thumperbob 2002

I have ordered a Hb GEQ1 from Thomanns. Its the least I have paid for a pedal for a long time- about £30. Will report with findings!!

Our band have a Behringer Mixer- 24 channel- 4 auxilliaries- inbuilt effects- miles better than the Yamaha one we had at half the price- with twice the facilities!! Looks fragile but we have been using this four times a week with no problems- not flightcased either- kept in a suitcase!! Sounds great. Something to be said for scale.

[quote name='dood' timestamp='1351521534' post='1852087'] I've quickly skimmed the thread - It caught my eye as an avid Hartke'r. It's funny as I found that with my own bass, I had lots of upper mids from the rig but my bass having a slightly subdued lower bass 'bump' meant that I craved a bit more in that region. Actually a simple EQ pedal did the job nicely to boost that region. Interestingly, my passive basses were the opposite and I had too much low mid! Another thing you could try, that won't break the bank is to use a different preamp valve in the LH. It's a safe operation to change it, similar to changing a lightbulb. Depending on model you can alter the sound of the amp. The great thing that I love about the LH preamp is its simplicity and thus, changing the valve can change the character of it's sound too, sometimes dramatically. My two current favourite valves, both found to be useful for vocal mic preamplifiers are (premium) GE 5751which is a very clear sounding lower gain valve. Mine is some sort of high grade one. I have to say,'a 1958 black plates triple mica' and it gets a quiver from the back row at valve conventions heh - but, my 'chuck it in and sound great' valve is a JJ ECC83S (premium and drive tested). They have a natural bump in the upper mids that really seem to make my Shukers sing - way more so that the more standard Sovtek 12AX7WA (or electoharmonix rebadged version) you find factory fitted in a lot of preamps these days. If it's a troublesome frequency, then maybe look at a parametric EQ pedal. Boss used to do one as does the likes of Carl Martin among others. this would allow you to accurately pin point that mid bit you want whilst at the same time zoning in on other areas of your tone too. I'd suggest that you could boost a bit around 1Khz - 4 Khz to help you cut through guitar distortion and cymbal sizzle too. [/quote] Interesting post that Dood- I think I`ll look at buying a simple para or graphic EQ- as my Basspod sorts it out nicely, but as I said, is a bit unwieldy- ( esp on smaller stages )!!

yeah- I`ve had loads of rigs- the Schroeder Cabs are immense ( sold them both when I bought some Ampeg Gear _ Pf500 etc ) The Ampeg gear sounded fantastic through our rig but I needed a bit more power. I think the point of my OP was that I was looking at getting a good small EQ pedal to give me that mid-hump. My Basspod does the job in a terrific way but I feel that I dont need the many great things it does. And its a little on the large size. Lots of songs I do need that slap bass and I dont like slap on the bridge Pickup. No problem for fingerstyle Nos.

Hi All I have recently purchased a LH1000 and Hydrive 4 x 10. Mega rig- really powerful and warm. Old school heavy amp and pretty light 4 x 10. On a couple of gigs I find its a little mid scooped for my taste. Actually sounds great but to cut through the band without being ridiculously loud I need a bit more mid punch. These amps have a fender tone stack type of EQ where for flat response Mid is on full ( 10 ), with bass and treble being on 3 . Obviously with both bass and treble full off that is the max mids I am getting. Not enough though and this is my problem. Its the speakers really- very warm and clear but I need more mids. I can use my basspod as a preamp and get all the mids I need but I am trying to be as simple as poss and the Pod Live XT is simply too big to carry with all my other gear. Does anyone have any ideas- I have a Sadowsky pre amp which is too scooped in any event and a VT bass which has a very simple mid control. I think I need a small Bass EQ pedal but would like a high quality one- does anyone have any ideas? I really need my tone to be minus 1 from Honky. I use a Fender Jazz with both Pickups on full- prefer that tone to Bridge as I do a bit of slap in each song and dont like the slap tone of the bridge pickup. Any advice on what I should buy would be great.

Played our Friday night residency last night. Packed night. All the band in Halloween garb. Realised I am using my pod xt live just as a tuner now so it has to go. Our mackie 1608 is truly set up now. So convenient. All in all another great night for soul patrol.

Great band. Bit of an old school tone bit fits really well. I sort of agree that the solo should have "breathe" spaces ( to let the music come through ) but I thought that track was made to be that way. Great moves too. I like the way that they look as though they are enjoying themselves.

I agree- my MM ( which I sold a few years ago ) was a terrific bass- real quality instrument- but the pre-amp was a little harsh. My Roadworns are the same quality but in my opinion sound miles better- more of a vintage vibe.

[quote name='StephenFerguson' timestamp='1351011489' post='1846228'] What? when did I mention a Fender Roadworn in this post, if you read mine back you will see I am a fan of Fenders. I was saying that some basses are simply poor regardless of the adjustments you make to them (Stagg and lindo for example) and that some have no excuse for needing such major adjustments (gibsons) So no, im not kidding you, I just don't think you caught my post right.....I was refering to the last bit that said its not what you play. Thats an admirable sentiment but you are equating a Fender to a cheap bass, which it isnt unless you consider a fodera or Wal bass normally priced, I was pointing out that some basses are simply rubbish and a good bass with versitility does add to a bass players arsenal regardless of developement or talent.....if not we would all play £80 lindo basses. [/quote] Good one- actually I would agree that £600 is a cheap instrument- though I suppose a RW Jazz retails for £1000+ ( not that I would pay that for one). Still take some setting up though.

[quote name='StephenFerguson' timestamp='1350892960' post='1844627'] I have to disagree, have you played a lindo or a stagg, or tried to let go of a thunderbird without the headstock brutaly saluting Isaac newton? It's not what you play, its how you play it, and if you try to bass guitar using a wet turd, your hands get shity. Word. [/quote] Fender roadworn Jazz- a wet turd??? You got to be kidding me!!

Our Sax player used to carry all our PA ( HK audio- 2x bass bins 4 x tops ) in his renault scenic plus keyboards and his own gear. Until the axle went... Miles better to get he band to share in taking pa etc otherwise its going to be expensive, Try getting insurance for travelling musicians- good luck!! I now carry most of the gear in an L200 Warrior. Very practical motor. I think the key is to buy the best lightweight pa gear you can find.

Just get a BassPod XT Live and use it through your hi-fi or headphones. Get the sound of an SVT with an 8 x 10 at low volume. Or sound like any amp. I have one- hours and hours of fun programming it- loads of great tones and effects. £100. Spend the rest on another bass!! Or a holiday.

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1350836251' post='1844032'] If he is this good on a freezing cold evening in Times Square then how good is he when he is sitting in his own living room ? On on a gig?? [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFz1UQP6aU8&feature=related[/media] [/quote]

Dont know what all the fuss is about re- Ricks, Warwicks etc- try playing the 60s Hofner Senator I have in my other room. Feels like everytime I pick it up it is going to explode. Action like a DB. I love all basses- but even more when I`m on a gig. I try to forget about the instrument and now feel I am happier with a cheap instrument- my Fender Roadworns - than the boutique basses I have. Its not what you play.....

Loz is one of the lucky few who have real pension benefits which are guaranteed. For most of us its a bit different. I work in financial services and do see both sides of the coin- those that can place £200K in their pensions each year and people that can only manage £50 a month. For my own retirement ( I`m 50 ) I am so glad that I deal mainly with the former lot- we call them " rich folk". The rich lot pay for my services to the normal man on the street. Its a demographic time bomb, the whole pensions story. Bound to get a whole lot worse. I do think though that, even though we enjoy it, the whole GAS thing has got so much out of control its untrue. On this very forum we see people buying and selling very expensive gear constantly. I am probably guilty I know. A lot of amazing work was done with a four string plankocaster and a B15. For years. No need for the latest thing. I do agree lightweight gear is so convenient- though I have come to the conclusion that its not everything. I have Markbass gear which is great, though I have just changed to Hartke- LH1000 and a Hydrive cab. Whilst not as light as the Markbass stuff- its still not as bad as an 8 x 10 and V4B!!

Golden age of retirement then Loz!

I think you would find that, with the economy being as it is, that you wont get top dollar for them now and that they would be classed as an appreciating asset over the long term. Sell when the recession has ended- 5 yrs? However I know what you mean when you feel you have just too much "stuff". I too suffer from this problem- 3 cars- 3 motorbikes- loads of bass stuff. I would never class myself as a materialist person, its just developed that way. I do know though that retiring at 60 is, for most people, nigh on impossible. What do you do pal?

I always used some effect or other in each band I have been in, whether it was a load of pedals - the usual filter, octaver, distortion, wah etc though just recently I went down the route of preamps with grit. Now I just go straight in with bass to amp to speaker. I am in a pretty retro soul band and have started to be convinced that my tone was changed more than the room than my effects, once a full band is involved. I felt that using effects in this group just added mud or felt " fake".

Bass is the bottom therefore cabs should be where nature intended- on the floor

I was a 5 string player for years- Thumb NT and Low End Jazz- both great basses- but got into the Retro vibe and now play two fender roadworn jazzes. Moving to a four again is like coming home.