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Double Bass an amp and pickup for college

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onlysharkattack

Jan 10, 2009
12
0
Center and Northern IL.
#1
Hey guys I would like to get you opinions please. I am off to college next year and i will be majoring in music ed and an minoring in jazz studies. Through high school I would just place a mic by the F holes and run thought the pa system.
But now I figure it is time to get a pick up and amp. I have few option amp wise, all are used amps. The amp would be used primary with my double bass, but i will most likely be using it when i pull out the electric bass. Here are my options (though i am open to other suggestions if i can afford them):

1) I use my Little Mark II(i already own the LM II) with an Epifani UL-112 2) an old beat up Gk Mb200 combo 3) I hopefully would sell my little mark bass to help pay for a used Acoustic Image Contra series III.

By the way my bass is a fully carved Eastman Andreas Vb 200.


Pick up wise i am thinking of getting a Full circle or if i can find the money the Ehrlund Acoustic PickUp (Invalid Link Removed)


Any help would be appreciated

Thanks,

Chris
 
#2
Some random thoughts. The LM II should be just fine for DB use. I think it has been discussed here. It's a bird in the hand.

The MB200 speaker had a foam surround that would disintegrate over time. Many MB200's need to have the surround replaced in order to be usable. You can do this yourself -- there is a kit from Parts Express. Don't pay a lot for a MB200 that needs this repair, i.e., maybe you can get a bargain.

Has anybody on the DB forum tried the Fender Rumble 112 speaker? It's a reasonably lightweight 1x12 that seems to sell for around 400 bucks.

I'm happy with my Full Circle.
 
#3
I have an old 200MB combo that's had the speaker replaced. It sounds great for DB but it's not really loud enough for EB. The LMK II should be just fine. I don't know about the Epi 12 cab though. You may want to try out a few different cabs (and get one light enough b/c most college campuses involve a lot of walking. I personally don't like the Acoustic Image for EB, they do sound good for DB though.

For a pickup, the Full Circle should work fine. You want one that will cause the least amount of problems for you. You'll have enough to worry about in college.
 
#5
Yes, the LMII is a fine amp. Personally, I like the new GK MB200 better and it's cheaper, smaller and lighter to boot, but the LMII will surely work fine. The MarkBass is more powerful.

I have tried a bunch of stuff, including the AI and wanted to like it more than I did. As flawed as the GK stuff is, it just seems to work for me and I can hear myself clearly which is very important.

Francis, I have rehearsed through the Fender 12 on occasion and although it sounds decent, it adds quite a bit of coloration in the mids and is not at all transparent. I wouldn't recommend it.

I currently have both a Realist and a Full Circle on my bass and like the Full Circle for most things. You might check out Fdeck's HPF preamp as well.
Good luck to you.
 
#6
onlysharkattack said:
But now I figure it is time to get a pick up and amp. I have few option amp wise, all are used amps. The amp would be used primary with my double bass, but i will most likely be using it when i pull out the electric bass. Here are my options (though i am open to other suggestions if i can afford them):

1) I use my Little Mark II(i already own the LM II) with an Epifani UL-112 2) an old beat up Gk Mb200 combo 3) I hopefully would sell my little mark bass to help pay for a used Acoustic Image Contra series III.

By the way my bass is a fully carved Eastman Andreas Vb 200.




Any help would be appreciated

Thanks,

Chris
Click to expand...

Chris,
Hold on to that 200MB. It has one of the best preamps that was ever designed for Double Bass. Unfortunately, as Freddels mentioned it just doesn't have enough juice for EB, but the Markbass should handle that just fine. As long as you already have a adjustable bridge then the Full Circle should serve you well, just remember that it's just not an optimal pickup if you are using the bow, but that's true of most peizo pickups. Since the Little Mark II has a 500 K ohm impedance I'd invest in either a HPF Pre Series II or the Fishman Pro Platinum so you could use the Little Mark with the DB. I'm not as fond of the Pre Amp on the Little Mark because of the VLF and VPE controls. The Ehrlund is a excellent pickup, but it costs more than the Full Circle. You can always add one later using the Full Circle as a backup.
 
#8
onlysharkattack said:
Thank you click and Rice Vic.

If I were use the LMII (most likely will as it will be much cheaper then getting the AI) what cab should I use? Would the EPI 112 UL work well with out coloring the DB's sound to much?

Thanks,

Chris
Click to expand...

Chris,
It's just as much a compromise trying to figure out what cabinets work equally well for Double Bass and Electric Bass. Actually, there aren't many cabinets that sound equally well with both instruments. That's why doubling is usually a compromise. I kinda of lean toward the instrument that play most often, which in my case is Double Bass. You have to decide what you'll be using the most. I think the EPI112 is good for both, while a little bright for Double Bass while the Wizzy 12 and Bergantino AE 112 are a little better and more expensive.

Ric
 
#9
I have a Markbass 102P combo also. It's great for EB. I haven't gigged with it for DB but I have plugged in my Full Circle with no preamp (I will get one someday) and I can get a very nice sound out of it with my bass. For DB, I usually turn the bass to around 10 o'clock, low mid about the same maybe 11, high mids I turn way down, highs are all the way off and I use the VPF about 10 or 11 o'clock. No VLE. With those settings I can get a very neutral (to me) sound with my bass.
 
#12
onlysharkattack said:
Ok, I now have an EA Wizzy 12 M-line. So I have done some more searching and found that it would cost me about the same to sell my LM II get a use AI Clarus 2r series III and just the full circle with no preamp, or just keep the LM II and get the Full Circle with a preamp. What would you guys suggest?

thanks,

Chris
Click to expand...

Well you can't beat the Wizzy 12 M for sound and portability. You certainly don't have to buy a buffer preamp with the Claris since it's got a 1 meg ohm load. FDeck's HPF pre is so inexpensive that you could probably pick one up used for a great price if you decide to keep the Little Mark II. Either way will work, the LM II favors the Electric Bass while the Claris favors the Double Bass IMHO. So you have to decide what you'll be using more.

Ric
 
#13
trade or sell the LMII, pick up a 102p, You can schlepp it around from rehearsal to gig easily ( they are fairly hardy too in my experience). If you need more meat, use the Epi underneath (assuming its an 8 ohm cab), I think you'll like the combination. It wont be an audiophile upright system, but will serve well in many situations.
 
#14
If you do go the Acoustic Image route, I would not do the Contra. It's a beautiful sounding amp but no good for volume. For budget purposes, I'd look for a used head, (Probably Clarus) and a Ten2EX. Even then, It's good to have another cabinet for higher volume gigs. Wizzy's are popular on here. I have a Flite cabinet that is very light and sounds very good.
 

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