Dynamic EQ

[bdplaid]

Darn.

Looks like a killer unit though. Way beyond anything I need.

 

[SLPimp]

Looks like a killer unit though. Way beyond anything I need.

That's why I never got one. That and digital stuff on my board interacts poorly with the crap electricity here.

 

[BurtMacklinFBI]

The old exh steel leather did this, but the eq band was fixed. It would up the mids around 800hz or so (I think 800hz is right, but my memory is hardly flawless) when it got over the threshold to get the bass to cut through the mix. Ehx called it a 'bass expander.'

Edit: I thought the steel leather was discontinued, but I appear to be mistaken

So that's what that pedal does. Hmmm... now I'm intrigued.

 

[mexicanyella]

I have in my head that I can dial back the high end, as in using a LPF, fir just normal playing. Then when I play harder it would open up and be flat, allowing the high end through.

Like this: I play lighter and string clack and other high end things are not audible, making the tone something like flats. But when I slap, it's the full frequencies of the bass, full sound of the round wound strings.

Interesting idea; I would be interested in trying it the opposite way, where it would be full-range and crisp when I play soft fingerstyle, and more rolled off up top and mids-forward when I dig in. But I don’t slap; different needs.

Off to read the rest of the thread now...

 

[Bartrinsic]

I used a bass wah with the Boss GT-1000 to do something like this (lite banded expansion). The trick was getting the clean mix right. I was able to add a bit of punch to a band without excessive coloration using wet < 10%.
Bart

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

Like this: I play lighter and string clack and other high end things are not audible, making the tone something like flats. But when I slap, it's the full frequencies of the bass, full sound of the round wound strings.

I agree a multiband compressor is the best solution.

Another very complicated way to achieve this could be:

Bass into a splitter. Splitter out A into a Low Pass Filter. Splitter out B into a Gate, and then into a High Pass Filter. Set the Xover freq on both filters the same. Then you mix the two signals from both filters with another splitter using it as a Y cable. Too much work but in theory it shoud work

That being said, when you play harder you automatically get more clank, fret noise etc.

 

[kalle74]

A dynamic EQ? Easy. Just get one. Not in a pedal format, though. Look for a used XTA D2 or a BSS DPR 901, both in one unit rack format. I own, and have used the XTA unit on my rig to tame the honk my SD QP's had when digging in super hard.

 

[lucas303]

The Line 6 HX Effects (and maybe the HX Stomp too) can probably do this. It has a dynamic crossover, so it'll split your signal based on input level. You could put one effect/EQ/etc on one channel and something else on the other, so one of them only gets triggered when you go past whatever input level you set. You could even do an effects loop on one of the paths and use outboard effects. But really there are tons of good effects in the HX itself (particularly with the recent updates).

 

[Jack]

There's plenty of plugins that do this, so Mode Machine Vped?

 

[cheapbasslovin]

I have in my head that I can dial back the high end, as in using a LPF, fir just normal playing. Then when I play harder it would open up and be flat, allowing the high end through.

Like this: I play lighter and string clack and other high end things are not audible, making the tone something like flats. But when I slap, it's the full frequencies of the bass, full sound of the round wound strings.

You definitely want to at least try a steel leather. It's not EXACTLY what you describe, but it's close enough that the differences might be negligible and it's super cheap.

 

[Inara]

There was also a lot of discussion around this in another thread, here:
Dynamic EQ... in a compact pedal?

 

[bdplaid]

Thanks, but nothing that requires a vst is appealing. I could do it through a computer and then have to deal with that nonsense all for what is really just icing on the cake.

I wish I could figure out how to do it with my TC multiband comp.

 

[Crater]

Is a dynamic EQ pedal available anywhere? Not just a regular EQ, but one that would be input sensitive.
Thanks.

The BBE Sonic Maximizer does this, but BBE wants you to believe something about time delays and frequencies being re-aligned. But it's actually a side-chain treble expander. It boost treble based on the overall signal level at the input.

 

[jimfist]

The Line 6 HX Effects (and maybe the HX Stomp too) can probably do this. It has a dynamic crossover, so it'll split your signal based on input level. You could put one effect/EQ/etc on one channel and something else on the other, so one of them only gets triggered when you go past whatever input level you set. You could even do an effects loop on one of the paths and use outboard effects. But really there are tons of good effects in the HX itself (particularly with the recent updates).

Exactly. Also, pricey stuff like the Fractal Audio multi-fx modelers can do this using a similar method of parallel signal paths that can be engaged depending on a controller value from a pedal, or other type of automated control source such as volume envelope or pitch.

In this case, a parallel path with additional top end is not engaged until a certain threshold is reached by the controller value (volume) when playing hard. When playing soft, the controller value threshold is not met and the "darker" EQ signal path (less top end) is the only thing to pass sound.

Personally, I've always played the pickup volume and tone knobs on my instrument, adjusting in real time, in order to get darker or brighter tones. Or, just step on a switch to either brighten or darken the EQ tone as desired. You just have to make sure to run the gamut of your bass tones when doing sound check, especially when interfacing with a FOH PA system.

 

[cavemanbass]

Apollo Solo would let you run dynamic EQ in a box smaller than a pedalboard. Needs to be tethered to a computer though. Also has amazing emulations of many studio preamps, compressors, and EQs.

 

[Calyx]

One more option is an iPad running VisualComp

 

[Zbysek]

I've never owned it, but soloed in a shop it sounds like garbage. I expect it works pretty well to find an edge in a full mix, though.

I have owned it. It sounded like garbage to me..

 

[stubbsonic]

Wouldn't an Source Audio Atlas be able to do this?