Baloney Balderdash

Congratulations. And guess I was wrong then about it being a RAT. In any case using a high gain distortion/fuzz with clean blend, or getting something like the Boss LS-2 or similar that allows for blending any pedal with clean signal, might be a good idea going forward for the distorted parts. And even if it turned out to originally be a Big Muff I still think something like the RAT based MXR M85 Bass Distortion, as I suggested in my initial reply, would do well for this sort of thing.

Anyone tried the Vox MV 50 CL Clean, 50W mini amp (designed with guitar in mind) featuring a Nutube based preamp and a Class D poweramp, as a bass amp, and if so what was your experience? Eventually with the EQ "Deep" switch on the back panel, originally meant for improving the bass response of the mini cabinet the Vox also sells and makes for them (and not needed for regular cabinets, but thought it might still be useful when used for bass maybe)? I am really intrigued by it, and I don't really need more than the 50W @ 4Ohm RMS it is rated to be able to deliver. Love how it looks, and it only weight slightly above 0.5 Kg/1 lbs. Actually small enough to be fitted on a pedal board, about the same size as 2 standard Boss pedals. Pretty cheap too: 1490 Danish Kroner/199 Euro/175£ at Thomann. And it generally gets really great reviews, used for guitar, as intended, at least (haven't been able to find any info about people using it as a bass amp).

Calling all woke mods! That thread title can't possibly be legal!

Silver Rocket - Sonic Youth

This is another of my absolute favorite YouTube concert clips: And yes, I am fully aware that Tortoise is generally categorized as being a post-rock band, but come on, this is pretty damn jazzy, and as far as I am concerned their music, and especially from the albums that the tracks they play in this video are on ("TNT", "Standards", "It's All Around You"), could just as well had been categorized as jazz, if, again, not exactly traditional jazz. For certain, beyond discussion, this is by far way more jazz than rock. Even when it comes to the instrumentation.

I really like the design of the ESP LTD F-204/F-1004 models:

And not just a P Bass, but a P Bass with flatwound strings on.

Doesn't the Darkglass Neural DSP feature a build in photon jet engine? If not it ought to at that price.

Yes, fully adjustable HPF and LPF effect models, with adjustable slope as well, though 12dB/Oct being the max applicable slope (but you could easily get around that by stacking multiple filters (a 12dB/Oct HPF stacked into a 12dB/Oct HPF for instance set at the same frequency essentially is the exact same as a 24dB/Oct HPF)).

No such thing, having widely diverse influence can only be an advantage, and my influences are probably even more diverse. Though probably not the best way to write a "seeking musicians for starting a band" add. Good thing he is a musician then and not in the advertising/marketing business.

Also I used to play bass in a hardcore and noise rock influenced math rock band that consisted of a guitarist/vocalist, 2 bass players and a drummer, me having the role as sort of a lead bass player, using a brighter tone and alternating between playing melodic parts, noise parts, counter parts to both the other bass and the guitar, or playing unison with either the guitarist, just one octave lower obviously, or the other bass player, depending, whereas the other bass player filled out the more traditional, consistently supportive, role of a bass player.

I guess if I should actually answer to the premise of the OP, which I initially overlooked, and only chose 4 pedals, it would have to be these, for a scraped down version of the core of my "amp-less" setup, for my basic "clean" tone : Mosky XP Booster (clone of the Xotic EP Booster V1) -> EHX Black Finger (tube driven optical compressor, with 2 preamp tubes operating at proper high 300V plate voltage, mainly used as a tube preamp stage, driven to just at the edge of the tubes's breakup point, but with some very subtle compression dialed in as well) -> Zoom B1Xon (mainly used as reverb unit, including the {very subtle plate reverb -> subtle spring reverb} patch that is part of my basic "clean" tone) -> NUX Melvin Lee Davis Bass Preamp + DI (loaded with a digitally emulated Aguilar Tone Hammer amp, and an Ampeg SVT-212AV IR cab simulation, with a subtle low gain overdrive blended in at a 50/50 clean/drive ratio) I know the Zoom is technically a multi effect, but in this context it would then be exclusively for my always on reverb, as part of my basic "clean" tone. And again, if my basic "clean" tone was already covered, then this: Boss LS-2 [Loop A + Loop B Mix] (effects loop switcher/mixer) ->{ [Loop A Send] -> TC Electroni Sub'N'Up Mini (digital polyphonic octaver, exclusively used for a custom made 1 octave up Toneprint, always used stacked into either the {Behringer MD300 Mega Distortion -> Joyo Orange Juice}, or sometimes just the Joyo Orange Juice, in front of it) -> Behrringer HD300 Heavey Distortion (Boss MD-2 Mega Distortion clone, dialed in to deliver a high gain distortion, and stacked into the Joyo Orange Juice in front of it, and then mixed with clean signal rom effects [Loop B]) -> Joyo Orange Juice (Orange amp like overdrive, dialed in to deliver a medium gain overdrive, either used alone, mixed with clean signal from effects [Loop B], or with the Benhringer MD300 Heavy Distortion behind stacked into it, and mixed with clean signal from effects [Loop B]) ->|+|<- [Loop B Send] -> [Empty Loop] (for clean signal blend, either mixed with the {Behringer MD300 Mega Distortion -> Joyo Orange Juice}, or just the Joyo Orange Juice, from effects [Loop A]) => [Loop A Return] + [Loop B Return] (mixed at an approximate 2:1 ratio) => [LS-2 Output] }->

Turkish/Dutch, Turkish lyrics : Kurdish/Turkish/Danish, Kurdish/Danish lyrics : Turkish/Danish, Turkish lyrics :

Well, there is 4 effect types signal chains.

I don't have photo of my current setup, and still working on a complete rearrangement of my pedal board. This however is the pedals that makes up the basic core of my "amp-less" setup, that is the pedal signal chain that is responsible for my basic "clean" tone: Mosky XP Booster (clone of the Xotic EP Booster V1) -> XVive Undulator (tremolo pedal, but never actually engaged and used exclusively for its great buffer) -> EHX Black Finger (tube driven optical compressor, with 2 preamp tubes operating at proper high 300V plate voltage, mainly used as a tube preamp stage, driven to just at the edge of the tubes's breakup point, but with some very subtle compression dialed in as well) -> Zoom B1Xon (mainly used as reverb unit, including the {very subtle plate reverb -> subtle spring reverb} patch that is part of my basic "clean" tone) -> Boss LS-2 [Loop A + Loop B Mix] (always on effects loop switcher/mixer) ->{ [Loop A Send] -> Joyo Oxford Sound (clone of the Tech 21 Oxford preamp pedal, which is an all analog emulation of an Orange type amp, including a simple analog cab sim filter, dialed in to deliver a low gain overdrive, and mixed with the NUX MLD Bass Preamp from effects [Loop B]) ->|+|<- [Loop B Send] -> NUX Melvin Lee Davis Bass Preamp + DI (loaded with a digitally emulated Aguilar Tone Hammer amp, and an Ampeg SVT-212AV IR cab simulation, with a subtle low gain overdrive blended in at a 50/50 clean/drive ratio, and mixed with the Joyo Oxford Sound from effects [Loop A]) => [Loop A Return] + [Loop B Return] (mixed at an approximate 1:2 ratio) => [LS-2 Output] }-> ART Tube MP Project Series (tube preamp and DI, technically not a pedal though) -> Gives me a really great vibrant and clear, but at the same time full sounding, mids heavy and very lightly overdriven, tone, and I could totally live with just that... Though, assuming my preferred "clean" tone was already being provided, next on my desert island pedal wish list would be the pedals that makes up my high gain distortion setup, which then would be placed after the EHX Black Finger in the above listed signal chain, looking like this : -> TC Electroni Sub'N'Up Mini (digital polyphonic octaver, exclusively used for a custom made 1 octave up Toneprint, always used stacked into the high gain distortion setup/signal chain in front of it) -> Boss LS-2 [Loop A + Loop B Mix] (effects loop switcher/mixer) ->{ [Loop A Send] -> Mosky Black Rat (RAT clone, in Turbo RAT mode, dialed in to deliver a high gain distortion, mixed with the {Joyo Orange Juice -> Boss MT-2 Metal Zone} from effects [Loop B]) ->|+|<- [Loop B Send] -> Joyo Orange Juice (Orange amp like overdrive, dialed in to deliver a low gain overdrive, either used alone, mixed with clean signal from effects [Loop A], or stacked into the Boss Metal Zone in front of it, and mixed with the Mosky Black RAT from effects [Loop A]) -> Boss MT-2 Metal Zone (dialed in to deliver a medium gain distortion, always with the Orange Juice behind it stacked into it, and always mixed with the Mosky Black RAT from effects [Loop A]) => [Loop A Return] + [Loop B Return] (mixed at an approximate 4:5 ratio) => [LS-2 Output] }-> Which delivers a monstrous ballsy, raunchy, fuzz-esque, and massively heavy high gain distortion tone, which though is still surprisingly well defined and articulate. Next on my wish list would then be my NUX Tape Core Deluxe pedal, which is a pretty amazing digital emulation of the legendary Roland RE-201 Space Echo tape delay, and which would be placed after the Zoom B1Xon in the top signal chain list above. And last on the list would then be following modulation setup signal chain, placed after the the TC Electronic Sub'N'Up Mini in the second from top signal chain list above: -> Boss LS-2 [Loop A + Loop B Mix] (effects loop switcher/mixer) ->{ [Loop A Send] -> Monarch MFL-22 Stereo Flanger (basically a rebranded version of the Arion SFL-1, sometimes stacked into the HoTone Trem in front of it, mixed with either clean signal, or sometimes the Behringer VP1 Vintage Phaser, from effects [Loop B]) -> HoTone Trem (tremolo, sometimes used with the Monarch Stereo Flanger behind it stacked into it, and always mixed with either clean signal, or sometimes the Behringer VP1 Vintage Phaser, from effects [Loop B]) ->|+|<- [Loop B Send] -> Behringer VP1 Vintage Phaser (clone of the original big box EHX Small Stone phaser, with Color switch engaged for deep sweep and high resonance/feedback, always mixed with the Monarch MFL-22 Stereo Flanger from effects [Loop A]) => [Loop A Return] + [Loop B Return] (mixed at an approximate 50/50 ratio) => [LS-2 Output] }-> Which fulfills all my modulation desires... Well almost, a TC Electronic Tailspin vibrato, which is a Boss VB-2 clone, would be a nice addition to this.

I ever only had experience with Hartke amps and speakers through one of their tilt back combos featuring a 15" aluminum cone speaker unit, 120W I think it was rated at, that I owned years back, so a much earlier model than their current tilt back combo offerings, but to be honest I was, mildly speaking, not impressed. Sounded flat, dull and lifeless. From a tone perspective hands down the worst bass amp I have ever played through. That said I do realize that this was one of their cheaper offerings, and that they also might have improved since then. I also admittedly have had a keen eye on Hartke HyDrive HD112 1 x 12" + 1" tweeter cabinet for a while, which on paper, spec wise, seems like a genuinely great light weight cab, and the demos I have watched featuring it have actually also sounded great as well. However to this day my experience with that tilt back combo back then still makes me sceptic of their amp offerings. Great that you found the right amp for you though, and congratulations on getting an endorsement deal on it.

@LiturghianPope I just edited my initial reply to you in this thread with this, I think, valid reservation, when browsing through the different pickup models on Nordstrand's homepage: Note though that the pickup descriptions on Northstrand's homepage seems more like tongue in cheek parodies on the usual nonsense marketing babble than really being of much help getting closer to any kind of real idea of what they might sound like, though the tone charts provided for the different pickup models is of some help at least, but to really get a better idea of what to expect from them I'll advice you to look up YouTube demos/reviews. Also here's the link to their homepage: https://nordstrandaudio.com/

The 24dB/Oct of this pedal is actually a quite drastic HPF, typically most HPF'rs commonly used for this purpose is 12dB/Oct.

Breaking the law!

I just use the switchable HPF build into my ART Tube MP Project Series tube preamp, which is placed at the end of the signal chain of my "amp-less" setup. It is not adjustable though, fixed @ 40Hz 12dB/Oct, but it does really help a lot tightening up the low end. That's right, your low end actually gets, not only more defined and articulate, but actually also more pronounced and punchy, from cutting off all that sub bass low end rumble that only serves to muddy up your signal anyway. Other than that a HPF will allow for your amp and speaker cab(s) to work much more efficiently, and could actually mean that you will be able to turn up a bit higher as well, because their power is not sucked up by sub bass (the lower you go the more power is used), as well as it might prolong the life of your speakers as well.

Also this is the truth! Music should be done out of passion and love (well ideally everything should, but we all know that that unfortunately is not how the World "we" build happens to actually work. At very least let the music stay sacred (in spite of the perversion that makes up Top 40)). But not only for the sake of the musicians, very much for the sake of the audience as well. It really does shows (listens?) if that is not actually the case.

Seems like you missed the main essence of my initial reply. I also disagree that it wouldn't matter which distortion is used, the character of that distortion is very much RAT like, and very pronounced and defining for that tone, as far as I am concerned, and probably a Turbo RAT to be more specific, not every distortion sounds really dirty, grainy and raspy like that, I'd say using the right distortion pedal is quite crucial to get the general vibe of that bass tone. I agree though, as I also already said, that there is definitely much more going on than simply mixing in clean signal, definitely two separate bass tracks, a clean and a distorted one, that each has been individually compressed and EQ'ed (yes, I did actually write that in my initial reply, that somehow you boiled down to just "mixed with clean signal", I think missing my point entirely). On the other hand that is extremely likely just to be a studio post production thing, which the song of that video very much is, and chances are that live it might very well had been as simple as just a Turbo RAT blended with clean signal, also a signal put through a RAT would actually handle some of the distortion specific EQ profile of that recording automatically, even if I do think, among other stuff, that some LPF might have been applied to the clean signal, post production, I also hear much more than just the high mids affected by the distortion, definitely not your typically fizzy top end polished Darkglass distortion laying on top of a clean signal here, much more grunty and dirty than that, and somewhat more full range as well, the clean signal however to me does also sound somewhat mid scooped, which might be what you hear as the distortion being specifically focused in the high mids, but again that too would very much be a post production processing studio thing.

At least that makes newspaper articles and books a fast read. Go by the headlines and covers and make up your own story and version of reality. The general trend of today, as seems to be treating facts if as they were merely unqualified opinions, which admittedly frankly worries me. I do understand where it is coming from though, we've gotten used to being force fed lies presented as facts for so long and are getting to the point of being fed up with it. Making up your own lies and presenting them as facts however doesn't exactly improve the situation. (I should properly make it clear that the first couple of sentences are intended as a humorous comment to your reply, while the last couple of sentences are not intended aimed at you in specific, but just a somewhat related general observation and concern following the same line of thoughts to a proper conclusion). Regardless though have a nice festival.