Mids no longer seem right

[BassAdder60]

Playing rock and some pop R& B I now find that I prefer cutting some mids ( smiley face ) due to switching to pick playing 

 

I couldn’t work out why my tone seemed lacking in depth and thought it was my cabs ( Ashdown 210 ) but I’ve used the Shape button on my RM800 and that is the sound I need for the band ( single guitarist in standard tuning ) 

 

On my Orange Little Bass Thing it’s the same, roll back the mids and up the bass and treble and it sounds great 

 

Who else playing with a pick prefers reduced mids ?

[JapanAxe]

No I still like a mid boost for phatness!

[BassAdder60]

I thought the same but too much mids to me  using a pick just made it sound too honky !! 
 

Im not talking no mids but reduced so more of a grin than smiley face !

Edited August 15, 2021 by BassAdder27

[Lozz196]

Me too, for the same reasons, I find the sound “honky & nasally”. In general in the past I’ve not necessarily reduced the mids as added bass & treble. From there if still honky then look at reducing around the 400 - 800Hz area. But the Shape function on the Ashdown amps seems to just get it right, only a few tweaks for the room needed with that selected.

[NAS Bass]

Very true. I don't usually cut mids but totally agree that a picked tone requires quite an EQ adjustment. if I'm playing a set that requires pick and fingers for different songs, I'll usually set up one tone on the amp then use an EQ pedal for the other. One EQ doesn't normally work for both!

[skychaserhigh]

I have 2 pre amp sounds set on my pedalboard , one with added mids for finger style and another with cut mids for pick playing. Works well for me.

[Bolo]

Depends on the room, the song, sound from the other instruments etc. Nothing wrong with a bit of honk to lend some body to the overall sound. Odds are good that it's not even that noticeable in the audience, let alone in a bad way.

[SteveXFR]

I also use a pick and take out a lot of mids on the eq. I find there's too much punch with a flat eq and I'm taking the same space that the guitars are in.

[NHM]

When I play with a pick I cut the mids a little as I find the pick over-emphasises the first and second harmonic - cutting the mids can balance this out, depending on which bit of the string you're playing, so I'm talking about playing the area at the neck p/u which is my standard address point. This keeps you in your own sonic space (as Steve XFR says), whilst giving the benefit of the attack of the pick.

 

[Sparky Mark]

Cutting at 340Hz removes that nasal sound for me. Boosting a little above and below to taste.

Edited August 17, 2021 by Sparky Mark

[ubit]

It makes a difference when you are playing in a three piece as you say. The bass doesn't have to fight with other instruments to be heard so a flat or smiley face eq works. If the bass is getting lost in the mud of a five piece band, pushing the mids is favourable.

[BassAdder60]

I think it’s more relevant for sure when using a pick 

[la bam]

Problem with eq is nearly everyone messes with it before theyve even tried the amp flat, or tried it with the band in the room they're playing.

 

So from a starting point everything is already cut, boosted, adjusted.

 

Best thing to do imo is just run it flat and then make adjustments as you go if its blatantly obvious there needs to be some eq adjustment. Otherwise its creating a problem where there wasnt one.

Edited August 18, 2021 by la bam

[ubit]

Years ago before we went back to a full band we had a spell of playing as a two piece with a drum machine. I didn't really know about pushing mids as I thought with a hi fi the best sound is a smiley face eq, so I used that for my bass. It sounded good in the bedroom and I was happy to use that when we played live. I am a fingers player so when I heard about sad face eq's it was a revelation for me. My bass cut through so much better, By this time we were back to a full band set up so it was great to get the bass cutting through clearly. I couldn't believe that I had never even experimented with pushing mids. I just thought it had to be happy  face. Certainly in the two piece I think the bass came through ok as I wasn't fighting with too much at those frequencies. We had years playing the circuit with this and everyone said it sounded ok and certainly when I went out front I thought it was ok. If only I had known about pushing mids and it would have sounded better than ok. I do play with a pick for certain songs but I am happy for that to cut right through so I leave the mids pushed even with the pick. I do like a toppy sound but with plenty bottom end.

[BassAdder60]

I agree finger style needs more mids but really finding using a pick with too much mids sounds honky and thin 

 

Back off the mids and you get a warmer punchy tone with good note attack and something that fingers cannot reproduce. 
 

Not saying we all should convert but it really makes your bass tone jump out with a pick 

[deepbass5]

Always have mids cut on my amp to some degree, i'm just fingers only now but like the cut, loved the Markbass scoop and now the Mesa D800 mid cut. But also have preferred onboard active Para mid controls so i can adjust on the fly. East pre-amps are great for this.

But found you will need those mids for outdoor gigs Marques etc, or you run out of steam and just get lost without the punch.