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Double Bass Best preamp w/ HiZ input and HPF?

#22
I forgot to mention that I use a RedEye Twin Preamp from FireEye Development in front of every Preamp I use.
So If it's the Grace Felix, the FireEye is first in the signal chain The GR Bass AT Acoustic the FireEye is first. I haven't.
found a single piezo pickup In my larder where the FireEye doesn't significantly tame the unpleasant characteristics
Inherent in most. Piezo pickups. This includes the Ehrlund EAP, Realist Lifeline, Planet Wing, and the KNA Cremona DB-1.
 
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#23
neddyrow said:
I have used them all and I have settled on the Broughton Messenger. Very simple but everything you need.

Alix is great too. Headway is excellent. AI flex was a great unit but no longer available.

When money was tight, I sold the others and got a Messenger Jr. Loved my old messenger and went back. very happy.
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I've been using the messenger jr, and would also recommend it, with a couple of caveats... There's no separate volume control for the ¼" out, no polarity switch, and the input impedance is only 1 MΩ. To solve the third issue, I use a little pedalboard with my fdeck and messenger, or strap the fdeck to the tailpiece (which requires a battery).
 
#24
Scott Lynch said:
My guess is that it's probably the pickup that is causing the issue. I have had a similar problem with my bass. It's one I really like the acoustic sound of but there is a lot of midrange peakiness that has always been difficult to dial out of the Yamahiko I have installed on it.

I've met with limited success with most of the preamps I've tried so far. However, I just picked up a Tonedexter recently, and while my experience with it has been brief, so far I have been astounded at what this thing is capable of. Fellow TBer @statsc has sung its praises here on the forums and his commentary was helpful in my decision to give it a shot. I'd recommend looking into it and seeing if it might be an option for you to consider.
Click to expand...

Scott Lynch said:
My guess is that it's probably the pickup that is causing the issue. I have had a similar problem with my bass. It's one I really like the acoustic sound of but there is a lot of midrange peakiness that has always been difficult to dial out of the Yamahiko I have installed on it.

I've met with limited success with most of the preamps I've tried so far. However, I just picked up a Tonedexter recently, and while my experience with it has been brief, so far I have been astounded at what this thing is capable of. Fellow TBer @statsc has sung its praises here on the forums and his commentary was helpful in my decision to give it a shot. I'd recommend looking into it and seeing if it might be an option for you to consider.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the shout-out, Scott; I'm glad someone is listening! Maybe it's the name - combining "Tone" (something we're all searching for) with "Dexter" (TV's most prolific serial killer) doesn't exactly inspire confidence!
 
#25
neddyrow said:
I have used them all and I have settled on the Broughton Messenger. Very simple but everything you need.

Alix is great too. Headway is excellent. AI flex was a great unit but no longer available.

When money was tight, I sold the others and got a Messenger Jr. Loved my old messenger and went back. very happy.
Click to expand...
The Broughton Messenger (V1, V2 or Jr) is a great preamp. I have a V1 for my electric and a Jr for my EUB. The V2 has a mute which would be good for upright. I know you can order the Jr with a high z input and I think the V2 as well (when in stock). I was using a Radial Bassbone OD for upright and the Messenger is so much cleaner and more present.
 
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#26
Ric Vice said:
I forgot to mention that I use a RedEye Twin Preamp from FireEye Development in front of every Preamp I use.
So If it's the Grace Felix, the FireEye is first in the signal chain The GR Bass AT Acoustic the FireEye is first. I haven't.
found a single piezo pickup In my larder where the FireEye doesn't significantly tame the unpleasant characteristics
Inherent in most. Piezo pickups. This includes the Ehrlund EAP, Realist Lifeline, Planet Wing, and the KNA Cremona DB-1.
Click to expand...
This has been discussed in the RedEye thread but it doesn't hurt to repeat it. The RE in that position in the chain has also worked very well for me. I appreciate simplicity and reliability as I've said before and the RE is a huge part of that.
 
#28
Ryan in PDX said:
I've been using the messenger jr, and would also recommend it, with a couple of caveats... There's no separate volume control for the ¼" out, no polarity switch, and the input impedance is only 1 MΩ. To solve the third issue, I use a little pedalboard with my fdeck and messenger, or strap the fdeck to the tailpiece (which requires a battery).
Click to expand...
I think Broughton will ship you a Messenger modified to your preferred input impedance and I might try that at some point. It seems like it could be the best of both worlds for me, between the FDeck and the Q\Strip.
 
#30
TroyK said:
I think Broughton will ship you a Messenger modified to your preferred input impedance and I might try that at some point. It seems like it could be the best of both worlds for me, between the FDeck and the Q\Strip.
Click to expand...
Great eq set, and it can indeed be ordered with any input resistor.

Unfortunately, I rushed the checkout process as there were so few left on drop day, and forgot to request the 10M mod. By the time I realized my mistake and emailed Josh, he'd already shipped it. Derp.

I have been meaning to do the mod myself, as I have soldering skillz, but my mutant eyes can't read resistor colors... This just inspired me to email Josh about it, so thanks!
 
#31
jthisdell said:
The Broughton Messenger (V1, V2 or Jr) is a great preamp. I have a V1 for my electric and a Jr for my EUB. The V2 has a mute which would be good for upright. I know you can order the Jr with a high z input and I think the V2 as well (when in stock). I was using a Radial Bassbone OD for upright and the Messenger is so much cleaner and more present.
Click to expand...
My bad, I remembered that the Jr also has a mute
 
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#32
Ryan in PDX said:
Great eq set, and it can indeed be ordered with any input resistor.

Unfortunately, I rushed the checkout process as there were so few left on drop day, and forgot to request the 10M mod. By the time I realized my mistake and emailed Josh, he'd already shipped it. Derp.

I have been meaning to do the mod myself, as I have soldering skillz, but my mutant eyes can't read resistor colors... This just inspired me to email Josh about it, so thanks!
Click to expand...
I’m pretty sure Josh will mod it for you, great guy to work with.
 
#33
I can't believe I'm only the second one to mention the fDeck HPF-Pre.
It's cheap, it's rugged, it runs on a 9V, and it has everything I need (and nothing I don't) to get my DBs responding musically through an amp.
I've tried a lot of amps over the years. I'd love to find one where I could plug straight in but thus far, every single one has worked better with the HPF-Pre inserted.
The base model works fine but I highly recommend getting the next one up with a battery indicator & volume control.
 
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#34
Jefenator said:
I can't believe I'm only the second one to mention the fDeck HPF-Pre.
It's cheap, it's rugged, it runs on a 9V, and it has everything I need (and nothing I don't) to get my DBs responding musically through an amp.
I've tried a lot of amps over the years. I'd love to find one where I could plug straight in but thus far, every single one has worked better with the HPF-Pre inserted.
The base model works fine but I highly recommend getting the next one up with a battery indicator & volume control.
Click to expand...
We are in 100% agreement on all points here! Love my model 2, and always get a usable sound from any amp - it's a silver bullet product for me.

...but OP seems to want more eq than the headway.
 
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#37
Ryan in PDX said:
We are in 100% agreement on all points here! Love my model 2, and always get a usable sound from any amp - it's a silver bullet product for me.

...but OP seems to want more eq than the headway.
Click to expand...
Honestly after initiating this thread, I'm beginning to think that perhaps I need to investigate my pickup and how it's placed on the bridge. Everyone seems to have no issues getting a good sound. And I'm fairly certain my bass doesn't sound terrible acoustically.
 
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#39
sumeursault said:
Honestly after initiating this thread, I'm beginning to think that perhaps I need to investigate my pickup and how it's placed on the bridge. Everyone seems to have no issues getting a good sound. And I'm fairly certain my bass doesn't sound terrible acoustically.
Click to expand...
"Good sound" is subjective here. I don't chase MBOL with a pickup. Plugging into "backline combo du jour" almost always sounds bad - often flabby and muddy. With the fdeck, it's always better by at least a bit, sometimes by a lot. It doesn't magically transform a pickup into a mic, but the response is more even, with more definition and articulation. To me, that's "good."

Regardless of the setup details, I have to balance the triangle of what I need to hear, what the other musicians need to hear, and what the audience needs to hear. I am always the harshest critic, by a landslide.

You probably already know all that. And fiddling with the pickup is probably a good idea... If it got bumped out of place and is producing a skewed sound, nothing downstream will overcome that at any price. I haven't used that pickup, but many here have (ditto for the headway).
 
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#40
sumeursault said:
Honestly after initiating this thread, I'm beginning to think that perhaps I need to investigate my pickup and how it's placed on the bridge. Everyone seems to have no issues getting a good sound. And I'm fairly certain my bass doesn't sound terrible acoustically.
Click to expand...
I have a Lifeline and it is pretty dark-sounding. I need to completely kill the mids and most of the bass but this has been the case with other pickups, and other amps, as well (including Realist copperhead). I've heard this as well from other players so I think that this is just the way it is with many pickup / amp combinations, and that any assumptions about amp EQ being any way flat are probably incorrect.

I'm not saying that placement *isn't* an issue, but I've found the lifeline to be pretty firm in this regard, and it sounds like you have it on the right side (top) of your adjusters.....
 

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