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Can some explain a DI to me?

C

codethechode

Jul 21, 2011
54
0
#1
I am the kind of player that loves my tone and i use a few pedals to get that tone. However I've heard that using a DI in a live situation does not give the true tone of the amp at the front of house.

I run some of my pedals through the front of the amp however I also run some with my effects loop. I guess my question is are those pedals that are running through the front of my amp being sent via the DI to front of house? Or do I need a mic on my cab to get those effects? and vis versa are the effects loop effects being heard at all?

Thanks and I'm sorry if this is beating a dead horse I was just unable to find the exact answer to my question
 
#2
Oddly, I've never really thought about this - I too use some pedals, and I've occasionally had to run DI (often miced). I will say that the answer to your question may be two-fold:

For one, my GK rig has a DI out that can be run either as set on your EQ or flat. My rig (700RB-II) also has an effects loop, so I would think that if you run your pedals through the effects loop, they would be included in the "as set on your EQ" setting, if you select that. If you just run your pedals from bass to input jack, they won't go to the DI.

I may be totally wrong on this - most of my gigging in the past 15 years was in jazz on double bass, so I really never gave this much thought on electric.

If your rig does not have an effects loop or an option for "as Set" or "flat" then you are likely only getting the effects in your stage volume.
 
#3
DI = Direct Injection; bassically (get it) a di takes the signal before it goes to the speakers, straight to the front of house. dis build into amps work differently depending on the amp design (check the manual) some take the signal before it goes to the efx loop, others most take the signal right before it goes to the speakers. For guitar, DI's are more or less useless because much a guitarist's tone stems from the interaction of hte electronics of the amp and the speakers (look up break up). When recording (im an audio engineer), i take a DIed gtr signal just incase i like the performance of the guitarist, and want to use a different amp / settings, i can rerecord the tone fast. but since bass, in general, uses alot less efx, Most bass signals are DIed UNLESS, you want the tone coloration / saturation from your amp / speakers. ex: driving a tube amp such as an ampeg SVT. Its also common, especially when recording, to take a DI signal and mix it with a miced signal .
Long story short, if your amp's DI takes the signal after it hits the efx loop, then dont worry about it, if it takes the signal before, just mic it. Preferably with an SM57 or beta 52
 
#4
it depends where the di i placed in the signal chain. whatever is before that will be sent thru the di. if you want all your effects thru the di, you have to put the di after the effects that are being used thru the effects loop then patch the di back to the "return" jack.
 
#7
Thanks for the answer I will look at the manual. The amp is a hartke lh1000. There is no pre/post effects loop option so I guess that answers my question there. As for running through the amp ill check the positioning.I'd love to just use a nice mic, however most sound guys throw a fit when it comes to bass for whatever reason and don't care much about what the sound is which is frustrating when you spend alot of money and time on it.
 
#9
This is copied and pasted from the Manual.

. This standard, balanced XLR connector provides a Line-level pre-EQ and pre-VOLUME output signal from the LH Series amplifier. You'll usually use this to connect the LH Series signal to a Mic-level input when interfacing with PA systems or recording mixing consoles.

So my guess would be its post- input and effects loop but I'll never really know for sure right? Lol
 
#12
codethechode said:
This is copied and pasted from the Manual.

. This standard, balanced XLR connector provides a Line-level pre-EQ and pre-VOLUME output signal from the LH Series amplifier. You'll usually use this to connect the LH Series signal to a Mic-level input when interfacing with PA systems or recording mixing consoles.

So my guess would be its post- input and effects loop but I'll never really know for sure right? Lol
Click to expand...

Chances are if it's wired Pre-EQ the effects loop will be excluded as well but from reading the manual I can't tell, there's also no signal flow diagram for reference. Your best bet is it try it out and see what you get.
 
#13
codethechode said:
I don't play alot of shows where I have time to go out and listen to the main mix. It's usually a quick sound check and off we go.
Click to expand...

Best to check at home or rehearsal.

Also, there are DIs that can handle speaker loads. Not many, but some, never assume a DI can! But, for example, the Countryman type 85 can be put on the speaker outputs and will catch all the effects. It will not catch the sound of the cab though. For that you have to mic the cab.
 
#14
Someone may need to correct me, but pre-EQ and pre-volume imply that it will just pass through the signal from what ever is plugged into the input. Same as if you stuck a passive di right before the input jack. You could include any effects in your signal chain between the bass and amp, but it gets no effect from your amp, not even an amp volume adjustment, just a passthrough.
 
#15
K-Frog said:
Someone may need to correct me, but pre-EQ and pre-volume imply that it will just pass through the signal from what ever is plugged into the input. Same as if you stuck a passive di right before the input jack. You could include any effects in your signal chain between the bass and amp, but it gets no effect from your amp, not even an amp volume adjustment, just a passthrough.
Click to expand...

That pretty much nets it out based on what the manual says...keep in mind that it's really going to depend on how the DI is implemented on a given amp/pre-amp. Some have a few options some have none so read the manual.
 
#16
You'll need to take your fx and put them in front of the main amp input. Just be sure that none of them make you too much louder and you'll be sweet with the sound guy.

Next thing to worry about is whether your DI can take 48V of mixing desk's phantom power up its jaxie or not.
 
#17
K-Frog said:
Someone may need to correct me, but pre-EQ and pre-volume imply that it will just pass through the signal from what ever is plugged into the input. Same as if you stuck a passive di right before the input jack. You could include any effects in your signal chain between the bass and amp, but it gets no effect from your amp, not even an amp volume adjustment, just a passthrough.
Click to expand...

That seems to make the most sense. Once again thanks for the input.
 

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