How often do you actually use your volume knob?...

[Acoustic356]

The volume knob does impact the tone. The sound of the strings sounds different at 100% vs 90%, 80%, or ever 75%.

A lot of times, I prefer the tone of the bass with the volume at 90% vs 100%. Couple that with the tweaking the tone knob and you will get a lot of variety... subtle variety.

 

[jdh3000]

I use a boost pedal to change from lower(country ballads, pop, and such) to higher volume (harder rock).

I've tries using a volume pedal or bass knob, but I like fast consistency. It does the trick for the way I play.

I do use the knob for swells.
I've used a volume pedal for that to, but no more than I do it, it wasn't worth the extra weight on my pedalboard.

 

[baileyboy]

There is that school of thought that dictates the bass volume is always played with volume 100% up, and actual volume heard is done via amp/soundboard. Others like to adjust bass volume if need be, so leave some room to play. Not to hijack, but is there any benefit to either approach (other than the obvious)?

 

[Pings Bass]

Depends on the bass. My P and J might as well have kill switches; they're either 100% or 0%. For my L2K, I tend to run in the 75% zone, which gives me a little head room just in case, and also seems to mellow those MFD pups a little.

 

[beatdatthang]

I only use it as an on-off switch on basses with a blend knob. The passive basses I have that are VVT (Jazz and PJ) get more use because they’re really tone shaping knobs at that point. The neck pup is usually dimed and the bridge is typically somewhere between 75% and 100% depending on how much bite I want or how scooped I want the tone. Alternately, I almost never adjust the tone knob on a passive bass. Always set at 100.

I have a little boost foot switch on my board if I need a little extra dB after I’m set after sound check that I rarely use.

 

[Kael]

Other than to kill volume I use my volume knob for swells (usually at the end of songs) maybe 2 or 3 times a gig.

 

[Frankie Fender]

I use it regularly and I use the mute button on the amp too.

 

[Peteyboy]

On my p bass I'd be happier with a kill-switch. On my j I dial back the bridge pickup 25%.

 

[PWRL]

I use them all the time on my Precisions, Streamer and Jazz.

 

[dkelley]

I never run my volume below 100%, aside from if I have dual volumes (in which case one is always at 100% when playing, the other anywhere from 0 to 100%)

Other than, of course, to turn it all the way off when I stop playing or put the bass down.

Unlike on guitars with tube amps, there is no advantage I have found to lowering my volume on bass for tone, and I hate trying to reproduce exact knob settings later on if I'm recording or what not. wide open is much easier to deal with for level matching whether recording or playing live.

update: oh yea, of course I have used a single volume for swells and fades, albeit rarely (more like in live musical theater band type stuff).

 

[Frank77]

Volume is on/off for me, I could replace all my volume knobs with switches. I prefer 3-way switches over separate volumes on basses that have 2 pickups.

 

[sawzalot]

I use it all the time. All of my basses are active, but they all have a little different output--so I use the volume knob to equalize that so when I switch basses on stage I don't suddenly change the gain going to the sound board. Also I'll use it if I want to push it up just a bit for a section that highlights the bass or something. But, it's really important to remember that if you're playing in a room with a sound system and a front-of-house board, using the volume knob to crank the gain so you can hear yourself better is a really bad idea that will almost undoubtedly put you in the doghouse with the FOH engineer. Suddenly seeing the gain jump on one channel means either he/she has to back off your channel gain or adjust your channel and all the monitor sends with your bass in it--you're just making work for the sound engineer and not having the effect you desire. However, I do use it for that reason at my band's headphone practices, lol.

 

[juancaminos]

When playing the bass volume is usually on full. Then off for break. I tend to use the amp volume too, although not that much. I have changed my attack and/or turned down (bass volume) for quieter songs I guess. Not something I think about much.

 

[dkelley]

One reason why I FAR prefer pickup pan plus volume to 2 volume controls is that you always have a volume control (for overall volume and/or for turning sound off when required) that doesn't mess up your pickup balance (which affects your tone radically). That way I could actually do swells and fades, where as with 2 volumes you can only do that if you turn off one volume all the way first.... which is fine but then you lose your carefully adjusted pickup balance.

 

[jnewmark]

Hardly ever; its always up all the way on my Jazz, both of them.

 

[Spectre Gunner]

I only use it at home to turn down when I don’t feel like walking back to the amp. But who cares.

More importantly, where did you get that pick guard? That looks awesome!

 

[coy garcia]

Never. I control my dynamics with my right hand hitting the strings harder when I need a little extra volume.

 

[Dragan]

Everything is "a thing" on talkbass

 

[Island Thumper]

The volume knob does impact the tone. The sound of the strings sounds different at 100% vs 90%, 80%, or ever 75%.

A lot of times, I prefer the tone of the bass with the volume at 90% vs 100%. Couple that with the tweaking the tone knob and you will get a lot of variety... subtle variety.

...and this:

...The passive basses I have that are VVT (Jazz and PJ) get more use because they’re really tone shaping knobs at that point. The neck pup is usually dimed and the bridge is typically somewhere between 75% and 100% depending on how much bite I want or how scooped I want the tone. ....

VERY true. I salesman at a local music store recently told me that he doubted if the "greats" ever had their knobs dime'd and said that a lot of good players boost the amp for volume and almost always back off the knobs some (something about having no resistance or something?). Told him I was from the Spinal Tap generation and could not comprehend what he was saying...

Tried it out and it's pretty frickin' amazing. Especially on passive passes--VVT or VT. Crank amp volume, then back everything off. Even on a P-bass, if you back down the volume slightly, you can get a less "edgy" thump suited for reggae, jazz etc... (wide open for grind/grit, in the middle to find the mids)... How come no one told me this in the 90's and I spent all that money on pre-amps?!

...however, the more "stuff" you have in your signal chain (pre's, compression, filters), the more subtle the tone shaping is (straight into you A.I. or PA, and you can tell a pretty big difference--can hear the fingers more ;-).

 

[pappabass]

I have was taught to turn to 100% and adjust the amp accordingly. I have always done it that way. But some say they run about 80% and bump it up when a little more volume is needed in a certain spot of the song. I like that. No pedals here.