Beedster

Tonerider's a very good 👍

There's a lot of hostility - understandably - from people who have loaded up on £1,000s (well usually $1,000s) worth of UAD plugins only to find that the company are changing direction in both software and hardware phsilosophy. But c'est la vie I guess, the times they are a-changing'! I've been using UAD since 2020 and in all that time I've only had one tech problem (with the UAD side of things that is, Pro Tools and Softtube are ongoing tech problems), which was when my Solo simply refused to take bus power in a rather important remote interview which left me using the mic on my laptop. But guess what, I was able to make it sound almost as good in post-production using UAD plugins (I also use RX-10 quite a lot for noise etc). I could not go back to my old setup so as long as UAD are there I'll be pretty loyal to them 👍

I think we live in similar universes

I recently stumbled across the EMG Geezer Butler Precision PUPs and was very pleasantly surprised 👍

I love to dig out old recordings/tracks and run them through the room emulations, 'Mmmm, wonder how we'd have sounded had we recorded in LA in the early '90s?'

I believe physical space is the restriction? I suspect if you have 4u, UAD would prefer you buy two units?

Indeed. Don't be drawn into the 'more expensive means better game', while there might be some legitimate justification for the difference in price (materials used, place of manufacture), they're all much of a muchness once they're on your bass.

Perhaps I'm reading a different thread to you but I get the sense that the vast majority of members here think very highly of Bass Direct. I'm sure if Mark or his colleagues were unhappy that this thread was running they'd have got in touch with the forum owners?

The reason I went to UAD was that I had the hardware version of the Avalon and found the plugin. I sold the hardware thinking I was making a clever financial move……

I use the Avalon 737 on pretty much everything, problem with UAD is too easy and much choice 🙂

Given how few LH uprights are on the market and especially at that price, I think a long journey wlll be time well spent. Even if you simply buy it to allow you to practice ad perform on a playable instrument while you look for a more suitable long-term solution it would make sense. But you might also get very lucky, the great thing with uprights is that just occasionally a cheap one isn't necessarily a bad one Good luck and keep us posted 👍

Many thanks, it’s not the 1516 it’s two discrete cabs, might take the back off tomorrow and see what’s going on in there! Appreciate your response 👍

Hi @stevie, are you referring to my cab in particular?

Scan are very good I use them a lot

Just when I thought I was GAS-free 🤔

Yep, you're in a very good environment to experiment. I'm sure people have a lot of opinions on the pros and cons, but something I love about using a fixed mic as that I can very volume, tone, and of course feedback, by moving the instrument itself, as opposed to adjusting preamp settings or PUP/on-board mic positioning. OK, a lot of it will depend on various player/music/band/venue-specific factors (there we some venues for example where there simply was not sufficient room for an extra mic stand, and there's a down side in that unconscious movement of the bass can lead to unplanned/unwanted variation, but I much prefer it to using PUPs onboard mics given the opportunity, and IME the amplified tone of the instrument can be a whole lot better for it

Unless you need that sustain

Some basses are fine as is, others benefit from a different bridge, not a lot to be gained from isolated/unique example

That’s why I use a mic, IMO you don’t get air without one

The differences are theoretically measurable using pretty standard audio gear. But as you point out, basses are usually made of wood and wood is highly variable, so the only differences that could be measured usefully would be those for a single bass by - while keeping all else equal - switching the bridges and measuring the audio output. Frankly, I prefer to use my ears, on which basis I'd say that on probably 25% of the basses on which I've installed them a Badass has made a difference I can hear, tonally usually in the high mids/highs and harmonics, structurally in greater sustain which I tend to notice on the lower strings, and possibly a different envelope. As has been pointed out above, I'm sure that some of these effects have less to do with mass per se and more to do with greater stability/better engineering. So, here's my rules of thumb.... Instruments on which I would normally at least try a Badass Fretless bass especially with roundwounds Fretted bass using roundwounds especially on a maple neck Instruments on which I would normally not use a Badass Everything else

Done 👍

Standard mic pointed at the bridge these days, fed up with expensive, fragile, unpredictable, and ultimately dissatisfying DB PUPs. The mic in question was until recently a rather lovely Heil PR-40 but frankly for live work a cheaper Shure (SM57/58) works just fine.

Martin Simms?