I posting this on behalf of my bass player

[bengerm77]

So my bass player has a problem with his D and G strings sounding weak and anemic compared to his E and A strings. He's been trying to alleviate this by going through a bunch of pedals (which I don't think really address the problem). After being mostly satisfied by a bass sansamp DI, he had been experimenting with other distortion boxes to add grit to his sound while solving this problem of weak D and G string notes.

 

I initially suggested that he use a larger gauge D and G strings, but more recently have been tinkering with the idea of changing the saddles on his problematic strings. While typing this I realized that a compressor might also solve his problem. Have you guys any thoughts, suggestions, solutions, or reason for this problem occurring?

 

His rig is a P-bass running into an ampeg svt4 pro, I think. Please discuss.

[jrcorp]

I'm not the best reference, but I'm wondering if it's the pickup - the half-pickup that sits under those 2 strings specifically, maybe its nearness to the strings or height, etc. As you probably have at least as much experience as I do with gear, you may have thought of that. I guess you should try to think about all that involves those 2 strings and not the others - that part of the nut, the saddles, the pickup... I couldn't think of anything else. Has he replaced the strings recently? Maybe those strings have become relatively dead compared to the others?!

[bengerm77]

How can you tell I'm the guitar player?

 

I posting, not I'm posting.

[Funkee1]

 

I'm not the best reference, but I'm wondering if it's the pickup - the half-pickup that sits under those 2 strings specifically, maybe its nearness to the strings or height, etc.

 

 

+1.

[jonjohn]

+2

I would look at the pick up, first

[ezstep]

I would RAISE that half of the pickup first, way before I started looking at the electrical portion. Use a small phillips-head screwdriver, and you can raise or lower each half separately. Raise them up a bit (1/4" maybe, to start) and experiment.

 

I have a guitarist who cannot get a clean signal. He runs from a rack-mount tuner to some sort of Pro-FX rack-mounted unit, to about eight different pedals, and then to the amp. All the snorting and popping and whizzing. He actually unplugged the guitar once and plugged it straight into the amp, and it was clean as a whistle!!! But, it didn't satisfy him. I hate it when a guy continues to add pedal after pedal after pedal....

[Narcosynthesis]

With a P bass the pickup is split into two parts, one for the EA strings, one for the DG strings - so if one pair is sounding noticeably different, a bit of fiddling with the pickup may be in order - raising it a bit should hopefully boost the output of those two strings.

 

Alongside that, new strings never hurt - if they have been on the bass a while they could just be getting worn unevenly or have some minor defect in them causing the lighter gauges to sound weaker.

 

The two methods you mentioned should also both work to some degree - beefier DG strings will bulk up the sound of those two somewhat at the expense of feel playing and keeping an even string tension (though something you would very easily adapt to) and a compressor should help to even out the sound somewhat too - again not without tradeoff in dynamics and a change in the tone and feel he gets at the moment.

Both will work, but I would go for the easier options mentioned above first.

[perrydabassman]

It might be the eq settings on the amp as well. Check to see if he has the mids and the highs scooped.

[bassman1956]

Pick up.

[Rowka]

Well, if it turnes out to not be the:

Pickup height

Pickup damage

Wiring snafu

Dead strings

EQ issues

General setup issue

Bridge or nut problem

or Technique

 

He might just have too many picofarads in his amp's power cable.

[jrcorp]

 

He might just have too many picofarads in his amp's power cable.

 

 

Hahaha what the heck!?

 

...I'm surprised I made a decent guess. I know that when I go to replace my pickups or set up my bass again, I'm going to need to devise a way to better raise the pickups, because I'm coping with squished foam pads underneath that do nothing. I guess I either need springs or a fitted piece of anything.

[wades_keys]

He plays fingerstyle, right?

 

I'll venture a guess: he's not attacking those strings the same way he attacks the E and A string. A lot of cats leave their hand in place vertically and stretch their fingers to get the top 2 strings.

 

That's kind of a jive way to do it. Watch Jaco's right hand technique for a CLINIC in how to get consistent tone out of all 4 strings.

[misterhinkydink]

"Oxnard: more than just a pretty name."

[isaac42]

How can you tell I'm the guitar player? I posting, not I'm posting.

 

That was my first clue!

[isaac42]

 

Hahaha what the heck!?

 

 

That was a reference to this thread. It's legendary in these parts!