Having problems with my Mids

[Nickthebassist]

I've been having problems cutting thru the mix, so I boosted the mids on my amp. It has a Low-Mid, Middle, and High-Mid. Well, the low mid and high mid sound good, but the Mids themselves sound crap, but without them I get a bity lost in the mix with the guitarist's distortion. Can anyone help?

 

[IvanMike]

a lot of the time an eq setting that cuts through a wall of distorted guitar will sound like crap when you play the bass by itself. the thing to ask is does it sound like crap when the whole band is playing, or does it sound ok? the live sound i use with my loud band can sound god-awful when i play alone, but it sounds fantastic when the whole band is rocking.

 

[Atshen]

a lot of the time an eq setting that cuts through a wall of distorted guitar will sound like crap when you play the bass by itself. the thing to ask is does it sound like crap when the whole band is playing, or does it sound ok? the live sound i use with my loud band can sound god-awful when i play alone, but it sounds fantastic when the whole band is rocking.

Yup, that's the secret, IMO.

 

[Nickthebassist]

Hmmmm. I may be getting an EQ pedal soon, could I set that to give me certain boosts for certain songs?

 

[IvanMike]

Hmmmm. I may be getting an EQ pedal soon, could I set that to give me certain boosts for certain songs?

that's not a bad idea. if you set it up with a cut in the bass and the bump in just the right place in the mids, maybe even a slight volume increase. this is kinda unrelated to mids in general, but, i use my sans amp di liek that sometimes. for some louder raunchier songs i have it set up so when i step on it it's just a little louder than with it off, and with the presence and drive set to have it cut through with a "just starting to distort with a lot of high mids" sorta sound.

 

[tombowlus]

What are you using for cabs? Trust me, cabs make a huge difference in the mids, and with some cabs, all the EQ in the world aren't going to make it right...

 

[Toasted]

He uses a single 15.

 

[tombowlus]

He uses a single 15.

What brand? It's amazing how different 1x15's can sound...

 

[Toasted]

Ashdown 15" mag combo

 

[Petebass]

Your answer is 10's. Use a 2x10 or 4x10 together with the 15. You won't believe the difference. Why?

Typically a decent 15 will stop working at 1K or thereabouts. The tweeter doesn't cut in until about 3K. This leaves a gaping hole at about 2K (mids). Which explains why trying to boost that region isn't working too well. The "low mids" are being carried by the 15, the "upper mids" by the tweet, but there's nothing there to that can handle the "mids".

 

[Tash]

I'll second that. Toss on a 210 and you'll see a marked improvement in clarity and projection.

 

[hasbeen]

If you'r using a 5 string, 12's will help the low B cut and punch better then the 10's will. If your playing a four banger, the 10's like other's here have posted will put you way ahead of the game.

 

[tombowlus]

I have not heard that particular Ashdown combo, but generally, 15's and 10's do tend to get along nicely together. So that is certainly a good route to investigate.

But, if you are really looking for great mids, there are a number of 12" equipped cabs delivering the goods. The Bergantino HT112, EA Wizzy 1x12 and Accugroove Tri 112 and Whappo, Jr. certainly come to mind when you think about excellent midrange. In the 2x10 department, using these same three companies as examples, the Berg HT210s, EA NL-210 and Accugroove Tri 210L have musical, full mids (and are all surprisingly light, too).

Tom.

 

[Nickthebassist]

Ok thanks for the help guys. I use a combo of 5s and 4s. At them oment I'm sounding a bit like Rex Brown...it doesn;t suit our music at all. What I'm after is a kind of burpy low end growl, that cuts, but fits in.

 

[Nickthebassist]

BTW, at gigs there'll generally be a 3KW PA. Now, should I run direct into that, or get them to mike the 1x15 and 2x10? Just wonderign exactly what to do........

 

[Nickthebassist]

Your answer is 10's. Use a 2x10 or 4x10 together with the 15. You won't believe the difference. Why?

Typically a decent 15 will stop working at 1K or thereabouts. The tweeter doesn't cut in until about 3K. This leaves a gaping hole at about 2K (mids). Which explains why trying to boost that region isn't working too well. The "low mids" are being carried by the 15, the "upper mids" by the tweet, but there's nothing there to that can handle the "mids".

Hmm, I dunno if my amp has a tweeter.........I took the front 'mesh' off once to look at the speaker, and there wasn't a tweeter that I could see.........

 

[Petebass]

Hmm, I dunno if my amp has a tweeter.........I took the front 'mesh' off once to look at the speaker, and there wasn't a tweeter that I could see.........

That's certainly not helping. Maybe you should try adding one before you look into getting 10's. It may improve things enough that you don't need any more speakers. It's not hard and it's not expensive. And you'll get lots of help here choosing the tweet and getting a crossover for it.

Dont be fooled into thinking 10 provide mids and nothing else. The beauty of it is they actually generate quite a bit of bottom end as well. Some more than others, so you'll be best to try a few out.

If you're after 10's with a burpy low end growl, get yourself to a music store and try an Eden 210xlt. I've got one and don't use it with a 15 any more because together, they actually generated too much bottom end for my liking. But it still cuts through better than my 15.

 

[IvanMike]

as far as the pa goes, you'll have a lot more control over the sound if you go direct into it. micing an amp can be cool, but the sound will get further colored by the mic and its limitations, and you may have other instruments bleed into it. if your ashdown has a direct out try using that. if it is selectable for pre/post eq try both settigns and see which one you prefer. and the idea of tens isnt a bad one. you might even be able to find a 1x10 box that will do it for you if the 2x10 is more than you want to buy/carry.

 

[bassampegman]

Simple solution ( one i have mentioned to you before ) boost the slider or rotary knob at 1.6khz to full.

The result is a cutting tone that sits well in a distorted guitar band. The low mids, mids shoudnt be boosted to much as you will clash with the guitar itself, but the important thing is do not cut them like crazy ( remember the old smiley face ) as you will get buried the moment the band starts.

The Ashdown can also pump out some serious low end, my bass knob is never much more than 12 o clock because too much and again you are swamping the mids in your sound.

Run your bass with treble boosted, slight bass boost but leave the mids on bass flat or it will sound a bit honky and nasty. Finally a fresh set of nickel strings will make the whole thing zing and the great thing is you can hear yourself as well as the audience can hear you far better.Try it it really does work especially live but the key is boost to max the 1.6kz frequency, try it out.

 

[bassampegman]

Note do not waste your money changing speakers as that isnt your problem. I run a 15" Ampeg and a 4x 10 Ampeg the cab that sounds the most clear and punchy is in fact the 15" cab. I also have my tweeter only on about 1/4 as they are hissy and nasty sounding.You do not need a tweeter but a better understanding of eq etc.

Also turn off all your other stuff like effects etc and get the amp tone right then build on it from there.

The Ashdown amps have a pushbutton to alter the amp eq, make sure you experiment with that as well. I cant remember if mine is IN or Out but its the deeper version of the two sounds.