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Why does my geddy lee jazz bass lack so much midrange? (with soundsamples)

#22
InhumanResource said:
Do you have anything you can rub in front of the DI?
Click to expand...

I know this is a typo, but i love the visual so much i'm adopting the term.
"Don't like your tone? What are you rubbing it with?"
"Have you tried rubbing with a QStrip?"
"I'm having an issue rubbing my signal with the Cali76. Does anyone have suggestions?"


(Yes, i understand this is skirting the line between funny and a call from HR, but i like to live dangerously. 😉)
 
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#23
I listened to your sound samples on my IEMs, and the neck pickup sounded really good to me.
The blended setting was also good, but IMO the bridge pickup sounds thin and nasal - and noticeably lower in volume.

While I don't love the soloed bridge tone, it has a lot of mids - so I'd recommend raising the bridge pickup much closer to the strings.
That will balance the output levels, and that should also increase the amount of mids in the blended tone.

Aside from that, I played stainless steel strings for a long time - then switched to nickel a few years ago.
I recently put another set of SS strings on my #1 bass and I really noticed the lack of mids at my gig last night.
Unless you have a nickel allergy or are dead-set on using the Roto Swing 66s, a set of nickel strings would be worth a try.

But raising the bridge pickup is a $0 improvement that the bass needs, regardless.
 
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#24
That is the sound of a direct recording of an electric bass. It's pleasing but a bit sterile.

Add some compression and Eq and you will get very nice sounding tones that will sit in a mix nicely.

Want more character? Use and amp modeler or record a mic'ed amplifier.

Add some harmonic distortion, or over drive for thicker tones.

You might a add an EQ, medium Q @500hz if you want some midrange beef.

Nothing wrong with the sound of you pickups, its up to you make some creative choices on how to enhance the sound to work for your application/genre/style.
 
#25
oldcatfish said:
I'm going to sound like a broken record with my recommendation…try a para eq pedal. A para eq pedal can reduce dominant unwanted frequencies while boosting desired frequencies that are lacking. You'll be surprised by how much you can alter the tone of an instrument.

But…if you want to go with just the stock instrument, you really have only two options.
1) Adjusting pickup balance, height , etc.
2) Experiment with different strings.
Click to expand...
I agree with this. A parametric eq is great for moulding tone. And never have to replace 'bad' pickups again.
 
#27
TrevorOfDoom said:
I know this is a typo, but i love the visual so much i'm adopting the term.
"Don't like your tone? What are you rubbing it with?"
"Have you tried rubbing with a QStrip?"
"I'm having an issue rubbing my signal with the Cali76. Does anyone have suggestions?"


(Yes, i understand this is skirting the line between funny and a call from HR, but i like to live dangerously. 😉)
Click to expand...

Lmao, That rules and I'm leaving it. Also I work in hr and this is now approved.
 
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#28
Dbassmon said:
That is the sound of a direct recording of an electric bass. It's pleasing but a bit sterile.

Add some compression and Eq and you will get very nice sounding tones that will sit in a mix nicely.

Want more character? Use and amp modeler or record a mic'ed amplifier.

Add some harmonic distortion, or over drive for thicker tones.

You might a add an EQ, medium Q @500hz if you want some midrange beef.

Nothing wrong with the sound of you pickups, its up to you make some creative choices on how to enhance the sound to work for your application/genre/style.
Click to expand...
This right here. Unless you're only going to be playing solo bass, it's all about the bass in a mix. I bet in a mix with drums, guitars, keys, whatever, just standard-fare bass processing i.e. a little compression (mix-dependent on how aggressively to compress of course) and if needed a little EQ to taste (to dovetail with the drums, etc - also mix-dependent) and that DI'd bass will sound great and do its job.
 
#29
Drienvyftigcent said:
A while back I bought a secondhand made in japan geddy lee jazz bass, and it plays well but after a while I realized that it sounds quite different from the previous one I used to have years ago. That one sounded great, it had the midrange that a typical geddy lee or 70s jazz does. While this one resonates better than the old one I had, this one sounds glassy and quite scooped, it lacks the midrange presence and warmth that pretty much every other geddy lee sig has that I've heard. I'm confused by this since everything is original on it, pickups and electronics, and I'm aware that small fluctuations in sound are normal even between identically built basses but this is more than that to my ear.
Click to expand...
Strats and Teles of different ages/eras/years sound different even if on their face or spec sheet saying they are specified the same. No reason to believe this phenomenon doesn't accrue to all types of Fender basses too.
 
#30
I understand what people are saying about para EQ and preamps etc. But personally, I feel like, if you don't like the fundamental sound of the bass, and you are always fighting it with EQ etc, then you will never be happy. Conversely, if the fundamental sound is good, everything is easy.

I had this experience with two "identical" Squier single-coil P basses: they are the same model, made in the same year, at the same factory. One is super dark, the other super bright, it's like night and day. Tried switching strings, adjusting pickup height, switching out pickups and caps, and nothing changed the difference between the two basses. In particular, the "dark" bass sounded completely different between unplugged (which I loved) and plugged in (not so much). Just the mysteries of wood and wire.
 
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#32
+1 raise bridge pickup and try nickel wound strings, and eq as needed.

I have pretty much abandoned J basses bc of the mid scoop. Used nothing but for years but tastes change…
 
#33
FWIW I had a CIJ Geddy and during my time w it had the OG pickups, DiMarzio Model J's, and then DiMarzio Area J's. I actually thought the originals were a little skimpy in the low end which is why I mucked around with it. If you want a very mid-heavy sound hard to beat the Model J's, but it doesn't sound totally "Jazz Bass" any more.
 
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#35
What I find odd about the sound samples is that the middle positions doesn't sound "different enough" from the neck position. It's almost like an active bass. The resonance peak should shift more when you have both pots open.

(I realize you don't have active pickups in there)
 
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#36
uOpt said:
What I find odd about the sound samples is that the middle positions doesn't sound "different enough" from the neck position. It's almost like an active bass. The resonance peak should shift more when you have both pots open.

(I realize you don't have active pickups in there)
Click to expand...
Perhaps because the bridge pickup is a bit low, reducing output? Noticed that too...
 
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#37
I've had the same thing happen to me it's funny all of the basses I had prior to watching YouTube videos and reading Talk Bass all sound different now for me it's almost like being in Middle School you want to fit in so you stop saying how great Mexican Fenders are and every CBS era or 70's era bass is absolute junk and your perception of sound changes. I agree with others our senses change with time.
 
#39
^ Tom Brantley

I have a Japanese Geddy and had the aforementioned John East Preamp installed along with Wilde Humbuckers. Had a battery box and some aesthetic work done. It's my #1 4 string, no ifs, ands, or buts. No hum and all the tonal control I'll likely ever require.
 
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#40
12bass said:
Perhaps because the bridge pickup is a bit low, reducing output? Noticed that too...
Click to expand...

The bridge pickup being low wouldn't explain what I mean. I mean an electrical property, having the two pickup coils in parallel. That shifts the resonance peak upwards even if one pickup isn't near the strings at all.

Maybe some previous owner put noiseless pickups in that are supposed to be in series but wired them up in parallel.
 

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