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Can you hear yourself onstage?

#81
BRWASS said:
Word. I was gonna say, sometimes the best way to hear a crisp and clean bass line is to use some top notch headphones.
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I was hesitant at first, but the technology has come a long way. I remember the first time I used my Westone's with the custom molds (which you have to have to make in ears really worthwhile, IMO) and it was like a whole new world of playing. At home nowadays I pretty much only practice with my in-ears running from my combo or a little trainer thing. Really really helps tighten up that technique.
 
#82
Sleeping Giant said:
I have been doing approx 140 gigs a year for the past 15 years and have always found it a struggle to hear myself on stage. Sure there is a kind of bottom end rumble but I cannot hear the tonality in the note or clarity in the rhythm. When I kneel down and listen close to the speaker the sound is excellent. As soon as I stand up it disappears.

Our singer has just been told by her docter she has the beginnings of a problem on her vocal chords due to straining too much. Our guitarist (who likes to put solos in inappropriate places) likes a lot of bottom end in his sound. Recently during a sound check the landlord of the pub came to us and said the bass was too loud. My bass amp wasn't switched on! It was the guitarist and he still refuses to accept there is too much low end in his sound.

I also have a problem explaining to other members of the band that I cannot hear what I am playing. And they tell me I'm too loud.

Any advise from you guys would be appreciated.
Click to expand...



Find a new band. Sorry. Guitar players that have no respect for me find themselves without a Bass player. Were all in this together.
 
#83
I have recently bought a Mesa Boogie M3 Carbine Combo and I can sit it right back tucked in next to the drums which allows me to stand further away from it on narrow stages.

I also take the two rear wheels off ( very simple as they slide out by depressing a button ) and this angles the unit up to my ears by resting on the two front wheels .

I have always had the problem of not having ears in my legs and at most gigs I raised my cab to hear myself. Being able to stand further away from my rig and the angle have been working a treat for me. Plus the carbines are so punchy that the sound seems to cut through better than any other rig I have used to date.
 
#84
My personal theory (never having had an Ampeg 8x10) is that at least a large part of the appeal of the cab is that it IS tall enough to point at your ears.

You can't hear well when your amp is pointed at your ass, so angle your amp up towards your ears. The added benefit is your ass won't be ringing at the end of the night.

As for the guitar player, if he refuses to cut the low end off and be reasonable, get a distortion pedal or take out all the low end, crank the treble/mids, and start playing chords and solos behind him. Tell him you're grateful he's holding down the bottom end to free you to express your artistic tendencies.

Randy
 
#86
I have adjusted my graphic EQ on the amp so that it is flat with a boost at 100hz. It is coming through much better. I have changed the compressor to let through some more low end to compensate a little.

I have two Ashdown cabs, a 1x15 and a 2x10. When this is stacked the sound does reach me better than just one cab on the floor. We played a gig on sunday at a beer festival where 6 people showed up. During the first set I stepped out in front of the FOH and it sounded good.
 
#88
Yes hear myself just fine I use no stage amp as most of you know just a bass driver into a Bose L1 out to two b1 sub woofers for the low end and the mid and highs are pushed into the L1 towers a 3rd sub is on the other side of the stage in case I move to that side I can still hear myself. Suggest you get your stuff off the floor in your case if possible a stand to kick the cabs back.
 
#90
I've had very different experiences regarding that topic. Sometimes i can hear every little emphasis in my playing and sometimes I need to do what I call "blind flights", being lucky if the stage floor is vibrating.
I have to say that I usually only bring my amp to gigs because in most cases a cabinet is provided, and because of logistics it's often not worth bringing my own. The cab provided is the no.1 factor when it comes to hearing myself in most cases. The 12"+1" monitors often cant project the bass properly and the benefit of nice sidefills is very rare (just as rare as high quality monitors).

Obviously, besides an in ear monitoring system, the best way to make sure you can hear yourself is to always bring your own loud and easily cutting through cabinet. Just always be cautious about the use of bass frequencies! Rather cut them down a little and push some mids instead. With a even mediocre PA the FOH should take care of the bass frequencies.

On a side note, the size of the stage or venue has never been a factor when it comes to hearing myself:)
 
#91
Update:

First gig with my Shure's this past Saturday.

Went exactly as I'd hoped. We got there early, and were the first band (which helped) and I just ran an XLR from my Aux Send monitor channel to my PSM200 transmitter, and basically just had the FOH mix in my ears, plus a lil more bass and went great.
The signal was clipping a little bit but my drummer uses in ears also and said the same thing and they usually don't, so I think it was a problem at the board and not my unit, so I didn't complain too much. I know my Westone's can handle a lot, and only the bass was OD'ing so he probably just had my Gain on my channel too high but whatever LOL. Was just happy to have MY own mix again and hear myself. Everyone in the band was like "man, that's one of the best sounding shows we've ever had" and I totally agreed. Amazing what an extra 5-7 minutes of having WORKING MONITOR MIXES does... ;)

Also I only brought alone 1 PH212 cab, popped off the back casters and just tilted it up. It was a little light on the volume but since it was coupled to the stage I could still feel it and add that to the in ear mix, it was just fine. Fingers crossed it keeps being this easy!

Maybe here in a few mo's or whatnot I'll upgrade to a better IEM system if I keep getting good results. I know the Sennheiser G3/G4 stuff is pretty rad altho kinda pricey. But with in ears, you really do get what you pay for.
 
#92
rockstarbassist said:
...... Everyone in the band was like "man, that's one of the best sounding shows we've ever had" and I totally agreed. Amazing what an extra 5-7 minutes of having WORKING MONITOR MIXES does... ;)
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Also , if I may add , since you heard yourself really well in your headphones , the stage level was probably a lot lower.
Probably another big reason why it was sounding good.
 
#93
fokof said:
Also , if I may add , since you heard yourself really well in your headphones , the stage level was probably a lot lower.
Probably another big reason why it was sounding good.
Click to expand...

Exactly. For the kinda stuff we play with it being somewhat heavy rock, I really don't like an overly loud stage volume. I want it loud enough to feel but I want to "hear" everything from my monitors and/or sidefills.
Like I said I probably could've turned up my rig a little bit more but I was more worried about getting a good in-ear mix so I let it slide. Usually I just stack my cabs and decouple from the floor w/ the casters, but coupling to the stage made a huge difference and even my singer noticed. he was all "DOOD I could hear your bass in my feet! It ruled!" :D
 
#94
Craig_S said:
Only because his "rig" uses an isolation cab and no other cabs. If you are still able to feel the bass from your rig, it's not like a transistor radio at all. It allows for cleaner sound, a quieter stage and a better overall mix.
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+ 10

yeah man, you buy the right IEM gear and what you'll be hearing is a clearer reproduction of your actual tone, instead of the jumbled mess that is on stage. Stage volume is fine for little jazz gigs or coffee shops, but if you are playing a big gig you have to consider protecting your hearing and ensure the band has the best reproduction of their sound possible to ensure they are performing at their best.
 
#96
I use a Fender Pro400 210 Combo (350 watts) and I'm running a York 115 below it: the combo's speakers are close enough to ear level plus I normally stand off from my rig (big help). I also wear earplugs but have no problems hearing myself (or cutting through any mix).

Case in point: we played an outdoors gig this weekend where only myself and our lead guitarist weren't jacked into our 1800-watt PA system. I turned the master volume up one notch from normal and heard myself clearly out in the middle of crowd's space (I am also using a wireless :D :D). Our lead guitarist was driving his amp like crazy and I lost him when I was off the stage. I keep loving my little underdog amp rig more with every gig.

Peace,
Greg
 
#99
Sleeping Giant said:
I have been doing approx 140 gigs a year for the past 15 years and have always found it a struggle to hear myself on stage. Sure there is a kind of bottom end rumble but I cannot hear the tonality in the note or clarity in the rhythm. When I kneel down and listen close to the speaker the sound is excellent. As soon as I stand up it disappears.

Our singer has just been told by her docter she has the beginnings of a problem on her vocal chords due to straining too much. Our guitarist (who likes to put solos in inappropriate places) likes a lot of bottom end in his sound. Recently during a sound check the landlord of the pub came to us and said the bass was too loud. My bass amp wasn't switched on! It was the guitarist and he still refuses to accept there is too much low end in his sound.

I also have a problem explaining to other members of the band that I cannot hear what I am playing. And they tell me I'm too loud.

Any advise from you guys would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

Are you standing real close to your cab?
If you are that may be in part to blame for you not being able to hear yourself.
 

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