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#21
Two things. First, I think the Line6 Studio 110 is perfect for just that, a small practice amp and a small studio recording amp. Not much more.

Line6 seems to have gotten out of the bass amp business, as there are none on the website. I had the LowDown LD150 and sent it back almost right away as it just didn't give me good tone reproduction. Every setting was pretty much had a bit too much bass and I couldn't get the bass to cut through even by pulling back on the bass a bunch.

The other thing is partly your bass. If your bass has this spec:

Sleek, sexy, and sonically versatile.
A bolt-on neck joint on the Ibanez SR505 5-string bass guitar allows superb access to the upper frets of its five-piece jatoba/bubinga neck. Only 4/5" thick at the first fret, the 34" scale neck provides more comfortable playing than standard 5-string necks.

Bartolini MK1 pickups and 3-band EQ deliver world-class tone, while the mahogany body provides naturally warm lows and sweet sustain. Rosewood fretboard offers a strong, bright sound and an attractive appearance with a long grain. Ultradurable Accu-Cast B25 bridge offers quick and easy string changes. Single-screw saddle height adjustment gives you better stability than standard double-screw designs.

Features
5-piece jatoba/bubinga neck
Mahogany body
24 medium frets
Rosewood fingerboard
Accu-Cast B25 bridge
Bartolini MK1-5 neck pickup
Bartolini MK1-5 bridge pickup
Abalone oval inlay

Bart pickups tend, at least to me, to hover in the "dark" range, meaning you don't get the same bite as some other pickups. Also, rosewood board will mellow the tone a bit, and the wood combos on this bass definitely to me put it in the "virtuoso" type category, for the discerning bass soloist.

Using your fingers also adds the element of muted or less sharp attack. Put all three of them together and your musical sound preference and I'm not surprised you don't like the tone you are getting.

The Hartke rig, with all aluminum drivers, will definitely boost your "klack attack". The other thing is to cut your bass to about one or two notches below center and boost your treb to one or two notches above. If you are using your fingers only, you need to be plucking closer to the bridge. As for the farty low B, if you like this bass then you need to probably switch out the strings for something with a tapered core for the B. SIT makes sets of strings with tapered B and E that will probably improve what you are hearing a magnitude or two.
 
#22
BurningSkies said:
You've got a lot of new to you gear, and aren't happy with the end result. The problem is that it will be very hard to track down one specific piece. I'd start by looking at the main 'tone makers' and work you way through one at a time until you're happy.

So, if you think off hand its the amp that's causing you grief...go and try a bunch of amps until you find one that sounds better to your ears. Work with that for a while, still not happy? Look at your bass and find one that you feel sounds better. Doing one thing at a time makes it much easier to figure out what your end result is and what pieces are causing you grief.
Click to expand...

All of these amps are located about an hour away. I won't be able to try them all.
I bought the Peavey from a pawn shop and have come to realize that doesn't handle multiple notes well especially if one is a low note. As far as sound goes; I have been doing some tweaking with my amp and MXR M80 and have been much happier with my sound.

I'm really thinking that with a solid amp I'll be good to go. I'm really leaning toward the GK backline based on YouTube, but I can't find much on the carvin. From what I'm gathering, the acoustic is solid but nothing special.
 
#23
So its coming down to the
Carvin redline r600and 410 & 115 cab or
GK backline 600 and a 410 cab
Im a little Tom but not too much I've only seen a couple good reviews on the carvin. It just seems that I'm getting alot for my money. But really if it sucks it doesn't matter.
 
#24
That's the bass. Thats pretty much hope I have the eq set up, flat bass and high, full mids. Ill try dialing down the bass and uping the highs a tad. I like it. It plays very nice, has a nice feel and action to it.

I just picked up a gk backline 600 & Genz Benz 410t cab. Only got to test it n haven't got to report play on it yet. It's acoustic tonite and ill do my knob turning tomorrow. Im excited. It sounded great at his house. More to follow. Hopefully my sound sucking is a thing of the past.
 
#25
I'll throw in my 2 cents here. I searched for years for "my tone", a sound that was big, meaty, growly and aggressive. I play through a GK 1001rb-ii and an Avatar B410 but strangely, I only began to achieve it when I started trying to get a big sound at low volumes. What I mean is, I noticed the bands I loved with killer tone sounded good even through my mediocre car speakers.

I figured I should be able to get that tone without the "pants flapping" power of a huge rig. What I ended up with was a decent bass (MIA Jazz) and good technique into a darkglass b3k, then into a VT bass deluxe. I now can get a huge, crushing tone through a small mixer into my headphones. I essentially use my rig to amplify this tone to a desired volume.

Bottom line, I don't get my tone with my rig, I just use it to amplify the tone I have achieved.
 
#26
My own personal thoughts would be to use the Peavey and use a pick. But I agree that a lot of a bass players sound comes from their hands. I tend to sound eerily similar no matter what rigs or bass I play though.

Good luck on your tone search!

Cheers!

MJW
 
#27
obsidianbass said:
I searched for years for "my tone", a sound that was big, meaty, growly and aggressive.

What I ended up with was a decent bass (MIA Jazz) and good technique into a darkglass b3k, then into a VT bass deluxe. I now can get a huge, crushing tone.
Click to expand...

That sounds exactly like the sound profile im looking for. Crushing. Not fuzzy or fuzzy. Not like the effect is on top of the sound, if that makes sense.

I didn't buy the head and cab to play loud. I got it to produce my sound clear and precise. Not to crank it up. Which the peavey was not doing. It was passable but frankly it sounded like ****.

I climbed pikes peak today so when I got home I didn't have much in me. I set the amp up and did a little tweaking of the amp then tried my m80. It's not there. The first thing I want to work on is rounding it out a little more. Making it a little more full.

Although, I am incredibly interested in the b3k(and have been from the moment I picked up my bad again). I know it's capable of adding the weight (to achieve the crushing part) I'm looking for. Does anyone run a b3k with an MXR M80? I'm curious.

And I'm done with picks for the immediate future. I'm not falling into again. At one point I'll be primary finger then pick when necessary musically, but for now it's only fingers.
 
#29
I play only fingerstyle as well. I usually play close to the bridge with the bridge pickup either favored or solo'd. This to me allows the articulation to come through as well as emphasize the overdrive (I assume it's a mids thing).

To me, the real magic to the tone I have right now is the b3k, but I think you can get it with any good overdrive that sounds awesome to you. The VT bass for me is fairly flat and clean and acts as an EQ and rig simulator so (like I said before) I can sound like I'm playing huge, heavy stuff at reasonable headphone volume. This has been awesome for recording as well. I don't get my grit out of the VT bass, it just imparts a really nice character to the darkglass IMO.

Maybe try an overdrive into your MXR M80? (set flat)

Oh, and I second the whole paying acoustically thing. It's nice in small doses to check if your raw sound is good to start with or if a bass sounds good by itself, but other than that, it will lead to overly heavy handed (read: bad) technique.
 
#33
msact said:
I am almost afraid to ask...

What's the big problem playing with a pick? I think pick playing is just as legitimate as finger playing. Sorry, I don't mean to start this debate again.
Click to expand...

I played with my fingers for 15 years. 5 years ago I switched to a pick when I joined a metal band and I'll never go back. But there are still things I'm trying to do nail with the pick that come much more easily with finger playing.

For the OP, I'd say the rig you have now is fine for practicing at home. I find that with finger playing I need the tone knob on my bass rolled up to take the 'flatness' out of it. Also I was wondering, did you have your bass set up? It will make a huge difference.
 
#34
karl_em_all said:
I played with my fingers for 15 years. 5 years ago I switched to a pick when I joined a metal band and I'll never go back. But there are still things I'm trying to do nail with the pick that come much more easily with finger playing.

For the OP, I'd say the rig you have now is fine for practicing at home. I find that with finger playing I need the tone knob on my bass rolled up to take the 'flatness' out of it. Also I was wondering, did you have your bass set up? It will make a huge difference.
Click to expand...

I have played with a pick for 37 years. There is nothing I can't do with a pick. I like the clean, articulate sound it produces. Also, I am much faster with a pick than fingers.
 
#35
obsidianbass said:
I play only fingerstyle as well. I usually play close to the bridge with the bridge pickup either favored or solo'd. This to me allows the articulation to come through as well as emphasize the overdrive (I assume it's a mids thing).

To me, the real magic to the tone I have right now is the b3k, but I think you can get it with any good overdrive that sounds awesome to you. The VT bass for me is fairly flat and clean and acts as an EQ and rig simulator so (like I said before) I can sound like I'm playing huge, heavy stuff at reasonable headphone volume. This has been awesome for recording as well. I don't get my grit out of the VT bass, it just imparts a really nice character to the darkglass IMO.

Maybe try an overdrive into your MXR M80? (set flat)
Click to expand...

I play right above the bridge. It is most comfortable for me and I find it is gets the heaviest tone. Although I have had the pups centered, I'll try favoring the bridge.

That's really confirming everything ice been reading about the b3k. I plan on taking the money from my tko and purchasing it. I got the m80 for the two channels clean and dirt. I like the dirt but I really want the b3k

About picking vs finger playing. Like I originally said, I originally always played picks. But I always truly wanted to play finger. Ultimately I intend to be fluid in both. I don't want to pick up a pick just yet though because it would be really easy to just fall back on that. I can see a situation where I realize that my picking skills, although a little rusty, is still more advanced then my finger play and just quit learning finger playing. I don't want that to happen.

My bass is setup. I followed a really easy video on YouTube by John Caruthers(?) From elixir strings. I followed it very carefully and went incredibly slow double and triple checking each action. It noticeably improved its playability and entirely got rid of any fret buzz that was there and yet still has a really short action. The gentleman I bought my bass amp from said he seriously started playing in seventy one,and I asked him to play it and specifically pay attention to the setup, playability, and sound. He said it felt, played, and sounded great.
 
#36
Idk if this breaking any forum rules but... does anyone have a Darkglass B3K fs. They sell so fast on the classifieds. I have 200 for it but cheaper would be awesome too. Pm me if so. Id really appreciate it. Im jones-ing.
 

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