Double Bass AI-esque pre-amp

[bolo]

Jeff, I have not tried the Para Driver. But looking at the knobs it does not appear to include a "Blend" knob, which on the BDDI controls the amount of direct signal blended with the tube emulation. This knob is way cool for EB on the BDDI.

But ... Mids are critical for EB and DB as you probably know. So the sweepable mid feature is something the BDDI does not have.

Further, the web site says that the Para Driver manual includes sample settings for a bunch of tubey sounds, like Deep Tube Bass, and SVT bass. And one for Upright Bass .

It also explicitly mentions working well w/ piezos. It does sound very intriguing.

IME, the tone shaping capabilities of the SansAmp stuff is vastly different from the bare, accurate character of the AI preamp. And much more flexible.

So to get a better or more complete response, maybe you might want to start a new thread w/ 'Para Driver' in the title, and post it in both the DB and EB forums. Just a thought. Or two.

 

[jweiss]

Cool, thanks very much for your comments Steve. I'm definitely going to pick up one of the two models...

From my reading, it sounds like the Paradriver replaced the discountinued "Acoustic" model, and combines all the features of the Acoustic with some of the "Bass Driver" features.

I like the "sounds like your bass" aspect of the Focus (especially with the Rob Allen!), and the high pass filter has been critical for removing boominess when DI'ing to the house PA in certain venues. However, it would be nice to dial in some more warmth when playing my fretted EB. Perhaps more importantly, I would like to have more eq adjustment to accommodate different rooms.

The Sansamp sounds like it may be just the ticket!

Cheers,

Jeff

 

[Jazzdogg]

I would highly recommend the new Radial PZ-Pre DI/Preamp/EQ.

It has much more tonal flexibility than the AI preamp.

I'm very interested in hearing what you have to say about the PZ-Pre - especially for those of us who double on DB and slab (when I used the search feature, I didn't find any threads that were particularly illuminating).

Thanks!

 

[Peredur]

I listened to all the advice, plugged a BDDI in to the FX return and thought "Mmmm, that's nice - the fact that I have succumbed to GAS and gone and bought an IP112 which will be paid for by flogging the AI make my question kind of academic" Such is the way of GAS!

 

[hensonbass]

The Radial PZ-PRE is a great for doubling on electric and upright because it's two channels and it's very clean. It also has a cool boost, effect loop feature, mute, and pre/post di outs. However, it's main strength is how well it works with piezo pickups, but it can be set for magnetics as well.

The only issue I could see being a problem for some doublers is if your upright has to use some extreme eq setting to make it sound good it might make your slab sound funny when you switch to the 2nd channel which shares the same eq section. To remedy the situation I would then use the PZ_PRE for the upright only, run it through the effect loop of my amp, then use the preamp section of my amp for the bass guitar.

Bottom line: If your instruments sound great from the input jack and don't need a lot of tweaking this is a great solution for a doubler who uses a single channel to the amp or PA. Otherwise, it's a great swiss-army-knife kind of preamp for a doublebass.

 

[Jazzdogg]

The Radial PZ-PRE is a great for doubling on electric and upright because it's two channels and it's very clean. It also has a cool boost, effect loop feature, mute, and pre/post di outs. However, it's main strength is how well it works with piezo pickups, but it can be set for magnetics as well.

The only issue I could see being a problem for some doublers is if your upright has to use some extreme eq setting to make it sound good it might make your slab sound funny when you switch to the 2nd channel which shares the same eq section. To remedy the situation I would then use the PZ_PRE for the upright only, run it through the effect loop of my amp, then use the preamp section of my amp for the bass guitar.

Bottom line: If your instruments sound great from the input jack and don't need a lot of tweaking this is a great solution for a doubler who uses a single channel to the amp or PA. Otherwise, it's a great swiss-army-knife kind of preamp for a doublebass.

Do you know if the PZ-Pre is another unity gain device like the Bassbone, or is it a true pre-amp that's capable of providing a line-level output signal sufficient to drive a power amp?

 

[hensonbass]

Unity gain - it will not push a power amp.

 

[Jazzdogg]

Thanks for your reply.

I wish manaufacturers were willing to be more candid in their labeling, e.g., distinguishing between line-level and instrument-level pre-amps.

 

[shwashwa]

i believe the para driver has a line level option, and it definately does have the blend knob. i like the blend knob all the way off and just use it for the preamp, not the tube emulation. i own both and like the sound of the paradriver alittle better. and i think radial didnt do a good job designing the switches on the pz pre. you actually need a toothpick or something to stick inside the unit to change some of the toggle switches. their engineering dept will say that's to protect the switches, but if you look at all their other di's they have the buttons on the outside and they're still protected by the shape of the box. it's just annoying.