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Dr J Sparrow bass driver
- Thread starter KlystronNoir
- Start date
I really liked this pedal quite a lot, but yes, it changes your sound pretty dramatically if you crank the Mix knob up. Not in a negative way, I mean, it works like a SansAmp BDDI, it scoops a lot, but it's more "delicate" than the BDDI itself. I've also found it less noisy and a LOT less muddy on the lows. Of course you can still achieve Geddy Lee-like tones if you wish (I remember recording the Limelight bass track with a P Bass and this pedal, and it sounded glorious! Think of the "Different stages" version...), but it can do a lot more than that.
The only reason why I 'm no longer using it, and unfortunately it's a BIG thing, is that it makes a really loud pop when engaged...and when I say loud I mean tremendously loud, more like a "boom!", really. Too loud even at practice volume at home, go figure at stage volume...I was afraid it might blow my speakers. I put it in a loop with a Boss LS-2 to avoid using its switch but ultimately I removed it from the board, i mean...using two pedals only not to stomp on a switch felt a bit "too much" to me.
Still, i'm tempted to buy it again, I want to believe the problem I encountered was due to a defective unit and not a common feature of the pedal, but I've read (even here) that many other people had the same problem, so I really don't know what to do...
The only reason why I 'm no longer using it, and unfortunately it's a BIG thing, is that it makes a really loud pop when engaged...and when I say loud I mean tremendously loud, more like a "boom!", really. Too loud even at practice volume at home, go figure at stage volume...I was afraid it might blow my speakers. I put it in a loop with a Boss LS-2 to avoid using its switch but ultimately I removed it from the board, i mean...using two pedals only not to stomp on a switch felt a bit "too much" to me.
Still, i'm tempted to buy it again, I want to believe the problem I encountered was due to a defective unit and not a common feature of the pedal, but I've read (even here) that many other people had the same problem, so I really don't know what to do...
When I use mine I just leave it on all the time.
That said, mine doesn't seem to pop - if at all only slightly.
I don't know.
I haven't tried it that way (I no longer have a way to hook up anything I have like that).
You might check in the big Joyo (sp?) pedal thread.
I've been using the Sparrow for the past 8 months or so. It definitely colors the sound. I looked up the eq curves for the BDDI (after which the Sparrow is modeled), and tried to eq my SVT-4 in a similar fashion to see if I can emulate the sound with just the amp, and there was just something missing. The Sparrow adds a color that can't be emulated with just eq, similar to the BDDI. The Sparrow makes my Jericho Alpha 5 (passive long scale PJ) sound angry, as the SVT-4 Pro is relatively clean and transparent. As far as driving a power amp tho, the output of the DI is a bit too low to drive it properly, as I also have a Behringer NX3000D power amp that I used before I got the 4, and it didn't drive it properly so I got a booster after it and it was much better. Super happy with the Sparrow, especially for the price.
In my experience the sparrow has a a LPF set lower than the BDDI, no chance of getting any highs out of it… sudden decline at 3.5khz if I recall correctly
I’ve used a sparrow live (both ampless and into a bass amp) multiple times and have nothing but good things to say. The “harmonies” (lol) knob takes care of any perceived loss of highs. It’s a specific baked in sound, but IMHO it does the BDDI v1 thing better than an actual BDDI v1. It’s not as well built, but sounds better as far as I’m concerned.
I believe the harmonies boosted something like 3k, but there was no way to get back the higher highs. Just FYI
Luckily I play bass and not electric soprano saxophone synth drumitar
The ol' harmonies knob boosts the high end of what's coming thru the gain section, which in turn is blended with the clean signal using the mix knob. In other words, the further you have the mix towards clean, and the lower you have the gain, the less the harmonies knob will affect the signal. That being said, I get plenty of highs out of it, but maybe it does cut above 3.5k which may be what its "speaker emulation" is doing. I had a BDDI v2 a couple years back. I wish I had it currently to compare for myself.
Interesting cheap pedal…
Anybody can testify the longevity of those pedals? I mean, they’ve existed for a decade now, anybody bought one earlier and can say if it still works well? That’s a concern I have about cheap pedals…
Anybody can testify the longevity of those pedals? I mean, they’ve existed for a decade now, anybody bought one earlier and can say if it still works well? That’s a concern I have about cheap pedals…
Good solid tight little build. Mine’s pushing 10 yrs old maybe?
Some gigs, rehearsals, travel knocking around in a bag of pedals… still solid.
- Feb 16, 2008
- 21,240
- 23,633
- Disclosures
- John K Custom Basses
