DCX Bass vs. Jad Freer Capo

[triviani]

A single channel, no DI, reduced (in weight and price) Capo would be an big seller.

 

[FenrirofOld]

This is an interesting discussion to be sure. I'm gassing for a CAPO real badly I just can't bring myself to pre pay and wait 20 weeks at the moment. On the other hand the secondary market is starting to get kinda wild on them too. Ive been curious about the DCX too so decisions decisions...

 

[Dave Hill]

This is an interesting discussion to be sure. I'm gassing for a CAPO real badly I just can't bring myself to pre pay and wait 20 weeks at the moment. On the other hand the secondary market is starting to get kinda wild on them too. Ive been curious about the DCX too so decisions decisions...

Easy one.
Order a Capo.
Buy a used DCX for use in the meantime.
A/B them when the Capo gets in.
Sell the loser for small-to-no loss.

 

[FenrirofOld]

Easy one.
Order a Capo.
Buy a used DCX for use in the meantime.
A/B them when the Capo gets in.
Sell the loser for small-to-no loss.

I've definitely been just considering throwing a CAPO on order. I fear their wait time will only keep climbing. I was just trying to hold out on one popping up used haha.

 

[Rocksolid]

Ironnically, There are stores in Australia that have stock of the CAPO. Both the OG and TLF models.

I am loving my CAPO, but I can't stop gassing for the DCX.

 

[Pietzsa]

After being struck by a bad case of the "I guess I need saturation?" variant of GAS, I currently have both an Origin DCX Bass and a Jad Freer Capo. I've been messing around with the two of them to see how they compare to each other, specifically for being an EQ/preamp that adds a light drive/saturation element to my sound.

In terms of what I'm after, I've been exploring ways to make my bass sound both bigger and more textured in a live, IEM mix (I play a good deal of pit orchestra gigs, old school instrumental funk, and jam band music). For what it's worth, I've never been a cab sim guy, but I love the sound of a really good DI'd bass, like Chuck Rainey, Freddie Washington, AJ, Tom Barney, Will Lee, and so on. Also, I play with a clean sound probably 80% of the time.


Comparison

tl;dr: Both pedals sound really, really good, and deserve the hype! Both the DCX Bass and Capo add a "special something" when playing through IEMs.

To me, where they differ is:

• The Capo is extremely versatile and sounds good with (and adds something to) every bass I've played through it.
• The DCX Bass sounds amazing with passive basses–especially P basses–but is less exciting as a mild saturator/tone enhancer with my active instruments. I haven't played around with it much as a pedal for heavier drive or distortion.

Like BassTheWorld said on YouTube, the DCX Bass sounds "dense". To me, the Capo sounds textured, warm, and thick without being muddy, but not "dense" in the same way the DCX does.

- - -

To be fair, I've only had both of them for a few weeks, so I'm likely far less experienced getting the most out of these two pedals compared to others on TB. That being said, I'm curious to hear how other folks who've had both think of how these two pedals compare to each other? (Paging @Dave Hill and @IvanBassist )

Your experience was the same as mine. The DCX didn’t play as well with my active basses while the Capo did. Kept the Capo. Liked the versatility more too.

 

[Stranger Danger]

I think the secret sauce to this pedal is the compression. It’s natural tube thickening kind of compression you don’t typically get in just a drive pedal. That combined with just a touch of clipping is just so good.

That’s also why it pairs so well with cali76. You get the fast attack peak reduction of the Cali76 combined with tone fattening of the DCX.

I experienced the exact same thing with passive/active basses.

I have the Cali76 bass and DCX bass arriving today. Took the chance that they will work well together as there arent any demos online that I could find where someone uses them in tandem.

 

[Rocksolid]

My new to me DCX black edition arrived yesterday. Got it on my large board to experiment.

EQ mode: absolutely shines as a last in chain pre to the board or to drive a power amp/cab either clean or light saturation

OD Mode: Flat voicing. I can hear a fizzy overtone that is really hard to dial out. You dial the HF back and it dulls the saturation but the fizz remains. Used a LPF filter on my HXS to dial back the highs going to the DCX but it is still there. Wound the LPF down to less that 5kHz at one point.
Dark voicing: Better, but you really need to dime the HF to get the tone I like and then some of the fizz comes back
Mid Voicing: Best of the lot for me. Still working to dial in what I like. The interaction between the Drive and HF dials is where I will eventually find my sweet spot.
Even wound the tweeter back on my IP310. I'd be interested to hear if other have noticed the fizz. Maybe it is just me and I am doing it wrong!

The CAPO really is great. Infinitely adjustable and so many routing options.

I have some fly dates next month and I will use the DCX as a last in line tone shaper to the desk. Board will be GLXD/HXS/DCX on a nano sized board.

 

[stefaniw80401]

I have some fly dates next month and I will use the DCX as a last in line tone shaper to the desk. Board will be GLXD/HXS/DCX on a nano sized board.

I've built a similar board. Now I need to finish it with a DI. Are you hoping your fly dates will provide a DI for you.

 

[wolffire99]

Had both but kept the DCX. It really shines with passive vintage voiced basses. If you want more flexibility in sound then definitely the Capo.

I’d put the DCX + @Sushi Box FX Neptunium up against the Nobel any day for 1/2 the price.

I agree with @Rocksolid about the fizziness which is why I don’t like it as an OD pedal but at edge of breakup that little bit of fizziness disappears in a mix.

 

[Evan J]

I agree with @Rocksolid about the fizziness which is why I don’t like it as an OD pedal

Pair it with an “amp like” preamp and it sounds incredible. The “fizz” pairs perfectly with a tube like saturation.

For example DCX + Tone Hammer drive is amazing

 

[Rocksolid]

I've built a similar board. Now I need to finish it with a DI. Are you hoping your fly dates will provide a DI for you.

I didn't end up going this route. I did some time experimenting and found I preferred the MXR M81 for this application with the use of an amp sim (Mandarin/Orange) at the edge of break up on the HXS. This will be my HXS/Nano set up moving forward. Has it's own DI also.

I sold the DCX on. There were numerous settings I liked but that's a lot of money tied up in a pedal that I'd hoped would tick more boxes for me. A good overdrive being the main one. YMMV/IMO etc

 

[mouthmw]

Pair it with an “amp like” preamp and it sounds incredible. The “fizz” pairs perfectly with a tube like saturation.

For example DCX + Tone Hammer drive is amazing

Can confirm. It also sounds incredible into BDDI (v2). I shape it with a HPF/LPF pedal before hitting BDDI as well and it sounds fantastic. Focused, but thick in the mids, and growly as heck.

 

[Rocksolid]

There will never be a scenario where I justify running one preamp into another preamp to give me what I'm looking for. If I have to do that, then it's not the preamp for me.

 

[mouthmw]

There will never be a scenario where I justify running one preamp into another preamp to give me what I'm looking for. If I have to do that, then it's not the preamp for me.

Sure, I have the same opinion. But DCX in my opinion is not really a fully fledged preamp. It’s more of a tone enhancer/light saturation/overdrive/boost. No different than something like Barbershop, Jive, Darkglass VMT/B3K, Broughton Scorpion etc. It doesn’t really have enough tone shaping/eq capabilities for it to be a real preamp - at least not enough for my standards. Heck, the guitar version which is basically the same circuit with slightly different frequencies is named “Boost”. It’s just naming conventions. Every dirt pedal nowadays seems to be called a preamp.

 

[stefaniw80401]

Sure, I have the same opinion. But DCX in my opinion is not really a fully fledged preamp.

Uh-huh -- a real preamp pedal ought to have a DI out. I'd still like suggestions on completing my tone board. Should I start a new thread? Here's how it's shaping up so far:

Tuner -> HPF/LPF -> DCX -> ?comp? -> ?DI?

... or should I just get something like the the Ampeg SGT-DI and call it done?

 

[Dave Hill]

There will never be a scenario where I justify running one preamp into another preamp to give me what I'm looking for. If I have to do that, then it's not the preamp for me.

Pre-cisely. The Capo doesn’t need any help.

 

[Evan J]

There will never be a scenario where I justify running one preamp into another preamp to give me what I'm looking for. If I have to do that, then it's not the preamp for me.

I actually agree with this as well. I use my preamps to double as dirt stomp boxes. So when one is my always on preamp, the other is dialed up to be an overdrive.

Also especially when going amp-less, I have had most success using two layers of light dirt

 

[Evan J]

Every dirt pedal nowadays seems to be called a preamp.

+1

 

[Evan J]

Uh-huh -- a real preamp pedal ought to have a DI out. I'd still like suggestions on completing my tone board. Should I start a new thread? Here's how it's shaping up so far:

Tuner -> HPF/LPF -> DCX -> ?comp? -> ?DI?

... or should I just get something like the the Ampeg SGT-DI and call it done?

For me it’s worth having individual pedals rather than an all in one board beater like the SGT-DI. It helps when getting your signal chain right. Especially if you are doing any genre hopping and need access to different sounds.

But if you are just looking for one nice clean tone that rarely changes, maybe a board beater is good.

But what you’re talking about is similar to what I am running:

Tuner > Octave > DCX > Comp > HPF > TH > Chorus > Neve DI