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Darkglass B7k ultra as preamp

P

P-Boy69

Mar 7, 2019
85
61
#1
So, i bought a B7K ultra to try as a preamp and dirt. I play different basses , active and passive , through a Hartke combo amp that has an eQ and a DI output .
So i set up the eQ of the pedal, preamp only, and by the time i am done and i get something i like, when I compare with and without the pedal engaged, i don’t really hear any difference….am i doing something wrong or because i have a preamp in my combo, a preamp pedal might not be that useful? A friend told me to run my compressor first and try again, and also to turn down the Hartke as much as possible and drive the preamp more, i will try these today.
I do love the dirty sound but maybe i could just get by with the simpler B7k and be good?
Suggestions welcome, please share you experiences.
 
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#3
20220708_085231.jpg
20220708_085231.jpg
 
#4
Keep in mind that without the distortion engaged all the Darkglass is adding is EQ enhancement. The EQ controls on that pedal aren’t doing anything particularly unique that your amplifier’s EQ controls couldn’t do (except you may have slightly more EQ center-point options available or may prefer the frequencies used on the DG). With the EQ how you have it set in the picture it should’ve subtle but noticeable, though often times small combo amplifiers aren’t capable of really projecting subtle tone enhancements well (especially at high volumes you may have alot of compression happening through the speakers that will squash subtle tone changes).
You indeed may be able to get a level boost from the DG (using the Master control) to push your amplifier harder, worth a try.

Also keep in mind that the EQ is the same on the DG for both clean and dirty sounds, so if you dial it in for your clean sound then it may not give you the dirty tone you prefer when you engage the distortion.
 
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#9
P-Boy69 said:
I don't think it has the grunt and dirt the B7K offers, it is an overdrive
Click to expand...
The B3K is virtually the same as the B7K, just without the EQ controls and slightly different switch option on the newest B3Ks. The B3K at some point did swap out the Grunt switch with a 2-way, the Attack switch with a Tone control, and added Mid-boost switch. Older B3Ks were the exact same as the B7K just without the EQ
 
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#11
P-Boy69 said:
I couldn’t get the same sound out of the B3k that i had on B7k, will try again but it is mot as crunchy….the B7k kinda reminds me of the Rusty Box when you push it :), i love me some Rusty box
Click to expand...
Do you have the current B3K with the push-button switches and Tone control? The older version should match the B7K a little more easily particularly if you use the Attack boost (which is a pre-drive boost)
 
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#13
An
P-Boy69 said:
So, i bought a B7K ultra to try as a preamp and dirt. I play different basses , active and passive , through a Hartke combo amp that has an eQ and a DI output .
So i set up the eQ of the pedal, preamp only, and by the time i am done and i get something i like, when I compare with and without the pedal engaged, i don’t really hear any difference….am i doing something wrong or because i have a preamp in my combo, a preamp pedal might not be that useful? A friend told me to run my compressor first and try again, and also to turn down the Hartke as much as possible and drive the preamp more, i will try these today.
I do love the dirty sound but maybe i could just get by with the simpler B7k and be good?
Suggestions welcome, please share you experiences.
Click to expand...
Anyone see the new b1k with hipster video marketing? I lol’ed.

Why do i want the same thing with less controls on the front?
 
#15
sunbeast said:
I don’t think it was designed for you? But it is smaller, cheaper, more “simple” which some people prefer
Click to expand...
I am a total hipster though (oops… unhipster). If it is lower cost, that is cool. I just find their total change in marketing interesting. But i dont blame new ownership for trying to break the djent cliche.

mind you… as cool as dg pedals are… they are indeed complex. My adam took some time to really figure out.
 
#16
B1K.... "Due to ecological reasons it doesn't accept batteries"... Uh, ok... That sounds like a marketing spin on "we didn't have enough room for batteries due to the form factor we wanted"...

No complaints, it looks cool anyway. Nice option if you're lacking space on a pedal board.
 
#17
Modulus 96 said:
B1K.... "Due to ecological reasons it doesn't accept batteries"... Uh, ok... That sounds like a marketing spin on "we didn't have enough room for batteries due to the form factor we wanted"...

No complaints, it looks cool anyway. Nice option if you're lacking space on a pedal board.
Click to expand...
They haven’t had battery power as an option in any DG pedal ever produced as far as I know, and that sentiment is pretty normalized at this point
TTA said:
I am a total hipster though (oops… unhipster). If it is lower cost, that is cool. I just find their total change in marketing interesting. But i dont blame new ownership for trying to break the djent cliche.

mind you… as cool as dg pedals are… they are indeed complex. My adam took some time to really figure out.
Click to expand...
To me it just opens the door to a new demographic, after many years of people constantly saying on TB and other places that they were only made for and catered to metal players. There are always complaints about price, so they made a cheap option, and complaints about the aesthetic and marketing so they tried something different marketed to a totally different demographic. It seems like no matter what they do there will be some naysayers, but they seem to still be successfully selling pedals so they must be doing something right!
 
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#18
sunbeast said:
They haven’t had battery power as an option in any DG pedal ever produced as far as I know, and that sentiment is pretty normalized at this point

To me it just opens the door to a new demographic, after many years of people constantly saying on TB and other places that they were only made for and catered to metal players. There are always complaints about price, so they made a cheap option, and complaints about the aesthetic and marketing so they tried something different marketed to a totally different demographic. It seems like no matter what they do there will be some naysayers, but they seem to still be successfully selling pedals so they must be doing something right!
Click to expand...

yeah, as i said it makes sense that new ownership would want to do that.

i missed the “no batteries for environmental reasons.” Does it run on a standard 9v power supply? That was another criticism

total marketing spin though.
 
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#19
hi, I have a b7k, got tired of the always new and better digital versions every year and decided to step back to analogical.

My impression is that "attack" and "grunt" switches plays a much more important role in overall tone than I thought. They are only activated with distortion on. Actually as my effect is always on, I'd prefer much more a way to switch between grunt flat and low boosted than distortion on/off. I have an AO ultra too, the cabsim changes lots of things too (but only to DI and headphones, cabsim doesnt make anything to p10 output).

that said, keep the tone all open on passive basses, once I forgot the tone closed and this moment took me some time. Lifespan time I mean, it was a scary moment!!!
 
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#20
P-Boy69 said:
View attachment 4743260 View attachment 4743260
Click to expand...

If you’re running those settings with the distortion engaged and don’t hear any difference when you bypass the pedal, there’s something wrong: the amount of tonal change with those settings would be obvious.

Especially with the attack engaged, which is a significant high shelf boost into the front end of the distortion circuit.
 
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