amp modeler / BDI21?

[Luther Blissett]

I did a search and found lots of info more or less related to the subject, but no really conclusive answers.

Thing is, I have an old, 150W Carlsbro bass amplifier (solid state), and I'm not really happy with the tone anymore.

I would like a bit of a warmer / fatter tone.

I know the way to do this is buying a tube amp, but I'm a student who pays his own studies, so I have no money whatsoever, nor can I save up for anything.

So is there any other way to warm up my tone? I've heard a lot of good stuff here about the sansamp, but I can't find one on the bay in Europe, and it's to expensive new or to buy it in the states (damn shipping and taxes).

So the Sansamp is out, but I've heard the Behringer BDI21 comes close to the sansamp, and it is dirt cheap. Unfortunately, I haven't found a post here where people tell about their experiences with the BDI21

So does anyone has a BDI21 and what do you think of it (or does anyone know another cheap way of improving the sound of my amp)?


oh, I use an active bass: an ibanez atk 300

[Puru]

They are a good, inexpensive alternative to the sansamp if that's the sound you're after. It' will fatten up your tone.
You can read a bunch of reviews here:
http://reviews.harmony-central.com/r...ger/BDI21/10/1

[Swift713]

To my ear the Zoom B2 does a good job of warming up my tone. The amp models are quite nice with moderate gain. Higher gain settings sound less warm to me.

[bigchiefbc]

I'd say go ahead and get it. I have a BDI21 and absolutely love it, although I do have to deal with the snobby gasps for having a Behringer on my board. It will do the tubey-warm thing pretty well, with judicious use of the Drive and blend knobs. However, that's not what I use it for. I actually use it for the opposite sound. I keep the drive knob down low and the presence cranked, to brighten up my tone. As you can see, its a versatile little thing, kinda like the swiss-army-knife of my rig

[Puru]

Originally Posted by Swift713

To my ear the Zoom B2 does a good job of warming up my tone. The amp models are quite nice with moderate gain. Higher gain settings sound less warm to me.

If you can afford the extra $70.00, go for the B2. I stopped using the BDI21 when I got the B2. Good luck.

[steve66]

The BDI21 is good gear. I have one and had it for a long time.

I am a Behringer Believer

[bongomania]

Originally Posted by Luther Blissett

I did a search and found lots of info more or less related to the subject, but no really conclusive answers. ...Unfortunately, I haven't found a post here where people tell about their experiences with the BDI21

Unfortunately, as much as I tend to flog people for not doing searches, our Search function doesn't seem to work well for many of the people who do search, especially if the info they want is like a year old. Buried somewhere in the past is a thread which contained sound samples of the BDI21 directly compared against the SABBDI. That thread contained a fair amount of opinions and experiences, so it's worth hunting for.

I'm one of those crabby anti-Behr people, but my recollection is that more than half of the people who posted their opinion in that thread actually liked the tone of the Behr better than the Sansamp, and pretty much everyone agreed it was at least in the same ballpark of sound quality one way or the other.

[karter2000]

I'm one of those BDI21 users. I've found it to sound quite good, even after previously owning two BDDI's. I don't use a Sansamp enough to justify having one around (just for pick playing, Tool songs, etc), so I picked up the BDI21. I picked mine up from the classifieds for 30 dollars shipped (to Canada) with a power supply, so I'm not complaining.


Lyle

[Vic Winters]

I've been using mine for a year and a half now with no complaints.

[ihateusernames]

Tried to avoid posting in this thread, there is no try.

After Sansamp use, BDI21 use, and ZOOM B2.1u use, I've concluded the sonic characteristics are SO simliar it just comes down to how you're going to use it.

The programmable Tech21 version is nice for people who can't decide which settings on the sansamp are best for them.

The new version of the Sansamp is good for folks using in various settings (direct, into preamp, into power amp)

The BDI is good for those going direct or in front of an amp. (works okay in my power amp too, YMMV)

And the ZOOM covers all of those with the addition of a headphone output and a lot of other goodies. The stock setting does require some tweaking to sound like the others, but as the previous comparison threads have shown you can't tell them apart on recordings, and in a live mix the same applies. You will be able to hear a slight difference depending on your amp/cab combo when solo'd in a quiet environment, in this instance I prefer the ZOOM.

All of the above will warm up a sterile tone.

Purposely saved build/quality for a short blurb here as my experience tells me it's entirely based on the user.

Any are suitable if you take care of you gear. The Sansamp stuff provides a bit more room for carelessness. The BDI21 is more than serviceable, especially considering the price. For a little more I'd say the ZOOM is a great investment. If you don't need the direct out, expression pedal, or USB the B2 version is my hands down recommendation for you.

[GreyBeard]

I had one of those fancy programmable BDDI's that came up missing after the last band broke up. Today I was nosing around a little mom and pop music shop close to where I live. The deal in strictly bottom of the line stuff like Samik and Behringer. I saw the BDI21 hanging on the wall with a price of $29.00! So I took a chance and bought it. So far it does exactly what it is suppose to do, it fattens up a SS tone a lot like a tube amp. I've been practicing through some studio monitors and a pr of Zin HD650's. What it does is broaden the bottom end a bit and add the upper harmonics (presence) much the same way a tube amp does.

[DZello]

I own a Zoom b2 and I love it! It's affordable and perfect for silent practice. It sounds very good with my Marshall MB30.