In ear monitors for bass?

[magic8161]

OK Im old school But after the gig yesterday I couldn't hear myself at all through the monitors. The keyboard guy insists that in ear monitors would solve this problem. where do I start? We Always work with sound people and I hardly ever bring a bass amp. 5 to 10 piece rock and roll band. Do they make one just for bass? and will I get that bass feeling that gets you excited when playing live. wireless or not? Im a bass player so I never move around...lol and around 5-$600 is around my budget

 

[s0c9]

No. Nothing specific for bass but I'd recommend getting some thing with triple drivers (or better) so you can boost the bass..
Try the KZ ZS5/ZS6 or AS10's available on Amazon and get used to them at home/rehearsal BEFORE using at a gig.
If you can let us know what gear you use.. we can help you get set up.

 

[beniciaboy]

I'm old skool, too, but I want to hear what I want to hear. I play out a bit, but mainly at church and it's loud. I hooked up with 64 Audio and they are amazing. You may gulp when you ck out the $, but WELL worth it.
Do you guys already have a system you are using for in-ears? If not, then you are probably talking about quite a bit more $. It may be a good time for the band to talk about going in on a system and have each musician get their own in-ears.

 

[magic8161]

I'm old skool, too, but I want to hear what I want to hear. I play out a bit, but mainly at church and it's loud. I hooked up with 64 Audio and they are amazing. You may gulp when you ck out the $, but WELL worth it.
Do you guys already have a system you are using for in-ears? If not, then you are probably talking about quite a bit more $. It may be a good time for the band to talk about going in on a system and have each musician get their own in-ears.

I bought a pair of shure se215. I read reviews and they are supposed to be good for bass. I also bought a behringer headphone amp. We only play where sound is provided so hook up will be no problem ever. I also bought a doit yourself in ear mold kit for better stability. Not sure if I'll like it but I'll try anything once.

 

[Jazz4Me]

In ears may solve the problem, but it really depends more on the control you have over your individual monitor mix more so than the quality of the IEM you purchase. You can spend thousands on an IEM but if you're at the mercy of a sound guy who can't supply you a proper monitor mix it's a waste of money. If you can get a good mix or better yet, have control over your individual mix, then a good dual or triple driver IEM will serve you well.

 

[magic8161]

In ears may solve the problem, but it really depends more on the control you have over your individual monitor mix more so than the quality of the IEM you purchase. You can spend thousands on an IEM but if you're at the mercy of a sound guy who can't supply you a proper monitor mix it's a waste of money. If you can get a good mix or better yet, have control over your individual mix, then a good dual or triple driver IEM will serve you well.

most places let us control our own sound from our phones. they tell us what app they use and we are good to go. I must have 6 or 7 different apps on my phone already....lol yes if this works out then i will be looking into more drivers for sure.

 

[richntiff]

If I read OP correctly - no bass amp at most gigs, can’t hear self in floor wedges? Yikes. Perfect storm of bad conditions. I’d highly recommend an in ear setup. Wireless if you can swing it. Shure PSM 300 is very very good. There are better but beyond the actual needs of most of us. KZ ZS7 ear buds are KILLER. I also have KZ AS10 - ZS7 is noticeably better. Many other lower price point non big name brands that beat the crud out of any Shure below the 535. That’s not a joke. Go to Headfi dot org and read nerds talking endlessly about iems.... Bear in mind 99% of them are talking about soundstage on a rap recording I love the ZS7 because I also sing backups and lead - the ZS7 performs well in both applications, singing, and clear bass definition. Midrange is great as well. Ear seal/isolation is KEY. Find the best tips that work for your specific ear canals.

 

[s0c9]

I bought a pair of shure se215. I read reviews and they are supposed to be good for bass. I also bought a behringer headphone amp. We only play where sound is provided so hook up will be no problem ever. I also bought a doit yourself in ear mold kit for better stability. Not sure if I'll like it but I'll try anything once.

the SE215's are single driver, will provide clear bass (at the expense of the rest of your mix) and give you ear fatigue pretty quickly.. which will cause you to turn up to hear better... Ask me how I know!
Dump the 215's and get a set of the KZ's mentioned in this thread. I've seen countless folks blame IEM systems for issues caused by crappy buds. If you think in terms of home stereo systems... Doesn't matter how much high end gear you have in the system, if you listen thru cheap crappy speakers.. it will sound like poo.

And.. most of us do NOT need a CD quality mix in our IEM's, but enough of a clear stereo mix (if possible, cuz it's way better than mono) to hear what we need to do our job on stage.

 

[ArtechnikA]

Agree with what's been posted here.
Haven't found KZ's that I like in terms of fit or sound, but I haven't tried the 257's so if s0c9 says they're good I'd trust his opinion.
While you can spend hundreds on a wireless system, IMO players that are tethered to an amp or stand mike can be well-served with a wired interface. I usually use a Rolls PM351 but PM50's are a bit smaller, lighter, and cheaper.
I have a set of Westone UMPro 30's and so far nothing has persuaded me to replace them.
I also have an older (and probably technically illegal -- shhhh...) Carvin wireless system (newer, legal units are available) and with that, I run the best monitor mix available into one channel, my bass signal into the other, and blend to taste. I usually play fretless, so if I can't hear myself, it's a real long night...

 

[s0c9]

Agree with what's been posted here.
Haven't found KZ's that I like in terms of fit or sound, but I haven't tried the 257's so if s0c9 says they're good I'd trust his opinion.
While you can spend hundreds on a wireless system, IMO players that are tethered to an amp or stand mike can be well-served with a wired interface. I usually use a Rolls PM351 but PM50's are a bit smaller, lighter, and cheaper.
I have a set of Westone UMPro 30's and so far nothing has persuaded me to replace them.
I also have an older (and probably technically illegal -- shhhh...) Carvin wireless system (newer, legal units are available) and with that, I run the best monitor mix available into one channel, my bass signal into the other, and blend to taste. I usually play fretless, so if I can't hear myself, it's a real long night...

Thanks... but to clarify..
Shure SE215's is what I said can produce decent bass.. but at the expense of the rest of the spectrum.
They are single driver buds, so like any speaker trying to produce 40-20Khz (roughly) spectrum they will have limitations due to lack of mechanical efficacy!
That leads to ear fatigue.. which is why I DO NOT recommend using ANY single driver bud for bassists.

That's also why I suggest triple (or more) drivers, so you can boost the bass and still get clarity from mid and upper ranges without it all turning to mush!
A good monitor source also helps!
Back when I was doing 90+ gigs a year, I had the $$ so I bought the Senn G3 IEM wireless system and 1964 A8's.
It's an awesome combo, and coupled with running my own STEREO mixes (with effects) from our stage based X32 Rack, I wouldn't have it any other way.
Only done TWO non-IEM gigs in the last 7 yrs.. Dang.. those drums are LOUD!

 

[ArtechnikA]

Thanks... but to clarify..
Shure SE215's is what I said can produce decent bass.. but at the expense of the rest of the spectrum.

Yes, well, I never said anything about 215's ;-)
I may have introduced some confusion when I referred to '257' which I now see was just me misreading KZ ZS7 as a number. Damn astigmatism...

So - sorry I unintentionally led anyone astray....

 

[s0c9]

Yes, well, I never said anything about 215's ;-)
I may have introduced some confusion when I referred to '257' which I now see was just me misreading KZ ZS7 as a number. Damn astigmatism...

So - sorry I unintentionally led anyone astray....

LOL .. no worries.. I read the 257 part as a 215 "typo".. so my bad too!!

I was just trying to point out that single drivers are NOT a good choice for bass players!

 

[vanderbe]

I use UE11 Pros made for bassists and drummers. They’re great...very efficient, but expensive.
Bass Player: The UEPRO 11 is "among the best money can buy, especially for bass players"

 

[s0c9]

LOL .. no worries.. I read the 257 part as a 215 "typo".. so my bad too!!

I use UE11 Pros made for bassists and drummers. They’re great...very efficient, but expensive.
Bass Player: The UEPRO 11 is "among the best money can buy, especially for bass players"

There's quite a few good custom IEM models out there, especially when you hit that price range. That's where I question the "ROI" on adding more drivers... are 16 or 18 better then 8 for example, and is the difference worth the expense?
I can tell the difference in bass between my 1964 Qi's (4-driver) and A8's (8-driver) but my singer has A12's and I can't "hear" the difference between mine and his and it sure ain't worth the extra $$.
I'm pretty sure I won't be upgrading to the $1700 [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] OR their TOTL [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] any time soon - maybe if I win the lottery?

 

[Actuary X]

Where are you buying the KZ ZS7? I'm seeing the ZS6 and the ZS10, but not the 7.

 

[Zbysek]

will I get that bass feeling that gets you excited when playing live.

Probably not. That's why some bass players use tactile transducers together with their IEM.

Tactile transducer - Wikipedia

You can either get a wearable tactile transducer...like BackBeat...

BackBeat - Play Bass, Feel Bass

...or a platform…-like Eich Bassboard or KT Platform from Porter and Davies.

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KT Platform | Porter & Davies

I own BackBeat. It is great-I do recommend it.

Edit: One of my bands switched to IEM. For some time, I have been the only member who was still bringing his combo to use it on stage with IEM to enjoy the feeling of low frequencies.

Last Friday, it was the first time I didn't use the combo...because I used the Backbeat. I enjoyed the gig very much.

 

[musicman7722]

For more helpful info check out the website I put together for newbies.

Link Removed

And friends don't let friends use Shure 215's

 

[Rob Warren]

First things first. if going to IEMs or headphones then spend the money on the Ear buds or headphones. Then tackle the body pack or headphone amp. if you don't move around I would go with a wire. You don't have to worry about frequency problems of getting interference and also you won't have to worry about batteries.
It is nice to be wireless for convenience, but it's also more money. I would rather have better Ear buds than be wireless if it meant to choose between quality or convenience.
You could go with a headphone amp that also has a more me function to it. check this out by rolls.
you would take the XLR cable that is going to the sound guy's mixer and plug it in the mic input on the rolls then go out of the rolls into the audio guys mixer. this is your bass. then you can take the monitor feed from the audio guy for your aux ( in ear mix ) and plug that into the aux input on the rolls. Now you have your personal bass volume vs the monitor volume all at your fingertips. you can turn yourself up or down and balance with the monitor mix in your ears. Also note: if you don't mind wearing headphpones, they would be cheaper than a really good set of IEM's. I also would say don't get any single driver ears.. go with dual drivers as a minimum.
here is the rolls device link.
https://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro...ZZ-0dzN6-KhJdT89yNduJZgcAtHAabgxoCH6wQAvD_BwE

 

[danster]

I've been using the KZ AS-10 IEM's for about a year. They are the first brand I tried. Excellent 5 driver sound. Inexpensive. I also bought the Comply memory foam tips -variety pack- to find my size. They really helped on the comfort side. The tips that came with the KZ's were a little stiff.

 

[turcmic]

I would suggest you buy custom IEM for better bass response. Uncomfortable and/or unfitted plugs may provide little to no bass even if the IEM itself can produce all the frequencies.

i bought UE reference remastered, custom made, and it’s heaven but out of your price range. I know you you can buy custom plugs that will fit any non custom IEM. Would definitely be a good solution.

I use a Rolls headphone amp with a limiter that is on my pedalboard. I joined an instrument cable with a headphone cable into a sleeve, so only one cable between my pedalboard and my bass. I tried wireless but since I don’t move around that much (and I’m a terrible dancer), going wired is ok.

Have fun!