Live rig: Looks v. Sound

[TheDialog]

Hey Justin, I'm having a dilemma. I love my SVT Classics (I own two...AV and CL, both American). I also love their look:



However, for live sound they don't seem extremely ideal in comparison to "tighter" sounding heads. I feel that unlike a guitar tube amp when turned up that breaks up and sounds better the bass tubes conflict one another and sound less tight, define? (Can't think of what adjectives to use; Hopefully you get the idea).

While doing pre-production last week I ran my '71 P direct through the EL-9 and Abbey Road Pre into Logic and it sounded great. I also ran a Hohner B bass (bass that was laying around at a friend's house) into a Markbass LMII 210 combo and it bumped extremely well and stayed tight all over.

I guess if I had it my way live I would run my Classic rig with my U5 DI and have FOH run certain pres to really EQ, compress and mold the sound.

I played a slew of heads yesterday at GC, which wasn't the most ideal place to go since I've tried the bulk of heads they have for sale and didn't find anything I really liked.

Without the luxury of a FOH person what do I do?
Sorry that was so lengthy to get my point across

[jmjbassplayer]

Ummm...I'm not really sure what you're asking.

Are you simply asking what gear I'd recommend? If so:

I'd run a hybrid head (tubes in front of solid state power) if you don't think your SVT heads are giving you enough clarity. But on the rare occasions I've run an SVT live, I've found that a little bit of DI only in the wedges and/or in ears give a great blend from the thick, somewhat vague rumble behind me.

So why don't you experiment with just running DI only signal into your monitoring, and "fill" the sound out with the SVT behind you?

If that doesn't do it, try a head with a tube front and solid state power, like an Aguilar DB751, a Mesa Titan or something like that? Something still loud and thick, but a little quicker and tighter.

Best,
JMJ

p.s. I'd recommend you post over in the Amps section too, and get some tips from the many experts over there. The only thing I'm expert about is my own experience, which is limited to...well...my experience.

[TheDialog]

I think I will try that...running the DI signal only into the wedges.

I need to get around to trying the 751 just not sure where to find a store that carries Aguilar stuff. Need to hop on their site and see where the retailers are or better yet take a trip to NY.

Thank you sir.

[JimmyM]

i'm inclined to agree with justin that you may be a hybrid guy. but more than that, i might also investigate getting a cab that sounds more like a studio monitor like those fearfuls or a handful of other cabs using low frequency neos for lows and a mid driver. with a u5 and digging your recorded sound more than your live sound, i think that may be more your thing. you can do a lot of ar movement damage with one of them. there's a dude on here who runs a fridge sized fearful cab with two eminence 3015lf's and two mid cones. and you can make it look like a vintage 810 with grillcloth if looks is your thing, too. i've always been an 810 guy but i'm getting a couple cabs with two 3012lf's and a mid horn and running an svt through them because i always wanted to try it. would probably sound way cool with a hybrid as well, but i figure i've only got a few good svt years left on me before i can't do it anymore