Re: De-activate an active bass?


John Bigboote wrote:
So I'm reluctant to sell it and try something else,
even though I feel totally nuts throwing money at a MIM Fender.

Not "nuts"! Hey, when you find "THE" MIM Fender, you KEEP it! I got one
and I've been tweeking on it for some time now. The thing is just one
of those that blows away so many other Fenders regardless of cost.

What were you using for your DI?

Usually it's either mine (which was built by me and is basically just a
high-end transformer) or one supplied by the venue sound which is
typically also a simple type with no controls.

Going passive -- and having the two distinctly different basses -- suggests
another possibility: Adding a BassBone to my mix. There's the added
adjustability, the ability to boost the passive signal, to tweak the shape
of each bass, and to switch back 'n' forth easily in a gig, plus the DI --
everything it's designed specifically for. So, it makes some sense to me to
save the money I'd spend on the preamp, and put it instead into the
BassBone.

Yes, the passive-BassBone or similar solution is totally valid. As I
said above the only problem I've had with that is that if the thing is
sitting somewhere hard to reach (like on the floor) it tends to not be
as effective as you'd like. If you take time to mount it somewhere that
you can easily reach while playing, it makes a LOT of sense because the
thing that makes up for the lack of convenience of knobs right on the
bass is the fact that you now have a much wider range of control over
your signal and tone. So I guess if you are anal, you can figure out
some kind of stand for it that solves the reach problems and yes, you
are right that this way to go makes a GREAT deal of sense!

But BassBone is designed as a floor switch unit which makes reaching
tone controls while playing a hassle. It is a killer two-bass control
center, though! I've done a similar thing with my Digitech BP-8. But it
likewise is a floor unit so the best you can do is program EQ ahead of
time and tap it in with the pedals. It does have a vol pedal that can
be programed to most any function. The reason I don't use it much is
first, the digital effects and EQ tend to be just a tad noisy and even
worse is it doesn't have a "true" switched bypass. Bypass just sets
all the digital settings flat. Passing through the DSP, even set flat,
DOES change the tone in noticable ways! ESPECIALLY if you are going for
that subtle vibe of a passive bass.
So the lesson is if you want an external pre/EQ box you really want it
analog unless you are using effects when using it with passive basses.
(I'm pretty sure the BassBone is analog)

But on the third hand, a BassBone also has an effects loop where you
might add say an external preamp with EQ etc. that is at waist level
and leave the bone on the floor as a controller. As you can see, there
can be a lot of ins and outs in this business. And I think you are
doing the right approach trying to think it through. As you can see
I've done some of this myself already, but still haven't found what I
consider to be an "ultimate" solution. Often, you'll discover things on
a gig that you hadn't noticed in your "theoretical" plans. That's OK
because it gives you more information for your next go round.

Lots to ponder and lots of details to deal with. Wiring your Fender
passive is the easy part!

Benj

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