Roger2611 Posted January 9, 2018 Share Posted January 9, 2018 After reading many positive reviews I bit the bullet and brought a Yamaha BB 1024X mainly based around reviews as to how good it sounds, I have had it for over a month now and have used it briefly at a number of rehearsals, I say briefly as everytime I have played it as soon as the rest of the band joins in I can't hear it in the mix anymore, I quickly switch back to a Precision and the bass is back in the mix....so it got me thinking, how can there be so many positive reviews of huge sounds for this bass when, to me, it sounds weak and too easily lost in the mix....I was doing a bit of practice last night and thought I would give it one last shot before getting shot of it.....my practice rig is a Ampeg SVT 7 Pro through a 1x15 Markbass cab...the bass sounded great, full of power and everything the reviews said it should be......now for gigging I tend to use a Markbass LM3 through a 2x10 traveller cab (as it's light and easy to transport) so my thinking is, to get the best out of the Yamaha it wants at least one 15" speaker in the set up as it and 10" speakers don't work well together at normal band levels. Do we think that they are bass / cab combinations that are just right whilst there are other combinations that just don't work well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted January 9, 2018 Share Posted January 9, 2018 Possibly we just get stuck in a rutt regarding out EQ settings, you might need to do something when using the smaller speakers either on the bass or the amp that feels unnatural. I know people had that problem using the Genz Streamliner heads where they couldn't get around just how little the bass knob needed to be after years of setting it at half or more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted January 9, 2018 Share Posted January 9, 2018 I`m surprised that the Yam gets so easily lost Roger, but not that surprised that the trusty Precision sits so well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deepbass5 Posted January 9, 2018 Share Posted January 9, 2018 I think there is often a lot that the right combination of Bass, Amp and Cab give or subtract to what we and our band mates consider right for a given band sound, our current guitarist has settled on maple necked Strats for our band, and stopped using his expensive Gibson and PRS in this band, and the Dep we use when he can't make it was a PRS man but uses Strats with us. I have also come to terms that my Shuker works best Ash body maple neck. My M-bass has a thick walnut top and glued construction sounds great in jazz situations but does not cut as well for pop covers. I think the instrument is the most important factor then the cabs and amp last. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ambient Posted January 9, 2018 Share Posted January 9, 2018 How do you have the EQ set? Mids are your friend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thepurpleblob Posted January 10, 2018 Share Posted January 10, 2018 I've owned a couple of precisions but never really bonded with them - but that's not the point. Whenever I play one I'm always surprised by the massive sound you seem to get. Makes a mockery of active instruments are somehow louder. If that's what you are used to then almost anything is going to sound weak. Having said that, I've been impressed by those Yamaha basses so maybe just put the P-bass away for a while and stick with it. I take it you have checked that the Yamaha isn't broken? Stranger things... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
28mistertee Posted January 10, 2018 Share Posted January 10, 2018 I own a passive BB2024 and it’s a superb bass. You shouldn’t have any problem cutting through, maybe get it looked at as somebody suggested above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger2611 Posted January 10, 2018 Author Share Posted January 10, 2018 3 hours ago, 28mistertee said: I own a passive BB2024 and it’s a superb bass. You shouldn’t have any problem cutting through, maybe get it looked at as somebody suggested above. The bass is definitely fine and beautifully set up so I don't think the problem is with the bass, it is more likely my hearing as I find anything other than a Precision difficult to hear on stage but as the Yam has that Precision pickup I assumed it would do that Precision sound really well, through the 15" speaker it is there in spades just not there with the 10" speakers, clearly the answer is a pair of Mesa Boggie 1x15 Subway cabs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
28mistertee Posted January 10, 2018 Share Posted January 10, 2018 2 hours ago, Roger2611 said: The bass is definitely fine and beautifully set up so I don't think the problem is with the bass, it is more likely my hearing as I find anything other than a Precision difficult to hear on stage but as the Yam has that Precision pickup I assumed it would do that Precision sound really well, through the 15" speaker it is there in spades just not there with the 10" speakers, clearly the answer is a pair of Mesa Boggie 1x15 Subway cabs! It wouldn’t be down to driver size, maybe try a different cab loaded with 10’s. Could I suggest a Barefaced 😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Len_derby Posted January 11, 2018 Share Posted January 11, 2018 Many's the time I've thought my sound was pants but people in the audience have said it was fine, or even good! So, I've become very cautious about judging how things sound 'out there' when I'm right on top of my rig. My suggestion is to get one or more person you trust and get them to give you an opinion about how you sound from the audience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted January 11, 2018 Share Posted January 11, 2018 (edited) On 1/9/2018 at 18:09, Roger2611 said: After reading many positive reviews I bit the bullet and brought a Yamaha BB 1024X mainly based around reviews as to how good it sounds, I have had it for over a month now and have used it briefly at a number of rehearsals, I say briefly as everytime I have played it as soon as the rest of the band joins in I can't hear it in the mix anymore, I quickly switch back to a Precision and the bass is back in the mix....so it got me thinking, how can there be so many positive reviews of huge sounds for this bass when, to me, it sounds weak and too easily lost in the mix.... I borrowed a 5 string version of that bass when I flew to some gigs. It was the only 5 they could provide and I didn't like it or the sound at all. I think I'd have preferred if it had disappeared in the mix! We all want different things out of our gear but IMO there are compatibilities. Many amps and cabs work together out of the box, but then some players seem to need to fiddle with the EQ more than others. Maybe they think they are making a better sound if they make more changes. IME the more fiddeling I do the worse the sound gets. I buy an amp that gets the sound I want with all the controls at noon.Then I might move 1 click left or right because of the room, but not often. Any more adjustment than this and I know I've bought he wrong amp. IMO when you reach a certain level of gear it's harder to get a bad sound. My Barefaced and Berg cabs never get a bad sound with any amp. I've tried basses I hated, the Fender Dimension was one, but I can get a good sound out of almost any P and J style bass without much effort so those are the ones I'll choose to play. Why make things more difficult than they already are. It doesn't surprise me that the P worked. That's their strength. . . they just work. Edited January 11, 2018 by chris_b Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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