Studio Amp..?

[Jayf19]

So my current setup is fine, besides my amplifier, being my weakest link…

What I’m looking to achieve is :
a) play various tone styles (from Tool, to slap bass, to modern country)
b) I have no intention of playing live, so I don’t need large headroom possibilities.
c) On the other hand, I would like to eventually do in-home recording and, example, Youtube videos.

I’m pretty limited budget-wise, but all suggestions are welcome, as I want to have a base of comparison between the different price ranges.

Discuss or throw me a one-line suggestion, lol

Thanks!

[IntrepidCellist]

Line 6 Studio 110. Great sounds from clean to overdriven, excellent DI, good compressor, and sounds great mic'd too. Also small enough to haul to jam sessions with friends, and loud enough for monitoring use.

[RickenBoogie]

Skip the amp, and just get yourself a good bass preamp with a DI out. The MXR M80 is a good choice, but there's plenty of others.

[bareass]

i agree, i would get a t good preamp, with a good direct out.

as for different tones, a good sounding clean is all you need these days, once you have that, you have a blank canvis. you can use plug ins like guitar rig, ect. to get your different effects, or amp tones. they sound pretty good to, even if you just plug your bass into the mixer, but i think its better to go through a preamp first.

as for whats good, i have an eden traveller head that i use for small gigs, the direct out is very good sounding so i use that. heard good things from demeter.

i wouldn't go out and buy a full amp. i recorded through my SVT810, with some high end mics and wasn't too happy with the final sound. even though the live sound is killer.

[Jayf19]

Originally Posted by IntrepidCellist

Line 6 Studio 110. Great sounds from clean to overdriven, excellent DI, good compressor, and sounds great mic'd too. Also small enough to haul to jam sessions with friends, and loud enough for monitoring use.

I've read a bit on that particular amp; the only thing that scares me is the modelling... Considering that I already have my pedalboard, it seems a bit overkill to have modelling in the amp.. There has to be something in this range of price wihtout the modelling (ultimaltely the hardware cost being spent elsewhere in the design/quality)..

Originally Posted by RickenBoogie

Skip the amp, and just get yourself a good bass preamp with a DI out. The MXR M80 is a good choice, but there's plenty of others.

I've considered this as well, but the problem is that I would simply transfer my weak link to the sound source: I have no way of bringing the DI to my computer, nor do I have quality speakers on my computer...

That being said, I also forgot to mention that I sometimes play with a few people here and there, so I can't be bringing my computer everywhere... lol

I really like the DI option though, am I getting the concept wrong?

[Arranger]

Outstanding studio amp = Hartke Kickback 12. No other Hartke has the refined tone that this particular model provides.

Endless EQ possibilities.
Round and full tone to bright slap-attack.
DI out that is unaffected by tone controls.
Headphone out.
Tilt-back design for low volume or monitoring options.
Reliable and roadworthy, so it will hold up well in the studio.
Loud enough to hold up with a full band with drummer, keys and 2 guitars

Noiseless. Noiseless. Absolutely noiseless.

[2-Sticks]

Ill throw in my $0.02.

Buy yourself a preamp with the flavour you like, there are a ton of them on the market (Tech 21 BDDI or VT / The Dunlop m80 / The Aggie Tone Hammer / etc). Then grab yourself any 300 watt 2*10 combo that sounds good and is in your budget.

300 watts and 2*10s should be more than enough for your occasional jams, and the preamp in the combo is irrelevent, since you wont be using it anyway.

This is probably the most cost effective way of going about it.

[jellymax]

you will need to keep up with a drummer at some point, so i think a 1x10
is too small. do you have a good cab? if not, then there are some combos
in the 2x10 or 2x12 that would be perfect for you.

if money is tight, then watch craigslist. when you see something, report it here. we
will tell you if its a good value. then, jump my brother. follow these words of
wisdom and ye shall rock happily ever after

[Jayf19]

Originally Posted by jellymax

you will need to keep up with a drummer at some point, so i think a 1x10
is too small. do you have a good cab? if not, then there are some combos
in the 2x10 or 2x12 that would be perfect for you.

if money is tight, then watch craigslist. when you see something, report it here. we
will tell you if its a good value. then, jump my brother. follow these words of
wisdom and ye shall rock happily ever after

Ok, well let's say for instance an Eden WT330 preamp with a D210T for 600$... is it worth it? Would I need to find a poweramp?

[jellymax]

yes that is a decent deal. wt330 has like 200 watts at 8 ohms. anyone else?

[SteveC]

With no other info or profile, it's hard to answer. If you aren't going to play live, you don't need an amp (head/cab/combo/whatever) so dump all your money into a nice preamp/DI. Not knowing your bass or other gear, I'd say a Radial JDI, Radial J48, Countryman, something like that for a DI. For a lot more you could go with a REDDI for a more tubey, old school tone. If you want some tone shaping and a great DI, get an Avalon U5. Then there are channel strips, bass preamps, etc. from PreSonus to Sansamp to on and on.

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by Jayf19

Ok, well let's say for instance an Eden WT330 preamp with a D210T for 600$... is it worth it? Would I need to find a poweramp?

yes you'd need a power amp. not worth it to me because i hate eden gear

i've found you can use practically anything and make it sound good in the studio if you have a good mic and an ear for mixing. i have a 64 b-15n but i'll often just plug into my 73 fender super reverb just because it's set up at all times in here whereas i use my b-15 on gigs. or i'll just use a vt pedal direct for when i can't use an amp. to get a good recording, it's mainly in the performance.

[Jayf19]

Originally Posted by SteveC

With no other info or profile, it's hard to answer. If you aren't going to play live, you don't need an amp (head/cab/combo/whatever) so dump all your money into a nice preamp/DI. Not knowing your bass or other gear, I'd say a Radial JDI, Radial J48, Countryman, something like that for a DI. For a lot more you could go with a REDDI for a more tubey, old school tone. If you want some tone shaping and a great DI, get an Avalon U5. Then there are channel strips, bass preamps, etc. from PreSonus to Sansamp to on and on.

MM Sterling 5 into Sansamp GT2. I also have a few effects pedal (Big Muff, 535q wah, Boss BF3 Flanger, MXR EVH Phase 90)

Once i get a nice preamp... how do I get the sound out... I think its the one thing that confuses me at this point.

[IntrepidCellist]

Just as a heads up, the FX in the Line 6 are bypassable, and the modeled amplifiers (Eden, B-15, SVT, and SVT+RBI) are fantastic-sounding.

[greenboy]

Originally Posted by IntrepidCellist

Just as a heads up, the FX in the Line 6 are bypassable, and the modeled amplifiers (Eden, B-15, SVT, and SVT+RBI) are fantastic-sounding.

Pretty much agree. And any preset that doesn't reflect this can be tweaked to. If nothing else, a lot of the true modeling boxes are pretty decent with the amp and head models if tweaked appropriately.

[39-Bassist]

Just to give you an idea, I just recorded a Cd with a national release last month and I had gotten some of the best sounds in years on the recording using my Carvin BX1500 post eq D.I. out in to board and also mic the SWR cab w/10's together. and they sounded killer blended...Just a thought...

[SteveC]

Originally Posted by Jayf19

Once i get a nice preamp... how do I get the sound out... I think its the one thing that confuses me at this point.

Most preamps/DI's have an XLR out that you run into your recording device. If you aren't playing live you don't really need an amp/cab.

[cableguy]

I Use Sansamp stuff for recording & live. Buy a Sansamp Bass DI (around $100.00 used) and you can record with it or put it an front of any small combo ( I have a small Carvin) and it will make it sound good. You can use the tube emulation, the direct (unaffected signal) out, or both if you can record 2 tracks at once. I always carry mine in my gig bag. I've also played gigs running stright into the PA with it. I'm sure any good preamp/DI would work I just prefer the Tech 21 stuff.

[craig.p]

It depends on the particular job. You may or may not be responsible for your track's sound. In many cases, an engineer will want a straight feed and he'll just use a plug-in to get the sound he wants out of your bass, so it really won't matter what you use. You might even find yourself using cans instead of an amp. In a general sense, I've found that the larger and more-capable the studio, the more likely they are to use software rather than hardware to nail the tone they're looking for. On the other hand, if you're being hired partly on the strength of a particular tone you're already known for, then you'd be wise to bring that tone with you, i.e. bring whatever kit you normally use to achieve it.

[aledeville]

The MarcusMiller SWR Preamp is veeeery versatile, has great EQ and compression options.
For studio that would be my choice.
http://www.kandashokai.co.jp/swr/mar..._miller_m2.jpg