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#22
scottfeldstein said:
You know, I wish I knew of a cheap and good DI that I could carry in my gig bag in case I didn't want to bring my head or (god forbid) it was broken. $50. What am I looking for? Anyone know?
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I got an ART Xdirect active DI awhile back for $25 to keep in the case. It's worked fine for me when I don't send DI from the head. Phantom powered too. Currently $40 so fits OP's budget.
 
#24
JimmyM said:
Whirlwind Director. Not the best DI ever, but not bad at all as far as cheap DI's go.
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For that matter, an IMP2 isn't all that expensive, doesn't take up much room at all, and certainly would save a gig if an amp crashed... I wouldn't use one on a regular basis, but they're probably as good as a Rapco - which I would call serviceable/adequate...


- georgestrings
 
#25
I used the DI on my GK1001RB. Worked fine. I then got a Behringer knockoff of a Sansamp BDDI and used that DI. It worked great. It is a great DI, and I have used it when my amp went down.

I just played bass in the pit, for the musical "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." I used my PF500 and the DI was excellent, and the amp performed extremely well.
 
#26
Just a head's up, if you are playing a passive bass, those passive DI's mentioned above are going to load the pickups down and the tone may suffer. The input impedance on most passive DI's is around 47k, whereas most active DI's are at least 10x that.

If you ALWAYS play an active bass, then it probably won't matter if you go passive or active.
 
#27
I had a chance to play the MXR M80 this afternoon and I'm impressed. Basically it has two buttons. One activates the 3-band EQ plus a coloration button that's kind of scoopy. The second button activates the overdrive and the noise gate. You can have the EQ by itself, but you can't have the overdrive by itself. If you have neither button pressed, it's still a functional DI with a parallel out. Pretty neat.
 
#28
I've done some recording with the DI on my GK MB200 and old Hartke 3500. Both sound really good. Even with a Squier bass I hardly had to adjust the EQ on the recorded tracks at all. I have some live gigs coming up in a few weeks, intend to use the head DI's for those too.
 
#29
I did a couple of 'don't bring an amp 'cause we've got a professional sound guy' and he was - but I still ran through my MXR M80 as a DI with something extra.

It's the only way to send him enough decent signal that sounds like a bass and not a kazoo.

On my board my MXR is on all the time and I've grown to love it with an active or passive bass.
 
#30
scottfeldstein said:
Hm. Yeah, but the cheapest one is still $100 new. Maybe that's just what you gotta pay for a decent DI. Oh well. Maybe I'll pick something up used, see how close to $50 I can get.
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This stuff boggles my mind.

No offense Scott, I'm saying this in the most positive way possible.

Question, do you value your sound to the house/ and therefore the audience cost about $50? For real???

Thats an average dinner out (if you don't drink much).

Radial makes some fantastic products.

I use the Radial JDV for most gigs...

I would suggest picking up a Radial JDI which a small passive box that fits into a gigbag just fine.

I have A/B a alot of DI and we did it at one of the GTGs as well...The REDDI is hard to beat, but for day to day gigs the JDV comes everywhere with me.
 
#31
basswave said:
I'm saying this in the most positive way possible.
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You're really not.

But be that as it may, I already have a DI--the one that's built into my Gallien-Krueger MB500 amp. That's the signal that goes to the FOH. What I'm talking about here is a back up.

And frankly, I don't believe there's $100 worth of engineering and parts in most of those $100 DIs. A box that takes a line level signal and converts it to mic level, plus a couple of I/O plugs shouldn't cost that much.

By the time I spend $100 I'll get one that has some extra features, like overdrive and an EQ, and then velcro it to my board permanently. At least it'll get some use. I'm not spending $100 on something that'll sit in my gig bag forever.

Maybe there are really expensive DI boxes that are worth every penny, but so far no one has convinced me of it.
 
#33
agedhorse said:
Just a head's up, if you are playing a passive bass, those passive DI's mentioned above are going to load the pickups down and the tone may suffer. The input impedance on most passive DI's is around 47k, whereas most active DI's are at least 10x that.

If you ALWAYS play an active bass, then it probably won't matter if you go passive or active.
Click to expand...

+1. So far, the ART ($40) and the EWI ($55) are the only active DIs around the original $50 target.
 
#34
I really like the DI on my Thunderfunks heads. I have used them a ton in the past.

Recently, I purchased a [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] for a backup. I have tested it several times and like it. Seems to do a good job and it is well built.

I haven't had a chance to use my DI, either the head or the Radial, on my new gig. We have excellent FOH support and the sound engineer mics our cabs. He does a great job with our sound. Every singer has a separate mic, each cab is mic'd or DI'd (whichever works best) and everyone has their own monitor. BUT, I have a backup, just in case.....
 
#35
scottfeldstein said:
You're really not.
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Actually I am.

Sometimes text can be misinterpreted to a degree, that why I preference my post as such.

scottfeldstein said:
But be that as it may, I already have a DI--the one that's built into my Gallien-Krueger MB500 amp. That's the signal that goes to the FOH. What I'm talking about here is a back up.

And frankly, I don't believe there's $100 worth of engineering and parts in most of those $100 DIs. A box that takes a line level signal and converts it to mic level, plus a couple of I/O plugs shouldn't cost that much.
Click to expand...

Actually they can make big difference.
Especially if you have ever A/B-ed them in the same situation.

Based on the example you gave its like saying there is no difference between a Mackie Preamp and Neve Channel strip.
They do the same job. Right?

Anyways you can a Wirlwind for $50 that will do the 'Job' so to speak.

Here is little video on the JDI


Good Luck
 
#37
I a/b every DI I had on hand at one point, and found huge differences. Sansamp w/effect bypassed, sadowsky pedal, Eden nav, lots of others. There were huge differences. I think a listening test would be a good idea when you select a DI IF you are playing somewhere with a good hi fi PA and a good room sound. If not, it doesn't matter at all.
 
#38
scottfeldstein said:
Wrong. And "I'm putting this in the best possible way" is what people say right before they're appalling jerks to you. Kind of like "no offense." Save it for someone else.

Unsubscribed.
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I'm hurt
 
#39
Basswave - thanks for the info. We've been chasing hum at our live gigs that don't exist when recording..... after watching the JDI video, I'm thinking its a ground loop issue.

The diagram for my GK MB115 doesn't show any transformers for the DI.

Sound guy occasionally provides an old DI box, but I suspect its less than needed. My active bass often overloads the input to the PA.

Hmm.

Keep talking, I'm listening.
 
#40
A transformer is not necessary to resolve a ground loop. It is helpful when dealing with the rare condition of high common mode voltage differences using high galvanic isolation. There are excellent examples of transformer and transformerless di's as well as poor examples of both.
 

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