spluker Posted August 14, 2012 Share Posted August 14, 2012 Hey guys, I don't know if I put this topic in a right place but I need help. I have started to use a stomp box type bass equalizer to compensate for my dead strings and also just to have this extra fiddling opportunity. Here's the question: I plug my bass into EQ and than cable that up into my amp's input. Should I use a passive one anyway or should I plonk it into an active one? Are there any other consequences of using too much input signal in an passive input other than clipping? Sorry for a noob question but I really do not know :S Regards, Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Hughes Posted August 14, 2012 Share Posted August 14, 2012 The simple answer is: if it sounds right, it is right ( to quote Joe Meek). An active input on an amp is usually just an input with a drop in volume. So if the passive input is at 0 (neither boosting or cutting the signal coming in) then the active one would be something like -10, cutting the input signal. The long answer is that the active/passive input on your amp is all relative to the output of your bass. By that I mean - if your bass has a very high output, irregardless of it being active or passive, then it might benefit from going in the active input. Likewise, if your active bass has a lowput then plugging it into the active input will only make it even quieter. I have a passive bass that is way louder than any active bass I've ever owned. And also remember that all passive basses are not created equal. I have three jazz basses with passive pickups and none are the same volume as each other. So - to tidy up this waffle - plug your cable into the passive input first and if it sounds like it might be distorting a little then maybe your signal is too high and then you should try the active input and see if that cleans things up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spluker Posted August 14, 2012 Author Share Posted August 14, 2012 (edited) I thought so, just double checking... However I got concerned a bit yesterday... I was recording some bass lines at home last night and I had my Input level fairly up high so the signal goes nice and strong through DI and an output level almost at lowest hearable level because it was like 11.45pm and I have used my EQ pedal to boost some highs coming out of my Precision... Anyway the Input level was at about 5/10 or 6/10 and the clip light started to flash so I plugged it into the active input instead. It stopped showing the clip light but it didn't sound any quieter..... Could it be because of such a low output level dialled in (0,5/10 - 1/10) or a compressor set fairly high up? Any clues? Edited August 14, 2012 by spluker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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