Amps & Preamps-explain like I’m six

[dannylectro]

So… I’m a very long time bass player and basically always use a traditional rig: bass->basic pedalboard->amp.

I own a 1st gen Subway preamp that I really never use, though occasionally I use it for headphone practice. I read many, many TB threads regarding preamps, and while I understand their use in silent stage, worship-type settings where I wouldn’t be using a traditional amp/cab, and instead depending on house monitors, in-ears, etc. I don’t get why they are used in traditional setups like mine.

My question: if I’m plugged into an amp, such as a Mesa 800D, which has a versatile preamp built-in, and a distinctive “baked-in” sound of its own, why would I want/need any of the external preamps (Mesa, Sansamp, Broughton, etc.) for my rig? Especially if I have a pedalboard with a variety of effects I can use when needed?

 

[Stewie]

 

[The Sandman]

Danny, your question is completely legitimate — and most bass players never think past it. Let me try to reframe it.

The practicality trap is real. If you love what your Mesa gives you, you may genuinely not need an external preamp. That’s an honest answer and there’s no shame in it. But here’s what most bass players never encounter: the delta between a decent preamp and a truly world-class one isn’t incremental. High-end audio is a spectrum — diminishing returns as you climb. Pro audio at the top tier is a cliff. You’re either on it or you’re not, and the difference is immediately and unmistakably apparent.

Most bassists never get there for two reasons.

First, practicality. Bass culture is gig-optimized. Less gear, faster setup, if it works don’t touch it. The preamp never becomes part of the conversation.

Second — and this is deeper — guitar players grew up with tube amps where the preamp stage is the voice. Breakup, bloom, sag — it all happens there. The preamp announces itself. Iron fist. Bass players never developed that cultural vocabulary because clean headroom was always the goal. The preamp got collapsed into the amp, then eventually engineered out entirely in favor of class D efficiency.
But here’s the irony. What a great tube preamp does to a clean bass signal — no distortion involved — is actually the more profound transformation. Harmonic density. Weight. The note having more inside it. You don’t hear the preamp. You hear what the bass becomes through it. Velvet glove.

For guitarists, tone is currency — public, transactional, immediately recognized. For bassists, groove is the currency. Tone is private. Almost nobody in the room is listening analytically to your bass. The audience feels it without knowing it. Which means the pursuit of exceptional bass tone is essentially a solitary one — you’re refining something that operates below the threshold of conscious appreciation for nearly everyone present.

That elusiveness is exactly what makes it seductive. And why so few complete the journey.

As for me — I’m just fortunate to have more money than brains.

 

[DJ Bebop]

In my case, I have a Mesa WD800.
It has a tube front end plus it's own “baked in” sound. I got the new Subway+ DI Preamp, which is based on the Mesa D800+ that has a solid-state front end, and its own “backed in” sound, different from the WD. Now I have two different voices to work with, the WD and the D+. For me it's like having two different amps out of the same amp with the new Subway+ preamp added in.

 

[dannylectro]

If you had a passive bass and the amp had no eq? lol. You really don’t need it. In fact running a preamp into another preamp usually starts to sound pretty bad. I like the preamp of my audio interface directly, I don’t also run it through a tube di. If I’m using a tube DI then I’ll bypass the preamp in the interface.

This is kinda what I was thinking… wouldn’t it be likely to start having gain staging issues?

 

[GTHintz]

So… I’m a very long time bass player and basically always use a traditional rig: bass->basic pedalboard->amp.

I own a 1st gen Subway preamp that I really never use, though occasionally I use it for headphone practice. I read many, many TB threads regarding preamps, and while I understand their use in silent stage, worship-type settings where I wouldn’t be using a traditional amp/cab, and instead depending on house monitors, in-ears, etc. I don’t get why they are used in traditional setups like mine.

My question: if I’m plugged into an amp, such as a Mesa 800D, which has a versatile preamp built-in, and a distinctive “baked-in” sound of its own, why would I want/need any of the external preamps (Mesa, Sansamp, Broughton, etc.) for my rig? Especially if I have a pedalboard with a variety of effects I can use when needed?

The thing that I would say is that especially in your situation with all mesa it can be nice to have an extra eq to engage for certain songs and basses. Especially gigging it can help you get something that you might need in your tone. Personally I use preamp pedals to blend in tones when I want that. Especially the subway pre creates a nice cab type effect so it’s like having a mesa rig tone in your di signal or headphone signal.