Ever afraid of forgetting your gear?

[TheSeagoats]

I accidentally left my bass head behind one time because I was rushing out of a venue to get to a friend's house for a party. Fortunately, my guitarist was still there and was able to grab it for me. Drummer accidentally left a cymbal stand behind at the very same show, they claimed they didn't have it when he called the next day about it.

 

[Sparkl]

Not quite sure if this is the correct forum for such a topic, but let's say I tried to find the correct one.


I probably fall into the category of people who get more anxious about little things than the average, but I've been wondering if others here can relate.

I've been playing gigs for a while now and have actively tried to keep my setup simple and compact. I bring my bass in a hardcase with the necessary cables and such, a pedalboard in a nice rugged flightcase, a monitor, a stand for my bass, a stand for my ipad and said ipad of course. Within the bass case are a couple of other helpful things like a screwdriver, spare batteries, spare strings and such.

So I know that I arrived with 6 things and that's what I'll have to take back home again. However, I just cannot shake the feeling that I will eventually just forget something. That goes up to the point where I sit in the car counting my 6 things over and over again.

It would be actually pretty difficult to forget something, because we have some guys who will take our PA system and bring that to a warehouse after each gig. So if I were to actually leave something behind, they would probably take it with them and tell me afterwards. Still, it makes me feel very uncomfortable. Just imagining how I forget like a powercord, or even worse, something like my pedals.

Have you ever actually forgotten something at a venue and were unable to get it back?

Oh yeah. Happens all the time. I once forgot my Jazz Bass Elite V USA in a pub where I played at the Croatian coast and only realized it when I was already back on land (the pub is on an island) about 2 hours away with a ferry. Ended up saying "fcuk this sheit", managed to call a friend who was still there, picked it up for me. I went on to catch a train I pre-bought a ticket for, traveled another 500km to my home and had to wait around 3 weeks for that friend to bring it back to me. Then I had to travel another 350km to his place to pick it up. I spent the next 2 weeks every night trying to contemplate how on earth did I board that ferry without realizing I was missing a whole hardcase, and a heavy one at that.

Safe to say, I'm never forgetting my bass again. (knocks on the wood)

 

[basshawk21]

It has gone both ways for me. I got to a gig once with no guitar straps - had to sit in a chair and the bass wanted to slide all over. I left my watch at a gig once. Went back a week later and it was sitting on the cash register, couldn't believe it. Left a backup bass at a gig once - called soundman, he grabbed it.

 

[evs]

It has gone both ways for me. I got to a gig once with no guitar straps - had to sit in a chair

LOL!

 

[Rip Van Dan]

Not quite sure if this is the correct forum for such a topic, but let's say I tried to find the correct one.


I probably fall into the category of people who get more anxious about little things than the average, but I've been wondering if others here can relate.

I've been playing gigs for a while now and have actively tried to keep my setup simple and compact. I bring my bass in a hardcase with the necessary cables and such, a pedalboard in a nice rugged flightcase, a monitor, a stand for my bass, a stand for my ipad and said ipad of course. Within the bass case are a couple of other helpful things like a screwdriver, spare batteries, spare strings and such.

So I know that I arrived with 6 things and that's what I'll have to take back home again. However, I just cannot shake the feeling that I will eventually just forget something. That goes up to the point where I sit in the car counting my 6 things over and over again.

It would be actually pretty difficult to forget something, because we have some guys who will take our PA system and bring that to a warehouse after each gig. So if I were to actually leave something behind, they would probably take it with them and tell me afterwards. Still, it makes me feel very uncomfortable. Just imagining how I forget like a powercord, or even worse, something like my pedals.

Have you ever actually forgotten something at a venue and were unable to get it back?

Had to laugh. Yes I did a couple of months ago. We were hosting an Open-Mic night and I brought along my guitar and stand just in case we didn't have enough sign ups. Was with a new group that only had about an hour and a half worth of repertoire, which is usually enough for this spot. Our keys player could play and sing for half an hour if necessary and I have about the same I can do just singing and playing guitar. Didn't need to do the open-mic guitar and sing bit and when I loaded my bass gear back up I threw my guitar in its gig bag on my back, loaded everything up and left. I forgot my guitar stand there at the brewpub...and it's still there...ooops!

 

[Rip Van Dan]

I run through the signal chain for the gig I'm packing for, in order, in my mind: I have a bass, I have a strap, I have a cord and spare, I have (needed pedals)...

I do that too, paying particular attention to bringing the right speaker cords. I went off and left one I custom made to hook up banana plugs from the amp output to the speakon inputs of my cab...twice. Had to run back and get it once as I recalled I'd left it while driving to the gig. Got there after the outdoor stage was all set-up (5pc. group) with no room left for me and had to set-up my amp on the asphalt behind and about a foot below than the stage. Here's the shot of it:

Worked out OK though, I usually run my Eden WT500/800 amp bridged at 800-watts rms into my 8Ω DNS-410 cabinet for outdoor gigs. Outdoors I'll run the master somewhere between 9:30 and 10 o'clock. Since it was behind the stage and down a little bit, I ran it to 10:30 to compensate. After the first song, was told to turn it down. So I turned it down to 10 o'clock for the next song. After the second son, I got told to turn it down again. Then I turned it to 9:30 and that was perfect for the next 4-hrs.


I really hated setting up behind the stage and I'm really glad that I have good enough gear that it didn't matter. But anytime I take my 410 anywhere I am very careful to make sure that cord is in my gig bag.

The second time was a morning stage set-up and sound check for a music festival. Got there and got set up but no amp to cab speaker cord. Told the sound company it would take me about 1½-hours to go get it and they said, "no need". In about 6-minutes time they made the cord I needed with banana connectors on one end for my 1999 Eden amp and speakon on the other for my 2015 DNS-410...was a gooooood sound company!

 

[joelns]

Geeze this post has me worried about forgetting something at our gig tomorrow evening. Thanks.

 

[Hambone70]

Geeze this post has me worried about forgetting something at our gig tomorrow evening. Thanks.

Checklist. Then it can’t happen.

 

[Fynn]

Geeze this post has me worried about forgetting something at our gig tomorrow evening. Thanks.

Sorry, haha

 

[Fynn]

I'm much more paranoid about something being stolen. Recently I have been to a few gigs on my own and can't really rely on the guitarist to watch my bass, so I take it everywhere, even to the bathroom.

Usually there's always someone who watches over the stage in-between sets, but I do also feel uncomfortable having my bass just sit there for anyone to grab and just leave with. I tend to put it as far in the back as possible, so thieves would have a little harder time and nobody accidently spills something over it. Same with my pedalboard

 

[joelns]

Checklist. Then it can’t happen.

I've got that, in duplicate. One on my phone, the other with my charts. I had a brain injury, I can't remember anything.

 

[Thebiggestjerk]

The only things I take into the gig are my amp and bass. The rest stays in the car. In my gig bag is my cables/cords etc. I’m trying to rely more on the tone of my amp, my bass and my fingers without having to bring extra pedals, and thus having less to bring in and then watch or carry out.

 

[barginkov]

I also so the PA . Every gig I come back with one less mic cable. Mic case. Tuner. Sometimes they show up at the next gig .other times not.sunce everyone is packing up at the same time it's impossible to keep trrrack .when we use a re rental pa with sound man its easy.
Bass. Amp .stand 2 cables tuner.

 

[Doug P]

At a show a little far from home and sharing the bill with a band from another state, we both had our gear outside by the load in door. At the end we both had our gear out back waiting to load our trucks and one of my guitar cases seemed to get real close to the other bands “pile” ????
So, I started putting a couple stickers on my road cases and wherever ! I also had a stencil made that said “ Musical Equipment / Handle With Care” and sprayed the cases with it, duel purpose.
I have taken the same number of pieces to each show for years. And I know how they pack in the truck , so easy to tell if an item is not there. I’ll shut up. Too much coffee.

 

[Doug P]

A friend of mine use to number his cases in large white numbers. 1-5, do a count before closing the trunk. Good security also when there are several bands on the venue.

without re-typing my post, I too used the number thing. SR - 1, 2, etc…. Then the numbers were not in order as I took something different, a GK rig not Ampeg or …. Again, too much coffee and I’ll shut up

 

[Doug P]

I do that too, paying particular attention to bringing the right speaker cords. I went off and left one I custom made to hook up banana plugs from the amp output to the speakon inputs of my cab...twice. Had to run back and get it once as I recalled I'd left it while driving to the gig. Got there after the outdoor stage was all set-up (5pc. group) with no room left for me and had to set-up my amp on the asphalt behind and about a foot below than the stage. Here's the shot of it:
View attachment 4784274

Worked out OK though, I usually run my Eden WT500/800 amp bridged at 800-watts rms into my 8Ω DNS-410 cabinet for outdoor gigs. Outdoors I'll run the master somewhere between 9:30 and 10 o'clock. Since it was behind the stage and down a little bit, I ran it to 10:30 to compensate. After the first song, was told to turn it down. So I turned it down to 10 o'clock for the next song. After the second son, I got told to turn it down again. Then I turned it to 9:30 and that was perfect for the next 4-hrs.


I really hated setting up behind the stage and I'm really glad that I have good enough gear that it didn't matter. But anytime I take my 410 anywhere I am very careful to make sure that cord is in my gig bag.

The second time was a morning stage set-up and sound check for a music festival. Got there and got set up but no amp to cab speaker cord. Told the sound company it would take me about 1½-hours to go get it and they said, "no need". In about 6-minutes time they made the cord I needed with banana connectors on one end for my 1999 Eden amp and speakon on the other for my 2015 DNS-410...was a gooooood sound company!

If you look at my blue road case there is a piece of tape on top. It says….. Check for speaker cables. With many cords in the rear o

f the case I don’t want to leave the speaker cables plugged in, as I’m sure I’d pull something out and….. I also have a similar note in the lid of my case of “junk”.

 

[fhm555]

When I'm playing out on the regular I carry my amp in a two space rack case. I leave my speaker and power cables plugged into the head and just stuff them into the back of the case along with the cables to connect my stompbox tuner and bass to my head when I'm done so they are never lost or forgotten. I have a canvas doctor bag containing my stompbox tuner and power supply, extra cables, strings, tools, flashlight, etc. My cabinets are covered and my bass and strap live in an HSC along with a spare battery if it's active. I set up by the numbers and tear down in reverse order so I never forget anything, but I make sure everything that's supposed to be in the back of my amp head case, doc bag, and HSC are there before closing them up for the night. My cabinet covers go on and I'm ready to load out. The only wildcard is my stand. It is part of the setup sequence but because it usually rides on top of my bass case when it comes in/goes, out it is the only thing i can actually forget if I keep to my routine. I know this because over the years I've lost several stands by forgetting to pick them up when I grab my bass on the way out, but otherwise I've never forgotten/lost anything since adopting this system. Almost forgot to mention, the bass case, bag and head case get checked at home the morning after and if anything should be missing, it will get replaced on the spot, otherwise the bag and two cases remain closed while at home so I can grab those three items, my stand, and my cabinets and i'm GTG.