Double Bass HELP! Would love some advice :)

[lowendgruve89]

Hello,

I'm a college student and I need a reliable setup. Forgive me, I don't have very much experience with pickups and preamps.

Right now all I have is an Underwood (which I like.) I haven't used a preamp before, though I've always wanted one. My bass sounds fine through most rigs (MB150E, SWR-WM15)...BUT...

I recently purchased a GKMB212 (I play upright in a rock/jazz/fusion outfit) while my fender jazz sounds superb through it, my upright sounds like a boomy mess.

I play in a bunch of other ensembles and I need something that's going to be reliable at lower and higher volumes. I play on a carved lemur bass, btw.

All of that being said, here is my real question:

I am looking at the Fishman FC for it's reliability and the ability to use it without a preamp. I really would like to be able to have more control over my tone so should I pair it with a

LR Baggs D.I or a Fishman Pro Plat EQ???

I have also looked at the Headway EDB-1, but I can't drop the dough on that baby just yet.


*Side note, I've heard of guys pairing the realist with the underwood.....good idea or bad?


Thanks in advance!

 

[meandering]

GK's amps generally sound pretty good for DB, although i haven't used an MB212, and the Underwood should be fine. Have you considered something like the HPF-Pre? It's a cheaper solution than a new amp or pickup. Also, you should search this site for additional info, one of the first ones that comes up is:

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f4/gk-mb212-gig-reviews-708175/

 

[Jaromir]

Cut the low mids as much as to 10 or 9 o'clock. If that is not enough, cut the bass a bit too.
You can also put the Underwood the reverse way - switch the sides. The sound will change quite a lot, you will hear if that is an improvement or the opposite.

 

[Matt Ides]

If you like the pick up, just get a small pre-amp to help deal with the times that you get a less than desirable sound.

 

[qiuzhiuli]

Agree with him.

 

[Ric Vice]

Hello,
Right now all I have is an Underwood (which I like.) I haven't used a preamp before, though I've always wanted one. My bass sounds fine through most rigs (MB150E, SWR-WM15)...BUT...

The Underwood pickup is very reliable and has been used for years. I used one for around 10 years. On some basses it's the best pickup for the instrument.

I recently purchased a GKMB212 (I play upright in a rock/jazz/fusion outfit) while my fender jazz sounds superb through it, my upright sounds like a boomy mess.

Seems to reason that if you got a decent sound through a MBE and a WM-15 then GK MB212 is the culprit. That's a very large speaker cabinet to use with Double Bass. It's going to be hard to roll out all the low end it produces.

I play in a bunch of other ensembles and I need something that's going to be reliable at lower and higher volumes. I play on a carved lemur bass, btw.

I sure that's why you purchased the MB212. It's light weight and can get pretty loud. An alternative to the Fishman Pro Platinum would be the HPF/Pre Series 2

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You may be able to solve the DB problem using it's high pass filter, but I suspect that the problem lies in the EQ voicing of the GK pre amp and the Fishman Pro Plat or the Headway EDB-1 are what you'll need for that. You can evidently plug either of them into the little 1/8 "auxiliary input using an adaptor.

I am looking at the Fishman FC for it's reliability and the ability to use it without a preamp. I really would like to be able to have more control over my tone so should I pair it with a

With that quality of bass there's certainly lots of pickup options that will work, the Full Circle is very reliable and sounds great.

*Side note, I've heard of guys pairing the realist with the underwood.....good idea or bad?


Thanks in advance!

Using two different pickups amounts to a whole lot of trouble IMHO. Others may disagree

 

[Eric Hochberg]

I did pair a Realist and Underwood for a short time and got some good sounds. But you need two channels or some kind of blender. I put them through an A/B box, kind of a crude way to do it.

On another note, try using the Underwood with the E side element only. Much better IME, fuller, less midrangy and no phase effect. I used an underwood for 20 years and it gets the job done. There are other good PUs out there, too. I think the GK is your problem here though. Maybe not worth the expense/hassle to tame it...unless Fdecks inexpensive HPF does the trick.