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Mild overdrive with active high output basses : which pedal?

Most of my basses are pretty high output and active - two Stingrays, a Big Al, an L-2500 (which I usually use in passive mode, but even passive it has high output!), and a parts Jazz bass with an Audere preamp.

The only one of the ones in the OP that I've used and currently own is the Walrus Audio Ages. With the Dry knob, I find there's plenty of low end. Also, I really only really used Modes 1 and 2, which are fairly mild OD so there's not a lot of additional high end in them to make it seem like the low end is reduced. I like it enough to keep it, but I have other drives I like better and get a lot more time on my board.

Among those others that I also own and think fit your criteria (as opposed to just OD pedals I like):
- Broughton FlipTop - I simply love this one and use it most of the time as my "standard" tone. It truly is low gain, but it does it very well, giving you a pretty old school bass tone when you have the Cabinet control above 12:00.

- Spaceman Effects Saturn VI - This is my second favorite low gain pedal and is my second choice for my "standard" tone when replace my FlipTop with it for a change of pace (as I'm doing right now, the Satrun VI is currently on my board). I prefer the Boost knob (even order harmonics) between 12:00 and 2:00 and the Gain knob (odd ordered harmonics) between 10:00 and 12:00. It gives some nice soft warmth that gets a little growlier when I dig in. You cna get quite a bit more gain out of it than I use, but I set it this way for low gain, "standard" tone and love it.

- Most BlueBerry variants. I own, and LOVE, the Bearfoot FX Blueberry. It does a great warm OD, especially with the Gain below 2:00 and the Nature (a tilt EQ) between 10:00 and 12:00 to taste. I also own and like the One Control Blackberry and Bearfoot FX Queen Bee. Both of those work well and have an additional midrange (Body) and Treble controls, respectively. However, the way I use my Blueberry, I don't need the Body or Treble controls so I prefer the simpler BlueBerry. But all three sound great.

- Solidgold FX Beta - I have the original, not the Mk II (with an additional midrange switch) or the current model V (with several additional controls). It's another I like a lot, espedcially for a deep and warm Motown or reggae-like tone. It does color your tone that way, but it's a REALLY nice color.

- JPTR FX Jive - This has three different clipping options that can be used in any combination in additition to the Gain control, but I mostly use it with no LEDs enabled and just go with the gain. It's pretty transparent that way and it doesn't get too gnarly. But you can get quite a bit dirtier as you add in the LEDs.

- EHX Bass Soul Food - This is truly low gain and I don't really like the tone with the Gain above 3:00. But below that level, and especially below 1:00, I like it a lot with the Blend knob between 10:00 and 2:00 (to taste). I also tend to keep the Treble knob below 3:00 and I never use the 10 dB pad, even with my high output basses. A lot of TB disagrees with me, especially those who tried it when it just came out, but I think it's a good low gain OD.
Do you find the Fliptop and SGFX Beta comparable? The BetaV (which I have) Lpf switch seems to work like the Cab Sim dial on the Fliptop.
 
Since I can very much agree to your list, I actually own or owned all of the mentioned pedals and liked them (apart from the FlitTop which I did not like at all), I'd like to ask if you ever played an original Blueberry, the BJFe version?
I just got my hands on a Bearfoot Blueberry and compared it to my BJFe. To my ears, there is no competition here. The Bearfoot tries to do the Blueberry thing but falls painfully short. The Original has so much more going on.
It's like stepping barefoot on a bunch of blueberries - with that rich and sweet goo squeezing through the spaces between your toes compared to stepping bearfoot on a dirt road.
The Bearfoot Blueberry is a nice low gain drive pedal, true.
However, the BJFe Blueberry is one of the Holy Grails for the Magic Bullet Chaser.

YMMV, of course.
What did you not like about the Fliptop? I have the Broughton Scorpion, SVpre, and SolidGoldFX BetaV, and wondering how the Fliptop would compare.
 
What did you not like about the Fliptop? I have the Broughton Scorpion, SVpre, and SolidGoldFX BetaV, and wondering how the Fliptop would compare.

I've never played the Scorpion.
The SVpre was, in my ears, a super beefy pedal that gave a drive that felt a bit like a stampeding herd.
The Betas are kind of warm and great for a little sizzle, but not really working super well in a context with distorted guitars, it needs a bit more sonic space. When you dime it, it feels like an artificial clipping is going on.

In my personal opinion, the Fliptop sounded, in direct comparison, like a weak little amp that is driven past what it can do. The lows were farting out from the F down (I play a 6 string with flats), and not in a good way. I could not get it to sound powerful at all, it felt rather anemic.
It's quite possible that on a four string with a less bottom heavy sound, the Fliptop performs way better.
 
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