I'm a college student from Athens, Ga. I play in a classic rock band in a college town with ~80 bars and a large Greek life scene. We play bars, frat houses, date nights, events, etc. 4 piece band, lead guitarist on a 3 pick- up les Paul, singer who plays rhythm guitar with a strat, drummer, and me, I recently upgraded from a squire p bass with SD quarter pound pickups to a Gibson SG standard bass. I play it through an Acoustic B300H 300W head to an Acoustic B410C cab.
I don't think my set up is nearly loud enough and I'm wondering what may be the most cost effective option to fix that. I live with the lead guitarist and we are both obsessed with tone. It's very hard to chase a clear punchy tone when you have to run your master on 9 with gain just to hear yourself. I want to be able to actually use my eq and pickups to get some fuzz or get some drive or play clean tones.
My thoughts are maybe I could get another cab? I know the one I have has the parallel out so I could run the same head and just get another of the cab I already have. It would certainly be cost effective. The question is whether or not 300w is enough for 2 4x10 cabs. I've gotten differing opinions in the past. I welcome all input. I just don't want to be stuck sending my master volume to the moon just to find my place in the mix. I could also look at other heads? I love ampeg heads but they get pretty pricey.
Thoughts and recommendations?
thanks so much for all the help!!!
I played similar gigs and venues in my college years. Although a 500w head with a single 2x12 was often "enough," I eventually added a second 2x12 to help fill out the low end and also get the speakers closer to my ears. This helped a good bit.
With that being said, I'd first try reusing the precision bass. IME, I've had trouble getting Gibson basses to work in a mix. Could just be me, but precisions tend to have a bit more going on in their mids which should help.
If you're having trouble with the precision, then I'd take a look at your EQ settings. It's counter intuitive, but often the tones that sound pretty lackluster solo fit perfectly in a mix, and the reverse is typically true, too.
I'd start with EQ and Gain all at noon and the volume off. Slowly bring up the volume until you can hear yourself decently and then back off the gain all the way and start bringing it up until your notes start to "bloom." If your amp has a limiter or gain light, wait until it starts flashing and then bring it back a hair or so until it doesn't flash unless you really start to dig in. You'll repeat this process once your EQ is set, but I find it helps to get this situated first.
Slowly repeat the process for all EQ points (starting bass, mids, and then treble). The key is to wait until each frequency starts to "bloom" and then back off just a hair. You may need to repeat this a time or two, but eventually you should land at a point that is a good starting tone for your instrument. Now repeat the process for your gain one more time.
Once you're in your band setting, you can start tailoring your tone from here. IMO, it's best to remove EQ first before trying to add anything in. Typically your volume will drop a hair when you cut so you may need to raise your volume knob a little to compensate. Start your changes in the low end and work your way up.
If you do this, can find a tone that fits, but still can't hear yourself, then you should try raising your mids at this point. If this still doesn't help, then it's likely time for a second cab.
Good luck!
