Which one is better ?

scsgtusmc · #1 08-07-2010, 05:34 PM

I am looking to get some new effects for my bass. Does anyone have any experience with any one of these :
Tech21 SansAmp 3-Channel Bass driver DI
Tech21 SansAmp VT Bass or the Deluxe version
Boss LMB-3 Bass Limiter Enhancer
Or have any suggestions for other pedals ? Right now i am running a Digitech RP80 multi effects. I just wanted something that sounded a little better. I play a passive Fender J-Bass and an active Schecter Stiletto through an Acoustic 2x10 with a B115 extension cab.

bongomania · #2 08-07-2010, 06:45 PM

Welcome to TB. If you read through the forum a bit, you'll see many, many posts about these products. To learn about what the LMB-3 is and does, check out the reviews and FAQ linked in my sig. It is a completely, totally different thing from the Sansamps.

cybersnyder · #3 08-07-2010, 06:48 PM

Out of those, the VT or the VT Deluxe are the standouts. Almost everyone that gets a VT loves it.

scsgtusmc · #4 08-07-2010, 06:56 PM

thanks for the reply. I have heard a lot of good things about the VT also. I just wish it had compression.

scsgtusmc · #5 08-07-2010, 06:58 PM

I know what the LMB-3 is and does. I was looking for others opinion on it given my current equipment.

kevteop · #6 08-07-2010, 07:18 PM

Which what is better?

Swift713 · #7 08-07-2010, 09:51 PM

Better at/for what? To whom? Why?

JimmyM · #8 08-07-2010, 10:05 PM

vt or bddi will do more for you than a limiter/enhancer, especially one like the boss (not great, imho). i greatly prefer the vt because it sounds like ampegs...just got a vt deluxe that rocks my world. bddi sort of sounds like ampegs but really doesn't get there like the vt. surprisingly, people actually like it because it doesn't sound like ampegs as much. i totally don't get that, but ok

you'll have way more fun with one of them than a limiter. besides, you shouldn't be using a compressor or limiter at this stage of the game anyway. you should be practicing and striving to get more even with your playing, and a compressor will just make it easier for you. then you get all reliant on it and sound all over the place if you don't have it. best to do things the hard way at first. pays off big dividends on the back end.

*insertcoolname · #9 08-07-2010, 10:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

bddi sort of sounds like ampegs but really doesn't get there like the vt. surprisingly, people actually like it because it doesn't sound like ampegs as much. i totally don't get that, but ok

Being one of those people, I'll share some insight as to why I prefer the BDDI over the VT. The VT is an excellent pedal but here is why I choose the BDDI:

-It doesn't sound like an ampeg, more like "generic" tubeyness (if there is such a thing)

-The blend knob, which allows me to engage the pedal and still let my Warwick sound like a Warwick and my Stingray to sound like a Stingray, without it these pedals can make a lot of basses sound similar

Both are excellent pedals that will provide good sounds off the bat but I'd say the BDDI is the way to go if you're not sure what you're looking for out of it yet. Both have a certain element of compression built in as it is due to the nature of the design so I wouldn't worry about that. Just remember to cut both bass and treble if you go with the BDDI cause it'll scoop those mids.

Hookus · #10 08-08-2010, 08:35 AM

Yeah, the LMB-3 is kind of meh.

It's not an effect, generally you want your compression to be transparent. Unless you NEED a compressor, I wouldn't mess with it. I only use one for recording, and I use the one built into my amp.

Jake of Bass · #11 08-08-2010, 08:56 AM

I've got both the LMB-3 and the SansAmp BDP (3 channel SansAmp BDDI).

The LMB-3 is subtle, which is what you want. I quite like it and it does its job well, though of course there are better out there. But for the money I paid for it (used) it was a bargain and I wouldn't be without it.

The SansAmp BDP is the essential part of my tone, I couldn't gig without it. It is fantastic, easy to use and has great tones.

The VT Deluxe is similar to the BDP up to a point. The added features it has are a mid eq knob, flat eq at unity gain (knobs in the 12 o'clock position), character knob and effects loop.

I'm looking to replace the BDP with the VT Deluxe asap...

SurferJoe46 · #12 08-08-2010, 10:09 AM

Bongo and James pretty much are the same cloth here, although Bongo kinda couches his answer a little about NOT using a compressor at the stage you are currently playing by sending you to a link to read it for yourself.

James just comes out and says it - somewhat nicely, really - but he's just as correct all the same.

Credential-wise - they are both very wise as I have found out by reading all they say and trying to assimilate it all; you can do yourself a lot of early-on musical damage if you don't at least take what they say into very serious consideration.

It's true that any compressor allows you to make sonic mistakes and can cover them up and that way you don't learn control.

Don't get me wrong - the LMB-3 is a pretty fair unit in and of itself and can do things other than run as a compressor - it can also be used as a pre-amp too, but somehow that escapes most evaluations of this little BOSS stomp. That was a digression however.

I'm a re-emerging bass player from 'way back, played surf and pre-Beatles - and there are amazing toys out there to entice you that are so-o very attractive - but if I didn't say it clearly enough, here's where I'd go (and I'm my own worst doctor here and didn't do it the right way either) ::

Keep the stomps and effects to an absolute minimum until you develop your technique.

Need some more 'boom'? - just move your plucking toward the neck. Need more 'clarity'? - move your plucking down nearer the bridge.

There's been a lot of heated - er, discussion about the fingers-verses-gear, and fingers really win all the way. Some gearheads don't like to admit it though.

You can always create swirls, choruses, flanges, echoes and tube-effects with pedals and gear, but if you don't get the brain-to-fingers-to-ear connection first then you are just hiding behind technology and then lose ability to dial in skill and performance as a bassist.

I personally went out and got the LMB-3 too. It's nice but I was not then-, nor even yet- ready for it. I DO keep it clean and waxed - but I rarely use it.

I'm relearning all that I forgot after 45+ years of not playing, and the learning curve is worse for me as I am tainted by a previous life playing just 'thump-n-boom' bass in early surf bands.

We really never knew musical structure or even sight reading. We had Watts and huge cabs and if they weren't loud enough, we ran two amps and another huge cab.

Three chord structures, maybe two keys (C & E) and just keep the bottom loud; that was your job.

Swift713 · #13 08-12-2010, 12:16 PM

To scsgtusmc, I think perhaps you misunderstood my intentions in asking "for what, to whom, why?" I genuinely wanted to know what you wanted the "better" pedal to do for your signal. Are you looking for eq, amp emulation, DI, compression, etc? The comparison between these pedals is somewhat like the comparison between a pickup truck, a van, and a station wagon. Yes, I can use all three for the same purposes but they each have very different design goals and strengths.
On a side note, I don't appreciate your rude pm and I think you should be more respectful of others.

warwick.hoy · #14 08-12-2010, 01:09 PM

I had an LMB-3 as more first foray into compression. I then went into a pedal sell off and anything that didn't actually distort, fuzz, or filter my sound went on the chopping block in order to put money towards a car.

Would I buy another LMB-3? No. It was a good bang for the buck but it seems to me that depending on what you want a comp to do and how well you want it to do it you have to spend a little more than the ~70 bucks the LMB-3 sells for.

I understand what compression is for and I want a Comp. I just don't have $350 for the FEA LABS comp I want.

I had a Sansamp Programmable BDDI. I used it to push a poweramp since I didn't have a preamp at the time. It was a temporary fix for the moment but that has also gotten the chop since I got a proper preamp which works a lot better with my poweramp. My biggest gripe with the BDDI is the fixed mids.

I prefer a more hifi clean sound which I love my little GK amp for and pretty much renders any Sansamps null for my purposes. The BDDIs and VT Bass are more for copping Ampeg SVT tones. If that's what you want go for it,...or check out the Catalinbread SFT.

Bob C · #15 08-12-2010, 06:50 PM

Sorry for hijacking the thread. A lot of TBers use the LMB-3 solely as a limiter behind a wild envelope filter. To those above, do you consider it "meh" in this setting as well?

bigchiefbc · #16 08-12-2010, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob C

Sorry for hijacking the thread. A lot of TBers use the LMB-3 solely as a limiter behind a wild envelope filter. To those above, do you consider it "meh" in this setting as well?

Actually, I think the LMB-3 is a very good peak limiter. It does that job very well. But that's really all it does. Don't expect it to fatten or sweeten your tone at all.

kevteop · #17 08-12-2010, 10:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigchiefbc

Actually, I think the LMB-3 is a very good peak limiter. It does that job very well. But that's really all it does. Don't expect it to fatten or sweeten your tone at all.

+1. Very useful as a safety net, and some (filter-heavy) boards need a safety net.

The bypass sound is missing some treble though. And at high ratios it can sound dull. Never noisy, but a bit dull. Maybe that's why they added the "enhance" knob.