WinterMute

Try doing a whole gig with the volume on your bass turned down, put on a show, if anyone notices tell them to shove it, if no-one notices, tell hem to shove it. Yeah, tell them to shove it.

Yeah, mine's a solidly made block with an IEC mains cable, I have no issues with it at all.

I don’t think there's anything wrong with it except that it's external, large and the connector doesn’t lock. It's not a wall-wart type, which is in it's favour, it has a proper IEC connector. It provides plenty of current and induces no noise as far as I can tell. Mine is studio based mind. I could see why you’d use a 3rd party unit on a pedalboard, just for size, but any decent cable management will secure the connector, it’s the same as a Boss pedal.

I have Schaller on both of mine, work very well.

I saw Ozzy's Blizzard of Oz at the Brum Odeon with Randy Rhodes, bit like not seeing Kate Bush at the Hammy Odeon after seeing the Tour of Life, I think I'd like to remember him in his absolute insane pomp.

I think it's a brilliant tool for a recording studio that needs to be able to create convincing tones for any number of guitar and bass sounds in sessions etc. Most of them in use live will have a couple of patches, at best, for bass, I have one for fretted, one for fretless, both with switchable OD/distortion/chorus as needed. Maybe a guitarist would have more patches, I know my guitarist mate, who uses the Helix, has a different set of patches for each song, he tap-dances in his spare time... If you don't use an amp/cab of any description, these modellers are worth the effort I think, and probably the expense. I tried the HX Stomp, didn't like it as a replacement for my Line6 Bass Pod Pro, the QC does everything I need in a one-shot box. YMMV.

I've had one for a couple of years, it's a brilliant bit of kit provided you treat it as a PA monitor and don't expect it to behave like a standard bass cab. I didn't like the bass specific EQ preset and run mine in full range mode, which is to say no EQ in the pre-amp. I run a Quad Cortex and do all the tone modelling in that, just using the QSC as a dedicated PA. I replaced a BF Big Twin T and QSC power amp with the K12.2 and while it doesn't have the absolute grunt of a BF cab, it's plenty loud enough to deal with a hard hitting drummer in rehearsals, and is an easy set-up for a PA guy, you just send the XLR to FoH, instant bass tone. I put it on the floor in front of me like a monitor, but there's nothing to say you couldn't put it behind you on a stand if you need backline style amplification onstage. I think its a cracking bit of kit, handles 5 string very well.

I ran a BF Big Twin T for years with a very heavy hitting drummer and a guitarist that was attempting to induce continental drift with his tone... It never failed to compete, often effortlessly, and was frequently complimented for its clarity and punch in rehearsals and gigs. If I ever go back to playing live it'll be with a BT3 and some monstrous power amp fronted by a Quad Cortex.

I bought an ACG Krell without seeing it, as it hadn't been built when I ordered it. I had played a Krell and other ACGs however, so I knew what was coming. I guess that's true of many premium brands. I'd buy a Wal series 2 5er on pictures alone if the price was right.

Yay us! Tis a fine place, this.

Many of the greatest bands had an intrinsic tension if not outright hostility at their core, any group of creative and intelligent people will inevitably clash, the trick is in managing and to some extent, coping with the fallout of the inevitable blow-ups. It's partly what makes those bands great. Bit like a marriage I guess. We can't all be Rush, besties for 50 years...

Nowhere near as many as SOME people.... Starting in 1980, current basses in Bold No-name sunburst P bass copy - bunged a DiMarzio pup into it and didn't know any better... Sold to get: Aria Pro 2 natural P Bass copy - lovely thing too, got wrecked when I lent it to a production of OI! for England... Sold privately. Shaftesbury Rickenbacker 4001 copy sunburst - a pretty decent bass, sold on to finance the fretless. Westone Thunder 1A fretless in Black (weren't they all?) My first fretless, not a bad start. Sold privately. EKO acoustic fretless - awful thing P/ex for the Wal. Kramer XB5 The Duke - Steinberger looking thing, bought for a specific project, served it's time, sold on. Charvel PJ pointy headstock black thing... No, me neither. P/ex for the Wal. JD Roady Supernatural in that trans red finish - lovely bass, didn't like it. Sold privately. Wal Pro1 natural with fretted and fretless neck - Usually in fretless mode, a thing of beauty, sold when I went to 5 strings, paid £300 for it... sold for £500, thought I'd done well. Muppet. Warwick Thumb NT 5 string - 1987, One of the first 5ers, with the integrated Schaller bridge and EMG pups, my main bass for 20 odd years, sold when I thought I'd given up bass. Fender Geddy Lee Jazz - MIJ I think, lovely bass, not enough strings, sold on BC. Squire Jazz fretless, the pretend Jaco one - Put Wizzard 64s in and it was a beaut, still not enough strings. Sold on BC. OLP Tony Levin SR5 5 string - dropped Bartolini pups and pre into it and it was just about the best bang for the buck bass I've ever own, brilliant. Sold on BC. Frankenstein SR5 Fretless - OLP body, MM neck, Bartolini Pups and pre. A genuinely great mongrel, my main stage fretless. MusicMan Bongo 5 string Stealth black - great bass, a 50th birthday pressie, traded on BC for the Thumb below. MusicMan SR5 20th Anniversary - The best SR5. ACG Krell 5 sting fretless - Built to my spec by the talented and infinitely patient Mr Cringean. A work of art. Warwick Thumb NT 5 string - replaces the 87 I shouldn't have sold, MEC pups and 18v MEC pre, an absolute beast. More than I expected, less than I'd hoped.

After many years of great service, I'm retiring my Universal Audio Apollo A16 interface, It's been the central sound of my studio and really hasn't put a foot wrong, it handles all the inputs obvs, but more importantly drives the Phoenix Audio N16 summing mixer that keeps things tasty in a largely digital world. I am replacing it with (drum roll)... The latest version of the same damn thing. Welcome the X16, same configuration, upgraded AD/DA, upgraded DSP, different colour. It also allows me to run Sonarworks room correction in the hardware, a proper fire and forget solution. I'll have some downtime over christmas and it's a good opportunity to tidy some cabling up too.

Fair brought a tear to the eye...