Thought I should share what happened on the gig Friday night. This was a gig where there are a couple of bands and you need to set up quickly (no sound check) and play your set.
I have Sadowsky Modern 5 and I decided to change the battery right before I left for the gig as I measured the voltage and thought it was low (8.5V) and didn't want to have an issue at the gig...yeah right. My mistake was I didn't check that the bass was functional with an amp, I just assumed this was a simple battery change as I have done many times in the past with no issue.
When I set up on stage and I had no sound, the keyboardist started telling me that his keyboard or amp was acting funny too and maybe the club's AC voltage was low so I should change to a different outlet. Also adding to my confusion was that I had opened the amp up (removed the cover) before I left the house because at our rehearsal I noticed the feet on the bottom of the amp were loose so I wanted to tighten them up and this made me think that maybe something happened to the amp thus starting a confusing/under pressure situation as the band, soundman and audience all waited for me to resolve the issue. I didn't think the amp was the problem but I wasted time switching the power and then wasted more time thinking I had a bad cord or a defective effect pedal. After trying all that the guitarist plugged into my amp confirming it was fine thus I realized it must be the battery. But my mistake was that I convinced myself that I might have put the battery in backwards so I took it out and flipped it around but when I pushed it in, what happened was the edge of the battery bent and jammed the battery where I could not open the battery compartment, the drummer even gave me his car key to pry it open but it was not going to open without a fight, thus the bass was totally useless. Luckily the next band's bassplayer let me use his Rickenbacker but at first it did not work into my amp and the PA which took more time and created more of a mystery (I didn't realize the Ric had two jacks and just my luck I picked the wrong one). I ended up playing the Ric with a long strap into the PA, a bit of a struggle but it sufficed.
When I got home that night I had to pry the battery compartment open with pliers thus breaking the latch, but even though it was broken, when I put a new battery in the right way the bass worked just fine. In hindsight all I needed to do at the gig was just re-seat the battery as I had put it in the right way...it just was not making good contact...also the bass will not pass a signal even in the passive mode (it has an active/passive switch) unless there is a battery in it making a good connection. What a lesson learned...a very embarrassing gig for me.
Anyway the band played great and of course this helps minimize the pressure I was feeling...covered in sweat before we even started. I am lucky to be in such a great band.
--Tom
P.S. Interesting to note that Roger no longer uses the battery box/compartment on his basses. My Modern 5 is from '99 when he used EMG p/u's and a separate battery box. I guess battery boxes are just not that reliable for the ease of use they provide.
I have Sadowsky Modern 5 and I decided to change the battery right before I left for the gig as I measured the voltage and thought it was low (8.5V) and didn't want to have an issue at the gig...yeah right. My mistake was I didn't check that the bass was functional with an amp, I just assumed this was a simple battery change as I have done many times in the past with no issue.
When I set up on stage and I had no sound, the keyboardist started telling me that his keyboard or amp was acting funny too and maybe the club's AC voltage was low so I should change to a different outlet. Also adding to my confusion was that I had opened the amp up (removed the cover) before I left the house because at our rehearsal I noticed the feet on the bottom of the amp were loose so I wanted to tighten them up and this made me think that maybe something happened to the amp thus starting a confusing/under pressure situation as the band, soundman and audience all waited for me to resolve the issue. I didn't think the amp was the problem but I wasted time switching the power and then wasted more time thinking I had a bad cord or a defective effect pedal. After trying all that the guitarist plugged into my amp confirming it was fine thus I realized it must be the battery. But my mistake was that I convinced myself that I might have put the battery in backwards so I took it out and flipped it around but when I pushed it in, what happened was the edge of the battery bent and jammed the battery where I could not open the battery compartment, the drummer even gave me his car key to pry it open but it was not going to open without a fight, thus the bass was totally useless. Luckily the next band's bassplayer let me use his Rickenbacker but at first it did not work into my amp and the PA which took more time and created more of a mystery (I didn't realize the Ric had two jacks and just my luck I picked the wrong one). I ended up playing the Ric with a long strap into the PA, a bit of a struggle but it sufficed.
When I got home that night I had to pry the battery compartment open with pliers thus breaking the latch, but even though it was broken, when I put a new battery in the right way the bass worked just fine. In hindsight all I needed to do at the gig was just re-seat the battery as I had put it in the right way...it just was not making good contact...also the bass will not pass a signal even in the passive mode (it has an active/passive switch) unless there is a battery in it making a good connection. What a lesson learned...a very embarrassing gig for me.
Anyway the band played great and of course this helps minimize the pressure I was feeling...covered in sweat before we even started. I am lucky to be in such a great band.
--Tom
P.S. Interesting to note that Roger no longer uses the battery box/compartment on his basses. My Modern 5 is from '99 when he used EMG p/u's and a separate battery box. I guess battery boxes are just not that reliable for the ease of use they provide.
