Osiris

Thanks for this. I'm still very much learning as I go with this stuff so there's certainly some food for thought above. As for running a tablet as a personal monitor mixer, that sounds like the ideal option but I think we'd need an external router, our keys player mentioned something about it the other night but being a bit of a Luddite I didn't fully understand what he was on about . I'll do some further investigation to see what's what. As far as I do understand it, I should be able to set up my own individual monitor mix from the desk, tailored to my needs in regards of levels, EQ, limiter, HPF etc. The idea of having my own desk (which as you say isn't actually essential) was so that I'd have the option of an additional level of control. I should be able to run a signal direct from my Zoom B3 into the Yamaha so although I'd have the bass a touch higher in the feed from the main desk, I'd also have the option to boost myself even higher from the little Yamaha should I need to (band mix from the desk in one channel and bass from the B3 in the other). Or does that sound a bit daft???

Having given the whole IEM set up some thought, I'm now coming round to the idea of using a small mixing desk as an amp to drive the IEM's themselves. I think the idea has been mentioned somewhere back in the thread already. I really like the look of the Yamaha MG06 for several reasons (size, cost, HPF on 2 channels, basic eq that could possibly useful for keeping the top in check for reducing ear fatigue) the main one being that I can have independent control of my bass volume against the full band mix from the main desk without having to consult whoever is driving it at the time. I seem to think that you can also do this with some of the smaller mic amps that you can clip on your belt but some of them seem a bit on the chunky side as well as limited in features, so I like the idea of my own separate mixer. Is anyone else already doing this? How do you find it? What mixers are you using? The only thing I haven't sussed yet is what to do with the desk itself on a gig. I don't really want it on the floor as sooner or later someone will step on it. Trust me, they will . I'm currently thinking of something like a mic stand iPad clamp/holder thingy or possibly a music stand with the main the desk part horizontal and a strip of Velcro to secure the desk. Anyone have any ideas how best to tackle this?

Thank you I'll report back once I've made some progress.

Having spent the past few days reading this entire thread (some of which I understand, some of it not ) and am looking to take my first teetering steps into the world of IEM's. The band has just invested in a new digital desk, the Line 6 Stagescape M20D that as far as I understand will offer us 4 independent monitor mixes. The drummer and keyboard player have all but moved over to IEM's now and the guitarist and myself are also looking to ditch the back-line and jump ship. There's a ton of very useful information on here, but one thing that has become apparent is that I'm, not going to be able to stretch to a high end system, but as has often been repeated, you can't do effective IEM's on the cheap so I'm realistically looking at something in the lower mid range level as a compromise between cost and sound quality. So having read through and understood what I can, I think that I'm going to go for a wired system. I plan to use my Zoom B3 as a tuner/EQ/compressor/DI. Am I right in thinking that it's as simple as plugging the bass into the B3, running an XLR from the B3's DI into the desk, then another XLR back into a headphone amp to which the IEM's are connected? Or have I missed something? In terms of the other hardware, I like the compact form factor of the Fischer in ear stick or possibly the new Behringer P2 (although according to Amazon, that's not due to hit the UK until April 2nd, and Behringer do have a certain reputation, so I'm still wondering if it's better to pay the extra for the Fischer? @dood Are you still using your Fischer in ear stick? What are your thoughts now you've lived with it for a while? Still impressed? As to the IEM's themselves, it seems that multiple drivers are the best way to help increase the low end of the signal. There's a lot of praise for the Ultimate Ears 900 so they are the current favourite. The Shure SE535's are also a potential but seem to be getting mixed reviews. I've also heard good things about the Fender FXA7's too. I'm not too worried about having CD quality sound in my ears, I've been playing with silicone plugs for 20 years or more so I'm quite used to the sense of isolation and less than perfect sound on stage. But from what I understand even a modest set up will still prove to be a revelation @EBS_freak as the official Basschat IEM oracle, does it sound like I'm on the right path here? Any thoughts, additional information and insights would be greatly appreciated.

Some of the free Tone Prints are of the parallel compression type. Off the top of my head I can't remember exactly which ones, but I think Captain East is one and I seem to think that one of the TC Electronics own ones (i.e. not ones designed by named musicians) is another. There may be more. If you download the app onto your mobile you can highlight your favourite Tone Prints and beam them onto the pedal quickly and easily, it literally takes 2 or 3 seconds.

Not necessarily, I've found compression is great for keeping a driven bass signal in check, albeit I use a dedicated, relatively low gain drive channel on my amp rather than balls out distortion or a dedicated pedal. But if it doesn't work for you then it doesn't work for you

That reminds me @Al Krow have you finished with my cucumber wrapped in tin foil yet?

Well said that man.

Agreed, the one knob Spectracomp on the TC Electronics amp heads are fantastic. And the pedal version is better still, being simultaneously both as simple as it gets with its single control, massively flexible with the free TCE Tone Prints, and offering almost infinite levels of control with the free e Tone Print editing software.

Martyn has just bought a pickup from me and it was a totally painless deal. Good communication and quick payment too. You can't ask for more than that as a seller

It's got valves in it and sounds like your genitals, apparently. Assuming you're male, that is. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nobsound-Vacuum-Preamplifier-Digital-Control-Silver/dp/B0711RVJN8/ref=sr_1_33_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1517914164&sr=8-33-spons&keywords=headphone+amplifier&psc=1

I personally won't leave home without one, compression has become an essential tool for me, and like you I've been playing and gigging for 30 odd years. Compression is a very decisive issue among bassists, some love it as I do, some people hate it and most people are probably indifferent to it. But as with most things there's no real right or wrong answer, just what works for you. However, I do think compression is widely misunderstood by some people who expect to hear it as an obvious effect - it isn't. Effective compression is subtle and not always obvious, until you turn it off that is! Some people when experimenting with compressors assume that they are not doing anything so tend to set them until they can hear the squash working, the trouble is by that time you have completely squashed the life and dynamics from your bass tone, which seems to be the main complaint from those who do not like them. Less is more with compression. Properly set up they do not kill your dynamics, but allow you a more controlled bass tone that sits better in the mix than an uncompressed one, in my experience at least.

Good shout on the J&D, I played one that @Thunderbird had and it was superb, as you say the neck is great.

I have a Peavey Zodaic, the short lived mid spec one between the basic BXP model and the highest spec Dave Ellefson signature model. Bought it new around 10 to 12 years ago for less than £200. The neck is super slim (it makes Ibanez necks feel like tree trunks ) and the build quality are hardware and faultless. It's still stock other than a Dimarzio model P pickup (and disabling the bridge pup). The only issue that I've had with it is that it needed a fret level on the upper most frets after a few years. Other than that is has been great. I regularly gig it alongside my other (£1K+) basses.

I have been using the G55 for about 3 years now and always have the receiver sat on top of my amp and I've never had any drop outs. However, the receiver is housed in a different casing so maybe there's some additional insulation or whatnot to help shield it from interference from the amp? No idea if the transmitter is the same as the one that comes with the G30, but mine is metal cased and like most of the guys above, I've had issues with the belt clip, mine is metal and very sturdy but virtually impossible to prize apart to slip over my strap. The battery door hasn't caused me any problems but it is a bit fiddly so I can see how it is problematic for some users. To get around both of these issues, I use a mobile phone pouch that came with a Targus laptop bag, it fits the transmitter perfectly and covers the battery door to prevent any issues there. Plus it Velcros onto my strap. It also offers a thin layer of protection to the transmitter when the bass is on the stand as the transmitter tends to be on the floor due to where I've positioned it. And the little corner cut out for the aerial is perfect for the stubby little Line 6 aerial too. I've been trying to find a link to something similar but can't seem to find the pouch on its own. If I find something I'll update this post with a link.

"The white bits on the neck are just masking tape. " And what's with the carving of the bananas (that are presumably mating?) above the bridge pickup?

I was about to chip in with my thoughts and experiences of the Magellan as well as link to my review that I'd posted on Basschat a while ago but @karlfer has beaten me to it In summary, an incredibly versatile amp that is virtually impossible to get a bad sound from. Bags of the elusive heft that folks say is lacking from many class D amps. Oh, and the drive channel is astounding; low gain vintage tube like warmth through to a smooth, rich overdrive that is perfect for Motown and dad rock.

I used to use a little Mark II about 10 years ago and although I thought it sounded great, the trouble I had with it was that the treble eq is voiced at 10 KHz, which for me is too high to add any useful treble frequencies when playing with fingers. It might work great when slapped for that glassy top end, but that's not a sound that I personally use. It's the main reason I moved it on (as well as finding the bass eq voiced at 40 Hz to be too low and only really useful for cutting low end on boomy stages). My guess is that if you feel it's a bit dull it's possibly because the eq is not suitably voiced to give you some useful treble. My preference is for a lower voiced treble, something around 4-6 Khz, which I find works better for brightening things up without getting too shrill. As others have said, maybe try an external pre-amp which can give you more control over the frequencies between the upper mids at 800 Hz and the treble at 10 Khz. I'm also not personally enamoured with the Mark bass cabs, they'e not inherently bad but I too don't find them that exciting tonally, let alone the sunflower aesthetics Someone mentioned earlier about using some compression, which may also help.

https://www.sfu.ca/sonic-studio/handbook/Sympathetic_Vibration.html

It sound like whatever is rattling is more susceptible to the relatively higher frequency in that case. But that still doesn't necessarily mean that the cut at 25 Hz is ineffective.

But cutting at 50 Hz would be more noticeable which is why I suspect you found it to be more effective.

Assuming you're playing at in-house volumes, it would be very hard to discern any noticeable audible difference with a cut at 25 Hz. That's not to say that it isn't doing anything though

While this may be true (I'm no expert on these things so I'm quite happy to accept what you say ) I have had some great results using the Ba PEQ model on my Zoom MS-60B for reducing the lowest of the lows with my little 1x12 cab that I use for rehearsals. I use it with my Genzler Magellan 350 which has excellent built in HPF'ing, so it may well be due to the diminutive dimensions of the cab that is the limiting factor, but the speaker seems to 'breathe' more easily, for want of a better description. There isn't a massive impact on the low frequencies other than a subtle tightening up of the low end. It may not be a true HPF but it certainly helps for what I use it for.

No problem, my life is pretty chaotic too Valid point about the notching (is that even a word?) but I have set the Q's wide so hopefully this stops, or at least significantly reduces, any affect on the tone. To my ear there's nothing obviously noticeable. But I have changed my settings since the last post but as I'm at work I can't tell you what they are off the top of my head!