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Basses that sound great plugged straight in

D

Drop1

Mar 28, 2019
1,601
1,796
#1
What basses out there have the best record for sounding amazing straight di or just plugged into an amp without a bunch of eq?

I've recorded several, but even basses of the same type can sound so different.

My current bass needs a hefty cut at 250hz to not be pure mud no matter what amp or monitors I use. Even with brand new steel strings , it's dark.

I can eq it to sound very good, but as an example, I have to use the bright switch on my amp to make it even sound even, plus additional low mid reduction ans upper mid boost.

If I use it di, I have to cut the lows with a low shelf, cut 250hz then boost everything from 1k and up by at least 5 db just to get an even sound.

I dont mind eq, my problem with darker instruments though is when you have to cut a bunch of lows and boost highs, you wind up boosting noise. Hiss, fret and finger noise.

I much prefer working with a naturally balanced bass or even one that is naturally too bright.

At least if it's too bright, you wind up reducing noise when you tame the highs.

I'm not talking about basses that are bright due to the electronics. I mean the ones that are just naturally acoustically bright. Bright due to electronics has the same noise boosing issues as using a bunch of eq to bring up the brightness.

So I'm wondering about basses that are bright in nature and naturally ringy with lots of harmonic content.

I've recorded some jazz basses that had this quality, but just as many didn't. Same with p basses.

So I'm wondering which brand /type of bass "usually" are naturally bright and even sounding across the frequency spectrum. I know every manufacturer puts out the occasional dud. But I'd think some companies would have better track recordeds for putting out basses with similar sound from one instrument to the next.

I'm tired of HAVING to use the bright swtich. I'm tried of the extra noise that comes with that.
I expect to need some eq di, but again, I'd rather be taming highs that having to apply heavy high end boost
Ideally I think I'd like a j or MM style though I'm not against dual soap bars. But what brands ?

I know all basses are a little different, but surely some have some consistency and I'm not asking which bass I should buy, but rather what brands to start looking at. Which brands seem to have the most consistent sound from bass ro bass?
 
#5
Killing Floor said:
Your bass with DR HiBeams or Stringjoy Rangers.
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I am currently strung with a fresh set of Dr hi beams. The bass itself sound dull and dead without heavy eq. I've tried more strings than you could imagine.

I took out the dull bart mk 1 pups , put in nordy big singles amd a John east uni pre. So it's not the electronics either. It's just a really dull instrument. It also doesn't help the pickup spacing kills a lot of upper mids when the pups are used together.

Nord says the singles should let the bass get about as bright as it can and the noise is super bright (fingers sliding on strings etc) but the tone is not bright. It's got a bubinga neck, rosewood fret board and mahogany body amd it's just naturally dull with very little resonace. It's almost silent to play acoustically and you can't even really feel vibration in rhe body.

I can force usable tones from it even nice tones but rhe finger noise becomes obnoxious after doing so.
 
#6
Killing Floor said:
Your bass with DR HiBeams or Stringjoy Rangers.
Click to expand...
I am currently strung with a fresh set of Dr hi beams. The bass itself sound dull and dead without heavy eq. I've tried more strings than you could imagine.

I took out the dull bart mk 1 pups , put in nordy big singles amd a John east uni pre. So it's not the electronics either. It's just a really dull instrument. It also doesn't help the pickup spacing kills a lot of upper mids when the pups are used together.

Nord says the singles should let the bass get about as bright as it can and the noise is super bright (fingers sliding on strings etc) but the tone is not bright. It's got a bubinga neck, rosewood fret board and mahogany body amd it's just naturally dull with very little resonace. It's almost silent to play acoustically and you can't even really feel vibration in rhe body.

I can force usable tones from it even nice tones but rhe finger noise becomes obnoxious after doing so.
 
#7
If the bass is acoustically dull and lifeless with new strings, changing pickups isn't gonna make it spring to life. I've been down this road a few times, and ultimately concluded that there is literally no amount of changes you can make to a bass chassis to give it life if it's dead. It's the wood. As much as people like to pretend that the wood doesn't matter in any way, it does. It's not necessarily the type of wood, but the unique pieces your bass (specifically, the neck) was made from.
 
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#8
Depends on the band you're playing with. How many guitars? Keyboards? Almost every bass sounds great in a live setting once the EQ is adjusted. I know 100% that when you switch basses, do not judge anything until you re-EQ everything. I switch between 3 amps and 5 completely different basses every week. They all sound/work great plugged straight in.
 
#10
Drop1 said:
I am currently strung with a fresh set of Dr hi beams. The bass itself sound dull and dead without heavy eq. I've tried more strings than you could imagine.

I took out the dull bart mk 1 pups , put in nordy big singles amd a John east uni pre. So it's not the electronics either. It's just a really dull instrument. It also doesn't help the pickup spacing kills a lot of upper mids when the pups are used together.

Nord says the singles should let the bass get about as bright as it can and the noise is super bright (fingers sliding on strings etc) but the tone is not bright. It's got a bubinga neck, rosewood fret board and mahogany body amd it's just naturally dull with very little resonace. It's almost silent to play acoustically and you can't even really feel vibration in rhe body.

I can force usable tones from it even nice tones but rhe finger noise becomes obnoxious after doing so.
Click to expand...
Read your posts a few times and cannot find where you told us what type of bass you are using.
 
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#11
PBASS[7051].jpg
 
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#12
Acinonyx.

Last week-end, I could only take my bass, we made 2 gigs, so I literraly had to plug straight in borrowed combos: Ampeg for the first gig, Fender for the second. Each time, I dialed everything at noon on the amp and played. The audience, band members and other bassists told me I had a great sound.
Passive but hot signal, very versatile too (although I only use one setting).
 
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#13
Sounds like the bass is a dud. My condolences.

I think any type of bass can sound great without a lot of EQ, just like your experience with jazz basses, but it depends on the specific bass. No brand is dud-proof. If possible, go in person when it's not busy and try playing some unplugged to get a feel for the natural sound of the instrument. If you can't go in person, make sure you buy your next bass from somewhere with a great return policy and spend the first week playing unplugged in a quiet room before deciding if you are gonna keep it or not.
 
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#14
Strings do make a difference. I've spent what sometimes feels like an inordinate amount of time / money / effort finding the "right" strings for a bass, precisely because once I have that match, I am much more likely to get the sound I want with little or no effects.

I personally have had good direct-sound experiences with every Fender I've owned (be it Precision or Jazz)... and also with my Rickenbacker, at least for some subset of tones.
 
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#15
lowfreqgeek said:
If the bass is acoustically dull and lifeless with new strings, changing pickups isn't gonna make it spring to life. I've been down this road a few times, and ultimately concluded that there is literally no amount of changes you can make to a bass chassis to give it life if it's dead. It's the wood. As much as people like to pretend that the wood doesn't matter in any way, it does. It's not necessarily the type of wood, but the unique pieces your bass (specifically, the neck) was made from.
Click to expand...
This is my first time modding. I wanted to love it. It's pretty and plays amazing. It's just dont got that magic. I've had some pretty nice basses I regret selling. I sold them all off when I "quit" and kept this one dude to the mods. I should have returned it to stock and kept one of the others.
The mods I did did help. But it's never gonna be what I want. Not really.
 
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#16
trothwell said:
Strings do make a difference. I've spent what sometimes feels like an inordinate amount of time / money / effort finding the "right" strings for a bass, precisely because once I have that match, I am much more likely to get the sound I want with little or no effects.

I personally have had good direct-sound experiences with every Fender I've owned (be it Precision or Jazz)... and also with my Rickenbacker, at least for some subset of tones.
Click to expand...
I have over 50 different sets brother. Thats always the first thing I try. This is only my nickel and flats box. I have a whole other box full of steel strings. I'd say I've done my due diligence when it comes to strings :) .
1000011087.jpg
 
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#19
Just about any Wenge-fretboard Warwick will be pretty bright, the Thumbs especially.

Single H EBMM StingRays are pretty bright. I haven’t experienced an EBMM Sterling, but they’re probably similarly bright.

Sadowsky Js, less obscenely bright as the other two but still very rare to find one with any lack of clarity.

I haven’t played one, but every Dingwall Darkglass demo is silly bright.

—————

I’ll echo that strings are often a part of it… though I had Chomes on my Warwick Corvette 5 and it was still brighter than my P with D’A Nickel Rounds. When I put D’A NR’s on the Vette without messing with the EQ it was sizzling & snarling enough that it sounded like there was an extra guitarist hiding somewhere with a Tele & a cranked little Marshall combo.

Not the brightest, but my favorite tone-wide-open sound came from Rotosound 66 Stainless Rounds on my old J- before the strings get ~40hrs of play time- they’re entirely different strings after they break-in.
 

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