Basses

I'm not much of a gearhead. Here's my basic setup:

• A much-abused '60s Meisel upright bass. This bass is made from the finest plywood, and was lovingly restored by Denver bassist and luthier Pat Carbone after it was discovered in pieces in an Iowa pawn shop.
• I have a bizarre string setup: D and G are LaBella Goldentones, A is a plain gut, and E is a Velvet Garbo. This setup is slappable but still has some acoustic volume.
• My main electric bass is a stock G&L LB-100, strung with D'Addario flatwounds. This bass has the vintage Precision Bass feel, look and sound. I play this for almost all electric gigs. And my El Dorado strap is the one flashy piece of gear I have.

Upright pickup/mic

• I use a K&K transducer through a Fishman preamp, and then send that signal to the amp. I've tried many things through the years and I'm the happiest I've ever been.

Amps

• My main amp is a cheapo Ampeg B2R. It's the bottom of their line, 300W, and every "better" amp I've ever tried doesn't sound as good to me.
• I also have a Traynor YBA-1 from the '70s, a great little tube amp that can't get loud enough for most live situations.
• I use Avatar Cabinets and have for used. They're great.
• For practice at home, I use a Fender Bassman 25, a nifty little practice amp.