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Introduction & a bunch of beginner questions!

9

9cows

Mar 8, 2024
35
15
#1
Dear Members,

I have been lurking in the background & have learned a lot from this forum about basics & getting started as a bass player. Finally a member now!

Gear -
Basses - Yamaha TRBX 174 (passive) & ESP LTD B-204SM (active)
Signal Chain -
Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 Gen 4 -> Macbook Air M1 -> RME ADI 2 DAC FS -> Genelec 7040a+Genelec G3 (RME to SUB to G3s - all wired via XLR) + SONY MDR 7506 for quiet practice - when I get an opportunity late at night.
+ AMPED BASS Standalone Amp/Cab emulator.
Proficiency level - Absolute Beginner - a year in.
Hobbies - tech, love to tinker/mod, currently modding the Yamaha to be slightly lighter & with SD Qpounder + VVT from FBT then for later in 2024 Changing the ESP LTD to a Nordstrand 3b5a - active/passive PP setup keeping the same pickups for now.
**The setup is in my home office which I use for my 9-5 job - so this setup works as my primary setup for calls, a bit of youtube & primary music listening/stereo setup.

Aim - I do not aim to GIG or record - A bit of jamming with friends that is all - I just want to learn the instrument. I am also an audio gear/tech enthusiast - so love to dive deep into & play around with tech.

Questions -
1 - Equipment Safety - Is it safe to Connect the Bass guitar/s directly to Scarlett - use it as input & RME as output to play/practice the bass through the Genelec 7040 +G3 setup (Amped bass as Amp/cab emulator)? I have been doing this for 6 months - I ensure my gain on Focusrite is set at 0/lowest possible & output on the RME is set to <80Db average. The Meter on Focusrite control never crosses 16 in my case - on rare occasions I let it hit the 12 - but that is extremely rare.
I personally believe that the Genelec 7040+G3 should be able to handle this, but a recent comment from a friend & then the forum spirals led me to come here & confirm that what I am doing should be fine?

2 - This is a slightly elaborate question with a lot of ifs & buts.
- I am slowly being drawn towards the pedal part of things. The first obviously is the compressor. Followed by an Octave & then a preamp. Something like Cali 76CB + MXR Vintage octave + OE Super Vintage.
- However I am also at the same time reading up on multi effects units & Line 6 Helix floor, keeps popping up.
- Considering the Helix can work as an audio interface too -
- Can it replace a Focusrite 2i2? Considering I do not record - so I do not need a mic input.
- Can it effectively replace a compressor/octave/drive etc - for a non-gigging, non-recording, just for fun with friends kind of person?
- Considering it has SPDIF out - I can connect it directly to my RME with SPDIF out & that eliminates the need for a DI/separate audio interface/Daw/Computer? As in can I run it directly to the RME (engaging the cab/amp sims) via SPDIF & eliminate the MacBook in the middle completely?

**I do not want to get into start building a whole pedal board, considering the used/trade market for pedals here in India is not that great, so I will end up collecting a bunch of them & they will perhaps collect dust. The idea of an all in one unit is extremely alluring provided it does the job that it promises.
Please note - I do not mind complex tech, I kind of enjoy going through all the stuff and options :) so complexity is not an issue, budget is upto $2,500/-.
I am hoping to not have to buy multiple pedals/preamps/audio interface etc. & just have a single box do it all.
 
#2
1. This should be fine. If it were going to go up in flames, it probably would have done so in the past 6 months. As long as you avoid hard clipping and have a contingency for big transients it is no different than playing recorded music through your gennies or cans. The cross over and sub are keeping the frequencies where they belong.

2. The Helix is a multi effects pedal, so it would cover a ton of ground as far as effects and dynamics. It could work as an audio interface, but its roundtrip latency isn't great, though it's all a bit moot since you're not looking to record. To your point, you could run SPDIF out from the floor unit to the in on the RME with less in the chain. Same concerns as with my answer in 1. Try USB and SPDIF and see which one performs better and go from there.
 
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#5
BrianVengeance said:
post back if you end up trying the Helix
Click to expand...

I doubt I will be much help to you in this case :) I am an absolute beginner and this will be literally my first "Pedal Board". So I will have nothing to compare against.

I am also however considering a Quad Cortex - as a friend of a friend is selling one for almost 25% less than MRP - never used on the stage - so brings it to the same price of a new Helix floor here in India.

That however doesn't give me the Spdif I was considering the Helix for primarily & hence I can't get rid of the Audio interface. So still contemplating.

***A random question - I can technically connect the DUAL XLR outs of the QC into the Microphone/XLR inputs of the an audio interface right? Keeping the 48V phantom power OFF.
 
#6
Nah, your experience is completely valid. Don't sell yourself short.

For the QC, your thinking is correct. You'll need ADC, and the analog XLR outs into the analog inputs of an interface would solve for that. The only catch is matching output levels with input levels on either end of the XLR cable. If the QC is outputting line level, set your interface's inputs to that as well.

This also leads to another question - have you considered looking at one of the RME units that has analog inputs (e.g., the Pro R BE or Pro SE)? The Focusrite 2i2 easily surpasses good enough for mere mortals, but the ADI-2 devices are is in a different league. You would need to step up to Red/RedNet in Focusrite to start a reasonable comparison.
 
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#9
9cows said:
Yes I have, in fact I am reading up on a babyface pro fs, that should give me the option to run an optical out into my RME ADI 2 DAC FS, making it more versatile in case I get a modeller/s without spdif.
Click to expand...


I don't have a use for optical out, but buying a Babyface Pro FS instead of yet another bass was one of the better choices I've made lately.

Solid construction, low/unnoticeable latency, detailed sound & a control program that actually works are all huge plusses.
 
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#10
When you say "A bit of jamming with friends that is all" do you mean going with a bass to a place where you can play with live drums and guitar etc? That's what I think of when I read this, but your setup seems like it definitely would not work for that, so I'm puzzled by what this means.
 
#11
Kashofa said:
When you say "A bit of jamming with friends that is all" do you mean going with a bass to a place where you can play with live drums and guitar etc? That's what I think of when I read this, but your setup seems like it definitely would not work for that, so I'm puzzled by what this means.
Click to expand...
No drums but a guitarist & a keyboard player. He has required amplifiers. so I just take the bass + multi-effects.
None of us are musicians - purely for fun.
 
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#15
So I couldn't find a seller with stock of Helix in India, also the size of it kept me from pulling the trigger on it. So I ended up -
1 - Picking an RME BabyFace Pro FS (as an audio interface, which I slowly realised I need a solid one, whether or not I aim to record now) - got rid of the scarlett 2i2 Gen 4.
2 - Picked up a DSM & Humboldt bass simplifier station after reading through various threads in this forum.

I realised that this combination has most of what I need - barring the effects part.
The amp & cab sim is covered by the DSM & the Babyface remains as a piece of equipment that will come in handy regardless of what FX units I am using. This is currently hooked up to my MacBook air M1 & I can use it with my iPad Pro M2 & my iPad mini - they all power it perfectly :)
***Oh & love total mix & total mix remote, the ability to connect/control the parameters from my iPad is a huge convenience.

Using the BabyFace in Standalone mode or class compliant mode gets rid of the PC in the middle - so that is fantastic too - the freedom I was looking for.

So all in all - it is working for now & I can slowly start looking into an effects only unit, designed for bass.
 

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