If I really needed to, I could show up to a gig with just that and my bass and I'll have decent tone in a pinch through the board.
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Anybody stopped using their Sansamp?
- Thread starter jlt5x
- Start date
I bought one a while back and it sounded great with my Squier VM Jazz/Acoustic B200H/Ampeg B410HE. Then I picked up a Carvin B500X and ran it through the effects loop and I didn't like it. Then I got a sweet deal on a Fender American Standard Jazz and have been too preoccupied with all of my new toys to even look for my Sansamp.
Used mine for about two months, gave it up in 2003 and never looked back. Too ~scoopy~. One time I thought it was all that ... then I realized I'd drank too much kool aid and figured out that I was using it to fix the sound of crappy pickups. I've learned much since 2003 ... main lesson was to give up kool aid.
Unrelated, but I love that quote, Flux.
(I dig Tech21's Oxford btw, but it sounds nothing like the BDDI. It's a midrange beast.)
(I dig Tech21's Oxford btw, but it sounds nothing like the BDDI. It's a midrange beast.)
Had a VT Bass Deluxe but that did not last long at all. I didn't like its tone, as it coloured it way too much.
But I recently got the Sansamp RPM rackmount preamp to sit on top of my Crown XLS 1000 and she is awesome. I can get any tone out of it and to my ears, they are all great. The parametic EQ for the mid-range is what sold me on it.
But I recently got the Sansamp RPM rackmount preamp to sit on top of my Crown XLS 1000 and she is awesome. I can get any tone out of it and to my ears, they are all great. The parametic EQ for the mid-range is what sold me on it.
Stopped using the Sans Amp have it as a back up to my Behringer BD21 which I have been using for a while now. Forced to go no amp after a serious back injury.
rtslinger said:
How's the BDI21 holding up for you?
I just got one a week ago but haven't used it live yet.
First had the bass driver and liked it ok, but like some around here, I didn't like the 'scooped' mid character of the pedal.
Then got the para driver and was hopeful as it has a sweepable mid with a cut and boost. Although it does give you more control over the mids in comparison to the bass driver I still found I couldn't escape the overall scooped nature of the sans amp.
Found the sound of other pedals like the FEA labs Dual Band Distortion, Source Audio Multiwave Bass Distortion and the AMT BC-1 more appealing for adding character and tone shaping.
The sans amp still has some handy features with the parallel out and XLR DI so I keep one around for the studio just in case.
-Mark
Then got the para driver and was hopeful as it has a sweepable mid with a cut and boost. Although it does give you more control over the mids in comparison to the bass driver I still found I couldn't escape the overall scooped nature of the sans amp.
Found the sound of other pedals like the FEA labs Dual Band Distortion, Source Audio Multiwave Bass Distortion and the AMT BC-1 more appealing for adding character and tone shaping.
The sans amp still has some handy features with the parallel out and XLR DI so I keep one around for the studio just in case.
-Mark
I've never found a bass distortion unit of any kind that provides the kind of electric bass guitar distortion I like the hear. Other than a DIY unit I rigged up (not for sale BTW). I prefer to hear speaker distortion over electronic or tube distortion for the bass myself. A smoother, rounder sound.
In addition, to date every single distortion I've ever heard that claims to be "Geddy-esque" sounds like a bucket of a$$. Top-end fizzy crap or low-top-end "sizzle" just sounds bad to me. Bad bad not good bad. It only sounds good to me if you roll off the top all the way down to roughly 3 or 4khz AFTER it's been distorted. However, most treble controls aren't voiced that low. So I had to make my own stew.
I've resorted to using low-cost tube mic preamps or a half decent DI as an input stage to keep pickup loading consistant (aka "input impedance") followed by a combination of using DIY distortion rigs with an array of several "state variable" filters made for modular synthesizers that allow total control over frequency cutoff and peak resonance controls. At the end another DI to get the output impedance corrected, then out to a Mackie power amp to drive a Baer ML112 cab. The DI at the end of the chain can direct the signal to both the Mackie for monitoring and an audio interface for recording into a DAW.
Complex? Naw, not really. No more so than anything else. Expensive? Again, no more than anything else, really. Versatile? Oh yea.
I've been through SVTs, SWRs, TEs, GKs, embarrassing piles of stomps (including the Tech-21 Bass Driver and Para-Driver, their midi-rack setup, the Tri-AC, and Landmark 300), probably every "popular" type of pedal, as well as many unpopular setups. Had the Avalon U5 with an HHB Fat Man tube compressor for a while, had the Ampeg SVP-BSP preamp, digi-stuff (Boss GT6B, Line 6 Bass POD and Bass POD Pro, Amplitube1, 2, and 3).
While it's all good, it's only good until it's not good anymore. Some of that stuff bored me quickly, some of it stuck around a little while. The longest running setup was the U5/FatMan/SVT rig.
This rig I'm using now is so versatile that no matter how my tastes change over time ahead, it can be retuned to suit. I may add other cabs, or change cabs, but the preamp/amp setup is forever. It all fits in an 8u rack. and weighs half what an SVT head weighs.
There is no toy in a box that can replace a 100% modular rig. It's all a compromise.
It only took me 25+ years to get that aspect figured out.
In addition, to date every single distortion I've ever heard that claims to be "Geddy-esque" sounds like a bucket of a$$. Top-end fizzy crap or low-top-end "sizzle" just sounds bad to me. Bad bad not good bad. It only sounds good to me if you roll off the top all the way down to roughly 3 or 4khz AFTER it's been distorted. However, most treble controls aren't voiced that low. So I had to make my own stew.
I've resorted to using low-cost tube mic preamps or a half decent DI as an input stage to keep pickup loading consistant (aka "input impedance") followed by a combination of using DIY distortion rigs with an array of several "state variable" filters made for modular synthesizers that allow total control over frequency cutoff and peak resonance controls. At the end another DI to get the output impedance corrected, then out to a Mackie power amp to drive a Baer ML112 cab. The DI at the end of the chain can direct the signal to both the Mackie for monitoring and an audio interface for recording into a DAW.
Complex? Naw, not really. No more so than anything else. Expensive? Again, no more than anything else, really. Versatile? Oh yea.
I've been through SVTs, SWRs, TEs, GKs, embarrassing piles of stomps (including the Tech-21 Bass Driver and Para-Driver, their midi-rack setup, the Tri-AC, and Landmark 300), probably every "popular" type of pedal, as well as many unpopular setups. Had the Avalon U5 with an HHB Fat Man tube compressor for a while, had the Ampeg SVP-BSP preamp, digi-stuff (Boss GT6B, Line 6 Bass POD and Bass POD Pro, Amplitube1, 2, and 3).
While it's all good, it's only good until it's not good anymore. Some of that stuff bored me quickly, some of it stuck around a little while. The longest running setup was the U5/FatMan/SVT rig.
This rig I'm using now is so versatile that no matter how my tastes change over time ahead, it can be retuned to suit. I may add other cabs, or change cabs, but the preamp/amp setup is forever. It all fits in an 8u rack. and weighs half what an SVT head weighs.
There is no toy in a box that can replace a 100% modular rig. It's all a compromise.
It only took me 25+ years to get that aspect figured out.
There you go.
I swapped out my VT bass for a Catalinbread SFT on account of GAS, but I am really happy I did, FWTW.
Well, my 3 pre's are all tube-esque but I still keep the BDDI, along with the ever-essential tuner & compressor, on my board just in case I'm faced with an "unknown quantity". Case-in-point: we were closing out a local fundraiser and the host duo, Bonnie and Ed Beard (retired 49er's linebacker) offered up their entire FOH and backline to keep things moving. The bass rig was a mic'd 15" Fender combo so instead of learning the layout, I activated the BDDI, adjusted a couple knobs, and I was off and running. I've found the BDDI overrides / overwhelms weaker host amps which is sometimes a good thing.
Riis
Riis
I´m thinking to throw it off...
Soloed my basses (74 P / 2005 MMSR) sounds amazingly full, rich and punchy. But in live band situation it sound muddy without clarity and losted in the mix.
I´d try differents amps, my rig was a GK RB1001-II + GK NEO212, downsized now to a 500W GK MB-210.
I like the dirty OD tones. I like valve tone. But I have back problems and 46 years to haul a valve head.
My Sansamp PBDDI its the 3 buttons programmable unit, 1 for a fingerstyle, 2 for a pick technique, 3 for a insane on your face OD. Nice to have 3 instant different tones under my feet, but after 3 years having this unit, I cant achieve a decent tone in a band situation.
Actually I dial a slightly dirty tone with the G.I.V.E. Boost knob of the GK amp, and the OD/distorted with a Big Muff PI.
Yesterday I´d give another chance to this box. Surprisingly, with all the buttons disengaged, the unit it´s still modifiying the sound hardly. Yep, there´s a HUGUE difference between the bass plugged straight to the amp and the SABDDI between them in "bypass" mode.
Soloed my basses (74 P / 2005 MMSR) sounds amazingly full, rich and punchy. But in live band situation it sound muddy without clarity and losted in the mix.
I´d try differents amps, my rig was a GK RB1001-II + GK NEO212, downsized now to a 500W GK MB-210.
I like the dirty OD tones. I like valve tone. But I have back problems and 46 years to haul a valve head.
My Sansamp PBDDI its the 3 buttons programmable unit, 1 for a fingerstyle, 2 for a pick technique, 3 for a insane on your face OD. Nice to have 3 instant different tones under my feet, but after 3 years having this unit, I cant achieve a decent tone in a band situation.
Actually I dial a slightly dirty tone with the G.I.V.E. Boost knob of the GK amp, and the OD/distorted with a Big Muff PI.
Yesterday I´d give another chance to this box. Surprisingly, with all the buttons disengaged, the unit it´s still modifiying the sound hardly. Yep, there´s a HUGUE difference between the bass plugged straight to the amp and the SABDDI between them in "bypass" mode.
Echoing what a few others have said....when I had an OK amp it was great to have (once I figured out how to unscoop the mids) but once I got a better amp it became my nasty balls out overdrive that I still use today. I could probably find an overdrive that I like better but right now I don't have any gear I want to sell or trade and like most family man working musicians I don't have much money spend on trying all the flavor of the week ODs out there. Plus if it ain't broke don't fix it right? My overdrive sound sits well in the band mix and I get complements all the time.
I got rid of it and then went back......had the Sansamp Bass Driver for years, got rid of it...then got a VT Bass for a few months....got rid of that....played without any effects for a couple years, then got another VT Bass about a year ago that I still use pretty much all the time....will see what happens.
Well had to chime in too. I have been using mine non stop since it first came out what in the early 90's. I currently use the standard SABDDI as the last device in my signal chain on the floor then right into my amp. I run it flat with the presence down around 9. Sometimes I experiment and roll the bass and treble back from noon to 11 to try to help the mids but I find boosting them on my MB F500 does the trick so I rarely touch it and it is always on. FOH takes my signal from the DI in the MB and they take it post, of course I never adjust anything so all is safe. I dig it so much that I have a Programable version in my backup bag just incase
It is an aquired taste and ether you dig it or you don't, there is no right answer. I do know that if I turn it off my rig really sounds terrible so either on or out of the signal path for me.
It is an aquired taste and ether you dig it or you don't, there is no right answer. I do know that if I turn it off my rig really sounds terrible so either on or out of the signal path for me.
