Is there such a thing as a "full stereo" bass head?

[basexperience]

I've got a GR55 with stereo outputs - I use some patches on songs which include stereo instruments, and I'd like to experiment with stereo onstage. I've thought about using a poweramp (eg a markbass) and the GR55's onboard preamps. The onboard electronics on the 6 string are OBP-3 so there's lots of tonal shaping onboard for the native sounds.

Thing is, the closest I've seen to what I'd like is the Markbass stereo multiamp, but it's mono in.

Does anyone do a full stereo chain head or preamp?

[basexperience]

I should add that I use mono bass sounds as well as stereo instrument patches, plus delays can be useful. muse-esque wall of sound helps thicken out 3-pieces... The possibilities are endless. The GR55 does have a separate mono out for the bass signal on it's own, as well as the stereo out, and you can configure what gets pushed out of there, but I'm interested in a simple through-chain.

I'm thinking a stereo EQ rack into a markbass poweramp might do... Any thoughts?

[VTypeV4]

An old 600 Trace is a mono in but has a stereo / hi-pass fx loop with two 300w power stages.. Possibly a bit heavy if you're used to Mark-Bass but still powerful with plenty of configuration options..

Pro audio gear as described above may well work very well too..

[krysh]

well, my experience is that bass doesn't work well in a stereo setup, because usually you can't define where it comes from. also a stereo setup might only help you on stage but for a regular gig almost nobody in the audience will be able to experience a "hifi-diamond" sound experience. this is why most of the signals should be double mono there.
if you like stereo fx then use a decent bassamp for the direct bass signal and a stereo amp for the gr-55. and please send me some presets that really work in the mix with the original clean bass signal.

[basexperience]

Aha! The stereo returns are interesting - I could work a way with an A/B switch and plug all three outputs in... Hmmm

Also - there's no issue defining where the bass comes from, each patch you create on the GR55 contains all the details, and when it runs the normal bass pickups both sides can essentially just output a mono signal - no need for stereo in patches you don't need it on. It's when you want to thicken up the sound: then it's handy, or a blend patch like the one I have for "let me entertain you" where I've got the top 3 strings of the 6 string doing a piano patch, the B and A strings are muted and the E string is pitch shifted up a semitone to an F: open E string plus chords on top 3 strings gives you bass and keyboard parts for the intro and middle sections!

That's what I mean about flexibility - the power to fill in just enough, then the flip switch on that patch just punches out the piano and modelled bass and flips to the direct pickups, properly balanced for the rest of the song. It works really well!

[0175westwood29]

[quote name='basexperience' timestamp='1417959604' post='2625419']
Aha! The stereo returns are interesting - I could work a way with an A/B switch and plug all three outputs in... Hmmm

Also - there's no issue defining where the bass comes from, each patch you create on the GR55 contains all the details, and when it runs the normal bass pickups both sides can essentially just output a mono signal - no need for stereo in patches you don't need it on. It's when you want to thicken up the sound: then it's handy, or a blend patch like the one I have for "let me entertain you" where I've got the top 3 strings of the 6 string doing a piano patch, the B and A strings are muted and the E string is pitch shifted up a semitone to an F: open E string plus chords on top 3 strings gives you bass and keyboard parts for the intro and middle sections!

That's what I mean about flexibility - the power to fill in just enough, then the flip switch on that patch just punches out the piano and modelled bass and flips to the direct pickups, properly balanced for the rest of the song. It works really well!
[/quote]

i think what he meant was if your stood infront of you playing you might struggle to hear where its coming from ie left or right, it might just sound like a wash of sound, which would be similar to it just being mono.

andy

[deepbass5]

There a few out but they are not in vogue at present. I would like to see someone produce a bass amp with a flexible split amp arrangement. I Think it was Carvin who did a PA power amp that could be bridged or split basically four amps in one. So for bass you could bridge two for your bottom end and have stereo bi amped top. So you keep your bottom end clean with lots of power where you need it and introduce your stereo effects across the two high end amps. Peavey also used to make a PA system that worked on this principle [b]Triflex.[/b] I did use a Carvin probass 500 which had two 250w amps you could use in stereo or bi-amp. check out the latest carvins as they still have this facility BX1600. some SWR & Trace elliot etc. Before you go stereo make sure the guitarist wants a bass cab his side of the drummer

[Dood]

The Hartke Kilo head has two 500W power amplifiers in it that can be split to run in true stereo, dual mono or bridge mono. You'd also be able to use the valve front end to run your signal through before splitting off to stereo. It's a beast of an amp and I think this will do the job nicely.

Keeping dry bass mixed in to both output channels will help to ensure your bass tone is firmly rooted when you start mixing in stereo width.

[dmccombe7]

Ampeg SVT4PRO has dual power amps which can be stereo, dual mono or bridged. Not sure why you might want stereo effect on stage tho. Can see the benefit of pre-amp being stereo to PA and getting benefit front of house.

[basexperience]

Stereo is useful when you're filling keyboard parts on *some* of your strings and holding bass down at the same time on others - and I do this onstage for some songs!!!

[basexperience]

Also - thanks for the replies guys, there are some wicked ideas here to look at. Food for GAS!

[Passinwind]

I have run stereo rigs on and off for many many years, in quite a few different configs. Lots of people don't get it, just give it a shot for yourself. The localization issue is a complete red herring to me -- I want and embrace a moving soundstage and have never found that to be lost on the audience at all, regardless of venue size. Yes, there are many potential pitfalls, and cutting low bass on one side is often a really good start for circumventing them. Biamping and leaving either highs or lows dry can be very effective as well. Vertical stacking rather than a spread arrangement works surprising well sometimes too.

I generally have used a pro sound power amp, sometimes with stereo preamp a la Alembic F2B, more often through a mixer a la Mackie 1202, etc. though. I'm on to a fully DIY solution these days; it's reasonably compact and tailored to exactly what I need. I use guitar synth in my band too (through the same rig), and many samples sound immeasurably better to me in stereo. Then there are the clean/dirty possibilities, a whole other can 'o worms and a whole lot of fun when done well. I have a whole separate noise toy rack and a digital switcher/mixer/EQ/compressor widget utilizing one or two expression pedals for blend and/or panning.

Here's one older implementation: [url="http://passinwind.com/RaneRPM26zBassRig.html"]http://passinwind.co...26zBassRig.html[/url]

Edited December 7, 2014 by Passinwind

[Kiwi]

I use stereo. The Eden WT800 is a Swiss army knife of a head. Stereo series effects loop and dual power amps means the loop will act as a set of inputs as well as the main input socket. Cheap as chips now if you can find one.

If you fancy something a little more esoteric, Walter Woods do a stereo head also. But to be honest I would just go for a 2u rack based set up with a class d 1u power amp and a effects preamp like the lexicon mpxg2.