largo Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Playing in a 5-piece wedding band I often find that the "bleed" from our bass bins is so loud that I can barely hear myself on stage. I know one cure is to turn up & maybe even turn the subs down but it's not just me but the overall "bass" of the kick drum, keyboard left hand etc. I then end up with a very middy tone on stage just to hear myself a little. Anyway, these are powered bass bins a pair of DB Sub 15d cabs so not cheap rubbish! Any suggestions? Short of different subs, I wondered if a soundproof heavy duty blanket draped over the back of the bins would help? Might overheat the amp though. Answers on a postcard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Starr Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Sorry it's bad news, there's little you can do as bass frequencies are radiated 360 degrees and as much will go backwards as forwards below a certain frequency. The sound from the speakers is what you are hearing so a blanket won't help. The only solution is to think of your bass stack as a means of monitoring rather than as part of your sound. Use a kickback or a wedge as your on stages peaker, or find some other way of pointing the speaker at your ears. Then roll off the bass so you are only really getting the mids and tops, If you get it right this will combine with the bass you are getting from the subs and give you a balanced sound, the audience will hear you through the PA anyway so you don't need to worry how it sounds out front. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger2611 Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Do you really need such volume from the bass bins on stage? we are a Rock/ pop covers band and use a single powered bass bin with the crossover set to pick up the bass drum more than anything else and I don't even hear the sub onstage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timhiggins Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 I play in a reggae band and often have this problem when a soundman boosts the lows on the bass drum and bongos to much [we have 6 mics.] , soon as we roll it off things work far better and the band are far happier hearing the bass sound as it should without me cutting those essential lows .. i realize this is a problem if your having to cover all styles and Phils solution may be your only choice ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mep Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Im with Roger2611 on this. What sort of volume are you pumping out. Never had this problem before. Most bands seem to go with one sub. Sorry to hear about your problem but don't really have a solution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chevy-stu Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 (edited) Sounds like the eq and levels are wrong the front of house mix. Keyboard shouldn't be going so low, kick drum should be well present but sit nicely with the bass... and you should be equally as aware of yourself in the pa if you are of the kick drum and keys.. Edited September 7, 2015 by chevy-stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 [quote name='largo' timestamp='1441633023' post='2860404'] Playing in a 5-piece wedding band I often find that the "bleed" from our bass bins is so loud that I can barely hear myself on stage. I know one cure is to turn up & maybe even turn the subs down but it's not just me but the overall "bass" of the kick drum, keyboard left hand etc. I then end up with a very middy tone on stage just to hear myself a little. Anyway, these are powered bass bins a pair of DB Sub 15d cabs so not cheap rubbish! Any suggestions? Short of different subs, I wondered if a soundproof heavy duty blanket draped over the back of the bins would help? Might overheat the amp though. Answers on a postcard. [/quote] Back off the bass signals into the subs...so that is kick, bass and keys. Use backline. Of course, it shouldn't really be this way but your subs sound too much for the room. Sub gets everywhere so less is better. This is why a lot of circuit bands have huge sub sounds... and I think engrs get carried away with being able to dominate the room. Turn down the bass EQ on the subs... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Some good advice already offered. Try to make sure your bins are n't on the stage wherever possible. Most stages are hollow, and just encourage boom and rumble which can be problematic. Setting the PA offstage can help reduce this, so try experimenting at different venues to see if it helps. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulbass Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 It does sound like your bins are too loud. I do agree with Phil Starr on this one about using your stack as a monitor rather than part of the sound. The stage monitors should throw your bass back at you as well if your playing large venues or outdoor gigs. Also your pa speakers might be too close to you at a gig. Dont use a blanket to try and stop the bottom end...I've never seen or heard of anyone having to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrtcat Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 What does it sound like out front? If it sounds great out there then adjust your monitoring situation. If it's boomy out there turn the subs down or more sensibly do what jtuk says and reduce the low frequency causing the problem from the individual sources. Are you using 18s, 15s or 12s? I find some 18s are designed more for dj type use and so have good response down to silly low frequencies which is less useful in a band situation. Standing them on a hard floor and not a hollow stage is also important. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Starr Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 Good advice, I think it's all clear but just in case... I've made the basic assumption from the 'wedding band' bit that you have a good sound out front and a regular sound engineer. From that I've assumed the FOH sound is 'right'. We don't often use the bins but when we have I do hear a lot of enhanced bass. If I was engineering you with this sort of a set up I'd be looking to get most of what the audience hear coming from the PA and getting the sound levels right down on stage, that helps you hear more and cleans up the sound because I get less backline coming through the vocal mics. A good engineer working regularly with a band however will work with the band to give them what they want of course, so long as the physics allows that to happen. If you have an engineer then just chat to them between gigs to see if they can achieve something that works better for you. It may need little more than a tiny tweak of eq on the PA and the same on your bass amp. If you are doing the sound yourselves then all the options the others are suggesting, basically cutting the deep bass from the subs are where to go. On a positive note the few times I've played with my preferred set up (as a bass player, not a sound engineer) with about 40% of my bass coming from the stack and 60% though the PA with a gentle bass roll off on the back line and the opposite boost on the PA it sounded lovely on stage and off, and I could hear everyone else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 I used to find walking up to the sound engineer, twisting his nipple & asking him to whistle remedied a lot of sound issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 (edited) This is not a typical solution but depending on where you expect to play most of the time. We had 12" subs for the pub and small halls and then we knew our P.A would run out of steam so we'd have to hire in and price for that anyway. The advantage of this was the 12" were smaller and manageable would add depth without the other overhead that bigger 15's and 18's would do. We couldn't carry ..and neither did we want to, the 15/18's anyway. So, as always, be reasonable and thoughtful with your expectations. For Marquee weddings, we were looking to hire in anyway... so £300 or so for a manned/crewed/trucked P.A was considered a worthwhile cost. Edited September 11, 2015 by JTUK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acidbass Posted September 11, 2015 Share Posted September 11, 2015 I find that having the bass bins on the dancefloor, as opposed to the stage where the band are, helps a lot. Certainly removes a lot of that unwanted 'boom' that you sound like you are enduring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.