When I play bass in my band, my setup looks like this: Bass -> Orange head -> SVT cabs. I just feel like it brings out the good traits of whatever bass I plug into it, and that makes me happy
I've played a lot of styles of music in bands over the years, and the barebones rig always seems to be a constant for me.
When I goof around with home recording, though, that's a whole n'other story! I'm always on the prowl for interesting stuff to experiment with there - and I just wanted to take a moment to share some thoughts, observations, and just say WOW.
People really get spun up with this stuff! I've bought and sold basses, amps, cabs, guitars, old (extremely complex and volatile) keyboards/synthesizers.... and recently a vintage effect (a Rams Head Big Muff). That was by far the most challenging auction/sale I have ever experienced in my life. Even with pictures of the guts, there were questions about component values and other minutae that I would *never* have expected anyone to be interested in. But I can fully appreciate and relate to gear fanaticism
so it's all good.
Then there's the prices! Here's a few fun ones from my watch list:
EMS Synthi Hi-Fli - This could be viewed as a predecessor to the EHX Micro Synth, which was designed by the same guy. This one sold for just under $8000. WTF!?!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=380068229012&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=025The Ludwig Phase II - yer basic fuzz/filter/tremolo type of affair, with a pedal for real time control. This one was a real steal at ~$2000 - usually they go over 3K
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=250300166534&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=015A Maestro USS-1 - kind of a "greatest hits" of Maestro effects lumped into a box and called a "synthesizer". A few of these pop up a year and typically go in the $1500 range.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=320311209121&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=011I've loved my good old analog gear my entire life. Much like my simple bass rig, it just pleases my ears. And just like the basses I tend to go to - it sort of takes on its own persona, has idiosyncracies and imperfections that make it entertaining to work with, and its easy to use. One knob = one parameter. None of this toiling over a 1" LCD display, or dragging-and-dropping virtual patch cords on your computer screen. If I had a time machine, I would go back to 1987 when everyone was dumping this stuff to make way for "technological advancement", and I'd load up!!
So what are your thoughts? What's on your effect wish-lists? Should I just shut up and get a Pod XT?