Anyone else dislike Sansamp?

[MopHarris]

Pretty obvious from the title, anyone else dislike Sansamps or am I a strange unheard of breed of bass player?

I've yet to find a model that I like, they're all strange sounding things. ESPECIALLY the Protools Sansamp plugin, it sounds like fake plasticy distortion!

 

[Ric5]

Ya ... they should ditch the presence control and replace it with a mid control.

I prefer the VT bass.

 

[Gearhead17]

I personally like the VT Bass over every Sansamp-based sound unit. With the BDDI, I used the Clean Blend control at very low settings. It was basically set for overdrive and my clean tone put together. I now use a VT Bass with a blend pedal - much better tone to my ears.

The Sansamp technology really shines in the studio, otherwise, I am not a big fan of it. And no, you are not alone.

 

[Ubersheist]

I've got that typical Sansamp DI that every bass player seems to love. I don't dislike it, but I don't love it. I got it on sale for a bargain, so I can't complain. I don't think it would have been my first choice, as the overdrive that you get from it is more distortion then overdrive. However, it works well enough with pedals I got after that one as distortion, not overdrive. So, I have ambivalently mixed feelings towards the pedal/DI.

 

[MSUsousaphone]

It's in a long list of very popular guys that I consider "beginner pedals".

And......it was one of my first pedals.

 

[scottfeldstein]

Don't hate. At worst I'm ambivalent on the SansAmp line. I've owned the BDDI and the programmable BDDI; I still kind of pine for the VT Bass.

Thing is, I think a lot of guys (myself included) looked to the Bass Driver as a stomp box to sit in front of their amp. This isn't its primary purpose. Its designed to send an "ampy" signal to the mixing board through its DI while sending an unaffected parallel signal to your amp. The end. Trying to use it for other purposes suits some players just fine--and others not so much. I'm the latter. But the engineer's face when I sent him the DI from the BDDI? He nearly died and went to heaven.

Maybe the VT bass is the way to go as an effect pedal: instant big-rig, retro rock sound. I don't think it's going to satisfy every distortion itch you're ever going to have. It doesn't scratch all of mine. But for that moment when you need to sound like John Paul Jones or John Entwhistle, I don't think there's another pedal on the market that does it better.

 

[JimmyM]

Sansamp deserves a lot of credit if you ask me. Frankly, I'm surprised they ever got as close as they have to sounding like tube amps. But I never was too impressed with Sansamp till the Character pedals came out.

 

[behndy]

MEH. i know Jimbo-Dibbles is a fan. but Sansamp always sounded complete **** to me. at least the dirt section. the preamp stuff can do some cool tones, but the dirt is freaking AWFUL.

blegh.

BLEGH.

 

[DonBorelli]

Honestly?

I think most of Tech 21's products are strokes of GENIUS.

Every Tech 21 product I've owned has reeked of quality and made life as a touring musician MUCH easier.

I think the Sansamp Bass Driver is a brilliant plug'n play device. You can bring it to any gig and have a GOOD persistent sound - no matter how horrible the bass amp is

Of course, it's too "easy" to settle with for the pedal geek. But for the busy musician who just wants to play - instead of yapping about gear until the cows come home - it's just perfect.

I think my personal favorite is the Sansamp GT2.
And the Tech 21 Power Engine 300 power amp I have just sounds HUUUGE. It eats your run-of-the-mill 1000 watt Hartke/Peavey/SWR/whatever for breakfast.

 

[Crazyeelboy]

It took me some time to warm up to my SansAmp, but once I experimented a bit with it, I found a sound I really like. I especially like using this to craft my sound early in the chain so that I have some influence on the sound before it goes into the FOH mix.

 

[AuntieBeeb]

A big +1 to anyone who bemoans the lack of mid control on those horrible things!

I don't have extensive experience, just a massive chip on my shoulder after my blues trio went into the studio to record. I'd been warned that I'd be playing DI, but then the guy pointed this Sansamp at me and let me have a play around with that while they went to set up our guitarist. Everything sounded less-than-wonderful so I tried to go for the closest I could get to a slightly gritty, valve-y tone and hoped for the best. And, now that we've gone to mix it, the tone has no mids whatsoever and just sits in the mix like cold mud, while the DI track sound clinical and lifeless.

(I think I may have to just play the DI track through my amp at home and record that...unless anyone's got any better ideas?)

 

[MrRumbleBoom]

I use the RPM, (with a mid control), and get a lot of compliments on my sound. I agree the overdrive/distortion is not that good, unless you want to sound like a buzzing bee! It's not very subtle.

I play clean though, and am happy with it.

 

[skulletwhip]

I had a BDDI that helped make my crappy combo sound good. I don't have it anymore. I liked the VT when I tried it in a store, but it really isn't for me. Sounded good, but not what I am looking for.

 

[Duke21]

Ya ... they should ditch the presence control and replace it with a mid control.

I prefer the VT bass.

NOOOOOOO! They should KEEP the presence control and ADD a mid control!
Over wise? I DIG the Sansamp BDDI

 

[Darknut]

As scottfeldstein so elegantly put it.... "it sends an "ampy" signal to the mixing board through its DI while sending an unaffected parallel signal to your amp."

Anyone that doesn't like the bass driver just doesn't know how to use it properly ... end of story

 

[skulletwhip]

As scottfeldstein so elegantly put it.... "it sends an "ampy" signal to the mixing board through its DI while sending an unaffected parallel signal to your amp."

Anyone that doesn't like the bass driver just doesn't know how to use it properly ... end of story

Or they don't like the tone.

 

[kurosawa]

I played one for years and was happy. But they are like Mesa tube bass amps in terms of you having to invest time learning how they work. They are not plug and play. If you own one, just get some good starter settings and go from there.

 

[Medford Bassman]

Don't hate. At worst I'm ambivalent on the SansAmp line. I've owned the BDDI and the programmable BDDI; I still kind of pine for the VT Bass.

Thing is, I think a lot of guys (myself included) looked to the Bass Driver as a stomp box to sit in front of their amp. This isn't its primary purpose. Its designed to send an "ampy" signal to the mixing board through its DI while sending an unaffected parallel signal to your amp. The end. Trying to use it for other purposes suits some players just fine--and others not so much. I'm the latter. But the engineer's face when I sent him the DI from the BDDI? He nearly died and went to heaven.

Maybe the VT bass is the way to go as an effect pedal: instant big-rig, retro rock sound. I don't think it's going to satisfy every distortion itch you're ever going to have. It doesn't scratch all of mine. But for that moment when you need to sound like John Paul Jones or John Entwhistle, I don't think there's another pedal on the market that does it better.

+1

 

[wshines1892]

I loved mine and I miss it. I believe Geddy made it work for him. They do take some time to figure out how to use. Most of the discontentment I hear about them come from people who had them for a week and got rid of it because they didn't like it or were in a studio setting or had a friend let them borrow one and haed it based off of that one experience.

The mid scoop can be not so bad, or made worse depending on where you have the treble and bass knobs. It scoops the mids relative to that. If you don't know how to work it, you'll turn knobs up until the cows come home and still hate it.

 

[john_g]

I had a VT bass and couldnt get a tone I really liked. I also have the behringer bdi21 SA knockoff which I only kind of like. However, I did get an RPM and love that thing! Sounds really good in front of my Little Mark II.

I "may" end up selling it though because I broke down and bought a SVT CL and havent used it since.