Studio DI's vs Preamp DI combos

[Julian West]

When it comes to Pre-amp DI combos like Sans Amp, how do they compare to using standalone units like the Radial J48? I know the advantage of an active DI is that there is supposed to be better transient response and that they're typically recommended for passive pickups; the drawbacks being a need for phantom power and no tone controlcontrols. But, do the transformers sound better in a dedicated DI box? What of the DI outs in pre-amp pedals? Are those usually active, or is the power only going to the preamp?

 

[ProfFrink]

According to my understanding:

• Sans Amps vs "regular DI" - Most (all?) SansAmps have controls for significantly EQing and coloring your tone. Most "regular DIs" are mostly designed to be transparent or have only very mild coloring. This isn't all-or-nothing. E.g. the Avalon has some light coloring options.
• You generally don't want to hook a passive bass to a passive DI. The rule-of-thumb is that either the bass or the DI need to be active (both also should be OK).
• DI-outs of preamp pedals - are they good? Depends on the pedal. I imagine that most well-respected pedals will have decent to good DI outs.
• Are the DI-outs active? Not sure about this one, but I think yes, and especially the "post DIs" which basically mean the DI output is being fed from the preamp output. There is no reasonable way to turn this back to "unpowered". It doesn't make sense.

 

[Fun Size Nick]

The answer is 'it depends'. I have been very happy with the DI out of my Aguilar Tone Hammer, and have got great results with it in the studio. I've also been very happy with Countryman Type 85 & Radial J48 DIs, and Radial JDI passive DIs. These are all well-regarded units. I've also used the DI out of a Peterson Strobostomp, which was often too noisy to use.

According to my understanding:

• Sans Amps vs "regular DI" - Most (all?) SansAmps have controls for significantly EQing and coloring your tone. Most "regular DIs" are mostly designed to be transparent or have only very mild coloring. This isn't all-or-nothing. E.g. the Avalon has some light coloring options.
• You generally don't want to hook a passive bass to a passive DI. The rule-of-thumb is that either the bass or the DI need to be active (both also should be OK).
• DI-outs of preamp pedals - are they good? Depends on the pedal. I imagine that most well-respected pedals will have decent to good DI outs.
• Are the DI-outs active? Not sure about this one, but I think yes, and especially the "post DIs" which basically mean the DI output is being fed from the preamp output. There is no reasonable way to turn this back to "unpowered". It doesn't make sense.

A couple of points on this. Regarding passive DIs and passive basses, it can be a problem (but not always), and any problems are completely negated if you have pedals on between the two. All DI outs from preamps or amp heads are active.

 

[R Cadd]

So, with an active bass, I can use it straight into an 'active' DI box, right? Passive to passive, but with pedals in between.

 

[JimmyM]

So, with an active bass, I can use it straight into an 'active' DI box, right? Passive to passive, but with pedals in between.

It so doesn't matter one way or another. Just don't plug into a passive DI with anything longer than a 20 ft cord if you want to keep full treble response.