aLxbass Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Right to cut a long story short, (need help mainly with a dirty/overdrive/distortion sound?) I'm not a huge effects guy. Iv'e had the me50b, ODB3 etc.. but always found myself just using a clean sound because i cant seem the find that right gritty tone for me, in the current band i play in.. i know in places a nice bit of grit in my sound will go a far way. So on the weekend i went out and brought the Blackstar HT Distx, tonight when i got to rehearsal i couldn't stop messing around with it. I just can't seem to be happy, so like before i went back to just using my clean tone on my MXR Di+ (the mxr also has a distortion effect that i can't seem to get right) So i'm wondering, Is it me doing something wrong? am i not setting the things up correctly. i need advice! The sound im after is, nothing to OTT just a little bit of dirt to give me that "edge" when I feel the need for it, i could always double up the distx and also use the distortion on the mxr if i ever feel like going that one step further. But may i also add, i still want to be heard... when i found an OKish tone, i was getting drowned out by the guitars.. i may aswell of gone home... Gear im using..: Spector Legend 5 Hartke LH500 - Settings (taken from tonights rehearsal: Bass - 7, Mid - 9, Treble - 4, Bright and Limiter - Both OFF) Hartke Hydrive 410's MXR DI+ - Settings (taken from tonights rehearsal: Bass - 12 o'clock, Mid - 3 o'clock, Treble - 10'oclock, Color - OFF - i used to always run this with the color function on, but tonight it sounded a little muddy) DISTX - Obviously don't have settings for that, i was trying everything with pretty lowish gain.. as i said, i only want a nice touch of dirt in my sound! I have it set up like this... ( Bass -> Boss Tu3 -> Distx -> Di+ -> LH500 ) Any help would be appreciated. Many thanks, Alex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted January 30, 2014 Share Posted January 30, 2014 It really depends on how your guitarists and drummer sound. Getting a good sound at home rarely ever cuts it in a band setting. Spend time as a band getting the guitarists to sit in their relative audio spaces & you can then sort yours out. This usually requires getting the guitarist to admit he doesn't need "depth & body" in the lower frequencies & turning back the bass.4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topheteatwo Posted January 30, 2014 Share Posted January 30, 2014 A Wren and Cuff Phat Phuk B sounds like what you need or alternatively a Fulltone OCD offers a nice little tiny bit in terms of OD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krispn Posted February 8, 2014 Share Posted February 8, 2014 (edited) Alex Just to repeat what's already been said but... As you may know the drive on the MXR automatically engages the modern function so you're getting a more modern scoop to the tone. The W&C PPB gives a useful boost and it'll defo bump you in the live mix. I used one in conjunction with a ODB-3 with good effect! Does your bass core tone have a scoop to it and maybe your needing to adjust where you sit in the mix, push the mids more to popke out between the guitars? I like the MXR Bass OD but it does add some of that modern sound on the clean blend knob - Ashdown Lomenzo Hyperdrive or the Nate Mendel might be worth a look (the demo's at least) to see if your needing a specfic frequency boosted or something with a clean blend to keep your core tone thick and present Perhaps a eq pedal would allow you to boost the frequencies in conjunction with your current drive? Would the guitarist be willing to look at the bands sound as a whole unit and tailor their tone so you have a good big wall of sound? I suspect you'll have to fit in with their sound. Half the fun is finding your place in the mix and maybe your next practice you should go with the mindset of doing that and not concenbtrating on the actual rehearsal? for maybe the last 30 minutes get the band to play the same tune a cple of times, record each take on your phone if you can, make adjustments to your EQ (and write them down), record, adjust and repeat. Get the guys in the band involved and get their opinion too cause once you all have your place in the mix you'll be a better sounding band. Listen back at home the following day, maybe get the lads frok the band round too to hear the differences. It's more productive than getting frustrated that you've wasted money and time on rehearsal and you will sound better as a unit, make recording easier in the future etc etc. I look forward to hearing how you get on!! Edited February 8, 2014 by krispn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 I`m just experimenting with this as well. None of the drives on my Zoom B3 are exactly what I want, as just want to have a not completely clean sound. The Markbass Mini Distortion looks good, as the video clips show a very small amount of breakup on the lowest settings. Plus you can select two mid-frequencies to have the distortion work on. One is up to a 20db cut at 800hz, the other is a 20db boost, on frequencies between 200Hz and 2.5kHz. Annoyingly all of the Youtube clips re most pedals are just far too full on for me. I also don`t really want any colouring on the sound which is what many seem to do, but the Markbass should work with my amp well, it being Markbass as well. And, it being little, not too much extra gear to cart around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truckstop Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 You should get yourself an Ashdown James Lomenzo Hyperdrive. It's got a frequency scroller and you can choose where in the mix you want the distortion to sit while still retaining the lows. Other OD's have the same tool but the Lomezo is probably the most inexpensive option (SH). The bands I've seen/heard with the best overdriven bass sounds tend to embrace the fact that they're going to lose bottom end and really pile on the grit and work with the guitars and keys to create a great BAND sound. Personally, 'a touch of grit' does nothing. You may as well just use a heavy playing style. For 'grit' to work, you need a cranked valve amp. Using pedals, you gotta spade the drive on and work to find a mix with the rest of the band that works. In my opinion. Truckstop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0175westwood29 Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 [quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1391951377' post='2362884'] You should get yourself an Ashdown James Lomenzo Hyperdrive. It's got a frequency scroller and you can choose where in the mix you want the distortion to sit while still retaining the lows. Other OD's have the same tool but the Lomezo is probably the most inexpensive option (SH). The bands I've seen/heard with the best overdriven bass sounds tend to embrace the fact that they're going to lose bottom end and really pile on the grit and work with the guitars and keys to create a great BAND sound. Personally, 'a touch of grit' does nothing. You may as well just use a heavy playing style. For 'grit' to work, you need a cranked valve amp. Using pedals, you gotta spade the drive on and work to find a mix with the rest of the band that works. In my opinion. Truckstop [/quote] agree with this you do seem to need more than what you think, what is it you dnt like about the blackstar? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisnameistaken Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 It's not about buying a different pedal, it's about getting the band mix to work properly. Most guitarists aren't used to bass players using distortion, so you'll disappear into the thick sounds they're using. See if you can collectively fix it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 (edited) With the right pedal though, you will not drop out of the mix, especially as we're only taking low gain here. Many have a slight mid boost, making you stand out of the mix even more when engaged! I don't agree with some of the suggestions here - Phat Phuk is more of a boost pedal, and the Ashdown Lomenzo sounds thin and unnatural to me. For low gain OD, the DHA VT1, Xotic Bass BB, and Catalinbread SFT are my usual recommendations, but lately I have been favouring the tube drive model on the Soundblox OFD set to minimum gain, so much so I am thinking of unloading both of my SFTs! Edited February 9, 2014 by dannybuoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 Lots of good advice on here! When I play my bass unaccompanied the tone is very harsh in the upper mids and treble. It doesn't sound particularly musical, but in a full band mix it really works! I set myself a little rule where I can only tweak my sound ad rehearsals or sound check, because oftentimes a tone that sounds great solo either won't sound right in the mix, or will disappear completely! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dudewheresmybass Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 I've been on a similar quest for a long long time. Currently I'm using an old dod fx 91 bass overdrive. I've also had got very close with the hardwire tube od, lomenzo hyperdrive, bass tubescreamer, and ebs multi drive. It's taken a lot of trying and cash ! But I think I'm more or less there now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 [quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1392024134' post='2363586'] Lots of good advice on here! When I play my bass unaccompanied the tone is very harsh in the upper mids and treble. It doesn't sound particularly musical, but in a full band mix it really works! I set myself a little rule where I can only tweak my sound ad rehearsals or sound check, because oftentimes a tone that sounds great solo either won't sound right in the mix, or will disappear completely! [/quote] I`ve found that`s the best way for me to get a tone that sits well in the mix as well Chris. I just want that minimal amount of drive that stops the sound from being completely clean, but in the mix you`d never hear it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highfox Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 Interesting, I just bought the Catalinbread SFT to try and get that subtle overdrive that won't lose the low end. I really wanted something switchable as well. It sounds good at home so far, will be able to test it properly on Friday at practice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_5 Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 Xotic BB bass pre or DHA VT1? The Ashdown Lomenzo pedal is really good too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weepaul Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 The Darkglass B3K is worth a look, I managed to get a Jason Newsted Garage days re-revisited kinda sound out of it. With a bit more growl tho. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnSR6cmZ-iQ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 [quote name='weepaul' timestamp='1392234828' post='2366359'] The Darkglass B3K is worth a look, I managed to get a Jason Newsted Garage days re-revisited kinda sound out of it. With a bit more growl tho. [/quote] Jason has such a great tone. I like pairing drive pedals with a Sansamp to get a metal tone that suits me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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