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What is YOUR gig bag like?


Bennardo

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What is in YOUR gig bag?

 

In addition to the bass and the amp, what do you use to carry the REST of your stuff to a gig? How do you carry/organize your cables, adapters, effects pedal(s), power strips, extension cords, XLR, sheet music stands, cloths pins (to hold chord charts in outdoor gigs), etc?

 

I use an old duffle bag with wheels that needs replacement and was wondering about something new.

 

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I use an Eastpack ® backpack that I used to take to school. At least I think I used to take it to school, I don't really remember where it came from, just that it has always been there.

 

It contains a bunch of old bass strings, mostly complete sets although I am missing at least one E- and one A-string; assorted cables and extension cords, pencils and markers, sometimes duct tape (though that went missing a few gigs ago), a yellow Simpsons towel, a microphone and ditto cable, a chromatic guitar/bass tuner and at least one pack of guitar strings because I know they will be needed at some point. I am in serious need of reorganising it, though.

"I'm a work in progress." Micky Barnes

 

The Ross Brown Shirt World Tour

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I have the oldest scummiest looking gigbag I can find - I figure it makes it less likely it'll get stolen but not sure it makes a difference.

As well as my bass it has cables, sheet music/charts, tuner (permamnently), screwdrivers, wire cutters, pens, clothes pegs (clothes pins - US) for outdoor gigs, spare strings, usually my H4 recorder and sometimes my video camera, duct tape etc.

That is pretty stuffed.

My amp goes over my shoulder and my cab fits in an old wheeled bag I bought at Ross or similar. In the side pockets are several instrument and speaker cables, effects (if I'm using them) etc. I keep a bottle of water, the bass stand (if I take it) and a music stand (if I need it) stacked in the bag next to the cab.

This way I can walk or take the bus or tube (subway) to the gig.

 

 

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I use an old backpack, contents:

-- Tuner

-- Multitool

-- Nail clippers

-- Flashlight

-- Pen, pencil and Sharpie

-- 20-foot extension cord

-- Power strip

-- Two instruments cables -- main and spare

-- Spare speaker cables (mains are in the rack case)

-- Multitool

-- Straps -- main and spare

-- Circuit tester

-- Batteries

-- Earplugs

-- Gag drumstick-through-the-head prop (gets 'em every time)

-- Extra strings

-- Duct tape

-- Electrical tape

 

I'm sure there's more stuff in there, but that's all I remember right now.

"Tours widely in the southwestern tip of Kentucky"
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I have been using an old laptop bag. it's worked out real well.

 

I have inside-

 

-my BP200 FX pedal (mostly used as a tuner and compressor)

-spare strings

-assortment of cables

-DI box

-music books (chord charts, etc)

-setup tools (allens, screwdrivers, etc)

 

It stores and moves good, sitting right on top of my 4x10 cab for transport and the shoulder strap makes it fairly easy to carry. I can carry it on my shoulder with my gig bag on my back and load in/out almost everything in one shot.

"Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind"- George Orwell
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I have an old Lincoln Electric tote bag I got when I attended a robotics seminar. Inside I have allen wrenches, a leatherman multi tool set, strings, batteries, cords (guitar, speaker and mic), a wireless unit, DI box, and a mic stand clip on drink holder.

Lydian mode? The only mode I know has the words "pie ala" in front of it.

http://www.myspace.com/theeldoradosband

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Depends on the gig.

I always carry a tweed-covered makeup case ($1 at a thrift store) with various tools, soldering iron, flashlight, etc.

If I'm taking effects pedals, they get shoved into another $1 makeup case along with the patch cables.

Spare cables, batteries, etc. go in my bass case/gigbag.

Tuner and ear protection usually travel in my pockets.

 

If I'm supplying any PA gear, I sort the various cables and such into a collection of thrift store luggage. ($2 -$5)

 

Paul K: One summer I spent 2 weeks in the woods of upstate New York. I hope the bug spray in your gig bag is 100% DEET.

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Everything that isn't my speakers or in my bass case . I never found any immediate need for screwdrivers, soldering guns and all that crap. Wires, pedals, mic, and my head. (After years of totting around heavy heads, ya gotta love that).

 

Oh, and a mini Real Book -- just in case.

JAZZ UN-STANDARDS http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vE4FoJ4Cr4&feature=related

 

DON'T FEAR...THE REVERB! 60's Instrumentals with MORE BASS!

 

 

 

 

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I use a canvas satchel I bought at Old Navy. Notebook, 9-volt batteries, extra strings, pens, tuner, chord charts for the songs we're playing, extra cables including XLR, wire cutter, guitar stand.
"Everyone wants to change the world, but no one thinks of changing themselves." Leo Tolstoy
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I put everything in my Protect Contego gig bag. Power cord for my amp In the top pocket. XLR for the DI in the larger pocket, which also gets my iPad. The smaller pocket gets my bass cable and speakon cable for my extension cab. Spare 9 volt and Leatherman share the zippered inner pocket.

 

If I have to sing, I toss the mic and cable in the bigger pocket with the other XLR and I'm good to go.

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Back in the NYC, I had a pretty nice Ritter bag that carried my bass, cables, a small tool kit, batteries (and a small battery tester), charts, and whatever else seemed appropriate.

 

Here in The Wasteland, I have a generic bag that doesn't completely contain my Jazz bass, and which also holds a cable.

 

Things are different, here.

 

Peace,

 

wraub

 

I'm a lot more like I am now than I was when I got here.

 

 

 

 

 

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Strings, extra strings, string winder, cables, extra cables, batteries, ear plugs, pocket tuner, extension cords, cab mic, cab mic stand, direct box, chewing gum, various small tools, duct tape, sharpie, amp foot switch, and various random crap objects that have accumulated at the bottom of the bag.

 

My gig bag is a carry bag that I got for free from Castrol for buying a case of syntec oil. It's the only one I've ever seen so I can spot it from a mile away.

Tenstrum

 

"Paranoid? Probably. But just because you're paranoid doesn't mean there isn't an invisible demon about to eat your face."

Harry Dresden, Storm Front

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I've been able to get my gig bag situation pretty well worked out. I've got everything portable enough that I can get to gigs in NYC using mass transit, including a cabinet.

 

GIG BAG - iGig G525

This bag protects my bass with some considerable padding. And it's got some pretty comfortable straps for walking around town. Packed in this bag are:

-My bass (which one depends on the gig)

-Altoids tin (with Fender heavy picks)

-Boss TU-12 tuner

-Cleaning cloth

-Foam string mute

-Ring binder with sheet music

 

 

Messenger bag

This is a Timbuk2 messenger bag. It's made of ballistic nylon and is super durable and very close to waterproof. They're expensive, but worth it. I've had the same bag for several years now and it has not disappointed. In this bag I carry:

-Eden WTX-500 amp head (weighs 4.5 lbs)

-Power cord

-3 instrument cables

-2 speaker cables

-Extension cord

-Fender mini electric guitar stand

-note pad

-sharpies

-pens

-gaffers tape

-tool kit in a shure SM-57 pouch (with screwdrivers, guitool, truss rod adjustment tool, vise grips, bass string winder, diagonal cutters)

-9V batteries

-Mini maglite

-2 x packs of strings

Obligatory Social Media Link

"My concern is, and I have to, uh, check with my accountant, that this might bump me into a higher, uh, tax..."

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Well, I have a pedalboard, so that houses all of my pedals (duh), and my gig bag holds my long cables, extra strings, string-cutters, a "multi-tool" (with a bunch of different screwdrivers and hex-wrench thingies on it) and my little theremin. My speaker cable and amp power cord go in there, too, along with a roll of gaffer tape.

 

The bag itself is a metal briefcase from Home Depot with a rubbery padding inside. They sell them as machinist tool cases that can be sectioned off to hold different things. I don't use the sections--it's wide open and unsectioned. Mine has "White Devil" written on the front.

\m/

Erik

"To fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting."

--Sun Tzu

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Well, not really a gigbag. Personnal stuff I want to carry (cutters, screwdriver, paper/sharpies, picks, batteries etc.) all goes into the compartments inside my two basses cases I carry to the show.

 

For all cables, pedals, stands and other things of the same type, everyone shares a medium sized wheeled flightcase. When we go out for a show, we meet at our rehersal place, load 3 vehicules and go. When done, we bring everything back to the rehersal place except our guitars which return to our respective home.

 

A note on flashlights: I used a mini-maglite for a long time, but got a bunch of cheap white LED flashlights for almost nothing. There are about a dozen of those in the common flightcase, although I still keep my mini-maglite in my main bass case.

 

Bob

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Music stand.

Music stand light.

Music.

Clothes pins/bulldog clips.

Pad.

Pencil/pen.

Screwdriver.

Couple of instrument leads and a couple of power leads.

RCD (GFCI).

Feel the groove internally within your own creativity. - fingertalkin

 

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3 different sized gig bags depending on what i'm doing.

a tiny one (sometimes even a plastic bag) for cables, batteries and a tuner for off the cuff jams where i need to bring a rig. a small bag just big enough to hold the essentials like cables batteries, flashlite etc + a pedal or 2 and a stand for small easy gigs not requiting much in pedals. an almost small duffle bag sized for heavy effects gigs and if i have to travel far (all kinds of backup and tools come w/ me jic).

B
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I generally carry TWO gig bags; I excerpt this from my FAQ on Gig Bags at my site.

 

Here's what you'll find in my Stage Gig Bag:

instrument cables, those I need for the gig and one spare, two if one is unusual

tuner, with short cable to plug into amp if needed

short multiple outlet extension (the ones with surge protection are even better)

small flashlight

bass cloth to wipe down bass and/or hands

a bottle of water

stomp box(es), if needed

nail clippers!

throat lozenges

small multi-tool

paper and pen for notes and for creating or editing set lists; pencil if I need to mark charts

band and/or personal business cards

 

The Stage Gig Bag gets stuffed behind my amp after I remove the stuff I need. The Emergency/Supplementary Gig Bag I keep in the car has all sorts of goodies, some of which I'll seldom, if ever, need. You'll have to edit this list, because you'll note that I am Responsible Guy, that nutjob in the band that always has to have a Plan B.

 

However, I remember how Plan B saved the day when one of our drummer's toms (electronic set) stopped working. We tried a different patch cord but that didn't help. I produced my VOM (multimeter) and the zero ohms reading indicated that the transducer inside was no longer working. I then pulled a screwdriver and multi-tool kit from my Emergency/Supplementary Gig Bag, so we could disassemble it, and found a cracked solder joint on the 1/4 inch jack. Oh no, we're done for! But it was no problem I pulled a small soldering iron from the bag, like a rabbit from a hat, and proceeded to heal the wound and save the day! Yes, I've carried a soldering iron around almost forever, and this was only the second time I used it in over thirty five years, but it was a satisfying experience both times. It took two sets for me to wipe the satisfied grin off my face.

 

Here's what you'll usually find in my Emergency/Supplementary Gig Bag

a replacement string set (the ones I replaced at the last string change) usually live in my bass case, but I'll have another set in my Emergency/Supplementary Gig Bag in the car in case I switch off and forget.

extra batteries

15 foot heavy duty extension cord with three outlets at the end

extra power cable, the kind used by most amps these days

instrument cable, long ¼ to ¼ inch

three short patch cables, ¼ to ¼ inch

short speaker cable, ¼ to ¼ inch; an extra long one if I'm bringing my PA

mini phone plug to stereo RCA jack set, if I'm carrying my PA, so I can plug a MP3 player into it if necessary

short speaker cable for my amp, speakon to speakon

speaker adaptor, ¼ (input) to speakon

bass EQ pedal (Boss GEB-7 clone) - this may be in my main gig bag if I'm gigging an unknown place with my Acoustic Image Contra or Doubler. They both have three band EQ, which is usually sufficient, but if I end up on the Stage From Hell I can use the seven band graphic equalizer to further hone my tone.

old beat up microphone and cable, new mic clip. Not for myself, since I no longer can sing, it's just for emergencies

multi-tool, leatherman style

multi-tool, adjustable wrench with other tools

hex wrench set, SAE and metric, for emergency truss rod moves

long nose pliers

small screwdrivers, phillips and regular

contact cleaner, Deoxit or a less expensive equivalent. This is a must for us along the Jersey Shore, where the salt air corrodes jacks, especially ¼ inch jacks. Ultrahigh impedance amp inputs also seem to be more susceptible to noise from corrosion. Hit all your jacks with a dose at least once a year.

handkerchief

soldering iron, solder*

headache/sinus meds, especially in the summer

electrical tape

earplugs

compact VOM (a multi-meter that measures voltage, impedance (and therefore continuity), has a battery tester, and more)

outlet polarity tester- a little electrical plug with lights that show if a plug is wired properly or could potentially kill you. This used to be a bigger problem, but as a result of being zapped many times (especially outdoors), I still get nervous when the electrical system on stage was obviously done by an amateur.

multi-voltage AC adaptor (not that I need it, but guitar players often forget or break one of theirs), and yes, sometimes even a few picks. This is Guitar Player Dependent. During one brief experience in a band with a particularly spacey player I carried a set of guitar strings, too.

This gig bag has been one of those heavy duty Sears tool bags with little pockets for more than ten years

 

As noted, the contents of my gig bags vary with the band and situation; outdoor gigs gets the wheels turning and means more extension cords, etc. I've been hauling my PA with my electric blues band lately, so a few PA oriented extras are added to the bag.

 

Yes. I was a Boy Scout.

 

 

1000 Upright Bass Links, Luthier Directory, Teacher Directory - http://www.gollihurmusic.com/links.cfm

 

[highlight] - Life is too short for bad tone - [/highlight]

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I keep a few things in the case with the bass:

-1/4" cord

-tuner

-in-ear headphones

-extension cable for the above in-ears

-picks

-1/8th to 1/4" in cable

 

Everything else is pretty much in a backpack (in no particular order):

-2 binders and 3 folders of charts I've written over the years

-Various color ink pens and a pencil

-small notepad

-allen wrench set

-socket for the straplocks (the socket wrench is in another bag)

-a couple 1/8th to 1/4" adapters (no idea why)

-clothespins

-strings for all basses

-rolaids

-toothbrush/toothpaste

-velcro ties

-9v battery

-baby powder

-metronome

-old hipshot D-tuner that doesn't fit on any of my basses (except maybe the fretless), but I have no idea why a lug that bag of parts around

-2 more 1/4" cords

 

I have a larger dufflebag that I don't take out very often and it contains:

-small electric fan (hey, I live in Arkansas and outdoor gigs are ridiculously hot and humid)

-two powerstrips

-small toolbox with just about everything I need

-small box with clear fingernail polish (for setting loose nuts and screws)

 

 

A stiffy somewhere in the city sewer system...
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