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Does a pedal like this exist?

#21
When I had more than a couple basses, I had a TC spark mini on my board with a paper ring cut out and taped around the knob. I then gain-matched the input to a target output and labelled where that fell on the spark booster for each respective instrument. When I switched basses, I turned the knob to the preset location and then everything downstream was affected similarly regardless of which I was playing. I mostly did it so my envelope filter would react similarly to every bass, as well as my dirt pedals. Low effort, high reward IMO.
 
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#22
40Hz said:
You can also boost your gain, treble, and mids on the amp. That’s what those controls were put there for. ;)
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Not very convenient to have to change amp settings on the fly. Let alone the effect on the sound balance on the stage. But it is, technically, a solution.

TheLowDown33 said:
When I had more than a couple basses, I had a TC spark mini on my board with a paper ring cut out and taped around the knob. I then gain-matched the input to a target output and labelled where that fell on the spark booster for each respective instrument. When I switched basses, I turned the knob to the preset location and then everything downstream was affected similarly regardless of which I was playing. I mostly did it so my envelope filter would react similarly to every bass, as well as my dirt pedals. Low effort, high reward IMO.
Click to expand...

I ordered a Spark Booster. I can use it to give my passive basses the extra oomph needed since I prefer how my basses sound without rolling the volume down. :bassist:
 
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#25
Hypocrite said:
My actives are louder than my passive, because I boost mids and treble with the on board preamp. Which is kind of why you would get an active in the first place. Hardly a myth.
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My loudest bass by a mile is a Jazz with a John East Preamp trimmed low. And it’s so much louder than my P with overwound pickups that the clean boost pedal from my guitar rig has to be dimed to come close. That’s why I use the EQ2. And my second loudest bass is a passive semi hollow. Then my active Sabre. Then my Ray. Then another P. No rhyme or reason. Active basses can be louder if the preamp is really hot. Or they can be not so loud. So I’m with y’all that the notion active is louder by default isn’t accurate.
 
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#26
I have a mark mini boost that I use for exactly this sometimes!
but also I will just fiddle with the gain knob when changing basses. during a song even.
even with a backline, I'll still run over there and fiddle with something if it sounds off. Even though I know the amps sound is only for stage, I will still mess with it.
 
#28
jdabass said:
Radial Bassbone
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I'll second the Bassbone. I use it primarily when I'm switching between EUB and bass guitar, so I can dial in the same output level for both instruments. But you can easily run it with a "dry" active side and a "live" passive side that can bump or EQ the passive input to match the same as your active.

But, as others have said, you can use the internal trim pot on most active preamps to just dial back it's output, or roll off the volume knob a touch.
 
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#30
jeff62 said:
Not very convenient to have to change amp settings on the fly. Let alone the effect on the sound balance on the stage. But it is, technically, a solution.
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Dunno. I date back to an era when the backline or stage mix was also the FOH for the instruments in most of the clubs. It was rare anything other than the vocals went through what passed for a PA back then. Any halfway decent band learned how to get a decent mix and be able to adjust it on the fly without blowing the overall balance. And with today’s tech it should be even easier since it’s more science than art these days.
 
#31
I often use the three presets on my SansAmp to change between instruments (4/5 String, upright, synth bass...) or for going from fingerstyle to slap to pick playing. You can adjust the level, EQ and drive so you always the the best of what ever instrument or technique you're into at the moment.

There's probably other brands of programmable amp sim style pedals, this is the one I have experience with : )


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#33
jeff62 said:
I can't be alone in having multiple basses, some active and some passive. Is there a pedal device that you'd put at the beginning of your chain that takes the input signal, regardless of strength, and outputs a consistent level/strength signal?
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Assuming your amp only has one channel, the Radial Big Shot I/O is probably the best recommendation so far. Basically you get ABY functionality so you don't have to plug and unplug, you get a mute switch, and you get a trim control so you can balance the level of the two instruments.

I think a Boss LS-2 can be configured for the functionality you want as well.

I used to switch between three basses. I uses a rack mixer and power amp for my rig. The rack mixer only had line and mix level inputs so I used Shure A95U line matching transformers to plug each bass straight into the mic inputs. This allowed the mic/line switch on each channel to function like a mute switch. So I had gain and a three band EQ with sweepable mids for each instrument.

There are also some amps that have two input channels. Not sure what is currently on the market, but my Epifani UL902C and my Mesa Titan can handle switching between two basses. Only one channel is active at a time on these amps.
 
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#34
I'm not sure about pedals that do the job, but, I personally never switch basses without checking my input gain levels on the amp.. irregardless of passive vs active. And If I start boosting EQ on an active bass, I lower the volume knob on the bass to Compensate. On a passive instrument I tend to leave the volume full or 95% and adjust volume at the amp.

A limiter or compressor MIGHT help you out but IMO you're still going to have to set them up to accommodate the difference in volume levels from the bass.

Same thing when I had a passive jazz with lower output than my passive P-bass. I had to increase the input gain on my amp because the Jazz had lower volume output.
 
#37
Using a pedal for this seems to me to be a largish hammer to crack a very modest nut. If I bring two basses, I adjust the volume control on the loudest one to match the maximum output of the quietest one, and adjust volume to taste on the amp. Job done.
 
#38
Hypocrite said:
But that doesn't help me when I want to boost certain frequencies before going in to my pedals ;)
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Fair enough. But an outboard programmable EQ might be a more flexible solution in that case.

Something like SA’s Programmable EQ or EQ2 would let you sculpt your frequency curves to your heart’s content. And because they let you store and recall your settings, they’d make it possible to select different stored frequency curves depending on which pedals were engaged. So you could have one curve for distortion, another for a modulation heavy patch, etc. My SO uses one for guitar. She has one setting for general playing, a second for soloing, a third for a different guitar, and so on. One really nice thing about the SA is it also stores its output level setting along with the frequency curve. So it can be used as programmable boost as well.

The EQ2 it can even be controlled via MIDI if you want. But even without MIDI you have 8 (or 4 on the earlier EQ model) presets on tap with just the pedal. No more inconvenient running back and forth, or twiddling dials mid set. Now you could even change your eq setting mid song and not drop a beat since it’s only a stomp away. :)
 
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#39
There are a lot of different ways to make your signal chain behave in a consistent way with each bass you use. The programmable EQ and/or programmable DI is probably the best options.

A digital multi effects box is another method. You can create a patch of your EQ and volume settings that are unique for each bass. This makes things really easy at the gig, plug the box into your amp and the only tweaking you have to do is for the room- and that is done at the amp. Set it and forget it.

My pedal board has analog effects (just a tuner, HPF, and a dirt pedal) on it that is set up for my "Number One" bass. So I take that pedal board with that bass.

However, if I take more than one bass or need complex effects, or more flexibility- the digital box goes. This makes it simple and consistent.
 
#40
ctmullins said:
I'm really ready for the "active is louder than passive" myth to die.

Anyway, if you're unhappy with the output levels of your bass, you can either use the volume knob, or add a trim pot inside the cavity to adjust the maximum output level.
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I actually have the opposite problem. My main passive bass has absurdly low output. So I use a preamp to raise the level and give it some oomph for when it hits the front of my amp.
 

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