Mike Inez's crunchy sound

[rubber_ritchie]

Just got back from seeing Alice In Chains in Brixton, London, UK. Wow, Mike Inez's crunchy bass sound is so awesome and it was really loud in the mix!

Does anyone know how he gets that crunch?

PS AIC Were awesome!!

 

[jmattbassplaya]

Don`t quote me on this, but I honestly think his entire set-up is just Warwick basses(and one Spector) played through Ampeg amps with a pick.

 

[coronado3]

The pick makes a big difference with the "crunch" factor. Especially if the amp is set up hot with a lot of highs.

 

[DownLOWDee]

Doesn't Mike have a Sansamp in his chain? It does always sound like he's got a little drive on his bass. That coupled with the attack of the pick.

 

[Rickett Customs]

Wick Streamers, Spectors (Live) Although Mike Starr was the hardcore Spector guy.

But

I believe he records with Jazzes and P basses.

He was using Ampeg SVT 2's and 810's, but that has probably changed.

Signal chain, i got nothin'...................

 

[EagleMoon]

When I saw him playing with Heart, it looked like he only had the Streamer and the SVT. The fact that he plays with a pick really makes his tone stand out.

 

[jmattbassplaya]

Nah, I swear that his main live bass is a Warwick with a frost-burst paint job. I swear I`ve seen the 'W'.

There might be a Sansamp in the chain, but that would be the entire extent of his chain.

 

[SiReZ]

i know he uses a chorus pedal in majority of songs that also helps i think he uses the sansamp cuz his tone is nuts

 

[rockstarbassist]

In his BP Mag cover he said he uses his Streamer 4's, Spector 4's, Sansamp BDDI, and 'Pegs.

But you can go direct and with some EQ can nail the tone. The BDDI will help though.

 

[Thir13teen]

He definitely uses both Warwick Streamers & Spector's live along with a SansAmp Bass Driver. Go to Youtube and look up "Rain when I die sonisphere" - listen to one of the versions that was shot with a professioal film crew (not the crappy videos that fans took with their phones/cameras).

 

[badstonebass]

He really carries a LOT of the load in that band...music wise.

 

[Garey]

Nah, I swear that his main live bass is a Warwick with a frost-burst paint job. I swear I`ve seen the 'W'.

There might be a Sansamp in the chain, but that would be the entire extent of his chain.

Indeed this is his main bass....even though its had (I think) 4 headstock repairs! It fits him like a glove...here's a pic I took back in Oct for Fuss On The Buss II

 

[Thir13teen]

He does mostly use the Warwick. But again, look at Rain When I Die live at Sonisphere and he is clearly using a Spector.

 

[SpasticTastic]

Depends on the song when it comes to his basses. With Eb songs, he uses Warwick (with EMGs). With C# songs, he uses Spectors.

Also, if I were to guess, he runs a parallel rig. One Ampeg SVT set up clean with tons of low end, and another one with grit. I don't remember if he uses an MXR M80 or BDDI but since it sounds pretty dark, I'm going to assume it's a BDDI.

EDIT: That's actually how he runs his rig. Two SVTs set up to handle the massive low end (with 1x18' speakers), and two SVTs to handle the distorted grind (with 8x10 cabs). Watch them perform at Kimmel in 2014. You can see his cab setup; An 8x10 stacked on two 1x18s.



EDIT: Wait a minute... Holy poopie this is an old thread.