Dear Steve,
First off I just want to say thank you for making the music that you do and for having a talk bass forum! It thrills me that I can get questions answered by the experts!

I have recently experimented with piccolo bass strings. The amp that I have does not pick up on the higher sounds. I no just about nothing when it comes to this kind of stuff. I was thinking of buying a cab with 2x10's and a horn. Would this pick up the really high notes?

Thanks!
Brian

Hi Brian,

are you sure the problem is the amp? Have you tried the bass through other amps that work? Changing the string guage that drastically can require all manner of changes to the set up of your bass.

What's the amp you've got at the moment? How do you set the EQ on it? Let's trouble-shoot the gear you've got before spending loads of money!

Steve
www.stevelawson.net

Dear Steve,

Thanks for your help. Before telling you my equipment, I feel I must justify why I have such elementary questions on a site for solo bassists! Since I switched from playing the cello to the bass 6 years ago, I have never been that concerned about equipment because frankly, I could not afford any special gadgets. I have simply plugged in and tried to play solo tunes on the instrument. After hearing you, I realise how important the technology side is. So please excuse my bad questions, I am very much into developing my solo bass skills!
I have two small practice amps (bass and guitar). They are both Kustom, both 16 watts. After changing to piccolo strings, I have found over the past couple days that the sound is much clearer through my guitar amp. However, it still has that 'bass' feel. It certainly does not sound like a 'normal' bass because of the high pitch, but it certainly does not sound like a guitar either. I really like this sound! Here are the specifications for it:
2 Selectable Channels: 1 Lead, 1 Rhythm, Loud 16-Watt RMS Output, 24-Bit Digital Effects, the spring reverb sounds awesome!, Separate Gain & Volume Controls, One 8-inch Celestion Speaker, EQ: 3-Band (Treble, Middle, Bass). I really enjoy the effects this amp produces.

Would it work to buy a speaker cabinet with one or two ten inch speakers and a horn and hook it up to my external speaker on the Kustom guitar amp? I was thinking that I could save some money that way by keeping the effects I like, not having to buy a head, and still having a bigger sound. Is this a really bad idea? Because my amp is 16 watts, does that mean that it would only generate 16watts of power through the forementioned speaker cabinet? Would there be no increase in volume, hense no point hooking up an external speaker? Any recommendations would help as to what I can do with my current equipment and spending as little money as possible to try to get louder. I'm lost! As if it wasn't hard enough with nothing but the bass... :)

Thanks
Brian
Most beautiful solo bass tunes:
Manring-Music for Armchair Funambulists/ Selene
Lawson: Need you Now/ Jimmy James
Wooten: More Love/Classical Thump

Hi Brian,

there's nothing bad about your questions at all! They are very sensible questions, given what you're trying to do.

I'm a little out of my technical expertise area when it comes to the idea of hooking up a bass speaker as the extension to a guitar amp - there could be problems with impedance matching (I've no idea what the impedance of teh speaker in a guitar amp is likely to be!), so maybe we should throw this open to someone else who knows...

Hopefully we'll get you a sensible answer! :)

Steve
www.stevelawson.net

Dear Steve,

Am I right to say that if my amp is 16 watts, then hooking up through external speaker to a cabinet with much more and bigger speakers won't make a difference in loudness and power because it is still only powered by 16 watts? If so, then I realise that I must look into a new amp or head/cabs.

To be able to play gigs like the ones you have played at Troubador in London, how much power would you say you utilise? I don't want anything bigger than that at the moment.

If you don't mind taking a quick look, I am thinking of getting this cab at the moment (assuming that bigger speakers will produce a bigger sound even if I am using a 16 watt amp to control the EQ: Ashdown MAG 210T-200 Deep Cab
Configuration: 2 x 10 + tweeter, 200w continous, IMPEDANCE: 8 Ohms, frequencey response: 60Hz-20Hz, SPL, 98dB 1W @ 1m.
I have heard that going from lower to higher impedance will work. I am fairly certain that my amp is 8 Ohms as well. If these do indeed match, could you forsee any possible problems?

thanks!
Brian

That Ashdown cab would be fine, though I'm still not sure what it would sound like hooked up to your guitar amp.

Watts are a fairly strange measuring tool for volume, as there are lots of factors at work, that I don't really understand.

Try asking the same question over in the Amps forum and see if any of the clever people over there have anything intellegent to add...

My live rig is Stereo, 250W a side, but you could play the troub. with my less than that, as they've got a house PA, so you really only need enough to hear yourself.

Steve
www.stevelawson.net