New to Bass fishing and have a rod/reel usage question.  I have a 7' med/heavy baitcast rod with a 4.4:1 ratio quantum energy reel.  Any advice on the best usage for this combo including what type/lb line to use.  Thanks in advance for any help.

Welcome aboard!

Your reel is designed for deep cranking, it is VERY technique specific. For general use you need at least 5.8:1 or higher gear ratio. Although IPC (inches per crank) is probably a better measure than gear ratio, the reel you have is too slow for many applications.

I totally agree with rw.  If it were mine, I would be looking at changing the gears to a higher speed.  I bought a Curado with a 3:8 to 1 for cranking.  It took all day to get a bait back so I went to BPS and bought 6:3 to 1 gears and am very happy.

I have a 7' med/heavy baitcast rod with a 4.4:1 ratio quantum energy reel. .

It says deep crankbaits every where.

Thanks for the help guys!