mcnach

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1089684' date='Jan 14 2011, 07:00 PM']I briefly planned that my latest project would have a MM pup in the sweet spot (just happen to have a 'ray '09 in my parts box ) and in MFD in the neck position. The twist would be that you couldn't mix them, you would either have the choice of Stingray (with proper pre) or L-1000. The 2 most awesome basses built into one. I shelved it though when I decided that the 2 completely different circuits sharing the same knobs would be a nightmare to design.... besides the 2 pups side by side looked pish. [/quote]


maybe if the MFD runs totally passive?
I'm not a P-bass fan, but the neck MFD has some of what I do like about the P-bass, without all the stuff I dislike, and a dollop of its own character that I really dig. Passive sounds nice.

[quote name='neepheid' post='1089117' date='Jan 14 2011, 11:29 AM']Most of what I said was not particularly serious, in reality in the live situation I find a setting that I can hear above the band in the room I'm in and leave it. I just like having options, even if I never use them. Put it another way - this was my calculator through secondary school and university -



I mostly used it to add stuff and do a bit of trig and base functions. I probably used about a tenth of its capabilities. On the plus side no-one asked to borrow it

I'm with you on multiFX though - I can't be bothered trying to work it all out.[/quote]


heh, I think I understand you, this was mine at university:

[quote name='dub_junkie' post='1089082' date='Jan 14 2011, 11:09 AM']thanks for that. I always had the impression the G&Ls were a fair bit chunkier overall. I like the dimensions on the SR5 so the G&L may likely suit me[/quote]

Correction:

The G&L neck is a *bit* chunkier than the SUB5 (no idea whether the SUB5 the SR5 use the same dimensions 'though).
The difference is not very large, though. It's very comfortable for me.

edit: I just noticed your location. If you're ever up here in the 'burgh and want to try it, you're welcome.

[quote name='tom1946' post='1088891' date='Jan 14 2011, 07:51 AM']As you say a nice problem to have.
As I have 2 L2000's I set each one slightly different and once I find the sound I like then I leave it alone.

I had a 2EQ stingray and nice as it was it didn't do it for me, it felt a bit bland.

We're all different I guess.[/quote]


I guess we are all different... I will call the Stingray many things, but "bland" is not one of them!

The Stingray seems a bit more "raw" to me, and the G&L powerful yet in full control of itself... if you know what I mean (and if you do, that's amazing! )

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1088669' date='Jan 13 2011, 10:06 PM']How many more times am I going to say on here that G&Ls DO NOT do Musicman. It's impossible - the pups are wrong and the eq is just "hell no".

I think just because Leo did MM that people think they must be similar. MM was a major departure for Leo and his magic inventive mind. G&L was a return to Fender style thinking with a veiw to improve on everything, hence the oft quoted "P on steroids" line.

Anyway Jose, how you digging the L2500.... besides not sounding like a SUB? [/quote]


Well, I thought it look kinda similar, having never seen one "in the flesh", and enough people ask about differences between L2000/SR4 etc that I thought they must be somewhat similar in some form

The truth is, as you know, they aren't. You can make a noise with the L2500 that kinda overlaps some Stingray tones, but it does NOT sound really like one. Nope.
Having said that, it's a sweet bass.
It's early still, but the first impression is really good. The preamp is "odd"... nothing like any other preamp I've worked with before and I don't find it as intuitive... I feel I would probably use both treble/bass maxed most of the time, with slight cuts only. But it's a really comfortable and good-sounding bass. I have to play with it more, but I think I'm keeping it (and the SUB5) despite rarely needing a 5 string.

Last night I was playing along to some Sade and it was so full, round, rich, defined... yum!
You know what's happening, 'though... it's only a matter of time until I find a 4-string (L2000) that will tempt me. Stingray Jazz and L2000 sounds like happiness to me
(a fretless L2000, hmmm)

[quote name='dub_junkie' post='1088946' date='Jan 14 2011, 09:14 AM']I personally love the switching on the Asats/L*** basses. I settled on about 3 or 4 tones with these basses a long time back so for me its almost second nature to flick between them.

congrats on the L2500. I've never owned a G&L 5 string - how does the neck profile on yours compare to the SUB5? (which I guess is pretty much the same as my SR5 in profile)
I'm keen on buying a G&L 5 string one day but haven't spent any time playing one to know how it'd compare neck wise to my MMs[/quote]


It's early to say for certain, as I only played it 40min at first, anotehr 30min late last night and 10min this morning... so ask me after the weekend again

But I feel the G&L has a similarly wide neck, but perhaps a bit shallower. They're not very far from eachother, that's for sure, but the g&L feels a bit nicer. It could be my impression because of the finish of teh SUB5 and the setup (rather low on this G&L)... So, I'll play with them more at the weekend and will report back... but they are not hugely different. If the SR5 is like the SUB5, dimension-wise, then the G&L won't feel alien. I find it very comfortable.

[quote name='neepheid' post='1089007' date='Jan 14 2011, 10:09 AM']Too many options? Not enough options in my opinion. That's why I had the single coil option added to the middle switch on my L-2000. That means I have 27 switching options where you only have 18. That means mine is betterer

It's probably the computer geek coming out in me but I love basses with unusual switching options. All my basses have at least 1 switch on them. In addition to the semi-mad L-2000 (I say semi-mad because I haven't done the final mod which allows you to choose inner or outer single coils - mine is inner only) I added the selector switch to my Epi Les Paul bass, the G-3 has a pickup selector, the Hodad has 7 combinations of 3 pickups and the Victory has pickup selector and a passive/active/active with mid notch.

There's something satisfying about flicking a switch and something tangible happening. You can take your blend pot and poke it [/quote]


27 switching options... (where's the emoticon for an imploding head?

I have been playing guitar for many more years than I'd admit, and I got into modifying the electronics early on. I learnt to solder when I was a kid, as my dad was often soldering stuff at home, so it was fun to get new sounds simply by changing a few cheap components and combining pickups.
The thing is that at the end of the day, most options are subtle variants. Yes, sound A and sound B are different... but in a live situation they are not different enough and a simple change in EQ (for example) is more effective. And even recording, you are able to achieve enough variations from the preamp alone and/or postprocessing.
27 switching options playing live seems like a huge headache and in *my* experience, it all comes down to a handful of tones that I would really use.

The geek in me worked out ways to separate coils in humbuckers and combine them in weird ways... a Strat with HSH configuration provided a lot of entertainment! But not every sound was distinct enough to warrant a "preset", and navigation among all the options to find the handful of sounds *I* wanted was complicated.

Different people, different tastes! I'm not saying you're wrong at all, whatever works for you.

I want simplicity, I want to play without having to think too much about switching. That's why I also prefer my basic pedalboard with individual boxes to a multiFX even if a multiFX can give me lots of other sounds: I feel more "in control" when I see the individual function leds and where the knobs are.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='1088610' date='Jan 13 2011, 09:16 PM']How many basses you got now mate? I keep looking at all the g&l's and like you get distracted by the switches. I'm sure I will get one at some point but I'm running out of space to put them and don't want to get rid of anything either. East pre G&l with 3 blanked off switches? Lol[/quote]


How many?
A few

I'm trying to consolidate and go down to maybe 7 (I have a rack that holds 7 guitars, so it seems like a good number) but it's proving difficult. I should just buy another guitar rack

How many do I use regularly? Maybe just 3 (Stingray, Jazz and OLP/SUB5), with the Stingray 80% of the time.

Well, I finally got my hands on a lovely G&L L2500 Tribute I bought here.

I only was able to play for 40min or so tonight, but it was enough to notice a "problem".

You see, I own a MM SUB5, black with rosewood board. Lovely beast.
I saw this L2500, in natural finish with maple board... I'm a sucker for maple boards... and after hearing so many great things about these basses I went for it, thinking it'll probably get me close to the sound of the SUB5, and I can just keep the one I like best.

Fool.

The L2500 is really nice. Lots of different sounds, and all of them great. The preamp is a bit odd compared to what I'm used to, but nice. I feel it's nicer to play than the SUB5. It's comfortable, easy to play despite being slightly neck-heavy, and sounds fantastic (and the natural ash body is just gorgeous).
However... it gets in the vicinity of the SUB5 sound, but not really there. The SUB5 is distinct enough in its "Stingrayness".

So here we are, now I want BOTH. Not only that, I'll end up buying another JE preamp for the SUB5 if I indeed keep it. And here I was thinking I was just swapping and saving the $$$ of the preamp!

The only thing playing against the L2500, *for me*, is the various switches. Two pickups, all those switches... distract me. If I have switches I feel compelled to use them (the manufacturer might feel slighted if I don't, or something ) I just sold my Warwick Corvette $$ and it suffered from the same issue. Huegely versatile, but I keep fiddling! That's why a Stingray fits me well: simple controls for simple minds
I know, I know, I could just ignore the switches, find a position that sounds good and leave it at that. But... nah, if they're there, I'll use them, and I'll be playing a gig fiddling constantly with them because I forget what they sound like.

Nice problem to have

[quote name='BIG.J' post='588785' date='Sep 3 2009, 03:06 PM']Any Thoughts!!

[url="http://www.gear4music.com/Guitar-and-Bass/Bugera-BTX36000-The-Nuke-3600-Watt-Bass-Amp-Head/ANG"]http://www.gear4music.com/Guitar-and-Bass/...ss-Amp-Head/ANG[/url]

Must admit one of the nicest and quietest amps i have ever used was there 300w head!

Me thinks this is a little overkill

J[/quote]


I had the 300W BX3000T head. It was heavy, the fan was not quiet... but it *did* sound very good, I admit.
That was Behringer being reasonable.

A 3600W head? let's read the specs and then we talk about watts.
But the most important bit is what it sounds like. And that, my friend, I have no clue... but when they start misleading quoting ridiculous power specs (as reported widely for their newer power amps) they lose my respect.

[quote name='Bassnut62' post='1086945' date='Jan 12 2011, 05:16 PM']A big factor that you might want to consider is that the L2000 or asat sound great in active or passive. The ray is only active.[/quote]

Not mine

I put a JE preamp in it which sounds better than the original 2EQ it came with, plaus it has a passive/active switch.
Interestingly, a large proportion of the time I play using a tone that's almost identical to the passive Stingray, I've come to notice: I could have saved lots of $$ and simply remove the preamp!

(not really, I *do* use the preamp)

[quote name='MythSte' post='1086978' date='Jan 12 2011, 05:55 PM']The reason I'd choose the Ray34 over a "real" stingray is more one of value than quality. I've played 3 now and they've all blown me away and sounded exactly like I hear a stingray. If money was no object I'd buy the better quality bass, which I have no doubt is the US Stingray - the difference in price between the two just doesn't seem to reflect the difference in Quality and I think that's why people like them so much (IMO).[/quote]


Do try them in circumstances as close as the life they'll see. If you play only at home, at moderate volume, find an amp that sounds like your own at home. If you mostly record with headphones, bring your favourite headphone amp. If you play in a band, rehearsing loudish and playing live, try to reproduce that situation if you can (ideally you'd find a bass you can borrow for a day or two, but that may not happen unless you're well known at the music store, and even then... although amplifiers they're more relaxed about and they let me try out my RH450 that way, but I digress).

The reason I say this is because I was a ferocious advocate of OLP basses. I own three, one fretless, and for a while my favourite bass was one of the OLPs with SD pickup and 3-band preamp. It sounded and felt great. I tried Stingrays in shops and they felt great, and were obviously better quality with regards to build etc... but they didn't sound substantially better than my OLP, if at all.

Until I found one Stingray that caught my eye and decided to give it more attention. At home it wasn't an obvious winner... and then I had a loud rehearsal with it. NOW there was a clear difference. The presence, punch... was definitely different. With the OLP I had to tweak the preamp etc, every time, in every room. With the Stingray it's always incredibly easy to find a good tone with lots of body that cuts through and sits well within the band, and I play in 3 different sounding bands now: no problem.

I saw the light and had to eat my words, as some people around here may remember

The OLP is still a great bass, and I love it. I often play it at home... But the Stingray is the one I take everywhere.
Believe me, if I hadn't heard a big difference I would have not kept the Stingray and I'd still be here posting threads about my beloved OLPs every other day!
But that difference, I failed to notice it playing by myself at moderate volumes in a guitar shop and even at home. It only became *amazing* when playing with a band.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='1087461' date='Jan 13 2011, 12:15 AM']That's what I said mcnash but he says it's still the same? OLP 5 with a J East pre should sort him out bed time now anyway I'm sure the wise ones will be dodging work tomorrow with good advice![/quote]


OLP? I hadn't thought of that but now that you mention it...

Yeah, I replied before reading all the replies... Without seeing the bass personally I can't think of anything else. A decent 5 string bass sound is not exactly rare, so I find it difficult to understand why the OP has so much trouble with a BEAD bass (bottom 4 strings of a 5-stringer) *if* he uses the usual gauges *for a 5er*.

[quote name='digitalmetal' post='1087407' date='Jan 12 2011, 11:23 PM']Hi All !

Hopefully you guys with a bit of experience can help me out with this,
maybe you have come across it before?
Ive searched around and cant find any answers so i thought i would post the question here.

I play in a modern metal band and we use low tunings, i play a 4 string bass and tune down to BEAD just 5 string tuning really but omitting the lightest string,

I have a problem (and have had this same problem with all 3 of my 4 string basses)
The heaviest string ( sounds great, just how i want it, loads of low end no twangy slap funk sound,
The other 3 strings are almost polar opposite they sound twangy with loads of higher frequencies and not enough low end,
Now i know i could just EQ this out but using the EQ will obviously effect the low B too maybe i need to experiment more to eq it exactly but i think there may be something im missing,

The main bass i play right now is a Jackson - John Campbell signature model which has EMG active Pick ups , a hum-bucker at the bridge and split P Bass style at the neck, it has an EQ built into the preamp where each of the two pick ups have a tone control and what i believe to be a frequency focus sweep pot , mounted on dual concentric pots. so there should be plenty of room for tweaking.

im using 110 guage DR Black beauty strings which appear to fit the nut fine without any need for it to be filed out,

Now, yes as i said above i could try and EQ but i cant get the thought out of my head as to why 3 strings are all the same and just 1 is sounding different.

One friend had a theory that perhaps the pick ups are not design to come with a low B frequency as it is a 4 string and standard E tuning out of the factory, can this be true? or does anyone else have any other ideas?

The same this is also true of my other two 4 string basses one an 80's ESP M-IV and the other an LTD Viper 404,

When i was using my ESP as my main Bass i took it to my local bass shop (the bass Gallery in Camden London) and explained my problem to them and asked them to check the nut and file it if needed, restring it and set it up in B in case my tuning change had created this problem.
But after their setup it still exists.

I am also considering buying a multi-band compressor to compress the highs and lows independently, will this help? any recommendations on compressors?

Why not just use a 5 string you say? well i have one but i dont play it as i dont need so many strings and the neck is obviously wider and not so nice to play.

Any help anyone can offer would be very much appreciated[/quote]


Try a higher gauge. 125-135 for your B, and 100-105 for your E and so on... if you take a normal set and detune it so severely I'm not surprised it sounds bad.

I own a Stingray 4 string and a SUB5... and I'm waiting to receive a G&L L2500 Tribute that I bought purely on looks and reviews as I never tried one... very curious to see what it is like!

I already have a Line6 G30 so I'm not after one myself, but would be interested to hear how you like this one.

[quote name='derrenleepoole' post='1085178' date='Jan 11 2011, 09:28 AM']Surely a proper tuner would be better, and the iPhone tuner used as a backup?[/quote]

That's what I do.
On an Android phone you can try the free "gStrings". Pretty versatile tuner, works well. But I only have it for those occasions when I don't have a tuner handy. I always take a tuner to gigs/rehearsals.

[quote name='chugster' post='1084066' date='Jan 10 2011, 11:44 AM']Hi, I recently started playing bass and, although I have access to an amp for live purposes, it isn't practical for practice at home. Can anyone offer me any advise regarding "pod" type solutions that Icould use to practice with headphones?I've seen this [url="http://www.behringer.com/EN/Products/LX1B.aspx"]Behringer LX1B[/url]
any views?

Any advice would be very much appreciated.[/quote]


I had the V-Amp Pro version of the one you link to (rack mount). It does a good job for home use... but if you want to get the most out of it, you should invest in some good headphones that are able to reproduce bass nicely.
I'd go for it.

I have a Bass POD XT and it's not significantly better than the behringer.

[quote name='Mykesbass' post='1085693' date='Jan 11 2011, 04:39 PM']For me it would be completely pointless.......and yet I still want one [/quote]

join the queue!

There was a Peavey Tour 450 head and matching 4x10" cab here on Basschat a couple of days ago that was within your budget. That would be a fantastic option, in my opinion. One studio I often go have those very amps/speakers and I really like their sound. If I were you I'd snap that amp & cab right now!

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='1084518' date='Jan 10 2011, 05:37 PM']I'm happy with all my real ones guys. I have 2 and 3 EQ covered 4 and 5 strings , muted and none muted bridges, slab and Contoured bodies and spanning 28 years of production. I know after playing lots of Rays the ones I have if set up to whoevers liking would be better than any copy versions on all counts. I'm very lucky to have them so please don't think I'm a show off but I don't have (many) vices and work/play to buy them so what should I do sell them all and buy a 35? Why should I there great! (Tony the tiger reference )

As you were, what do I know about rays anyway? I'm always being told what's better for half the price. Maybe I'm just a bass snob , so what?[/quote]


I have an OLP and... blah blah blah

[quote name='Linus27' post='1083047' date='Jan 9 2011, 12:17 PM']Looks nice. I just wish they would do a Classic fretless or a SBMM Ray34 fretless.[/quote]


yup! I'd be there!

yum! beautiful.

[quote name='paul_5' post='1080372' date='Jan 6 2011, 08:15 PM']I noticed that recently on BC certain music shops have had a bit of a flaming, and thought to myself that one day, if I ever had a really positive experience of a retailer then I would share it to redress the balance. It happened today.

I spent 20 minutes on the phone to Watford Valves and spoke to a guy called Derek. I called about retubing my Ampeg SVP PRO, and he asked a lot of pertinent questions (what sort of sound do you want? etc... ) and eventually we settled on a set of valves. Even once he'd made the sale he continued to answer all of my questions regarding other makes of valves and transformer issues etc... A thoroughly nice (and very knowledgeable) chap. I can't recommend these guys enough. Good to see staff in music retail who actually give a sh*t about their customers.

That is all. [/quote]


dealt with them in the past and indeed, they are good. Wish all shops were like them.

[quote name='itswac' post='1080279' date='Jan 6 2011, 07:08 PM']Gentelmen,

After a great deal of pushing on our part we've finally gotten the Soundblox Bass Envelope Filter listed on Thomann. Sorry that there was such a delay on this! Sadly, we actually lost a few European customers because of this...

The link is: [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/source_audio_soundblox_bass_envelope.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/source_audio_soun...ss_envelope.htm[/url]

If you have any questions about the BEF, send them my way!

Cheers,

Will[/quote]


Any idea when the PRO version will come out?
Would really like the ability to store a couple of different sounds on this.