Perhaps somebody could fill me in on this. I currently have a SansAmp RPM and like it so much i've been looking into their other offerings. I've noticed the Bass FlyRig and thought that it was a convenient little alternative to a pedal board all smashed into one unit, great. What i'd like to know is if this unit would do away with the need for the RPM. From what I have read, the FlyRig comes with a SansAmp pre-amp built into the board, yet it seems to lack EQ options present on the RPM and RBI preamps (Such as Mid-Shift, presence, etc). I'm not sure if buying the FlyRig would essentially do away with the need for the RPM or RBI, and that's what i'd like to know from anyone with experience with these units. I'm fairly ignorant to external pre-amps and effects, as i've typically always been a very basic "straight in" to an amp head with a dry signal.
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.
Is the SansAmp Bass Fly Rig all I need?
- Thread starter MojaveVox
- Start date
-
- Tags
- bass flyrig sansamp tech 21
If you're a very straight-in to the amp with dry signal guy, then maybe consider just a regular SansAmp pedal, or for something that covers both the RBI and RPM, go with the SansAmp Programmable DI.
If you're not going to use the chorus, fuzz, comp, or tuner on the FlyRig, skip it.
If you're not going to use the chorus, fuzz, comp, or tuner on the FlyRig, skip it.
I've also felt this with my Bass Fly Rig.
In my opinion, the Bass Fly Rig is a good option if you're thinking about going direct and not caring much about effects. The best of the unit is the preamp, which is basically the VT preamp, the tuner is very good also, the boost is great, and I also liked the chorus. The compressor is basically what was said above, it's really dificult to set a more subtle compression that doesn't feel like you're squashing into a wall. And the filter/octave/fuzz is basically unusable if you're thinking about trying the effects soloed. The octave is one of the worst tracking octaves that I've ever tried, the fuzz sounds thin and with no low end and the filter is better than the other 2 effects but it gets completely lost in the mix because of the frequency that was chosen to it. Nevertheless, all 3 effects toghether give a cool synth sound that I really liked. One thing that would have made this a great all-in-one-go-direct unit is to be able to be powered by phantom, but it comes with dedicated power supply.
I wanted to love it because of what Nunovsky says above, with the great SansAmp, chorus, etc tones, and I even liked the compressor fine - but that filter/fuzz/octave section was not good (I actually thought the unit I played was broken). Hoping for a BFRv2 though!
My experience was the same. The idea of it is excellent and some of the parts are great. The OctaFilter section had me pumped, and the actual performance of it completely harshed my buzz. 
One thing that would be great on v.2 would be a fx loop.
Last edited:
I haven't tried one but I don't use effects really anyway, so it's probably too much for me. Plus, I don't use an amplifier on stage. I use my BDDI straight to the mixer. I love the phantom power as well.
Definitely in the minority here... I like the octaver on its own, with no fuzz and no auto-wah (you can set the filter cutoff if not using the auto feature). It's a very dirty sounding octaver, nothing like an OC-2; more like it's already got fuzz dialed in and you can add even more with the fuzz button. But I found the tracking to be very decent, and got a usable sound using the filter cutoff.
Never use the comp or the chorus; it's a really nice chorus but I just don't like that effect. The attack time on the comp is way too fast IMO, squeezes all the life out of the sound.
So in my case fly rig = VT bass + dirty octave + tuner + DI which is decent value for the $.
Having said that, I have a tiny board with polytune mini + accountant + barbershop that I much prefer, and is about half the size of the fly rig.
Never use the comp or the chorus; it's a really nice chorus but I just don't like that effect. The attack time on the comp is way too fast IMO, squeezes all the life out of the sound.
So in my case fly rig = VT bass + dirty octave + tuner + DI which is decent value for the $.
Having said that, I have a tiny board with polytune mini + accountant + barbershop that I much prefer, and is about half the size of the fly rig.
