Do I need a DI box?!

[BassProle]

Hey dudes,

Up front n00b question coming your way!

What is a DI box user for? I thought that it was merely a way of putting your signal into a PA aswell as your amp?

Do i need one of my own for playing live even if im not through a PA?

Cheers guys!

(sarcasm is welcome aslong as it helps me out! )

 

[DbNBassist]

I cant think of any use of it if you are not going through a PA. I only other use i use it for is at work for the microphones to go through before they hit the PA.

 

[Asa Samuel]

DI boxes turn your bass signal into a mic signal, basically anyway.

they are used for putting your bass through a PA and thats it really.

if your not going through a PA you dont need a DI box.

though if you ever do need to go through a PA you will.

some amps have a balanced 3-pin direct out on them with means they have a DI box built into them.

 

[BassProle]

DI boxes turn your bass signal into a mic signal, basically anyway.

they are used for putting your bass through a PA and thats it really.

if your not going through a PA you dont need a DI box.

though if you ever do need to go through a PA you will.

some amps have a balanced 3-pin direct out on them with means they have a DI box built into them.

My Ashdown EVO II 500 Abm head does have a pre / post eq di built in...

Ive seen some bassists playing with a DI even if theyre not putting the bass through a PA...does it not boost your signal? model tone? etc?

 

[Asa Samuel]

if your amp has a DI built in then you dont need a DI box. just a cable to go from your head to the PA

so no, you dont need a DI as your amp already has one.

 

[Asa Samuel]

Ive seen some bassists playing with a DI even if theyre not putting the bass through a PA...does it not boost your signal? model tone? etc?

DI boxes are purely for putting your bass through a PA.

unless its not JUST a DI box and for some reason has something else mixed in with it.

are you sure it was a DI box?

how do you know he wasnt through the PA? usually bass signals dont come through very well through PA's so he might've been but it would've been hard to notice, i used to know a guy who didnt bother with amps and only used to DI, what a mistake

 

[Swift713]

There are several very popular Direct Boxes that do significantly more than DI. Tech 21 and MXR make DI's with EQ's, overdrive and tube emulation. DI's are also used for recording. And, I have heard that some DI's on amps aren't very good.

 

[kraigo]

Ive seen some bassists playing with a DI even if theyre not putting the bass through a PA...does it not boost your signal? model tone? etc?

Something like a Sans Amp is also a preamp that shapes your tone. If someone likes the sound, they could be using it for tone shaping and not for the DI functionality.

In a soapbox moment: I have a Sans Amp Bass Driver DI. I sold it, regretted it and when the opportunity arose, bought it back.

Having used it weekly for a year or more now, I've stopped using it. It sounds great when you're solo'd. Bedroom tone. But practically, it scoops mids quite a lot. In the end I pretty much had the blend to "no Sans Amp", so I just use the flat "pre-EQ" DI out of the head now.

Scooped mids make it difficult for you to really hear what you're playing, which leads to you turning up, which leads to volume complaints and/or running out of head room on your amp. You really have to respect the mids when you're trying to find your place in the mix. What sounds ugly on its own might be just the thing when the rest of the band is playing.

In a band you really have to get over your solo tone. It's pretty much irrelevant. I tend to keep everything flat, solo the neck pickup and pluck where the bridge pickup is or would be. It's up to you to find your own recipe, but that works for me more than 80% of the time.

So am I going to get rid of the Sans Amp BDDI? No. I own it and I think it has a fair amount of utility, if for no other reason than "when something else breaks".

KO

 

[dirtgroove]

Something like a Sans Amp is also a preamp that shapes your tone. If someone likes the sound, they could be using it for tone shaping and not for the DI functionality.

In a soapbox moment: I have a Sans Amp Bass Driver DI. I sold it, regretted it and when the opportunity arose, bought it back.

Having used it weekly for a year or more now, I've stopped using it. It sounds great when you're solo'd. Bedroom tone. But practically, it scoops mids quite a lot. In the end I pretty much had the blend to "no Sans Amp", so I just use the flat "pre-EQ" DI out of the head now.

Scooped mids make it difficult for you to really hear what you're playing, which leads to you turning up, which leads to volume complaints and/or running out of head room on your amp. You really have to respect the mids when you're trying to find your place in the mix. What sounds ugly on its own might be just the thing when the rest of the band is playing.

In a band you really have to get over your solo tone. It's pretty much irrelevant. I tend to keep everything flat, solo the neck pickup and pluck where the bridge pickup is or would be. It's up to you to find your own recipe, but that works for me more than 80% of the time.

So am I going to get rid of the Sans Amp BDDI? No. I own it and I think it has a fair amount of utility, if for no other reason than "when something else breaks".

KO

You can adjust the midrange on the bddi. It is a common misconception that crops up time and time again on this forum that the sansamp "scoops" your tone. It doesn't: just be cautious with the amount of bass you add on the pedal itself and the sound will be fine.

 

[kraigo]

You can adjust the midrange on the bddi. It is a common misconception in this forum that the sansamp "scoops" your tone. It doesn't just be cautious with the amount of bass you add on the pedal itself and the sound will be fine.

I wonder if it's something like the Sadowsky pres and that the controls are boost only. With the bass and treble controls at noon, it sounds fairly scooped to my ears.

I'll confess that I end up doing so many other things pre-gig that dialing in a tone often doesn't get done. I'm able to get results better, quicker and more reliably without the Sans Amp. That's partly a weakness on my part, I want simple and reproducible. The Sans Amp muddies the waters for me, but if I thought it sucked I'd sell it again. As I indicated, I'm keeping it.

KO

Added: My BDDI is getting up around 10 years old. It has (from memory) Level, Blend, Bass, Treble, Presence and Drive. Nothing labeled Midrange, but that doesn't mean you can't adjust it somehow.

 

[fishtx]

I use a Sanamp BDDI even in small situations where I don't DI to the PA. I use it just as an EQ, and sometimes to put a little OD in the signal. I don't use a lot of OD (I don't have a separate OD pedal on my board). so in those situations where just a touch is needed, it comes from the BDDI.

The Sanamp BDDI is a great little box.

 

[Baird6869]

I have a DI out on my amp and also have a DI out on my Bass PODxt.

If you plan on going direct and don't have a DI on your amp or a gadget similar to a POD, buy a DI box.

I like the POD as it was only $300 and most good DI boxed cost more with less functionality.

 

[Sir Edward V]

I believe presence is usually a midrange control

 

[Stumpy]

Get the Tech21 BDDI. You can use it for regular things like adding a little extra eq, OverDrive, etc. And if you get to send a signal to the FOH then cool...you are ready to go.

 

[Jazzdogg]

The DI on my amp has its own output level control and gives me the option of selecting a pre- or post-equalized signal.

In addition to feeding the PA, I also use my amplifier's DI straight into the console when recording, sometimes they'll blend the DI output with a close-mic'd signal from my bass cabinet.

 

[johnnycat42]

If you gig, you will need a DI box in your gig bag.

 

[scootron]

Newb analysis, but for me the nice thing about a DI out on my head (SWR) has been that it is unaffected by any volume changes I make to stage volume, so it doesn't mess up the sound person's work on the house mix.

+1 on the guy who said that the only thing that matters is the overall sound, not the solo tone. That is the thing our band is s-l-o-w-l-y learning. We were mostly guys who played in our dens, alone, and the concept of a group sound was unknown to us. Egos are difficult things to master.

 

[Jamiebass]

I have a DI out on my amp and also have a DI out on my Bass PODxt.

If you plan on going direct and don't have a DI on your amp or a gadget similar to a POD, buy a DI box.

I like the POD as it was only $300 and most good DI boxed cost more with less functionality.

The DI output on the POD is UNbalanced, meaning that it's just a seperate output for an unprocessed signal. It shout not be confused with a DI, even though it calls itself a DI....damn Line 6....

 

[bongomania]

I believe presence is usually a midrange control

Yes, but only insofar as it usually scoops the mids.

 

[bassman314]

There are several very popular Direct Boxes that do significantly more than DI. Tech 21 and MXR make DI's with EQ's, overdrive and tube emulation. DI's are also used for recording. And, I have heard that some DI's on amps aren't very good.

The DI on my Ampeg is crap, honestly. It's level is so low, that it's really unuseable. When I use my amp rack witha PA, I usually just stick the DI in the effects loop.

I think the DI on my SansAmp is having issues. It buzzes like crazy, regardless if the Ground switch is on or off. I got a Radial Engineering Passive DI and just use the direct out of the Sans Amp to the DI. Sounds great..