Soulpatch60 Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 Hi all I have a active fender Jazz bass Delux series my amplifier is a Hartke 200 watts and the box is also a Hartke 300 watts Im fairly new to playing bass but I was told that active is louder than the passive but when I plug into passive its much louder then the active I have played around with the switches but still passive is louder can someone please shed some light on this. thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charic Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 The passive input is designed to bring passive basses upto a similar vol as an active. Gives it a bit of a boost. The active input doesnt do this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreeneKing Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 Yes as has been hinted at you have slightly the wrong end on the stick (or amp) Your bass is active - always. Some basses are passive. You should ideally plug into the active amp input. The signal from the bass is attenuated slightly to match it with the passive input. Use the passive input for a passive bass with a weaker signal. So if you plug your bass into the passive input it will be louder as the signal isn't being attenuated. It's not an exact science and some passive basses have huge outputs and actives visa versa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdwardHimself Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 I think having "active" and "passive" inputs can be slightly confusing. It really should just be like on my bass amp which has "high gain" (That would be "passive" on yours) and "low gain" inputs. Y'know, i don't think people should have to be spoonfed everything, i think we have a right to choose what sort of input is sutiable for our bass! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skankdelvar Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 [quote name='EdwardHimself' post='526561' date='Jun 28 2009, 10:42 AM']I think having "active" and "passive" inputs can be slightly confusing. It really should just be like on my bass amp which has "high gain" (That would be "passive" on yours) and "low gain" inputs. Y'know, i don't think people should have to be spoonfed everything, i think we have a right to choose what sort of input is sutiable for our bass![/quote] Indeed. BC Says No to input Fascism! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RussFM Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 I find my active Jazz to be quieter than my passive Jazz, so use the 'passive' input on my amp for both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jono Bolton Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 Doesn't running an active bass through the passive input mean you run the risk of damaging the amp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOD2 Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 [quote name='Jono Bolton' post='526673' date='Jun 28 2009, 01:18 PM']Doesn't running an active bass through the passive input mean you run the risk of damaging the amp?[/quote] No - just use the input that sounds best. If it distorts at all, try the other one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdwardHimself Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 [quote name='Jono Bolton' post='526673' date='Jun 28 2009, 01:18 PM']Doesn't running an active bass through the passive input mean you run the risk of damaging the amp?[/quote] not really. If the output of the bass is too high for the amp then you'll get distortion but that's about it really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 Active and passive is no real indication of output volume of a bass. My passive Gus G3 is louder than pretty much any active bass I have. I always use the active input on my amp unless the sound is weedy. Personally if you're going to have 2 preset levels and not a single one with a gain control I'd like to see them labelled "Loud Basses" and "Quiet Basses" so there's no confusion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kongo Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 (edited) [quote name='EdwardHimself' post='526561' date='Jun 28 2009, 10:42 AM']I think having "active" and "passive" inputs can be slightly confusing. It really should just be like on my bass amp which has "high gain" (That would be "passive" on yours) and "low gain" inputs. Y'know, i don't think people should have to be spoonfed everything, i think we have a right to choose what sort of input is sutiable for our bass![/quote] Got that right! My Will Power equiped P-bass will blow ANY of my actives out of the water! Edited June 28, 2009 by Kongo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lfalex v1.1 Posted June 29, 2009 Share Posted June 29, 2009 [quote name='Kongo' post='527243' date='Jun 28 2009, 11:26 PM']Got that right! My Will Power equiped P-bass will blow ANY of my actives out of the water![/quote] And my Will Power equipped Attitude slays all comers! If it ran any hotter, you could just plug it straight into a cab... Them DiMarzios is EVIL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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