Epifani and Trickfish: Transparent or just "Clean"?

[winegamd]

I am in the market for a preamp (rackmount/pedal not onboard) and was curious about the voicing of these two manufacturers. I am looking at the Epifani Quest II and the Trickfish Minnow or Trilobite. I chose these because of the players I enjoy, these are the typical heads that they use.

I had always thought that the offerings from these two manufacturers were supposed to be more transparent (aka wire with gain) when eq's are set flat. After reading threads on here, I see many saying that there is some inherent tone modification/coloration/eq more than just the boosted signal from my bass.

I just wanted some opinions and experience with both manufacturers to see what actual users think. Also any opinions on eq points and pro's and con's of each.

 

[Jazzjames]

I had an Epifani UL502 which is similar if not identical (?) to the Quest II preamp. It was only ok for my usage. Its sound was very wide and deep which while it sounded quite nice, it wasn't very useful in a mix. I played it with a UL212 cab which should have been an epic setup, but I sold it on pretty quickly as it left me pretty cold. Your mileage may vary.

I did play a Trickfish .5k head in a shop and was really positively impressed with the tone. Clean and modern, and with useable tones available. If I were in the market for a new head I'd be looking at one of these, therefore my suggestion is to check out the Trickfish stuff. And it's new and will come with a warranty, which has to be safer.

 

[WorktheWood]

I used to own a the Epifani 502 and one of their 410's. I sold them both pretty quickly. I found the tone to be sterile and uninspiring. This was several years ago. I currently own the Bullhead 1k and it may be the best amp I've owned. I still have an Aguilar AG700 that I love but it sounds different than the TF but both have a similar warmth. The TF has a very big sound with a very natural midrange. The frequency points seem to be perfect for bass.

 

[pepj]

Interesting. I had both those amps (901ul and 1k) on my check list. I am a fan of Flexcore and Mike Pope had a hand in Trickfish, I believe.

However, I considered a Subway 800plus, and a Darkglass microtubes 900 v2 before plumping for a Forte HP.

The only one I tried was the Darkglass, but only while demo'ing an Epifani cab. I wasn't that convinced about half of the amp being dedicated to a drive stage set up or the graohic eq, but it is supposed to do clean well.

Even though I have the HP, to backup up a Demeter, I still have half an eye on the 800plus. I use a SM400 too so I think those might be 'similar'.

I tend to go for quite a transparent sound even though all basses are active.

For me, the difference is transparent is hearing your bass core sound, and clean is without 'drive' but can still have quite an inherrent bias, or baked in tone?

 

[aproud1]

I am in the market for a preamp (rackmount/pedal not onboard) and was curious about the voicing of these two manufacturers. I am looking at the Epifani Quest II and the Trickfish Minnow or Trilobite. I chose these because of the players I enjoy, these are the typical heads that they use.

I had always thought that the offerings from these two manufacturers were supposed to be more transparent (aka wire with gain) when eq's are set flat. After reading threads on here, I see many saying that there is some inherent tone modification/coloration/eq more than just the boosted signal from my bass.

I just wanted some opinions and experience with both manufacturers to see what actual users think. Also any opinions on eq points and pro's and con's of each.

For what you want. I would definitely lean toward the Trickfish. Most amps have some inherent "tone" IME, the trickfish bullhead I had sounded great no matter what, sounded clean and had a powerful EQ that could get you anywhere you needed to be. I equally like the Epifani amps but to me are more of a get a good tone for the gig with less tweaking needed kind of setup. Between the two brands the Trickfish is more transparent and offers some truly amazing control.

 

[winegamd]

For me, the difference is transparent is hearing your bass core sound, and clean is without 'drive' but can still have quite an inherrent bias, or baked in tone?

This is exactly what I meant in my title. I want to hear my bass. I practice through a headphone amp and am used to just hearing my bass. I have been plugging straight in to an EV ELX200-12p cab, but the on-board DSP can only do so much. I just need a little bit of clean EQ and something to push a little more than my basses active pre to improve the S/N ratio.

 

[pepj]

The route I would then take is look for a quality rack pre. Somethink like Aguilar, Demeter or maybe a Noble which is a pedal type.

 

[winegamd]

I have an Aguilar DB659 and previously owned a Db-680. They are VERY far from transparent, and I would say far from clean without work.

Demeter I would say is clean, but being based off a Fender tone stack, is not transparent. Plus, tubes are very colorful to begin with. I would say the noble fits in this same camp. Personally, I would use a Radial J48 over a Noble, and I would if I wanted to mess with the Phantom power and it had an EQ.

 

[pepj]

I'd prefer to call it 'character' ...... but I have a new amp and first impressions are that it is too sterile as is.
Early days etc.
I generally favour Aguilar DB tone stage and Demeter over, say Berg or something like Thunderfunk.
No to pedals though ...although I've used a Tonehammer pedal for DI with very pleasing results to FOH.

 

[winegamd]

My ideal would be an Acoustic Image Flex, but they are about two to three times as much as the Epifani or Trickfish offerings, and they are hard to come by.

I really don't want a bass preamp, but I know these two manufacturers are not trying to make my bass sound like their idea of what my bass should sound like. At least that is the reputation and what I am trying to confirm.

 

[nolenuttt]

Hopefully not derailing the thread, but I’m looking seriously at the Trickfish 3K and the 1.5K… playing some larger places, and at present I’m gigging with an Epifani Piccolo with the 1000 watt mod… any opinions on either of these amps from you veteran bassmen? I really appreciate the input!