Amps? For your enjoyment or audience?

[Jack]

9 hours ago, karlbbb said:

But with this example rig you'd lose out on an immense versatility! To make it a fair comparison, you'd need to also buy every head your modeler can model, plus every cab available (I don't think the BF SC is an FRFR?). Plus if you have one of the more expensive modellers, you have a vast array of guitar amps to choose from should you choose, again meaning you'd need to buy every amp head and cab combo available. We'd probably be in the £20,000+ range to get all that gear.

 

With modelling being so good these days that professional players fail a blind comparison test and huge acts switching to them in droves, it's hard to begin to a cost comparison of any "traditional rig" vs modelling as they'll always lose. Not a dig in any way, just making a general point of whether it's even fair to try and compare them 👍😃

Agree completely. And again, I'm a convert, my rig is in my signature. It's maybe my fifth or sixth 'frfr' rig, with the first few existing well before that was even the term. 

 

However the original point I was responding to was that an frfr cab would blow away a normal bass rig. My point still stands that that isn't the case.

 

Also I'd like to point out that frfr doesn't mean modelling. Plenty of people use those cabs without. I'm giving serious concern to buying a Noble di to use with mine. Wireless (and tuner) > noble > qsc, no modelling at all. 

[javi_bassist]

On 15/10/2021 at 09:30, NancyJohnson said:

On the OP, I've had maybe five-ten people comment on my tone in 30+ years of playing and most of those were bassists.

 

It always makes me laugh seeing these guys, their feet dancing and tapping over these huge boards full of every conceivable pedal, all the while front of house there's zero discernable change to what's coming out if the PA.  Sure these stomps alter tone in isolation, but in a live/band context those nuances are lost.

 

In general, the audience doesn't care what you sound like.  They really don't.

 

As long as you sound good. It's true that 99% of the audience doesn't notice when the bass has overdrive, fuzz or anything. But they care about the overall mix. These changes may suit the song more than just playing a dry signal of the bass.  

[Cuzzie]

My amp gives me the sound I want, you can take a DI out so doesn’t need a traditional cab - the pedal version is close but no cigar - I would generally always use it

[Greg Edwards69]

I've gone from one end to the other.  For many years, my bass amp was used to fill the room, with only vocals and maybe bass drum going through the PA.  I think a lot of bands start out like this and carry on without realising there's other ways.  Sure it works for many gigs, but it's difficult to manage overall mix and volume, doesn't project that well and challenging to eq for both stage and room.

 

As I've said in another thread recently , I never really "got" amp modelling, or pre/post DI an amp to FOH.  You buy an amp and cab for the sound it makes - why would I want to model another amp through it? Furthermore, I had used a DI a number of times, but it never made perfect sense. If you take a pre DI it bypasses the amps preamp colour, if you take a post DI it get the eq you've dialled in for the stage.  Neither is perfect. The only other option to replicate the sound of your carefully dialled in bass rig is to mic the bass cab, and maybe combine it with a DI.  It becomes an unwieldly mess for the average pub band.

 

The Helix was game changing. It was only when one of my guitarists turned up with a new helix and frfr speaker that everything made sense.  The rest of the band followed suit in time. It is a joy to be able to dial in a great sounding tone and replicate it consistently through nearly every sound system, whether its headphone, studio monitors, frfr speaker, IEM or FOH PA.  It gives you so much flexibility.

 

So in answer to the original question.  My bass rig used to be there for mine and the audiences benefit.  Now it's just a stage monitor for me.  I can't see myself going back either.

 

 

Edited November 22, 2021 by Greg Edwards69

[Muzz]

Case in point; I use the Stomp so 'my sound(s)*' comes from that box, and then I pick the amp to suit the gig, from none with inears, to a 112 combo, to a 212&115 Mesa stack. The amps just make 'my sounds' louder in different ways. I always DI, too.

 

I played a festival a week or so ago where the supplied rig was a Markbass LMIII/2 x 410. It wasn't ideal (these sorts of gigs rarely are), but 'my sounds' were there; not as much onstage, but definitely out front.

 

I'd move to an FRFR/PA cab if there was one which could cover all my gigs, but I'd need a pair to cope with the bigger gigs, and that's a big outlay.

 

 

* Both my core sound, and any more, erm, esoteric ones I use in a covers/wedding band with a wide range of styles to, erm, cover...from Rock Clank to Muse to C&W thump to Marcus Miller zing...I know I could get close with just the bass for some of it, but we got out (mostly) as a trio, so the bass is more evident without keys/2nd guitar in the mix...even the punters might notice... 😕🙂

[Count Bassie]

Almost every  gig there is now some sort of able PA involved, so I really only need an amp for stage monitoring. I want to play with a sound I enjoy hearing, and that I can find inspiration with, so I say an amp is important. Also I like to give the drummer some, and the opposite side of the stage, because in clubs we may be using a smallish PA with a simple monitor system. So I often have 2 cabs.
Expensive? Well, if what I want is expensive, there you go. But my needs are fairly simple- but again, I want to hear what is fun for me. I let the FOH worry about the FOH... the amp is for me. The playing, that's for me too, but I can share that with the house...