9-volt to 18-volt conversion?

[worldfamousandy]

I recently picked up an '89 Elan, which had the frets removed.  It is a beautiful bass, and It sounds great.  
 
I have been playing a '76 Series 1 fretted bass for almost 20 years now, and I am definitely used to that big sound.  I like the tonal characteristics of the Elan, but I feel like it could be a little bigger.
 
Questions: Can the Elan be modified to take another battery? Would this modification address my concerns?
 
Andy Calder
www.andycalderbass.com

[bsee]

I am not sure, but I asked about having my SC built 18 volt when I ordered it.  I forget the details, but the basic answer was no.  I don't know if that was based upon the particular component tolerances, the belief that it wouldn't improve anything, or something else entirely.
 
-bob

[bkbass]

I personally prefer 18 volts to 9 volts. The sound is bigger as you say, more finger on string sound.I like it on the other electronic packages as well as the series. Have you adjusted the internal level control? MAX that out first.Then try a lithium battery.A foot pedal may be the next move. Go down to Radio Shack and buy a package of battery harness. You should be able to jury rig a series circuit with two batteries and two harness and snap on a third harness to the existing harness in the bass. Remember your reversing the flow when mating up the existing harness with the jury rigged assembly. This should be able to give you 18 volts for information purposes before you start carving up that beautiful bass.You'll have to let it hang so you'll want to provide some sort of stress relief for the existing harness. Hope this helps.

[mica]

Changing an Elan to 18 volt won't make it sound like a Series I. These are two completely different beasts.  
 
The Elan probably has a Maple body, which accounts for a good deal of the difference in tone. Listen to the basses acoustically, and you'll likely hear a large difference.  
 
Additionally, the single coil pickups on the Series I and the Series I electronics contribute largely to its tone.

[worldfamousandy]

I have adjusted the internal level controls.  I realize that the Elan isn't going to sound like the Series 1, but I need some kind of boost.  Maybe a stomp box compressor (my EBS sounds good), or an SF2?
 
Andy Calder
www.andycalderbass.com

[jacko]

Andy. i can recommend the Aphex Bass Exciter for good stompbox based compression / boost.
 
Graeme

[2400wattman]

Andy, you might want to check out the MK.4.23 boost pedal made by Creation Audio Labs. This si a clean transparent boost that works excellent for bass. I use one on my jazz bass in this way-  
j-bass+boost pedal to input 1 on F1X
S2 to input 2 on F1X
Before I got the pedal I could'nt leave my S2 plugged in for it would dumb down(squash the level) my j-bass. Instead of having the preamp modified this was the cheaper route and it works great. It definitely brought my jazz back to life with no coloration or compression, just boosted it until it matched the level of my S2. you may not run my kind of set up but the pedal is worth looking into. You can check it out at www.creationaudiolabs.com