rack advice: preamps and di's for pure sound

[mrslunk]

I'm about to ditch my marshall setup for something far more 'pure' and lightweight
i'll be using the following setup:

P/J bass - > XDR wireless -> pedalboard -> ?preamp with di? -> class D poweramp -> 1 or 2 Acme b2's

Now, i say ?preamp? because, i'm not sure if i want or need a preamp.
I absolutely love the tone of my bass, it could use some 'fattening' however.
Because of how my band works: ie, we are required to play cab-less on many occasions, i need to have 'my tone' coming out of the Preamp/DI into the desk, and also coming out of the Preamp/DI into the cabs when i decide to use them.

So here's the dilema, do i:
a) get a Radial DI or something equivalent, stick that on my pedalboard/in the rack, and make an impedance/level converter to feed the poweramp?

b) get a preamp.
If i get a preamp, an fxloop and compressor and basic eq be nice, since i can then cull my pedalboard slightly. I've been looking at.

The preamps/rack di's i've been investigating are:
-Art Tube Channel
-Avalon U5
-BBE 383-T

i'd love any suggestions/advice, in general, specifically on preamps vs di or whatever.

I play everything from 50/60's rock and roll, motown and funk, to modern punk/hard rock.
Thanks for your time
pete

 

[majortoby]

Sounds to me like you should look into the Ampeg SVP...no longer in production, but can be found used basically anywhere. I GAS for one so badly

 

[Eublet]

The Ampeg SVP is not a "clean and pure" sounding preamp at all. It's heavily colored with the trademark Ampeg tone, so I wouldn't get one of those unless you are sure that's what you want.

Also, those other preamps you mentioned aren't lightweight either.

Just curious, but why a separate preamp/poweramp? That will mean a rack case and will instantly get you out of the lightweight category it seems you are wanting, even if you go class D.

There are plenty of ultra clean lightweight bass heads out there with plenty of power. Some are so clean they can sound clinical. Others are pure, flat, clean and very warm.

 

[disssa]

Try to find a Hughes & Kettner BassMaster, a Warwick Quadruplet or better a Trace Elliot V-Type PreAmp.
All of can gives you a clean and pure sound. One problem: They are no longer in production, but can be found used...

 

[WalterBush]

The ART Tube Channel will roll your bass frequencies (lower than 70 Hz, not sure the exact number) off somewhat. My basses didn't fire the subs at church off when I tried to use it there. If you like a lot of treble, the ART might make your bass hiss a bit; mine did. I only use it to phantom-power drum overheads anymore.

Just a heads-up. It's a decent-sounding unit for everything else I've used it for. I wouldn't recommend it for a bass.

Look at some of Summit Audio's stuff. I love their TD-100, and they offer a half-rack compressor as well. FX loops and EQ's can be added in via pedalboard, but a bad-sounding pre is a bad sounding pre regardless of its other features.