I have a Schertler Dyna-B to try out on loan from a fellow TB'er. If I understand the manual correctly this pickup does not need phantom power, right? Can plug staight into a channel of a PA? What kind of adapter do I need to use it staight into an amp. The one I'm using these days is an original model AI Clarus with regular 1/4 inch inputs. Any chance of damage if the pickup sees 48 volt phantom power? I think it's owner said it might have seen some once. FWIW, I have not had time to properly install it yet but I did plug it into the PA, no phantom on and tapped on it a bit. Didn't seem to be giving any signal to the board. Can any of you guys give me any advice? I have a couple of older Schetler pre's to try too, one is called "Acoustic Pre-Amp" and other is called "Dual Pre-Amp" There is no info on Schertler's website on these pre's. Don't know if they work at all, I don't have the wall worts for them. The Dual works on 9/12 volts dc, the Acoustic Pre-Amp runs on 12/16 volts dc. Our power here is 220 volts, any idea what wattage rating a suitable wall-wort should be?
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Double Bass Dyna-B
- Thread starter Mike Carr
- Start date
Mike, i talked with the guys from Schertler and asked them, theres no problem at all if the Dyn B gets phantom power.
if the pickup is working properly, just plug into a P.A and play. To plug it in an amp you just need an adaptor from XLR to 1/4 jack.
good luck
Nuno
Nuno, thank you ever so much for the quick reply! I'll try to fire up the Dyna-B tomorrow. I'm very blessed to have an opportunity to have a free trail of the Dyna- B, along with some other bass gear on loan from a fellow I met here on Talkbass several years ago, He lives here in Shanghai and has become a friend in real life.
Be aware that in general the Dyn B will sound like doo-doo straight into an amp/ PA without some sort of EQ. Has a nasty frequency that once notched out sounds really nice....quite close to a mic.
The Schertler Preamps are easiest because the resonance knob is designed as a notch filter for that, but I had good luck with a couple of cheap parametrics too.
If you don't have access to either, you can a lot of mids and it will help, although you will lose a lot of the good too.
The Schertler Preamps are easiest because the resonance knob is designed as a notch filter for that, but I had good luck with a couple of cheap parametrics too.
If you don't have access to either, you can a lot of mids and it will help, although you will lose a lot of the good too.
Thanks Monte! I thought of you when I decided to put my questions out there. I know you have had a lot of experiance with the Dyna-B. I'm coming from the other extreme, right now using Underwood so trying this Schertler should be pretty interesting to me.
I've been using the Dyn-B for years and really like it. It does help to have a notch filter, but I've had good luck running it into all sorts of amps. It's sensitive to where it's placed--you might have to try placing it and moving it a few times. It's also sensitive to how close it fits to the top. I've had mine in the same place for years and have never moved it.
The phase reverse switch, which is on a ring on the jack mount, is a very useful feature. Years ago I posted comparison sound clips of the Dyn-b and a shure beta 57 mic--you can hear what's good and bad about it if you listen to those.
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
And the Shure Beta 57
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Here's a clip (yikes is it poorly played!) of the dyn-b ([Invalid or Expired Link Removed])
Compared to the realist ([Invalid or Expired Link Removed])
I forget what strings were on the bass when these were recorded--I think animas on the first, spiro weichs on the second--I think.
The bass is a Shen 7/8 flatback
The phase reverse switch, which is on a ring on the jack mount, is a very useful feature. Years ago I posted comparison sound clips of the Dyn-b and a shure beta 57 mic--you can hear what's good and bad about it if you listen to those.
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
And the Shure Beta 57
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Here's a clip (yikes is it poorly played!) of the dyn-b ([Invalid or Expired Link Removed])
Compared to the realist ([Invalid or Expired Link Removed])
I forget what strings were on the bass when these were recorded--I think animas on the first, spiro weichs on the second--I think.
The bass is a Shen 7/8 flatback
So far I have not been able to fire it up. Tried it with an XLR into a quarter inch into my amp, nothing. I'm hoping that this just a case of the cord being bad, I borrowed it from the piano player I work with. Yesterday I connected it to the XLR that normally runs from the balanced out of my Clarus into the PA and couldn't get any sound either. This really bothers me because I know this line into the PA is fine, I use it nightly. I'm hoping this is not a damaged unit. It's owner says it has gone unused for quite a while, he had moved on to a DPA mic some time ago. Would be a real drag if this thing came to me DOA. Weird, it looks brand new. Well, maybe I could buy it from him at
a big discount and pay Schertler to repair it. Nothing more to do except keep futzing with it for the time being. Meanwhile, my old faithful Underwood takes a licking but keeps on ticking. Great workingmans pickup, but I so want to join the snob club. The Schertler is so...upscale!
a big discount and pay Schertler to repair it. Nothing more to do except keep futzing with it for the time being. Meanwhile, my old faithful Underwood takes a licking but keeps on ticking. Great workingmans pickup, but I so want to join the snob club. The Schertler is so...upscale!
Mike,
I looked into buying a used DYN-B at a while back and they can be repaired, but as I remember it was fairly expensive to do that. Before I did that personally, IMHO I'd try out
someone's Ehrlund.
Ric
PB+J,
Really cool that you the comparison files compiled. I am working on the same thing right now. So far I have the Golden Bullet recorded from the G side and the E side f holes, I have an underwood with the HPF pre, and I have a noname dynamic mic through the same HPF pre with the same settings.
I am going into my computer using audacity and keeping tabs on output level of each device by amplifying the signal and charting the amount of headroom before clipping in db's. It is fun and I have some new gear on the way, an Ehrlund and a Rev Solo II.
Anyway...Yeah...Um...
(Sorry to hijack the thread)
Really cool that you the comparison files compiled. I am working on the same thing right now. So far I have the Golden Bullet recorded from the G side and the E side f holes, I have an underwood with the HPF pre, and I have a noname dynamic mic through the same HPF pre with the same settings.
I am going into my computer using audacity and keeping tabs on output level of each device by amplifying the signal and charting the amount of headroom before clipping in db's. It is fun and I have some new gear on the way, an Ehrlund and a Rev Solo II.
Anyway...Yeah...Um...
(Sorry to hijack the thread)
Is it my ears or do I not hear a huge difference between the dyn-b and Realist in your recordings?
Could be your listening setup. I can't hear much difference on my laptop speakers, but on a set of decent headphones or monitors it seems pretty pronounced
Also i should say that while I like the DYN-B and have been happy with it for years, it's not perfect. It's not "my bass only louder" and it's not as good as a good mic. It sometimes requires some pretty bodacious equing. Like any pickup, it's a compromise. It doesn't have the typical piezo sound, though, and that's the thing i like the best
