What steps do you all take to dial in your tone?

[Modest_Moose]

I mean I know the search for tone is endless and fruitless but what do all of you do to craft your tones? What steps do you all take to dial it in and what are the major factors you take into account?


i know it’ll vary immensely from genre to genre but that’s okay! I’m just curious how everyone else crafts their tone. I’m always thinking mines too muddy. I play in essentially a 90s grunge style band mixing Stone Temple Pilots and Alice In Chains with Black Sabbath and Lex Zeppelin

 

[jimfist]

Is your rig the one pictured in your avatar (SVT)?

 

[AGCurry]

1. I connect a cable from my instrument to my amplifier.
2. I turn on the amp.
3. I play a little, adjusting volume and tone controls to get a sound I like.
4. I make small adjustments during the gig, as needed.

 

[EdO.]

mean I know the search for tone is endless and fruitless but what do all of you do to craft your tones? What steps do you all take to dial it in and what are the major factors you take into account?

For me I sold my amp and went to a preamp setup (Helix Stomp in my case) straight to the board and a second out directly to my IEM transmitter then to my ears. I've got a crap load of amp and/or cab options to choose from till I find one (or several ) that I like. I can tweak to my hearts delight until I get a sound I'm looking for and have that same sound at the board AND in my ears. Just seems a whole lot easier and way less limiting than using one amplifier. When it sounds good to me I'm good.

 

[two fingers]

Honestly, I do the best I can to find "flat" on every amp I own. I start from there and dial in what I thing the room needs. Then I ask the sound guy what he thinks.

For me, generally, flat with a slight low mid bump gets it done.

Currently, all the basses I gig are passive. My tone knob is almost always dimed. I use various techniques and plucking/picking positions to achieve different sounds.

 

[samson3382]

I usually start with EQ flat, bump the mids, sometimes boost or cut bass depending on the room.

Then I’ll use subtle on board EQ the same way if needed for different styles during a set.

ibanez SDGR505-
Genz Benz shuttle 6.2-
1 or 2 Baer ML112s.

 

[Chad Michael]

Myself - I had to find the right frame of mind, but the right gear helps. The right gear needs no adjustment.

 

[Kro]

In general, once I settle on an instrument and a set of strings with characteristics that I like (and break them in a bit), the task begins! First off, it needs to be said that I use a relatively full-range, flat-ish response cab, and I have my amp dialed in pretty much dead flat (as a starting position) - which leaves most of my tone-shaping to come from my Tech-21 VTDI.

By default, my VTDI includes a speaker sim that I like, and with that feature engaged as a baseline, my first goal is to dial in drive. I like my bass to sound like an electric instrument - and part of what that means to me, is just a bit of distortion audible on hard attacks or double stops, and an overall less perceptible warmth and subtle compression. I feel like this distortions helps bass be audible in a mix without being overpowering, and it also aids in expression - if I dig in, it sounds loud without actually being loud and blowing up any meters.

Next is EQ. Now, I understand that this process won't work for everybody, but given my rig notes above (flat amp and FRFR-ish cab), my method for finding a good starting point is actually to record some bass against a few of the bass-less tracks from one of my bands that I have on hand. I'll then listen to the recordings on a few different systems and against reference material (just like when mixing) and will tweak as necessary. That's initially how I figure out how a new bass/strings combination will perform in a mix.

A this point some of you might be raising an eyebrow, thinking that a recorded mix isn't the same as a live mix - and while technically you'd be right, I've yet to find a recording tone that works well for me, that also doesn't also work live, at least as a starting point.

From there, on stage, I can tweak my amp from flat as necessary to make any minor adjustments. That's less about dialing in my tone, and more just trying to adjust to the room though - no method to that, I just play it by ear. If something is bothering me, then I'll adjust my settings.

Aside from regular minor adjustments over the course of 3-6 months (usually), that's all there is to it!

 

[Zbysek]

I don't dial in "my tone". I dial in tone which fits the room and works in the particular band/genre.

I’m always thinking mines too muddy.

You might find HPF helpful...

 

[Bufalo]

"My tone" is an ash Jazz with a maple fretboard, D'addario flatwounds and Aguilar pickups. I use my amp to make that tone louder.

 

[vvvmmm]

Get it loud enuff, get it low enuff, set the pedals so they are about the same volume and related EQ.

Adjust per bass.

 

[mikewalker]

For me, it's pretty much all about the STRINGS. The right strings for the job = 90% of the way there

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

1. I connect a cable from my instrument to my amplifier.
2. I turn on the amp.
3. I play a little, adjusting volume and tone controls to get a sound I like.
4. I make small adjustments during the gig, as needed.

So you went and stole my secret technique!

 

[rodsnhawgs]

This

 

[Ron Berenato]

For me, it's pretty much all about the STRINGS. The right strings for the job = 90% of the way there

And Picks! I alternate between finger and pick playing and the dense Dunlop / Tortex picks have a "deader" sound as compared to the bright Fender heavy picks. I use both but prefer the Dunlop.

 

[lowfreqgeek]

1. I pick out the bass(es) I want to use.
2. I pick out the cabinet(s) I want to use (Trickfish 110, 112, 408, combo thereof).
3. I plug in and play.

 

[Element Zero]

The right gear needs no adjustment.

Must be nice to always 100% of the time play in/at venues with 100% perfect acoustics.

 

[scottfeldstein]

For me it's this:

• Having enough bump in the low-mids to fill out the low end
• Having enough mids so that I can be heard playing finger style
• Having the right amount of highs so that it's not brittle but not dull
• Having a temporary EQ that bumps the lows, bumps the highs and scoops the mids for slap

For me this has really been achieved by leaving my bass and my amp's always-on 4-band parametric EQ totally flat, and then setting the switchable 9-band graphic EQ for the slap scoop.

Now I'm experimenting with using a YYZ pedal as an always-on. So I might have to adjust the flat settings a little with a full-time bump in the low mids.

 

[Blue]

I look primarily - meaning "first" and also "if that's all I CAN do", then that's all I WILL do - PRiMARY: Getting the volumes where I want them - so Bottom not Boom but Full, Transparent and Full ... THEN I want the open "G" area to match well - volume to volume .... Then 3/4 up the "G" octave, also "standout but not overpower", then (hopefully) by adjusting Instrument V knobs (P-Bass user), adjust that "standout" as songs dictate ... That's a good set-up if you can do that

... and if so, for me the next steps are to get just the right level of distortion in the notes - especially bottom "E" and "A" string notes - "speaker coming through the cabinet" tone, but it's mostly found in the preamp gain v. master V settings.

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Here's Last Night's Clean Setting

 

[Blue]

But here's some genuine SAGE advice: Do all this at home - and do it often - so you understand how to get there .. so when you GIG, you spend minimal time with your tone and all your mind on the song you're playing with friends.

Boom