TheRev

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1508797560' post='3394557'] Sorry it's almost certainly your speakers. Sure they may be able to handle 250W but that is their thermal handling, They aren't going to handle the excursion at lower frequencies, as Bill has pointed out you have something smaller than a 10" single driver in effect. Your options are to roll off the bass, turn your amp down, use some compression, perhaps a limiter which will reduce the peaks, go through the PA or buy another or different speaker. [/quote] You're probably right. Much as I love the MAS45, I've always had this niggling feeling that I really should have bought the bigger brother MAS46 which is more suited to louder stage volumes. Having said that, the 45 works great on 95% of gigs - it's only when we have difficult room acoustics/quick change over/inattentive engineer that I get the E bottoming out.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1508709178' post='3393987'] As was pointed out the new amp is 650w at 4 ohm, not 8 ohm. [/quote] Yep, sorry - my mistake.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1508668446' post='3393606'] Your MAS45 is the 4x5" Mike Arnopol cab? And it's farting out with 250 watts at 8 ohm? That doesn't sound right. This cab should be able to handle 250 watts. On the MAS website, this cab looks like it's used in conjunction with a sub. Maybe it is struggling to handle the big lows that a DB can push out. I'd definitely try it with your HPF. Do you get this problem with the other amps in your sig? [/quote] I don't know if it's the amp distorting at the input stage or the cab farting out. I'm pointing the finger at the amp as I generally run it at 3/4 on the gain and master volume. I've spent some time working with the gain stages (plat pro input trim, plat pro output level and Doubler input gain) to make sure that I havent got any stupid variations in gain going on. I haven't used the Markbass or BFM Omni10 in anger for a couple of years, so I can't recall if my current setup is any more or less farty. The fartyness only really happens when I get a bit enthusiastic on the E string which is why I'm thinking that an amp with more headroom will cope with the occasional high peak. The question is whether the new Doubler with its 650W versus my current 500W will add enough headroom to make that difference - assuming that it's the amp that's overloading and not the cab.

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1508601892' post='3393252'] I`d assume if being on a big enough stage to push a 500 watt amp into clipping surely you`re going through FOH? If so, ask for a better monitor mix. [/quote] My cab is 8 Ohm so it's more like 300w than 500 (or does the load not affect input clipping?) All my gigs are full fat PA jobs, but I'm playing double bass so I need to be careful with putting bass in the monitors as it can quickly degenerate into feedback city. Having said that, I have had some engineers manage to give me an excellent monitor mix with bass in, but it's too few and far between to rely on for my onstage sound.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I suspect that Bill is probably right and it's my cab farting out (although its a BigE/MAS45, which has pretty high excursion drivers). I already use a HPF in my Fishman preamp, so that's covered. In terms of volume, I'm not using the full 500w output as my cab is 8 Ohm, but at some gigs I'll have the input gain at 2 o'clock and the main volume at 3 - 4 o'clock, so I'm pushing the amp quite hard. I probably need to add a second cab..... didn't want to have to do that, I haven't got anywhere to store the bugger...

I currently use an old model EA Doubler amp which is rated at 500w @4 Ohms. The new model of the Doubler has an uprated power amp rated at 650w @4 Ohms. I'm considering buying the new model as I sometimes overdrive/clip my amp on big stages and I hope that the more powerful amplifier will give me more headroom and therefore reduce the chances of overdriving the amp. Am I on the right track or talking bollocks? Will I even notice the difference between 500 and 650w? Just to be clear - I don't need more output volume, I just want to stop the occasional farty noises. Churrz Dave. *Edited for 4/8 Ohm typo.*

I'm game, gigs permitting.

I heard 'rush hour' by Jane Wiedlin on the radio this morning and I suddenly realised that it's probably not about traffic jams. I think it's about shagging.....

[quote name='Billy Apple' timestamp='1504015768' post='3362126'] I was in a pub in Stourbridge once when Neds Atomic Dustbin were in. They had two bass players! Didn't talk to them. [/quote] My ex girlfriend used to go out with one of the bass players from Ned's Atomic Dustbin. No idea which one.

[quote name='Burrito' timestamp='1503582018' post='3359368'] And I once bought an old Ampeg SVT cab that was reportedly ex-Wurzels. [/quote] I've gigged with the current Wurzels bass rig (Ashdown 4x10 combo). Didn't like it. Half of my bands second album was recorded and mixed by Jim Barr, who played bass with Portishead. I bought my first bass from the bassist of the band that went on to become The Divine Comedy.

A semi-hollow version of the piezo fretless you had at the south-west bass bash would be amazing.....

[quote name='Graham' timestamp='1500194260' post='3336094'] [/quote] That's brilliant.

One of my old bands used to do a ska-punk version of 'Beautiful' by Christine Aguilera. Was one of the highlights of the set.

Not in the UK/EU, no. I ended up making my own from some floorboards and an old shelf along the lines of the Concord bass stand from Kontrabass.de http://www.kontrabass-atelier.de/zubehoer_e.html Scroll down to about halfway....

I have a spare tuner from my Eminence EUB that I'll happily part with if it fits? IT's essentially a jumbo sized electric bass tuner.

This: [url="https://www.thomann.de/gb/schatten_design_mini_pre_2_acoustic_preamp.htm"]https://www.thomann.de/gb/schatten_design_mini_pre_2_acoustic_preamp.htm[/url] You'll need a mono to stereo 'Y' cable or you could wire both pickup outputs to a single stereo jack.

Down in the tube station at midnight by The Jam.

I've not found a slap string set that was also good for pizz on the E string, they're always too floppy to get decent note definition. But that's the sacrifice you make to have a low tension string for slapping, Innovation strings are great though, so the Silver Slaps will do the rockabilly side of things nicely. When it comes to changing strings, do them one at a time and keep the tension on the remaining three strings, If you take all the strings off at once there's a good chance your sound post will fall over and that will require a trip to a luthier to put back in place.

I used to play in a duo with a singer guitarist who used lots of altered tunings. He was also a massive stoner an would often forget to either bring or use his tuner, so he would just tune his guitar to itself for each new song, with the result that by 4 songs into a set his A was not even remotely the same as my A. I dealt with it by playing a fretless bass until I got fed up with his inability to even concede that it was a problem and quit after a particularly disastrous gig.

I'm currently having lustful thoughts about this. https://www.andertons.co.uk/p/SRH500F-NNF/electric-basses/ibanez-srh500f-nnf-fretless-bass-in-natural-browned-burst-flat?LGWCODE=SRH500FNNF;56375;6335&gclid=CO-TmtDwhdQCFUg8GwodQSUPLw Though it looks like it has dark fretlines? Or have a look around the build threads, I'm sure one of those blokes could make you something that falls within your budget.

[quote name='Marc S' timestamp='1495110595' post='3301350'] I saw a Stentor some time back - in fact, I had considered trading it + some cash for my Gage (then saw the light! lol) It certainly wasn't a small proportioned bass, and the endpin extended beyond coping with me at around 6'00".. perhaps the smaller basses are the Stentor Student range? Does anyone here own a Stentor Student bass? It'd be worth knowing whether they're full size [/quote] Our guitarist's Stentor Student 2 bass is currently living at my house - I can make some measurements if you like? It's definitely a 3/4 sized bass though.

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1495032161' post='3300698'] I looked at the Stentors when I was searching for a bass, something like 12 years ago. I don't know if this is still the case, but I remember noticing just how small proportioned all of their 3/4 size basses were, to the point that the endpin didn't extend far enough for me (I'm about 6'2"). It's not necessarily a negative, just something to consider. [/quote] That may be why I like them, I'm a total shortarse.

10 years? I remember when it were all Bassworld round here....

Thwaites in Watford used to have a good selection of used Eastern European instruments at the £1000 mark, but looking at their website, that doesn't seem to be the case any more. May still be worth giving them a call to see if they have anything in though. If you're prepared to wait for a bass, then I'd definitely agree with others and suggest that you go for a nice old Eastern European bass. You'll have to spend some time repeatedly scouring ebay/gumtree/bassschat to catch then when they come up but you can pick up a pretty solid bass that's been around for 20+ years and is still in one piece so you know it's decent quality. Both my basses are Eastern European (one East German, the other Hungarian) and both cost me less that £600. £200 spent on a set up and bingo - you've got a very useable bass for <£1000. If you're not prepared to wait, then I'd recommend one of the Thomann 2 double basses. They're built in the Hora factory in Romania and are very good for the money. Another option is the Stentor Student 2 bass. Oue Guitarist has one and it's also very good. [url="https://www.thomann.de/gb/thomann_kontrabass_22_02.htm"]https://www.thomann.de/gb/thomann_kontrabass_22_02.htm[/url] [url="https://www.stentor-music.com/brands/stentor/stentor-student-ii-double-bass-outfit-58/"]https://www.stentor-music.com/brands/stentor/stentor-student-ii-double-bass-outfit-58/[/url] I've played both of these and would more than happy to have either as a regular gigging bass.