Carvin BX1200 EQ - Bridge mode

[joeschitterefsk]

I've had my BX1200 for a while now and I'm in search of better tone. Please see the attached pics and give me your recommendations. This is just kind of the set up I've fallen into but I'm not really in love with it.

I run the head in bridged mode (w/Crossover) to the Carvin BRX 4.10 Neo cab.

I want powerful tone (play in a punk/thrash band) but need articulate lows (no farts/mud) with strong, punchy mids (A string gets a lot of use!) that can stand out from the 2 guitars but not overpower them.

I usually play a 4st G&L L-2000 or Ric

[Sundogue]

I use the BX1200.

You can't bridge it and use the crossover at the same time. The Crossover only works when you use each side of the amp in mono (controlling the lows with Power Amp1 and the Highs with Power Amp 2). Only Power Amp 1 control works in bridged mode.

With that aside, from your pics and the cab you are using, do the following...

Graphic EQ...

Cut the 50Hz slider all the way down (-12). That is useless for the cab you are using and it's eating up headroom on the amp unnecessarily. You'll want to use the watts from that amp higher up in the frequency range because your cab can't handle 50Hz very well anyway and you will keep your speakers' excursion in a safer range.

Keep the 80Hz flat, cut the 125Hz to -2 to -4. Bump the 500Hz up to -4, Boost the 800Hz up to +4. The rest of the Graphic EQ to taste.

On the rest of the amp, boost the Drive control to about 7 or 8, cut the Contour to noon. Turn your Bass down to 2 or 3 (max). On the Parametric mids use the following settings...

Lo-Mid = +3 and the Freq for that = 100Hz
Mid = +3 and the Freq for that = 350-400Hz
Hi-Mid = FLAT (0) Unless you want to boost or cut some frequency your Graphic doesn't take care of specifically. Then adjust accordingly.

Turn your Crossover OFF!!! Turn your Power Amp 1 (The only one that works in Bridged Mode) up to about 8.

Set your Master to whatever volume you can handle.

Hope that helps. If that still isn't what you are looking for, start with those settings and tweak a little until you get what you want. By tweaking, I mean a little bit of adjustment goes a long way. Don't move the knobs and sliders in big sweeps one way or the other...just adjust a little at a time. Also, once you have it close...WRITE those settings down for reference. This amp has a ton of tonal options and you can lose track of your settings. Writing them down will allow you to go back to a baseline setting for further adjustments.

[Bass_Pounder]

+1 to the above..................

In fact I would say to completely counterclockwise the contour control (set it to flat).

You say you want punchy mids, but the way your amp is set, you are doing a double "scoop" to the mids via the contour, and the "V" shape graphic EQ.

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by Bass_Pounder

+1 to the above..................

In fact I would say to completely counterclockwise the contour control (set it to flat).

You say you want punchy mids, but the way your amp is set, you are doing a double "scoop" to the mids via the contour, and the "V" shape graphic EQ.

Yes, the Contour will definitely scoop the mids greatly when turned up.

But I've found on the BX1200, setting it flat or completely counterclockwise makes the amp too sterile sounding and forces me to have to EQ a lot more to compensate to even get it back to what I'd consider relatively "flat" sounding. It's almost as if "noon" is flat...to me anyway.

Also, consider that the Contour control is centered around 250Hz, not 500Hz, so when dialed back it adds in more lo-mids that are a bit uncharacteristic of most "contour" control knobs on other amps. It doesn't scoop evenly in the mids, so the BX1200's contour is a bit different in that way.

It is worthwhile to play with it a bit, as are all the many controls on the amp. Lots of tonal control and it can be a bit tricky if one is not experienced with both graphic and semi-parametric EQ's. At the outset it can be overwhelming.

[jnewmark]

I wonder if the BX1500 has the same eq as the 1200? Seems pretty similiar just at a glance. I'm thinking about getting one for my LDS 212/tweeter, ( 3012HO's, 18Sound XD125 tweeter).

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by jnewmark

I wonder if the BX1500 has the same eq as the 1200? Seems pretty similiar just at a glance. I'm thinking about getting one for my LDS 212/tweeter, ( 3012HO's, 18Sound XD125 tweeter).

The BX1500 is just about the same amp...only lighter and with more power.

[jeff7bass]

Originally Posted by Sundogue

I use the BX1200.

You can't bridge it and use the crossover at the same time. The Crossover only works when you use each side of the amp in mono (controlling the lows with Power Amp1 and the Highs with Power Amp 2). Only Power Amp 1 control works in bridged mode.

With that aside, from your pics and the cab you are using, do the following...

Graphic EQ...

Cut the 50Hz slider all the way down (-12). That is useless for the cab you are using and it's eating up headroom on the amp unnecessarily. You'll want to use the watts from that amp higher up in the frequency range because your cab can't handle 50Hz very well anyway and you will keep your speakers' excursion in a safer range.

Keep the 80Hz flat, cut the 125Hz to -2 to -4. Bump the 500Hz up to -4, Boost the 800Hz up to +4. The rest of the Graphic EQ to taste.

On the rest of the amp, boost the Drive control to about 7 or 8, cut the Contour to noon. Turn your Bass down to 2 or 3 (max). On the Parametric mids use the following settings...

Lo-Mid = +3 and the Freq for that = 100Hz
Mid = +3 and the Freq for that = 350-400Hz
Hi-Mid = FLAT (0) Unless you want to boost or cut some frequency your Graphic doesn't take care of specifically. Then adjust accordingly.

Turn your Crossover OFF!!! Turn your Power Amp 1 (The only one that works in Bridged Mode) up to about 8.

Set your Master to whatever volume you can handle.

Hope that helps. If that still isn't what you are looking for, start with those settings and tweak a little until you get what you want. By tweaking, I mean a little bit of adjustment goes a long way. Don't move the knobs and sliders in big sweeps one way or the other...just adjust a little at a time. Also, once you have it close...WRITE those settings down for reference. This amp has a ton of tonal options and you can lose track of your settings. Writing them down will allow you to go back to a baseline setting for further adjustments.

Pretty close to my settings! I’m going to try these too.

[joeschitterefsk]

what about the compression/frequency settings?

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by joeschitterefsk

what about the compression/frequency settings?

Adjust compression to taste, but know that compression will affect volume. There are no frequency settings (if you mean on the crossover) because the crossover is not used.

[rpsands]

Compression always has to be set to taste because input signals vary from bass to bass.

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by jeff7bass

Pretty close to my settings! I’m going to try these too.

Those aren't the settings I use, just what I'm recommending based on his tonal needs. I know this amp inside and out and I've used it mono, bridged and have used the crossover capabilities extensively. Hard to say what effect the settings I gave him will produce because a lot depends on his bass, technique, the room he's in, etc.

I'm running mine bridged through a fEARful 15/6.

On my Graphic EQ my 50Hz slider is boosted +2, my 80Hz is boosted +4 to +6, the 125 is flat (or cut if the room demands it as that is the "Boomy/Mud" frequency), 250 is flat, 500 is cut -6 and my bass knob is up to 3. Contour is at noon, Drive up to 8 and Compression depends on the room.

On my Parametric, I boost my lo-mid (at 100Hz) +6. Everything else is near flat depending on the tone I'm after. But I always have a lot of deep, clean low end because my cab can dish it out and do so clearly and VERY loud. I'm using a 5 string Yamaha BB515 with two separate volume pup controls...one each for the P-Bass and Jazz pups, and then one Tone control, so I adjust a lot of tone on my bass as well.

There are gigs where my Power Amp 1 is at 8 and so is my Master Volume.

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by rpsands

Compression always has to be set to taste because input signals vary from bass to bass.

And from room to room. With some rooms the sound just needs to be tightened up a bit.

[joeschitterefsk]

i meant the frequency settings under the parametric EQ

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by joeschitterefsk

i meant the frequency settings under the parametric EQ

That was listed under the settings I gave originally...

Originally Posted by Sundogue

Lo-Mid = +3 and the Freq for that = 100Hz
Mid = +3 and the Freq for that = 350-400Hz
Hi-Mid = FLAT (0) Unless you want to boost or cut some frequency your Graphic doesn't take care of specifically. Then adjust accordingly.

If the setting on the control is flat (0), it doesn't matter what the Frequency is set at. The knob above each Frequency knob is what controls the boost or cut of that Frequency.

[jnewmark]

I imagine if I get one of these ( BX1500 ), the eq settings for a 212 loaded with 3012HO's and an XD125 tweet, will take some fiddling with to get it right. Playing a 4 string Jazz in a wedding/party band, I need a do it all tone. The cab itself is super clear in the upper mids, ( i find myself even boosting a tad at 800 hz ), and the XD125 is the best tweeter I've ever used. I don't need super lows and the 3012HO's are'nt about to give me them anyway, but any suggestions would be welcome.

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by jnewmark

I imagine if I get one of these ( BX1500 ), the eq settings for a 212 loaded with 3012HO's and an XD125 tweet, will take some fiddling with to get it right. Playing a 4 string Jazz in a wedding/party band, I need a do it all tone. The cab itself is super clear in the upper mids, ( i find myself even boosting a tad at 800 hz ), and the XD125 is the best tweeter I've ever used. I don't need super lows and the 3012HO's are'nt about to give me them anyway, but any suggestions would be welcome.

For starters...definitely kill that 50Hz slider. You'll get nothing for tone from it unless you have a cab that handles deep lows very well. It will allow the amp more headroom.

As far as anything else goes...fiddle around with settings until you find something you like. One thing I like to do for my variety band is to set one sound with only the tone controls and parametric EQ. Then I set my Graphic EQ to something completely different. That allows me to engage/disengage my Graphic with the switch for an instant tone change-up. I do that, along with rotating the Contour knob for quite a bit of tonal variety very quickly.

Everything else is all done on my bass, either via controls or how I play it.

No matter what my recommendations are, it really takes some time and involvement to understand what it can do.

The Carvin BX 1200/1500 is a tonal variety machine! I love it for that...and of course gobs of power when needed. Even my BX1200 only weighs 22 lbs. and the BX1500 is way less than that.

[jnewmark]

Originally Posted by Sundogue

For starters...definitely kill that 50Hz slider. You'll get nothing for tone from it unless you have a cab that handles deep lows very well. It will allow the amp more headroom.

As far as anything else goes...fiddle around with settings until you find something you like. One thing I like to do for my variety band is to set one sound with only the tone controls and parametric EQ. Then I set my Graphic EQ to something completely different. That allows me to engage/disengage my Graphic with the switch for an instant tone change-up. I do that, along with rotating the Contour knob for quite a bit of tonal variety very quickly.

Everything else is all done on my bass, either via controls or how I play it.

No matter what my recommendations are, it really takes some time and involvement to understand what it can do.

The Carvin BX 1200/1500 is a tonal variety machine! I love it for that...and of course gobs of power when needed. Even my BX1200 only weighs 22 lbs. and the BX1500 is way less than that.

Yeah, I would have to get my head around the fact that it is not an either/or situation as far as the para/graphic eq option. Quite frankly, I never thought of using them bothe at the same time !

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by jnewmark

Yeah, I would have to get my head around the fact that it is not an either/or situation as far as the para/graphic eq option. Quite frankly, I never thought of using them bothe at the same time !

With my blues band and classic rock band where I'm more inclined to stick to one sound (mine...LOL), I use both at the same time because the Graphic EQ can get me close and the Parametric (technically a semi-parametric) allows me to dial in or out specific frequencies the Graphic doesn't allow for.

For instance, the Graphic allows me to boost the "ranges" centered "around" 50Hz, 80Hz and 125Hz, but they are all kind of tied together. I like to boost 100Hz specifically by itself because it rides over the top of the kick (90Hz). Without the Parametric, I'd have to boost the 125Hz and 80Hz on the Graphic more than I care to to get that 100Hz up where I want it. I could do that on the Graphic, but then cut the (typically) offending 125Hz by itself.

They do work wonderfully together. Use the Graphic to get it close and the Parametric to nail specific frequencies (boost or cut).