Double Bass String balance with pickup

[BassDaddy11]

Hi,
I have a question for some of you bass vets.
We are having a bit of trouble getting an even tonal balance across all four strings when plugged in. E/A/D are all plenty loud and full but the G string is noticeably softer and less present. It’s only this way when plugged in, Otherwise the strings are well balanced. Would any one have any advice on how to remedy this weak sounding G string (it’s the same all the way up the FB). Could it be a case of the spiro mitt G, a ghost, or is it more related to being plugged in somehow? Someone mentioned that the FS pickup can be adjusted for optimal string balance. How would I do that?
The current set up is:
Bass with full circle pickup to Redeye
Redeye to house
Effects loop to MBcmd 121 amp

This unbalanced/quieter G sounds the same in the amp and in the house. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Chris Laarman]

(I'm not the one with "the" answer.)

Could it be that the G-string has too much action, or that the pick-up should be raised a little at the G-side?

 

[BassDaddy11]

Chris,
Do you mean raise the adjusters on the G side? Not sure what you meant by raising the pickup on that side. Thanks

 

[Don Hergert]

If this was a bridge wing pickup I'd suggest moving the pickup to the treble side of the bridge, which is what helped me in this circumstance. Is there a similarly-purposed adjustment for the Full Circle?

 

[BassDaddy11]

That’s what I’m wonderin as well

 

[Chris Laarman]

Chris,
Do you mean raise the adjusters on the G side? Not sure what you meant by raising the pickup on that side. Thanks

You did understand me.
I meant lowering the string (on the bridge, if possible) or raising the adjesters of the pick-up on the G-side. Whichever is appropriate.

 

[Chris Fitzgerald]

Lots of moving parts for this. What are the other strings? What are the string heights at the end of the FB from the bottom of the string to the board? How old are the strings?

 

[BassDaddy11]

Chris,
They are spiro mitts (S42) about 2 months old. String heights are about 6-9mm.

 

[lurk]

Spiros that new should be absolutely roaring. When I used the Full Circle I found a quarter turn of the adjusters made a big difference in the response. Try that. Might be a quick and easy fix.

 

[BassDaddy11]

Thanks. They certainly are roaring on the three lower strings.
I was playing the bass a bit this evening and noticed a very subtle difference in the sound of the G string. It’s a tad less resonant and a tiny bit softer sounding than the other strings, especially pizz. I’m wondering if this is just being magnified being plugged in? If so, what would be the solution?

 

[hensonbass]

I have had similar issues with upright basses exhibiting a quieter g string compared to the other strings output when amplifying.

My current work around is blending two pickups with my Headway 2-channel preamp. This has yielded really interesting sonic benefits to my overall sound.

If you don’t have a preamp like mine experiment with installing a cheap bridge pickup (Victor pickup) in the g string side and run both pickups into a PA system mixer and see what kinds of sounds you get.

Im my experience a key to making this work is flipping the pickups out of phase with each other and really getting creative with the eq.

Once I figured out the formula I have been super happy with my amplified tone.

 

[DoubleMIDI]

Did you mean the Full Circle (FC) when you have written FS in the first posting?

My experience with a weak highest string is that the sound post is too close to the bridge foot.

On my five string (with high C) I always needed a two sensor pickup, one sensor on each bridge wing, to get a well represented highest string.

After getting the sound post repositioned every dingle sensor pickup I tried (bass side bridge wing, Full Circle, Yamahiko, single side Shadow NFX) worked well.

I would try the sound post first. Probably even cheaper than a new string.

 

[BassDaddy11]

Sorry, it was a typo when I wrote FS- should have been FC indeed.
Am I wanting to move the sound post a bit south of the bridge? Is that just a matter of a few taps and how far?

 

[Ric Vice]

I have noticed that a pickup (or a microphone) puts the bass sound across all four strings “under a microscope”
You hear things that aren’t apparent with the bass un-amplified. My bass has a tiny buzz when I use a DPA 4099B
that doesn’t present itself with any other microphone or pickup. @greg Clinkbeard will tell you that you need to make sure
the Full Circle is mounted properly. Hopefully that will solve the issues your having, I don’t have the luthiers knowledge
to describe what the solution is, but someone will come on and tell you how it’s done.

 

[DoubleMIDI]

Sorry, it was a typo when I wrote FS- should have been FC indeed.
Am I wanting to move the sound post a bit south of the bridge? Is that just a matter of a few taps and how far?

As I said I haven’t done it myself as a few other things needed to be done by the luthier.
But it went south (down) and probably also a bit inside. It also might have been under too much pressure.

BTW, the tonal spectrum of the Full circle is completely in a quarter turn and repeats afterwards. In fact it is inside an eights of a turn because afterwards it is simply mirrored.
When I had the FC I turned it for optimum sound (no unwanted resonances) and that was the quietest output.
When I first installed it I thought what an awful sound, even worse than my compressed bridge wing pickup. But tuning by turning the wheel in a better position let me changed my first thoughts.

 

[Brad_Pearson]

You did understand me.
I meant lowering the string (on the bridge, if possible) or raising the adjesters of the pick-up on the G-side. Whichever is appropriate.

This is the upright bass side of the forum. Sounds like you are talking about electric bass pickups.

 

[Chris Laarman]

This is the upright bass side of the forum. Sounds like you are talking about electric bass pickups.

Oops! Thank you for informing me.

 

[BassDaddy11]

That’s all very helpful. I might try a few gentle taps and see if it makes a difference.
I’ve been wondering which wheel of the FC has the microphone- or do they both? Is it beneficial to adjust both or just the G side? I do realize it’s best to keep them the same as much as possible.

 

[Francois Blais]

Only one adjuster is wired if I remember well?
Did it change?

 

[james condino]

This is part of the reason why I often use Spiro mittels with a stark G, to give me a little more bit amplified; plus I like the larger mass.

With most single side mount pickups, there is a tendency to set everything up on the bass side of the bridge. You instantly notice a powerful bass response, but the treble can be lacking. I find that if you put it on the treble side, there may be an initial lessening of the bass until you EQ it, but the overall balance of all strings is better. For me, in a live amplified situation, strong midrange presence cuts through the mix much better than a heavy bass which often get lost in the room.