flyfisher

[quote name='ednaplate' post='952060' date='Sep 10 2010, 05:40 PM']How on earth can it be legal or ethical to knowingly import what are so obviously copy instruments?[/quote] Well, aside from the complexity on different cultures having different ethics, the basic answer to the question must be 'it isn't'. But, unfortunately, people break laws. Simple as that. T'was always so and t'will always be.

I'm guessing here, but I can't see it being an "output power" issue - that's not (normally) the purpose of a pre-amplifier. I've always assumed it makes it easier to provide positive and negative voltage rails to the preamp circuitry, which allows the output signal to sit at 0volts and therefore not require a dc blocking capacitor. In this configuration, the batteries are connected as -9 , 0 , +9. There are other ways of achieving +/- voltage rails from a single +V source, but it makes things more complicated and might introduce unwanted noise into the output signal. Could be wrong though.

I understand why a hand-wired or even hand-soldered amp will be expensive but that extra money is obviously going towards the production cost - it will have little or nothing to do with the actual functional 'quality' of the amp. That's a function of the actual circuit design, not the production method. I've always though it odd that "handmade" is generally regarded as "the best" when, in practice, it's a very bad way of ensuring repeatable quality and high tolerances in assembly.

I've often wondered why so-called 'top-end' gear is so highly priced. Do they really use more and/or highly priced components or is the high price just a reflection of the low production volumes? Or, more controversially perhaps, are they just adding sky-high margins because they can get away with it?

I can understand the annoyance of people not being entirely accurate in ads, but does anyone really buy gear based purely on an advert? Surely people already have in mind the stuff they want to acquire, based on detailed experience or having already read-up on things, so they already know pretty much all about the item in question. Or maybe not?

Indeed. Why would a screened cable 'impact on the frequencies' of a speaker signal but not on those of a guitar, mic or any other signal? Screening on lengths of cable used by typical bands will have no practical impact on audio frequencies.

What? Without even [u]one[/u] bum note? Er, leave it with me and I'll let you know . . . . .

The good thing about a passive bass is that you can't really break anything by experimenting (assuming you're OK with soldering and don't cook the components!). But, as hoiho has pointed out, the circuitry in question is just a fairly crude low-pass filter and changing the components will really only change the frequency where the roll-off begins. If you really want to experiment, you could try multi-pole filters to roll things off more quickly, but if you really get into detailed frquency shaping then you might as well keep the bass output as flat as possible and feed the signal into a graphic equaliser to really play around with the tone.

I'm gonna get a Tee-shirt printed with "I've been admonished by Tony Goggle". What an honour! Also, I should have known you'd need two heads to play that bass in his avatar.

[quote name='Tony Goggle' post='942117' date='Sep 1 2010, 02:18 PM']I used 13 SVT heads through 27 8x10 cabs back on the 'Electric Sandwich Bifurcation' tour. The biggest sound ever heard in bass history!!!! FACT[/quote] I hesitate, nay tremble at the thought, to contradict the legend that is Tony Goggle, but I've always thought Disaster Area was the loudest rock band the galaxy has ever heard, although I don't believe the bass player's rig has ever been adequately documented. [url="http://hitchhikers.wikia.com/wiki/Disaster_Area"]http://hitchhikers.wikia.com/wiki/Disaster_Area[/url]

Depends. Paid rehearsal studios for 'full on' rehearsals. A band members house when working on new material, usually without drums.

You might well find that the wire to the internal speaker connects to the main board with a connector of some sort. If so, you can slide out the amp for access, unclip the connector and then fully remove the amp. The farnell part is sort of the sort of thing you need, but your amp part has an integral fuse so get a similar replacement. I'd be wary of spade connectors because there's a lot of vibration in a bass combo - which is no doubt why the Laney photo shows soldered wires to spade connectors. Screw-terminals are less common but even then I would use crimp-eyelets on the end of each wire and shakeproof washers. Perhaps even some threadlock as well. Again, think of vibration. Good luck!

Nah, with the exception of the Ashdown LB, those are all double entendres that Grandma could be forgiven for in the music shop. Let's cut to the chase . . .

As and when in my case, which happens to mean tonight with one band and tomorrow with the other in final preparation for gigs over the Bank Holiday weekend.

Yep, Jennifer is right, it's a general electrical repair, nothing particularly specialist about it, assuming it's easy enough to get inside the amp. Local TV repair shop, or similar, should be able to do it. Otherwise, I'm sure your local music shop will know of someone. Soldering is a handy skill though and can save a fair bit in terms of basic repairs and making up leads.

The Beatles - Taxman

[quote name='Rumple' post='933189' date='Aug 22 2010, 10:34 PM']Sorry you did mention RS and I must have missed them when I first had a look, they are in their 'extended range' section.[/quote] No need to apologise, I only posted in jest, hence the Actually, I'd agree that component catalogues are not the easiest things to navigate. They have so many items that it can be difficult to find what you want but, as you've seen, they can be worth the effort. Anyway, you're now sorted and that's the main thing.

[quote name='Rumple' post='932777' date='Aug 22 2010, 02:13 PM']Well I went all over the web today and find these in the US, I did a search on the part number and found them hidden away on the RS site! £10 for delivery bumped the price up but cheaper then the Sasowsky ones.[/quote] Ahem, what took you so long? [quote name='flyfisher' post='918976' date='Aug 8 2010, 07:35 PM']Electronic component suppliers are a good place to start looking. [b]RS Components[/b] Farnell CPC[/quote] Seriously though, glad to hear you found something suitable, and thanks for the update.

[quote name='chris_b' post='931991' date='Aug 21 2010, 04:27 PM']Charlie Watts' comment to David Hepworth sums it all up: 25 years of the Rolling Stones, 5 years playing and 20 years hanging around.[/quote] Yes, but didn't Charlie just regard the Stones as his 'day job' that paid for his 'big band' passion? Not a bad life is it?

[quote name='Al Heeley' post='931077' date='Aug 20 2010, 04:13 PM']Yep deffo ohms on left side of graph,[/quote] Doh! The image isn't very clear to me and I was reading it as 100m to 500m OK, ohms vs frequency makes much more sense . . . but what's the right-hand scale?

[quote name='Doddy' post='930171' date='Aug 19 2010, 06:52 PM']I'd really try to avoid the whole 'band PA' thing. I don't believe it's a good way of handling things,as often it is likely to cause arguments down the line. If you must all go in on a rig,why not split it up, ie. one of you buys and owns the lights,another buys and owns the monitors etc. At least then,everyone knows who owns what and it makes the inevitable split easier.[/quote] Yep, that's my feeling as well. I suppose it could open up an argument about how to share out any band income in terms of the individual member's capital investments, but I think we're a long way from having to worry about that.

[quote name='JTUK' post='929927' date='Aug 19 2010, 03:32 PM']Why would you play with a vocalist without his own P.A.?[/quote] Fair point, but the band already had a vocals-only PA when I joined, which they had paid for among themselves. I'm not really sure of the arrangement between them. So I'm thiinking more about any new gear we buy as a band from now on. Personally, I think I'd prefer to buy whole items myself and retain ownership whether I leave or get sacked. Seems like a better investment that way. But some interesting comments nevertheless.

Can anyone understand that graph? Specifically, the left-hand scale of, presumably, cable length. And, in a typical band situation, what's the point of a scale showing characteristics of cables between 100m and 500m in length?

Interesting point, I hadn't thought about the vocalist angle. But what if a 'vocal-only' PA systems needs to be upgraded to include a sub-woofer, remote mixer, stage monitors for all, snakes and other bits?

I guess we all have our own bass gear and wouldn't want it any other way, but what about general band equipment such as PA systems and lighting? I'm thinking in the context of a 'mates' band who gig for fun and get paid with beer and food, so there's no income to fund new gear. If all the band members chip in to buy a PA system, what happens when one of those band members leave (or is sacked?). Just wondering how other bands manage this sort of thing.