TimR

If someone says they're a train spotter you shouldn't automatically assume they have an anorak and lunchbox. If someone is standing on the platform of the station wearing an anorak, and carrying a lunchbox you can be fairly sure they're a train spotter.

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1378379812' post='2199327'] Mostly to unfairly pigeonhole people or things without due consideration or justification it would seem. ... [/quote] That's not what I said at all. Stereotypes exist because in the main that's how people are. Nobody decided a train spotter should wear an anorak and have a sandwich box with a lunch made by his mum in it. That's just how they tend to be. People who play the bass are usually dependable sit at the back plodding out root notes and don't want to be noticed too much. I would suggest that 7/10 bass players match that description exactly. 3/10 will be up front dancing, doing backing vocals, throwing in tasty licks and solos. You shouldn't use stereotypes to define people but you can define stereotypes by people. That's exactly how they come about.

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1378377575' post='2199280'] ... I think that's more to do with the person I am rather than my role in the band. [/quote] That's the generally accepted stereotype. My feeling is that the type of person you are attracts you to a certain instrument. There are always exceptions of course, but the type of person you are will also dictate cover/originals band as well. Stereotypes exist for a reason.

[quote name='xilddx' timestamp='1378374812' post='2199231'] No, I have NOT been there. Try being a good front person or singer/songwriter without the attendant ego, self analysis, even self loathing, and having to write lyrics and music that are meaningful and compelling without being a person who cares about and notices a lot of sh*t that goes on. Delivering that to an audience and in a studio takes a lot more than learning some bass lines and standing at the back in your jeans and t shirt knocking them out with a beer and a smile on yer mush, being the 'glue'. As for the rest of the band, you actually just sound like you're playing with poor musicians. You know, you paint bassists in a very bad light, another way of reading what you writ is that bassists have the easiest job, and that we are all happy clappy ***** who want a larf and bang out a few tunes. Not all bassists are the glue, not all bassists just want to have a good time and get on with it. Everyone in the bands I'm in plays a significant part in the delivery of the music and takes their role very seriously, me included. It should be enjoyable but it's not a game. [/quote] Bad day? In my opinion bass players tend to have less bad days than the other guys. When discussions get heated the other guys are always more passionate about getting their feelings across and sometimes someone needs to calm things down. We're all there to make sure the music is good.

You should tell him Rhino is the only one with any balls to play it. Lol.

As a parent I would be more upset that my son kept an instrument in the back of a cupboard and never played it. Sell it for one you will play.

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1377851216' post='2192627'] It's posts like this that serve to remind me just how little I understand about electrickery. Increasingly, I give up on trying to understand WHY things sound better or worse (cos I can't, see?) and focus instead on how they sound to my ears, using nothing more sophisticated than trial & error. I really would love to know what I'm doing, but I spend enough time learning to play bass without starting Electronics 101 at the same time ... [/quote] As things become more complicated and more varied. Trial and error becomes a very long process. So you buy a long lead and your guitar sounds bad. You assume it's the new lead. What process of trial and error would then lead you to buying a buffer? You don't need to understand how the buffer works, just what it does. It stops the cable acting like a filter. It appears to act like a signal booster. Technically it is but doesn't boost the signal, just stops it from degrading.

Mine was tuned at the factory by experts. I'm not messing with it.

I'm assuming we have to break the existing or set a new world record. There's a couple of mentions at the beginning of the thread but with 40pages to wade through I'm no sure where we are at the moment. 'Only' 18 players so far?

Did Mark play it on stage and say anything or was it just a backstage thing?

Sounds good. Is Shell going with you to meet Guy? She really should, if its possible.

[quote name='Muzz' timestamp='1377721969' post='2190984'] In narrower circles, any of the Charvel/Jackson pointy-headed types are hugely 80s, as are Explorers, preferably in a glittery or stripy finish But yeah, overall I'd say Steinbergers and to a lesser extent Statii. [/quote] Oh yes. I still have my Jackson/Charvel. I picked up a second had Aria a few years back for £90. It was a monster, completly unplayable. Cleaned the gunk off the frets, adjusted the truss rod, fixed the intonation, adjusted the pickup heights, polished the body. It was a beauty, sounded and played beautifully. Bargains are out there.

Does it have gigs lined up in London? Bristol sounds very close to South Wales

It seems more a case of keeping an eye on where it is and where it's going next and shouting out for it. We managed to grab it on its way through from Derbyshire to Portsmouth. I guess it's in London at the moment. Is anyone organising a list or is it just shout out who wants it next?

I don't know but arguably they've played Tom Sawyer at every gig since 1981 except the Snakes and Arrows tour. That's around 1500 times in 30years. I've only played Mustang Sally a couple of hundred in 20years

[quote name='Conan' timestamp='1377676971' post='2190103'] Yeah, it certainly seems to be the case that modern rock albums reflect the sound of the producer rather than the sound of the band. I guess that has always been true to an extent, but it just seems more so now. Time for a return to Broon? [/quote] I suspect this has always been the case. Maybe the band have more influence and what we're hearing now is what they want us to. They're 60 years old, their tastes have changed and been influenced just like ours have. Nico McBrain of Iron Maiden gets very defensive if you ask him when they're going to produce music like they used to. The music that the majority of the fans seemed to like, the band weren't too keen on. At a time when commercially they were at their height. Don't we all bemoan having to play Mustang Sally? The fans love it but musically we're all so much above it...

I leave all that top end to the guitarists. Active bass into a 30m lead has been fine for me to go out front during sound check. Keeping time with the drummer at that distance though...

As the video suggests. True bypass is what you want for short lengths of cable as the buffer built into the pedal can/will alter the tone. If the cable length is very long, in the video they mention over 18ft and on a big stage could be 100m. Then, as the previos posters have said, the increased capacitance of the cable togther with the impedance of the bass acts as a filter. The longer the cable the lower the high frequency cutoff point. ie long cables lose treble. Buffers will affect your tone so when playing with short cables you don't want them. IMO 18ft for bass isn't long! It's a trade off.

[quote name='aende' timestamp='1377343531' post='2186468'] The band were booked into one if our regular gigs in Surrey. Get a phone call from the pub a few days before the gig, after weeks of fitting in rehearsals around holidays and work, stating that they are cancelling as it does not bring in enough cash for them. One of the band members lives near the pub and wondered by on the cancelled Friday night to hear a DJ and Karaoke..... Think we will bin chasing that gig again... The annoyance is that we have a raft if corporate events coming up which are surprisingly good earners - so it is not like we are sh*t!!!! Or do a sh*t set! [/quote] That happened to us too. Was called Sat morning and Sat night cancelled. They were binning bands and doing disco/karaoke too. Costs the same but appeals to younger people with more money to spend. Although the bands I had seen play there were playing 'grandad' music so why they didn't just get some better bands in, I don't know. We also have had a local change hands and after ringing several times and getting no answer our drummer went round and spoke to the new landlord who proposed 4 months of gigs straight off. Happy days!

[quote name='Bassman Sam' timestamp='1377467167' post='2187954'] The streets are not paved with gold, just dog sh*t. [/quote] It's the only city where someone can drop money and no one will pick it up. They are quite literally paved with copper looking metal coins.

Brothers Sisters... Takes me back. I've been listening to Penthouse and Pavement and Depeche Mode's - Construction Time Again recently. They both need remastering to sound a bit more 'modern' but are classic albums. I've always thought that bass solo was a bit dodgy.

Is it a silent jack? The silent end goes at the instrument end to silence the sound when you change instruments. Otherwise it'll be because the electrons flow better when the lead is always used in the same direction. They wear a path through the copper. Or something. I could have made all that up though;)

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1377343086' post='2186459'] The physics of leads is easily dealt with - buy all your leads from Basschats OBBM. Quality products, incredibly reasonable prices, swift turnaround. [/quote] I have a soldering iron and an account with studiospares.

First thing to check is that you are using an instrument lead and not a speaker lead. They're different but can look the same on the outside. Instrument leads have a sheath and core. Speaker leads have the two cores running parallel with no sheath. It should be written on the cable or you may be able to unscrew the barrel of the jack. A few things can go wrong with leads. Dirty plugs. If the plugs aren't making good connection with the sockets then every time you move you'll break the circuit. That'll give you crackles. If the sleeve is not giving a good connection then your bass won't be properly earthed and you'll get hum. If the resistance and capacitance created by the dirt is high enough then the lead will act like a filter. As you alter the restance of the volume knobs this changes the filter characteristics. Google RC filter for an idea of how your tone control works. Also leads have electrolytic properties and can act like capacitors because the sheath runs round the outside of the core. If the insulation round the sheath is not good when the cable is wiggled you can cause static build up. This shouldn't happen with modern cables. Also the terminations in the jacks can break. If it isn't a moulded one unscrew the barrel of the jack and inspect the connections. Otherwise wiggle the lead at the jack with the bass plugged in. If it crackles then you probably have a broken connection. Cut off the plug and solder a new one in.

[quote name='jazzyvee' timestamp='1377288711' post='2185974'] I can't help thinking that given a blank cheque to buy any bass our hearts desired we may find that some more expensive basses suddenly become worth having. :-) [/quote] I think even if I was a multi millionaire I would still be careful. I had £2k to spend on a bass but found one for £500 that was 'better' than a lot of the £1600 basses I tried out.