is where the balance comes in. That's where the totally sold out part is. Play in a covers band for less than professional wages but get some 'creative' input. Even if it's just a say in what goes in the setlist. Maybe even a sneaky run or gliss. .

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1416256359' post='2608424'] What does "selling out" really mean though? ... [/quote] I think the comment was a "sell out too far". I've seen those plastic bands. I saw a 'rock band' in a club at Butlins. Playing GNR, Nirvana, etc. Something was just wrong with the picture I was looking at. Then it twigged. The music was perfect. It was being played by trained musicians. And none of them had tattoos either. Just felt wrong to me. The crowd loved it. The next night they were in the ballroom wearing suits backing some singer from the 70s. Classic. .