chris_b

A few years ago, after having a fret stone and ultra low set up at the Gallery, my Lakland played like a million dollars. I play quite lightly anyway but I still had this feeling of constantly having to hold back so, after a few months, I decided the action was too low. I took it up a little and am now much happier. I find I'm now able to bring better dynamics to my playing. 3 of my 4 basses were Pleked when they were made so I have a good starting point. I don't measure my strings when I'm altering the action on my basses. I take the strings down till they buzz then bring them up until they don't. Obviously, with a lighter touch they won't have to come up as far as some but that little bit of extra height is enough for me. Everyone is different. I saw Nathan East, one of my favourite bassists, at GAK and he had a very even and light playing style. Every note was perfect even when he was messing about. When I saw Victor Wooten at DV247 his playing style was very "agricultural". It was a surprise to me how rough he was when playing. Almost attacking the bass.

[quote name='bassjim' timestamp='1488642073' post='3250717'] I do get a feeling I'm being taken for a ride here..... [/quote] No one's being ripped off. For whatever reason, if you don't shop around then the price you pay is what you've decided to pay. Your decision. You can't blame the shop if you discover the same thing cheaper. Do more homework or don't buy in a rush.

SD are great pickups. I have Mike Lull's custom versions on my Lull basses. Lindy Fralin pickups were designed to sound like vintage Fender pickups. I love the fat sound of the Bartolini pickups I have on my Lakland and on my Fender P bass.

I don't know what kind of music you play but here's a big +1 for ditching the rhythm guitarist idea. Is the other guitarist good enough to take on the sole guitar role? You'll have to play differently but you shouldn't see it as trying to fill a hole in the sound. The dynamics and overall band sound usually improve when you only have 1 guitar. The last time I played with 2 guitarists the second guy doubled on keys. That made it just about bearable.

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1488669037' post='3250989'] . . . . . however the DEP has more work to do than the other regular members. . . [/quote] That's not actually true. The difference is the dep has to do the same thing in a lot less time. With most of the deps I do I'm familiar with many of the numbers and getting my head around new numbers, new arrangements and old numbers in different keys is a great musical education. Also playing with a new drummer is always a great experience.

Both cabs and amp look great to me.

Email Alex and ask.

Deps can dep out a dep. I managed to pick up a couple of great gigs in 2 bands last year because the dep had to cancel.

[quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1488537386' post='3249732']the dep doesn't have to put up with all the band drama crap [/quote] I depped for a fantastic blues/rock band many years ago now. The argument started as we were packing up and the band had all but broken up by the time my gear was in the car!!

All you guys who refuse to be "told" anything must be the band members from hell for the other guys in the band.

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1488488219' post='3249475'] If I DEP a bar gig, my fee is $175.00. I'm not concerned with what the others are getting. [/quote] Do you get many offers?

Same. I know that most of the bands I played in divided up the money equally, but some didn't. As long as you get what you think the gig is worth to you then there's no problem. I know a function band that pay very well for a dep but it's less than the usual guy gets. I've also done deps where the band has asked my what my rate was! That stumped me the first time. What a dilemma! If you go greedy you've possibly killed a good gig and no one wants to go stupid low!

[quote name='28mistertee' timestamp='1488467412' post='3249217'] We use 3 tunings so I use 3 basses where my G&L SB1 is in B which is the problem tuning. The pickups are very powerful so that could be problem. Amp I have a Mywatt400 and I have a Sansamp DI programmable mainly to help keeping the volume of all 3 basses at the same level. Cabs are both 8ohm. [/quote] OK, so it's just the one bass that is causing this problem and the other 2 are fine. So I'd say the indication is that there is nothing wrong with your gear, that buying new gear would solve, but your set up and/or EQ for the SB1 needs looking at. If the DI is just levelling out the volume you're still running your low B with the EQ that you use for your other 2 basses. You might need to change the EQ for the SB1. I'd guess you're overloading the signal from the bass, or from the pre amp. Does playing the SB1 on its own, no Sansamp DI, get rid of the problem? Or how about taking the volume of the SB1 down a little more than the others?

I'm assuming you mean the Double 212 and the Duo 210? There are various versions, 4ohm, 8ohm and 16ohm. Which are yours? Glockenklang say the Double 212 can be used with all of their other cabs. That indicates mixed cabs are not an issue. What bass and amp are you using? Glock's are aimed at the clear sounding end of the market so if your sound is "muddy" it's got to be you, your bass or your amp. If your amp is new, what did you use before and did you have this problem then? A 400 watt valve amp is going to be a monster so do you get this problem at low and medium volume levels? Do you use pedals?

Put in the hours to get both right.

I've been asked not to play a particular bass (Gibson EB0) and I've been asked to play one (Wal Mk3 Custom). I was fine with that because I understood exactly the objective of the request. For the same reason I'm putting on a Tux for a function next week.

[quote name='Prince_phil' timestamp='1488453726' post='3249037'] I definitely don't get the 'too much bass thing either'! Its makes you realise that a lot of cabs are just putting out mids and not actual bottom end. . . . Will see how I get on over the next few months and how it copes with any dodgy sounding rooms.. [/quote] This is the problem (for some). . . a big low end will be harder to tame in a difficult room and in the band mix. Emphasising the low mids usually cuts through a noisy or full sounding band so the bass can be clearly heard, rather than just felt. Listen to the radio and CD's. You don't hear boomy, muddy or indistinct bass (unless it's a badly recorded live album). No matter how low the notes go you can always clearly hear them. That isn't always the case playing live. So if you EQ out the real low frequencies you can actually end up with a better sounding bass. High pass filters are very useful as they cut out a lot of low frequencies that our ears don't hear and the amps and speakers have a hard time reproducing. Would you say that an Ampeg 810 reproduce a great bass sound? That cab is rated at a lower limit of about 60hz. That's nowhere near 41hz but still sounds great down to a low B. IMO low mids should be the target for a great bass sound.

You have not been given good advice. You don't need a 15" for a 5 string bass. That might have been true in the 60's but certainly isn't these days. I play 5ers and have used 10's, 12's and 15's. The best sound I've got was Bergantino 10's and 12's and now Barefaced 12's. Low frequencies will use up amp power so if you're playing loud get an amp rated accordingly. I use 500 and 800 watt amps. Don't worry about looking for a cab that will reproduce 30hz or lower. You can get a great low B sound out of an Ampeg 810 and that's rated somewhere about 60 hz. My Bergs are rated at 40 hz and the B was amazing. IMO unless you're talking about 810's 2 cabs usually sound better than 1. More speakers means more volume, a better tone and less potential for damage.

Keep the bass you play the most and sell the rest.

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1488238179' post='3247210'] So, no controversy here. Epic fail on the spleen-venting front. We really must try harder [/quote] Sorry Skank. I tried but the hate didn't come!

Many years ago I bought a WT800C from Andertons and did 2 fantastic gigs with my Epifani 410. What a great sound, but at low volume there was a buzz. I didn't know what it was and Andertons couldn't find the cause so, sadly, I returned it. . . . and bought my first Thunderfunk. A good move. IME Eden was the pick of the bunch at that time.

I'm not a fan of Techno, Hip Hop, House, Classical, Opera, Brass Marching Bands and a few other styles. And because of that I don't really mind which instruments are used. . . or not.

[quote name='julesb' timestamp='1487891775' post='3244042'] Played through an Ampeg 8x10 last night.... [/quote] Good aren't they? Nothing like them but pretty impractical unless you're playing stadiums or employ roadies. Like trying to do the weekly supermarket shop or a run to the dump in an Aston Martin One-77.

You don't need a tube amp for recording. A valve DI will give to a great recorded sound, or, I used the DI on a Mesa Subway on the last recording I did. What a great sound. There are some very good D class amps that have a quality sound at low volume. There are also a few with valve pre and D class power section. If you're playing quietly at home get the best speaker cab you can afford. I'm currently using a TH500 though a BF One10. Sounds great at "front room" volumes.

Play the biggest set you feel comfortable with. Currently I've got 43 - 136 flats on my 5 string P bass and 45 - 130 rounds on the others. OK I don't slap or bend strings, but if you don't either go as big as you can. My experience, with my style, I usually get a better sound out of bigger strings.