Using The Mo' Bass In Dual Mode - SWR Mo' Bass Owner's Manual

Dual Mode (continued)
Dual Mode changes all that. When Dual Mode is engaged, the signal splits in two after the pre-amp. One of the two
signals - we'll call it the "clean" channel - is routed directly from the preamp straight to the LEFT side power amp and the
LEFT set of speaker outputs on the back panel. The other signal - we'll call it the "wet" channel - continues on through the
five Mo'Bass effects and is then routed to the RIGHT side power amp and the RIGHT set of speaker outputs. The Left and
Right Master Volume Controls then become a secondary set of blend controls when creating a sound.
Let's try and simplify this. When in Dual Mode: "Clean/left" refers to the natural sound of your bass (tech talk: AFTER having
been processed by the Preamp and its EQ, but BEFORE the internal effects). "Wet/right" refers to the signal AFTER it has
been processed by the Mo' Bass INTERNAL analog effects.
And yes, Dual Mode is still possible when running the power amp in bridged/mono mode, as both the clean/left and wet/right
channels will sum into the bridged/mono speaker output. At this point the Stereo Master Volume Controls become a "Mix
Master" control.
Perhaps you've noticed that guitar players who are really particular about their tone often carry two amplifiers to a gig - one
for clean sounds, one for dirty sounds. This is no accident. Keeping a portion of the signal unprocessed at all times has
long been a priority for those players looking for consistency in tone and level when using effects. Bassists have an even
greater imperative to keep it partially "clean" in certain situations-after all, we're the ones holding down the bottom for the
whole band. Dual Mode allows you that option in a more pure fashion than a simple mix control can provide.

Using The Mo' Bass In Dual Mode

Let's try an experiment. First, make sure you have set the Preamp Volume control properly (please refer to the "Pre-Amp
Volume Control) section of the manual for more details). Once this is set correctly, engage the Overdrive with the Overdrive
"Drive" Control at '4' and the Overdrive Level Control at '3'. Now engage the Bassynth with the Filter Control at '2', the
Resonance Control at '6', the Envelope Control at '3' and the Mix Control turned fully clockwise to the "synth" position. Set
both Left and Right Master Volume Controls at an equal position. Now try playing. It should sound pretty wild.
Now push the Dual Mode switch and the red LED should illuminate. Try playing again. There should be more "clean" bass
present than before. Turn the Right Master Volume Control all the way counter-clockwise to the minimum position. You
should now hear only the original "clean" bass signal. Turn the Right Master Volume Control back up, but now turn the Left
Master Volume Control all the way off. You should now hear only the affected "wet" signal. Finally, turn the Left Master
Volume Control back up to equal the Right. Now push the Dual Mode switch once more to exit the function. The red LED
should turn off and affected signal should again be present on both sides of the power amp.
This function is useful in many obvious ways, but we've come across two examples we want to share with you. The first is in
conjunction with the Bassynth. The Mo' Bass Bassynth is so dynamically sensitive that you may have a hard time
adjusting to the sound itself. You also may not be used to hearing the way a sawtooth wave reacts to finger/string attack (the
initial attack is not as prominent), which could lead you to setting the Bassynth Mix control closer to dead center. But the
Bassynth's effect is most dramatic when the Mix control is set all the way to "synth." So if you want to get some of that
"clean" attack back in the overall sound but you still want the Bassynth to be as "synth-y" as possible, using Dual Mode is a
great way to do it.
The second example is more esoteric but still important. If you've got all of the Mo' Bass effects on at once and you've come
up with some crazy, freakish sound that might be unusable on its own, hit the Dual Mode switch and blend that freaky combi-
nation of sounds back in with the clean signal. You never know - it may work after all.
If you are using more than one speaker cabinet (and especially if they contain different speaker configurations) you may
want to remember the fact that, in Dual Mode, the Mo' Bass will send the "wet" channel to the right speaker output while
sending the "clean" channel to the left speaker output. Maybe you want the "clean/left" channel in a 2x10" and the
"wet/right" channel in a single 15". Perhaps you want to the "wet/right" channel sent to a cabinet with a tweeter and the
"clean/left" channel sent to one without a tweeter. Maybe you want the "wet/right" channel in the top cabinet in your stack
and the "clean/left" channel in the bottom cabinet. Make the best choice for your artistic needs. (The SWR Megoliath 8x10
is an ideal cabinet for running the Mo' Bass in Dual Mode, as it has separate inputs for both bottom and top 4x10" configura-
tions, one with a tweeter and one without. Just thought we'd mention it.) (continued)
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