very dark sounding E string??

[glenson]

3 months a go i bought a MM stingray 4 HH at GC. I checked the serial number here and its a 2007 model.

I love everything about the bass except that the e string is very dark sounding (restrung with EB strings without change). My 7th fret e sounds great but the open e and 3fret g sound so dark, i hardly play them. its so disparate to the a string

Is this typical of a stingray sound? i measured string action and pick up height and everything is at spec.

my amp is an ampeg svt-cl with the svt 610 cab.

Thanks for any thoughts or suggestions

 

[cellkirk74]

Can you post a sound example? I don't get what you mean by 'dark'.

 

[Duarte]

Perhaps he means that when he goes that low on such an epic instrument, it scares the crap out of him.

 

[MadMatt]

Well I really like those dark notes... I like them so much I got me an additional string so I can go even darker and deeper!

 

[danny-79]

If you have just put fresh strings on id check to see if its sitting in the bridge/nut correctly, if its only sounding "dark" when played open.

 

[Rick Auricchio]

First: Try a new battery.

If that doesn't help, call EBMM customer service!

 

[glenson]

Thanks Rick, I changed the battery and it did improve the sound, i also tweaked the eq a lot. I like it heavy and "black sabbathy" but not dark and muddy as it was sounding,

I think part of the problem is that i was used to passive vs. active electronics and probably need to fool around with the settings more.

 

[MadMatt]

Thanks Rick, I changed the battery and it did improve the sound, i also tweaked the eq a lot. I like it heavy and "black sabbathy" but not dark and muddy as it was sounding,

I think part of the problem is that i was used to passive vs. active electronics and probably need to fool around with the settings more.

Great to hear the battery helped.

Another thing to consider is the room you are playing in. The low notes are very sensitive to room acustics. If you are in a small room, and are using a ported cab, the resonance frequency of the room and bass port of the cab can fall together to make the low notes sound really muddy and boomy. Try a different room and a different amp/cab combo to see if that is where the problem is.

 

[MrMusashi]

sometimes subtracting some bass from the equation make notes sound clearer..

experiment with the onboard eq. start flat and adjust from there...
if you want more high end and bottom subtracting mid gives the same impression as adding high and lows..

hth!

MrM

 

[Big Poppa]

Sometimes the problem is that you get a new bass and it is active and you plug it into your amp and dont recalibrate your eq or gain settings....

 

[Freddels]

I don't think the instrument knows what note you are playing so it's more likely something with that one string or your EQ as BP suggested. Perhaps you twisted it when putting it on and the tension is a little off. Have you tried lowering the pickup(s) on the bass side? Do you get the same "dark" sounding notes with each pickup? Do all the other notes on the E string sound "not dark"? Maybe you need a thicker or thinner E string to get the tone that you want.

 

[CaptainFingers]

Even though you put on fresh, new strings, doesn't mean that the strings were good. I once put on a new set of EB strings before a gig, only to find that the D string was dead. (seemed to be unraveled or loose from inner core.) Luckily I had a new set of D'Addarios on hand. Simply grabbed the D from that package. (same gauge)