Aguilar OPB-1 onboard preamp

tomthedude · #1 01-22-2007, 11:15 AM

any expierences? how easy are they to fit? effective?

Tom

dunamis · #2 01-22-2007, 12:54 PM

Yes. Very easy. Yes.

Suggestion: there are lots of threads on this pre-- try a search.

tomthedude · #3 01-22-2007, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dunamis

Yes. Very easy. Yes.

Suggestion: there are lots of threads on this pre-- try a search.

haha i did search before but nothing came up... pretty rare getting there stuff in the uk

chadds · #4 01-22-2007, 04:08 PM

Actually it's an updated copy of the MusicMan pu. It comes on like you talked about it's mother. Not subtle. In that is it's greatness. It also responds to a gentle touch yielding all kinds of tones for every genre. It is boost only flat at off. Not a problem for a lot of users. The blend of the treble and bass makes a nice mid thing that never is doinky. It's powerful and will make your amp work. That's great because if you don't already you can leave your amp tone controls flat and really hear your bass, your technique and get more ummph and headroom out of your rig.
Oh yeah, the bass is huge!

**Rodent** · #5 01-23-2007, 08:40 AM

an OBP-1 is the only pre-amp I utilize as stock in my basses. I've tried several other pre-amps, and nothing can compare for the sonic vision I build for

all the best,

R

tomthedude · #6 01-23-2007, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rodent

an OBP-1 is the only pre-amp I utilize as stock in my basses. I've tried several other pre-amps, and nothing can compare for the sonic vision I build for

all the best,

R

aye well i've got an ibanez artcore bass with the standard single passive pickup. I understand it comes with a treble and tone knob? Perhaps I could put this inside one of the semi acoustic style cut outs? I'm not up for drilling any holes haha i beat it up enough already.

cheers

Tom

Papersen · #7 01-23-2007, 10:05 AM

I got one installed in a Warwick Corvette and works great. The sound improved quite from the stock MEC preamp.

**Eric Perry** · #8 01-23-2007, 10:10 AM

I have the OBP-3 in several of my basses. I absolutely love it. and yes, the bass IS huge!!!

No experience with the OBP-1, however. Sorry.

tomthedude · #9 01-23-2007, 10:23 AM

ok so it needs two 9v batteries, do you have to mod that yourself?

**Eric Perry** · #10 01-23-2007, 10:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomthedude

ok so it needs two 9v batteries, do you have to mod that yourself?

I can't speak for the 1, but the 3 doesn't need 18v. It's an option. The higher voltage just gives you more headroom. One of my basses only had room for 9v. Works just fine.

Papersen · #11 01-23-2007, 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomthedude

haha i did search before but nothing came up... pretty rare getting there stuff in the uk

Maybe it`s because you wrote OPB-1 instead of OBP-1

tomthedude · #12 01-23-2007, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric618

I can't speak for the 1, but the 3 doesn't need 18v. It's an option. The higher voltage just gives you more headroom. One of my basses only had room for 9v. Works just fine.

right well since i have a semi acoustic i need to be careful, do you get a black bit found on the end of most pedal wires inside which connect to the battery?

I think i could put them all inside one of the cut outs, but changing the battery would be a stress... maybe

Tom

**Eric Perry** · #13 01-23-2007, 11:24 AM

When I bought mine, I bought it from Brian at BestBassGear. He has an option where he'll wire it up to your specs for you prior to shipment. For what he charged, I chose that option instead of fumbling with it myself. I can't say for sure how it comes stock.

For my most recent, that was 18v, passive/active switch, Volume, Blend, Treble, Bass, and stacked Mid/variable mid frequency.

The various ways to wire this thing are very diverse. I'd check with Brian. He's fantastic to deal with!

Crabby · #14 01-24-2007, 01:41 AM

I have an OBP-3 installed in my Yamaha BBN5IIL and it is freakin amazing. I have the volume,balance,bass,mid,treb and mid switch setup with two 9v batteries and this single upgrade turned a good bass into an absolute tone monster!

I have stock Yamaha passive soapbar pickups and the OBP-3 really brought this bass to life. I love this pre and assume the OBP-1 would be basically the same withou the mid control. I usually leave the whole thing dead flat and pan slightly to my rear pickup to get the most sweet growl. The bass is ungodly and the treble control works like a passive control when rolled down. I cant recommend this pre enough to upgrade a bass that you already like the feel of but want better sound.

i was going to spend big bucks on new soapbar pickups but there is no need at all now.

**Eric Perry** · #15 01-24-2007, 08:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crabby

I love this pre and assume the OBP-1 would be basically the same withou the mid control.

One big difference though is the 3 is boost/cut, whereas the 1 is only boost.

I'm not sure if the 1 has as many wiring options, but I could most certainly be wrong on that.

They are both (IMO) great preamps!

ibz · #16 01-24-2007, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric618

One big difference though is the 3 is boost/cut, whereas the 1 is only boost.

I'm not sure if the 1 has as many wiring options, but I could most certainly be wrong on that.

They are both (IMO) great preamps!

The 1 has less wiring option by nature of the beast, no mids to deal with. However, other than that options like passive-active switch, and passive tone ect. can be done with both.

Keep in mind the OPB-1 uses a treble frequency that is better for boosting, and the OPB-2/3 use a treble frequency that is better for cutting, but sounds fairly harsh for boosting.

**Eric Perry** · #17 01-24-2007, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ibz

The 1 has less wiring option by nature of the beast, no mids to deal with. However, other than that options like passive-active switch, and passive tone ect. can be done with both.

Keep in mind the OPB-1 uses a treble frequency that is better for boosting, and the OPB-2/3 use a treble frequency that is better for cutting, but sounds fairly harsh for boosting.

Yeah, I wasn't sure if the active/passive,etc. could be done on the 1. My bad.

I will agree that the treble can get a tad too sizzly if not used discretely on the OBP-3. The bass can also quickly go over the top. Small adjustments make LARGE changes, so tread carefully with an OBP-3. Again, I've never owned an OBP-1 equipped bass, so I can't speak for them.

Thanks for the clarification, ibz.

ibz · #18 01-24-2007, 01:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric618

Yeah, I wasn't sure if the active/passive,etc. could be done on the 1. My bad.

I will agree that the treble can get a tad too sizzly if not used discretely on the OBP-3. The bass can also quickly go over the top. Small adjustments make LARGE changes, so tread carefully with an OBP-3. Again, I've never owned an OBP-1 equipped bass, so I can't speak for them.

Thanks for the clarification, ibz.

That's fine, I'm actually still hammering some of this stuff out. It took me three weeks to realize there was a push/pull bypass on my Valenti to bypass the AG.

one of those duh moments...

+1 on the OPB-3/2's adjustments, especially the bass. The bass can start boosting a lot right away. I almost consider a 1/4 turn a fairly extreme boost. Though if you have a careful touch it sounds good REALLY good. I think this has to do with how unnecessarily extreme the boost can be and you only have half a turn of the knob to play with when boosting. However, the cut function is so nice to have with these over the OPB-1 IMO.

Ideally I wish Aguilar would produce a 2 or 3 band pre that combined the best of the OPB-1 and the OPB-2/3 with the following:

Treble boost treble frequency point of the OPB-1 (4K)
Treble cut of the OPB-2/3 (6.5K)
A more even boost/ cut of the bass so it isn't so touchy.
Keep everything else the same (well maybe if we're getting choosy an active blend, but that's ok)

Nino Valenti · #19 01-24-2007, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rodent

an OBP-1 is the only pre-amp I utilize as stock in my basses. I've tried several other pre-amps, and nothing can compare for the sonic vision I build for

all the best,

R

+1

If one of my basses doesn't have an Aguilar, it's because the customer requested it.

IMO and IME on any preamp I've ever used, a little is all you need. I always start flat with the preamp and adjust as needed. I've been liking the OBP-2 lately, 2 band cut/boost.

**Eric Perry** · #20 01-24-2007, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nino Valenti

+1

If one of my basses doesn't have an Aguilar, it's because the customer requested it.

IMO and IME on any preamp I've ever used, a little is all you need. I always start flat with the preamp and adjust as needed. I've been liking the OBP-2 lately, 2 band cut/boost.

Nino, why wouldn't you go with the 3? Just curious.