Best bass combo for a Five string bass

[Heisenbass]

Thanks for replying you’re right on all accounts I can can almost get the clean open open E in the Fifth , it’s all Downhill after that ! As i said : whoever cracks a new clarity for this frequency for us electric bassists is Now Bass God
That Us The Challenge out there for Mainstream Pro string makers !

One word: Dingwall

 

[alotabass]

I went from 12" Aguilar drivers to 5" PJB drivers. The PJB has improved my B string punch and focus. The Aguilar would shake the room but without the focus and punch. The PJB is not cheap but I love the small foot print and so far I have not felt the need to use the Aguilar's in the last three years so I have decided to sell them as well as older 15" Driver cabs. My back is much happier

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Hi guys ,
Needing some opinions for my small rig set up now I’ve got myself a five string bass, was using my small Roland Bass Cube 120XL and my GK 700 II
500 watt combo , the Roland cannot cope with that low B
The GK can but I’m now got too old to lift this guy in/ out car , (damn being a 66 yrs old unfit bassist )
What’s also showing is our 1200 watt small PA rig subs’ not handling it very well either ,
We play in tiny pubs mostly do I’m looking for a very compact, practical bass solution now ,
Any advice welcome thanks !

Rb112

 

[pepj]

Somethings not right here.
All my 5's are 34 on a 120.
Run through single 12's but only on songwriter jams otherwise all else are using a pair with an 800w amp.
The 2x112 are 500w total but never an issue but can run out of steam outside...because youvare pushing 1oclock on the vol..

Best combo, Mark Bass 102 and I'm generally not a MB fan.

 

[mike buzzetti]

Somethings not right here.
All my 5's are 34 on a 120.
Run through single 12's but only on songwriter jams otherwise all else are using a pair with an 800w amp.
The 2x112 are 500w total but never an issue but can run out of steam outside...because youvare pushing 1oclock on the vol..

Best combo, Mark Bass 102 and I'm generally not a MB fan.

I generally noticed that around here no MB love , all good but why ? failures ?

 

[alotabass]

I generally noticed that around here no MB love , all good but why ? failures ?

I've done gigs where MB was the backline. They were good enough for the gigs however when I was shopping and comparing combo for gigs I found the MB very dark sounding and preferred combos from other brands.

 

[mike buzzetti]

I've done gigs where MB was the backline. They were good enough for the gigs however when I was shopping and comparing combo for gigs I found the MB very dark sounding and preferred combos from other brands.

Weird but to each his own , I might find your setup Bright as he77 ??

 

[alotabass]

Weird but to each his own , I might find your setup Bright as he77 ??

Exactly. To each his or her own.

 

[pepj]

I generally noticed that around here no MB love , all good but why ? failures ?

No, I find them a bit sterile personally so havent been wanting to buy them. I've used them in different configs when provided but not enthused personally. I now would rather carry my own everytime i hear they are provided.
But tbf, there are others i say the same about in the same situation.

Never heard anyone with a sound I liked either so its not just me...

I think they were made well enough, not sure if that has changed recently but not because of any failures.

 

[Jazzbassguy77]

I went from 12" Aguilar drivers to 5" PJB drivers. The PJB has improved my B string punch and focus. The Aguilar would shake the room but without the focus and punch. The PJB is not cheap but I love the small foot print and so far I have not felt the need to use the Aguilar's in the last three years so I have decided to sell them as well as older 15" Driver cabs. My back is much happier
View attachment 4725855 View attachment 4725856 View attachment 4725861 View attachment 4725862

Hey alotabass, I had to take paikillers to just look at what you were humping around (pic1) two amps ,six cabs, jeez our four piece band doest have that much gear, inc backiline and PA !

 

[Jazzbassguy77]

Are you sure your pickup isn't too close to the B string?

I tried that yesterday Rich, it did make adifference, only its still there , albeit hugely reduced, thanks .

 

[alotabass]

Hey alotabass, I had to take paikillers to just look at what you were humping around (pic1) two amps ,six cabs, jeez our four piece band doest have that much gear, inc backiline and PA !

For the record 75% of my gigs I only use 1 maybe 2 cabs. 20% of the time 4 cabs and 5% all 6 cabs. What I like about this setup is that I can ramp up or down based on the needs of the venue. Since I have tried the PJB gear I am essentially doing the same thing. Most of the time I just use one BG400. If I need more dbs I will add the C4 extension cab and for the loudest of gigs I will bring two BG400s with 2 C4s. In the last 3 years I haven't needed more than this so I have decided to let go of the 6 Aguilar cabs.

 

[Jazzbassguy77]

If I'm understanding this correctly, E from your open E string works, and the same E on the B string is a problem . . . would have me double checking bass setup in terms of string heights and pickup clearance in particular.

On a five, that B string can get overbearing fast if a pickup is even a little too close. That's relatively a whole lotta alloy tickling those pickup coils.

It also, to me, takes more amp to reliably push those big C's and D's, and for something commonly available, one of the higher powered Fender combos with a matching extension cabinet would be where I'd be looking.

thank you for your reply J.Wilson, Its something i will be checking out soon.

 

[Jazzbassguy77]

So, back to your original question, which is a recommendation. I do agree that there's some exploration that should be done on your setup. But none of that solves your heavy amp conundrum.

I play almost exclusively 5-string in medium to large venues and have been using the Fender Rumble 200 lately. Very solid combo, plenty of power and headroom, handles my B-string like a champ. Most importantly, 37 lbs. If you're playing small rooms you could potentially go down to the 12" speaker (I think Rumble 100?), mine is the 15". The Ampeg Rocket combos are also great and come in the same size configurations as the Rumble.

Thanks for replying acid bass, Ive had Rumbles in the past with no issues at all, then again i wasnt using a five strring jazz bass , it was a pbass at that time , might be worth it to go back and check out rumble 200's again!

 

[rafitoprtx]

A 15 PA powered speaker. Just plug a nice preamp before it!

 

[Jazzbassguy77]

A 15 PA powered speaker. Just plug a nice preamp before it!

Thanks rafitoptx,
im using a Zoom G3N FX as a preamp into everything i play through, so the signal level is controlled, never had any bass issues ever, until i got this five string bass, ive took on some of the suggestions ie lowered the pickups right back almost into the body , even now im thinking about using a 300 watt PA head going through two 15'' cabinets to see if thatsis the way to go , as my Roland Bass 120 XL combo 12'' struggling , my Fantastic GK 500 watt700RB II combo has all my best tones ,and still produces a slight amount of flapping/farting on the low B ,
so your suggestion going to a powered 15'' is the same idea ive been thinking as a next step, thanks again !

 

[BassNugget]

I too, think one of the Hartke Kickback combos would be aces for your situation. HP filter is always a good idea. Cheers.

 

[rafitoprtx]

Thanks rafitoptx,
im using a Zoom G3N FX as a preamp into everything i play through, so the signal level is controlled, never had any bass issues ever, until i got this five string bass, ive took on some of the suggestions ie lowered the pickups right back almost into the body , even now im thinking about using a 300 watt PA head going through two 15'' cabinets to see if thatsis the way to go , as my Roland Bass 120 XL combo 12'' struggling , my Fantastic GK 500 watt700RB II combo has all my best tones ,and still produces a slight amount of flapping/farting on the low B ,
so your suggestion going to a powered 15'' is the same idea ive been thinking as a next step, thanks again !

In my case I use the return input of my amp and I use 2 4x10 cabs. I plug in my pedalboard with the signal split one side with cab sim to FOH and a regular line to my amp. Sound amazing very consistent.

 

[Stinga1990]

Thanks rafitoptx,
im using a Zoom G3N FX as a preamp into everything i play through, so the signal level is controlled, never had any bass issues ever, until i got this five string bass, ive took on some of the suggestions ie lowered the pickups right back almost into the body , even now im thinking about using a 300 watt PA head going through two 15'' cabinets to see if thatsis the way to go , as my Roland Bass 120 XL combo 12'' struggling , my Fantastic GK 500 watt700RB II combo has all my best tones ,and still produces a slight amount of flapping/farting on the low B ,
so your suggestion going to a powered 15'' is the same idea ive been thinking as a next step, thanks again !

I also play 5 string bass, and I use a Yamaha DXR15. I will sing its praises to anyone who will listen. I run singles, so my amp modeller is a dedicated preamp/di, the Shiftline Olympic MKIIIs, a tube preamp with Impulse response, but it's the same concept as your Zoom. I'd suggest getting the B3N so you have the bass amp models and bass friendly versions of effects, this will make all the difference.

I tried just about every powered speaker on the market within a budget of 1500 AUD, and the Yamaha DXR15 smoked the competition. Yamaha is more conservative with their specs then other PA manufacturers, so believe me when I say Yamaha actually holds up in real world use. The DXR15 I believe goes down to at least 60hz, and it does this loud enough to hold its own against rock drums and carry a small room. When you feed it amp modelling and cabinet simulation, it responds to this positively and actually feels like a real amp is in the room.

Most pa speakers only get the sound right, but the feel is always flat or lacking and the speakers will fart out at the first sign of real bass. The Yamaha holds up and will give any bass combo in its price range a run for it's money. It smoked my guitarists ampeg BA115 that he brought for bass, just way louder and deeper sounding. You need to splurge on a high end markbass combo or one of the supercabs like barefaced to get better low end.