5/16/2006
My Bass Rig
In my first band, I had a colossally inadequate Peavey Basic 40 full-range practice amp that I used for bass, even in shows. It was never loud enough, and coupled with my cheap off-brand bass it brought me no end of embarrassment. In the hope of getting the required volume level on my stringent budget, I had a speaker out jack installed and bought (for $75) the ugliest 15" cab ever conceived (it was not covered in carpet or tolex or anything -- just plywood). This led to even further humiliation, although it did solve the volume problem.
A year later, my friend Danny traded in a Les Paul for a full bass rig so he could play bass in our then-current band, Till We Have Faces. It consisted of a Fender Standard Jazz Bass '92, a fossilized Peavey Mark III head, and a monstrous Crate Bass Cabinet featuring a 15", a 12" and a 10". This last was so large it could not fit into my car (by contrast, my 4x12" Fender cab fit easily), and could not be reasonably lifted by one person. He decided bass was not for him, and sold me the whole rig for $600.
Skip ahead to a year or so ago. I had always felt the equipment I owned was at least sufficient. The bass rig, though unwieldy, was certainly loud. But I realized, as I started to think about joining bands again, that the equipment I had was not going to make any good impressions (this began, unfortunately, with an embarrassing, feedback laden practice session where I failed to gain anyone's respect). I started upgrading the components of my musical entourage, one by one.
When the time came for me to start looking for bands, I realized that I would not be taken seriously with the ancient, ugly, and enormous bass rig that I had. I also realized that I was taking up a huge amount of space in my parents' garage with something I would never use. I took it up to San Jose with the intention of trading it in. I got (unsurprisingly) a fairly small amount of trade-in for it, but it was just sufficient for half of a Bag End 2x10". I was not at first impressed with the sound, but its small size (it had to have been a tenth of the volume of my previous rig) and name-recognition convinced me it was a good buy. I determined that I could find a head later on.
After a number of purchases and sales, all the while trying out different gear and reading a lot of Harmony Central reviews, I got a hold of an Eden WT405 Time Traveler. This is also a diminuitive unit -- roughly 3"H x 12"D x 13"W. But in spite of their smaller size, the superior quality of the Eden head and Bag End cabinet made for not a downgrade from the previous rig, but an increase in sound quality and volume. I thought for a while of getting a second Bag End cabinet, to take full advantage of the 2ohms minimum output of the amp; but I don't even come close to using the power available now, so I don't really see that happening.
A year later, my friend Danny traded in a Les Paul for a full bass rig so he could play bass in our then-current band, Till We Have Faces. It consisted of a Fender Standard Jazz Bass '92, a fossilized Peavey Mark III head, and a monstrous Crate Bass Cabinet featuring a 15", a 12" and a 10". This last was so large it could not fit into my car (by contrast, my 4x12" Fender cab fit easily), and could not be reasonably lifted by one person. He decided bass was not for him, and sold me the whole rig for $600.
Skip ahead to a year or so ago. I had always felt the equipment I owned was at least sufficient. The bass rig, though unwieldy, was certainly loud. But I realized, as I started to think about joining bands again, that the equipment I had was not going to make any good impressions (this began, unfortunately, with an embarrassing, feedback laden practice session where I failed to gain anyone's respect). I started upgrading the components of my musical entourage, one by one.
When the time came for me to start looking for bands, I realized that I would not be taken seriously with the ancient, ugly, and enormous bass rig that I had. I also realized that I was taking up a huge amount of space in my parents' garage with something I would never use. I took it up to San Jose with the intention of trading it in. I got (unsurprisingly) a fairly small amount of trade-in for it, but it was just sufficient for half of a Bag End 2x10". I was not at first impressed with the sound, but its small size (it had to have been a tenth of the volume of my previous rig) and name-recognition convinced me it was a good buy. I determined that I could find a head later on.
After a number of purchases and sales, all the while trying out different gear and reading a lot of Harmony Central reviews, I got a hold of an Eden WT405 Time Traveler. This is also a diminuitive unit -- roughly 3"H x 12"D x 13"W. But in spite of their smaller size, the superior quality of the Eden head and Bag End cabinet made for not a downgrade from the previous rig, but an increase in sound quality and volume. I thought for a while of getting a second Bag End cabinet, to take full advantage of the 2ohms minimum output of the amp; but I don't even come close to using the power available now, so I don't really see that happening.
