Franticsmurf

Great photos.

Another +1 for the Digbeth. I can't compare it to the Tech 21 but for me there's plenty of options tone wise in the Digbeth. I play in two different bands; one needs a nice clean tone with a bit of top to cut through the massed ranks of stringed instruments, the other is a more traditional blues/rock band where the grit of the tube channel sits nicely in the mix. I love the Tilt option - I use it to fine tune the end result to the room.

....Clothes! Of course! So simple - explains all the feedback I've been getting at gigs recently. 🤣

Jazz.... yes... that's... exactly... what... I... do. Mostly experimental. Somewhat influenced by the randomist, atonal movement that I instigated and pioneered over the years. 😃

Works for me too. Well, in my head. I sometimes stop or go off beat too. Usually so that I can catch up with myself. But I always remember to smile and repeat it so it doesn't look like a mistake. 😃

That's a personal choice, or at least one for the band. I have yet to come across a song in a proposed set list that I find personally objectionable enough to refuse to play. Our singer changes a couple of words in one song to remove innuendo that he objects to, which is fine by me as it doesn't change the song and most in the audience wouldn't notice. I guess you have to take into account the context. In a pub full of stereotypes, you can get away with a lot more than, say, a wedding. If it's been played on the radio, the likelihood is it'll be fine for most venues. Common sense should prevail. We played a wake once (in our defence, we didn't know it was a wake at the time as it was a last minute agent booking) and ended the first half with 'Knocking on Heaven's Door'. 😃

For me there's a clear difference between liking or performing the music and supporting or promoting the views or lifestyles of those who created it. I would have no problem playing these songs if the set/band/client requested them. I accept that there may be a few who cannot make the distinction between the music and the person. But I believe that attitude is unreasonable unless the music itself condones, supports or promotes immoral behaviour or is so associated with it as to be impossible to separate from the behaviour itself. 'Tears in Heaven' is a great song. If we accept that it is tainted by association with Clapton, we must also accept that it is associated with loss, sadness and grieving and has meaning for a lot of people who have found some comfort through that song. Which side do we take?

Hi Daniel.

Usually in front of where I'm standing, at the foot of my mic stand. On cramped stages, anywhere I can reach with my right foot. That said, and after reading some of the comments above, I rarely switch effects mid song so it could go at the foot of my speaker. I have been thinking about a split board with 'always on' effects (pre-amp/DI and compressor) sat out of the way and the spot effects (phase, chorus, boost and tuner/mute) out front. But there would be a confusion of cables, and for some of the gigs I've played in the last 18 months, no room.

Not a special bass, but special to me as my first 'proper' bass with which I started getting decent gigs. A Hohner 'The Jack' headless, supposedly active but that wasn't working. I paid about £200 for it in the late 90s and sold it, many years later during a sabbatical from playing, for around £300.

I have this one, and played it in duo gigs - not a note of prog in sight 😃 . Here, my partner in crime is helping me cope with the weight. It was very much a show thing as for what we did, there was no real need to swap instruments mid-song. I still have it. As far as I know, twin necked guitars were designed with the main instrument (the one most often played) on the bottom. In the duo, I usually played guitar but occasionally strayed into bass territory and it was fairly comfortable to play, albeit at the 80's fashion 'mid-chest' position. In later years I had the guitar side fitted with a Roland GK3 pick up feeding either a VG8 guitar processor or a GR33 guitar synth. I haven't seen this photo for a few years and I can see I'm playing through a Marshall JMP1 valve pre-amp (in the rack behind me) into a guitar amp. My Strat is ready for when my back gives in and I have to shed the Spirit 😃.

I used to run a Marshall JMP1 valve pre-amp into the effects return of my Laney Richter 7 to bypass the Laney's pre-amp. The band I was in played rock and blues and it gave me a nice gritty sound. The JMP 1 has 99 memory slots and a midi interface enabling me to change settings - I used this mainly to vary the level of the effects in the loop. Later, I added a Zoom rack multi FX unit and had this under midi control too. Very versatile but it was all getting too heavy to cart around (as I'd got myself a hernia) I retired it in favour of a TCE BAM200 and a couple of pedals. Recently I've been using an Eden Glowplug in the board which warms the sound up and is last in line before the amp. I don't like the sound of the Eden overdriven, but just before it begins to break up is a nice tone that I leave on all the time. It's a bit of a nuisance having to use a second power supply for the 15v it requires. Before writing this reply, I went and dug out the JMP 1 and I'll be playing around with that this morning.

1. Hulla (or 'The Hulla Band'). When I joined the band was called the Hullabaloo, named after the annual festival it organises and was created to play in - the Horton Hullabaloo. I suggested shortening it for other gigs. We currently play around 10 dates a year, all for charity and usually well attended. The set list is as varied as the line-up, which currently numbers 13 and includes bass, drums, guitars, ukes, keys, banjo, percussion and lots of fun and games. 2. Midnight Smoke. A blues and blues/rock covers band just getting back on its feet following losing two members to Covid. I joined last year with my mate on drums to take their place. I like the name, it seems to fit with the vibe of the band.

Hi Colin. I'd second the classic BBC Formula 1 theme ('The Chain' by Fleetwood Mac). The first bassline I played (before I even had a bass of my own - it was borrowed) was 'Flash' by Queen 😃. More seriously, go on Youtube and learn about the simple 12 bar blues progression. With that under your belt a number of songs will be available to play along to. There's a great techniques section on this forum, too.

Hi OOG, welcome to the site.

Welcome Videoangelus

Hi Steve.

Hi Kate.

Welcome Peter.

Hi Benavente.

Hi Aleksandra.

Welcome to the site.

Congratulations! (On the 'paternity' bit, not the 'first gig back'. 😃)

For me, I usually have spare leads (instrument, patch and mains), relevant batteries and strap buttons. A set of strings and a small passive DI box is in the bag with the bass. For the band, I usually have fuses and the inevitable gaffa tape. I'll sometimes take the TCE BAM200 head as a backup but the DI box enables me to go into the desk in the event of an amp or cab failure (the rig is usually 2 cabs anyway so there should always be one working). I would consider a spare bass for big/key gigs but if I'm honest, when I've taken two basses to a gig it's usually to spice up the stage a bit (the three piece band I was in didn't take up much room and could get lost even on medium sized stages). I've had an instrument lead go on me just before we went on, and the battery of my instrument radio transmitter died at the end of the first set once. I've never broken a string or had a bass fail for some reason that couldn't be fixed on the spot. As an occasional FOH sound engineer, I have fixed other people's instruments (loose jack socket, dead or buzzing instrument leads, loose strap buttons) which tends to influence my spares bag.

Hi Mike.