Absolutely beautiful... Just several thousands dollars out of reach. I bet it sounds fantastic.
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Mid-Rangy Cut-Through Basses
- Thread starter PRUNEFACE
- Start date
Absolutely beautiful... Just several thousands dollars out of reach. I bet it sounds fantastic.
I have a Euro Spector 5 with the Aguilar pre and cutting through the mix has never been an issue. In fact there have been situations I cut too much and had to palm mute or adjust for more of a subdued tone. I dont have any experience with the Tone Pump pre amp but I cant think the difference could be so dramatic that it would crush the character of the bass completely (I could be wrong though). My bass sounds like a Spector with EMGs: Very modern sounding and lots of presence.
Im going to echo what some of the others have already said; It sounds like there are too many people trying to occupy the same sonic space and I doubt any bass is going to cut through well given that. The band will sound a lot better if everyone has some space. Good luck with convincing the other band members of that though. Ive been down that road before with varying results.
Can you get a friend whose ear you trust to stand out in the audience when you guys play and report on how you sound? You might be projecting better than you think.
Im going to echo what some of the others have already said; It sounds like there are too many people trying to occupy the same sonic space and I doubt any bass is going to cut through well given that. The band will sound a lot better if everyone has some space. Good luck with convincing the other band members of that though. Ive been down that road before with varying results.
Can you get a friend whose ear you trust to stand out in the audience when you guys play and report on how you sound? You might be projecting better than you think.
When I started playing with bands for the first time, I remember being surprised at how different it was from the sound I heard when practicing at home.
All the nuances and subtleties were covered up, and I was left with just the fundamental tone of the instrument. I used to turn myself up way too much to "hear" myself, but over time I learned to just "sit in the mix" more. It's a strange experience. Maybe that is what you are going through?
All the nuances and subtleties were covered up, and I was left with just the fundamental tone of the instrument. I used to turn myself up way too much to "hear" myself, but over time I learned to just "sit in the mix" more. It's a strange experience. Maybe that is what you are going through?
- Jan 23, 2008
- 960
- 7
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Spector Basses
I'm interested to know how this goes. IME, your Spector @ 250W should make you guitarists quake in fear behind their puny 30w amps. MUWHAHAHAHA!
...But communicating effectively is probably a better idea.
...But communicating effectively is probably a better idea.
The best cut-through-ers (even though they are not mid-range-y) are my avatar Dingwall Z1 and my "Uber Alles" Prima (full-range-y really). They sit perfectly in the mix, yet they can be heard perfectly
If it's a tube 30w guitar amp it can be pretty loud compared with a 250w generic bass amp (non-tube). Communicating is the best way to get a decent band mix. Try incorpoorating someone external with some decent production skills to shape individual sounds into a band sound
my band always struggles with this. the problem is the room most of the time. try moving amps around and see what happens.
and if your tone just lacks cut, boost somewhere in the 800-3k range. i use a lot of that stuff because i have to cut MOST of the time. tone knob works wonders for sitting back in the mix. no mids = not heard. thats why metal bands have no bass.
but too much mid will make you sound barky. im not opposed to my bass going "NARG NARG NARG" all night, but some people are.
and if your tone just lacks cut, boost somewhere in the 800-3k range. i use a lot of that stuff because i have to cut MOST of the time. tone knob works wonders for sitting back in the mix. no mids = not heard. thats why metal bands have no bass.
but too much mid will make you sound barky. im not opposed to my bass going "NARG NARG NARG" all night, but some people are.
Gotta say I always think of Spector for that tone, though Musicman and Warwick are certainly not slouches at cutting through the mix. But, the Spector tone is the most satisfying I've come across for a modern, heavy tone.
One other note, you mention have a 2-band pre on your bass. Make sure you are not cranking the bass and treble all the way up on the bass OR the amp. Use bass/treble boosting judiciously; if you use too much you tax your amp and you are really only adding mud and click to the mix, neither of which will help you be heard. Set your bass and amp EQs flat, listen to your band play and see if you can figure out which frequencies need to be adjusted, if any. I find adding a little bit of high-mids and a solid amount of low-mids will help almost ANY bass cut through a busy mix.
One other note, you mention have a 2-band pre on your bass. Make sure you are not cranking the bass and treble all the way up on the bass OR the amp. Use bass/treble boosting judiciously; if you use too much you tax your amp and you are really only adding mud and click to the mix, neither of which will help you be heard. Set your bass and amp EQs flat, listen to your band play and see if you can figure out which frequencies need to be adjusted, if any. I find adding a little bit of high-mids and a solid amount of low-mids will help almost ANY bass cut through a busy mix.
Listprice is €2750,-. Thanx for the compliment.
My 2nd bass cuts through the mix as well. That's a MIJ 7ender '62 Reïssue Jazz Bass. This would be my 2nd vote. But that's illegal, I guess.
The bass that's mixed well by the soundperson with good ears and cares about the mix will be the one which will cut through. Whatever anybody else can/will suggest in terms of this/that model bass can easy get lost in a mix by someone who doesn't know how to run a board or doesn't care about sound.
You might want to run some bass signal from your amp/bass/setup into your monitor to help you hear it better.
Nothing cuts through like a P bass eq'd to cut through. Will fit in and make you heard in any genre. (Dont argue with me, I have used P bass from Country Rock to Melodic Death Metal, And it is the only bass that always sits as a glove in the mix).
I actually felt that the Stingray got more hided in the mix than my P basses, But listening to it recorded it actually suited the song very well.
I actually felt that the Stingray got more hided in the mix than my P basses, But listening to it recorded it actually suited the song very well.
Yeah, that happened last band practice. I had read the article on playing fingerstyle in Death Metal and remembered the sound freqs. that are normally "open" so I tried boosting Mids but it didn't have a very good result.
A bad soundperson can sabotage ANY bass sound, no matter the brand of bass.
A good soundperson: Priceless.
For any bass you (eroneously) think is *always* going to cut through no matter the sonic environment: There's Mastercard.
A good soundperson: Priceless.
For any bass you (eroneously) think is *always* going to cut through no matter the sonic environment: There's Mastercard.
