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Do you play or rehearse with 2 basses?

Rezdog

Rezdog

Supporting Member
Feb 17, 2004
2,128
1,909
T.Rez, Canada/Motown
#1
Greetings from the North,

A couple of weeks ago I stumbled upon a great solution that makes changing basses at gigs and rehearsals quick & easy. A SnapJack cable with a set of extra tips work great and are pretty much fool proof.

I had originally looked into getting an A/B box or an A/B DI but since I would be changing up between passive & possibly active basses I didn't want to run into any issues of anything changing the sound of my basses....at all. I just wanted to be able to change up quickly and efficiently without worrying about muting and risking that annoying pop.

A couple of years ago I had read about SnapJack cables with the detachable magnetic (Neodynium) tips but thought they were just a gimmick, for those that might be clumsy and had a habit of tripping on their own cables and pulling amp heads off their cabinets. So I didn't bother with them. But since I couldn't find the particular box I wanted,on the day I went looking, I noticed the SnapJacks on the wall and took a chance and bought a set of extra tips as well.

Well the SnapJacks work just great! The sound quality is as good as my Planet Waves and other good cables. Changing basses is now simple & quick without the confusion of clicking any buttons. And it's silent unless you're really being rough.
Juat remember to pull out the tips from active basses just like you normally would after playing is done so that you extend your battery life. Check em out at http://www.zzyzxsnapjack.com/products.html they do the trick.
 
#2
I would have bought one of those - if they made it in a 2 or 3 foot length, for use with my wireless. But, they don't.

Instead I got a 2 foot and a 3 foot with Neutrik Silent connectors on each end. Possibly not quite as easy to disconnect/reconnect as the Snapjack. But, still totally silent when switching basses. And I don't have to buy extra tips (which I believe are not cheap for the Snapjack) for each bass I want to use.

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#8
Greetings,

A pair of extra tips cost around $20 and they're pretty solid.

I'm liking this solution because I can use this silently before a DI box and I don't have to worry if I 'forgot' to reset the mute switch on an amp a second before hitting the first note of the next song when playing live. It can be kind of awkward when there's no sound and you're at the front of the stage because it's your turn on the mic lol.

Rezdog
 
#10
I use an a/b box. When I'm about to change basses (I usually use a combination of a Squier VMJ fretted/fretless or a Rickenbacker 4001/VMJ Fretless) I often reach over and smack the strings on the bass that's on its stand. Then when I stomp on the pedal I get a satisfying rumble that cuts through all conversation in the room and makes sure the attention stays focused where it's supposed to be -- ON ME!

:-)

Also I'm typically not happy until the drummer's snares are rattling, along with every set of teeth and fillings in the room, from the feedback.
 
#17
StuartV said:
I would have bought one of those - if they made it in a 2 or 3 foot length, for use with my wireless. But, they don't.

Instead I got a 2 foot and a 3 foot with Neutrik Silent connectors on each end. Possibly not quite as easy to disconnect/reconnect as the Snapjack. But, still totally silent when switching basses. And I don't have to buy extra tips (which I believe are not cheap for the Snapjack) for each bass I want to use.

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Click to expand...

they do make a wireless set. see webpage
 
#18
Mute (i.e. your amp, your TU2), unplug, unhook strap-locks leaving the strap on your shoulder, put bass down, pick other bass up, hook strap locks to new bass making sure they're the same as the previous bass, plug in, un-mute. Works every time.
 
#19
I always take two basses to a gig. This past weekend was cool because it was the first time I used my Boss LS-2 to switch between my Ric and G&L L2500. The L2500 is great and I would probably use it for the whole gig, but its HEAVY and since I fractured a couple of vertebrae earlier this year, its too much to sport for a 4 hour gig.

And I even used Ric-O-Sound too. I used a Y cable from the Ric into the A & B of the LS-2 so I could run effects on each pickup and mix the tones, then plugged the L2500 into the standard input of the LS-2. So I used A+B>Bypass as the setting. Worked fantastic.
 
#20
jumbodbassman said:
they do make a wireless set. see webpage
Click to expand...

I use a Line6 G30. The cable for it uses standard 1/4" connectors on both ends. As far I can tell from their website they don't make a 2 - 3 foot cable with 1/4" connectors on both ends. They do have one with a 1/8" connector on one end, but I didn't want to mess with having to put a 1/4" adaptor on it. One more potential point of failure. And a less-than-tight connection could have the weight of the cable pulling the connector out of the adapter when it's hanging down from the transmitter attached to my belt.

And, in the end, I think the Neutrik Silent connectors are better (for a wireless setup cable). If it was a long cable where I was worried about stepping on it or something, then the Snapjack would have an advantage. But for the short run to my belt, I'm not worried about it getting caught and needing to "break away".

And, like I said before, with the Silent connector, I can switch between any number of basses with no pops and without having to buy a $20 set of tips for each bass or two.
 

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