Do I NEED a pre-amp pedal?

[Al Rivera]

I use a mxr 81 pedal for my passive basses,adds a little growl to my signal and also works as a di for the board. I paid $150 and am very pleased.

 

[chadds]

Yes. You need every kind of pedal.

You TB enabler!! LOL

 

[Gabbs]

You probably don't but you might find it useful.

I use a Mesa Walkabout amp with a Mesa Subway+ pre into a Subway15. I play in a cover band and am expected to cover a lot of sonic room with my sound. Everything from ancient country songs to MOR rock. I can set the Walkabout to the room, then use the tone shaping capabilities of the Subway+ to quickly change my sound between songs. I have maybe 15 seconds to make the change. The Subway+ is much easier to dial in a tone than the Walkabout, and I don't have to worry about the room sound.

I used to just use the amp's pre but found it much harder to get all the sounds I needed quickly.

 

[RestlessBoom]

You don’t NEED one. But why not try one (or more)? I’m running two on my “clean” board, and I love the results. I picked up a Land Devices PRE to put near the front of the chain, and I have my Noble at the end. It sounds so sweet that I’m losing sleep thinking about it. I think that any piece of gear that inspires you to play more is a good thing, so why not give it a shot?

 

[Jack Butler]

You don't need one. Unless your spouse is reading this thread, then I will support you and say it's required for your bass to make any sound.

 

[Lance Bunyon]

So a pre-amp pedal isn't typically an always on pedal?

Absolutely not. Nothing is "always on" in my pedalboard. Everything is in "need to kick" status. It's important for me to like the basic tone of my amp...

 

[Lowbrow]

Not needed, no. Often appreciated

 

[Rich67]

Sooo, here's how my morning went:
Coffee. Scan Talkbass. This thread get my attention. I think "eh, good intel, but I don't know if I need a preamp pedal." Hop to SW site. Universe speaks. Pre-order complete.
Boss BP-1W Boost, Overdrive and Preamp Effects Pedal

 

[Danny C]

I have more then a few. I like them for the variety they offer me. Different tone stacks, different emulations of other amps pre's etc. I use a Mesa WD800, Mesa 800+ and Jad Freer Sisma for heads. They are all great. But preamp pedals give me other options and I enjoy them. Are they absolutely needed....no. But I can so I do. Enjoy!

 

[Baker69]

I use a Sansamp VT 21 Bass DI into the return socket of my Fender Rumble Stage 800, by-passing the amp’s own preamp.

I know some of you will say it is a big waste of the Rumble’s electronic wizardry, but I really love the sound the Sansamp alone gives me.

 

[r_bnks]

No

 

[brianrost]

W,

Of course you don’t need one. Nobody does. It’s like any other piece of gear, just a choice you make when you find one that makes a big improvement in your sound.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

Yes.

 

[Boneless]

You don't *need* a preamp pedal. Technically speaking, a preamp pedal is an inferior solution most of the time¹ because of the expectation that they be powered by a 9V supply, which translates to lower headroom. Even with charge pumps that boost the voltage to +18 or higher, it's a compromise compared to the more appropriate power supply you get in most amps. Moreover, many preamp pedals say they're preamps but wouldn't be able to properly drive a power amp, which means that they are essentially fancy overdrive stompboxes that can sound clean as well (nothing wrong with that). In any case, by going into your amp's preamp you are also increasing the noise floor because the fewer stages of amplification, the better. (Bear in mind that this doesn't necessarily matter anyway, since the noise they introduce may be negligible on bass guitar, and headroom may not be of any consequence likewise).

That said, a preamp pedal may be desirable when you have a very clean, linear bass amp and you wish for some drive which the amp doesn't provide. Or your amp has very limited EQ (but in that case you can just use an equaliser pedal). Or you don't like your amp's preamp and you want to use it as a power amp only (so you feed the amp through the FX return input). Or you want something that can function independently of your amplifier (say, your live amplification consists of you relying on monitors and providing the desk with a ready-made tone). It can be nice to have.

¹ Mac DeMarco hates stompboxes with a passion. He believes, and I quote verbatim, that stompboxes contain crap electronics. How well-informed his opinion is, well, it's debatable. On a technical level, there is no reason why you couldn't have "good electronics" in a stompbox.

 

[ok-djmiller]

I mainly play a p-bass with flats. I use an MXR M81 at the end of my small pedalboard and it's super helpful.

It's always-on. Provides a boost and subtle EQ shaping (or even more aggressive EQ shaping if you want.) XLR DI out is great for recording - as well as rehearsing and performing without an amp if you have an IEM setup. At live shows, send the DI from the preamp to FOH, then use your amp onstage as a monitor. I consider it to be an essential piece of kit.

 

[Stranger Danger]

I don’t use one. Additional gain stages complicate things unnecessarily in my opinion. Your Cali should handle any extra push you need. I use the 1176 for this purpose but I do play an active bass but I am not keeping the volume dimed either.

 

[BioDriver]

Having gone ampless, a preamp is essential.

 

[MTN.bass72]

Ive never used a pre-amp pedal. I play a Jazz with flats. The first pedal it sees is an always on Cali 76 CB. The pre-amp sticky got me wondering what I'm missing out on.

While our obvious answer is always "yes" to MoArGeAr?, do I need a pre-amp pedal? The top rated pre-amps on the sticky are quite a spend. What will it do for me? Is it an eq fine tuning thing?

If you do come to the conclusion that you want/need a pre amp, I have a brand new condition Mesa Subway pre/DI I'm letting go of... not a bad sound in it, and a fantastic DI

 

[74hc]

Of COURSE you NEED a preamp pedal. A Noble tube preamp/DI is perfect. Always in my chain. Go for it!

View attachment 5230961

At $1300, I don't need it whatsoever.

 

[jTrolt]

Don't ask us. As you continue on your musical journey, it will be made abundantly clear to you if and when the need ever arises.
Meanwhile, if you're happy and you know it, play your bass.