Wait, you have the low on "8"? That's zero-to-ten 8? Or do you mean eight o'clock? If it's zero-to-ten eight, that's part of your problem. Put the bass and treb at noon--straight up--and then turn off the "deep" switch. Then use your EQ to drop frequencies below 60hz. Make sure it's unity gain or just a hint louder than when it's off.
This. It's a reference to subtractive EQ, and it will serve you well.
Instead of running the "Low" and "High" controls as hot as you are, drop them both back to 5. Disengage all of your contour/color controls (Deep, Bright, and Mid Notch). Play these settings with the gain and volume where you already have them. It will probably sound lifeless and thin to you, but you will have just bought yourself a couple of really useful new toys. First, your cabinet will have ceased farting, and second, you will now have loads of headroom to play with. Open your gain and volume controls up somewhat, maybe 4-ish on the gain and whatever feels good on the master. You should now be able to do this
without cab farts. You'll begin to hear a lot of your instrument's character coming through (largely contained in the low-mid frequency range), and this is where you make a critical change to your tone-shaping approach. Instead of
boosting EQ in the ranges you want to hear
more of, try
cutting EQ in the ranges you want to hear
less of (hence the term "subtractive EQ"). So on your Bassman head, set all graphic EQ sliders to zero (centered and flat), then push the button that engages the graphic EQ section. Cut the lowest frequencies (60Hz and lower) to some degree - as mentioned, you truly don't need or want them peaked out. With everything else left flat, play your bass and then tweak the tone only by
cutting different frequencies. Don't boost any EQ slider above zero (center). All you're trying to achieve here is a desired sound - not balls. Once you've crafted a tone that seems about right for your stylistic purposes, you'll very likely find you
still have headroom left in the gain and volume controls. You should find that you can drive your cabinet pretty hard without farts, and you should also have adequate low end, but I'd wager your overall tone will be vastly improved. At this point, you're getting the most out of your rig without pushing either the head or speakers past their limits.
It seems counter-intuitive that the sub bass range (call it 60Hz and lower) could be cut at all and still feel big. I had a hard time accepting this until I experienced a demonstration that proved it. This happened in a college course that dealt with the psychological and perceptual aspects of sound. The professor stated that our auditory systems reconstruct fundamental frequencies based on their overtone series, and that with the right overtones in place, we are basically wired to perceive fundamentals whether they are physically present or not. As a musician, I was skeptical. He then put on a recording that started off by sounding a 150Hz pure sinewave (no harmonic content). All of us in the class heard a 150Hz tone. Then, the second harmonic (300Hz) was added to the 150Hz fundamental. There was an ever so slight color change to the sound, but 150Hz was what we all still heard. Then the third harmonic was added (450Hz) and again, there was only the tiniest color change in the sound but what we all still heard was the original 150Hz. Finally, the 150Hz fundamental was entirely removed while the 300Hz and 450Hz sinewaves continued to sound. Yup - what we all still heard was the 150Hz fundamental,
even though it wasn't there. There was a somewhat grittier timbre to the perceived pitch, and it did seem "thinner," but 150Hz was what we all believed we were hearing. And if the recording had gone on to boost the amplitudes of those two harmonics, our collective perception would simply have been a louder 150Hz.
So what was mentioned earlier in this thread about the importance of the second harmonic in re-creating the deepest bass notes is right on point. If you want to emphasize your 41Hz low "E" without trashing a speaker, the trick is
not to boost 41Hz. The frequency that needs emphasis is 82Hz, also 123Hz if you want some more meat on the bone. But any EQ controls that are active on the 41Hz range should be used very sparingly, and the only thing you really want to adjust with them is the "body" of the lowest frequencies.
In summary, use tone controls for shaping tone instead of managing volume. Your ears, your rig, and your band will thank you.
