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Best preamp for "clean" bass sounds?

#41
I have the Harmonic Booster, and I love it. When I downsized from my SWR rig to Aguilar, I was trying to find something that gave me something close to my old SWR tone, and the harmonic booster basically got me there. Hard to explain exactly what it does, but if you already know you like the "Darkglass tone" then I'm sure you'll like the booster.
 
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#42
Killing Floor said:
What kind of bass(es)?

John East preamps will change your life for the better. On average, you will need 1 hour less sleep but you will wake feeling more refreshed. You will finally lose those "love handles" and your lower back will be more flexible, you might even want to start yoga. Strangers will find you more attractive. Not in a creepy way, you'll just notice people smiling at you in public. Your hair will be thicker up top. And that spot you've been wondering about having a dermatologist check will fade away.
And your bass will sound fantastic. Or just get another pedal.
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That good, huh? Been thinking about one for my Jazz...
 
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#43
The cleanest I have ever heard is my Demeter VTBP-201

demeter-20front-jpg.jpg
 
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#44
Adrin said:
So I recently purchased a Microtubes X7 and I absolutely love the distorted sounds I can get out of it. It's a beast of a pedal. I can get some pretty decent clean sounds out of it too but I'd like to buy another preamp that can do better. I know the DG Harmonic Booster seems to be the obvious choice but I've heard people get some really good clean sounds out of the SansAmp also. Just curious, what preamp do you guys recommend for getting a good clean tone? I play mostly rock and some metal. I know it really depends on what sound I'm looking for. I play mostly modern rock (Tool, A Perfect Circle), classic rock (Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin) and some metal. I'm mainly just looking for something versatile with really good sounding hi-mids and a tight lowend. I'm pretty much trying to decide between the Harmonic Booster and the SansAmp but I'd like to see what some other people suggest before I make up my mind and buy something...
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BTW I love my Sansamp pedals...Do very nice clean bass if distortion not introduced
 
#45
If you can find a Yamaha PB-1 preamp it is the poopie for tone plus it has an effect loop ( adjustable) and a active crossover for bi amping with the capability of overlapping the crossover point. Also DI with ground lift and a switchable band of parametric that is fully adjustable. I'd still be using mine but it got stolen about 6 months ago.
 
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#46
Killing Floor said:
What kind of bass(es)?

John East preamps will change your life for the better. On average, you will need 1 hour less sleep but you will wake feeling more refreshed. You will finally lose those "love handles" and your lower back will be more flexible, you might even want to start yoga. Strangers will find you more attractive. Not in a creepy way, you'll just notice people smiling at you in public. Your hair will be thicker up top. And that spot you've been wondering about having a dermatologist check will fade away.
And your bass will sound fantastic. Or just get another pedal.
Click to expand...

I just installed a Uni-Pre into my EHB1005MS and MY LIFE IS FOREVER CHANGED! I the clean deep full sounds and the internal EQ availability is mind blowing. I am blown away by how beautiful it made my bass sound. The low B is CRYSTAL CLEAR.
 
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#52
Like I said, Q\Strip. I can't think of a cleaner preamp, to be honest. Its surgical EQ can do literaly anything except dirt, which can be useful sometimes.
I don't have a BDDI anymore, but I remember I got decent clean-ish sounds from it, but definitely not 100% clean.
I never tried a VTDI and I guess it would be better than the BDDI for cleans? Am I wrong?
Anyway, I'd go with the Q\Strip but maybe you can find a good balance between clean and dirt with a BDDI or VTDI. Since you play rock and metal I'd try to get a single tool that covers everything.
 
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#60
murphy said:
The cleanest I have ever heard is my Demeter VTBP-201

View attachment 4025389
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I agree that the Dem 201 is a perfect clean bass pre, but it does not check the “versatile” box the op specified. Its pretty much a signal boosting DI with a tiny bit of eq.
But don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love mine. So if the OP has other pedals to get the versatility, then it’s definitely a highly recommended option.
 
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