• 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.

Finally an affordable signal blender!

#81
Sorry for thread resurrection, but have any more of you spent time with this pedal? Here in 2021 we still don't have any more options for this sort of functionality that I'm aware of. I had started a thread last year about ordering a Saturnworks pedal, but I decided that was overkill and really just want something that'll take my two channels from a 4 jack King of Tone and blend them back into my clean signal. Phase switches required (I tried it with the One Control and unless each channel has phase switching things get funky when they are stacked.)
Concerns are:
Phase buttons... why buttons. Why. How do you know what position they're in? Can you tell when they're pressed in and are they susceptible to being pressed accidentally? Walking onstage and having your phase be out of wack with no visual indication seems like a nightmare.
Buffer quality... in a TGP thread people report hearing a difference in their tone.
Thanks!
 
  • Like
Reactions: giantoz
#82
ianrossbass said:
Sorry for thread resurrection, but have any more of you spent time with this pedal? Here in 2021 we still don't have any more options for this sort of functionality that I'm aware of. I had started a thread last year about ordering a Saturnworks pedal, but I decided that was overkill and really just want something that'll take my two channels from a 4 jack King of Tone and blend them back into my clean signal. Phase switches required (I tried it with the One Control and unless each channel has phase switching things get funky when they are stacked.)
Concerns are:
Phase buttons... why buttons. Why. How do you know what position they're in? Can you tell when they're pressed in and are they susceptible to being pressed accidentally? Walking onstage and having your phase be out of wack with no visual indication seems like a nightmare.
Buffer quality... in a TGP thread people report hearing a difference in their tone.
Thanks!
Click to expand...

This. Has anyone heard of a pcb blender for the diy people?
 
#83
ianrossbass said:
Sorry for thread resurrection, but have any more of you spent time with this pedal? Here in 2021 we still don't have any more options for this sort of functionality that I'm aware of. I had started a thread last year about ordering a Saturnworks pedal, but I decided that was overkill and really just want something that'll take my two channels from a 4 jack King of Tone and blend them back into my clean signal. Phase switches required (I tried it with the One Control and unless each channel has phase switching things get funky when they are stacked.)
Concerns are:
Phase buttons... why buttons. Why. How do you know what position they're in? Can you tell when they're pressed in and are they susceptible to being pressed accidentally? Walking onstage and having your phase be out of wack with no visual indication seems like a nightmare.
Buffer quality... in a TGP thread people report hearing a difference in their tone.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
I'll be picking one up in a couple of weeks, I'll let you know about the buttons and any eventual tonesuck
 
#84
I’ve got a Signal Blender coming as well. Thought about picking up a Wounded Paw, but the Old Blood is smaller and cheaper.

Anyone ever use a Badger Schism? It looks pretty similar to the Signal Blender. I saw one locally, but it seemed to be at a pawn shop so I passed it up.

Definitely avoid the Radial Mix Blender. I found I couldn’t get it to match my volume unless it was set 100% wet or dry, which defeats the purpose.
 
#85
I was able to pick up a black Signal Blender last Black Friday. Now I'm not a professional and totally a beginner player, but I love it. I haven't experienced any tone suck at all. I do use headphones (DT770 Pros) through a Darkglass Element and with my setup it sounds just as good with or without the Blender. The phase buttons are just that: buttons. They do have a very satisfying click to them, but there's no indication if they're engaged or not. The click is heavy enough though that accidental clicks shouldn't really happen, plus if you do happen to "fat foot" the footswitch, the phase buttons are right next to a volume knob so they should be protected from accidental stomps anyway.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Hypocrite
#86
I ended up grabbing one to finally put the matter to rest and hadn't seen any of your responses during the period the TB server was down. It came in just an hour or so ago and my first impressions are that it's going right back out the door again. It's a nice build and the buttons aren't a total dealbreaker since they do click with a firm feel and could probably be covered for touring with a few minutes of thought and DIY.
Unfortunately I can hear the buffer working too much for my taste. With just the clean channel activated I didn't mind too much as all I heard was a bit of a shift in the lower mids. When I brought in my dirt channel, however, the depth wasn't quite there as I remembered it. Things were... cardboardy (and yes, I made sure the phase was correct.) Now I can't do a scientific A/B here without recording both setups, but I plugged and replugged with the Old Blood and my Mosquite Blender (the old one in the mini gunmetal enclosure) and the One Control definitely seemed to have the more depth and accurate representation of the two signals (unfairly I suppose I'm running the One Control with no buffer because that's what I most often do.)
Kind of a bummer because I'd love the possibilities that second blend channel would open up, but I am fine sticking with my old Mosquite Blender until I find something that stacks up and offers more flexibility while doing so. I'd love to say Wonded Paw, but it's hard to justify a pedal that takes up that much real estate. The search continues, I suppose....
 
  • Like
Reactions: cusar5
#87
ianrossbass said:
I ended up grabbing one to finally put the matter to rest and hadn't seen any of your responses during the period the TB server was down. It came in just an hour or so ago and my first impressions are that it's going right back out the door again. It's a nice build and the buttons aren't a total dealbreaker since they do click with a firm feel and could probably be covered for touring with a few minutes of thought and DIY.
Unfortunately I can hear the buffer working too much for my taste. With just the clean channel activated I didn't mind too much as all I heard was a bit of a shift in the lower mids. When I brought in my dirt channel, however, the depth wasn't quite there as I remembered it. Things were... cardboardy (and yes, I made sure the phase was correct.) Now I can't do a scientific A/B here without recording both setups, but I plugged and replugged with the Old Blood and my Mosquite Blender (the old one in the mini gunmetal enclosure) and the One Control definitely seemed to have the more depth and accurate representation of the two signals (unfairly I suppose I'm running the One Control with no buffer because that's what I most often do.)
Kind of a bummer because I'd love the possibilities that second blend channel would open up, but I am fine sticking with my old Mosquite Blender until I find something that stacks up and offers more flexibility while doing so. I'd love to say Wonded Paw, but it's hard to justify a pedal that takes up that much real estate. The search continues, I suppose....
Click to expand...

I agree. I got mine today, and there's too much signal loss and coloration going on for this one to be a keeper for me. I run a few pedals at 12v or more, and I hear the Signal Blender squashing the extra headroom from the higher voltages.

That being said, parallel blended fuzz sounds killer, so I'm still gonna try some other options in the future.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Evil_Druid
#88
cusar5 said:
I agree. I got mine today, and there's too much signal loss and coloration going on for this one to be a keeper for me. I run a few pedals at 12v or more, and I hear the Signal Blender squashing the extra headroom from the higher voltages.

That being said, parallel blended fuzz sounds killer, so I'm still gonna try some other options in the future.
Click to expand...
I liked the Saturn works blender that I used to own. It didn’t suffocate my broughton pedals when ran above 9v, but the issue was no phase switch. The SV-Pre and the Silver deluxe are out of phase when ran parallel. Was a bummer because my intention in buying those pedals together was to simulate the two amps I own in an ampless setup I had in mind. I’m learning electronics, so will definitely take a stab at blenders, but in the meantime I’m also still looking for the best option. I think something custom from COG effects would work well, but I’m dubious about the $$$. Disappointing to hear that the OBNE blender wasn’t for bass, my curiosity was big
 
  • Like
Reactions: cusar5
#89
220_Hz said:
I liked the Saturn works blender that I used to own. It didn’t suffocate my broughton pedals when ran above 9v, but the issue was no phase switch. The SV-Pre and the Silver deluxe are out of phase when ran parallel. Was a bummer because my intention in buying those pedals together was to simulate the two amps I own in an ampless setup I had in mind. I’m learning electronics, so will definitely take a stab at blenders, but in the meantime I’m also still looking for the best option. I think something custom from COG effects would work well, but I’m dubious about the $$$. Disappointing to hear that the OBNE blender wasn’t for bass, my curiosity was big
Click to expand...

I mean, the OBNE blender "works" for bass in the sense that it doesn't seem to cut any frequencies, but the signals just end up sounding like less than the sum of their parts.
 
#90
cusar5 said:
I mean, the OBNE blender "works" for bass in the sense that it doesn't seem to cut any frequencies, but the signals just end up sounding like less than the sum of their parts.
Click to expand...
That's a dealbreaker for me. If the headroom lost from the blender is noticeable to the player, it would probably be noticeable in a mix. The "feeling" of the notes is really important to bass IMO. I don't play as well if something in my signal chain is making the tone feel compromised
 
  • Like
Reactions: cusar5 and ianrossbass
#91
220_Hz said:
That's a dealbreaker for me. If the headroom lost from the blender is noticeable to the player, it would probably be noticeable in a mix. The "feeling" of the notes is really important to bass IMO. I don't play as well if something in my signal chain is making the tone feel compromised
Click to expand...

Yeah I agree. I’ve tried a few parallel blending solutions now, and none of them can match the clarity, headroom, and response of running all my other stuff in series.

I wonder if a blender that operates at higher voltages would make a difference? There aren’t many, but I’ve seen a few.
 
#94
cusar5 said:
The big Wounded Paw ones go up to 18v.
Broughton FX Loop is a smaller single channel one with HPF/LPF, and it can go up to 24v. I’m on the lookout for one of these.
Click to expand...
I was a bit intimidated by the broughton blender at first, still not necessarily certain about it for some reason but I still reckon it would be a great utility. Josh makes really rock solid circuits
 
#96
btw, since my last foray into this thread a couple years ago, somebody hipped me to this gizmo, which seems to do a lot of the stuff that the other parallel blenders mentioned herein offer:

MATRISE | PLADASK ELEKTRISK

matrise_white.png
 
#97
Bob_Ross said:
btw, since my last foray into this thread a couple years ago, somebody hipped me to this gizmo, which seems to do a lot of the stuff that the other parallel blenders mentioned herein offer:

MATRISE | PLADASK ELEKTRISK

View attachment 4289765
Click to expand...
There's one similar to this that I'm thinking of but can't find.

It looks real similar to the pladask, but it's in a larger grey enclosure and it has different color coded knobs
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back