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gear

Rob Sukol ~ bass player

2006 Schecter Diamond Series C4 bass.

The Schecter C4 bass guitar is one of the most under rated and under priced instruments on the planet. Schecter isn't considered a "prestige" brand (and this ax doesn't come with a "prestige" price tag), but the Schecter C4 compares favorably with most high-end, hand-made bass guitars that I've played. Sound and playability are outstanding. The Schecter C4 has a strong, clear "voice" with a variety of tones that can be easily dialed in with active eq on board. The playability is, for me, the best I have ever found ... period. The neck feels as though it were custom tailored for my hand. My only complaints would be that the tuners and the bridge should be higher quality (even if that pushes up the price-point). I own two of these Schecter C4 basses. I've upgraded the tuners on one of them. But this is a minor complaint. Overall, it's a great ax. Sweet punchy tone ... EMG active eq pickups ... fast playable neck ... mahogany body ... maple top ... rosewood fretboard.

Genz Benz Shuttle 9.0. Bass amplification has really evolved in the past few years. This is a 900 watt bass amp - complete with a tube preamp - all packed into a container the size of a cigar box and weighing in at a ridiculous four pounds. Gotta love the technology! I use the Genz Benz Shuttle 9.0 to drive a Bergantino 4-10 cab (described below). Very rich, full, low end sound. Really makes the band sound good. And the tremendous power/portability ratio make this the perfect amp for a guy like me who plays mostly one-night stands. Even when this amp is packed into its handy padded gig bag, the whole thing is so small and light that I toss it into my wire-bag and roll.

Bergantino AE410 bass cab. The Bergantino AE410 is an outstanding bass cab containing four 10" neodymium woofers and one tweeter (with level control for the tweeter). With a power rating of 800W RMS, this cab delivers superb hi-fi tone, and yet is capable of kickin' booty when you need that. I was amazed at the first gig I took the cab out to. My tones were so incredibly articulate. Boominess gone. Every note rang clear. Ummm, even the bloopers! This cab forces me to be a better player. And the sustain really surprised me. I never realized a cab could make such a difference in prolonging the amount of clear sustained tone. What a pleasure. Specs: The frequency response is 40hz-15khz. Efficiency is great with a sensitivity rating of 103dB. Impedance is 4 ohms. This single 4-10 cab has replaced two 4-10 Hartke cabs in my rig. I traded a lot of schlepping for bigger, better tone in a single 4-10 cab weighing in at a mere 62lbs. Before making a decision, I ran side-by-side testing of the Bergie against cabs made by Epifani, Aguilar, and Genz-Benz. Killer cabs one and all. Not putting anybody down. It's subjective, of course. But for the range of tones I want, the Bergantino was the clear winner.

QSC PLX 3002 amplifier. This amp was the heart of my old rig. The QSC PLX 3002 is a professional-grade two-channel power amp. It is a 3,000 watt amplifier when used at maximum capacity (1,500 watts per channel into two 2-ohm loads). My old rig drew 1,100 watts from this amp. I used to run my bass into a separate preamp - the Tech21 Sansamp Bass Driver DI (the "BDDI") pre-amp (described below) - which would shape the sound and raise the level so it could be "read" by the QSC PLX 3002. Then into the QSC PLX 3002 amp. Then into two 4-10 Hartke cabs, each rated at 400w with 8 ohms. Great sound, but a complicated set-up and a lot of gear to cart around. My current rig, described above, is a lot easier to pack, load, and carry, and I think I'm actually getting a better sound now. Nevertheless, the QSC PLX 3002 amp is a monster in terms of power, and it's a top notch pro amp. I'll find a use for it eventually.

David Eden D210 bass cab.
This is another piece of gear that I don't use regularly any more, but it's just too cool to get rid of ... at least so far. These Eden cabs are built like tanks. Warm, rich tone. Quite a nice 2-10 cab.

Hartke VX410 bass cab. Before trading up to the Bergantino AE410 bass cab (described above) my standard rock-n-roll rig included two Hartke VX410 cabs (the paper cones, not aluminum). Yes, I've moved on, but I want to give these cabs due respect. For a very reasonable price, they get the job done, and they were reliable through a thousand tough one-night stands. Weighing in at a very reasonable 70lbs, these cabs were my travel buddies. Now that I've got the Bergie, I've given one of the Hartkes to an up and coming young bass player, and I'm hanging onto the other one as a backup. Good cab. Very durable.

D'Addario Strings. I use only D'Addario EXL170 (long scale) strings. Round wound with nickel-plated steel, these strings consistently deliver crisp, clear tone. Opinions, they say, are like a-holes (everybody's got one). I will acknowledge that a bass player's favorite strings are a matter of personal preference. All of that said, I think it's clear that the D'Addario EXL170 (long scale) strings are the best all-around bass strings money can buy. If you mix it up with finger-style and slap/pop, as I do, these strings are the way to go. I change strings very frequently. Fresh strings really improve tone. They allow every bass to sound its best.

Tech 21 Sansamp Bass Driver DI. Commonly known as the "BDDI", this cool little unit functions as a tone shaping preamp and/or direct box. Weighing in at just 14 ounces, it's portable, rugged, and dependable. Great tool. I used the BDDI as my preamp to shape tone and raise the signal level that is "readable" by the QSC PLX 3002 power amp (see above). I really like the BDDI's "presence" knob. It let's me fine-tune my sound. I play a lot of one-night stand gigs and parties. Every gig I'm in a different sound environment with different challenges. The sound environment can even change during the course of a single show as the room fills up. That little "presence" knob enablesd me to fine tune my sound quickly and easily, dialing in just enough edge to cut through the mix without losing the punch and kick in the bottom end. Great feature. Overall, the BDDI is a terrific - and very portable bass preamp.

Harkte 3500 bass amp. Runs 350 watts into 4 ohms. Two blend-able preamps (tube and solid state) on board. Ten band eq plus compression on board. Nice versatile unit. Don't use this amp much anymore, but I haven't been able to bring myself to put it up for sale. I use more power these days, but this is a fine amplifier.

Fender Rumble 60. This is my practice amp. I heartily recommend this for beginners or pro in need of a practice amp. This little unit has surprisingly interesting tone ... really warm, rich, and punchy. It's only a 60 watt amp, so not suitable for gigs. I especially appreciate that I can simultaneously run my bass plus an mp3 player through the amp. Excellent for woodshedding. And it can also be used with headphones for practicing in near silence when others are sleeping. Very convenient and good sound. It has a weird red light hooked up inside so that the light flickers out the bottom vent in time with the music. I guess that was meant to be "groovy"? It's cool in a goofy, silly sort of way. Anyhow, it doesn't take anything away from the amp's terrific sound and convenience.

Hand-truck. Don't laugh. Guys that haul around bass cabs love their little green hand-trucks. Dollar for dollar, the best equipment investment I ever made. Yeah, I tried the "rock-n-roller" brand collapsing cart, but for convenience and moving big gear quick, my trusty little hand-truck is still my back's best friend.

Gig-Wagon. Last but not least, my ride .... a 2007 Toyota Matrix XR station wagon. The Gig-Wagon is small but mighty ... easy to load, holds all my gear, and gets me there on time!