Double Bass Combating Feedback

[Jake deVilliers]

"Amplifying the DB properly is a bitch. That's where Fender Basses came from."

Speaking of which, I was surfing the other day and ran across an original 'AMPlified PEG' for sale.

Its an endpin with a mic on it that was the first product made by what would go on to be Ampeg.

The beginnings of this slippery electronic slope.

 

[seamonkey]

I like the new feedback destroyers. They put a narrow notch where where the sound is peaky. The notch is only as deep as it needs to be. It's sounds invisible to me, and I'm not feeding back. And there's plenty of filters left to boost other frequencies that I want to over emphasize.

 

[damonsmith]

When things are at feedback volume for me that particular ensemble loses it's double bass privlidges and gets the EUB.
An EUB like the Ergo or NS Wav4 will solve all your problems, as well as others down the road.
Why pack the double bass + all that gear if the acoustic sound is not hear at all?
I will only bring the double bass or a big amp, not both to a gig.
I can actually enjoy playing loud gigs now.

 

[Jeff Bonny]

This fellow isn't anywhere near what you are talking about. The majority of the posters on the forum aren't either.

Point taken. It is good for someone starting down the long road of amplifying acoustic instruments who hears a great acoustic sound in a concert situation to know why it may not be realistic for them to expect that from a used Fishman straight into a 100W Yorkville combo and some knowledge of how that great sound is achieved can still be very useful in choosing gear and deciding how much time you want to spend fooling around with it. Heck, I've been through a lot of fancy gear and these last couple of years can afford pretty much anything I really want and I'm ditching the mic for most situations and going back to a piezo into GK MB150. For me using more than that without a good soundman out front (not something I often get) is fighting the law of diminishing returns. Like Ray Brown says in a recently posted youtube link to a master class he gave int the '70's, "You play the amp, don't let the amp play you." And I do agree with you that with a basic combo amp/peizo rig you aren't going to EQ your way out of feedback...the EQ sections on those amps aren't nearly sophisticated enough...that pickup choice, installation and amp placement are important. I also like what damonsmith says about an ensemble loosing it's "acoustic privileges"....past a certain point fighting feedback is plain and simple a loosing battle.