Sometimes the old ways work just fine....

[Dave Martin]

I had a show in Wichita, Kansas on Friday, and played a borrowed (and sub-par) bass. The pickup that was supplied with the instrument was unuseable, so to get through the gig, I used the old bluegrass miking method - a Shure SM57 wrapped in a towel, crammed under the tailpiece and pointing up toward the bridge.

And you know what? It worked just fine.

I didn't rhave any bass into my monitor, and the other people on stage had only a minimal amount, so feedback wasn't an issue. I wasn't necessarily thrilled with the sound, but I wasn't happy with the sound of the bass, either. I'll definitely keep the technique in mind for those 'show must go on' situations.

[McGryff]

Up till I got my SansAmp Para DI recently, I was doing that. I took an old, beat-up Electro-voice dynamic mic into some acoustic foam & wedged it in the tail-piece. It sounded fine! I'd never have a problem with a SM57, but then again my bass sounds pretty darn good.

To me at least.

Cheers!