Bass Guitar effects to cover up?

Question

I'm having a major sound problem. Either its my bass (Squire P Bass Special) or its my amp( Behringer 1x15 with Hartke Ha 2000 head). I am having the hardest time getting a good sound from it, so should I look into getting a batter bass or just get and effects board to cover up the crappy sound. BTW

Answer 1

I don't think it's your bass; Squier's are pretty cheap, but they're still fairly reliable instruments.

I'd say you need a better bass amp setup.

Behringer amps and cabs have a horrible reputation. They're notorious for breaking down and sounding really bad. They're made with cheap building materials, and the wattage rating they're advertised to have is usually in PMP (Peak) watts, not RMS (Average) watts...so a 300W Behringer amp/cab is actually closer to 150W.

Also, the Hartke HA series of amplifier heads aren't the greatest either; the sound isn't very good, and they're also said to break down a lot.

If you're looking for something that's pretty cheap (I assume you are), there are a few options. I'd stay away from Gallien-Krueger and Ampeg at your price range; they both make some really good amps, but their lower-end stuff isn't that great.

The one brand I can wholeheartedly recommend is Ashdown. They aren't as well-known as some companies (they're from the UK), but their reputation is awesome, and their amps give great tone for an incredible price. They're also very reliable amps; you can expect them to easily last you 10-20 years (which can't be said of Behringer, or low-end Hartke >_< )

Here are some options:

Ashdown Electric Blue Combos (180W, 15" or 12" Speakers):

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

Ashdown MAG Combos (300W, 15" or 2x10" Speakers):

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

Ashdown Heads (180-600W):

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

Ashdown Cabinets (15", 2x10" or 4x10" Speakers):

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/A...

I'm not sure what your budget is, but Ashdown is probably the best rig you'll find for less than $1000. Their combos are nice, but if you prefer to get your amp and cab separately, take note: all the heads I posted are $300...so for the same price as a 180W Electric Blue head, you can get the 600W MAG head...if you plan on getting into a band in the future and getting serious about bass, this is something you shouldn't pass up =P ...but in any case, it's up to you.

Just a note about bass amps in general...

Most amplifiers have a resistance rating of 4 ohms; cabinets usually come in either 8 ohm or 4 ohm ratings. What this means for you is that if your amp isn't running with 4 ohms (or whatever its rating is) worth of cabinets (one 4 ohm cab or two 8 ohm cabs), then it'll only be running at half its power. So if you had a 200W head plugged into a single 8 ohm cabinet, you'd probably be getting just 100 watts. Even some combos are like this. If you have a powerful amp (like the Ashdown 600 Watt), that wouldn't be a big problem, since you'd still have 300 watts to use, but with smaller amps, you should keep in mind that with a single cab you'll probably be getting only half the power of your amplifier. The way to remedy that is to buy another cabinet and plug it in. If you have a 15" speaker, I'd recommend a 2x10" or 4x10" (10" speakers have more mid-range/high-end than 15"s, giving you a more rounded tone), or if you have a 2x10"/4x10" cabinet to get a 1x15" (which has a more powerful low-end).

Sorry if that was way too long, but it's sort of a complicated subject =P

I hope that helps you out a bit, and that you find what you're looking for.

Cheers!