Comedy of Errors: a gig thread

[Why Nautilus‽]

Hello all you wonderful bassists.

Wanted to share the stories of my absolute messiest gig to date (well…professional one) with my cover band.

All started off well enough, sound check went fine aside from a persistent issue where my peavey head doesn’t transmit signal to the head/fx loop when the DI is plugged in.

Anyway, immediately after sound check, I am doing one last tuning check on my Ibanez headless and notice that the D string won’t hold a pitch. The tuner is maxing out trying to get the bass in tune.

Did I bring my Allen keys? No. I have the sound and lighting guy onstage with me with an Allen key and needle nose pliers attempting to re-place the string. The string core slips the winding, and I realize I am done for.

Did I bring more strings just in case? Of course not! I tune the G to a D and set that bass aside for the 10ish songs that need it. We strike one of the more complex songs from the set since I won’t have the necessary tuning.

The show starts without a hitch, aside from my playing “in my head” too much and missing some easy cues. Nothing that the audience would notice.

First half of the first set is almost over and my joyo wireless cable is cutting out constantly. I sneakily change it to a wired cable and finish out the set.

During our break, the sound guy comes back to tell me to turn down the bass. He’s been unable to play it in the monitors because it’s far too loud. Meanwhile our poor guitarist has been struggling to be heard all night. My amp was at a 4. Gain at 3. Turned both down to two.

The rest of the show goes (objectively) better and we are paid and on our way by the end of the night with another show in the books.

But now I’m going to be signal chasing and anxiously toying with my basses all week for my show next weekend.

Happy Friday the 13th to me.

What’s the worst onstage failure you’ve had?

 

[WI Short Scaler]

Worst on stage failure was a dead bass. It was long ago and maybe my 3rd or 4th gig on bass.

Did I have a spare bass? Of course not. But we were luckily not far from the guitarist's house and he was able run home and grab the bass he had. It was a close call and his no-name bass was nothing I would have chose to play if not an emergency.

Turned out to be a wire at the output jack coming off.

 

[el murdoque]

I've had a bass with active pickups cutting out on me on stage, where the battery compartment was ... less than optimal.
It was a mess of gaffer tape and cardboard pieces. Did I bring a spare? Of course not!
I replaced it with a 9V salvaged from a smoke detector. Luckily these things are everywhere nowadays.
For the rest of the show, I had to hold the bass in an awkward position because every time my hip touched the back of the battery compartment, the sound would cut out and I had to tap it a couple of times until it worked again.

 

[Why Nautilus‽]

Worst on stage failure was a dead bass. It was long ago and maybe my 3rd or 4th gig on bass.

Did I have a spare bass? Of course not. But we were luckily not far from the guitarist's house and he was able run home and grab the bass he had. It was a close call and his no-name bass was nothing I would have chose to play if not an emergency.

Turned out to be a wire at the output jack coming off.

I had something similar happen to me with an older bass. I loved the bass at the time, but I couldn't stop spinning the washer until it messed me up live!

 

[Why Nautilus‽]

I've had a bass with active pickups cutting out on me on stage, where the battery compartment was ... less than optimal.
It was a mess of gaffer tape and cardboard pieces. Did I bring a spare? Of course not!
I replaced it with a 9V salvaged from a smoke detector. Luckily these things are everywhere nowadays.
For the rest of the show, I had to hold the bass in an awkward position because every time my hip touched the back of the battery compartment, the sound would cut out and I had to tap it a couple of times until it worked again.

This is my current frustration with my Ibanez headless. The compartment is easy enough to access, however the battery never really lasts. I always end up using it passive. Which is fine, but also less than what I paid for/planned for when purchasing it.

 

[el murdoque]

This is my current frustration with my Ibanez headless. The compartment is easy enough to access, however the battery never really lasts. I always end up using it passive. Which is fine, but also less than what I paid for/planned for when purchasing it.

In my case, the battery I put in must have been bad. I only practiced unplugged at home, so there's a zero chance that I left it plugged in over night or something and the battery was less than half a year old, they usually lasted for nearly two years.

That bass had active pickups (not only an active preamp) so when the juice ran out, there was no fallback.

 

[jimmydean]

Doing a BMI/ASCAP Showcase with bass backline provided , was told to just plug in and touch nothing . The bassist before me screwed with something and when I came up next , two 2x15 cabs blew out their speakers by the 3rd bar of our first song . I ended up just listening to my bass through FOH , I didn't even ask for the bass to be turned up in the monitors ........I was just locked into playing a crushing set , which we did .

 

[jimmydean]

My first pro gig was going well and my fuse blew in my amp and as fate would have it , I didn't have any fuses . I ended up sharing the guitarist amp . He had a SG (Gibson) amp and a cab with eight speakers and we finished the gig ......I learned to carry all those "just in case" things after that .

 

[Why Nautilus‽]

Doing a BMI/ASCAP Showcase with bass backline provided , was told to just plug in and touch nothing . The bassist before me screwed with something and when I came up next , two 2x15 cabs blew out their speakers by the 3rd bar of our first song . I ended up just listening to my bass through FOH , I didn't even ask for the bass to be turned up in the monitors ........I was just locked into playing a crushing set , which we did .

Yeesh. That’s part of why I always like to bring my own gear. But I know in this situation it’s simply not feasible.

 

[Why Nautilus‽]

My first pro gig was going well and my fuse blew in my amp and as fate would have it , I didn't have any fuses . I ended up sharing the guitarist amp . He had a SG (Gibson) amp and a cab with eight speakers and we finished the gig ......I learned to carry all those "just in case" things after that .

I’ll definitely be more odds and ends prepped going forward now.

Lesson learned.

 

[DWBass]

A couple. 1st one was at the restaurant at the top of the (now gone) World Trade Center. The stage was a metal grate and my amp was emitting a nasty hum. So bad I was told to shut it off. Had to play the rest of the night hearing myself from a nearby monitor. I got through it.

2nd one was at an outdoor gig in severe heat and my bass acclimated on me rendering the first 5 frets useless. Had to play tunes higher up on the fretboard which was rough. Had to relearn tunes on the spot playing them differently. I got through it.

Oh, I forgot, another gig I had on a cruise ship. The generator must have went below standard voltage and my amp kept shutting down. Good thing the DI still worked (dunno how) so I could still hear myself in the PA (no monitors). I got through it.

 

[Why Nautilus‽]

A couple. 1st one was at the restaurant at the top of the (now gone) World Trade Center. The stage was a metal grate and my amp was emitting a nasty hum. So bad I was told to shut it off. Had to play the rest of the night hearing myself from a nearby monitor. I got through it.

2nd one was at an outdoor gig in severe heat and my bass acclimated on me rendering the first 5 frets useless. Had to play tunes higher up on the fretboard which was rough. Had to relearn tunes on the spot playing them differently. I got through it.

Oh, I forgot, another gig I had on a cruise ship. The generator must have went below standard voltage and my amp kept shutting down. Good thing the DI still worked (dunno how) so I could still hear myself in the PA (no monitors). I got through it.

Wow. I can maybe imagine the second one if I had a 5+ string to manage the loss of the first frets but it wouldn’t be easy. But two and three I’d be done for. Just struggling to hear myself would lead to a lot of issues.

 

[HardNHeavy]

well that sucks, but now i will def remember to bring allen keys...Started a new cover band, first gig this saturday..Was going thru my checklist and forgot the lil toolkit...But a funny story, not as bad as yours. on my second rehearsal after i joined this new band 6mon ago, one of my bass builds had no sound coming from it, embarrassed i had to run back home and grab another bass, luckily im only 30mins away....Everyone was cool with it but still "first impressions" .

Reason bass crapped out was a loose potentiometer washer dangling from the output jack on the inside..causing a short obviously...I was stumped as to how that happened as i just checked that bass before the rehearsal....some twighlight zone sht happening i swear!

A couple. 1st one was at the restaurant at the top of the (now gone) World Trade Center. The stage was a metal grate and my amp was emitting a nasty hum. So bad I was told to shut it off. Had to play the rest of the night hearing myself from a nearby monitor. I got through it.

2nd one was at an outdoor gig in severe heat and my bass acclimated on me rendering the first 5 frets useless. Had to play tunes higher up on the fretboard which was rough. Had to relearn tunes on the spot playing them differently. I got through it.

Oh, I forgot, another gig I had on a cruise ship. The generator must have went below standard voltage and my amp kept shutting down. Good thing the DI still worked (dunno how) so I could still hear myself in the PA (no monitors). I got through it.

 

[HardNHeavy]

A couple. 1st one was at the restaurant at the top of the (now gone) World Trade Center. The stage was a metal grate and my amp was emitting a nasty hum. So bad I was told to shut it off. Had to play the rest of the night hearing myself from a nearby monitor. I got through it.

2nd one was at an outdoor gig in severe heat and my bass acclimated on me rendering the first 5 frets useless. Had to play tunes higher up on the fretboard which was rough. Had to relearn tunes on the spot playing them differently. I got through it.

Oh, I forgot, another gig I had on a cruise ship. The generator must have went below standard voltage and my amp kept shutting down. Good thing the DI still worked (dunno how) so I could still hear myself in the PA (no monitors). I got through it.

Windows on the World i think that was the place at WTC...use to deliver produce in manhattan, that was one of my stops....You're 2nd issue would have me in severe panic mode.learning on the fly like that...wow

 

[Why Nautilus‽]

well that sucks, but now i will def remember to bring allen keys...Started a new cover band, first gig this saturday..Was going thru my checklist and forgot the lil toolkit...But a funny story, not as bad as yours. on my second rehearsal after i joined this new band 6mon ago, one of my bass builds had no sound coming from it, embarrassed i had to run back home and grab another bass, luckily im only 30mins away....Everyone was cool with it but still "first impressions" .

Reason bass crapped out was a loose potentiometer washer dangling from the output jack on the inside..causing a short obviously...I was stumped as to how that happened as i just checked that bass before the rehearsal....some twighlight zone sht happening i swear!

You got this one! It’ll go great I’m sure. But just to be safe double check your pack!

 

[GroovinOnFunk]

Hello all you wonderful bassists.

Wanted to share the stories of my absolute messiest gig to date (well…professional one) with my cover band.

All started off well enough, sound check went fine aside from a persistent issue where my peavey head doesn’t transmit signal to the head/fx loop when the DI is plugged in.

Anyway, immediately after sound check, I am doing one last tuning check on my Ibanez headless and notice that the D string won’t hold a pitch. The tuner is maxing out trying to get the bass in tune.

Did I bring my Allen keys? No. I have the sound and lighting guy onstage with me with an Allen key and needle nose pliers attempting to re-place the string. The string core slips the winding, and I realize I am done for.

Did I bring more strings just in case? Of course not! I tune the G to a D and set that bass aside for the 10ish songs that need it. We strike one of the more complex songs from the set since I won’t have the necessary tuning.

The show starts without a hitch, aside from my playing “in my head” too much and missing some easy cues. Nothing that the audience would notice.

First half of the first set is almost over and my joyo wireless cable is cutting out constantly. I sneakily change it to a wired cable and finish out the set.

During our break, the sound guy comes back to tell me to turn down the bass. He’s been unable to play it in the monitors because it’s far too loud. Meanwhile our poor guitarist has been struggling to be heard all night. My amp was at a 4. Gain at 3. Turned both down to two.

The rest of the show goes (objectively) better and we are paid and on our way by the end of the night with another show in the books.

But now I’m going to be signal chasing and anxiously toying with my basses all week for my show next weekend.

Happy Friday the 13th to me.

What’s the worst onstage failure you’ve had?

I don't mean this to be judgy but if you're talking about being a professional and then also talking about using a Peavey amp and Joyo wireless... To me those are contradictory. Gotta invest in good quality and reliable gear.

 

[LanEvo]

My very first gig I plugged directly into the Peavey amp provided by the venue (outdoor show at a college). I didn't realize I was supposed to plug into the DI box sitting on top ... so no one heard me!

Instead of just swapping the plug from amp to DI, the soundman stopped the gig and made us to re-start. That totally messed me up and I fumbled through the set.

 

[Jazzdogg]

Two, both back in the seventies:
1. Set up on a round stage. Sound check went well. Then the gig started and, unknown to us, the stage began to rotate. PA was plugged in to an outlet off stage.
2. Playing a supper club jazz trio on double bass. G-string broke at the nut. The bitter end of the string cut the drummers hand. Played the rest of the set with three strings while the drummer headed for the doctor.

 

[Why Nautilus‽]

I don't mean this to be judgy but if you're talking about being a professional and then also talking about using a Peavey amp and Joyo wireless... To me those are contradictory. Gotta invest in good quality and reliable gear.

I knew this would come up eventually.

We’re a small town cover band. We don’t make a lot of money on shows and we’re playing for fun.

The joyo wireless was a fun item not a big investment (or a requirement).

There’s no need to be critical of the equipment, the story is more about my general flubbyness.

 

[Why Nautilus‽]

My very first gig I plugged directly into the Peavey amp provided by the venue (outdoor show at a college). I didn't realize I was supposed to plug into the DI box sitting on top ... so no one heard me!

Instead of just swapping the plug from amp to DI, the soundman stopped the gig and made us to re-start. That totally messed me up and I fumbled through the set.

Oof! That would throw me off too