Spector Club - Part 16

[chrisloe]

Since getting my gs412 over 2 years ago I haven't even thought about any other cabinet ! Spectors and Aguilar just work well together .

they do VERY well together. i just got my TH500 in.. however had not gotten a chance to grab my gs412 to try to two together... so stoked

Here's another question for you guys: What amplifier/cabinet combination or amplifier alone sounds the best with your Spector? I'm curious to hear you guys' opinions cuz these basses are growly as is, so I can't picture em going too well with Tube amps. I could be mistaken, though!

And Trace, in your case, how does the sound of a Spector coming out of a Trace Elliot compare to that of a Spector coming out of an Ampeg?

For me.. So far it's been an Aguilar DB751 w/GS412 or DB810/410 However I just got my tone hammer 500 so that's up in the air

I've had...
Gk 700/1001/800/mb2500
Ampeg svt2/svt3/svt4/v4/svt
kustom groove bass 1200
Markbass LM2
Hartke LH1000
Aguilar ag500


Cabs
Schroeder 210212
Ampeg 810e/410
WW 115
GK goldline 810
Hartke hydrive 410



ADDED: BTW.... Spector "Growl" and tube amps go very nicely... here's rex with his wall of ampeg.. IMO if you want growl... spector bass and that rig... Pantera - Cowboys From Hell - YouTube

I've come close with my V4... However I don't use a pick.. Which I think has a lot to do with it also.

The DB751 doesn't go there.. I think what I like about it.. Is that it has the "weight" in tone that tube heads have but really defined as to where tube heads seem to get boomy. I don't think I've had an amp that made my Spector cut thru with such a big sound.

For insane growl... I'd go all tube.. The break up just adds to it!

So I have been waiting, last night my new cabinet got here (Aguilar DB 410) and my new head got here the night before (Aguilar DB 359 - 200 watts, all tube).

I can tell you that my NS-4 sound frickin incredible through the new Aguilar rig. I actually am in love with the sound, and I am really excited because I know the tubes need to be replaced, which will sound even better once it's done. I played through a SVT for years and while its not quite the same sound, it is so warm, full and just about perfect sounding my wife had to pull me away to eat then had me turn it off because the kids were going to bed, I had played like 4 hours strait without even realizing it.

Tube amps with Spectors sound incredible, there is a reason people copy Spectors, and there is a reason so many companies try to emulate the tube amp sound. Tube amps are heavy, expensive, need attention (Biasing, maybe new tubes now and then) but to me, it's worth that sound...

 

[stjohn1299]

I don't know how you guys manage playing down turnings without getting mixed up unless you're playing a lot of open strings or you don't switch back and forth??? Im a newbie bassist compared to you guys. Makes my brain hurt thinking about it! All my brain can do when I switch up between 4/5 strings in same gig.

You get used to it, lol. What's bad is playing everything on a 4, downtuning for a couple of songs, then incorporating a 5 into the gig, and relearning those songs playing the 5 in normal tuning as opposed to drop on the 4.

 

[rockstarbassist]

Wow, I completely forgot about this video. Rex's tone here is ridiculous, and this isn't the only instance.
Do you think that's from the tubes, though?
As in, have you gotten anything similar to that through your DB751? And on that note, do you think you could've reproduced his tone through your various Ampeg heads?
Just curious.

Rex had lots of stuff from over the years, but from all I had seen there around the end he was running a Sansamp PSA-1 and the early version of the Rocktron Voodoo Valve (it's called something else and I've never seen one F/S) thru Crest 7001 power amps. I think he had an SVT-II in the chain as well, I think slaved to another rack of Crests, but his DI/FOH signal was from that Rocktron preamp.
Later in Down he's running 4Pros, but he still has that Rocktron preamp as his main DI signal with a taste of a miked SVT810.

Really though you just need a Spector and a mid bump from 800-1.2k to get that Rex sound. Trust me... He also boosted his B and T controls pretty much to max. Makes a big difference.
Me playing with 2 guitars I nowadays boost lower since I don't need as much cut as Rex did with Dime's ultra scooped tone.

 

[rockstarbassist]

What genre' do you play?

Modern radio rock (not metullzz, sorry! )...
Chevelle, Breaking Benjamin, Seether, Sevendust but a little more "poppy".
Even though we tune down to C both guitards have a very reasonable tone and don't do the uber-scooped maxed out Bass/Treble thing so it's really not that "heavy". It also fits my singer's voice perfectly. We've tried D standard (but he likes drop tunings) so drop C#, drop B, drop Bb and have just stuck w/ drop C. Just sounds like "us".

 

[rockstarbassist]

I don't know how you guys manage playing down turnings without getting mixed up unless you're playing a lot of open strings or you don't switch back and forth??? Im a newbie bassist compared to you guys. Makes my brain hurt thinking about it! All my brain can do when I switch up between 4/5 strings in same gig.

In my last cover band we used 5 tunings... E std. and would do drop D; Eb std. and drop to C#; then drop C. We'd split up the songs in the set to where we'd only have a basic tuning per set. I absolutely hate and abhor "just transpose it", so we tailored our setlist to that. It's in all honesty not that difficult.

I've been playing in at least Eb std. for probably 10+ years now of the 12 years I've been on bass so it's not that hard. I'm to the point where E std. just feels and sounds "weird" to me... lol.

 

[Christian Waiau]

I don't know how you guys manage playing down turnings without getting mixed up unless you're playing a lot of open strings or you don't switch back and forth??? Im a newbie bassist compared to you guys. Makes my brain hurt thinking about it! All my brain can do when I switch up between 4/5 strings in same gig.

I learn songs by muscle memory and never scramble to think "ok Ab is coming up next" Not much improv done... IMO fans of "metal" want to hear the album played note for note.

Also no matter what the tuning... When the band is working on new songs, we still call out things in standard tuning.. Ex: open strings will be E A D G...

I dont drop tune anymore... So scale shapes stay the same. Granted instead of playing C Maj it could be A# Maj but with everyone on the same page... Names are just names

 

[stjohn1299]

diechris, I do the same thing with muscle memory when playing the couple of songs I have to droptune for. When I had my 5, it wasn't an issue, and it won't be an issue anymore in a couple of months, but right now, I just memorize the shape I need to play on those two songs. No use in getting used to that if it's only going to be temporary, I say....

 

[Christian Waiau]

diechris, I do the same thing with muscle memory when playing the couple of songs I have to droptune for. When I had my 5, it wasn't an issue, and it won't be an issue anymore in a couple of months, but right now, I just memorize the shape I need to play on those two songs. No use in getting used to that if it's only going to be temporary, I say....

Yeah.. I dont switch basses at the moment.. But when I did my mind set was never on "what tuning am I in?" I just needed to make sure I grabbed the right bass for the right song.

 

[stjohn1299]

Yeah.. I dont switch basses at the moment.. But when I did my mind set was never on "what tuning am I in?" I just needed to make sure I grabbed the right bass for the right song.

I know what you mean. I've got too much other stuff to worry about. Both basses will be tuned the same; I'll just have the 5 for the lower stuff. If I can swing it, I'll put all the songs I'll need the 5 in in one set, and play it that whole set, then may or may not switch...love the sound of my Euro 4 with the PJ's, so it would be hard not to get that bass in the gig somewhere.

 

[Trailight]

Man...reading your live experience posts...I have to get a band going. Last I played in a band, I played the drums and that was about 12 years ago. I loved playing live. Bloody hell....

 

[JPSBassist]

That is awesome! If he is with Gene Hoglan, that isn't much of a hint since Gene is in like 15 bands at the moment I think I just wish you could hear the bass a bit better since I liked that riff he was tapping.

I am not familiar with Marty's playing but he looks really good. I know he is in that We are the Fallen band but I wasn't really a fan of Evanescence so I didn't give them a listen. Maybe I should just to hear Marty.

Check out Marty's work with Methods of Mayhem and Tommy Lee's solo album.

 

[cjmodulus]

Man...reading your live experience posts...I have to get a band going. Last I played in a band, I played the drums and that was about 12 years ago. I loved playing live. Bloody hell....

Speaking of playing live; it looks like my second gig with the legend has been set. Playing another open mic night on the 22nd, this time with the ska band I recently joined.

I find the aggressive sound of the Spector perfect for 3rd wave punk/ska. It just gets that typical tone naturally with the tonepump flat played finger style.

 

[stjohn1299]

Man...reading your live experience posts...I have to get a band going. Last I played in a band, I played the drums and that was about 12 years ago. I loved playing live. Bloody hell....

I just started about a year ago....I should've done it back in college 20 years ago. Funnest thing I've ever done, pretty much...

 

[Clearwave]

This was who I was going to contact before I sold the NS-2A.


John "AJ" Yenser
Designs By Dickhead
174 W Lincoln Ave #142
Anaheim, Ca 92805
714-844-2600
[email protected]

Thanks Peledog, I just ordered a pair of nuts from Dickhead. One for my NS2a and one for my next NS2a. $20 each

 

[Clearwave]

Family picture, guess which one is my favorite?

 

[FunkySpoo]

Family picture, guess which one is my favorite?

Umm. C

 

[peledog]

In my last cover band we used 5 tunings... E std. and would do drop D; Eb std. and drop to C#; then drop C. We'd split up the songs in the set to where we'd only have a basic tuning per set. I absolutely hate and abhor "just transpose it", so we tailored our setlist to that. It's in all honesty not that difficult.

I've been playing in at least Eb std. for probably 10+ years now of the 12 years I've been on bass so it's not that hard. I'm to the point where E std. just feels and sounds "weird" to me... lol.

I hear ya on the 'just transpose it'. My band plays Eb standard, and I've gotten used to the string tension - so when I tune to E (regular standard tuning), the strings feel just a tad bit too tense. Hammer-ons, trills, note bending get so much easier if you tune down, IMO.

 

[peledog]

Thanks Peledog, I just ordered a pair of nuts from Dickhead. One for my NS2a and one for my next NS2a. $20 each

Hey, you're welcome - I think it was either Lima or Trace that referred me to Dickhead.

Family picture, guess which one is my favorite?

Wow, nice collection! I had to do a double take, the black NS-2A looks great!

 

[PhatBasstard]

I just ordered a pair of nuts from Dickhead.

 

[grendle]

I learn songs by muscle memory and never scramble to think "ok Ab is coming up next" Not much improv done... IMO fans of "metal" want to hear the album played note for note.

Also no matter what the tuning... When the band is working on new songs, we still call out things in standard tuning.. Ex: open strings will be E A D G...

I dont drop tune anymore... So scale shapes stay the same. Granted instead of playing C Maj it could be A# Maj but with everyone on the same page... Names are just names

+1

Done the same for the past 15-20 yes. Reguardless of what its tuned to the E string is still an E etc. We drop a half step and then tune to drop D, whatever that is. More for vocal range than anything else. Sounds heavy but not mushy. We play radio friendly metal, kinda like godsmack meets AIC. Its fun, people get it, and they like the chorus 's.