Good pre/di to go with HX Stomp

[Altitude]

I realize the Stomp has excellent EQ capability, but sometimes I just want to reach down and dial in a little low end in the middle of a tune. So I’d favor a high quality DI/preamp that has easy EQ. A Nordstrand Starlifter for example, or the Genzler Magellan preamp, which IIRC has a high pass filter as well.

 

[richntiff]

I realize the Stomp has excellent EQ capability, but sometimes I just want to reach down and dial in a little low end in the middle of a tune. So I’d favor a high quality DI/preamp that has easy EQ. A Nordstrand Starlifter for example, or the Genzler Magellan preamp, which IIRC has a high pass filter as well.

Exactly. I have no doubt that I can EQ anything I need to,, at home, leisurely, on my Stomp XL. But, 2 minutes before downbeat, I want a knob to turn. I will never spend so much time on my stomps interface to get that quick at it.

 

[Bonecat]

I have an HX Stomp. Instead of a DI, I use a Pinstripe DISO line isolator. It is made for pedals like the stomp and gives a much cleaner signal. The mono version is called the MISO.

Pinstripe Pedals - DISO

This. When I was using the HX Stomp as the nucleus of my ampless rig, I used a Pinstripe ISO to give me a solid XLR connection to FOH. It sounds amazing...

View attachment 7416533

 

[thump54]

I realize the Stomp has excellent EQ capability, but sometimes I just want to reach down and dial in a little low end in the middle of a tune. So I’d favor a high quality DI/preamp that has easy EQ. A Nordstrand Starlifter for example, or the Genzler Magellan preamp, which IIRC has a high pass filter as well.

This. Also goes for my compressor. I have gotten very usable sounds from the Stomp compressors but for live performance I like having a dedicated compressor (currently a Cali76) before the Stomp for easy knob tweaking.

 

[PotsdamBass8]

I definitely say tone hammer is a great sounding pedal. How is the bad water compared to the others? I’ve always been curious but have too many pedals to justify getting it.

I liked it, but it had a couple drawbacks compared to the others. I felt it was a little easier to dial in a warm amp tone with the VTDI, whereas the Badwater took a little more tweaking and would sound off if a knob was bumped a little bit whereas the VT was more gradual with changes. The compressor was really nice, but couldn’t be dialed back enough with a high output bass. I really liked it as a drive pedal, but that wasn’t what I needed at the time. If I needed a backup di and that’s what was available for cheap, I would’ve gotten it again and been fine, but I went with the VT and then the tonehammer.

 

[GTHintz]

I liked it, but it had a couple drawbacks compared to the others. I felt it was a little easier to dial in a warm amp tone with the VTDI, whereas the Badwater took a little more tweaking and would sound off if a knob was bumped a little bit whereas the VT was more gradual with changes. The compressor was really nice, but couldn’t be dialed back enough with a high output bass. I really liked it as a drive pedal, but that wasn’t what I needed at the time. If I needed a backup di and that’s what was available for cheap, I would’ve gotten it again and been fine, but I went with the VT and then the tonehammer.

It sounds like it’s almost redundant so if you have a sans amp or tone hammer it’s almost not really worth it. One thing I realized about many pedals is that unless you’re after a very specific sound there’s a ton of overlap. It’s great having the variety though. I’m glad I have a drawer full of pedals that all sound different.

 

[Mr Joshua]

When I was using HXS I really preferred an analog preamp pedal for tone shaping. My favorite was the Mesa Subway DI but those are hard to find. I think many of the mentioned preamps would work and a lot of others that haven’t been mentioned as well. I would put the preamp in the fx loop and set my effects up pre and post preamp in the HXS and output L to an amp (if needed) and R to an Arkham passive DI.

 

[DJmtd]

Might be overkill depending on what you're doing in the HXS, but I adore my Origin Super Vintage and I think having the cabsim on the XLR is indispensable for my use case.

If it's just a little eq you're after, I will add to the chorus and say the MXR M81 is pretty hard to beat.