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VT Bass letting me down

Callan

Callan

Commercial User
Oct 29, 2014
77
119
Pittsburgh, PA
www.facebook.com
#1
Hey guys,

So my setup is LTD P/J Bass (with Dimarzio DP126's) into an EB Volume Jr -> Boss Bass OD pedal (gain down entirely, just there for a bit of grit, EQ flat) -> VT Bass Deluxe pedal -> Hartke LH1000 -> Ampeg 410HLF.

I was super happy with the tone for a while - going for a nouveau grunge sound a la Citizen, Balance and Composure, Basement, etc. I switched to the P/J bass from a T40, and an active Ibanez before that - the P/J setup is hands-down the bass tone that I want, but the problem seems to be within the pedals - and mainly the VT Bass.

So the Sansamp I have setup for 3 channels - clean, kinda gritty, and some really heavy OD. I understand that I sacrifice some low end with a P/J setup (versus humbuckers), but the "Low" function on the Sansamp just doesn't seem to add anything except mud. I cannot for the LIFE of me get good tone out of it, and as soon as I shut it off/bypass it, my rig seems to come to life again. The Sansamp just isn't sounding how I imagined it would.

I recently got a Behringer 7 band EQ pedal to throw in the chain just to compensate for some lack of low end (and to throw a bit more low mid in the mix), and that does seem to help, but I've just become dissatisfied with the VT Bass.

Is it just me, or is the EQ on this thing SUPER limited and not notched in the right areas? The lows seem to be at like 125-150Hz, which I would hardly consider "Low" (I'm thinking more like 50Hz is Low EQ). I'm really thinking of making the jump to a B3K and just leaving it on all the time and searching for some dedicated OD pedals (MXR or something).

Anyone have any pointers? Really, really not digging the pedal anymore. I know it's raved about here (and I used to love it!), but I'm just not hearing it anymore. I end up leaving it off half of the time and running straight Hartke sound, and I really do like how the Hartke sounds!
 
#2
Did you move any of your other settings? I find (and I think this is true) that the character knob affects the center position of all three EQ controls.

I tend to think I lose my lowest lows with the VTBD, but its really just a gain issue for me, plus losing a little presence at bedroom volume. Loud/in practice it seems to kick just right.
 
#3
Yeah, I've messed with the Character quite a bit - seems that it's a low & high shelf boost and a drive boost, and scoops the mids, but I just can't get *that* sound out of it. When I bypass it and go straight through to the Hartke (even on volume 2 or 3, it's a super loud amp), the 410HLF will shake the hell out of the walls - then turn on the VT bass and lose all low end again. I just feel like I'm not doing something right with it... :eyebrow:
 
#4
Just so your aware, the B3K *won't* add significant low end, the grunt switch boosts low midrange(around 250hz) slightly, but it is still a overdrive pedal!

The B7K on the other hand will add low end, but the bass knob is around 100hz IIRC, so it wont add the sub lows you seek...

That being said, I personally find the B7K vastly superior to the Sansamp BDDI(ive owned both the BDDI and 3 channel version),never tried the VT though so I can't comment on that one, but both the Sansamp and B7K *can* scoop if you really boost the bass and treble, if you go easy on the EQ you get a more neutral sound with both.

What I do is run my b7k (set with slight scoop) into my GK 800RB, I boost the bass on the gk(60 hz) and low mid(250hz) and back off the treble/hi midrange on amp(they are very close to b7k's frequencies)... I only dial in a small amount of bass and low midrange compared to treble/hi midrange so most of my tone is the B7K, hope this helped!!??

And yes, my rig shakes walls LOL
 
#6
Callan said:
I end up leaving it off half of the time and running straight Hartke sound, and I really do like how the Hartke sounds!
Click to expand...

I guess this is the reason why you don't like your VTBD. You could just use your hartke and enjoy your sound, and maybe earn some money by selling your vt. :)
If you wanna give the vt another chance, you could try to use it in return of your amp and bypassing the preamp of your hartke, this is how I use my regular VT and I love the sound of it...
 
Last edited:
#7
If device doesn't do good things to your tone, remove device. There is a lot to be said for simplicity.
I suggest you check on your volume pedal. The Ernie Jr is a notorious low end burglar and it doesn't deal well with changing impedances, which occurs a lot since you change basses around.
It would be worth trying an active volume pedal, such as a Morley Little Alligator. It would act as a buffer, which is good to have first in chan, unify impedance and make it easier to deal with pedals further down the chain.
 
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#9
My suggestion would be to plug your bass only (no Boss OD or volume pedal) into the VT Bass Deluxe and send the output to your amp's efx return. Set the level on the VT Bass DLX very low because your amp's volume control will most likely be bypassed. I would see if you can obtain the sound you want that way first. If it works plug back into the amp with the amp set flat and nothing else and then see how much your amp settings change the sound of the SansAmp. You will probably need to adjust the controls on the SansAmp as most amps have some sort of pre shape tonal curve even with the controls set flat.

Typically what happens is players have multiple devices set up in series, change something and get frustrated when their tone changes. Everything in the signal chain will have an impact on your tone. Changing instruments, your amp's settings, guitar settings will also alter the sound of the SansAmp and your OD pedal.
 
#11
I ditched my volume pedal for the same reason. The VT Bass colors the tone in a not so subtle way. You will love or hate it. I have one now and find myself going back and forth. Sometimes I leave it on the whole show, other times I bypass it the entire show. It is handy when you are not miking the cab or running out of a head. When I dial in the low end, it gets BOOMY and over-saturated. Something else is definitely going on there.
 

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