Stoner/Doom Bassists Thread, Part 90: Maxed Out

[Andysalt01]

Thanks man! I love Matamp stuff. Also have thE GT2.

Do you guys crank the volume to 10 when recording? Knowing the amp can handle it.

The cab of mine can take 1600watts.
But the amp is 200w.

I have it at 9 volume wise when recording now..
Cause im not so experienced with them.

I tjink it get the tube sound going! Just didt go to 10, cause Im afraid of the sheer insane level of volume haha

Not really. I use a fuzz and a treble booster so I set my amp with the drive at about 11-12 and the volume at about noon. That's kinda where I like ot so I can flip to rounded cleans then push everything a bit more with the fuzz and booster. That's the theory anyway
That said, I wouldn't be worried about turning everything up on the matamp cause they're really well designed and built and when you gun the amp it does sound glorious!!

 

[Sapatown]

We experienced the Matamp GT200 suddenly just cuts its sound in the middle of a song.

You know if they have auto safety if they run too hot? It works again when we restart it

 

[Andysalt01]

We experienced the Matamp GT200 suddenly just cuts its sound in the middle of a song.

You know if they have auto safety if they run too hot? It works again when we restart it

Not sure I'm afraid. If you're on Facebook, get on the matamp group and tag Hayden if you can. Alternatively, give em a call in the morning (depending on where you're based). That's really disappointing

 

[kleinenenten]

I feel like fuzz isn't discussed these days. Not necessarily here, but in general. If memory serves, when I first joined TB, fuzz talk was abundant, and I could list the "hot" fuzzes at the time. Now, I can't tell you any fuzz that's been released in at least 5 years. What's up with that?

Guess this just comes from my fuzz noodling lately. Still loving my Pharaoh and Pickle - though the Pharaoh is much more intuitive to dial in it would seem. Not sure this post is going anywhere, except to say I love fuzz. It took me a LONG time to find the one/s I like, but now, I can't do without them.

 

[Grahams Groove]

I feel like fuzz isn't discussed these days. Not necessarily here, but in general. If memory serves, when I first joined TB, fuzz talk was abundant, and I could list the "hot" fuzzes at the time. Now, I can't tell you any fuzz that's been released in at least 5 years. What's up with that?

Guess this just comes from my fuzz noodling lately. Still loving my Pharaoh and Pickle - though the Pharaoh is much more intuitive to dial in it would seem. Not sure this post is going anywhere, except to say I love fuzz. It took me a LONG time to find the one/s I like, but now, I can't do without them.

Effects forum page 1, my man.

I will say I go through different sagas of my fuzz journey depending on what's out there, what I need, and whether or not I get on a little kick with a certain style/builder/etc. My current collection is modest, yet mighty. Perhaps this will restore your hope in humanity...at least for a day.

 

[kleinenenten]

Fa

Effects forum page 1, my man.

I will say I go through different sagas of my fuzz journey depending on what's out there, what I need, and whether or not I get on a little kick with a certain style/builder/etc. My current collection is modest, yet mighty. Perhaps this will restore your hope in humanity...at least for a day.

View attachment 4426226

Fair enough. Guess I don't search it out. Just feels I didn't HAVE to in the past. Regardless, FUZZ!

 

[Andysalt01]

I've been on that journey as well to get to the fuzz sounds I'm happy with (landed on the Dunwich wizard at the moment)...but of all effects, I do find my head gets turned pretty easily by a fuzz.....Now I want to try a pharaoh again as I've not had the privilege yet.....aaahhhh!

I also wonder if OD has kinda taken fuzzes limelight. The rise of darkglass and their pre/drive tones has had a lot of chatter and maybe lessened the fuzz chat presence? Im probably in the same boat in terms of listing new fuzz offerings of late. Hopefully we haven't peaked in the fuzz world and there's still some innovation to come in an otherwise crowded, but mix shatteringly beautiful space.

 

[NoiseNinja]

I feel like fuzz isn't discussed these days. Not necessarily here, but in general. If memory serves, when I first joined TB, fuzz talk was abundant, and I could list the "hot" fuzzes at the time. Now, I can't tell you any fuzz that's been released in at least 5 years. What's up with that?

Guess this just comes from my fuzz noodling lately. Still loving my Pharaoh and Pickle - though the Pharaoh is much more intuitive to dial in it would seem. Not sure this post is going anywhere, except to say I love fuzz. It took me a LONG time to find the one/s I like, but now, I can't do without them.

I mostly utilize my high gain distortion, which consist of relatively high gain Mosky Black Rat in Turbo RAT mode, mixed almost equally, slightly higher, in parallel, via one of my Boss LS-2 pedals, with a Joyo Orange Juice, relatively low gain overdrive, staked into a Boss MT-2 Metal Zone with a quite low gain setting.

It sounds absolutely massively ballsy and heavy and also quite raunchy with a quite fuzz-esque quality, but actually at the same time it is surprisingly well defined and articulate.

I do use fuzz on a few tracks though, which is handled by my Behringer SF300 Super Fuzz, mixed in parallel, via one of my Boss LS-2 pedals, with an almost equal amount of clean signal.

The Behringer Super Fuzz is a great fuzz for bass no doubt, and not just for the ridiculous little money they cost, but I am not absolutely in love with the tone I get from it like I am with my high gain distortion setup, which, as said, actually also got a quite fuzz-esque quality, and which just seems to fit absolutely perfect for the songs we are working on.

Just for a couple of songs the raspier but also considerably less massive and somewhat thinner tone of the Super Fuzz is better suited, though still not absolutely perfect like I think my high gain distortion setup is.

Which is why I plan on getting me an Orange Fur Coat octave fuzz at some point, which is massively grunty, judging from the demos I've heard featuring it an absolutely amazing sounding fuzz and probably the best fuzz for bass ever, that likely then will replace the Behringer Super Fuzz (the Behringer obviously is based on a Univox SuperFuzz octave fuzz, but with added active treble and bass controls, and the Orange Fur Coat on a Foxx Tone Machine octave fuzz, but with full control over the level of the analog fuzzy octave up signal, and with the option of switching it off completely via an additional food switch.

The Orange Fur Coat kind of has some of the same character as the Super Fuzz, just with massively bigger balls, and I can see how being able to control the level of the octave up effect can be useful (judhing from the demos I have watched featuring it the Fur Coat actually sounds amazing with the octave up circuits completely turned off as well, really massive and grunty).

Here's a great demo of the Orange Fur Coat octave fuzz:



Maybe I should add that I play in a sort of psychedelic stoner/doom rock bass and drums duo (though we ponder on finding a keys player that also can handle the vocals as well, cause me singing while playing bass is not going to happen, and some organ and synth would fit the songs we are working on really well), called "all I nil", with the bass I use being a 28,6" scale 4 string Ibanez Mikro Bass with just an EMG Geezer Butler P pickup installed, wired directly to the output jack socket, tune to F# standard tuning, as in 2 half steps above regular 4 string E standard tuning, and run through an always on 1 octave up effect, giving an effect similar to that of an 8 string bass, to fill out some more sonic space, and accommodate an approach to writing riffs closer to sort of a crossover between how you would play a traditional bass, baritone guitar and regular guitar, rather than traditional bass lines.

 

[Kaa]

Nice rig! I share your quandary!! Personally I'd spend time before recording getting your sound set. I guess if you like it cleaner now then go with that but see how it best sits in the mix with your guitarist. If you need girthier tone, add the fuzz. I'd always take a clean Di though so you have options down the line and allow some pinch to be added if needed. My last album I ended up with a much cleaner tone than I expected tbh. Sits well on the mix bit I feel a bit more depth would be nice on the next one.

Anyway, here's my rig from last night's rehearsal just for a laugh. Singer didn't turn up due to a fuel crisis here so me and the guitarist went for it on volume. Loud valve amps rule.

View attachment 4423996

That picture made my tinnitus worse.

 

[Kaa]

As has been previously mentioned...


View attachment 4424232

Jaco didn't need all that.

 

[Kaa]

————————————————————————————————-
Thank you for responding…

I’m with you that cost does not in any way correlate with sound…

I guess all that I was getting at was that I’d rather pay a decent chunk of change up front and then not buy anything else for the next decade than buy something cheap and then stare at it for a few years while wishing it were something else while being frustrated with myself for not springing for what I really wanted from the get go…

I’m pretty sure if I purchased something that was cheaper but not what I wanted that I would probably eventually breakdown and buy whatever it was that I originally wanted later any way <—- I’m not sure from a Microeconomic Economic consumer choice theory standpoint if this means that I’m an irrational consumer or not-I’m just saying that it’s more of a pattern I’ve noticed with myself in the past (although in my defense-not all economic decisions are “rational” any way but that’s a whole other discussion)…

I have looked into more expensive basses as well, but honestly once I get above the $1k price range I tend to lose interest (and even that is kinda pushing it)…

Even wanting a Fender I think I’d rather have a MIM Player Series over s MIA so I can beat it like a rented mule for years and not worry about how expensive it was…

I think I’d have a harder time enjoying an expensive bass bc I think this would be me worrying about how “fragile” my expensive bass would be:

View attachment 4424186

As a side note…

One of the things I love about playing is that there don’t seem to be any “rules” per se…

I hadn’t really thought of this until just now, but if I like the sound of the Darkglass better I suppose that answers my own question even if it doesn’t “usually” go with a Stoner Metal sound??? <—-[Lol-Maybe???]

Thanks! \m/

Well, you have a big hurdle already cleared since you are self-aware enough about what you want and being satisfied by it or something else. That's a great understanding to have. And paying a premium for a quality item is always best, if it doesn't come before making the payments for necessities.

 

[Kaa]

I mostly utilize my high gain distortion, which consist of relatively high gain Mosky Black Rat in Turbo RAT mode, mixed almost equally, slightly higher, in parallel, via one of my Boss LS-2 pedals, with a Joyo Orange Juice, relatively low gain overdrive, staked into a Boss MT-2 Metal Zone with a quite low gain setting.

It sounds absolutely massively ballsy and heavy and also quite raunchy with a quite fuzz-esque quality, but actually at the same time it is surprisingly well defined and articulate.

I do use fuzz on a few tracks though, which is handled by my Behringer SF300 Super Fuzz, mixed in parallel, via one of my Boss LS-2 pedals, with an almost equal amount of clean signal.

The Behringer Super Fuzz is a great fuzz for bass no doubt, and not just for the ridiculous little money they cost, but I am not absolutely in love with the tone I get from it like I am with my high gain distortion setup, which, as said, actually also got a quite fuzz-esque quality, and which just seems to fit absolutely perfect for the songs we are working on.

Just for a couple of songs the raspier but also considerably less massive and somewhat thinner tone of the Super Fuzz is better suited, though still not absolutely perfect like I think my high gain distortion setup is.

Which is why I plan on getting me an Orange Fur Coat octave fuzz at some point, which is massively grunty, judging from the demos I've heard featuring it an absolutely amazing sounding fuzz and probably the best fuzz for bass ever, that likely then will replace the Behringer Super Fuzz (the Behringer obviously is based on a Univox SuperFuzz octave fuzz, but with added active treble and bass controls, and the Orange Fur Coat on a Foxx Tone Machine octave fuzz, but with full control over the level of the analog fuzzy octave up signal, and with the option of switching it off completely via an additional food switch.

The Orange Fur Coat kind of has some of the same character as the Super Fuzz, just with massively bigger balls, and I can see how being able to control the level of the octave up effect can be useful (judhing from the demos I have watched featuring it the Fur Coat actually sounds amazing with the octave up circuits completely turned off as well, really massive and grunty).

Here's a great demo of the Orange Fur Coat octave fuzz:



Maybe I should add that I play in a sort of psychedelic stoner/doom rock bass and drums duo (though we ponder on finding a keys player that also can handle the vocals as well, cause me singing while playing bass is not going to happen, and some organ and synth would fit the songs we are working on really well), called "all I nil", with the bass I use being a 28,6" scale 4 string Ibanez Mikro Bass with just an EMG Geezer Butler P pickup installed, wired directly to the output jack socket, tune to F# standard tuning, as in 2 half steps above regular 4 string E standard tuning, and run through an always on 1 octave up effect, giving an effect similar to that of an 8 string bass, to fill out some more sonic space, and accommodate an approach to writing riffs closer to sort of a crossover between how you would play a traditional bass, baritone guitar and regular guitar, rather than traditional bass lines.

So you have the bass bass, rhythm bass, and lead bass all covered. Nice.

 

[Kaa]

PSA: it's National Cinnamon Roll Day.

 

[Dynomuttasaurus]

The wife turned on Knights of Badassdom for our date night Friday. In the movie a demon is expelled by a doom/sludge metal song in the climatic finish. Inspired, I dug out my Joyo Voodoo Octave and recorded a quick tune.

The opening riff is tapped out with the right hand playing I/IV chords on the DG string. The left hand tapping the bassline. I think I got the fuzz too dark. Sometimes I have to remember that a bassline that sounds almost too bright most often cuts through better in the final mix.

 

[socialleper]

I've been on that journey as well to get to the fuzz sounds I'm happy with (landed on the Dunwich wizard at the moment)...but of all effects, I do find my head gets turned pretty easily by a fuzz.....Now I want to try a pharaoh again as I've not had the privilege yet.....aaahhhh!

I also wonder if OD has kinda taken fuzzes limelight. The rise of darkglass and their pre/drive tones has had a lot of chatter and maybe lessened the fuzz chat presence? Im probably in the same boat in terms of listing new fuzz offerings of late. Hopefully we haven't peaked in the fuzz world and there's still some innovation to come in an otherwise crowded, but mix shatteringly beautiful space.

For my two cents, ODs are a little easier to control, are more transparent, and make it easier to sit a bass in a mix. I tried, and tried, and tried to find a fuzz that I liked and that didn't make my bass vanish the moment guitars started playing. Just couldn't find it. I like a good amount of articulation in my attack. Fuzz just isn't made for that.

Some of the shift away from discussions about fuzz might be a market saturation thing. There are SO many fuzz pedals available now, and there is already SO much information about them, that there isn't a lot left to say.

 

[ConfoundedBridg]

The PD7 has just arrived...

The hype is real, this is the best pedal investment I've made since I bought my tuner pedal. It's also built like a tank. I don't understand how these things have been so cheap up until recently.

 

[lucas303]

The PD7 has just arrived...

The hype is real, this is the best pedal investment I've made since I bought my tuner pedal. It's also built like a tank. I don't understand how these things have been so cheap up until recently.

View attachment 4427079

Probably because they're bland looking and they're not boutique.

 

[kleinenenten]

Now I want to try a pharaoh again as I've not had the privilege yet.....aaahhhh!

I LOVE my Pharaoh Supreme. Best fuzz I've ever played.

I recently bought a Swollen Pickle clone for dirt cheap since I love my Pickle so much. I'll say this - I think something's wrong/different with it, but I love it. I instantly got a different tone from it, but it's amazing. I've spent hours trying to get that same tone from my original SP, but haven't quite gotten there yet. Either way, I may just need both... And my Pharaoh Supreme...

 

[kleinenenten]

I like a good amount of articulation in my attack. Fuzz just isn't made for that.

You have nailed the issue I had for years with fuzz. Thus far, my solution has been to find the most tweakable, bothersome fuzzes to dial in, and tweak away... Of course, it takes forever to figure out the fuzz, but once I've got a tone dialed in it's been pretty fantastic.

 

[socialleper]

You have nailed the issue I had for years with fuzz. Thus far, my solution has been to find the most tweakable, bothersome fuzzes to dial in, and tweak away... Of course, it takes forever to figure out the fuzz, but once I've got a tone dialed in it's been pretty fantastic.

I think it needs to be seen as the tool that it is, not that tool some people want it to be. It isn't magic. In some mixes, on some basses, it is pretty cool. In others it is terrible.
I found that if I'm not playing a P bass with a pick, there was just no way to make it work. And since I never do either, there wasn't a good one for me. I have a Grey Stache in my closet should a doom\stoner band ever come a-knocking, but aside from that, I am happier with my TS clones, and my RAT clones.