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Can someone explain the Noble DI to me?

#25
Keithunem said:
Pardon my ignorance, but what is the significance of them being isolated vs not?
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Hopefully someone else can explain this better...
I think of non-isolated DC power supplies as just having all 6 (in this case) DC outputs wired together in parallel.
These outputs are intended to power other devices. If one of those other devices is putting noise on it's power cable, that noise ends up on all the other devices being powered. Or if you accidentally get a short on one DC cable that's going to short all of them and drag everything down. Isolation can provide current limiting at each output, rather than just relying on one limiter for to handle all outputs.
At the very least each output should prevent a DC current from going the wrong way. This could be done virtually for pennies by the manufacturer just by including a diode in line with each output. Think of having a backflow device on your garden hose. When you are putting chemicals on your yard, those chemicals don't get sucked back up into your drinking water.
There's a lot more to all of this, and if you are careful, it might not be an issue. Forms of isolation though are most helpful when we get in a rush.
 
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#29
gwangi said:
I wanted to tell you that preamp/di shootout you did was AMAZING!!!!
So let me ask you is the Noble preamp thee preamp/di to get?
It looks like Noble is backlogged getting close to a year, I'm trying to decide if this is the route to go.
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Thank you. I appreciate that. Have you seen the recent additions like the JT Amplification Alpha and KAOS DI?

The Noble is a great device for sure. Since you've reviewed my shootout you know there are a lot of quality tube preamp/DI options though. I'd let your ear guide your tone search and let your style and preferences guide your search for functionality. The sweet spot is the merging of tone and function.
 
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#30
I play an Arkham Oracle instead of a noble but IMO they accomplish a similar thing. I use mine as my “amp” well and truly. The bass heads I own are an ampeg PF500 and a TC bam 200 (probably selling for a carvin Mach 100 pedal), these were both acquired for less than 200 and imo, running bass direct into these is not how I want to sound. The ampeg is over colored and the EQ isn’t responsive, the Tc is flat but also sterile. Both are fine but I drop the Oracle in front of them, sounds like a million bucks, I think it sounds like an SVT and I leave the gain near the break up point so I can dig in for some growl. Also extremely helpful cause I’m nearly always backlined, especially on electric bass gigs, so whatever the backline is, the Oracle goes into the effects return and now I atleast have familiar EQ and a good DI signal, don’t have to worry about trying to figure out where my sound is on an amp I have no interest using.
 
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#31
Seems like a really nice DI that sounds nice but that's all it does there's no magic unobtainium in it .
Very Expensive to start with even more expensive used if you are in a hurry to buy something that you have gone without in the first place .
If I owned the company I would raise the price while it is still the flavour of the month and the used market is driving the price up .
Oops wait a minute if you pay extra you don't have to wait as long for one .
:)
 
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#32
I just received mine a couple weeks ago. Since I ordered it 9 months ago I have read every opinion I could find on the Noble. The common thread I’ve found is that the vast majority of people who own them, love them. Is it worth 9+ months of wait? You tell me…I think there are a lot of alternatives out there that will work great, without the wait. If you don’t like them you can sell them for 25% less than you paid. If you’re not thrilled with the performance of the Noble you can sell it for 25% more than you paid. I won’t be selling mine any time soon, but it is just one more component toward my tone besides bass guitar, amp, speakers, pedals, and most importantly…hands.
 
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#33
chadhargis said:
The Noble is a very high quality piece of gear. It sounds fantastic but it's very expensive for what you get. There are scores of really good bass preamps out there...both tube and solid state. The digital options have gotten really good too...particularly the Line6 Helix line.

Before you drop over a $1000 on a tube DI....be sure you do some research, listen to some clips, and try a few out yourself. It's a great time to be a bass player.
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Over at the HX stomp thread there's some presets that match a Noble down to +-1 dB at different settings using either preamps, full amps and eq blocks. I think I've also seen frequency spectrum analysis of a plain DI vs a Noble DI (I think @IvanBassist did it on his youtube channel) and the Noble adds some harmonic info around 1kH but nothing really drastic.

It is indeed subtle but I think the price comes from the functionality and convenience as some point out. Hand made, tube mumbo jumbo and word of mouth all add up in the price tag.
 
#34
makanudo said:
Over at the HX stomp thread there's some presets that match a Noble down to +-1 dB at different settings using either preamps, full amps and eq blocks. I think I've also seen frequency spectrum analysis of a plain DI vs a Noble DI (I think @IvanBassist did it on his youtube channel) and the Noble adds some harmonic info around 1kH but nothing really drastic.

It is indeed subtle but I think the price comes from the functionality and convenience as some point out. Hand made, tube mumbo jumbo and word of mouth all add up in the price tag.
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This video :)
 
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#35
dwagner said:
The only reason I ask is I am just trying to determine how you get your “money’s worth” from it.

If I have my quiet little passive signal going into it, I am assuming I won’t get nearly as much character imparted as a higher gain signal. Which makes me wonder — is it worth it as a DI if most of the character is out of reach?
Click to expand...

A gain-boosting pedal in front of it should enable you to push the input stage as much, or as little, as you want.
 

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