In what order should I upgrade my rig?

[staf Wouters]

Dear community,

This probably has been discussed a lot, but I have a hard time getting a clear view of things. I am looking to upgrade my current rig and would like to improve my live sound. Ofcourse, technique plays an important role, but I would like to focus on the equipment itself.

My current rig consists of:

Hartke HA3500 (amp)
Ashdown ABM 410H (cab)
Boss TU-3 (tuner), goes directly after my bass.
Fender 60's classic Jazz Bass (Mexican), drop C tuning, stock pickups
D'addario nickel wound strings (BEAD from 5string set)
Standard cables

I play mainly prog/alternative rock/metal. My main influences are Karnivool, Tool, The Ocean Collective, Deftones, Mastodon, Scale the Summit and Intronaut.

As mentioned earlier, I would like to improve my live sound. But I can't upgrade everything at the same moment. Specific recommendations would be welcome, but I am mainly concerned with the order of upgrading. For example: would it be of any use to get a better cab/amp first? Folks here tend to just run the DI signal pre-EQ. That's why I maybe should consider buying a compressor and preamp first (darkglass BK ultra, probably). I should mention that I mainly play in smaller venues and also in pubs.

I guess it boils down to: In your experience, what upgrade improved your sound most?


Thank you for your time,

Staf Wouters

 

[jonnybass1]

Personally a 4 or 5 string active bass would be the only upgrade I could see doing

 

[Evil Undead]

IMHO there's nothing in your rig that doesn't sound good.

 

[jonnybass1]

Your amp setup looks fine.

 

[groove pump]

Agree that your amp layout looks good to go.

If you're trying to find some extra clarity doing the drop C tuning in a 34" scale bass, you might benefit from swapping maybe some active EMG's into your bass... but maybe not.

 

[dheafey]

As others have mentioned, the amp setup looks fine. How do you connect to FOH? Mic the Ashdown? Direct from the Hartke?

 

[staf Wouters]

As others have mentioned, the amp setup looks fine. How do you connect to FOH? Mic the Ashdown? Direct from the Hartke?

First off, thanks for all the replies! And to answer this question: they make me plug my bass directly into a DI box. They only get my passive bass signal. They don't often want to mic the cab here.

 

[dheafey]

First off, thanks for all the replies! And to answer this question: they make me plug my bass directly into a DI box. They only get my passive bass signal. They don't often want to mic the cab here.

Most sound engineers I've worked with prefer a direct-from-bass sound; having less in the middle means less to worry about. That being said, many of those same sound engineers will work with you if you've developed a sound that you're happy with AND is something they don't have to worry about (ex: you're stomping on a patch or effect that drastically changes the gain of your signal).

Note: developing your sound through your head and cab is probably not the best approach as the FOH doesn't mic and you will get a sound colored by the head and cab. If possible, try to do it through quality headphones or studio class monitors. In my case, preamp and effects pedals get sent to FOH while a dry signal gets sent to my head and cab. I use IEM's to get the FOH signal. You COULD set your amp flat and send a wet signal to it for monitoring but again, what you hear out of the cab won't be a true representation of what is sent to the FOH.

 

[Downunderwonder]

How BIG are these small gigs and pubs? If you can keep stage volume down to the level a PA makes you sound better rather than a mess of mud you're a legend. Ime you would be holding down the bass with your rig and no help from PA except for vocals and some kick.