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Double Bass Ehrlund vs SoundClip
- Thread starter TroyK
- Start date
I appreciate all of the experience shared on this thread. My first reaction is to just stick with the original Realist that has served me well since 2004.
- Steve
The Realist SoundClip seems to be designed for those who don't wish to have a pickup permanently mounted on the bass. Looking at it's design, I would not want all that weight hanging of my bridge, because there's got to be some damping going on.
Steve,
You're one lucky bass player to have had a Realist last that long, mounted under the foot. That's about twice the longevity of both of them I owned. The life span of a Realist is very bass dependent.
Ric
Ric Vice said:
I'm sure it's true that there is some damping, but I've not noticed it. I frequently attach it to plug in my Strobostomp tuner when I'm working specifically on intonation (i.e. no amplifier), and I don't hear any difference in tone. As I type this, it occurs to me that it might explain why a particular small but faintly irritating rattle on the open D seems to disappear; maybe the pickup is controlling it! I'll check that out today sometime ...
I haven't used it enough without to say. I need to experiment more with, without and with some alternatives and also see if I could accomplish the same thing with filtering the offensive frequencies with my eq. I will say that I haven't noticed any lack of volume and haven't had any feedback.
I appreciate all of the experience shared on this thread. My first reaction is to just stick with the original Realist that has served me well since 2004.
- Steve
Steve, I agree with Ric, if it works for you, don't spend money and take a chance on something else. But, I'd replace it and put that one in your bag as a backup. It's on schedule for end of life. One of the reasons that I went to the Full Circle was just that. Realist was x years old and I was anticipating a failure. Never hiccuped on me, though, might have lasted forever for all I know.
I certainly heard some damping using the Sounclip and that was a deal breaker for me. I tried different combinations of the weights and the damping seemed to be there in all configurations. At first I wondered if I was imagining it so I asked a friend to listen out front and he certainly heard it too.
The original Realist never really worked for my bass. Worked fine on the other basses i have used it on. Gut strings on my big bodied bass created a somewhat dark sound already. The realist was just overkill in the warm and dark category.
But I had hopes for the Sounclip because of the ease of taking it on and off. Admittedly the pickup sounded pretty good on its own, but listening to the acoustic response with it attached to the bass, but not turned up, really turned me off.
The original Realist never really worked for my bass. Worked fine on the other basses i have used it on. Gut strings on my big bodied bass created a somewhat dark sound already. The realist was just overkill in the warm and dark category.
But I had hopes for the Sounclip because of the ease of taking it on and off. Admittedly the pickup sounded pretty good on its own, but listening to the acoustic response with it attached to the bass, but not turned up, really turned me off.
I'll have to listen for that. I haven't noticed it and I'm hyper sensitive to it.
The thing for me, is that ANYTHING on your bass dampens it. How much? Is that a bad thing? Very subjective. I can't say that I've noticed that a bow quiver dampens, but it must and I feel more comfortable not having it on when I don't need it to be which is most of the time. When I need it, I'm happy to have it.
Let's say 80% of the time that I'm performing, I'm amplified.
But 80% of the time I spend playing my bass, I'm not.
So I don't want any acoustic interference for the 80% of the time I'm playing my bass. The gig that I had last Saturday as an example, there was minimal potential value in whatever acoustic properties might have existed on my bass. The amplifed signal was all that mattered. Maybe that's true for 1/2 of the gigs that I amplify. Maybe I hang onto the Ehrlund for the other half, that's the environment that it does especially well in.
Too much math. Must stop typing now.
I do need to experiment with this pickup more. I got it in the mail a few hours before a gig, so reason tells me I shouldn't have used it that night. But, a quick test at home got me oriented and I used it that night and was happier that I could count on being with my other solution, so I just kept using it. I've improved it a bit since then, but haven't really gone into the woodshed with it yet. I'll get John over and he and I can do so together. He has a classic Realist on his bass, so we might even be able to comment on similarities and differences.
The thing for me, is that ANYTHING on your bass dampens it. How much? Is that a bad thing? Very subjective. I can't say that I've noticed that a bow quiver dampens, but it must and I feel more comfortable not having it on when I don't need it to be which is most of the time. When I need it, I'm happy to have it.
Let's say 80% of the time that I'm performing, I'm amplified.
But 80% of the time I spend playing my bass, I'm not.
So I don't want any acoustic interference for the 80% of the time I'm playing my bass. The gig that I had last Saturday as an example, there was minimal potential value in whatever acoustic properties might have existed on my bass. The amplifed signal was all that mattered. Maybe that's true for 1/2 of the gigs that I amplify. Maybe I hang onto the Ehrlund for the other half, that's the environment that it does especially well in.
Too much math. Must stop typing now.
I do need to experiment with this pickup more. I got it in the mail a few hours before a gig, so reason tells me I shouldn't have used it that night. But, a quick test at home got me oriented and I used it that night and was happier that I could count on being with my other solution, so I just kept using it. I've improved it a bit since then, but haven't really gone into the woodshed with it yet. I'll get John over and he and I can do so together. He has a classic Realist on his bass, so we might even be able to comment on similarities and differences.
Re: the 80% equations:
And that is probably the most important thing to remember.
I guess there is really no reason why a little damping should matter that much as long as the pickup can be taken on and off easily.
And that is probably the most important thing to remember.
I guess there is really no reason why a little damping should matter that much as long as the pickup can be taken on and off easily.
Nathan Levine said:
+1 . Its only there when you are playing amplified and in those situations a small amount of dampening is neither hear nor there. In a studio with an expensive mic I'm guess theres a benefit for a pickup free bass.
The idea of the soundclip is great. I would love to try one.
Geoffbassist.
In regards to the Realist, I always felt that way too, but then removed it from my bass after I affixed the Ehrlund. For me, at least, the instrument opened up once it was out from in between the bridge foot and top. Just my experience though.
Ric
I guess one potential cause of concern with the Soundclip is to remember to remove it before putting you bass in its case. Can you imagine the damage it could do if it came loose inside the bag when you were putting your bass in and out of the car?!
I imagine that it would be hard to miss, but I would need to be very strict with myself to avoid disaster!
I'm still thinking about trying one (or ehurland) as I would love to keep my new bass (due July) Full Circle free.
I imagine that it would be hard to miss, but I would need to be very strict with myself to avoid disaster!
I'm still thinking about trying one (or ehurland) as I would love to keep my new bass (due July) Full Circle free.
Thanks Troy and others for your great insights and observations! I am at this time contemplating between the Erlund and the Sound clip myself. I will be mixing it with a DPA mic.,into the Headway. I am leaning toward the Erlund for its less intrusive qualities on the bridge etc. My only concern is its mounting on the tailpiece and durability on the job. The Soundclip seems to be less problematic in mounting but possibly more of a problem in muting the bridge. It seems that most
TBer's are satisfied or knocked out by the sound coming from the Erlund.
any thoughts or further observations would be welcomed,concerning mixing with the DPA. Currently using the FC with DPA.
Also has any body noticed if any 1st line NYC players using the Erlund. Any opinions concerning the two would be welcomed....thanks
TBer's are satisfied or knocked out by the sound coming from the Erlund.
any thoughts or further observations would be welcomed,concerning mixing with the DPA. Currently using the FC with DPA.
Also has any body noticed if any 1st line NYC players using the Erlund. Any opinions concerning the two would be welcomed....thanks
Thanks Troy and others for your great insights and observations! I am at this time contemplating between the Erlund and the Sound clip myself. I will be mixing it with a DPA mic.,into the Headway. I am leaning toward the Erlund for its less intrusive qualities on the bridge etc. My only concern is its mounting on the tailpiece and durability on the job. The Soundclip seems to be less problematic in mounting but possibly more of a problem in muting the bridge. It seems that most
TBer's are satisfied or knocked out by the sound coming from the Erlund.
any thoughts or further observations would be welcomed,concerning mixing with the DPA. Currently using the FC with DPA.
Also has any body noticed if any 1st line NYC players using the Erlund. Any opinions concerning the two would be welcomed....thanks
I'm going to be in Dallas very briefly in May for my mother's 80th birthday. I would be happy to bring both if you wanted to visit with your bass and try them. Send me a PM.
Steve Boisen said:Did you say a NEW BASS? Details please
- Steve
Nick Lloyd Walnut Flatback like this
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f1/ordered-nick-lloyd-bass-today-805868/
Thread here: http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f1/ordered-nick-lloyd-bass-today-805868/
I'm still planning on going with FC but would love to keep it pickup free. I've been considering trying the soundclip or Ehurland on my current bass which has a FC to see if I can get similar results.
Nick Lloyd Walnut Flatback like this
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f1/ordered-nick-lloyd-bass-today-805868/
Thread here: http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f1/ordered-nick-lloyd-bass-today-805868/
I'm still planning on going with FC but would love to keep it pickup free. I've been considering trying the soundclip or Ehurland on my current bass which has a FC to see if I can get similar results.
Geoff,
I have a 5/8 Mireourt, that the Ehrlund pickup sounds great on. Nice bass, the scalloped fingerboard with the extended length on the G string is nicely done. I have a Mike Pecanic compensated tailpiece that is the reverse of your fingerboard.
Ric
Update, I was a guest at John's CD release this weekend. A few friends agreed to be opening act/awkward silence fillers between their sets so they could sell some (really nice, by the way) CDs.
Afterward, we put the SoundClip on John's bass for a few minutes, no weights and he didn't have a lot of room under his adjuster, so we put it above the adjuster on the bass foot side. I told him to try it without the rubber piece first to see how terrible it sounded, then I twiddled with his eq and got a really nice sound out of it just be rolling the mid frequency on his AI head down about 1/2 way. Sounded pretty good that way, actually without spending any real time looking around for the perfect spot or the perfect setting.
Need to experiment with it more myself.
In all fairness, the original Realist on his bass also sounded great from out in the room. Cheaper and less futzing. So, it always comes back to "how important is it to you not to have anything mounted on your bass?"
Afterward, we put the SoundClip on John's bass for a few minutes, no weights and he didn't have a lot of room under his adjuster, so we put it above the adjuster on the bass foot side. I told him to try it without the rubber piece first to see how terrible it sounded, then I twiddled with his eq and got a really nice sound out of it just be rolling the mid frequency on his AI head down about 1/2 way. Sounded pretty good that way, actually without spending any real time looking around for the perfect spot or the perfect setting.
Need to experiment with it more myself.
In all fairness, the original Realist on his bass also sounded great from out in the room. Cheaper and less futzing. So, it always comes back to "how important is it to you not to have anything mounted on your bass?"
Thanks for the update, Troy.
I find there are far fewer feedback problems with the Clip attached above the adjuster, and I agree that mids need to be dialled back, even moreso when no rubber insert is used. The weights make a pretty big difference to me, at least. I need to do some more fiddling now that I've switched to Garbo-gut, but it still seems to work!
I find there are far fewer feedback problems with the Clip attached above the adjuster, and I agree that mids need to be dialled back, even moreso when no rubber insert is used. The weights make a pretty big difference to me, at least. I need to do some more fiddling now that I've switched to Garbo-gut, but it still seems to work!
