flyfisher

[quote name='spinynorman' timestamp='1333551087' post='1603420'] I can't see how they justify the extra cost though. If postman pat can get his van along the A96, you'd think UPS could. [/quote] As I understand it, postman pat is legally obliged to provide a 'universal service', I.e. a fixed cost regardless of destination within the UK. Couriers are not so restricted so can charge what they like. Possibly one of the reasons RM is having so many problems; private companies can cream off the high density, profitable jobs and ignore, or charge through the nose, for the out-in-the-sticks jobs. Hardly a level playing field is it?

It's interesting to read comments about how boring it is to churn out Mustang Sally for the umpteenth time. Easy to understand, of course, but I wonder if this is the sort of thing that differentiates the true pro muso from the amateurs. I don't mean this as a criticism but I've often wondered how the top bands can psyche themselves up to play pretty much the same set for months on end when touring. Why isn't Keef, for example, completely sick of playing all those 'corny' Stones songs by now? Perhaps that's why there are so many drugs in the music scene - to compensate for the basic monotony of the 'job' ?

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1333541707' post='1603182'] Everything is a compromise to one degree or another; this house, my car, the jobs I've done and some of the bands I've played in. That's life. [/quote] Agreed, though I'd differentiate between short term compromises and long term ones. I lived in some sh1tty places as a student but it was OK because I knew it wouldn't last long. The shorter the timescale, the more acceptable it is to compromise, but while compromising you should be making plans to get closer to what you really want.

I've bought quite a bit of stuff here but not a bass. Personally I think I'd want to handle something as potentially distinctive as a bass before committing to it, especially as it's unlikely it could be returned to the seller. But that's just a personal thing. For all the other gear, I've tried to collect in person and pay cash - which gives the added benefit of meeting some fellow BCers - but it hasn't always been possible. In those cases I've paid by bank transfer and have never had any problems with things arriving safely. I'd be wary of buying from a new member who immediately posts stuff for sale but my experience of the BC marketplace has been totally positive.

[quote name='silddx' timestamp='1333539815' post='1603125'] I don't understand the point of this thread. Bands have done corporate gigs for aeons. Even Bach had a corporate gig really. [/quote] Quite right. Loads of great artists relied almost entirely on rich patrons to fund their work.

What a load of tosh. I suspect that those who moan about 'artistic integrity' have either failed to be successful in selling their music or who are already financially independent - perhaps by selling a shedload of records! If someone doesn't want to do a 'corporate' gig then they don't have to do they? As for the idea that the web allows bands to bypass the big, bad corporates well, perhaps, but in practice you'll have even less control over what gets done with your music and who listens to it. How would you feel if your next album becomes really popular with, say, the BNP? or the KKK? What are you going to do about that? Surely real artists just create their stuff and put it out there in whatever way they can? I suppose there might be some bands with so much 'integrity' that they never leave their bedrooms but who will ever know?

The basic problem is how to characterise a music waveform. Because it is very complex and entirely dependent on the type of music being played, it's very difficult to determine the average power. At a given amplifier volume setting, two different pieces of music will deliver two different amounts of power. From a speaker's perspective, some power is used to move the cone but most will just heat up the voice-coil. The more power sent to the speaker, the hotter it will get until - at some point - the voice-coil will burn out. To help us match speakers to amps, the industry uses 'RMS' to specify power capabilities. It may not be an exact science but it's a good guideline. In general, if the speaker rating is higher than the amp rating then things should always be OK. But like most guidelines, the 'rules' can be safely broken if you understand the implications. The golden rule seems to be that if it sounds good then it is good, but a distorted/farty sound is really a cry for help.

[quote name='Hobbayne' timestamp='1333148020' post='1598266'] But Peter Green had Jeremy Spencer and Danny Kirwan, the thread says single guitarist and L B does it all by himself. [/quote] Yes, fair point. I was really just mourning the loss of the 'real' Fleetwood Mac.

[quote name='Gareth Hughes' timestamp='1333180991' post='1598389'] Well at least he's going about it the right way - starting a band with the bass player first!!! [/quote] . . . Or because it's the easiest instrument to play ?

What a travesty. They should have had the decency to change their name when they went all west coast AOR. Peter Green would be turning in his grave if he hadn't come back from the dead.

EC in Cream

Hank Marvin in The Shadows. Not exactly my thing but pretty dominant and original in its time. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n3DqWmKkO0

When I've played outside I've found that it was the high end that needed more than usual attention. We did have a PA but I didn't play through it, though we mic'd the kick drum. During the sound check bass volume was fine (Ashdown Mag300 and two 210 cabs) but the cymbals were getting lost. So we hung a couple mics over the drum kit, put them through the PA and it made a huge difference to the mix.

Blimey - that's a result out of the blue. Great story. Are you going to keep it now?

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1332937650' post='1595085'] I have a very simplistic approach to it. The drummer is there to keep time, the band is there to play the tune. My job is to keep the band glued to the drummer - If there was such a thing as a UN Timekeeping Force then that'd be me. [/quote] Where's that 'like' button when you need it . . . . ?

[quote name='essexbasscat' timestamp='1332597884' post='1590495'] We were rehearsing 'Getting Better' by the Beatles this week. Lyrics; - "I used to be cruel to my woman I beat her and kept her apart from the things that she loved. Man I was mean but I'm changing my scene and I'm doing the best that I can" It was a different world then. [/quote] . . . . the world of Dennis Waterman perhaps?

I Saw Her Standing There?

Those 'two-part' glues can be very strong in themselves but rely on their 'stickiness' to hold stuff together. If the materials to be glued are slightly unclean or naturally 'slippery' then even the strongest glue won't hold things together. Probably the best solution is a glue that effectively 'welds' the plastic together, as BRANCINI described, but the trick is to find the right solvent for the type of plastic. A quick and cheap thing to try would be plastic model glue. Failing that, reinforcement of the entire piece seems a good idea, as icastle described above.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1332538662' post='1589906'] I'm still to be convinced that authenticity is at all important to the average person who spends money on music. [/quote] I'd say it's important to them, but that the judge for that authenticity is themselves. Thus, I'm sure Madonna fans consider her to be the 'real deal' and as authentic as it comes, which is undoubtedly important to them as they give her their money. On the other hand, there will be legions of other people who 'see through' her various manifestations as just cheap publicity-seeking nonsense and regard her as completely 'fake'. Where are the objective criteria by which to determine which group of people are correct in their assessment of her authenticity?

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1332531839' post='1589791'] No, we don't agree, but that's life. [/quote] Ah, I obviously misunderstood then. OK, so you say: [i]However, if you’re wanting one simple empirical criterion there isn’t one, nor a list of empirical criteria to tick off. It doesn’t work like that. Value (or worth) judgment is a skill that, like any other skill, is learned and needs to be practised. People may have more or less natural ability but it’s learned from teachers, from role models, and through practice; but that doesn’t stop there being difficult and disputable judgments.[/i] How can anyone learn a "value judging skill" if there is no empirical criteria to determine how accurate their judgements are? Thus, pupil A might learn to judge the worthiness of music from one set of teachers and role models and pupil B may learn from a completely different set of teachers and role models. Without empirical criteria as a basis for such judgements, isn't it likely that pupils A & B would "learn" to judge the worthiness of music in completely different ways? Surely, unless the worthiness/unworthiness of music can be strictly defined then it must, by definition, be a subjective judgement.

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1332523060' post='1589630'] I could equally ask you 'equally worthy by what criteria?'. However, if you’re wanting one simple empirical criterion there isn’t one, nor a list of empirical criteria to tick off. It doesn’t work like that. Value (or worth) judgment is a skill that, like any other skill, is learned and needs to be practised. People may have more or less natural ability but it’s learned from teachers, from role models, and through practice; but that doesn’t stop there being difficult and disputable judgments. For example, whether [i]Sgt Pepper[/i] is more worthy or not than [i]Revolver[/i] is a difficult one, but whether [i]Revolver[/i] is more worthy than the Rollers’ second album [i]Once Upon A Star[/i] is a much easier judgement. Whether Beethoven is more worthy than Britney Spears is easy, but whether Beethoven is more worthy than Mozart is a much more difficult judgment. So, by what criteria do you judge Beethoven and Britney Spears or The Beatles and The Bay City Rollers to be equally worthy? Or are you saying that there are no criteria for such a judgement? In which case the claim that they are equally worthy is without foundation. So - just as you ask me ‘more worthy by what criteria? - I ask you ‘equally worthy by what criteria?’ [/quote] I think we agree. Such judgements [u]are[/u] subjective.

Of course, the PSU in question could have failed for all sorts of reasons other than and extra 10 volts at the input.

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1332377028' post='1587600'] This is where we really differ because I don't accept that all music is equally worthy. For example, Beethoven actually is more worthy than Britney Spears; The Beatles actually are more worthy than The Bay City Rollers. [/quote] More worthy by what criteria?

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1332359065' post='1587336'] I don't agree with the now very common view that there is no inherent worthiness in music or indeed in other art (or entertainment) forms and, following from this, that there are no standards. I am well aware that this is an unfashionable point of view but, put simply, I don't accept that 'it's all subjective'. [b]The claim that 'it's all subjective' seems to me itself to be a subjective claim and so there's no good reason for me to pay any attention to it. [/b]However, if the 'it's all subjective' claim is intended as an objective claim then it is inconsistent and incoherent and there is still no good reason to pay any attention to it. [/quote] You're right, of course, that my opinion is subjective, but so is your choice not to pay attention to it. But doesn't that just reinforce the subjectivity of it all? My point about there being no inherent worthiness in music wasn't meant to denigrate music, far from it, but rather to suggest that all music is equally worthy. Yes, individuals will be able to give all sorts of reasons why one piece of music is better than another, but I'd bet there won't be a universal consensus - which is what we'd expect from such a subjectivity subject.

[quote name='markstuk' timestamp='1332174992' post='1584304'] Seems a little sensitive as the UK's nominal 230V is legally allowed to swing from 216 to 253 V and I would hope any device supplied in the UK would not expire through 10V overload over a nominal 230 or 240 V... [/quote] Me too. Sounds like poor design to me. Mains power is notoriously subject to variations and a good power supply designer can easily cope with such things.