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Questions about Tone and Set Up on GK

M

mrtapatio

Sep 24, 2009
5
0
#1
So I have a GK 700 RB II and a GK SBX 15 + RBH 410 and I am usually satisfied with its versatility and overall sound, but right now I am going for a tone I havent tried going for on it before and I just cant get it.

I want to experiment with a steve harris or alex webster kind of a tone, something with a lot of lows and highs that sounds deep but still cuts through. This is the only sound I can get out of some kinds of amps, like ampeg for example, but its the only sound I havent been able to do well out of my current rig. I've lowered the action on my main bass, and Ive tried a lot of different eq settings on both the amp and the bass.


Also, I have noticed the only time I can get the amount of low end I want out of my current main bass through this rig - ibanez sr 506 - is when I have the +15db low end going while turning up the bass on the bass, but this makes my clip light go on unless I play with a very gentle hand. What is the best setting, from those with experience, to get a killer amount of low end from this set up? Also, is the clip light coming on always a bad thing? I have almost always tried avoiding the clip light, turning down my bass volume or turning down the boost, but that kills my tone quite a bit.

I am in a lake of confusion and dont know how to swim lol.
 
#2
For Websters Ampegish tone you might need an eq pedal or sansamp to get the GK sounding like that - that's possibly what I would be looking at if I wanted that kind of tone, Alex Webster used a GK head for the first 2 albums so maybe that tone is in a GK but I'm not so sure.
 
#3
Ive heard others get similar tone in Gk and other amps, but I just cant for the life of me figure it out. I can even get it out of my buddies bass combo amp lol. I'll try an eq pedal when I go to his place next time.
 
#4
I used to use a SansAmp through my 1001RB, but I found that covers up that "GK sound" way too much, so I sold it and haven't looked back since.
I would try setting
contour 12:00 or higher, presence around 12:00, set the EQ flat or cut the high mid and low mid a little bit, and push in the 5 string button. To get a little more clarity try bringing down the boost knob. I think this might get you close.
As far as the clipping light goes you could either try the pad button, but what I think sounds the best is to lower the volume, and crank the master.
I hope this helps.
 

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