bubinga5 Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 Went for a Jam with a new drummer this evening. Using a 210. The bass has a John East preamp and I really couldn't get a good sound out of it. Couldn't hear the highs at all or the upper mids.Slapping was pointless, as the popping was inaudible. I didn't want to fiddle around too much while playing with a new drummer. So just switched to passive and there it was.! Everything was even. I just used the amp to tinker with the bass and mids. I was really surprised how good it sounded over the active circuit . Maybe im a passive guy after all. Next ill be buying a P Bass. An active circuit sounds so good through headphones at home, or without a loud drummer or maybe im just crap at eq'ing the pre in a live/rehearsal scenario. I will say the MXR Octave pedal sounds awesome with a passive bass. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonse Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 Similar scenario here: liked the look and tone of the stingray, spent ages trying to get good sound out of it but nothing. Back to the P bass and there it is... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linus27 Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 25 minutes ago, Jonse said: Similar scenario here: liked the look and tone of the stingray, spent ages trying to get good sound out of it but nothing. Back to the P bass and there it is... Same and I adore Stingrays. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LITTLEWING Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 TBH I've never really found a great sound with anything active. It just seems to ruin any natural signal to the amp and then you still end up fiddling with the EQ. You want a bass that sounds like a P or a Jazz, then plug in a P or a Jazz! We've all heard that tone for years on the radio, stereo or telly without realising it as unwittingly it's subliminally in our heads and we look for it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drTStingray Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) Afraid I'm the exact opposite. Active circuit provides a fatness not available in a passive bass. I see it as Jamerson sound v Bernard Edwards sound - I always preferred the latter, especially in a band setting - possibly because I developed as a bass player through the 70s and 80s alongside the development of bass sounds during the same period. This describes the point very clearly (it's not Bernard Edwards) - the end has excellent bass. http://youtu.be/ZzZOef9tolQ Anyone turning up with a pastel shade Fender was considered, along with late 50s and early/mid 60s music, herendously unhip and dated. Even though some bands of that 60s era were still playing in cabaret settings to OAPs..... I think they still are!!! I also, where possible, don't stand too close to my speakers, or right next to the drummer. If the drummer is one of those very loud ones, you'll never hear very well. Edited March 9, 2019 by drTStingray Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 There are too many parameters involved here to know what was happening, but if anyone can't get a good sound out of an active bass, they should be looking at the way they are EQing their sound. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dudewheresmybass Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 Ive spent years 'accumulating' active basses. Over the years, these are the instruments that get the least use. I find most often, as with the op, that they get quickly lost in the mix. So much so, that the only time I use one particular active instrument is to play unplugged. I will only use passive instruments now as they sit beautifully in a live mix and have all the right heft in all the right places. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJE Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 It’s amazing how we all perceive sound differently. I have always struggled with passive instruments, particularly P basses because if the room wasn’t right, I struggled to hear myself and cut through. In contrast a Stingray set pretty much flat with small adjustments here and there for the room (never understood how anyone could just boost the bass and treble all the way) gives me some of the best results live. The room and stage has always been the biggest factor for me though, had moments where a P bass was perfect in one venue and then sounded absolutely awful the next weekend somewhere else. I still aim to have the Leo Fender Holy Trinity one day so I have the main bases covered (excuse the pun). 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skybone Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 After many years of trying to find a sound I liked from an Active bass, I went back to Passives, and found what I was searching for. I've owned maybe 2 truly great active basses over the years, one was a Westone Thunder 1A, the other was a late 80's 2EQ StingRay. I owned a mid-90's StingRay, and it was nowhere near the late 80's one. Been using only Passive for around 12 years now. I did dabble with a G&L L2000 Tribute a few years ago, and as much as it was a great bass to play, again, I couldn't find a decent sound out of it. Moved it on and bought something else... Passive. Horses for courses though, some people prefer Active's, some prefer Passive's, and many other variations... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 I get it! There could be so much else going on though. Whenever I rehearse through an Ampeg SVT with 8x10 I really, really struggle to hear myself at all! No volume or definition, yet it's a legendary amp. I think it's the rooms and the EQ'ing and my proximity to the amp. Am sure if I gigged one it would be a different situation. With regards active basses I never got on with 2 band actives but three bands make more sense to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 I find passive basses lifeless, even my double bass goes straight into an active preamp. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonse Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 25 minutes ago, stingrayPete1977 said: I find passive basses lifeless, even my double bass goes straight into an active preamp. Yeah, having said what I did about the stingray, I'm pretty much always plugged into a sansamp. So maybe stingray + sansamp was just a bit much, but it works with the P. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Passinwind Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 1 hour ago, stingrayPete1977 said: I find passive basses lifeless, even my double bass goes straight into an active preamp. Yep. None of my basses even have a bypass to passive switch installed. And the closer the preamp is to an URB the better, in my book. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 On 08/03/2019 at 21:30, bubinga5 said: Went for a Jam with a new drummer this evening. Using a 210. The bass has a John East preamp and I really couldn't get a good sound out of it. Couldn't hear the highs at all or the upper mids.Slapping was pointless, as the popping was inaudible. I didn't want to fiddle around too much while playing with a new drummer. So just switched to passive and there it was.! Everything was even. I just used the amp to tinker with the bass and mids. I was really surprised how good it sounded over the active circuit . Maybe im a passive guy after all. Next ill be buying a P Bass. An active circuit sounds so good through headphones at home, or without a loud drummer or maybe im just crap at eq'ing the pre in a live/rehearsal scenario. I will say the MXR Octave pedal sounds awesome with a passive bass. It sounds as though the issue was with the amp rather than the bass circuit, given that even after plugging a passive bass in you used it to adjust the equalization. I'd be hesitant to attribute the entire cause of your dissatisfaction to a 9v powered circuit in this case. There are so many variables at play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Cloud Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 I find it a tad ironic, but active basses do take more effort live. For me, I think it's well worth it though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 How many passive only players that state they are better than active have a truly passive setup with a cut only eq on their amp and foh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 17 hours ago, Jonse said: Yeah, having said what I did about the stingray, I'm pretty much always plugged into a sansamp. So maybe stingray + sansamp was just a bit much, but it works with the P. I don't even use an amp anymore, I think you're on to something with the idea that there was too much going on, Stingray straight into a mixing desk sounds awesome, for me with anything passive I'd need to send the signal through something first, as most people do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmccombe7 Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 (edited) I'm another that's had lots of active basses over the years and mostly had them running flat or on passive mode. I prefer my Jazz tone but my active P/J i run all flat with maybe a touch of balance towards P pick up. In the studio i've seen me tweaking the mids back a touch but never live i just keep it flat on everything. I've considered getting the actives removed and turned into a passive P/J. I've always adjusted my amp to get any tone i like but on saying that i also like my amps running virtually flat and maybe tweaked very slightly depending on venue. To be honest i will buy a bass just for the look and the feel of how it plays. The EQ can always be changed or tweaked along the chain somewhere but the bass needs to feel right from the start. Dave Edited March 10, 2019 by dmccombe7 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thepurpleblob Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 I've had lots of active basses and have always set them flat. There's knobs on the amp/preamp for that. Some otherwise great basses have been sold simply because I've never really understood the EQ. As soon as it gets in the way of actually playing then it's a problem. Setting three knobs to their centre detents is just about acceptable. Having said that, I have a 3EQ Stingray which sounds great and a passive Lakland which also sounds great. So - executive summary - if the active EQ isn't actually a bunch of hassle then I don't care that much. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 I prefer the sound of my passive Precision. In my old fashioned estimation a preamp doesn't add much of what I want to hear in a P bass. IMO pre-amps are a great option for a Jazz or 2 pickup bass. But just because you have them doesn't mean you have to use every last ounce of the controls. Use them sparingly and they can be a nice addition to you sound. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Cloud Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 4 hours ago, stingrayPete1977 said: I don't even use an amp anymore, I think you're on to something with the idea that there was too much going on, Stingray straight into a mixing desk sounds awesome, for me with anything passive I'd need to send the signal through something first, as most people do. I think that the MM Stingrays are the best 'plug in and play' basses for an instant, great sound. This goes for live and studio environments. Leo almost got it right with the P and J - he then nailed it with MM and G&L imo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Passinwind Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 4 hours ago, stingrayPete1977 said: I don't even use an amp anymore, I think you're on to something with the idea that there was too much going on, Stingray straight into a mixing desk sounds awesome, for me with anything passive I'd need to send the signal through something first, as most people do. I do that too sometimes and love how it sounds and feels. I also build my own amps and all of them are optimized for my active basses, which have my own preamps in them. For me it's all about having a tightly integrated system. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 5 hours ago, stingrayPete1977 said: How many passive only players that state they are better than active have a truly passive setup with a cut only eq on their amp and foh? Very good point, Pete. I have active eq on both my amp and preamp pedal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4000 Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 4 minutes ago, White Cloud said: I think that the MM Stingrays are the best 'plug in and play' basses for an instant, great sound. This goes for live and studio environments. Leo almost got it right with the P and J - he then nailed it with MM and G&L imo. I think it depends how you play, and doubtless the musical situation you're playing in, because I've never managed to get a satisfactory sound out of a Ray in a band situation. Thing is, I actually really like how Rays can sound, but they just don't work for me at all, at least so far. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Cloud Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 1 hour ago, 4000 said: I think it depends how you play, and doubtless the musical situation you're playing in, because I've never managed to get a satisfactory sound out of a Ray in a band situation. Thing is, I actually really like how Rays can sound, but they just don't work for me at all, at least so far. Of course. You are quite right, there is no absolute right or wrong. All things are subjective. I had a MM Stingray back in the 80s that was just THE BOMB... recorded like a dream, spat fire live. For the life of me I cannot remember what happened to it ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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