concretebadger Posted October 29, 2011 Share Posted October 29, 2011 (edited) I'm running a simple recording setup of a Fender J through a pedal tuner, Sansamp D.I. and reverb pedal into a USB mixer but I'm after a dirt box that can add some texture and sustain for the 'loud bits'. The D.I. compresses and EQs things nicely but there's virtually no distortion at all on its own. I've tried some of the stompboxes I use for guitar to give you a general idea of what I'm after. Also, [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQc-2bBmdfw"]this vid[/url] has a kicking bass sound - the bass break at the 3:10 mark is roughly what I'm aiming for. Big Muff: there's plenty of thickness and sustain but I'm not really after a fuzz because the 'square wave' distortion is too 'regular' and smooth. Danelectro Fab Tone: the high end is too loose and fizzly but I like the tweakability of the bass and treble. Proco RAT: this is close. Plenty of mids (the Sansamp can bring out enough bottom end), sustain and grit. Didn't ProCo make a bass version at some point? Right now the nearest I've got to the sound in my head is a RAT-like distortion but since I'm a newcomer to the bass recording thing I'm not sure how the requirements and approach differ from, say, a rhythm guitar part or how bass dirt boxes differ from their guitar counterparts. I'm assuming the emphasis should be on the lower mids, rather than scooping the tone through boosting the highs and lows, so would a good port of call be a bass-friendly RAT? I've so far worked out that I want a high-ish gain distortion/valvelike overdrive rather than a fuzz but beyond that I'm feeling spoilt for choice. Any advice in narrowing it down would be appreciated! Edited October 29, 2011 by concretebadger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil.i.stein Posted October 29, 2011 Share Posted October 29, 2011 i really enjoyed that track. thanks for posting it. a darkglass b3k, although seemingly expensive will get you most of the way there, and beyond. [url="http://darkglasselectronics.com/products/microtubes-b3k/"]http://darkglasselectronics.com/products/microtubes-b3k/[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil.i.stein Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtewazUYMMs"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtewazUYMMs[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 (edited) proco did make a 'bass rat' - it was called a juggernaut and doesn't seem to have that good a reputation from the reviews i've seen, tho i've not tried one myself. from that clip of the darkglass, i think a rat could be a cheaper alternative. the turbo rat keeps a bit more low end than the current model of rat, but has a lot heavier distortion. hth Edited November 1, 2011 by ahpook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 I had a Proco Juggernaut bass thingy. It was pretty rubbish and you'd be better off with one of the guitar ones! Though I use a Marshall Jackhammer that was given to me and it is capable of some really awesome distortion/drive settings. It's got a 2 band EQ and a sweepable midrange kinda thing going on which is really useful! Definately worth a shot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorick Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 If you can find an Ibanez Phat-Hed PD7 pedal, I reckon you'll get a close sound to what you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
concretebadger Posted November 2, 2011 Author Share Posted November 2, 2011 (edited) Thanks for the replies so far everyone. I have to say I like the sound of the B3K but it's really out of my price range sadly. Maybe when I' more experienced on the bass I might be able to justify it, but right now I'd feel it would be wasted on me, if that makes any sense. It's interesting that the Juggernaut isn't all it's cracked up to be...looks like another RAT is the way to go then, until I can afford a Darkglass. What's the Boss bass OD like by the way? In my experience their guitar distortions are hit and miss - some are lacklustre sound-wise and are popular because of their reliability rather than sounding outstanding. EDIT: now I think of it, a bass playing friend of mine used to use a Jackhammer and may even be selling it. Hmm... And yeah, Mass of the Fermenting Dregs are a really fun but little-known band. Glad you liked that! The guitarist left fairly recently though, so I'm not sure when their next record will be out. Edited November 2, 2011 by concretebadger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sibob Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 My personal opinion on the Boss ODB3 is that its not great, I really didn't hear any nice low end distorsion/grind, its all mid/high fizz. I've had a much much better time with the Boss Mega Distortion, £30 off ebay, perfect for the amount I use it in my covers band. For my 'proper' gated fuzz sounds in the dubstep band I'm using a CoPilot FX Orbit I'll try and do some vids perhaps Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musky Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 I really liked that band as well, so cheers for that. It might just be my ears, but I thought the sound in that clip was scooped a bit. You didn't mention what you thought was missing from your sound with the Rat. If it was a bit of bottom end I know SilentFly on here does a mod for Rats. http://www.sfxsound.co.uk/mainpage.asp?page=mods The Jackhammer might be worth a shot - I used to use one of the original Guvnors doing similar stuff to MOTFD and really loved the character of the distortion, but found it lost some of the lows when I stopped using a Rick. No idea how the newer Guvnors fair though. I'm with Sibob on the Boss. Not for me despite persisting with it for ages. Plenty of people love them, though I suspect they might prefer a more aggressive or synthy sound to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topo morto Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 I'm another one that likes the band! They are using my favourite chord, I think... I think almost everything is Midrangey compared to the Sansamp and Big Muff, both known for their scoop. I agree that there's nothing wrong with the Phat-Hed PD7. A couple more to check demos of would be the Xotic BB Preamp (a bit warmer/more traditional) and Aguilar Agro (more grindy). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doddy Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 How about taking a look at Pigtronix Polysaturator or Aria. The Aria is more of an overdrive than the Polysaturator(which is a heavier),but both have a 3 band EQ section so you can boost the mids if you want. I use the Polysaturator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelso Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Rat pedals are great. I used a 'Turbo Rat' once for recording and I think it could work well for you . . . It's a guitar pedal primarily but I found it worked really well with Bass . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 I've not had a chance to try one, but I'm told the Ashdown James LoMenzo Hyperdrive is very good; as I understand it, it is designed to overdrive the mids whilst keeping the lows and highs clean so could be just what you're looking for Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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