Has anyone had the opportunity to play upright through a variety of HGs? I'm very curious how they handle and which one might be the best suited for 3/4 double bass.
Hi--here's my take of using the HG310 for upright found over at the Club Bergantino thread--I ended up also picking up an HG410 for larger stages and my upright.
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I am now a true believer...
Long time user of Bergantino cabinets (HDN and CN lines) and more recently the B/Amp. I'm mostly a jazz player, being a doubler on electric bass and upright bass. Over the last couple of years, I've been generally using the B/Amp for electric performances and my other amp (Eich T-1000) for upright work. That said, I recently picked up an HG310 and while it sounded pretty good with the T-1000, I wanted to see how well it would match up with the B/Amp, particularly how well the HG310 cab profile would work to bring a bit more sparkle to my upright sound than I was hearing with the Eich.
Had a chance last night to test the B/Amp HG310 combo with my upright. The gig was at the Sheba Piano Lounge on Fillmore Street in San Francisco, one of the last real jazz clubs left in the Bay Area (in addition to the glorious SFJAZZ Center.) I've played here a dozen times with the upright and various Bergantino cab combinations and the Eich.
Last night blew all those other nights away! One of the many challenges with amplifying my upright is how to neutralize wolf tones and other overtones present when a large acoustic chamber vibrates. In addition, my upright presents a darker tone profile with some profound mid range bumps that tend to muddy speaker output. I've been able to neutralize some of these bumps to a certain extent with the Eich, but the B/Amp provided a whole new level of control. As soon as I changed the HI MID frequency down to 600k from where I usually keep it (800k), made further cuts to LOW and LO MID output volume, increased the HI and bright output volumes, and adjusted the HPF frequency up a bit, a whole new clarity and timbre emerged from the upright. I was able to play with great confidence, knowing that the bass was crisply cutting right through the mix at both higher and lower volumes. The sealed HG310 cab itself eliminated many difficult lower frequencies and the integrated horn/tweeter sounded incredibly seamless. My upright sounded so natural and assertive, clear and sweet, acoustic and present, all at the same time.
I realize how "overly" excited we bassists can get at times when we come across amp/cab/bass combos that truly sing, but I must admit, last night really opened my ears to what the B/Amp and Bergantino cabinets can offer bassists. I had resisted using the B/Amp with my upright for no good reason-now I am a true believer.
Looks like there may be an HG410 in my future (along with a B/Amp HP when/if it ever becomes available-hint, hint!)
