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Amp DI vs. Pedal DI

dgrizzly

dgrizzly

Apr 28, 2014
1,020
805
USVI
www.boogiemammoth.com
#1
My amp has a pre / post XLR DI option so I always just go pre-EQ from there to FOH when needed...

But, I know a lot of players like to run DI from a pedal.

Is there an advantage / disadvantage of sending your signal to FOH from your stomp box compared to sending it from your amp?
 
#9
RustyAxe said:
1- The XLR on your amp is a DI. BUT ... your bass goes thru the amp before going to the FOH. Most amps have switchable Pre/Post EQ DI. Some allow you to adjust the DI output level, too. What the FOH gets may not be what you hear on stage, though, as your speakers are part of your path, but not the FOH's.

2- A standalone DI is usually between your bass/pedal board and the amp. They often split the signal ... one to your amp via 1/4", and one to FOH via XLR. In this case, the signal is routed to FOH after FX and before it goes to the amp.

3 - Then there's what are commonly referred to a DI's, but may have EQ, preamp, amp modeling, speaker modeling, FX, and more ... these are intended to be used INSTEAD of an amp, and the player gets a monitor feed from the board.

The Ampeg unit you cite is a combination of 2 and 3.
Click to expand...

I found this very helpful from a thread that did not come up in my initial search:
Question - DI box vs. Amp's XLR out | TalkBass.com

So it sounds like most players fall into the 1 and 2 categories above.

Category 3 would most likely be for those that want the most accurate monitoring, take public transportation to gigs and / or just don't feel like bringing an amp.
 
#11
Best practice depends on FOH being well Eq'd to room conditions and the stage mix being a good sound in it's own right.

Some complain of boomy stages messing with perception. Ime a room big enough for full PA copes admirably with my mic'd cab or post everything DI.

In the case of DI my Fx go through BDDI to amp, amp DI post EQ to FOH.

My EQ is mid forward, less with the low lows that boom in the room.

IME it's rare the "sound guy" that isn't all about smilely booming indistinct bass.
 
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#12
I think a lot of that depends on the room and the person doing the sound.. At my church when I was using my amp an SL 900 I would go pre EQ because the room was so bad and that would give the sound guy more flexibility in controlling the sound because he had a cleaner un EQd (aside from whatever I had on my bass) signal to begin with.. I currently use my B3 as a DI and now I go Post EQ so I can get the compression etc when I use it.
 
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#13
Sav'nBass said:
I think a lot of that depends on the room and the person doing the sound.. At my church when I was using my amp an SL 900 I would go pre EQ because the room was so bad and that would give the sound guy more flexibility in controlling the sound because he had a cleaner un EQd (aside from whatever I had on my bass) signal to begin with.. I currently use my B3 as a DI and now I go Post EQ so I can get the compression etc when I use it.
Click to expand...

Do you use the B3 with an amp? Or ampless?
 
#14
I use it with a powered speaker... and sometimes with an amp.. depends on where I am playing.. I use a Tech 21 Bass Power Wedge 60 with the B3 as a preamp. When I use my amp I usually use the DI on the amp and again depending on the room and whether or not I am going into a board I will go pre or post on the amp.. The PW60 is very hard to come by now but it is one of the best investments I ever made.. at 60W it is great as a monitor or for small events. I currently use the B3 as a pre and a DI that goes into the PW60 .. which has a LowZ through.. and then that goes straight to the board.. I have volume control on my monitor and on the B3 basically what I use is compression and the tuner. Sometimes a very light chorus..
 
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#15
Sav'nBass said:
I use it with a powered speaker... and sometimes with an amp.. depends on where I am playing.. I use a Tech 21 Bass Power Wedge 60 with the B3 as a preamp. When I use my amp I usually use the DI on the amp and again depending on the room and whether or not I am going into a board I will go pre or post on the amp.. The PW60 is very hard to come by now but it is one of the best investments I ever made.. at 60W it is great as a monitor or for small events. I currently use the B3 as a pre and a DI that goes into the PW60 .. which has a LowZ through.. and then that goes straight to the board.. I have volume control on my monitor and on the B3 basically what I use is compression and the tuner. Sometimes a very light chorus..
Click to expand...

Very cool set up. Thanks for the response!
 
#17
Bufalo said:
I have a VT Bass DI that I use along with my amp. I like the sound of the VTBass and want it in both my stage amp and in the house signal. I run the XLR out to the main system and the 1/4" out into the effect return of my amp.
Click to expand...

Do you not use the effects Send to complete the loop? Why not run the VT in front of the amp and take the DI from the amp.. No DI on amp or you like the tone you get from the amp EQ before VT EQ?
 
#18
My amp head has a DI, but I don't like the way the VT and the tone controls in the head play with each other. I plug my bass straight to the input on the VT DI and use that as the only preamp/tone-shape in my signal. My amp head basically just becomes a power amplifier for my stage cabinet. There are smaller gigs that my band plays where I don't even bring a stage amp. My sound never changes.
 
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#19
Bufalo said:
My amp head has a DI, but I don't like the way the VT and the tone controls in the head play with each other. I plug my bass straight to the input on the VT DI and use that as the only preamp/tone-shape in my signal. My amp head basically just becomes a power amplifier for my stage cabinet. There are smaller gigs that my band plays where I don't even bring a stage amp. My sound never changes.
Click to expand...

Oh very cool! Thank you for explaining that. I never realized you could do this!
 
#20
My experience is that not all DI are make equal. I have a Behringer Passive DI, a Behringer BDI21, a Radial J48, an EBS Microbass and an Ashdown Little Giant that has pre/post DI.
The diference in sound quality between the Behringer and the J48 is obvious even the most unexperienced of bass players and that alone makes me not trust entirely the DI on any amplifier. The reason is I never know what the built in DI is doing, is it a transparent one like the J48 or is it a tone sucking one like the Behringer? That is why I always use a DI in my board, so that I know exactly what I am sending to FOH.

Now, as @Downunderwonder said, after that the sound guy pretty much can screw up all your sound. And that can be minimized by having a DI with tone controls like the BDI21, the Microbass or the built in Amp DI in Post mode. (you go off the stage, listen to the mix, try to talk the guy into putting the sound as you want and when diplomacy fails you just adjust your tone on the DI and hope he did not notice)
The problem with the post mode is that you then are stuck having on stage the same EQ as you are sending to FOH, and since amp cabinets sound nothing like FOH speakers that might be really bad. For that reason I think the best option is a pedal preamp with DI like the BDI21 or the Microbass. I can tell you that the BDI21 is noisy as hell and the EQ section is like the one Tech21 BDDI and I do not like it! The Microbass has lovely EQ section and also has speaker sim on the DI which is nice. I have not tested the VT Bass DI but it looks much better than the BDDI
 

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