Rich

Probably the best live sound I've ever had (and one of the best overall sounds for us as a band) was engineered by our very own joegarcia. It takes a bassist...

G55+rackmount incoming from Anderton's! I've had several different wirelesses over the years, mainly Trantec (S4.5 is very good) but also an old AKG which was nice and an Ashdown Freebass which was unprintably bad. Getting back into gigging seriously now after something of a layoff and have decided to treat myself.

[quote name='bigjohn' timestamp='1442753088' post='2869202'] So [s]much nonsense[/s][b] many opinions[/b] in this thread. [/quote] Fixed

Sire V7. Everything a Fender Jazz 5 should be and much more, and for stupid money. [quote name='Marvin' timestamp='1442735794' post='2869013'] There's nothing at all wrong with Fenders IMO apart from the price... I cannot see how a Std Fender Jazz is nearly twice the price of a Sire. If I were looking to spend £700-1000 on a bass, my first thought would be a Maruszczyk not a Fender. [/quote] Agreed.

[quote name='GrammeFriday' timestamp='1442590028' post='2868073'] Pah! Nowadays it’s all gone health and safety mad. Back in the good old days we had proper trip hazards all over the stage. Here’s me just about to fall over in 1985: [url="http://s1333.photobucket.com/user/grammefriday/media/GF%201985-2015/1985_zpsee0k5dwe.jpg.html"][/url] [/quote] I love the irony of there being two perilously placed liquid containers poised directly above the high voltage warning sticker

I just wanted to share the full horror of the original

Seventies novelty hit [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YK3ZP6frAMc"]Popcorn[/url] was re-recorded some years ago in an advertising tie-up, by a band calling themselves I Can't Believe It's Hot Butter.

[quote name='spencer.b' timestamp='1442556833' post='2867700'] We're playing in an open aircraft hanger and its FREEZING, arghh I hate playing in the cold [/quote] Well you sounded good to me jolly good show old chap!

On the other hand -- I'd rather be called 'solid' by someone who knew what they were talking about, than 'brilliant' by someone who didn't know a bass from a bagpipe.

[quote name='Lord Sausage' timestamp='1439923244' post='2846839'] I detest the word 'flashy' being used as some kind of negative. I hate that a bass player just has to be solid. I can't stand the phrase less is more like it's is an imperative and if you don't play like this you are a twat [/quote] Very true, yes, but there's a time and a place (and a song) for flash and whizzery. If a player throws his Marcus chops into a funk tune, great yes. If he's going to cover a Level 42 song, then all the old wockity-wockity is mandatory. If he starts bunging those licks into The Thrill Is Gone or Back In The USSR, he's going to look a bit of a knob and, yes, flashy as a negative.

[quote name='Kiwi' timestamp='1442519049' post='2867581'] Talk to Jon Shuker. He has maple in stock for necks that is as stiff as graphite and the dimensions can be whatever you want. He can skin the neck in graphite weave too if you want. [/quote] +1

[quote name='hubrad' timestamp='1442480606' post='2867214'] Ped uses Greggs? Shocking! [/quote] He's not proud. As would be instantly obvious, if you saw him.

I would concur with the 2x1x12 idea mentioned by various people above. If it was me, I'd also consider picking up a secondhand GK MB200 (other tiny amps are available) which would be handy for the amdram stuff, as it's so small you could slip it in the pocket of your gigbag. Keep the TC head for the rock.

Yes, it's cheap enough to make an experiment well worthwhile. If I was making mine up all over again, I'd run all the cables through the braid [i]before[/i] I soldered their plugs on...

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1442402864' post='2866645'] Aha, that's more like it. Presumably you can pull it lengthways to reduce the diameter when you put the cable ties on? [/quote] Yes, although that would tend to make the whole snake slightly less flexible if the braid is too tight.

You might think that all you need are a couple of basses and maybe a guitar. Possibly a keyboard too, maybe even a drum kit or a brass instrument. You might think you're got a pretty comprehensive setup there, that you've got all the bases covered. Wrong. Your collection is [i]nothing [/i]without a theremin built into a badger.

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1442393734' post='2866544'] Out of curiosity, has anyone else made up this sort of thing, and if so, have you used cable-ties or some other means of consolidating it? I have to take care with cable ties round the lead, they're a little hard on my delicate little hands if I'm not careful. [/quote] I used this stuff (pic). Search for "braided cable sleeving". It's dead easy to use, just one cable tie holding it all together at each end of the sleeve. Gives it all extra flexibility; if you use multiple cable-ties all the way along, you end up with it being completely unbendable.

[quote name='KevB' timestamp='1442334094' post='2866149'] It was, one of those 'contractual obligation' releases recorded on the tour to support the 'White Fourway Mains Splitter' album of the previous year. We won't see the likes of Black Spaghetti again. I think Tony Goggle might have been in one lineup. [/quote] Not only was he in the lineup, but IIRC he actually owns the rights to the name. Every time the other members have tried to reform and tour, they've ended up going out under the name "Unwhite Fettuccine". One year they tried "McGarry Mopp Honeyman Miller" but nobody knew who they were. They subsequently tried adding "play the music of Black Spaghetti" but it didn't fit on the posters. At gigs they are always plagued by crowd chants of "Where's Toneeeee? Where's Toneeeee?" (although rumour has it that the hecklers are members of the Goggle family). Frankly their performances are a sad sight these days.

[quote name='MiltyG565' timestamp='1442333003' post='2866133'] So you don't justify your purchases (to yourself) before you buy? That seems a bit strange. [/quote] If I purchase something, it's because there's a particular need that it's filling. Is that what you mean by justify? Surely if I need an acoustic guitar, and there a couple one of which is £500 and the other £2000, and I try them and on balance[i] I prefer [/i]the £2k one, and it's fulfilling that need, then it's 'justified', right? So when you say it's unjustifiable, what you mean is that you wouldn't be able to justify it to yourself? Yes? I'm just trying to establish exactly why you've specifically used 'unjustifiable'.

[quote name='MiltyG565' timestamp='1442330973' post='2866098'] There must be some confusion. I think it's unjustifiable. I don't know why me holding that opinion means that you need to somehow go to some shadowy minister of justifications and seek their approval.[/quote]There is no confusion. You could have said 'unnecessary' which would have been fine, but you specifically said it's 'unjustifiable'. My question is, a) [color=#000000]in what way is it unjustifiable, and b} in what way should I be trying to justify it? Come to that, c) why should I need to? [/color]

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1442329445' post='2866082'] I played my Marlin Sidewinder £120 new in 1985 for 6 years. I didn't have a clue how awful it was until I got a decent job and started looking at other basses. All the guys around me also had super cheap beaten up basses. It didn't matter. Our fans (school mates) flocked to see us. We were stars and famous (well to about 3000 people anyway ) However once we then tried 'better' basses we were sold on them and what we were playing were really not as good. Basses that had necks that stayed straight, machine heads that stayed in tune, shielding, jacks where the plugs weren't loose, bottom end, notes that had sustain etc. Things that we didn't know about. [/quote] I know [i]exactly[/i] what you mean. I started off with a '65 Hofner Artist and graduated from there to a Columbus Jazz copy (plywood body etc). I jumped straight from that to a Wal. You can imagine what a simply gigantic quantum leap in quality and playability and sheer class that was!

[color=#222222][quote name='MiltyG565' timestamp='1442053408' post='2864053'] I also don't think I've used the term unjustifiable indulgence. Indulgences are fine, IMO. [/quote][/color] [color=#222222]No, but you've used the term "unjustifiable". As in, “[i]I [/i][/color][color=#000000][i]think it's entirely unjustifiable today to spend £2,000 on an acoustic guitar[/i]”.[/color] [color=#000000]I'm intrigued to know: if I wanted to spend £2k on an acoustic guitar (I don't, but bear with me), in what way should I be able to justify it, and to whom would I need to do so?[/color]

[color=#222222]Cable nazi and proud [/color][list] [*][color=#222222]Wireless from bass to rack case receiver.[/color] [*][color=#222222]Shrouded cable ‘snake’ between rack and floor FX containing send, return and FX power supply leads (FX supply is case-mounted). Cables are fully labelled both ends.[/color] [*][color=#222222]With the exception of 12" patch leads, [u]all[/u] my cables have either Velcro or elastic cable ties.[/color] [*][color=#222222]The inside of my rack case is equally tidy -- cable runs are neat with cables tie-wrapped together and anchored, and all mains plugs are fully labelled with their function and fuse size.[/color] [*][color=#222222]If I buy new leads these days (a rare occurrence) I tend to get coloured cable -- faultfinding is impossible when you’ve got a stage full of black.[/color] [/list] [color=#222222]I cannot [i]stand[/i] untidy wiring/cabling.[/color]

[quote name='lojo' timestamp='1441950213' post='2863143'] I wonder if many bassists with endorsers actually prefer other basses , I saw a guy play recently who had a status endorsement , he played 90% of the gig on a fender jazz , only picked up the status for a few songs [/quote] That's crackers. I wouldn't even dream of endorsing a bass unless I liked it so much I could barely put it down.