Definitive thread on kit-sharing...

[Telebass]

This subject is a very sore point with me...so much so, that perhaps it shows! Or maybe I just have a baaad face...

My take on it is this...

If something goes bang, you can use my amp, so long as the bang wasn't a direct result of something you did...

If you call in advance wanting to share, the answer's no. Get someone to bring your own gear if you can't do it for yourself.
A codicil to this: No wheels? Time to get lessons...Too young to drive? That's what parents are for... (and yes, I am one!)

I'm only talking bass gear here, but I'd be the same with whatever. My reasoning is that so far, no-one, even other bass-players, that I've met in this situation, has been careful with what they've borrowed. Probably my bad luck, but it does prejudice one somewhat...The lucky part for me is that no-one has yet actually managed any serious damage, just showed that they don't give a rats because it's niot theirs...

But, no matter WHAT the situation, no-one gets to gig my bass 'cept me. Ever. Different if at a Basschat bash or similar; there's a situation you can trust, I sincerely hope!

Sorry if this sounds rantish, and I know it's been aired before. The open letter to the headlining band [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=29379"]here[/url] was what stirred my juices. Man, what a bunch of morons...

[waynepunkdude]

I lend my cab out but not my head, and no one touches my bass (except people I trust)

My guitarist lent out my bass to another band once when I had to shoot off (on holiday I had postponed for 3 days so we could do the gig so by leaving I wasn't being dickish) I went mental.

I remember a kid who decided everything on stage was his tried to plaug his 5 string into my guitarists amp the look on his face was priceless.

Point? I don't have except if you own the gear it's up to you who you lend it to end of.

[joe_bass]

You can normally tell who is likely to piss around with your equipment, just by attitude (of course!) & heavy handling etc etc.


However I've never understood how some people will take great care of their own stuff & not give a rats ass about other peoples. Like lending a toy to a friend as a child & getting it back snapped in half. I was taught to take more care of something that didn't belong to me, because IT DIDN'T BELONG TO ME Make's sense thought doesn't it? It should be simple manners! Mini rant over!!

[The Funk]

[quote name='Telebass' post='317697' date='Oct 29 2008, 04:06 PM']A codicil to this[/quote]

[url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codicil"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codicil[/url]

I had to look it up!

[ezbass]

I'd happily lend most of my stuff to my bass playing chums as I know they'd take good care of it. Friend of a friend? Probably not. No one gets to borrow my '63 P!

Edited October 29, 2008 by ezbass

[Kiwi]

I don't mind lending my kit to anyone over 28 in a band that isn't punk, metal, indie or alternative in any other way... ...IF they ask in advance. To be fair my beef hasn't usually been with the players in other bands but with the promoters lack of forward planning. Worst was when my gear was 'borrowed' at one shared billing at the Clapham Grand and I went absolutely mental at the promoter after I came down from the dressing room. I was watching the twat playing through it redlining the power amp section.

Luckily for them both there was no permanent damage.

[The Funk]

I've only ever let one guy use my rig and that was because he's a friend of mine (more a friend of a friend but I know him and he's a nice guy) and we were sharing the bill. During soundcheck I told him to leave all the settings as they are and explained how everything worked. He left everything as it was and everything went well.

Those are the only circumstances in which anyone can share equipment with me. I can't afford to replace my rig if anything happens to it.

[BigAlonBass]

We shared a bill with Glyder last year, and it was understood that we would supply the Backline. (P.A. was hired in) They turned up, socialised, had a laugh (and the odd bevvy) and when it was time for their soundcheck, I started to tell the Bassist about the controls, in case he needed to alter them at all. His reply-"Ahhhh, you use a Precision, the same as me, and you've got a f*cking brilliant sound. I ain't touching a thing." The response from ALL the guys in the Band was in a similair vein, and we would happily share a stage with them anytime. Now that's the kind of people you don't mind sharing with.

I wish they were all like that.

[skankdelvar]

My standard response to "Can we share gear?" is "Fantastic! What have you got?".

Plus, I only use a small combo these days, so it's not 'manly' enough for the size queens out there.

[markytbass]

When I started playing all those years ago all the local bands sort of knew each other and gigged together at one time or other. It was always arranged in advance who would supply what on the night.

[steve-soar]

Would I share my gear, let me tell you a little story.
A band I was in in the 90's had a support band who toured with us around the country, they had better gear than us as they had just got a deal with Food records, anyway, the last night of the tour came and their drummer and bassist wanted to use our gear, as the stage was too small for two sets of gear and there were three bands, with us headlining.
At the end of their set, they decided to go all "The Who" and the guitarist and bassist started to twat the cymbals and my bass rig with their guitars.
After a small word with them later and the promise of my trusty pickaxe handle, which I still have, they quickly left the building never to be seen again.
If you are in a band, it is your resposibility to bring your own gear and for it to be in working order. Harsh, maybe but in the real world charity begins at home.

Edited October 29, 2008 by steve-soar

[CHRISDABASS]

right!!!

i have a problem with gear sharing!!......

.......hold on! i have my reasons!

i'd say about 3-4 years ago i'd just bought a lovely mesa m2000 bass head on credit from soundcontrol! a month or so later we had a gig in leeds supporting Minus the Bear! www.myspace.com/minusthebear (man i love that band) i'd never dreamed of playing with a band that i was soooo into!!

anyways cory (the bass player) approached me soon after entering the club (the basement for those interested) and very nicely asked me if he could use my bass rig.................i would never normally do this but how could i say no??

so we set up, soundchecked had a beer and the night kicked off! we played pretty well n we had loads of fun.........then it was minus the bears turn to take to the stage! i'll never forget that night! they sounded crazy good!!!! i loved it.....until half way through their set i'd come back from the bar and my mate said errm isnt that your new amp throwing blue smoke all over the stage??

it was the worst moment of my life!! i couldn't believe it!! i ran on stage, took it back stage while someone sorted another head out! cory so upset about it and i was going insane!!! it was totally f***ed and i'd not even made the first payment on it!

i totally understand that it wasnt his fault, he's a professional! but from that moment on i have been very careful who even carries my gear.

at the end of the day if my gear is gonna blow up i'd rather it blow up while im using it! at least that way ive only got myself to blame. Its also the reason why i try to avoid using anyone else's gear just in case it happens to me.


Mesa fixed the amp at no cost to me and i sold it on! still lost lots of money on it but i certainly learnt something that night!! haha

[budget bassist]

I don't mind gear sharing so much, but only my amp, it was cheap, it'a fairly powerful, i'm fairly confident nobody is going to break it and i've spilt a whole pint of coke over it before and it's fine. That's not to say people are careful with it. Are they f***! I usually end up letting everyone on the night use my amp because NOBODY where i live has a decent amp seriously! I suppose it's the price i pay for having the drummer (who helps organise the gigs) give me a lift to practice/the gig sometimes, but it still pisses me off when i see people turning it up way too loud or red lining it or just generally abusing it... And they do it surprisingly often! (i'm gonna wrap it up now cos i'm getting worked up!) Nobody plays my basses though, not for the actual show anyway. If they want to just noodle for a minute before/after the show, fine, but not during the show, no way. I'm letting my rhythm guitarist, who i do trust a fair bit, borrow my les paul on friday night for a gig, and i'm still wary about that!

As far as me borrowing kit though, i wouldn't want someone damaging my stuff, so i try and be as careful as i can be with other people's stuff.

Edited October 29, 2008 by budget bassist

[Ou7shined]

I generally don't mind it (in fact I often offer). Although I'd never just let someone borrow my rig or guitar without me actually being there and I have a strict "No beer bottles/glasses on me rig" policy.

When I was gigging with my Ashdown gear I'd always check with the supports whether their basses were active or not - often I'd get a blank stare in return or a helpful "Dunno" then I'd sort them out with the correct inputs and character settings. Once a guy at a pretty packed bill night who obviously didn't know who I was snarled "Why wot the f*** has it got to do with you?" at me for asking, I spotted that his was passive and walked away - he could do his own feckin settings, he was lucky he had an amp to play through that night. He was evidently still up his own arse later on even after he'd found out he'd bad mouthed the headliners. His band won't get a share next time.
Nowadays it's more simple. With the LMII I just run through the input/gain setting and leave them to it.

The other week there, as the support were tuning up their guy broke a string he came over to me to explain and just as I was presumptuously reaching into my bag to get out a spare string for him he politely asked if he could borrow my axe "knock yourself out kid" I said. His wee face was a picture.

[MacDaddy]

I'd like not to, but as our drummer doesn't have a drum kit in this country (he's Polish. I know, a drummer without a kit, but we always have sh1t loads of Poles at our gigs so it's not too bad) and has to play another bands, I'm not really in a position to say no if their bassist needs a bass rig. Hasn't happend yet, but if it does there will be very strict instructions.

My basses though, no way.

[ARGH]

My gear,I paid for it,f*** off......

[coasterbass]

Personally I've never had a problem.
I'd always make a call, based on their politeness, experience and musical genre - but the same goes for everything in life, you just have to trust your instincts.
I'd always spend a couple of minutes working through the settings with them, and if they dialled in something likely to be sh*t then I'd tell them.

At the end of the day there's a big benefit, in that you get to hear what your rig sounds like from a punters perspective

[Dubs]

When I had cheap gear (amps) I didn’t really care or mind about sharing it (and I actually liked to help people out) cos the worst someone was going to do is cause £100 worth of damage. Now I've got expensive stuff there's no chance anyone is going to get their greasy mitts on it.

I was in a situation about 4 months ago where I was playing a gig with my old band and the bass player in one of the other bands was thrashing the sh*t out of hit bass and broke the E. At the end of the song he asked through the mic if he could borrow mine, I just stood there and laughed hysterically shaking my head and said “are you having a laugh? No chance mate”, then went to the bar. A few people there laughed as well, but there was no chance he was getting his hands on my mint SS1. He was a prick anyway.

[Toasted]

[quote name='ARGH' post='318112' date='Oct 30 2008, 05:15 AM']My gear,I paid for it,f*** off......[/quote]

Pretty much ARGH.

Although, I don't mind lending my kit to anyone over 82, with one leg, of Asian origin, in a band that isn't gypsy-folk, breakcore, blackgrind or dub-step... ...IF they ask by pre-arranged smoke singal morse code in advance.

[Telebass]

Didn't think I was in a minority with this - thank Dawkins!

[yorks5stringer]

"Although, I don't mind lending my kit to anyone over 82, with one leg, of Asian origin, in a band that isn't gypsy-folk, breakcore, blackgrind or dub-step... ...IF they ask by pre-arranged smoke singal morse code in advance. "

So that's a "Yes" then?

Edited October 30, 2008 by yorks5stringer

[rasher80]

Most gigs in Manchester, the headline band brings the drums and the bass amp, so a lot of the time, you are obliged to use the headliner's rig. It's turned out that we've headlined in these situations that i've had to let people use my amp, but not many people round here have Ashdowns, it's mainly Hartke or Behringer from what i've seen and the odd Fender, so i take it upon myself to make sure they are using it right. I went to have a look at the settings on the amp after one band had been on, and all the buttons were switched in, you name it - bass boost, treble boost, sub bass, the lot.

I don't have to worry about someone asking to use my bass as it's the wrong way round for 9/10 of you. If i knew them then i'd maybe consider it, but as someone alluded to previously, if you batter the crap out of your bass and then expect someone to lend you theirs when a string goes, then frankly you're having a giraffe IMO

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='coasterbass' post='318151' date='Oct 30 2008, 08:58 AM']At the end of the day there's a big benefit, in that you get to hear what your rig sounds like from a punters perspective [/quote]
Rumbled! My generosity isn't entirely altruistic either. :ph34r:
I like hearing my gear played by others, a bit like those pervy geezers that like watching their missus doing the whatnot with strangers I guess.

[Dubs]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='318225' date='Oct 30 2008, 10:57 AM']...a bit like those pervy geezers that like watching their missus doing the whatnot with strangers I guess. [/quote]

I'll never understand that...

[Musky]

I don't really have a problem with people borrowing my amp - in fact some of the promoters I play for insist on it for quick change over times. So sometimes I've used other peoples rig and sometimes they've used mine. It's not a problem, I just show them how the thing works and insist they leave the limiter on. If I use their kit I'll always ask if I can change the settings and change them back after.

Having said that it [i]does[/i] piss me off somewhat if someone just turns up on the night on the assumption that there will be a bass amp on the night and it's perfectly fine to use mine without checking before hand. I'll usually say no before relenting, just so they get the point.