AMP Settings for bass amp or equalizer.

[dfwkeys]

Does anyone know where i can find most common amp settings for bass or equalizer or can you share what you use?

[MikeGee]

I try all flat then I move everything just above flat then I might move the mids down a lil below flat then maybe I'll move treb. Just below flat then maybe I'll move bass to where ever 3/4 is I might move the treb knob equal to bass.


If you want to slap you might want a lil more treb then you might with finger style. If you want an old school sound lower the mids and treb and raise the bass if you want some funk and growl add some mids.

I like a lot of different tones or voices whatever you want to call it so I really am the wrong person for this.

I play mostly accoustic driven rock so setting my bass to 3/4 treb to 1/2 and the 2 mids to about 2/3 sounds really great and compliments what's going on around me very nicely

[dhagler]

I set everything to 12:00.  Sometimes I turn my low and my high to 3:00.

[play4zero]

If you have a good amp, setting it flat will probably get you pretty far down the road.  If you're trying to use your tone knobs to increase your volume, you need a new and more powerful amp.  Virtually all the good amps sound great set flat.  In fact, if you're looking for an amp and it doesn't get pretty close to the mark when it's set flat, look elsewhere.

[6stringapprentice]

I run pretty flat with a little mid/shape boost. Also run the bass eq flat and boost any thing that is cutting through. I know a lot of bassist use the smiley face if you have ever seen the slider type eq's

[floaded27]

i kinda didnt want to start a new thread cause its a similar topic.

i'm having trouble finding the right setup for what i want.

it seems that whenever i get a chance to see other bass players in church they seem to have things set up just perfectly. i was at our jurisdictional musical tonight and i saw the bass player set up and immediately when he plugged in he was able to cut through the mix. not being drowned out at all. the amp he had i believe was a fender bassman 210/250 combo amp and he was playing with 3 keyboardists, an organist and  a guitar player. i seem to have trouble cutting through at my church where its just the organist and i have a peavey tour 750 head with avatar 410 cab. i think its my amp settings or something, but i really dont know what to adjust to correct the problem

also the guy had crazy tone. it was this deep gritty tone for fingerstyle and the slapping was bright without him making adjustments on his bass switching between the two. it wasnt his bass, it was a regular ibanez (i mean it could have been the bass, but im saying is not some $3k-$4k bass), not sure of the model, but i saw it in guitar center. im at a loss of what to do to get these kinds of settings.  i really dont want to be fiddling with eq during service, but i guess i might just have to.

any suggestions?

[jeremyr]

alot of your tone is in your fingers.  I don't care how much modeling you do on your bass or amp, to a certain degree your touch has ALOT to do with it.  Now that isn't saying that if you cutg your trebble and mids, and then boost your lows you won't hear a difference, but it's probably not that tone in your head or you hear others playing either.

[BassbyGrace]

Also understand you have to look at your situation/gig environment.  When its less musicians, you can use more bass in your mix.  When there are alot more, or say the floor is wood or some other material that carries bass frequencies easily, you actually might have to roll of the BASS some and up the mids.  If not, you will just sound rumbly with no definition or character.  Other than that, like jeremy said, its in the hands.

[twest45]

I learned that in order to cut thru the mix you have to boost the low and hight mids a little and leave the bass flat.  It doesn't sound good from your point of view but out in the audiance is sounds awesome.  It you go to talkbass.com and go to search and type cutting in the mix or something simular about a hundred topics will come up.  Some of the people are sound engineers so they know their sound.

[Torch7]

It doesn't sound good from your point of view but out in the audiance is sounds awesome.

I experienced this at a camp meeting in NY a couple of weeks ago.  I sat during Worship, loving the tone from the Bass.
After the service, I sat over with the musicians playing around on the bass, and right next to the cab, i didn't like the tone at all.
I was sitting there with a blank stare on my face.  I thought it was me, he took his bass back, and the tone didn't improve until
I walked back over to where I was sitting on the second row.

[DWBass]

Yup, a lot of bassists think that the bass knob needs to be maxed. In order to cut through, you have to boost the mids and roll off the bass (this will also help clipping problems). Too much bass works against you. Also, check how loud the rest of the band is. If you can't cut through, many times the rest of the band is the culprit. I wouldn't think gospel music really needs to be that loud to begin with. Start with a controlled environment. Everyone set their levels and DO NOT TOUCH them the rest of the night.

[BassbyGrace]

. Everyone set their levels and DO NOT TOUCH them the rest of the night.

I think Jesus will come back before that happens LMBOOO!!! 

[floaded27]

wow. i didnt think i'd get so much feedback so quickly. thats for the better cause now i got a lot of info to work with. a lot of the points make total sense.

jeremyr - i have been working on softening my touch, but it was more for having better control. but now that i know it affects my tone i'll keep working on that. definitely as soon as i finish typing this post.

bassbygrace - recently i've been rolling off the bass cause i didnt want all that rumble. i'll start adjusting the mids and highs to get the right thing. and i'll take what u and jeremyr said and work on the touch

twest and torch7 - i'll probably have to do what i used to do which was during rehearsals change where im sitting while im playing and see how it sounds in other places. a couple of times when i was in the church alone i would extend my cable all the way (about 25 feet) and walk down the middle to the back of the church and play, go adjust my settings then walk back until i liked the way it sounded. its just that on sunday morning i was back sitting in the normal place and with the organ i didnt seem to hear what i was hearing before. i'll keep that in mind and know that the audience is hearing different

dwbass - i think the band is the culprit. i do communicate with the drummer and get him to adjust his volume (he's a young kid so he does get excited a lot) but the organist doesnt get it. i do set my volume on my amp to as far as i want it to go and leave it for the whole service. i do adjust the volume from my bass, because i play low until i get a song (when i dont know it) and then boost the volume once i got it. that way the max i can go is the knob on my  bass all the way up which is limited by my amp volume. the thing is everybody else cant do that. the drummer's volume is controlled by how hard he hits (which i can get him to be mindful of) and the organist's volume is controlled by the organ's foot pedal, and the organist seems to have a led foot.

well thanks you guys for the help. i'm gonna go work on my touch right now. i'll adjust the mids and highs (and make sure the bass is flat or cut a litte) during the next rehearal.

[MikeGee]

Yup, a lot of bassists think that the bass knob needs to be maxed. In order to cut through, you have to boost the mids and roll off the bass (this will also help clipping problems). Too much bass works against you. Also, check how loud the rest of the band is. If you can't cut through, many times the rest of the band is the culprit. I wouldn't think gospel music really needs to be that loud to begin with. Start with a controlled environment. Everyone set their levels and DO NOT TOUCH them the rest of the night.

It took me quite sometime to learn that max-ing the bass knob on the amp is not the answer. I've also learn to increase the bass knob on my bass instead of keeping it flat.

[jeremyr]

wow. i didnt think i'd get so much feedback so quickly. thats for the better cause now i got a lot of info to work with. a lot of the points make total sense.

jeremyr - i have been working on softening my touch, but it was more for having better control. but now that i know it affects my tone i'll keep working on that. definitely as soon as i finish typing this post.

softening isn't always better IMHO.  It depends on what the song calls for.

If you've ever heard the song by the anointed pace sisters "High Praise" (

http://youtube.com/watch?v=GMWar2ThTns

).  Darryl Freeman is using a very SHARP and aggressive approach on some of his licks and then lays back on the groove. At least on my bass to get those sharp licks in between I have to get a little snappy and sharp with my touch.  This is where getting to know your instrument comes into play.  I'm sure his Ken Smith is voiced differently then my Lakland, but achieving the same tone is definitely possible.

It's all about the dynamics you want to voice.

Which brings a whole new meaning to "there's only 12 notes and your sound comes from how you play them".

[twest45]

I always play with a sorta strong attack.  Unless its slow worship songs or what not.  But thats how i get my sound.  I'm tring to get my own sound and identity and thats what i like.  Sorta like D. Freeman in "High Praise" but with some more bottom.  I really don't like his sound cuz he has tons of mids and trebles and NO bottom.

[ddwilkins]

softening isn't always better IMHO.  It depends on what the song calls for.

If you've ever heard the song by the anointed pace sisters "High Praise" ( http://youtube.com/watch?v=GMWar2ThTns ).  Darryl Freeman is using a very SHARP and aggressive approach on some of his licks and then lays back on the groove. At least on my bass to get those sharp licks in between I have to get a little snappy and sharp with my touch.  This is where getting to know your instrument comes into play.  I'm sure his Ken Smith is voiced differently then my Lakland, but achieving the same tone is definitely possible.

It's all about the dynamics you want to voice.

Which brings a whole new meaning to "there's only 12 notes and your sound comes from how you play them".

Just a shameless plug, but did you see what amp he was playing out of?  EDEN!!!!!

[jeremyr]

Just a shameless plug, but did you see what amp he was playing out of?  EDEN!!!!!

yeah doc,  I'm sold on EDEN.

I have my aguilar DB410 and I'm looking to pick up a wt550

[Robear22]

One other thing you might want to check is if the organist is playing bass with his feet or left hand. That can lend to you sounding muddy and not clear also. I played at one workshop last year and the guitarist and keyboardist were both playing in my range and you had three different bass tones coming at you playing the same line differently. After the sound check I had to inform both of them that I was the bass player and to let me do my job.

Everyone is right about the mids though. The louder you get the more bass you should cut. It will not sound as sweet as when you play with the smiley face EQ but everyone in the audience will hear you nice and clear.

[ddwilkins]

yeah doc,  I'm sold on EDEN.

I have my aguilar DB410 and I'm looking to pick up a wt550

When you get that head, you won't want anything else.