Franticsmurf

On mine, there's a knurled knob on top of the bridge above the E string. (It's in the photos of the OPs XT2 above). With the detuner flipped up (i.e in detune mode) use the knob to tune the string to D. It should return to E when you flip the flap back.

And an ache in the pelvic region! 😃 I used to love their live versions of this. Back to the original topic - if I play a lower mid heavy bass solo, will that free me of fear and guilt and ultimately lead to a longer bass solo - with all the vicious circle implications that generates. 🤣

I can (and do) sing basic backing vocals but the bass lines tend to suffer and I try and modify them to keep them simple. As has been mentioned above, most punters listen to the vocals over the bass so where I am doing Bvs, it is those that get priority. I have taken a few lead vocals on songs but generally where either I know the song backwards or the bass part is simple and on the beat. I don't enjoy singing and I don't have a great lead vocal voice, so taking the lead vocals is a very rare occurrence. Which is probably a good thing for band and audience. 😃

I was in a band called 'Fragile Earth' and it came to a planned end with one gig left to do. So we formed a fun band to do it with ex-members guesting and called it Frantic Smurf. I've used the name across social media ever since. Some time later, I found one of those little Smurf toys playing a bass guitar - hence the photo. (I know, you thought it was me. Sorry to disappoint). 😃

I feel your cringe. About 10 years ago we were booked to play a function with the local mayor et al in attendance, supporting a well known local comedian. The venue was a large upmarket bar. Our singer/guitarist at the time was taking all the bookings and sorting the times but he failed to mention the dress code. Not being stupid, the drummer, other guitarist and I turned up all dressed smartly for such a gig. The singer arrived late and was dressed for a rock pub gig. The bar owner (who was the MC) had a go at him (as we had done when we saw him in his pub gear). We played the first half but it wasn't good and sometime during the break the singer had managed to further p*** off the MC. We were told to pack up and leave. The singer tried to bluff it out to us by claiming he was refusing to play but we'd seen enough to know the truth. Packing up was the worst bit as people were watching, well aware of what had happened. It started a run of gigs where the singer managed to get on the wrong side of the venue owners and our local gigs dried up. We survived for a while on agent bookings but the band no longer exists.

Hi Mark.

Hi Kevvo.

Mine too - I paid about the same as you for it in the mid 80s from one of the shops on Tottenham Court Road. I'll always remember it because as I was trying it out, a bloke tried to pay for something expensive with a dodgy credit card, got rumbled and made a dash for the door with a couple of sale assistants in pursuit. He didn't get away with the goods. I decided to pay cash. 😃

My band mates sometimes say that to me! 🤣

How about a headless bass? Not everyone's cup of tea but full scale and easy to transport if necessary?

I've never left a band over specific songs, but I did leave one because the set list hadn't changed for several years and wasn't likely to. 😃

It takes me ages to learn songs properly. I usually use crib notes in early rehearsals and wean myself off them by showtime, but it can take weeks. 😃

I don't think there's anything that I like listening to that I don't like playing. I became jaded with 'Comfortably Numb' (which I used to sing as well) and that's still one of my favourite Pink Floyd tracks but I haven't done that one for a while so I'd come to it refreshed, I think. From my days in a duo it was always the songs that we had to play as they were temporarily popular - 'Hey Baby', 'Alice' and 'Achey Breaky Heart' spring to mind. My heart sank when they appeared on the set list. In the bands I play with now, it's the likes of 'Bad Moon Rising', most of the slow Eagles songs, 'Help Me Rhonda' and 'Then I Kissed Her'. I'll give almost anything a go and with the aforementioned songs, if they're in the set for good reason then I'll play them. But I don't have to like it! 😃

That reminds me of my first band, in which I was the guitarist. I had a decent amp (A Peavey Bandit) but as we were doing more proggy stuff, I decided to experiment with stereo. I had a Yamaha FX500 half rack multi effects unit and reasoned that I could plug the lot into my Pioneer hifi amp and speakers, which were about 50w per side. Testing it at home at low volume, it sounded quite good. At rehearsal there was a moment of stereo echo and chorus bliss followed by many more moments of silence. Both speakers went at the same time and the hifi amp was never quite the same. 😃

Good luck!

My first studio experience was in the place we used to rehearse - a properly converted basement beneath a terraced house. The neighbours must have been deaf. We'd been rehearsing there for a few months and spoke to the owner about recording a 4 track demo. Next thing we knew, we were introduced to a guy called John (as a reminder, his mustache and beard were in the shape of a 'J') and his 8 track reel to reel machine. He set up the mics in no time and we played through 4 songs, overdubbed guitar solos and the main vocals in a three hour session. We had a very relaxed and laid back mixing session after which we had several cassette copies and the master tape. My mate, the drummer and also a graphic designer, created the cassette box covers and hand coloured 10, which we sold in a local record shop. Years later, seeking a new singer for a version of that band, we found the guy we took on had bought a copy of the cassette. Alas, we'd dropped all four songs by then.

My dad had a couple of old reel to reel tape recorders and I used those in a similar way to your cassette recorder pair. 'Drums' were whatever sounded right, often empty plastic food containers. A large rubber band stretched over an open container for a vaguely bass-like sound. Like you, noise played an integral part in my mix. 😃

Hi Amnesiak. Welcome to the site from a fellow ex-guitarist who heard the word and saw the light some years ago. 😃

Hi Daniel, welcome to the site. Best regards from sunny South Wales! 😃

Hi Jon, welcome to the site. I have a couple of Harley Benton basses and can certainly recommend the brand for value for money. If you're not quite sure if you're going to stick with the bass, I'd suggest a HB from Thomann. If you stick with it, you can upgrade and keep the HB as a spare/back-up.

We were booked to play a caravan park. Turned up a bit early to an empty backstage area and what sounded like a school full of kids beyond the curtains out front. We set up behind the curtains and waited for someone to tell us when we were due on. The compare eventually turned up with about 30 minutes to go, a young chap completely hung over following an all night party the night before. He was struggling to get into his bear outfit to entertain the kids while trying to talk to them using a radio mic from back stage. He went out and wound them up to fever pitch before announcing us. We played the first fifteen minutes to about 50 3-5 year olds. Another holiday park gig and this time a full house of adults. The singer decided just before we went on that he would start the set with a solo rendition of Knocking on Heaven's Door (see my previous post - we checked to make sure it wasn't a wake this time) and the drummer and I were to come on for 2nd verse. We tried to dissuade him but he knew best. He went on, started the song and we very soon realised he was singing the verse much too quickly. We could tell the chorus was going to be even faster and we decided to let him have the whole car crash song to himself. We watched, giggling, as he realised his error, then joined him for the second song.

That's quite a good mix of songs. I'm in a band that has the standard 2 guitars, bass, drums and keys line up along with three Ukes, a banjo, a sax, trumpet and percussion. We have a similarly varied mix that includes Sloop John B, Then I Kissed Her, Ooh La La, Drift Away, Your Love, Under the Boardwalk and Midnight Hour alongside more rocky songs like Heroes, Dancing in the Dark, Treat Her Right, Have a Nice Day, the Sheryl Crow version of Sweet Child of Mine and Summer of 69. With that band, the ones that get the best reaction (dancing and/or audience participation) are Proud Mary, Dakota, Help Me Rhonda, 500 Miles and Hey Jude. With a previous band doing pub standards we found Mustang Sally would get the ladies up and dancing, Runaround Sue always got a huge positive reaction and Unchain My Heart usually hit the mark. We used to run Dakota into Sex on Fire as a mash-up, and that always got the dance floor bouncing (literally in some cases). Classic rock n roll tunes brought up to date were a surefire winner to wake up the audience at the start of the second half (Twist and Shout into Do You Love Me was popular). It was rare not to be asked to play an Eagles song during a gig. We would do Take it Easy and if we were running out of songs, Lying Eyes (which does go on a bit 😃).

I have mentioned this elsewhere but it fits here too - we did a last minute agent-booked gig in a pub of very well dressed but subdued punters. Ended the first set with our standard 'Knocking on Heaven's Door' to absolute silence. It was a wake.

It could still be latency, as the sounds are coming from, and going back into the software regardless of how you monitor. As has been said above, it's how it sounds, not how it looks, that matters. I find playing to a click quite difficult and in my own recordings I rarely do it.

I used to be in a band that gigged regularly but rarely rehearsed. To be fair, because we were gigging 1 or 2 times a week, there was no need to rehearse the existing set but bringing new material in was difficult. The singer/guitarist didn't want to rehearse and liked to boast that he could 'wing it' with any song. Of course, he couldn't and the result was mostly awful hence 'I used to be in a band... '. The drummer and lead guitarist left with me. I'm now in two bands. The Hulla rehearses fairly regularly; it's a 13 piece and more than half the band don't or can't practice other than during rehearsals. It works because the band is very relaxed and we're all in it for the fun and social element as much as the music. We get about 10 gigs a year and they're usually big ones, with all proceeds going to a nominated charity. As things stand we have 5 fixed bookings for this year and that gives me the motivation to rehearse. We are regularly adding new songs to the set so there is plenty to do when we get together. I joined another band last year and we've had about 5 rehearsals but there's very little talk of gigging and I'm beginning to wonder if the enthusiasm is really there. The set list if straight forward and all we're really doing is getting the beginnings and endings right. I enjoy playing live and that's the main reason I play in bands. Rehearsals and practice are fine if there's some point to it. Without the goal of a gig (and ideally a deadline) I find it hard to be enthusiastic enough to put in the effort that a proper rehearsal (and my bandmates) deserve. I don't think the OP is being picky. We all play for our own reasons. What works for me might not work for you and if you're not happy, you won't enjoy the experience and everyone will suffer. Chat to the rest of the band and see if there are others in the line up that feel the same. Maybe it's just nerves or a lack of confidence? Maybe they don't know how to go about getting gigs?