Re: live looping amplification etc.

["max valentino" <ekstasis1@hotmail.com>]

I have found two possible "avenues" to traverse in regards to 
amplification 
and looping: one being a farily "clean", almost studio-monitor kinda sound 
in which the signal applied to the speaker is what comes out of the 
speaker 
(with as little coloration as possible..or neccessary), and the other 
being 
a sound which is extremely "colored" by the sound (hmmm..should I being 
using a more PC reference here?;-)

I usually run my basses into a Raven Labs MDB1 which is a 1/2 rack space, 
three channel mixer, extremely flat, audiophile type response, which has a 
sidechain/parallel aux loop in whch either my JamMan or Fx are plugged 
(depending on whether I want processing pre or post loopage....which is 
another thread altogether....) That is run to a Raven Labs instrument 
Preamp, which has basic tone tweaking (usually set flat) and another 
parallel aux send/return (for either loops or fx) and that is sent to an 
Avalon U5 and on to a  SWR California Blonde amp (very clean 
response....and 
a second channel which takes a mic input for 'tween song banter with the 
audience..very handy indeed!).  Usually I run into the fx return jack on 
one 
channel of the amp, thus avoiding the preamp section altogether. This 
gives 
a very clean signal; basically what goes in thru the Raven Labs stuff and 
such comes out the amp.

Yet......after listening to some of Andre LaFosse's work, I became 
intrugued 
to how he actually was using the amp to augment the sound of his 
(siganture 
style) loopage. I began experimenting with other amps (notably an old 
Ampeg 
FlipTop B-12 who's all tube signal path certainly "changes" the quality of 
the loops..yet at 130 lbs is not really gig friendly!), as well as running 
my entire chain into a SansAmp Bass Driver.  Since this is a 
footswitchable 
type device it is nice to "kick in" some amp "warmth" (girth? grit? drive? 
or any of the myriad subjective terms for this) to alter the personality 
and 
character of my loops.  This CAn add some nice texture and changes to 
loops, 
yet can also be ticky to properly gain stage.

All that being said, I have found it most important to have a very good 
personal monitor mix of your playing/looping.  The Cali Blonde allows me 
to 
run  an extension cab (usually a SWR 1x10 or Bag End 1x12) which bumps the 
output up a it, but gives me a nice little monitor for which to hear 
myself 
clearly (with the amp functioning as a PA), and also makes a dandy rack 
stand ;-)
I have found this little monitor feed extremely important in keeping all 
the 
loops "together".  Hearing onself clearly (and this is in addition to your 
"amp") really simplifies timing issues and such. The Cali Blonde can also 
be 
run with another, powered extension which I use to send a mix of my loops 
to 
other musicians (especailly drummers) when I work with ensembles.

Max

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