Bass distortion at mixing desk

[MattimusPrime]

Hi,

I play bass in a church band, I use a Laney HCM 160 watt amp which runs through to our mixing desk.

Often at higher volumes the bass distorts terribly when put through the mains, and often the sound engineer will tell me that I am peaking at the desk, even though my amp isn't excessively loud.

What could be possible issues here, and also would it help for me to get a DI box between my amp and the sound desk?

Thanks in advance for all the help an suggestions!

Matthew

 

[billfitzmaurice]

often the sound engineer will tell me that I am peaking at the desk, even though my amp isn't excessively loud.What could be possible issues here

He doesn't know how to turn down the channel input gain?

and also would it help for me to get a DI box between my amp and the sound desk?

How is the signal getting there now?

 

[bongomania]

+1. What is your current signal path? All of it--in detail. And what are your EQ settings? (Not "bass at 3, treble at 6" since that would not mean anything, but rather tell us whether the lows are boosted, whether the mids are scooped, etc.)

 

[DaveMcLain]

Some amps can put out an incredibly hot signal from the line out. Using something with an pad that can be used to reduce the signal level to something more manageable will help greatly.

Just tuning down the channel gain sometimes doesn't help because either an input stage that's before the control is getting hit too hard or else the control is turned all the way down and you're still not padded enough.

You could always use a DI box to get the signal from your bass but from in front of the amp and see if that works better.

 

[KJung]

Some amps can put out an incredibly hot signal from the line out. Using something with an pad that can be used to reduce the signal level to something more manageable will help greatly.

Just tuning down the channel gain sometimes doesn't help because either an input stage that's before the control is getting hit too hard or else the control is turned all the way down and you're still not padded enough.

You could always use a DI box to get the signal from your bass but from in front of the amp and see if that works better.

Are you mic'ing or using a built in DI on your amp?

+1 Turning down the channel gain will most likely not fix this issue. However, an input pad can be used to handle any level of signal from virtually source. Make sure the guy knows where the input pad is on the board. If the board is a cheap one, and does not have an adjustable input pad, you will have to fix it on your end, either by using a separate DI with a lower signal level, or mic'ing your amp.

This is assuming that the problem is being caused by too hot of a signal reaching the board.

 

[BassmanPaul]

He doesn't know how to turn down the channel input gain?


How is the signal getting there now?

+1 That was my first thought too Bill.

Paul

 

[bass4worship]

Tell your sound man to use the right input on the mixer, he might be using the mic input instead of a low Z if you're coming out of the line on the amp.

 

[billfitzmaurice]

Tell your sound man to use the right input on the mixer, he might be using the mic input instead of a low Z if you're coming out of the line on the amp.

Most boards have a pad on the XLR inputs to allow them to be used with both mic and line level signals; it's not practical to have two separate sets of XLR inputs. Some also have 1/4" TRS, which are usually set up for line level only, though they may have enough gain for instrument level as well.