Problem with small cabs on small stages

Lucky you!
I don't think its luck so much as everyone realises that you need to give the band the best chance to play as well as you can.
Hearing everyone and everything is just part of the deal.
The older and more deaf we get means that we lose the ability to discern what you want to hear amongst clutter. So appropriate volume is a lesson we learn late...but it must be learned.
That's why anyone not adherring to this basic rule doesn't get the gigs with the guys that have...because no one wants to rehearse anymore than necessary..and listening and hearing is absolutely fundamental..imo.
It dominates everything as a goal..
 
I don't think its luck so much as everyone realises that you need to give the band the best chance to play as well as you can.
Hearing everyone and everything is just part of the deal.
The older and more deaf we get means that we lose the ability to discern what you want to hear amongst clutter. So appropriate volume is a lesson we learn late...but it must be learned.
That's why anyone not adherring to this basic rule doesn't get the gigs with the guys that have...because no one wants to rehearse anymore than necessary..and listening and hearing is absolutely fundamental..imo.
It dominates everything as a goal..
I agree with you. I just have not been fortunate enough to play with bandmates like yours…who realise all this stuff. Some of my bandmates simply enjoy playing loud. That’s why I envy you…
 
  • Like
Reactions: Passinwind
I agree with you. I just have not been fortunate enough to play with bandmates like yours…who realise all this stuff. Some of my bandmates simply enjoy playing loud. That’s why I envy you…
Way back in my "glory days" of rock'n'roll, I enjoyed playing bass mostly because of the physical sensory feel of it, in addition to what I heard. That required more power, bigger cabs, etc.

The older I got, the less I needed that low end feel. Now I'm just happy to hear a tone I like. So now it's less about power requirements and volume. It's about enjoying the music produced with others. I've been down that never-ending rabbit hole of needing lots of power to be loud enough or "cutting through the mix". The mix shouldn't require the need to cut through it.
 
I think we've all been in that situation where the band asks where the stage is, and the club owner points to it and says, "Here. There should be enough room if you push the pool table out of your way." :laugh:
When I was band gig getter I'd ask what the size was then mock it up in a 3D design program meant for working out how to furnish your living room, with amps represented by boxes of tissues resized to enormous proportions. I'd then see if everyone would fit and that cables could be laid in a way that didn't present a huge trip hazard. It might sound complex, but once you've set up the basics, it's pretty quick.

I was caught out a few times when they'd neglected to mention all the other things on stage. Occasionally it was possible to move the subs or whatever off it so there was a chance of getting everyone on stage and a route to get up there too.

That band was quite theatrical so it was useful as if there was a back stage that could be designed in for dramatic entrances. Hopefully, the new band will be similar.

Venues aren't always good with understanding wheelchair accessibility for stages.
 
Usually by letting the front feet of the amp hang over the edge. In this case, it's the power of rat fur 😊
My lead sleds (one needs to go) are in rack bags so I don't have that option. They do have Velcro but not in a useful way. I could add more. I haven't tried the new Ashdown class D yet.

Thinking about it, maybe I could take the feet off and get some metal bars with a U shaped hook on one end, and then screw the feet back on. The grille on my cabs aren't recessed but there might be enough gap. Else it's grappling hooks into the grille.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DJ Bebop
My lead sleds (one needs to go) are in rack bags so I don't have that option. They do have Velcro but not in a useful way. I could add more. I haven't tried the new Ashdown class D yet.

Thinking about it, maybe I could take the feet off and get some metal bars with a U shaped hook on one end, and then screw the feet back on. The grille on my cabs aren't recessed but there might be enough gap. Else it's grappling hooks into the grille.
Maybe something like this to go between the back of your amp and the front of the speaker cabinet…

1727736557663.png

Cutting the tip off the top one so it would be flush with the back of the amp and the other end could hook over the front edge of the speaker cabinet with or without the tip. They come in different lengths. Or just bend up a piece of metal to do the same thing. There is also tool draw liners and bar mats that will help in keeping the slipping down.
 
Last edited:
  • Love
Reactions: -Asdfgh-
This is the solution I'm using for performing on stages with limited real estate. For "me", tilt-back cabinets usually, the angle is designed so you have to be standing almost on top of the cabinet like a floor monitor for the sound to be directed at your ears.
The cabinet I'm using you don't have to be right on top of the cabinet. At one time I owned an Eden 2x10 wedge bass cabinet. It had the same issue. You had to be standing almost on top of the cabinet for the sound to be directed at your ears. It was a great sounding cabinet but weighed quite a bit.
 

Attachments

  • 20200627_103823.jpg
    20200627_103823.jpg
    2.6 MB · Views: 5
  • 20200627_103805.jpg
    20200627_103805.jpg
    2.1 MB · Views: 4
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: DJ Bebop
Maybe something like this to go between the back of your amp and the front of the speaker cabinet…

View attachment 7042764
Cutting the tip off the top one so it would be flush with the back of the amp and the other end could hook over the front edge of the speaker cabinet with or without the tip. They come in different lengths. Or just bend up a piece of metal to do the same thing. There is also tool draw liners and bar mats that will help in keeping the slipping down.
The cheapskate in me (think, Sam Tellig, for anyone around here who remembers him) has done this kind of thing with coat hanger wire to keep my Walter Woods on top of a tilted-back SWR Bass Monitor 12 I used to own.