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Looking for that midrange punch....

4 string mofo

4 string mofo

May 28, 2012
98
31
34
Liverpool, UK
#1
I new to this forum so please bear with me if i ask the wrong questions!

im trying to get a certain sound from my bass amp but i dunno whats the right way to go around it?

i really like punchy distorted bass tones like justin chancellor from tool, james johnston from biffy clyro and jon stockman from karnivool.

is it down to pedals? is it a certain bass? certain kind of set up for the bass? or is it just down to how the player plays?

atm i have a yamaha bb 1024 and a ashdown evo II 500 and a ampeg BXT 115

Im currently saving for a darkglass B3K as ive heard (from various youtube vids) they achieve those kinds of sounds,

If anyone has any advice or tips they would like to pass on i will be forever in your debt!

:)
 
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#3
Justin Chancellor Bass Rig

justin-chancellor-tool-pedalboard.jpg
 
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#6
CL400Peavey said:
Sounds like your cab doesnt have the mid presence you want. Have you tried any other cabs with your bass and amp?
Click to expand...

ive tried the ashdown with a 4x10 trace elliot cab but il be honest i cant remembered if it handled it or not! (what an idiot right? haha)

i have a trace elliot smc 715 150watt bass combo (deffo as loud as a 300 watt amp) woukd that possibly produce a better sound?
 
#7
also forgot to say i play mainly in E flat tuning and gonna try the billy sheehan roto strings (that 110 E string will give me the tension i need for possibly any other lower tunings but still have a brighter tone with other strings). i dunno if this comes into play too?
 
#8
Sansamp and/or Darkglass may help. My experience with Ashdown is kind of "warm and woolly" and Ampeg cabs kind of "dark and round." Neither one is the most ideal for aggressive metal tones where the punch is clear and hard (clear/hard enough to cut through an aggressive mix). After years of exploration and trying to get tones as cool as Lateralus-era Chancellor (always the question of how much "studio" is in his tone on recordings anyway- probably a lot!) I found Mesa amps and cabs get me right where I want to be in that territory. I am pretty sure a Sansamp and/or Darkglass would help a lot but you'll still be fighting against that bit of wool and phat booty.

Have you seen that Nolly Dingwall/Darkglass demo? It's sick. I own a B7K and havent found sounds quite like through my gear that but I can get a lot of great tones with an aggressive edge.

 
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#10
chaosMK said:
Sansamp and/or Darkglass may help. My experience with Ashdown is kind of "warm and woolly" and Ampeg cabs kind of "dark and round." Neither one is the most ideal for aggressive metal tones where the punch is clear and hard. After years of exploration and trying to get tones as cool as Lateralus-era Chancellor (always the question of how much "studio" is in his tone on recordings anyway- probably a lot!) I found Mesa amps and cabs get me right where I want to be in that territory. I am pretty sure a Sansamp and/or Darkglass would help a lot but you'll still be fighting against that bit of wool and phat booty.

Have you seen that Nolly Dingwall/Darkglass demo? It's sick. I own a B7K and have found sounds quite like through my gear that but I can get a lot of great tones with an aggressive edge.

Click to expand...


yeah ive seen the nolly/darkglass demo....its pretty awesome (as is nolly!). To be honest i havent got much choice (or money) in terms of getting my "perfect" midrange distortion with the gear i got, i was lucky enough to have the ashdown head and ampeg cab passed down to me by a very good friend of mine :) mesa amps are great i heard one live once from a lady in a bluesy rock band with a lovely 4001 rickenbacker...my god it sounded fricken awesome!
 
#11
not sure who are these guys OP mentioned, but midrange punch can be dialed with some sort of humbucker on "sweet spot" along with subtle flanging effect. add a compression and amplifer with EQ section coloured like GK or Aguilar and you re all set.
 
#13
Dragan said:
not sure who are these guys OP mentioned, but midrange punch can be dialed with some sort of humbucker on "sweet spot" along with subtle flanging effect. add a compression and amplifer with EQ section coloured like GK or Aguilar and you re all set.
Click to expand...

Ive heard the GK stuff is fab for that kind of stuff...duff mckagan used them with G n R and he had a pretty narly tone....though i find his tone more trebly than mid-range punch?

Im gonna sound like a douche and ask what OP means? :P
 
#14
Considering you're a fine English lad (You'll never walk alone!), I'd definitely give a look at Orange. I'd definitely say their amps/cabs are voiced with your kind of idea in mind. And Laney's a Brit company too, also known for rock tones, among other stuff.

OP = Original Poster, AKA you!

EDIT: I figure the stuff being made more locally to you is more reasonably priced than something like Mesa or GK, which are US based companies. I know we pay more for UK imports up here in the Maple Syrup Colony...
 
#15
sloppy_phil said:
Considering you're a fine English lad (You'll never walk alone!), I'd definitely give a look at Orange. I'd definitely say their amps/cabs are voiced with your kind of idea in mind. And Laney's a Brit company too, also known for rock tones, among other stuff.

OP = Original Poster, AKA you!

EDIT: I figure the stuff being made more locally to you is more reasonably priced than something like Mesa or GK, which are US based companies. I know we pay more for UK imports up here in the Maple Syrup Colony...
Click to expand...

haha i try my best at being the finest Englishman i can be! and yes i love orange amps! i played through a AD200B head at a gig i did in the cavern bout a year ago...OMG it made my squier affintiy jazz sound like a american J bass :D i would love to pick one up...if i was up to my eyeballs in money haha :p

They have laney combo amps in my college but im not the biggest fan of them (although im guessing its been put through it paces by metal heads who boost the s**t of the bass control!)

P.S im an everton fan btw ...COYB! ;)
 
#16
4 string mofo said:
haha i try my best at being the finest Englishman i can be! and yes i love orange amps! i played through a AD200B head at a gig i did in the cavern bout a year ago...OMG it made my squier affintiy jazz sound like a american J bass :D i would love to pick one up...if i was up to my eyeballs in money haha :p

They have laney combo amps in my college but im not the biggest fan of them (although im guessing its been put through it paces by metal heads who boost the s**t of the bass control!)

P.S im an everton fan btw ...COYB! ;)
Click to expand...

Oh man, I guess we're enemies... I'm a Red! Although this year it's not exactly a proud statement. Also, nice job on QPR last night

I'd see about at least trying some different cabs out to get a punchier tone. I've played through a few Ashdown heads, and I thought they had a nice punchy tone like you're looking for. So my guess is that your dissatisfaction is in the cab. Not that a 115 isn't necessarily what you want (the whole speaker size discussion is a Pandora's Box I'd prefer to keep closed), but it's really down to the individual cabs and how they're voiced. So play a bunch, ideally using your bass and amp head, so you truly know what it will sound like!
 
#17
sloppy_phil said:
Oh man, I guess we're enemies... I'm a Red! Although this year it's not exactly a proud statement. Also, nice job on QPR last night

I'd see about at least trying some different cabs out to get a punchier tone. I've played through a few Ashdown heads, and I thought they had a nice punchy tone like you're looking for. So my guess is that your dissatisfaction is in the cab. Not that a 115 isn't necessarily what you want (the whole speaker size discussion is a Pandora's Box I'd prefer to keep closed), but it's really down to the individual cabs and how they're voiced. So play a bunch, ideally using your bass and amp head, so you truly know what it will sound like!
Click to expand...

Haha i guess we are! :) hopefully you guys will change round later in the season...we haven't exactly been prolific ourselves!

yeah i will have to try and experiment with some cabs, lucky i have alot "bass buddies" (gay right? haha) that will probably help a fellow 4 stringer out :)

Just out of curiosity what rig are you rocking at the moment?
 

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