Phil Starr

The Yamaha Stagepas series are worth a look. Several of the stick systems have a mixer built in too, the RCF Jmix8 for example. If you are looking to do this on the cheap a few of the lower cost speakers offer a couple of mixable inputs. Usually mic and instrument plus Bluetooth for your between sets playlist

My First Bass Amp These sound excellent and with one proviso they are bombproof. The problem with any amp this age are the electrolytic capacitors particularly the big ones in the power supply. Over time they start to break down and can leak a goo-ey mess onto the circuit boards. The good news is that replacing them is fairly simple and cheap, but not a DIY job as they handle dangerous voltages. If you like the amp then it's worth doing

Just browsing Facebook Marketplace and there are five of these up for sale. £280-400. These are great live mixers now discontinued. 18 channels 8 mic pre’s 6 aux outs. Stereo recording only. The strong points are arguably the best software yet for small band live mixing. Simple, well structured workflow. Nothing hard to find and never more than two clicks away when you need it. Just perfect w hen mixing from stage. Dual band and rock solid router. Best of all all the faders adjustable by 1db just by tapping on them. All the eq and fx you’re ever likely to need. Downsides are lack of flexibility in routing. No RTA. Only 8 mic channels (limiting you to a 3 mic drum mix) and only stereo recording so this is a live mixer no good in a studio. If you are looking to go digital but are worried about losing control of physical faders these are about as good as it gets. I’m tempted to buy one as backup.

It’s really simple, do you fancy doing it? Context is all however. If a close friend who needed a favour asked or it was a chance to play with people I liked or I was at a loose end and it didn’t look like a lot of effort I’d give it a go,and have done. As an occasional band leader and organiser of jam sessions I’ve often asked friends to do me favours. I’ve also stepped up to the mark for a friend who formed a band from the best people at my jam session. They wanted to do rock classics, not really my thing but we’ve all played them. I was perfectly happy to sit in until they found a permanent bassist. I’d have gigged too but they found someone else before we got that far. It cost me nothing really, rehearsal was on an evening I Was free and it was more fun than practice at home. It’s tough getting a band together. You need momentum so if asking a friend makes the rehearsal work I’ll ask. Having a dep who knows the set can benefit both sides. I’m always flattered to be asked. If I can’t do it or aren’t interested no one takes offence.

I've never owned on of those Peavey's but I've played through a friends. I thought it was pretty wonderful and looked out for a used one for a while. I'm really keen on a graphic particularly when playing in an acoustically difficult space.

So are you just using the Elf as a pre amp then or is it running it's own speaker? The thing is that the weight in the Peavey comes mainly from the power supply with the case probably second, just removing the pre-amp would only save a few hundred grams and a new case would save not much more. The case probably contributes to cooling too so I'm not sure this is a great idea. Other options would be to sell the Peavey and buy a PA amp with the money, class D if you really want lightweight. Alternatively the Peavey has just about the most flexible eq out there. As it happens we measured the response of the Elf, it's a smiley face eq with the midrange suckout centred on 400Hz and with a bit of drive at high levels plus some HPF. you ought to be able to dial up something similar with the Peavey.

Yeah this is true and I did think of including that, I even wondered if you would comment. I've a tendency to long-windedness in some of my posts which I'm trying to curb, usually unsuccessfully Sadly a lot of amps aren't built with the best of components and the fact that so many musicians know about bridging the fx loop and/or cleaning up the socket suggests that a lot of cheap components are sitting in this critical position.

I don't know to be honest. It just seemed remarkable to me that you would provide not one but two XLR line outs without allowing you to continue monitoring your playing. The Boss website was quite unhelpful but my interface for instance allows me to monitor either what I'm inputing or what is looping back from the computer. I wondered if those switches would allow you to do the same. Worth a try anyway?

Have you tried the 'Loop Back' switches on the back of the amp? There appears to be one for the digital output and one for the line outs.

Here you go, this is a 'typical' switching jack socket. You can see two silver connectors on the left hand side dangling below the socket and two more on the far side. If you look carefully the ones on the far sidereach across and lightly touch the ones on the near/left side. You shoulkd just be able to make out the little dimple where they touch. The left side is the input side and the right side is the output side to the power amp, that light touch is enough to complete the circuit and connect the ttwo. When you push a jack plug in these contacts are lifted and the input side is disconnected. Pull the plug out and the contacts spring back down and re-connect the pre amp to the power amp. The problem is that this isn't a great design. The contacts aren't spring steel and constant re-use weakens the spring. When the contacts are lifted dirt can get into the gap and block the contacts and as everything is open to the air the contacts themselves can corrode and the oxidised metal blocks the connection. The 'correct' fix is to replace the socket. A new socket is going to last 10-20years probably. However if you can get to the innards of the amp you can clean the connectors. Some rubbing alcohol will clean out any dirt and corrosion can be removed by a very fine abrasive or even scraping with a sharp blade but this will be temporary as the abrasive/blade will scratch the connector and it will corrode again but more quickly. Switch cleaner like DEoxit or Servisol in the UK will help but obviously you need to get it between the contacts ideally, just spraying it through the jack from the outside is going to cover the circuit board it is probably soldered to. Not all components respond well to this you can try spraying the contact cleaner onto a cotton bud and try rubbing it against the contacts which you can usually see from the outside. If you get enough in and wiggle the contacts with a jack plug you can get temporary relief. A new socket gives you a nice strong spring and clean contacts. The socket costs £2 and takes 5 mins to fit but you'll need to pay a set fee for anyone to open up and disassemble your amp to get to it. If the socket has failed then using a jumper lead completes the connection so the switch doesn't need to work. If it is just dirt on the connector then wiggling a jack in and out will clear it for a while.

I started playing bass at 55. You are just 5 months older than I am. Never give up It's horrible being between bands. Given the dates a lot of this is down to Covid. You missed out because of lost years and even now the band scene hasn't completely recovered. I'm getting more bookings for my duo and fewer for my band just because money is still tight. This might also be a Bridgnorth thing, it's easier to have a thriving music community in bigger towns. The internet sites are flaky at best. It's so easy to post an ad and costs nothing that all the fantasists and self deluded are there as well as genuine players. The problem is that most musicians remotely our age still playing will be in gigging bands. If you are capable of learning a set of 30 songs in a few weeks those are the bands to go for and any band with gigs lined up is having to take it all seriously so look for that in ads. I avoid anything where someone is looking for more than one band member, it's better to join a functioning unit where the bassist has left than a complete start up band. From what I see you'd be a good addition to most covers bands. I'd be flexible about genre though few of us really get to play the music we love most. In a four piece band you'd be lucky to get 20% of the songs you would want. No point in asking if the singer can't sing it and no point gigging with a set the audience don't know or like. In fallow periods it's worth trying a change in genre. A lot of the fun in playing is down to the people and learning new things and you'll enjoy playing outside your comfort zone with good people more than playing music you like with people you wouldn't otherwise mix with. Being flexible opns up a lot of possibilities. Most of it though is about networking, open mics are good places to start meeting people especially if they do the odd jam but also go and see other local bands perform and try chatting with them in the break. Most local musicians know or get to know all the others over time so they may know someone looking for a bassist or remember the guy they spoke to at the gig who is looking...

On the subject of bracing: I eventually settled on a single horizontal brace placed centrally in the side panels. The vertical brace was too close to the port and placing it off centre didn't really add to damping the panel resonance. Placing the horizontal brace centrally shifted the resonance up an octave as you'd expect but on a simple tap test reduced the resonace considerably in volume. The cab sounded fine with no bracing too but the cross brace was a simple addition so I left it in

There has always been an element of that and there were usually a notice board of band members wanted

That's brilliant news Steve, I'll be more willing to go on shopping trips to Exeter then 😁

Better pic tomorrow but it's painted and working

I 'm thinking, or more probably hoping, that a new sort of music shop is starting to grow. Of all places Chard in Somerset has a new guitar and music shop, The Somerset Music Academy. They even have a few basses including a rather nice Highway One jazz bass at the moment. Do I need two? They do sell guitars and all sorts but also offer repairs and set ups and as the name implies guitar tuition. It's actually so successful that there is a waiting time for tuition and they are about to move to bigger premises. The guys that run it all went to school together and were the product of a terrific music department at the local school. Why funding for the art education is so important. With bigger towns like Exeter, Taunton and Yeovil losing long established music shops they are closing down faster than the pubs. I reckon this mixed model is going to be the one that succeeds. The teaching and repairs pay the bills and keep a regular turnover. The students also become customers and the business is also helping local bands and venues, not for profit but for love of music and this in turn creates an ecosystem in which we can all thrive. In the meantime people are driving from Exeter and the other towns to visit a proper music shop instead of my regular trips to Mansons. @skidder652003 we might be your nearest shop before long. https://www.somersetmusicacademy.co.uk/s/shop

Well spotted, the original cab which was cube shaped had no braces and that is what we have tested. It's a simple matter to cross brace the panels and I had some off-cuts which were exctly the same dimensions as the panels. The ones in the photograph are just a tight push fit and i will stick them in when I fit the speaker. I'll do a final write up of the build and discuss bracing and damping the cab there. If you are going ahead with the build before I reach that point then simple cross bracing like this is almost impossible to get 'wrong'

Snatched a few minutes to finish the cab build from the bass bash. A few minor faults caused by rushing things as I was talking but nothing a bit of filler won't sort . Hopefully it can be filled and painted this weekend.

My two pennyworth. I've been building and reapairing speakers for 50+ years and I've never seen one of those rivets broken, though they aren't very strong so it's no totally impossible. The acceleration/force needed to break it in transit would cause dameage elsewhere in the cab so the chances of this being genuine are really very small. If they were to corrode and weaken I'd expect some white powder around the break which looks fairly clean in the not very good photo, however if he has repaired it you can't examine the damage. If he had bought it new his repair would invalidate any warranty. FWIW I bought a Takamine guitar on fleabay. It was DOA with no output from the pre amp. I was assured it was working when it left. I asked permission before I investigated, without prejudice and the guy agreed. Turned out that the plastic jack sockets on the pre amp had crumbled. I got a quote for replacement and offered to do it myself for half the price of the quote. It's a difficult negotiation, he probably mistrusted me and I couldn't know if he even checked the guitar before it left, as an acoustic it was fine and more or less in tune so it had been played. If he's genuine and has repaired it then he's saved you a lot of hassle. You could offer him the return postage and thank him for making the repair. If he is after more than a token amount then he has altered your amp without your express permission and needs to return it at his cost with compensation from him for the bodged repair. Good luck, even if he is genuine people can be a bit weird in these situations

If your band are sponsored by Blackstar it would almost seem rude not to at least try their stuff. If you can get a tone you like out of it and it's a knock down price then why wouldn't you want to keep them happy. Any advice I gave about an FRFR solution was only about making it work, not recommending you go that route. I wondered when I was typing my answer why you wouldn't at least try the Blackstar gear. Why do you want an extension cab btw are you certain the Unity 500 won't be loud enough or is this about the look?

Technically if you want to keep the Darkglass sound without extra colouring you need an FRFR speaker. I'm not surprised the Headrush doesn't do it for bass: the same rules apply to PA speakers used for bass as apply to bass speakers as a whole. Most people aren't going to find a single 10" speaker 'enough' for every eventuality and you need a good quality 12 or something bigger ideally. For bass quality means a long voice coil to give you good excursion without distorting, high power handling and good control over cone movement at low frequencies. This means the bass driver will be correspondingly expensive and you won't get that in a speaker the price of the Headrush, though they are good value to be fair. At your price range you need to go for something like a used Yamaha, RCF or QSC 12" speaker to get that quality.

Have I got Snugs and Lugs the wrong way round

If weight alone is your issue it's hard to look past the Barefaced cabs and I do like the sound of the SC. However I've also owned an LFSys Monaco which is only a little heavier and it is a better sounding cab IMO. Nowadays I put bass through the PA and so my bass amp is only ever used for monitoring so I downsized to the 10" Monza. It's loud enough to match any drummer at rehearsal. Both are a lot lighter than the 20kg of your Bergs, better sounding than the BF cabs and come with a considerable cost saving.

I think you are going to struggle with that too. Snugs used to offer this service but have now stopped everything but custom tips. I was looking to get my IEM's remounted but this service ended during Covid. I think Lugs, based in Devon, do a fully enclosed casing but I can't imagine you will get a turn around in tht sort of timescale. How long have you had the custom tips? I'm getting very little of anything through my universal IEM's fitted with triple flange tips so I'd expect better from custom moulds. Ears change shape over time so it may be time for new moulds

In my case 'flat' meant measured flat. We'd use RTA which is what you are describing to set everything objectively flat. You can only do that by measuring and a lot of digital desks have that built in. If not you can do it with a reference mic and a laptop or one of the DBX/Behringer type equalisers. Without getting into semantics or the real practical issues of achieving a flat response from speakers flat is not really a subjective thing, it's a matter of measuring. It's easy to get carried away with tests like this and to take them too seriously but I'm a science teacher and I do try and control the variables and to give people all the information about variables I haven't controlled. In this case the speakers weren't all at the same height and were places next to each other so not all coming form the same position. As I've already said the sub with the 10's wasn't properly adjusted and was too loud compared with the tops. John @Chienmortbb has pointed out that the RCF745's were louder on the midrange at least. We did try to measure the sound levels initially but the room was filling up and we didn't use test tones so that was of marginal utility. One variable I completely let slip was a spectacular pratt-fall. I used a trolley to wheel the subs in and then lifted the 43kg subs onto the stage. In doing so I stepped back onto the trolley which shot away behind me and I fell and dropped the 43kg sub from shoulkder height onto my arm and shoulder. I have some spectacular bruises I think @scrumpymike was the only witness or I'd be a Tik Tok sensation 😂 It did mean I was a bit slow setting up. So controls at 12.00 is a fair test in one sense but leaves some of the room variables in. I also tried, and was only partially successful in getting the volume levels equal. it gave people the chance to listen for differences in the way each system presented bass,drums vocals and so on. Some of the differences though were due to the room, which we could have controlled better with more time and proper measuring gear. More careful positioning or the subs would have helped, from my position on the stage there was a lot of boom which must have been audible FOH In the end you can't take the conclusions too far but the people there will have a little bit more information to go on when buying PA. Even on the video differences weere obvious. All three systems would have been perfectly adequate for a band performing in what was a very decent sized village hall and all had advantages and shortcomings