Double Bass K&K Rockabilly vs Shadow Pro RB

[RMT Bass]

What is the difference? The K&K has a fat sound and seems to be the go-to rockabilly pickup. Is the Shadow better?

 

[Fredrik E. Nilsen]

Define "better".

 

[Mark Gollihur]

The pickups are similar enough; the big difference is the preamp. The Shadow preamp is much more full-featured, with all of the controls on the outside. IMHO, that's what sells the Shadow over the K&K, for most players - though, quite frankly, a bit of judicious initial setup on the K&K internal EQ and input levels makes it a non-issue for most.

 

[redwookie]

I found the Shadow has a more reliably solid output through the amps I’m using. I’ll admit, I didn’t spend a whole lot of time tweaking the K&K and it was ok but the sound seemed a little thin and weaker compared to the K&K. I’ll admit though that I didn’t spend a lot of time with the K&K and I’ve kept it hoping to use it again.

 

[Mark Gollihur]

I found the Shadow has a more reliably solid output through the amps I’m using. I’ll admit, I didn’t spend a whole lot of time tweaking the K&K and it was ok but the sound seemed a little thin and weaker compared to the K&K. I’ll admit though that I didn’t spend a lot of time with the K&K and I’ve kept it hoping to use it again.

Worth noting that the internal EQs on the K&K are usually out of whack (not set flat) from the factory; they test them, but don't really take the care to adjust them to their midpoints before packing and shipping - so be aware that the EQ was probably set poorly and that could definitely cause a thin sound (if the wing pickup's bass control were set too low, for instance.)

 

[DonaldFraser]

The pickups are similar enough; the big difference is the preamp. The Shadow preamp is much more full-featured, with all of the controls on the outside. IMHO, that's what sells the Shadow over the K&K, for most players - though, quite frankly, a bit of judicious initial setup on the K&K internal EQ and input levels makes it a non-issue for most.

I can say that once I had my K&K internal eq set I never touched it, but I’m wondering if the voicing is different on the shadow vs the K&K?
I was a huge fan of my K&K years ago, even preferred it over my doll head pre, for live situations. But the shadow has me intrigued for a couple reasons. Maybe @Mark Gollihur can shed some more light on the differences?
Or if there is anyone that has used both that can help out I know I’d certainly appreciate it.

 

[Mark Gollihur]

I'm sure that the voicings of the EQ have different specs, but really both setups can sound great, it just takes the effort to get them set up to your liking. But useful features like low cut filters, built-in tuner, outside-mounted controls, etc. - those are things that the Shadow preamp has that the K&K preamp doesn't. But the K&K has separate gain/volume controls and a three band EQ on each channel, so it's also quite capable.

 

[DonaldFraser]

I'm sure that the voicings of the EQ have different specs, but really both setups can sound great, it just takes the effort to get them set up to your liking. But useful features like low cut filters, built-in tuner, outside-mounted controls, etc. - those are things that the Shadow preamp has that the K&K preamp doesn't. But the K&K has separate gain/volume controls and a three band EQ on each channel, so it's also quite capable.

So, 6 of one and a half dozen of the other?

 

[Mark Gollihur]

So, 6 of one and a half dozen of the other?

Pretty much. Neither of them suck. I still feel like the Shadow pre is a more well-designed product, but the K&K has been rocking stages for 20 years, so...

 

[jasonrp]

I almost bought the Shadow and I still sometimes regret it (due to the easier adjustments) but I was always nervous about the smaller jacks. Without some effort, you are stuck using only their pickups. I can put anything with my K&K and I've never had to mess with the internal eq after my initial setup. Any fine tuning needed gets done on my amp.

There's a few shadow threads in the rockabilly section