I like John Paul Jones' sound in Zeppelin. Right now I use a fender bassman 100 combo amp and it is very good to practice with but live it sucks. I looked into one of those acoustic b600h or trying to find a vintage head but people have said different things about them that i do not like i.e. like blowing up in 2 weeks or not having enough high or mids which i think takes the dynamics of sound out of an instrument. So I noticed that he also used gallien-kruegers and swr so I looked into both of those and ... if you have a lot of money swr is the thing but I do not. I have tried out a gallien-krueger preamp before and it sounds like the sound i want so i am looking at either the 400rb-iv head or the 800rb head. Now it is the cabinet can anybody help with this situation to get a nice John Paul jones type of sound with those head or another combination.
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need help deciding on new amp and cabinet
- Thread starter curtisbulback
- Start date
I think you'd love the GK 800RB with a pair of Traynor Dynabass 1x15 cabinets. Lots of volume and that "vintage" sound. The new Traynor 1x15s are about 60 lbs each. They sound good and can take a lot of punishment. The 800RB is a classic and it's well deserved. L&M in Burlington, Ontario, has a pair of beat up old 800 RBs for sale at under $600 Canadian. I was just in there yesterday. I don't know what the price for a new one is these days in Canada.
I am going to check those out thanks. If any other suggestions would be good as well would a traynor 4x10 with that 1x15 or 1x18 would be good as well
IME, you're gonna get a lot more of the JPJ tone from you and your bass, less from the amp.
you have to realize that the bass sound you hear on most albums is not a miked amp but direct, and even if it is miked it ends up going through a mike preamp, compressor, etc that can alter the tone significantly.
your best bet is to try a bunch of amps and cabs and see what you dig.
you have to realize that the bass sound you hear on most albums is not a miked amp but direct, and even if it is miked it ends up going through a mike preamp, compressor, etc that can alter the tone significantly.
your best bet is to try a bunch of amps and cabs and see what you dig.
Thanks Mike I have done recording before so i know about direct into the mixer or using a di unit. I like JPJ's recorded sound as well as his live sound as well. I tried the Gallien and I like the sound from the preamp but the cab i tried was not quite there just need more help to acheive the recorded and the live sound in one type of unit.
Just to add on to what I have said already, With the fender bassman 100 combo amp it does not cut through the sound of the guitar and the drums so i cannot even hear myself and I liked JPJ's sound because it does cut in so you can hear him live and hear the other instruments
You're expecting a small combo amp to perform like a full stage rig. That will only disapoint you. Maybe start shopping for a more powerful amp, and some serious speakers.
No I wasn't expecting it to be a full stage rig but at least for the most part to cut across the other instruments to be heard. I was wrong. I will check out the gk 800rb but is there any other cabinets that will give me a vintage jpj sound out of my bass if i am playing that way
Rick Auricchio
Registered Bass Offender
The sound of a bass on a record can be quite different from the live tone. Often the bass is recorded direct with plenty of studio processing to help the bass sit in the mix. None of this happens in a live show.
Also, on the record, the engineer carefully uses EQ to balance the tone of the entire band. Doesn't happen live unless you have a huge PA system and an experienced engineer.
Bottom line is that it may not be possible to achieve the same tone as on a record.
MESA Carbine M6 2x12 combo
Pro quality all the way!!!
Serious bang-for-buck!!!
You can always add a 2x10 or 1x15 or another 2x12
MESA, IMHO = fantastic!!!
Pro quality all the way!!!
Serious bang-for-buck!!!
You can always add a 2x10 or 1x15 or another 2x12
MESA, IMHO = fantastic!!!
ok... like his recorded sound and know that I can achieve that but looking for more of JPJ's live sound without going to the acoustic brand because of the reviews I have heard from them
Interesting that you've read a lot of bad reviews. The vast majority of the reviews I've seen have been positive.
That being said, if you're going for the JPJ live tone, you'll want to go vintage Acoustic. JPJ typically used an Acoustic 360 pre-amp with an Acoustic 361pp, a powered cabinet. Of course finding these is a whole other issue.
Hey steve, I read a review that the new b600h for one person blew up in 2 weeks and the vintage acoustic is loud but only for the bottom end as well as low mids anything for true mids or the highs it does not have that and if you are close to the cab you cannot hear the sound, but in the audience it is loud
He did use a gallien-krueger as well.
I don't have any problem getting plenty of mids and highs out of my Acoustic 150...
it sounds like you read one really negative review and that scared you away from the rest of the new stuff.
What they about the long-throw of the old Acoustic cabs is a typical review, that their on stage volume is not as loud as their audience volume. They do bring lots of low end with them as well. My understanding was that this was part of the idea with the rear-facing speaker cabinet design.
What cabinets have you tried so far? For what it sounds like you are wanting, it might be best to mix cabinets (say a 1x15" with a 2x10" or 4x10") in order to get "the best of both worlds" in terms of speaker response.
it sounds like you read one really negative review and that scared you away from the rest of the new stuff.
What they about the long-throw of the old Acoustic cabs is a typical review, that their on stage volume is not as loud as their audience volume. They do bring lots of low end with them as well. My understanding was that this was part of the idea with the rear-facing speaker cabinet design.
What cabinets have you tried so far? For what it sounds like you are wanting, it might be best to mix cabinets (say a 1x15" with a 2x10" or 4x10") in order to get "the best of both worlds" in terms of speaker response.
I tried a 4x12 or a 4x10 at long and mcquade with a gallien-krueger cannot remember what model it was because long and mcquade does not sell acoustic brand preamps. I do a lot of music that incorporates effects ie phaser wah wah, distortion and echo; i also inorporate a bass solo by doing a jimmy page thing and using a violin bow on the bass which sounds eerie. i have read good reviews on some of them then another person writes a bad review on them it is hard to judge anymore what is good and what is not good want to break the sound out into the audience but i do not want the amp to break down fast
price does not matter because it gets written of for taxes anyways but cannot afford swr's though right away that is something i would have to save for
I think you should buy used - if u can try out as much gear as possible, great, then buy used. you'll save a ton of $$$
btw, I recently got a Markbass R500 head - amazing head for rock, and just under $500 used at Guitar Center, I guess they're liquidating the older MB stuff - simple EQ. I did a writeup here...if you can find one used, I say go for it. Very warm tone with the tube preamp.
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=515356
As for a cab - go for two 8 ohm cabs - a 2x10 and a 1x15. I use an Orange 15 and an SWR Goliath 2x10. Great cabs, and I can split them up for smaller gigs.
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=515356
As for a cab - go for two 8 ohm cabs - a 2x10 and a 1x15. I use an Orange 15 and an SWR Goliath 2x10. Great cabs, and I can split them up for smaller gigs.
