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A couple of little practice amps , my practice nook at the in-laws. Darkglass m200 over a One10 , e500 over a C2 , couple of Gretsch basses , couple of Gibsons. I recently picked up the Elf and the m200 so I’ve been bouncing between them. Couple of old Yamaha NE-1 preamps too.

And the lost has been found , recently updated my IPad and had to re-log into the Darkglass Suite to access my library. All 131 presets I’d created are still there. I should trim that back to maybe 25 and then create maybe a dozen new ones!

Gorgeous , Rob!

The Darkglass Suite is the software that runs the Exponent amp. There are just under two dozen pedals and effects and over forty cab sims within the Suite you can use to create a preset. I program my amp with an IPad. It’s actually quite intuitive and simple to run. And you can literally make the amp do just about anything. Including a nice rich classic thump. You can load five presets for use and quickly change between them , and supposedly store any amount in your library. But my library was empty.

My preset library is empty , just the space where my presets have been stored. And the five presets I had loaded no longer have names. So I renamed the five I had stored , and saved them to my preset library. Those are now there. Anyone using the Suite notice any changes or weird stuff? It’s not the end of the world , I’ll just start creating new ones and try to be a little more organized labelling and storing them. But if I had been depending on access to that library I’d be screwed.

Mostly old school blues , but a good range of grooves over a night. Bergantino cabs , I mostly play mid sized rooms where there’s just vocals in the PA , the stage sound is the room sound. I have HDN 112 and 210 cabs but most of the time I’ll just bring a 112 , more than adequate.

You’re indeed a trooper , Burrito. Here’s hoping that bug will fade.

Nice little lightweight hollow body shortscale , it came with an adjustable metal bridge , I find the wooden “popsicle stick” style sound better.

I love those 4001 basses. The necks really are gorgeous , and once you’ve set the truss rods they’re incredibly stable.

The rumours started up last January , so I’m glad to see it finally surface. The BassTheWorld video is quite interesting. I just wish that somebody in town was stocking Quilter. I’d love to try one out.

I just missed a Demeter Minnie 800. It was a reasonable price but in the US , so it would have wound up being expensive to land here.

Yikes !

I had a reissue Rivoli. The classic British Invasion bass. It had a DiMarzio Model 1 pickup in place of the reissue Mudbucker. The Mudbucker apparently sounded awful. It had a big middy thump. It wasn’t one I played that much but I loved to look at it. Still miss it.

I just have the usual assortment of stuff that accumulates. Some classic production basses. Nothing exotic. I have pics of serial numbers and an overall shot each item. I do plan to sell an amp or two. Maybe a couple of basses. Still enjoy what I have. I know some real collectors , not in that league.

No. But in some cities it’s common.

It seems when the band members are introduced I get called a local legend. Just another way of saying older than dirt.

The Spurs , our little mostly instrumental Mexican band did an outdoor last night on Agricola St. We set up in front of Carlo Auto Service , close to the street. They’ve been doing street gigs there for much of the summer. Perfect night , the weather cold not have been better and many of the passerby stopped to enjoy , wound up with a lovely crowd. Very strange but enjoyable night , it’s always a joy to play that material. Ended at nine pm , not late returning home. Bonus! edit to add live photo

Old hippy bass player , but saw drugs and drink cripple too many friends. Today I might have a beer or two in the run of a week. Most without any. It’s been many years since I had a buzz on , probably around a dozen or more. Never counted. Not a pot smoker , do not take any other drugs. Never planned to be so moderate. Just happened. Still have friends that are chronic pot smokers , some that do like their drink. Some wear that better than others , I’m fine without. If it becomes a problem I’ll drop the gig. I do drink a pot of coffee in the morning.

He did a workshop here , and I immediately grabbed a ticket , it quickly sold out. He was down to earth , and funny , and chatty. He talked about his career , and sessions , and occasionally played some parts he made legend. Possibly one of the most fascinating presentations I’ve ever experienced.

Once upon a time I was usually the kid in the band , now I’m the geezer in many situations , but sometimes gig with folks older than me. I do have a great local mentor , and as long as he manages to play with dignity and grace I think I still have a little time left. (72 at the moment) Hands , knees and ears still intact. He’s still going strong.

Almost all of the Class D amps use the same power modules manufactured by ICE. They are simply very efficient at building them to a price point with a very low failure rate. The characteristic sound of each manufacturer is determined by the goals of the designer , the preamp and tone stack construction. And they all sound very different.

We all have different requirements , and solutions. When I pick up a bass at home , I turn an amp on … every time. I firmly believe it’s the only way to develop your touch. I spend much more time practicing than I do performing , but still gig every weekend. I keep my gigging gear completely separate from practice gear. I bring just what I’ll need , I’ve got lightweight modern cabs and amps. Easy to load and pack in my car. I just drive myself downtown to the gig. I will meet everyone there. Despite being somewhat of a geezer I can manage to unload and set up my stuff. I’m not crazy about travel so I just mostly play downtown. Once or twice a year I may do some out of town gigs but that’s about it. Most of the mid sized rooms I play have a small house PA , and the PA in the dive I love the most is pretty awful. We generally just run vocals through it , maybe a horn mic. So our stage sound is what fills the room. There is no sound guy. It’s up to the band to do the room mix , and with experienced players the room can sound gorgeous. If you get too loud the room can sound wretched. Some complain about the room. (It’s them)

Many were saying that mini Class D amps were not repairable and were just to be tossed if any issues arose. I’m thankful to know an authorized repair guy , today it works perfectly although it’s been semi retired. I’ve picked up several other amps in that range since. I love those little amps.

… and lose out in all that fun?

The Darkglass corner