Stand out when jamming

[danjohnson]

I am fairly new to the bass world and yesterday I had my first jam session as a bass player with a couple of friends. there where 2 guitars, drums and bass but my problem was that as soon as everyone else started playing, the bass was almost inaudible and they kept telling me to raise the volume but I know that it is not a good idea to just turn the volume up to be heard in a rehearsal room. I just want some tips to better EQ the amp so that the bass sounds better in the mix. the bass amp is a GK 400rb

 

[peterpalmieri]

Hey Dan, that can be a challenge at times for everybody. The first thing everyone will need to know is what bass you are playing, strings, cab, kind of music, anything you can think of to help naarow things down.

 

[JRA]

i think you'd have been fine to turn up to meet the other instruments. was your amp capable of more volume? there isn't one EQ setting that will work in every situation.

but, peterpalmieri is right: folks will need more info to give you some advice that will help in the future!

 

[1951basstone]

I've used that 400rb for many years. A setting that I've often used has the mid boost button pushed in. Keep the bass and treble settings flat (pointing straight up 12:00 o'clock setting) bring the high and low middle knobs down to the 9:00 o'clock setting. Experiment with raising one or the other of those middle settings up slightly.
This should give you a clear punchy tone that cuts through.
Play with the drive knob to get some growl.

 

[danjohnson]

I dont mind turning up the amp but the volume was 3/4 full and the rest of the band still drowned my sound. I'm playing a Schecter bass with EMG pickups, a humbucker in the bridge and a single in he middle. It also has an active EQ with treble and bass. The cab is the one that they have at the room so I do not know which one is it. I play rock and blues

 

[s0c9]

Tell the the guitar players and drummer to turn down.. problem solved

 

[Gluvhand]

And check out how they are eq'ing their guitars/amps. If they're going with top and bottom heavy tones they are eating up those spaces.

 

[WayneP]

What Gluv said. Guitarists typically like a “fat” sound, which translates to lots of low end. If that’s the case here, they are running roughshod over your slot in the frequency spectrum. See if you can get them to dial back the bass. If there were vocal mics in use, same thing there: Roll out the low end.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

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