Does Anyone Use The -15 db Button?

[39-Bassist]

I use it with my amps....but it is -6db....it levels out all of my basses...2 passive and now 1 active.....it works well with the amp I use BUT I also have had amps that don't sound well when active switch is on....so my results will say "It all comes down to your type of amp and basses"

 

[brianrost]

Never have used it, never will. Tends to be more of a tone suck than anything else IMO/IME.

That's only because it changes the input impedance of the amp which can affect the tone of a passive instrument.

 

[40Hz]

With the advent of input gain controls it's rarely needed. Plug into the regular input. If you're unintentionally getting distortion, try the pad input. I also disagree it's a tone suck, unless you equate an overdriven sound with your tone. If that's the case, then simply never use the pad even if you are. Some players prefer that sort of sound.

Your amp? Play it your way.

Note: the only thing I own where I need to use the pad is my Ampeg SCR-DI. And only if I'm plugging my Spector Rebop into it. Without the pad it sounds like the scrambler circuit is permanently engaged. Positively can't get it to sound clean unless I do.

 

[seang15]

Definitely important for basses with hot preamps. You'll overdrive the preamp otherwise, irrespective of what others may say.

 

[agedhorse]

That's only because it changes the input impedance of the amp which can affect the tone of a passive instrument.

Some do and some do not.

 

[someguyfromNC]

I've always ended up using the normal input for the stingrays, jazzes, and jaguars. Only time I used the -15 was with a 5 stringer Carvin.

 

[Ric5]

Does Anyone Use The -15 db Button?

Live -- Never

At home in my basement -- Always

 

[bucephylus]

Never. Irrespective of the bass signal amplitude.

 

[Dave W]

Nope, never

 

[Eidolon0274]

Never. If your active bass output is hot enough to distort the amp input you have bigger problems.

 

[Ewo]

My Ibanez SRX500 is HOT. Into my PF500, it is clipping with the gain at 3.

I use the pad for that bass, but I don't use that bass live.

Yeah, the only time I'd use the pad is if I couldn't set the input gain to somewhere in its middle range without clipping.

Does the Ibanez have an internal trim pot for the gain? IME, a good number of active basses do.

 

[stradivarius151]

I have a button for a 10 dB boost - which is always in not because of my passive bass, but because this amp seems way too quiet for the amount of wattage it claims.....

 

[Ellery]

My GK1001RB has the same pad, I experimented with it, cranking up the gain on my compressor & od trying to find new tones. Took a lot of juice to get volume and it seemed to be a tone suck.

 

[PeaveyPlayer]

Should I just not use pad all together?

I thought pad was for all active basses

 

[40Hz]

Should I just not use pad all together?

I thought pad was for all active basses

Try it both ways and see what happens. You won't damage your amp as long as you keep the master level reasonable when you do. Then decide which you like better. Five minutes of hands-on is more informative than 100 forum posts when it comes to deciding something like this for your own rig and usage.

 

[The Rage]

Almost always. If I play my main bass in the passive input it clips at very low level. When this clipping doesn't happen I don't use it

 

[Sunset Shalom]

I have an active passive switch on my Carvin combo but I only use it for guitar sometimes which can be pretty handy.

 

[beans-on-toast]

I never fire it up past 8 pm.

I've seen leases that state that you can't play instruments past 10 PM. Three of my neighbors go to bed quite early so out of consideration I never play at home through an amp in the evening.

 

[Owen Bacon]

I keep it on all the time, it makes the volume adjustments easier for me since im in my bedroom.

Id never heard of it having a tone suck though, maybe i should rethink my method of using it.

 

[tfer]

Yeah, the only time I'd use the pad is if I couldn't set the input gain to somewhere in its middle range without clipping.

Does the Ibanez have an internal trim pot for the gain? IME, a good number of active basses do.

Nope - no internal trim.

It's 15 years old now.