mcnach

[quote name='pete.young' timestamp='1484990824' post='3220173'] I have a Zoom h4, which might do all of this: stereo mikes for ambient, desk feed into one line channel, bass into the other line input, in 4 channel mode make up a nice mix and iems in the headphone socket. Would this work? [/quote] I'm now thinking of trying that myself! Using this: using the Zoom H2 for ambient sound, and the OmniCabSim for bass sound, mixed with that little but pretty versatile mixer. I was checking the H2 the other day in my office (I had the bass at work, and the H2 lives in the gig bag)... It was very interesting to set the gain switch to "High"... I could hear when people were opening doors down the corridor because the whirring noise of the equipment fans in the room... and I could hear conversations quite clearly next door that normally you could not make out... Obviously I'd want the gain set 'LOW' during a gig, as I do for recordings during rehearsal, but that was pretty cool. They're decent little microphones, those in the Zoom units, eh?

[quote name='ezbass' timestamp='1485003031' post='3220286'] I think I've finally settled on the colour/look of what I'm hoping will be my next build. Elwood L, Delano JSBC p/ups, passive, drop D tuner, 33" scale, 21 vintage-medium frets. I'll wait until NAMM is over and then drop Adrian a line. Here's a mock up I put together with a stock picture and a bit of editing... [url="http://s308.photobucket.com/user/ezbass/media/elw160287_zpsnvca1pui.jpg.html"][/url] [/quote] That's seriously sexy... if it had a maple fingerboard I'd have to steal it from you I'm about to start week 9 of my wait... not long to go now, maybe another 4 weeks or so Although mine is not going to be as 'wow' as yours. Very nice!

[quote name='thegummy' timestamp='1484868693' post='3219368'] Just got my first P Bass. It's amazing but I'll save all that for the NBD post when the custom pickguard arrives. Question I have for you P players is where do you tend to pluck? On a J I was always used to plucking right between the pickups which worked well cause i rested my thumb on the neck pup. I looked at my favourite P player, Pino, and he plucks right over the pickup but it feels strange to me hitting the pickup with my fingers. Is that where it's generally plucked? [/quote] I like to pluck just below the pickup, towards the bridge (although it varies a bit, often I pluck right over it too). The thing is I'm used to using a pickup as a reference/resting place (from using a Stingray) so I tend to put tiny thumbrests below the Precision pickup. Like this:

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1484909941' post='3219566'] In fact, thinking about this, you could fashion your own with a small mixer and something like a Palmer PDI09 (enables you to take a balanced feed from a speaker feed). [/quote] Hmmm... I have to investigate. I was even thinking of something like what Dood suggested in another thread... and mix my Zoom H2 onstage to capture the ambience and general band sound, with the headphone output of my OmniCabSim, as a rudimentary IEM test. On my main band I use a tiny pedalboard that is generally either on top of my amp or on the floor by my cab on the side, so I may be able to set it all up with minimum fuss and cabling. It's not going to be anything like what you guys get... but all too often it gets too noisy on the stages I play, and earplugs protect me but I sometimes can't hear much, and I don't want to make things harder by just turning up up my amp onstage since it generally just makes things worse... I don't really want to be wired, but maybe that is enough to give me a more enjoyable experience and meanwhile I keep learning so that I can decide what I really need, as a decent IEM system, wireless, is not exactly cheap.

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1484837237' post='3218943'] New toys - [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUasZpMINt8[/media] [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzEAn2y-5-g[/media] Glorified headphone amp right? [/quote] Hmmm, I actually like that, as it would provide a relatively cheap and uncomplicated way to get into IEM... but I'd like an aux input that you could mix with the wedge input too. Pretty much everywhere I play I could select one of the wedges (which one it'll depend on which mix I like best, but probably usually the singer's one), and then use the headphone output of my OmniCabSim into the SoundTap, mixing it with the wedge mix to my liking. It would be a wired system, which is not ideal, but it would be simple, something that even I can understand... and I don't need to depend on other people or begging for mixer aux outputs etc

[quote name='Low End Bee' timestamp='1484840180' post='3218994'] There's your battery problem. I doubt I do 4-6 hours practice a year. Plus jazz. All those notes. [/quote] "All those notes" Glad I had just finished my drink...

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1483520924' post='3207768'] There's not really a lot of competition at that price point, especially when we are talking quad drive balanced armatures. There's the XBA40s if you can find them... otherwise you are stepping up to say the Westone WD40s. Should probably point out that the competition in balanced armature designs is very tight - there are only really Knowles and Sonion in the balanced armature manufacture game, so likelihood whatever you buy will be made from those, or a combination of those. What you are paying for is the sound signature (e.g. tuning and crossover design - that for most are actually passive and made up via tube dampening and tube length, only a few have electronic crossovers in place) and the casing. The UE900s are defo the bargains... and considering that they are from UE (who are certainly up there in terms of IEM front runners), they are not to be sniffed at despite them having been on the market for some time. There is a reason why they haven't been discontinued - they are great. These have also been on my radar of late - [url="http://www.mi.com/en/headphonesprohd/"]http://www.mi.com/en/headphonesprohd/[/url] - only out since the end of 2016... Dynamic in the lows so should give better response than a single BA (remember I always suggest at least a dual low when using balanced armatures because balanced armatures have less headroom) - [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Xiaomi-Pro-HD-Earphones-Triple-Driver-Dual-Dynamic-BA-Hybrid-UK-fast-postage-/222339603573?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368"]http://www.ebay.co.u...725.m3641.l6368[/url] (Easiest place to source is probably eBay as they are not officially available outside of the US) They are cheap enough to give them a whirl, right? [/quote] I'm reading this thread with interest as we're talking in my band about in-ears, and if we don't all do it I am definitely considering purchasing some gear to allow me to use in-ears... and this thread (and others) have been very useful. I'm still having 1001 questions but... getting there Anyway, I am not writing about all that... I'm writing about the Xiaomi earphones in the link above. I was interested in getting some that sounded half decent and I thought why not. So I got a pair of those. First impression wasn't incredible. A lot of treble, so much so that I EQ'd it decreasing treble progressively above 4KHz. The bass wasn't particularly impressive either. It was there but it didn't have the definition I was hoping for. HOWEVER! I was really struggling with the actual buds. Poor fit in my ears. It's not the first time... I seem to have unusual ears or something. The Xiaomi come with 4 pairs of buds. None fit well. The least bad were the ones that came already installed. I find the rubber material too slippery, it just doesn't stay in my ear and if I shake my head they come loose. They also make my ears feel hot, tired, after half an hour or so... maybe because I try so hard to get them in place and stay there... Very disappointing. So I took the buds that came with my Sony earphones (they were around £40, I can't recall the model). They are the worst Sony earphones I've owned... but the buds are better for me, although still not ideal. I installed the Sony buds on the Xiaomi... woah! BIG difference. The treble is no longer annoying and I reset the EQ flat. The bass... there's quite a bit of it, but the most important part is that it has a much more defined sound. I was using a couple of Lettuce albums that I know well to assess the sound... funky, nice horns, keyboards, effects, wah guitars... I won't say they're the best earphones ever, but at around £35 including delivery I'm very happy with this. They feel reasonably well made although I wish for a more substantial cable, but it's still a LOT better than the Sony. I guess it makes a big difference to use the right buds. The ones I am using now are ok, but I could get a better fit, so I'll investigate and see if I can find something that fits better. I'm not sure how well they would work as for IEM, these buds don't block as much external noise as you'd want for that, but they're nice cheap earphones that sound probably better than most in the price range, and I'm glad I read this thread Edit: they also don't leak as much sound out as I expected, pretty quiet outside your ears at the volumes I like, which is great

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1484820306' post='3218675'] TBH apart from a GK amp in the rehearsal room that had a generally confusing control layout, I don't think I've ever come across an amp that I couldn't get EQ'd to give me the sound that I wanted out of my bass. [/quote] Of course. I always get a reasonable sound too, but that's not to say I like every preamp and/or that I don't have preferences, and some sound nearly right out of the box and others require more work and their design make it harder to get the right sound I want. I found the GK preamps generally to my taste (lots of options, but I tended to leave them quite flat, so it was easy), the LM3 works quite well for me to allowing me to modify exactly what I want to. The Streamliner 900 is a bit of a struggle by comparison. I make it work, but I don't enjoy it. Similarly, the preamps on my Stingrays (2EQ and 2EQ + semiparametric mids) are a breeze to use for me and I much prefer to deal with that. There are differences. I care. [quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1484820306' post='3218675'] And for me, in a band mix (and lets face it, that what really matters) most basses do sound the same. [/quote] my Stingray will never sound the same as my Precision or P/JJ. They all work. But some do certain things better than others. They most certainly don't sound the same to me, which is why I have different basses. I use just one at any given gig, because they all work, and the onboard controls (some active, some passive) give me the differences I need. Some songs require a deeper woolier tone and I may cut down treble and play closer to the neck, others a more middy and well defined sound so I may cut down bass a bit and leave treble neutral and play over the bridge pickup... etc. Some require a trebly "clang"... I adjust that on my bass. I don't touch the amp controls after the first song. Of course it's my preference and neither better or worse than anybody else's approach, it just tires me to hear comments that essentially say "well, I think this approach that I use works just fine so it's a little ridiculous to do anything else" even if they use nicer words

[quote name='hiram.k.hackenbacker' timestamp='1484820243' post='3218673'] ....and under no circumstances should you be allowed to own a torch! [/quote] what about a solar powered torch... oh...

[quote name='Jazzjames' timestamp='1484810925' post='3218568'] In my experience of using a bass equipped with a Glock preamp, the battery would last 6-9 weeks. That's practise plus rehearsals plus gigs as it was my only bass at the time. I was obviously doing something wrong... Too much practice? Too many gigs? Please advise. In all seriousness though, I think I made my point much earlier in the thread- I prefer the sound of passive instruments right now. That's the main reason for me. [/quote] That sounds extreme. I heard of preamps eating up batteries but usually there was a bad connection that drained the batteries. Some preamps have higher consumption than others but 6-9 weeks? I owned a bass with a 3-band Glockenklang preamp... not sure what model, it was around 2007, the one that in passive mode still allowed a passive tone control to be used. I can't say how long it'd take to die, but it was certainly in the "many months" range and that bass got a lot of use too. But your preamp may be different. I'd change battery at the beginning of every month if I had that bass, to avoid worrying... but if I were you I'd check whether that is normal behaviour for that preamp. It may be absolutely fine and it's just a high consumption design, but as those are relatively rare I'd check, just for peace of mind. And agreed completely: whatever we personally prefer is fine, there's no absolute better or worse here.

[quote name='mildmanofrock' timestamp='1484761990' post='3218238'] Sorry, was I not clear enough? [/quote] No, to me you weren't, that's why I asked. I hope it wasn't too much effort to answer. Thank you.

[quote name='Jazzjames' timestamp='1484635684' post='3216954'] And you only need it to happen once when a battery fails on stage to know that relying on a £3 battery as a crucial chain in your signal path is not cool. [/quote] The battery won't fail you... a human (you) will fail you, most likely, when they forget to replace the battery once a year or so

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1484603254' post='3216807'] Unless the controls on your bass do something very different such as the filter EQ of the Wal or ACG, or they allow you to EQ each pickup separately, I really can't see the point as all they do is duplicate what you should already have available on your amp. [/quote] Do you find you like the EQ sections in all preamps? I don't. The preamp on my Stingray is nothing like the EQ section on my LMIII or my Streamliner 900 which is again different. And there's a good reason why they're different. So no, onboard preamps do not necessarily duplicate the controls on your amp. That's like saying that all basses sound the same.

[quote name='Shambo' timestamp='1484602695' post='3216795'] I prefer passive because I want less to fiddle with. Active is a bit of a distraction for me, plus I get to leave my bass plugged in. [/quote] I never leave the bass plugged in... one clumsy person tripping on the cable and you risk damaging the output socket or worse.

[quote name='Osiris' timestamp='1484744195' post='3217975'] Cheers sammybee, is this the guy who trades as Arrowhead guitars? If so, I hate to be [i]that guy[/i], but unfortunately I had a bad experience with him a few years ago and won't use him again. Pity as his price for a set up is very good. I usually do my own set ups, they may not be perfect but the instruments are usually good enough for me (i.e. low action and a hint of fret clang when I dig in) but I just can't get my cheap old stunt bass to how I want it so I think it's time to get someone who actually knows what they're doing to have a look at it. [/quote] He had some rough times, at a personal level... I'm pretty sure that was the reason behind whatever trouble. He's a good guy.

[quote name='Woodinblack' timestamp='1484686395' post='3217566'] Open cover, take out battery, put in battery, close cover. Pretty complicated yes, next weeks lesson is putting on trousers [/quote] Next week? But I've got a gig this week! I guess I can hang the bass low...

[quote name='FinnDave' timestamp='1484681706' post='3217485'] I've never played an active bass, perfectly happy with my passive basses as they so see no need to change. Some people seem to spend their whole lives looking for a better this or better that. Personally, I'd rather just get on with playing. [/quote] wise man! I was a bit like that... until I discovered BassChat.

[quote name='mildmanofrock' timestamp='1484655459' post='3217174'] Active basses sound a bit 'keyboardy' to me. That can be a good thing, I suppose. [/quote] what do you mean? That could be a cool effect sometimes, actually One thing I find is that there are a lot of naff uninspiring active basses out there, especially in the low/mid-range price bracket. It's almost as if they put a preamp just to make them seem better value than they are. Not every preamp is the same just like not every bass is the same, and I suspect most people first experience with active basses is with one of these not so inspiring ones. If you start with a good instrument, passive, adding a good preamp (or a 'suitable' preamp for that particular bass, perhaps, in terms of centre frequencies, width/slopes etc) does not need to destroy that good passive tone. Some preamps can totally obliterate it, and you may want that or not, sometimes it works, sometimes it does not... but many preamps will not screw with that. I find it difficult to talk of 'active' basses and 'passive' basses as if each class had a very distinct characteristic sound, because to me they don't. There's enormous variation within each, which is why active/passive is the last thing I care about when choosing a bass.

[quote name='ped' timestamp='1484643369' post='3217019'] I prefer active. Less noise, more flexible - funny when people say there's too many knobs and it's confusing... if you can work a toaster you can learn the controls on a bass guitar [/quote] Ha! True... but for people who don't like toast those controls are unnecessary since they just want the pure bread flavour straight from the oven to the table

[quote name='hiram.k.hackenbacker' timestamp='1484656225' post='3217185'] I wasn't aware of any overwhelming dislike for actives. I own and play both. I do think the battery argument is a bit daft. [/quote] no dafter than claiming passives sound better in the studio it's all down to personal preference and the context in which an individual bass is played. I find these threads quite amusing. They're interesting as you get to hear what people like and dislike about certain aspects and that's cool. But there are some general blanket statements that are frankly hilarious. I never get tired of the "passive, because I want a pure signal" (which I haven't read in this thread yet, by the way, I'm surprised ) when the passive signal is going to be processed through tons of various analog/digital equipment anyway

[quote name='Muzz' timestamp='1484655971' post='3217182'] Dime the mids on my East pre on any bass I have, and it'll drive the amp pre into that one. There you go. [/quote] Aha! That's something I use a lot on the 3-band East in my Stingray when playing in the RATM covers band: by altering the mids slightly with the overdrive pedal engage you can control how much distortion is apparent in the band mix. Really useful!