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Blending dirt with clean lows

I personally found that I don't like the only clean lows and only mid/top drive recipe.

I think it sounds fizzy and wrong.

I also found that some drive pedals works great just as is blended with clean signal, without it sounding like theres a clean signal sitting on top of the drive signal or vise versa, and without it getting muddy, where as others requires some EQ to the drive sound to blend in nicely, depending on the inherrent character of the drive pedal in question and which kind of drive effect exactly you are trying to obtain.

Some drive pedals do require a small low cut, others a mid hump, others again a mid scoop, to sit nicely in the mix.

That said it probably helps my cleans to blend in nicely that they are not actually all that clean but overdriven, by a preamp that sits after my drive setup, giving the clean signal natural compression, and helping the drive signal blend in more smoothly as well, since it too is running through the same overdriven preamp.

Couple hundred bucks in pocket…what to get?

Back in High School, when my buddies and I first got our Lerner permits, my one buddy Steve used to sneak his dad’s ‘73 Monte Carlo out. We used to drive around Long Island City at night to get a glimpse of those snaky tooth-missin’ hookers…
Nothing like the hookers in movies at the time …

But in all seriousness, regarding my Carvin BX500 …
How long do these usually live?
I haven’t used it in a while, and it has very little run-time as it is. I’m always worried that I’ll turn it on one day and it’ll just blow up.
I’m considering investing in something like a MarkBass 58R.
My SWR Baby Blue 2 lived a very long life, 26 years, until one day corrosion and age got into something, and it started acting up. It might have lived through it, but I started messing with it. A few squirts of Deoxit applied to the pots (in probably the wrong places) and messing with the tube preamp sent it to the afterlife.

Post Your Parallel Processing Pedalboard Preamp Chains!

My compact pedalboard.

The signal goes to tuner, then to EBS Sheehan drive which splits it into clean and drive parallel channels. The clean signal goes to the MBD3 which splits it (again) to clean contoured blend and drive and blends it back together...and then the two signals get mixed back together by the EBS Sheehan drive...

So strictly speaking, there are three parallel signals: (i) EBS Sheehan drive, (ii) contoured clean blend of the MBD3, (iii) drive of the MBD3. Messenger jr affects the latter two because it sits in the clean loop of the EBS pedal after MBD3. Compression is applied to the blend of all three signals because it is located after the loops of the EBS pedal...

PDB_Mess.jpeg

Looking for bass instructor in Austin, TX area

Looking for a good bass instructor in the North Austin area. I live In Georgetown in neighboring Williamson County. So the closer to Georgetown the better. Looking for a real bass player who is a good teacher, not a guitar player who just gives bass lessons on the side.

I am a retiree who took up bass late in life. Can play a bit, not a newbie. But want to up my game.

Any recommendations would be appreciated

Cheers,
btl aesthetics emsculpt
Ron Rose
Hey Ron! Check out Dolce Music Studio right here in Georgetown, or head a bit south down I-35/183 to The Musician's Woodshed on Parmer. Both have legit, dedicated bass players on staff who cater to adult learners. Definitely call ahead to make sure you get set up with a primary bassist!

Orange Terror Bass 2 - Ohm Switch When Using 2 x 8 ohm cabs

As above yes - the head is wired in parallel. I didn’t feel like one was enough - it was low down and didn’t push much air. It did however sound amazing still! If you can get it up off the floor it might work better. The DI sounded pretty decent if I remember - I don’t think you’d be disappointed with it. I have some DI examples on my demo video here:

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I ended up selling it as I was worried about the tubes going at a gig so opted for the Eich T-900. I loved the sound of the Terror Bass though - really warm.
I’m considering switching from my orange box terror rig. I love it but the lack of a separate volume control between foh line out and cab volume is really frustrating. How is the Eich compared to the orange?

Aguilar GS112 impressions & question

The GS has more low end than the DB imo and they use the same chassis so its the cab tuning.
I would never describe them as shy down there and the only cab that I found pillowed more...if thats what you want ...is Epifani.
However, no chassis does it all so its how you tune the cab to add and subtract what you want and like.

My thinking is the best config is a 12 and a 6 where the 6 picks up from where the 12 runs out of steam, better than a horn typically.

I have a lighter ceramic 2x112 which do lows well enough, but I did really like the GS112 over the DB112...but i think the horn gap is just a bit wide.
Having said that, I didn't have the current amp I'm using.
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What weird feature would your perfect octaver have?

I want an analog octave down with an effects loop that has the ability to switch between just affecting the clean, just the sub, or the whole signal. I also want a switch to select whether the effects in the loop stay in the signal path when the octave is off, and a kill the dry foot switch.
Yes
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4 -> 5 string bass?

I just converted my 4 string P bass to (in effect) a 5 string. I replaced E A D G strings with B E A D strings. I frequently use a low D, and pretty much never use the G string. So far, it's working well. Anyone tried this? Any truss rod issues? (no visible change in neck.)
Okay... In order?
1. Yes, I've tried it. I have an '06 Carvin LB-20 bass that, around 2012 or so, was... let's just say; "surplus to requirements". Why is a long story, and not germane here. It was my BEAD bass for about 6 years, until I turned it back into a "Regular" 4-string bass. Why did I change it back? Mainly because a) it became obvious that I really had no use for a B string; and b) the bass was no longer "surplus to requirements". It's worn Optima 4099 "Chrome" Flats since I changed it back, about 8 years ago. It gets played fairly often - a lot more often than it did, tuned BEAD...
2. No, I never had any truss rod issues. Actually, when I turned it into a BEAD bass, it was wearing Sadowsky Blue Label Flats; I replaced them with the heavy strings from a 5-string set of La Bella Black Tapes. I did have to adjust the truss rod, but that was because the Tapes had considerably less tension than the Sadowsky Flats did. I replaced the Tapes after a while, because they felt... kinda limp - especially the B string. The 65-130's from a set of Roto RS775LD Monel Flats I replaced them with, felt - and sounded - much better. I had to adjust the truss rod a bit, but... nothing out of the ordinary. The Roto's stayed on the Carvin until I decided to put it back to EADG tuning. When I had to adjust the truss rod - again...
Other than that? I replaced the nut with one cut for the heavier-gauge strings. I did keep the original nut, though; and when I put the bass back to EADG? I just swapped out the nut. I didn't have any trouble intonating the BEAD strings, but... quite a few people seem to have difficulty with it, from the posts on the BEAD Club thread here. I didn't, but... there was very little room left behind the saddle on that Hipshot bridge, after the B string was intonated. Personally? I think it depends on exactly where the factory put the bridge, more than anything else. Although, nobody with a Fender bent-plate bridge ever said they had a problem...
So, did I have any real problems with tuning that bass to BEAD? No, not really. In fact, if BEAD tuning had been the least bit useful - to ME? That Carvin would most likely still be wearing those heavy Roto Flats... :whistle:

Hi from Canada

I just found out a out this looks interesting to say the least.

Currently playing an 83' Ibanze Dt 600 bi-amping Peavey 400 & 300 mark iii into Trynor 4x12 and a home made 15in bass cab.. lets get loud and low!!

In a dream world I will one day find my vintage post 1967 Vox Festival 18in Cabinet . In it i will use my never mounted date stamped Sept '76 Celestion G 18c i found in a box in my friends garage that he forgot he had.....

Keep making loud nosies!!
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Double Bass D'Addario Helicore Megathread

I’ve been looking into some of the controversy surrounding D’Addario right now. I don’t want to be one of those “I’ll never buy another D’Addario product ever again” type people, but I’m not feeling especially motivated to want to buy a new set of Helicore’s either.

Danny Sapko has a couple videos on YouTube right now discussing it.

Mike Gordon (A tone discussion)

Ya know, the more I mull with this, the more it makes sense how the Eden was so much of this tone. Boosting the Enhance knob is more subtractive than it is additive, in context, I think. Making up those removed mids from the bass and adding them back in is like filtering out syrup and adding in honey. Neither is wrong, the flavor will change, but the taste will still be sweet.
Yeah it really must be some sort of phase thing. I've dialed it in even further and ill definitely post some really nice bits when im digging in on the groove. Not kidding at all when I say I feel so much more locked in up there now because my bass sounds the the way I want it to. My homie has seen 140+ phish shows and he was like damn you got that 90s Mike tone on lock. I'm pretty astonished to be honest loll
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Custom Slap ramp

That’s cool… very different from the clearance on my finger ramp’s… but they also serve very different functions.

I don’t have a ruler in front of me to test, but from this picture you can see it’s about a 1/16” between the bottom of the B string and the top of the ramp. I try to get them as close as I can without restricting the movement/vibration of the strings.
View attachment 7544774View attachment 7544775
That’s really tight!

Vintera II Roadworn Precision Bass - Damage or relicing?

The soft-ish edges on the wear makes me think it was from the factory. I feel like actual wear would be much more jagged or irregular, that seems like it's a possible option on relicing, but perhaps less common than some other spots that get factory wear.

Not an expert opinion at all, just my take on first glance.
No expert either, but TBH, it looks more like a kid's first day on the finishing wheels, cleaned up as much as is practical without repainting.

Double Bass Which adhesive to use to re-attach a pegbox? Or no adhesive at all?

Thanks, Greg. The pictures are old, and I could not update or add to them because my camera is malfunctioning and will not power on (after several battery changes). To address your questions and comments, there is not enough gluing surface on the horns of the neck (as per your drawing) to give me much help there.

RE the epoxy, it appears the same gluing rules apply as with hide glue: don't tighten the clamps all the way down so that all the glue is squeezed out.

Regarding the fastener, I will have to do some eyeballing and measuring. The fastener running afoul of the tuning machines is a concern, if I am to go interior.

The screw through the nut will have to be a screw just above the nut; the bottom of the pegbox aligns flush with the bottom of the nut, and I don't think there is enough wood there to give the screw much purchase. There is, however, about 1/4 inch of wood above the nut before getting into the pegbox proper, and it is angled slightly. Putting the screw in there would not only take care of the "angle of resistance"; it would allow me to use a longer screw. There, I might even be able to use two screws.

Thanks for the warning about strings, but this instrument, if it ever becomes playable again, will never see anything heavier than solo strings tuned to standard. If if I can get those in weich, so much the better.

And thank YOU for all the time and trouble you went to to advise me.
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Mixer suggestions please

I did look at that as well, but my main concern was 100% reliance on a tablet. How was the built in router? How did you find that in practice? Did you ever use it at outside gigs — any issues with heat, visibility in direct sunlight?

Our shows will predominantly be small - medium bar gigs with the occasional outdoors show. At least in the near future.
I never used the internal router as I already had a high-quality external router (Ubiquiti) that knew was superior. See the guide written by s0c9 for router set up tips that really help.

To your other questions, I used it both in the studio and at gigs, including some outdoor summer shows, with no issues. As I’m a long-time Mixing Station user, I tended to rely on that. I had no issues with connection reliability or control using a 10th Gen iPad. The only issues I had were my own fault - not assuring my iPad batteries were fully charged. Even then, although having to attach a charger interfered with portability, I never lost control of the mixer.

I did experience some issues with our Sennheiser wireless IEM system. As I was working to sort that out we added another band member and found ourselves needing more inputs, leading us to our current X32 Rack/DL32 system. That notwithstanding, I liked the CQ20B a lot.
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    As a matter of fact....I am your Queen!