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Using, and stacking, QSC K12s for bass amplification?

zappatalist

zappatalist

Supporting Member
Sep 25, 2007
149
167
#1
I'm getting back into playing bass in a band again, and I don't have a bass amp right now.

What I do have is a Jad Freer Capo, a small but essential pedalboard (tuner, comp, octave, synth), and (2) QSC K12s.

Has anyone else used the K12s as a bass amp successfully, and if so- thoughts?

Also, as I have (2) of these, any thoughts on stacking them, and how did you configure them, physically?
 
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#2
I haven't used them myself, but plenty of TB members have, so I am confident they will work. Whether you will like using them will depend on the type of sound you want. I would not expect huge, pillowy lows.

Which version do you have? The newer K12.2 has a preset to emulate a bass amp. AFAIK this is just a EQ contour to mellow out the high range. I would probably prefer dialing in the sound with a flat preset, but YMMV.
 
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#3
I've rehearsed basically at acoustic instrument volume with a K10 driven by a couple different preamps. It sounded good in that context, but definitely missing some of the lowest lows.

If you look at the specs, the K12 rolls off pretty steeply, -10 dB at 48 Hz (K12.2 goes a little lower). You're not going to hear/feel much fundamental from the open E string, not to mention a low B.
 
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#5
rickdog said:
I've rehearsed basically at acoustic instrument volume with a K10 driven by a couple different preamps. It sounded good in that context, but definitely missing some of the lowest lows.

If you look at the specs, the K12 rolls off pretty steeply, -10 dB at 48 Hz (K12.2 goes a little lower). You're not going to hear/feel much fundamental from the open E string, not to mention a low B.
Click to expand...
Damn, that’s gonna hurt a little. I was hoping to get by without a sub, but kinda sounds like it’ll be disappointing.
 
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#8
zappatalist said:
Thanks- I had a feeling I didn't search hard enough.
Click to expand...

It's not much of a difference. Some popular bass cabs for comparison.
upload_2024-5-17_18-25-31.png


Mesa Subway 112
upload_2024-5-17_18-32-19.png



Ampeg SVT212AV
upload_2024-5-17_18-26-43.png

Ampeg 810E
upload_2024-5-17_18-23-22.png
 
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#11
It is a hard thing to learn. The fundamentals are pretty weak from most rigs, wastes power to flutter your pants and the second order is what you will perceive the most as "bass". Has anyone ever accused an SVT and 810 as being weak on bass? Yeah no. But the fact is the low end roll-off of the 810 is "pretty" (in fundamental frequency terms) high, but cuts through the mix like a meat cleaver. Don't get me wrong fundamentals are sweet if you can spare the power and have the speakers for it. However the people 5 miles away will be complaining to the PoPos while you are wanting to "turn up" to hear yourself.

Oh I have played through them for a jam, the man didn't want my rig rattling his X-ray equipment and honestly I didn't hate it at all.
 
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#16
I do this with two 12" EV-ELX. It works great and while a bass amp would be more compact, the two PA approach gets louder than I'll ever need and has the added functionality of being very directionally flexible. For example, I can put them stacked vertically behind me for a traditional amp feel, or in front of me as a personal monitor, or one behind and one behind the players on the other side of the stage (bonus: being able to adjust the volumes independently is a neat trick). The flexibility makes it worth it IMO and in most normal cases, I can get away with just using one.
 
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#18
zappatalist said:
I'm getting back into playing bass in a band again, and I don't have a bass amp right now.

What I do have is a Jad Freer Capo, a small but essential pedalboard (tuner, comp, octave, synth), and (2) QSC K12s.

Has anyone else used the K12s as a bass amp successfully, and if so- thoughts?

Also, as I have (2) of these, any thoughts on stacking them, and how did you configure them, physically?
Click to expand...

It depends on your goals. You won’t get any sub-lows whatsoever so playing things like pop, R&B, reggae, etc where you want a nice warm and round bass tone isn’t going to happen.

However, if you have a nice mid forward tone for something like rock or punk or maybe a more treble focused jazz tone, than you’ll be in a good spot.

It’s not just a plug and play though. Using a PA speaker is not like using an amp, you don’t have knobs to turn or adjust so everything has to happen on the bass/pedal board side of things.

You already have the setup though so might as well give it a shot just be prepared to spend time fine tuning and experimenting before you make a final decision.

good luck!
 
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#19
So I’ve been using a K12.2 for the past few months, about 4 gigs.

We have full pa support and I use the K12.2 as a monitor.

I run the FOH mix in one input and the through from my noble preamp into the other so I can bump up the bass (independently from the foh mix) and I love the tone.

I don’t hear any lack of low end. And I’m playing a 5 string.
 
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#20
zappatalist said:
Damn, that’s gonna hurt a little. I was hoping to get by without a sub, but kinda sounds like it’ll be disappointing.
Click to expand...
If your rig is the only way to get your sound in the room and you like a big full sound then yes a sub would work best to augment the K12s. If you always gig in venues that have a full PAs with subs, you could be fine as is.

IMHO
:)
 
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