Bass rig is so important to getting the right sound!!

[jazzyvee]

I know you guys know this but I'm still a newbie in the bass rig department.
For example the last two nights I've had rehearsal and I took a different  bass on each night. Same rig was at the rehearsal studio a TC Electronics bass head ( no idea of the model but lots of knobs and a red face),  into an 8x10 Behringer bass cab.


I have to say I found it a completely unpleasant experience. I couldn't get anything of the sound I expect from my basses.
It made my basses sound so bland, dull, lifeless that I think if I'd been to buy my first alembic and heard it through that rig I would have not even got into this brand!!!


Forgive me if this is your kind of rig but it was horrid!

[jacko]

I had the same issue with just about all the rehearsal rooms up here V.  Usually either an Ashdown ABM and 410 or a behringer 810 and some non-descript head. Really bad tone and quite often rattling / buzzing speakers as a result of the local metalheads playing at max volume. Similar problem with showcase style gigs where the venue provides the backline.    I bought a Markbass LM800 to carry in just to be sure of getting a decent, repeatable tone. Nowadays we share a rehearsal space in the country with our drummer's son so I'm using a markbass 410 aswell. Much better sound all round. rehearsals go so much better when I'm not grumbling about the crap tone all night 
We've been recording recently and the band insisted I take my full Mesa Titan / 210 / 410 rig in which we mic'ed aswell as taking a DI, just so we captured the right sound.

Graeme

[jazzyvee]

Usually at this particular rehearsal place I get a room with a peavey or an ampeg which like you say are often thrashed. But this one didn't appear to any crackles or anything to indicate it had been thrashed. It just sounded lifeless.
As for mesa boogie, i'm down to my last one ( 1x15) powerhouse after recently selling the 2x10 and 4x10. That one seems harder to sell for some reason and it's the one I played the least.

[jacko]

Yep. I saw you were selling your 410 but by strange coincidence a guy 5 miles away was selling his at the same time.  Now I have to move my 212 on as I much prefer the 210/410 combination and the 410 is more versatile than the 212 on it's own.

Graeme

[jazzyvee]

I liked the boogie but for my needs, they don't seem to like a lot of loud deep bottom end so on vocal pa gigs where my bass had to fill the room, I felt it was struggling to deliver that even with two cabs. I'm moving to barefaced cabs. I bought a Big Twin II last November and planning on getting a big baby II for when I'm travelling really light. They have a full range hifi sound that is really clean really great and are light. If the mesa 2x10 was the last one remaining sell I would probably have kept it. But cest la vie.

[glocke]

I know you guys know this but I'm still a newbie in the bass rig department.
For example the last two nights I've had rehearsal and I took a different  bass on each night. Same rig was at the rehearsal studio a TC Electronics bass head ( no idea of the model but lots of knobs and a red face),  into an 8x10 Behringer bass cab.


I have to say I found it a completely unpleasant experience. I couldn't get anything of the sound I expect from my basses.
It made my basses sound so bland, dull, lifeless that I think if I'd been to buy my first alembic and heard it through that rig I would have not even got into this brand!!!


Forgive me if this is your kind of rig but it was horrid!

Most non-bass players seem to think a bass rig is a bass rig...I can't count the number of times I've been told a bass amp is supplied at a rehearsal studio or even a gig and I show up and its a Peavey combo, Hartke combo/cab, etc. (no offense to those that like the tones those amps/cabs generate, but they aren't the sound I like).  As a result I pretty much always through my Bag End 15" cab and Mesa Boogie walkabout head into my 4runner just to have it because if I don't have the sound that I like/am used to, than that rehearsal/gig is a less than pleasant experience for me.

[Glynn]

Glad the Barefaced stuff is doing it for you.  My One 10 still is.
Funny stuff, bass rigs.
I started with a Linear Conchord, then a Fender Bassman and an Acoustic 360.
I used Trace for years and years - virtually every combination but never nailed the Graphic Equaliser.
EBS was good but heavy.  The small Gallien-krueger Mb200 combo was so bad for me that I took it back to the shop the next day!
Mark Bass never worked for me (too boxy) and Ashdown wasn't bad but I heard bad reports at the time of reliability.
The Bergantino HD112s I still have are superb.
Amp wise, I just have the GenzBenz Streamliner 900 and Genzler 350 - both superb.
TC Electronics, as you know, is used by Mark King and probably suits the slap part of his style (he is one of my all-time heros....I can't slap at all or sing at the same time as play!!)  I tried it in shop but found it a bit thin.
I think I am settled now.
Glynn

[5a quilt top]

I use an AER Amp One (200w, 1x10" speaker) and Amp Three (200w, 2x8" speakers).


Not cheap, but they are small, light, powerful and play nice with Alembic electronics.


I use the the Amp Three alone for non-Series basses and both together for Series basses (stereo). If I need more "muscle", I either feed the PA with an XLR line out from the rear panel, or add a QSC K-12 powered monitor fed from the rear panel by a standard cable equipped with 1/4" jacks.


Yeah, I know there are more complex and powerful rigs out there that probably offer slightly better sound quality, but they come with a price: weight, stage footprint and set-up time.


Since all of my recent rehearsals and gigs have required a minimalist approach, the AER amps have become my "go to" rig.


Here is the Amp Three (foreground in front of guitarist's pedalboard) at a recent rehearsal:

[hieronymous]

Behringer 8X10?!! That sounds like the weak link to me. The TC Electronics stuff gets mixed reviews but it might have sounded better through a better cab.

I'm going to a rehearsal at one of the local Guitar Center practice rooms - apparently they have a bass amp there but I'm really tempted to bring my GK MB-112 II rather than have to play through something crappy and inadequate.

[mario_farufyno]

Behringer always ruined my joy either live or in studio. You ask: amps, cabinets, peripherals... you can never trust. Even their DIs can compromise your tone... annoying. That kind of trouble is the main reason I ended carrying my gear with me to any gig all times, even when not being paid for.

[keith_h]

That was one thing I kind of learned to live with. I kept a Carvin 2X10 combo and 2X10 extension cabinet where I would rehearse with a band. It didn't sound bad it just wasn't great but since rehearsal is to get everyone on the same page it didn't bother me. In fact it made using my stage rig much more fun and I appreciated it sound much more than I would have otherwise.

[mavnet]

We shouldn't have to fight the amp and speakers. Played a gig the other night with the club backline - totally beat ampeg svt cab, some GK head. I listened to the recording of the gig - apparently because I couldn't really hear what I was playing, I compensated with LOTS of notes. Ugh.
Current rig is F2B into Minnie 800 into some TC Electronics 2x10 cabs that feel pretty responsive, sometimes with a 15" cab. Will look into some of the cabs that other people here are talking about sometime, but the TCE cabs weigh next to nothing, which is a major plus for my casual gigging.
My favorite rig ever, that sounded PERFECT, in '78, back when i had muscles (and hair) and was convinced that it wouldn't be long before we got that big record deal, was f2b into a mess o' HH FET amps, into (all hard trucker) 2 of the 15" cabs (the really big single 15" ones) and 4 of their 2x12 cabs, all loaded with Gauss drivers.
Amazing sound.
Absolutely impractical.
I still dream of that sound...

[edwardofhuncote]

This goes for every bass I own, but especially the Alembic instruments... and is a direct result of interactions and advice from various Members of this Board.

There is nothing, absolutely nothing I've played through that sounds quite like my music room rig, comprised of an F-1X > PowerAmp > a bunch of speakers, usually bi-amped. It ain't about the volume - it's about the quality. Unfortunately, it would be not only wildly impractical to transport all that heft, but silly overkill for any gig I have.

For that, it's a Mesa WalkAbout in a Scout 15 combo-cab. That thing can get loud if you get in a tough spot, but if you're careful with the input gain, it'll stay clean too, even at higher volumes. The biggest drawback is that the one speaker cabinet alone can't really make the best use of what the amp puts out. Not a problem for me, ever.

*having test-driven a couple Alembics thru Keith's big rig, I gotta' say - it's pretty sweet too.

[pauldo]

Although not frequent for me, when faced with using "this is what we got" for amplification, I start with turning everything flat.  My Distillate has a broad palette- I then massage to what I perceive to be lacking.  As mentioned, the tricky part is not knowing how it sounds more than 10' in front of the amp.  My wife is a critical listener and provides great feedback.

[peoplechipper]

I've been playing through the same rig for 12 years now- sansamp bass di, Acoustic 370, GK 410, Verlage 115 with a vintage Fane speaker in it...lucky I nailed what I wanted first try...I did recently play through a Genz-Benz head that sounded good but I don't remember what model...I've played through G-K heads before and just kinda hate them. As for Behringer stuff; walk away...there is a reason all the Behringer stuff sells cheap when used; only suckers buy it new, and gamblers buy it used...hoping it'll still work.