I finally had the oppurtunity to complete my build. This was a ground up build so it took a little while to get all componants together to do it right.
I will first disclose all compononats and equipment. And I should also state that I am not endorsed by Bass Mods, nor am I affiliated in any way with this product. I a simple consumer making an honest evaluation of a product.
My equipment:
MIM Jazz Body
Teak neck with Ovankal board by Warmoth
Gotoh Bridge
Aguilar 4J60 Jazz Pups
BEQ12 Bass Mods Preamp
Standard Fender Tuners
DR Sunbeams 45-105 (Nickel rounds)
All Cavities Shielded with ground jumpers (complete grounded system.)
Playing Through a Ampeg SVT810E, and Fender Bassman 300 Pro, using monstor cables.
So on with the review...
First Impression (9 of 10) - Im pretty blown away by the transparent sound of the BEQ12 Bass Mods Preamp. Its really just a clean boost with tone controls. It reminds me very much of the Aggie OBP3 I have in another build. The Bass Mods Pre has Clean Highs, can get rumbly lows, and punchy mids. Its very impressive for this price point I paid $80.00 with controls new on the Bay.
Controls (9 of 10) - The first pot is the volume with push/pull active passive control. A BIG PLUS is there was not an audible click or pop sound when engaging the active/passive push pull. Its nice and quiet due to the prewired resistor on the pot.
The Preamp itself has a output pot to adjust your Active Output Setting. Passive setting is obviously not adjustable.
2nd control knob is the blend knob. When set in passive mode, this is the only working control besides volume. Some players might want a tone control when in passive mode but did not feel like the preamp was lacking anything without a passive tone control. Plenty of tone blending from pup to pup.
3rd knob when in active mode is tone control.
4th knob when in active mode is double stacked bass/treble.
Quality (8 of 10) - Because I bought this system with the preamp already prewire to the pots with control plate included, I not completely disappointed with the pots the builder is using. I think they personally could be a little better, but they function like they are supposed to.
Sound (9 of 10) - As I stated previously. Id put this sound up against my Aggie OBP3. I also have a Sadowski preamp in my Valenti and I'd put this bassmods preamp up against it as well. I would say I have 3 top quality and top sounding preamps. I play Rock, Jazz, and Funk. This preamp allows the true sound of my bass to come out and be heard. Regardless of the tone setting I have, it sound great. I can dial in a variety of tones depending on what I playing at the moment. It lacks not in the tone department.
Overall (9 of 10) - I would buy another BEW12 Bass Mods Pre if I have another build. Period! The sound is that of preamps 2 and 3 times its price range. I am totally happy with my decision to buy this preamp, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a clean preamp with veratility.
Thanks for taking the time to read my review of this great product.