Double Bass Recording with The Realist

[snowdenwald]

I'm new to recording and never really learned about amplification properly. Hence my probably foolish questions.

1) is it possible to record The Realist without an amp, just through an audio interface to Logic (and then use a digital amp in Logic)?
2) which equipment (audio interface, preamp??, ...) would you recommend to do so?

I don't want to do professional recordings, just something that works for me so I can quickly put some stuff together when I don't have a mic or an amp around.

 

[Wasnex]

I'm new to recording and never really learned about amplification properly. Hence my probably foolish questions.

1) is it possible to record The Realist without an amp, just through an audio interface to Logic (and then use a digital amp in Logic)?
2) which equipment (audio interface, preamp??, ...) would you recommend to do so?

I don't want to do professional recordings, just something that works for me so I can quickly put some stuff together when I don't have a mic or an amp around.

It should work fine direct into a high Z recording interface. Piezo-based pickups typically benefit from unusually high input impedance. In general 1 Meg should be considered about the minimum for good results. The optimum impedance varies with the design. If the impedance is too low the sound may be overly harsh in the upper mids and the low end may be thin. You should be able to smooth the tone out somewhat with aggressive EQ.

The Realist Copperhead is a fairly dark pickup to begin with and I believe it was originally designed to work well with lower impedance than the typical piezo pickup.

 

[Ric Vice]

It can definitely be done, but most simple computer recording interfaces don’t have impedance loading, so it won’t sound great. If you know someone who owns an Avalon U5 preamp it can make the Realist sound pretty great. A close friend of mine used Logic exclusively for many years and he has a Radial PZ DI to pass the Realist or Full Circle through, before they hit the preamps, and then sent to Logic.

 

[Ed Fuqua]

What's wrong with using a mic to record it?

 

[Ric Vice]

I was going to mention that, if you invest $150.00 in a Line Audio CM4 the quality of your recording will improve 10 fold. Even a decent dynamic microphone will sound far better than the Realist. Just my take.