Problem using multiple guitars on stage.

[Conan]

2 hours ago, Steve Browning said:

I swap between a passive fretted bass and an active fretless.....some of us use a different bass.

[ead]

My shame bypass filter is not that good.

[Steve Browning]

2 hours ago, Conan said:

Unlined fretless - what do you take me for? :-)

[EliasMooseblaster]

Without meaning to sound condescending: even if the second bass were only there as a backup, wouldn't you test them both during your soundcheck, just so you'd know in advance if the backup had a hotter signal than the main instrument, and could back off the onboard volume accordingly?

I do regularly use two basses on a gig myself as there are a couple of songs in our set which use the 8-string. Personally I've found a Korg Pitchblack+ to be a tidy solution for combining an A/B switch and tuner into one handy pedal. No volume controls on that one, mind - but the volume knobs on the guitars themselves are quite handy for that kind of adjustment!

[Delberthot]

5 hours ago, Happy Jack said:

Understood, but what you hear through your TV is NOT what you hear at the gig.

 

Absolutely - You don't hear the bass at all at the gig for the chest thumpingly loud kick drum  but that's another thread entirely

[TrevorR]

1 hour ago, EliasMooseblaster said:

Without meaning to sound condescending: even if the second bass were only there as a backup, wouldn't you test them both during your soundcheck, just so you'd know in advance if the backup had a hotter signal than the main instrument, and could back off the onboard volume accordingly?

I do regularly use two basses on a gig myself as there are a couple of songs in our set which use the 8-string. Personally I've found a Korg Pitchblack+ to be a tidy solution for combining an A/B switch and tuner into one handy pedal. No volume controls on that one, mind - but the volume knobs on the guitars themselves are quite handy for that kind of adjustment!

Maybe but I always (ALWAYS) run my bass volumes on 10. I’d rather have the simplicity of a pre-set switch than have to remember that one volume is set on 10 and one is set at 6 and 3/4s-ish.

Also in terms of the performance it’s a lot smoother to simply set one bass down on its stand, pick the other one up and hit a pedal. It was always pretty seamless. In terms of not causing dead air in the set that’s better than what I have often seen with bands... Mute line, take jack out of bass, take bass off, drop cable, double take trying to decide which to pick up first cable or other bass, put bass down, pick other bass up, put strap over neck, bend down to pick up cable off floor, try to thread cable through strap, plug in jack, unmute line... that always looks dead smooth!!! 

[Steve Browning]

6 hours ago, Happy Jack said:

Understood, but what you hear through your TV is NOT what you hear at the gig.

 

True. I was using headphones and the PC. Even I wouldn't expect to hear detail through a TV speaker.

[Bluewine]

8 hours ago, Steve Browning said:

You use pedals to change the sound to suit songs, some of us use a different bass.

I don't.

Depends on the band and the genre.  Daryl Jones switches basses for almost every song. I contend it's part of the show. Daryl could use the same P Bass for every eong and he'd be just fine 

 Blue

Edited May 25, 2018 by Bluewine

[peteb]

7 minutes ago, Bluewine said:

I don't.

Depends on the band and the genre.  Daryl Jones switches basses for almost every song. I contend it's part of the show. Daryl could use the same P Bass for every eong and he'd be just fine 

 Blue

I'm not sure that it's actually part of the show as such, just that it's easier (and more to the point quicker) for a roadie to pass him a bass rather than him check the tuning. 

I'm not sure that too many people are paying that much attention to Darryl Jones when the Stones are onstage. 

[Steve Browning]

13 minutes ago, Bluewine said:

I don't.

Depends on the band and the genre.  Daryl Jones switches basses for almost every song. I contend it's part of the show. Daryl could use the same P Bass for every eong and he'd be just fine 

 Blue

So the pedals serve no purpose? Now that really is for show!!

[Bluewine]

5 minutes ago, peteb said:

I'm not sure that it's actually part of the show as such, just that it's easier (and more to the point quicker) for a roadie to pass him a bass rather than him check the tuning. 

I'm not sure that too many people are paying that much attention to Darryl Jones when the Stones are onstage. 

Probably not.

However, The Stones are pretty generous with giving Daryl the spot light with Keith and Ronnie. More than most would expect.

Blue

Edited May 25, 2018 by Bluewine

[chris_b]

On 5/23/2018 at 22:10, vbance said:

So...is there such a thing as a pedal or some way to equal out the two guitar signals

Why spend money rather than adjusting the volume control for free?

 

PS I'd also suggest that before anything is plugged in on stage the volume is turned down. Then you can turn up without getting any nasty surprises. Especially guitarists and whoever is setting up the PA. I usually put my earplugs in when the PA is being set up because there is usually an ear-splitting shriek of feedback when powering up at full bloody gig volume!!

Edited May 25, 2018 by chris_b

[vbance]

chris_b, I really don't mind spending money on something that I think will make my life easier, even only slightly. i'm not keen on setting different volumes on each guitar, i like to have any bass i play on full volume but not have to change the settings on my amp or compression pedal.....i'm gunna go for the Lehle 3 at 1. 

 

[TrevorR]

1 hour ago, vbance said:

chris_b, I really don't mind spending money on something that I think will make my life easier, even only slightly. i'm not keen on setting different volumes on each guitar, i like to have any bass i play on full volume but not have to change the settings on my amp or compression pedal.....i'm gunna go for the Lehle 3 at 1. 

 

That’s the way I look at it too! 

[vbance]

just a little update.

Went for the Lehle 3@1 and have been using it for about 3 months now. It's convenient and i can switch basses  with no fuss.

The necks on my basses are very different which is something i didn't mention earlier and i find some numbers easier to play with one over the others so thats made life a bit better also.

yes the pedal's not cheap but i feel it has been well worth it for me.

 

 

[CliveT]

The MXR micro amp or basic TC spark booster will do the job too.  Just set the boost so the quieter bass matches the level of the louder.  You'll get uncoloured boost from ether and both are cheap on the used market.

[BigRedX]

IMO there are only three reasons for swapping guitars or bass on stage:

 

1. You broke a string or something else failed on the instrument rendering it useless. In this case my preferred spare would be exactly the same as my main guitar or bass

 

2. You use different tunings for different songs (and the songs really can't be played on one instrument with a single tuning). You might be able to get away with on-stage retuning for switching between standard and drop-D if you are well practiced and don't mind the change in tension and feel of the string. Otherwise you need a separate instrument for every different tuning.

 

3. On the bass you need to play some songs on fretted bass and some on fretless.

 

Everything else is IMO for show only. Fine if you have a large stage/off-stage are for all your spare guitars and a roadie to help you swap over instruments. Otherwise you risk breaking the flow of the set and boring the audience. I've seen it many times from bands who really ought to know better. 

[Woodinblack]

18 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

Everything else is IMO for show only. Fine if you have a large stage/off-stage are for all your spare guitars and a roadie to help you swap over instruments. Otherwise you risk breaking the flow of the set and boring the audience. I've seen it many times from bands who really ought to know better. 

 

Saw placebo a few years back. The bass player changed bass every song. From one thunderbird to a different thunderbird. I didn't realise there was so much variations between thunderbirds, either way, they all sounded the same.

[Guest]

His tech is making sure he's got a fresh set of Rotosounds for every song 

[CliveT]

1 hour ago, BigRedX said:

IMO there are only three reasons for swapping guitars or bass on stage:

 

1. You broke a string or something else failed on the instrument rendering it useless. In this case my preferred spare would be exactly the same as my main guitar or bass

 

2. You use different tunings for different songs (and the songs really can't be played on one instrument with a single tuning). You might be able to get away with on-stage retuning for switching between standard and drop-D if you are well practiced and don't mind the change in tension and feel of the string. Otherwise you need a separate instrument for every different tuning.

 

3. On the bass you need to play some songs on fretted bass and some on fretless.

 

Everything else is IMO for show only. Fine if you have a large stage/off-stage are for all your spare guitars and a roadie to help you swap over instruments. Otherwise you risk breaking the flow of the set and boring the audience. I've seen it many times from bands who really ought to know better. 

#3 is the only reason I do

[EssentialTension]

When I was doubling bass guitar and upright bass I used a Radial Bassbone.

 

I've played with a guitarist who had five white Stratocasters each in a different tuning with a label (e.g. 'open G') on the top horn. Until he got some electronic gismo that altered the tuning to whatever he asked for, and hence he needed only one Stratocaster.

[TimR]

You already have a compressor. Just adjust it when you swap basses.