krispn

I think having an out board pre in pedal form is a solid option as it can be used on any instrument, no need to route or dig out space on a good passive bass. I’ve use outboard pres for years and I find the ones I’ve used generally more flexible than on board. Many Multifx have the option to add eq to presets so one effectively has all these option available set up for each song with much greater overall flexibility than adding knobs and switches. I’m especially wary of dual concentric knobs where one could might inadvertently change a parameter or three way mid switches which can be easily knocked or misunderstood. Having a clear interface on a pedal just works better for me where I can see at a glance where things are set.

I may be reading this incorrectly but an active circuit shouldn’t be introducing grit or dirt - mine doesn’t when matching those settings listed m. The song does need a dirt pedal to recreate the sound (obviously) but you may find the pushed mids overdriving your input? Is your amp clean to begin with or are your ‘boosted mids’ pushing a dirty amp? It could be a headroom issue or a battery needing replaced? What amp and cabs are you using?

My point about centring the knob is pretty simple - set all controls to their centre detent, put the markers at 12 o’clock/6 o’clock so ‘centre’ is visually straight down. Adjust to you’re preferred position. It’s really that simple. Or you could loosen the grub screw and remove the knobs. Adjust the pot to where you like it and replace the knob with the grub screw positioned at noon as you look down at the knob - you have a visual aid when your eq is where you like it but granted it’s harder to see in the dark! I’ve found that there isn’t really one eq setting for every gig so some nights you might need more bass or more mids depending on the room etc.

It would be a complete waste of money and time to put a £150+ preamp in a bass to them play passively. An alternative question might be who has gone back to passive in spite of the options and why having tried both.

I'm guessing if YOU opened the bass up it should be possible to get a vertical centre for the EQ knobs if YOU wanted to. I've no need or desire to finesse a problem I don't believe exists Or just feel it out! I get the point about accuracy but you're just boosting one frequency not finding a particular frequency to nail the 'poke through the mix'. Just turn the knob until your happy with the volume. It doesn't really need that much engineering or thought but again if the stickers work and you're more comfortable then it's right for you.

If you need the visual cue then go for it. If you’re only switching from tone rolled back in passive to boosting the mids and further treble adjustments in active you should quickly get used to your preferred settings and eventually lose the ‘aide memoire’ rather than detracting from the sleek look of the bass. Do you need to do this adjustment mid song? I know you’re not a fan of dead air but adjusting the eq must be all of a few seconds? I get most of my additional eq options from a pedal with more control over the frequency I wanna push which typically isn’t found in an on board preamp. Just my preference.

Yeah you can set them reversed for a brighter tone.

Ahh my mistake. I can only compare the VM4.

Another apposite observation jrixn! I've tried both an .80 and .85 A string (not at the same time) but both have the issue. I plan on trying a D string and listening for any 'overtones' but I've been super busy this week and have two long gig days today and tomorrow to get out of the way first! @Al Krow Differences between Sandberg VM4 and the BB734? You've owned both and gigged the VM4 exclusively so you're in the best position to appreciate the differences and decide which you prefer. It's the whole 'different flavour's of ice cream' thing - they're both ice cream so win win! My main bass is my passive P with my own little custom tweaks but the Yamaha is also great fun to play, great neck both in terms of dimensions and feel. The Sandberg is also a great bass and it's no hardship to gig any of them... however the VM4 will remain for sale and I'll happily keep my P and the BB for all forseeable bass duties - one with round wounds, one with flats

Yeah first thing I did was resting with the set it came with, then a new set and subsequently some flats. It's not my first rodeo

I’m using mine mainly in passive mode and with flats just now. It can still sound a bit ‘toppy’ in pj mode (especially with rounds but they’re new stings) to my ear but that’s more to do with my preferences than the bass to be honest and nothing a tone knob can’t remedy. I don’t really use the single coil on it’s own as again it’s not a sound I gravitate to although I’ve played about with it solo’d with the eq engaged. I generally keep the p/up balance either full neck or 70/30 ish favouring the neck p/up I do sometimes ‘complement’ the eq with some para mids from my amp or an eq pedal depending on what I need on the night or the song. Again not a fault of the bass but I’m used to having a bit more control over the frequency I want/need to push and I’m normally adding it a bit higher than where I think the eq’s are set on the bass itself. In passive mode it sounds to me that the neck pick up is doing a nice solid low mid p bass thing with just the right amount of detail. It’s a good sounding pick up but I think mine has some some of weird thing happening on the A string and I’m wondering I’d anyone else has found their A string to sound a bit ‘phase-y’ - it’s hard for me to describe in it any other way but it’s got an odd quality to it. Not really noticeable in a mix but solo’d at home (I tend to practice/play at home via headphones) and it’s definitely not right to my ear. A DiMarzio Model P (and J perhaps) might be getting dropped into this one down the line if it continues to bug me.

So where are the eq points set? I'm guessing 80, 400 and 800?

@The GroovyPlucker The becos comp looks great (I haven’t used it but I’m familiar with the ‘dbx 160’ style comp which this appears to share a lineage with) and if you’re new to or returning to compression IMHO ‘LED monitoring’ is really useful to connect what ‘you’re seeing’ to what ‘you’re hearing’ and by default what the comp is doing in terms of attack and release. The Spectracomp has been mentioned and it’s a good pedal but unless you’re editing via the TC app you may struggle to understand what’s happening due to the single controller knob on the pedal, no LED monitoring and no indication of what parameters of the compressor are being controlled via the single knob. Deep diving into app opens up about 40+ tweak-able parameters which can get a bit over involved and over whelming. That being said the ‘Tone Prints’ do offer various options of compression with minimal fuss but if it’s not quite what you want you’re back to some deep editing via the app. You might find a set it and forget it setting which does enough of what you need but if you wanna understand a bit about what’s happening I’d suggest a pedal with LED monitoring and attack and release knobs. If you’re not bothered about the ins and out’s there’s already been some solid recommendations above. As an aside... The difficulty with understanding compression is that it can be both a tool and an effect depending on how it’s used and often, as others have said, this can cause problems especially if the controls are not fully understood. If you can afford a pedal which ticks all your boxes, the Becos certainly looks well featured and affordable, then it may be as good an option as anything else out there. As ever ovnilabs.com is the place to check out reviews and info.

The tone styler does allow a single pick up bass have voicing options. Feel free to get in touch and I can drop it round to a rehearsal if you fancy.

It's often as much about access to some of this esoteric gear as much as anything else. If the AudioKinesis, Mike Arnopol, Baer etc. (add fancy US bass cab makers name here) stuff was readily available here I'm sure we'd all have had one through our hands by now too. The Avergae Joe knows a few brands and is happy with that as long as it keeps working gig to gig.

You forgot tuner!

I’ve a P bass with a Lull Tbird pick up you’re welcome to come round and try out. It’s got a tone styler pot too so does a great range of sounds. I know you’re probably after the TBird look but if you’re after the sound in a familiar package it’s worth a look.

The Helix Stompmis a solid unit and now you’ve mentioned that you double on guitar it will be a very useful piece of kit to have. I have a lot of flexibility with my DAW for getting different sounds if I need them for home use/recording but live I keep it pretty simple on bass. IME the Stomp while sounding great wasn’t really something I was gonna maximise the use of and as I already have a couple of pedals I like it went back to the shop. If I went down the iem route and was amp less then I’d revisit the Stomp (I’d still only need a very basic set of tones) the quality and flexibility of the unit is impressive.

I had one of these briefly and while I’ll agree there are many many options if you already have an interface you know and like using (I already do), you have a couple of pedals which you use and enjoy (I already do) and you aren’t likely to be needing your bass to recreate a multitude of amps and cab with a host of I/O options or might not be for you. If you’re a tech geek and love shiny new things with loads of the latest cool tech and don’t mind spending £400+ for the two or three effects you’re realistically going to use then then you’re in trouble 😀 A good suggestion already mentioned is to download the Helix Native software and play about with the effects and amps and if it feesikw value for money to have the Stomp you’ll at least have road tested the actual effects - the hardware is a delight to use but you might find like I did that my limited use of pedals makes the whole package redundant even if it is cool as!

db Embee 112 should be available to demo in the bass gallery too as another option.

I think Holger saw it more as an opportunity rather than an obstacle.

There’s a user review video posted so you can hear for yourself. Someone else has already taken the plunge on our behalf.

How many folks over these last 10 pages have spent £1299 or more on a single item of gear? Sure this amp is more expensive than in the USA but it's funny to read comments about cost when folks are playing £1500+ basses, amps, pedal boards with a months wages worth of boxes and devices. At the end of the day we spend our money how we want on the items we feel offer value etc. I get that it's more costly here than the USA but it's Mesa! The Strategy head is nearly £3500!!! Everyone is free to express their outrage of course... To add to thodrik's comment. I'd be more outraged at the cost of the cabs if anything! The amp seems positively affordable compared to the cabs!

1. Four days, not five. 2. It's going back to the shop so yeah I'm pretty confident I can move it on. Plus... It has a Mesa M series bass pre-amp/amp model so it'd be great to hear your thoughts comparing the two if you get round to it and the patch you posted in the HX Stomp tips/advice section didn't show the second page of the menu so it wasn't sure which band pass filter etc you had on opted for. Might be worth an update for folks.