bass guitar plug into T3?

Welcome to the Taurus, Minitaur and Sirin Forum
rjt3
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Jan 06, 2012 10:33 pm

bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by rjt3 » Fri Jan 06, 2012 10:47 pm

newbie question: can a bass guitar be plugged directly into the T3 to generate sounds that get colored by the T3, rather than using the pedals? If not what kind of interface device would allow this?
T3-0343, Lab Series L2, Genz Benz 115T-UB

Mr Arkadin
Posts: 600
Joined: Fri Jun 06, 2008 8:43 am

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by Mr Arkadin » Sat Jan 07, 2012 8:10 am

No. The Taurus 3 has no audio input. However the new minitaur which is based on the Taurus 3 does, so maybe look at that instead.
http://soundcloud.com/luke-antony

User avatar
superd2112
Posts: 360
Joined: Sat Dec 06, 2008 12:10 pm
Location: Colorado

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by superd2112 » Sat Jan 07, 2012 9:34 am

rjt3 wrote:newbie question: can a bass guitar be plugged directly into the T3 to generate sounds that get colored by the T3, rather than using the pedals? If not what kind of interface device would allow this?

If you have a Roland MIDI pickup installed on your bass, you could potentially play any synthesizer (including all of its internally generated sounds) that has a MIDI input, including the Taurus. If you simply want to "color" your bass tone by running it through the filter section of the Taurus, then you could do this with the new tabletop Taurus unit, the Minitaur.

Airlock
Posts: 40
Joined: Sun Dec 14, 2008 2:39 pm
Location: Harleysville, Pa. USA

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by Airlock » Sun Jan 08, 2012 2:36 pm

superd2112 wrote:
rjt3 wrote:newbie question: can a bass guitar be plugged directly into the T3 to generate sounds that get colored by the T3, rather than using the pedals? If not what kind of interface device would allow this?

If you have a Roland MIDI pickup installed on your bass, you could potentially play any synthesizer (including all of its internally generated sounds) that has a MIDI input, including the Taurus. If you simply want to "color" your bass tone by running it through the filter section of the Taurus, then you could do this with the new tabletop Taurus unit, the Minitaur.
That's a 13 pin connector on the Roland pickup, I think you need the Roland "head" to get any Midi signal to another unit, tho I could be mistaken.

I've triggered the T3 using a Sonus B2-M, it's not "coloring" the bass signal but adding its voice to it, and I found that minimally useful in my application compared to using effect pedals such as the (discontinued) Akai Deep Impact bass synth and a Fulltone Bass-Drive. If I were to do it all over I'd get the Markbass Super Synth Bass Pedal, which (to me) is a dead ringer for the Deep Impact sonically, and the Bass-Drive. I've put a Minitaur in my shopping cart, but don't think it'll get much use as a bass guitar filter.

I'm curious what does the original poster wants to get out of putting his bass guitar signal thru a T3 filter? Not being a wiseguy, it's just that what sounds like a good idea may in fact be the wrong way to go about it. Lots of variables here.

User avatar
David Smyth
Posts: 301
Joined: Tue Jun 23, 2009 3:40 am
Location: Wellington, New Zealand
Contact:

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by David Smyth » Sun Jan 08, 2012 6:04 pm

Airlock wrote:That's a 13 pin connector on the Roland pickup, I think you need the Roland "head" to get any Midi signal to another unit
This is true. You'd need a unit such as the Roland GI-20 to convert the 13-pin pickup cable to midi information for driving the synth.

Regards,
David Smyth
NZ
Minimoog Voyager XL, Little Phatty Stage II + CV Output Mod, 2x Slim Phatty, Minitaur, MP-201, EP-2, 2x CP-251, MF-102, MF-104M, MF-107

User avatar
superd2112
Posts: 360
Joined: Sat Dec 06, 2008 12:10 pm
Location: Colorado

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by superd2112 » Mon Jan 09, 2012 9:56 am

Actually, I think it's as simple (and cheap) as adding one of these..

http://www.google.com/products/catalog? ... CHcQ8wIwAQ#

User avatar
David Smyth
Posts: 301
Joined: Tue Jun 23, 2009 3:40 am
Location: Wellington, New Zealand
Contact:

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by David Smyth » Mon Jan 09, 2012 8:16 pm

superd2112 wrote:Actually, I think it's as simple (and cheap) as adding one of these..

http://www.google.com/products/catalog? ... CHcQ8wIwAQ#
I've looked into these and they have a pretty bad reputation for false note triggering etc. But who knows? - it might work out fine.

Regards,
David Smyth
NZ
Minimoog Voyager XL, Little Phatty Stage II + CV Output Mod, 2x Slim Phatty, Minitaur, MP-201, EP-2, 2x CP-251, MF-102, MF-104M, MF-107

c7sus
Posts: 468
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2005 5:42 pm

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by c7sus » Mon Jan 09, 2012 9:57 pm

You can eliminate a lot of false notes by limiting pitch bend to a semitone or two.

A lot of the false notes aren't really falsely triggered, they are the steps in MIDI notes between bends or slides up or down the scale.

The real drawback is the first generation of these devices just don't track quickly enough.
Voyager EB #165, T3 #292, MF-101, 102, 103, 104SD, 2x104MSD, 105M, 107, 108M, MP-201, VX-351, CP-251, Frostwave Fat Controller.

User avatar
David Smyth
Posts: 301
Joined: Tue Jun 23, 2009 3:40 am
Location: Wellington, New Zealand
Contact:

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by David Smyth » Tue Jan 10, 2012 3:00 am

I guess what I really ment to say is they have a bad reputation in general, mainly due to poor tracking aswell as other issues (such as what I called "false triggering"/what you described).
Minimoog Voyager XL, Little Phatty Stage II + CV Output Mod, 2x Slim Phatty, Minitaur, MP-201, EP-2, 2x CP-251, MF-102, MF-104M, MF-107

rjt3
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Jan 06, 2012 10:33 pm

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by rjt3 » Thu Jan 12, 2012 8:55 am

I'm curious what does the original poster wants to get out of putting his bass guitar signal thru a T3 filter? Not being a wiseguy, it's just that what sounds like a good idea may in fact be the wrong way to go about it. Lots of variables here.
Thank you for your discussions. Being new to all things Moog, I was toying with the (uninformed) idea that the T3 could also serve as an incredible effect pedal for my bass guitar, but I now (correctly?) understand that with a MIDI interface the bass would trigger the T3's own sounds vs. affecting the bass audio. I still hope to acquire and play with a T3.
T3-0343, Lab Series L2, Genz Benz 115T-UB

SSquirrel
Posts: 66
Joined: Wed Feb 01, 2012 11:48 am

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by SSquirrel » Wed Feb 01, 2012 11:52 am

rjt3 wrote:Thank you for your discussions. Being new to all things Moog, I was toying with the (uninformed) idea that the T3 could also serve as an incredible effect pedal for my bass guitar, but I now (correctly?) understand that with a MIDI interface the bass would trigger the T3's own sounds vs. affecting the bass audio. I still hope to acquire and play with a T3.
Would it also be possible to run a bass thru a Moogerfooger that could provide a Pitch out (don't recall offhand which, if any do) and send the CV signal into the CV pitch of the Taurus (or Minitaur for that matter) ? That wouldn't color the initial bass sound, but if it worked, you would have the Taurus doubling your basslines.

Airlock
Posts: 40
Joined: Sun Dec 14, 2008 2:39 pm
Location: Harleysville, Pa. USA

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by Airlock » Sat Feb 25, 2012 9:18 pm

David Smyth wrote:
superd2112 wrote:Actually, I think it's as simple (and cheap) as adding one of these..

http://www.google.com/products/catalog? ... CHcQ8wIwAQ#
I've looked into these and they have a pretty bad reputation for false note triggering etc. But who knows? - it might work out fine.

Regards,
David Smyth
NZ
That is the unit I use, and yes there were nothing but bad reviews on Sweetwater when I bought it. From my experience owning the A.R.T Nightbass SE digital bass pre and the Akai Deep Impact as well as the Adrenalinn I am familiar enough with the tracking issues of these kinds of devices to be confident that the Sonus would suit my purpose, and it does. Plus at a hundred bucks it was cheap enough.

Anyway, if you watch the Lee Sklar Sonus vid you will see the lines he plays are mostly above the first octave on his (long scale) bass. In general, the Sonus does not track (process) low notes as quickly/cleanly as it does higher notes, thus playing in that position is the most consistent when using this device with a long scale bass and little practice time.

You do have to play cleanly/precisely, and forget poppin, slappin, machine gun riffs or even moderately paced runs without a whole lot of practice to determine what works. On the flip side, you will never forget the day you plug in to a synth like a Korg M3 and play a velocity-curved orchestral patch!

Anne.Curtiz
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2012 7:13 am

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by Anne.Curtiz » Tue Feb 28, 2012 7:19 am

is it okay to plug your guitar directly to the cd input of your amplifier? can anybody help me please? thanks.
Any good music must be an innovation.

User avatar
David Smyth
Posts: 301
Joined: Tue Jun 23, 2009 3:40 am
Location: Wellington, New Zealand
Contact:

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by David Smyth » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:46 pm

Airlock wrote:That is the unit I use, and yes there were nothing but bad reviews on Sweetwater when I bought it. From my experience owning the A.R.T Nightbass SE digital bass pre and the Akai Deep Impact as well as the Adrenalinn I am familiar enough with the tracking issues of these kinds of devices to be confident that the Sonus would suit my purpose, and it does. Plus at a hundred bucks it was cheap enough.

Anyway, if you watch the Lee Sklar Sonus vid you will see the lines he plays are mostly above the first octave on his (long scale) bass. In general, the Sonus does not track (process) low notes as quickly/cleanly as it does higher notes, thus playing in that position is the most consistent when using this device with a long scale bass and little practice time.

You do have to play cleanly/precisely, and forget poppin, slappin, machine gun riffs or even moderately paced runs without a whole lot of practice to determine what works. On the flip side, you will never forget the day you plug in to a synth like a Korg M3 and play a velocity-curved orchestral patch!
I'm glad it's working well for you! I guess I was going by online reviews which seem unfavorable as you mentioned.. I'm interested in Bass control of my synths, but I need something polyphonic - I'm looking into the Roland Pickups and the GI-20 processor (which is sadly alot more expensive than the B2M :( ).
Anne.Curtiz wrote:is it okay to plug your guitar directly to the cd input of your amplifier? can anybody help me please? thanks.
What model amplifier do you have? Is it a proper guitar amplifier or more of a home theater soundsystem?

Regards,
David Smyth
NZ
Minimoog Voyager XL, Little Phatty Stage II + CV Output Mod, 2x Slim Phatty, Minitaur, MP-201, EP-2, 2x CP-251, MF-102, MF-104M, MF-107

User avatar
Voltor07
Posts: 5197
Joined: Sun May 25, 2008 3:04 am
Location: Waukegan, IL USA
Contact:

Re: bass guitar plug into T3?

Post by Voltor07 » Wed Feb 29, 2012 4:00 pm

Anne.Curtiz wrote:is it okay to plug your guitar directly to the cd input of your amplifier? can anybody help me please? thanks.
If we're talking home stereo, I wouldn't try it. Always good to have a guitar amp, other wise you can blow a capacitor or even a whole channel. There are a ton of guitar amps on the used market that can be had for fairly cheap. FWIW, I use a Phonic MK50 for my keys. I bought my Phonic on e-bay for $79 new in box. :) Guitar amps are much easier to find, and sometimes they cost even less.
Minitaur, CP-251, EHX #1 Echo, EHX Space Drums/Crash Pads, QSC GX-3, Pyramid stereo power amp, Miracle Pianos, Walking Stick ribbon controller, Synthutron.com, 1983 Hammond organ, dot com modular.

Post Reply