The Case for Keeping It Simple: Bass Gear Overload

[HolmeBass]

OP the discussion on increased complexity makes sense. What fails is your lazy syllogism that the complexity “must” make your tone worse. It simply is not a given that that is true.

 

[bellbottoms]

Hey everyone, I just wanted to jump in and say I didn’t mean for my post to come across as judgmental or preachy. I was sharing my perspective based on my experiences with gear, and I respect that everyone’s approach is different.

I’m in the process of simplifying my setup. For me, that means stripping it down to essentials, like a tuner and maybe a specific effect if the song requires it. This approach has helped me focus on my playing and tone without getting bogged down in tweaking a bunch of settings.

I totally get that what works for me might not work for others. Thanks for sharing your perspectives!

 

[JenderBazzFass]

The only pedal that really seems required to me is compression, it's hard for me to imagine getting things right without any of it, whether it's on the amp or in pedal form.

Everything else is genre and personal taste.

 

[KenSmithFan]

Just because YOU can’t figure it out doesn’t mean that the rest of us can’t figure it out.

 

[40Hz]

I’m in the process of simplifying my setup. For me, that means stripping it down to essentials, like a tuner and maybe a specific effect if the song requires it.

I can relate. Despite owning a ridiculous number of pedals, and having assembled at least a dozen different pedalboards of varying complexity over the years, my current grab & go “board” consists of an ST-300 stage tuner, a DryBell Unit 67, and a Countryman Type 85 DI. That’s is all I need about 85% of the time. There isn’t even an actual board. The tuner sits on the floor. The Unit 67 gets parked on top of my amp. And the DI usually remains in my gig bag unless it’s needed.

Occasionally an “effecty” effect may join the party depending. Most times it’s either a phaser, an octaver, or a delay. But that’s becoming less common as time goes on.

 

[logdrum]

For my experimental group, I mainly use my bowed upright bass. I am a decent bower and can do thumb position cleanly, but without my Eventide, Ventris and Nemesis Delays, Space echo, CE3 chorus and C4. I can't get those sounds. I also use utility EQs, compressors and clean preamps for the mic and piezo.

For regular bass duties, I need my envelope filter Spectrum, Ultrawave or Sushi Box for grind crunch, Atlas Compressor and my Chorus pedal and a SA ZIO bass DI, Just normal tools IMO. Yeah for blues jams or country I probably cget by with just a cable and tuner. But adding some grind keeps the mud and boominess out. The Sushi or the ZIOS mild grit is indispensable especially if you are using other amps or FOH. If you listen to Jamerson isolated sound, is is a transformer grind that made those bass lines stand out. That is why the SansAmp BDDI is a staple for decades now. For me the ZIO does the same thing. If there are crunchy guitars, I have Ultrawave patches as well that do the angry SVT thing or growly Bassman/B15 as well.

The StreamLiner has a fantastic grind. I am sure that the Mesa TT, WD, Genzler Kinetix, GH Fusion S and the Legacy can deliver these as well as the tube amps they are replacing. Try it out next time. You will be surprised how that grit is useful live.

 

[PhatBottomBass1]

Next on TalkCreativeBass...

Elwood Blues discusses:

Plain Dry Toast...AND Butter?

 

[monsterthompson]

Next on TalkCreativeBass...

Elwood Blues discusses:

Plain Dry Toast...AND Butter?

You have all the fundamental toast flavors you need in plain dry toast. Every spread of fat, salt, and milk solids adds layers of complexity for your tastebuds to navigate. In the end, there’s no way your toast tastes better under all that complexity.

 

[PhatBottomBass1]

There I was in another blasphemer thread on Synthiness pedals to rule the world. A seemingly lame Boss pedal with a less stellar reputation than a serious crazy big bag of tricks...then it hit me...

I can take that pedal, with a stereo wet/dry true bypass output, into a stereo intelligent filter..process the signals independently and mix to mono into a multi band compressor. This pedal allows for an infinite hold function, on the wet signal only, while the dry does it's own thing...

Q: What can I do on the ONE with a single square wave, LFO processing with some magic, while the other dry signal runs 1/16 notes with changes?

I better not mention silent stage, IEM and IR's...

Crazy Talk....

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Disagree entirely. If I thought my bass sounded worse with pedals (or better without them), then I wouldn't use pedals.

I have specific needs for pedals: overdrive/distortion because I like it. Compression (sometimes) because along with dirt it allows my rig to sound much like a cranked SVT even at coffeehouse volume.

I joined a Cheap Trick tribute, so to simulate the 12-string thing I bought octave up and chorus. Sorry, I wasn't going to buy an actual 12-string bass. I think they are awesome, deep respect to those who play them, but restringing and tuning them is not my idea of fun. Besides, I'm a 5-string guy... need my low B, and have less-than-zero interest in 15 string.

And that's just me: others have the need to emulate quality synth bass, or simply enjoy the extra zazz from reverb, autowah, etc.



Now, I totally agree that complexity can come with cost. For me, I can easily get lost with programmable multi-fx. So, I go with what I know: analog pedals that do one thing (or range of things) well. Each pedal is like a color on a palette, I figure out how to blend them into pleasing colors. This has come from practice.

Sure, it's easy to get crap tones from pedals if you don't know what you're doing. So, the answer is to know what you're doing. It ain't rocket science. I could learn to use a Quad Cortex well if I really wanted to. I just prefer analog.

Last but not least: it's important to state that I'm not "fixing" the tones of my basses. I love every bass I own without processing, and that's how I play them at home (unless I'm learning a new effect). Processing is icing on the cake at the gig. And I have to add that I regularly get compliments on my effected tone from bandmates and bandleaders. That includes my most effected clangy Entwistle-like tones for hard rock.

This!
I have always on pedals - compressor, eq, Sonic Stomp, pre/DI. They got added one at a time, and tweaked to fit my amp and the basses played. I find what I like best and leave it alone. (Going down a rabbit hole is a choice, and you can choose not to - with or without pedals.) The rest are special effects (OD, flanger) used only on certain songs or passages. I frequently practice with no pedalboard and sometimes play out without it. These is no one size fits all.

 

[ceetee]

Let’s talk about pedalboards and the endless pursuit of the perfect tone. Here’s my take: every single piece of gear you add to your pedalboard makes your setup exponentially more complicated.

Think about it—every knob on every pedal modifies your sound in a specific way. Now, multiply that by the number of knobs and switches on each pedal, and then multiply that by the number of pedals on your board. You’ve just created a system that’s orders of magnitude more complex than simply plugging directly into your amp—or, if you really need it, running through one or two well-chosen effects.

In the end, there’s no way your bass actually sounds better under all that complexity. What you’re really doing is chasing your tail, tweaking endlessly, and potentially masking the natural tone of your instrument.

I get it—buying gear is fun, and tweaking your sound is too. But personally, I’m moving in the opposite direction. Stripping things down to the essentials has helped me focus more on my playing and less on chasing a tone that may not even exist.

Sometimes, less is more. Simplicity gives you clarity, focus, and a sound that cuts through without getting bogged down in a maze of knobs and settings. So before you add that next pedal, ask yourself: Do I really need it?

Good thing, reduction is working for you. I'd just not asume, everybody else is just adding stuff in the desperate need to fix shortcomings introduced by the wish to destroy the perfect tone of the bass by addingen pedals in the first place. Most people add and remove according to their needs.