Phaedrus

Thread resurrection alert! I got one of these to replace my Hartke VXL Bass Attack. Very nice unit. I love the distortion on it! I've been looking at videos of the Trapper Bass Distortion, hoping that its distortion will be similar - I'm running a wet/dry set-up and I don't really want to distort my dry signal (this is from the Downtown Express). Can any of you guys comment on whether the Trapper Bass Distortion yields similar sounds to the Downtown Express' distortion? TIA.

The last couple of years have seen me accumulate a few basses that I either couldn't say no to on used websites, or have been seeking for a while... L-R in the attached pic... Sire M7 1st Gen Rockinbetter (4003S-ish? Gonna repaint this satin black all over - any advice / tips welcome) Yamaha TRBX605FM TBL Wilkes something or other (inherited when my bass-playing dad passed away in 2021). I keep meaning to get it identified. Yamaha BB605 Ibanez SR370EF fretless Squire VMJ / Affinity P hybrid (originally a VMJ fretless, but that neck was crap so it now sports an Affinity Precision fretted neck) Just need a 6-string now to appease the OCD... 🤪

This is Mark... Don't be like Mark - scroll past the SpectraComp icon, down to the white knob amp icon... Sorted. 🙂 Thanks all. 👍

2 pick-ups. Yamaha BB605. Neither pick-up seems to work. I'll give that a try - I've been right on top of the pick-ups, 3mm or so off the strings. I suspect this is my problem. On neither the phone app nor the app in my laptop can I find the amp as a selectable option. I'll get back to it today and hopefully I'm missing something obvious. Any chance someone could post a screenshot of where I'll find the white knob icon? I use the SpectraComp on both my BG250 115 & BG250 112, but this BH250 + BC212 are new to me and I'd like to have the SpectraComp on that set-up too. I tried this, but either the app on my laptop isn't working properly or I'm missing something. The versatility and lightness and clean tone is why I love these amps/combos. I use FX to get whatever final tones I want, so a clean amp tone works great for me. Thanks guys for your replies - sincerely appreciated. 👍

Beaming hasn't worked - no variation in angle of phone to pick-up, no variation of bass, phone or amp volumes... just refuses to play ball. I can't figure out how to download the SpectraComp TonePrint on my laptop so I can load it into the amp via USB cable. TC Electronic's support system is like trying to swim through treacle. Any advice? Anyone got any links to tutorials?

OK. I'll let my friend know... 😗

How harshly would ye judge a guy for playing HMWYRS with a capo on first fret? Asking for a friend... 🙄

Getting somewhere now... I got a Woolly Mammoth clone to try instead of my El Grande - so far so good. 🙂 I've ordered an Outlaw Wye ABY box to split the signal. I had my comp pedal early in the chain and it messed with the EHX Mono Bass Synth, so I now like one of the Spectracomp TonePrints on both amps instead. I got a One Control single-loop pedal to put octave, fuzz & chorus in a switchable loop so I can switch to one or all of them as I choose. I currently have a TC flanger. It's nice, but I'm going to replace that with an EHX Bass Clone. I'll replace my VXL Bass Attack with an EHX Bass Soul Food for my base grit tone (and the Woolly Mammoth clone for fuzz) - VXL takes up a lot of space. And I got an EHX Silencer to keep it all quiet. So far I've set up a very satisfying Hysteria sound - sharp searing bright fuzz tone in the 112 combo, with the phat tight bottom end still very present in the 115 combo. 😃

New non-Squier/Fender or used Squier? My VMJ neck is kaput. Are the VM range the same as Affinity? And I've seen the name Relic coming up too - are they the same/similar? Should I assume any Squire replacement (new or used) could also be crap? TIA. 👍

Gotta scratch the 2-amp itch for myself. I now have a TC BG250 115 (for clean/not-effected signal, collecting this Friday) and a TC BG250 112 (for effected signal), and a few pedals that I'm enjoying experimenting with. So the DI from the BG amp section will allow me to run both clean and effected signals to PA. I'll be on the lookout for a BG250 210 or two...

This article below suggests to me that a two combo approach won't work because a combo's preamp won't handle the VXL's line-level output. But am I correct in interpreting that a power amp will a) handle a line-level signal OK, and b) handle an instrument-level signal that has passed through an FX pedal chain that included the VXL? I did say I'd be asking a few questions... I never said they wouldn't be dumb questions... https://www.sweetwater.com/sweetcare/articles/whats-the-difference-between-mic-instrument-line-and-speaker-level-signals/#:~:text=Instrument level signals fall between,an electric guitar or bass.&text=Line level signals are the highest level signals before amplification. Mic Level Mic level is the voltage of signal generated by a microphone. This is the lowest, or weakest, level signal of the four and requires a preamplifier to bring it up to line level. Instrument Level Instrument level signals fall between mic level (lower) and line level (higher) signals. These signals refer to any level put out by an instrument, commonly from an electric guitar or bass. A preamplifier is required to bring the signal up to line level. Line Level Line level signals are the highest level signals before amplification. This is the type of signal that typically flows through your recording system after the preamplifier stage and before the amplifier that powers your speakers. The two types of line levels are consumer and professional. IMPORTANT: Be careful not to send a line level signal to a preamplifier expecting a mic or instrument level signal. Consumer line level is rated around -10dBV and is what you’ll find in products like a CD player. Professional line level is rated around +4 dBu and can be found in equipment like mixing desks, preamplifiers, and signal processing equipment. Speaker Level Speaker level signals are post-amplification. After a line-level signal enters an amplifier, it exists to the speakers at what is called speaker level. These signals are much higher in voltage than line level and require speaker cables for safe signal transfer. IMPORTANT: You should never plug a speaker level signal into a source expecting anything less than a speaker level signal.

Phase you say... Tell me more? I'd presumed my plan would effectively equate to two basses being played - one dry, one effected. This isn't the case?

The Eden TN2252 combos (and similar, I expect) have DI outs - that would have been good...

Typically small gigs - local pubs kinda thing, so I'm thinking that the amp channel running the affected signal will be enough. My initial version 1.0 of this was with two 2x10 combo amps (Eden Terra Nova TN2252), but they're not available anywhere now (new or used), and I'm not aware of any affordable (for me) alternative. I'd still be more interested in this set-up (two combo amps) than the power amp/speaker cabs set-up - I may return to my searching for appropriate combos... Not gonna be shopping for more FX pedals - sticking with what I have. Thanks for your responses guys. 👍

I may have asked this question before, but I can't find it... I'd like to run a 2-channel set up - one clean, one effected. I'm attaching a pic of what I fancy. The VXL can split the signal; parallel out continues instrument-level into the other effects and ultimately out to one channel of a power amp. The XLR DI out then feeds PA with clean/no effects signal, and the 1/4" jack DI out feeds line-level signal (clean/no effects) into the second channel of the power amp. I hate the bottom end dropping out when using effects, so this is how I want to try to address that. I welcome any comments or advice as to why this is not a good idea (forget the complexity/weight arguments - I'm OK with those issues), and any heads-ups on dangers or risks. Thanks gang. 👍