Rig sounded REALLY different last night

[Dante]

Hi Guys,

I'm not totally sure what's goin on, but my rig sounded very bass-heavy at last nights' gig. I want to crank it to gig levels here at home later today to see if it's an issue of volume changing the eq a bit...that ol' Bedroom Volume vs. Live Volume discussion again.

I kept gradually turning up my presence on the MT200 until it was at about 3:00 by the end of the gig. I don't like to make rash adjustments during gigs, too many variables at play, so I go conservative on things like that. I even checked the guitar's mic mix on the mixing board – it was flat and dry, just the way I like. I pumped up the hi-mids a bit to get the mix better in the PA, but the bass was definitely still there onstage. While I liked the bottom end, it wasn't my tone, and it bugged me.

Maybe it was that room, I have not played there with this (4x12 H&K) speaker cab before. Next time, I'll try my 1x12 at that venue, just to see. Our next gig is at a tiny pub, so I'll be using the 1x12 anyway, but....different room.

[Systematic Chaos]

Lots of variables to be taken into account....room, placement of your cab, construction of the stage/"underground"....
I never had my cab facing directly towards the audience so as not to interfere with the FOH mix. I usually placed it on my side of the stage (Stage Left Brotherhood \m/ ), basically as my personal sidefill.
Having own monitors, own monitor mix or IEM opens up some more options...and might resolve the cab sound "mushing" together with the stage drum sound and bass....
In order to get a consistent sound (most of the time) on varying stage floors/undergrounds place the cab on 1 or two empty plastic beer crates. That "de-couples" it from he floor and your lows won't get boomy.

YMMV

[rnolan]

SC's on the money here (IMHO), your cab will "couple" with the floor (which will add bass, this is where the MP2 room eq is very good BTW) so get it up on milk crates/road case, chairs (x2 works and gives a good slant) whatever.  Like SC I prefer my cabs are like side fill (albeit I've become a stage right player), then the band also get to hear you and FOH can be what it needs to be.
Even if you went with 1 x 12, it will still couple with the floor (if that's where you've got it). If you're cab has castors, that will help a bit but it will still couple to some extent (BTW corners are a whole extra for coupling and bass..).

[GuitarBuilder]

The old Fenders had a convenient kick stand to aim the front of the amp upwards for the same reason... :headbanger:

[Dante]

Okay guys, I figured out why my cab sounded like crap...it also sounded crappy and boomy at the next gig, which eliminates the room being the culprit. I came home the next day after the gig and compared the sound I get from each jack. That's when I noticed I was only getting two speakers at a time! DAMMIT. I opened up the jack plate, found the missing link, re-soldered it, and now my cab sounds A.Maze.Ing.  :banana-trip:

(there is a bridge between the two jacks on each post, one had not been soldered very well - by me  :facepalm: )

This experience has pretty much quelled my curiosity about using 3 speakers in a 4x12 cab though.

[rnolan]

Hey Dante, glad you got it sorted  :thumb-up: , pesky solder joints LoL. Brings back memories where I was sent by the unemployment people to watch a (American) video re hearing aids... heat the job, bring the sodder to the job, let the job melt the sodder... this is also when I found out Americans call it soddering  :dunno: .