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Tech 21 SABDDI V2 with Mids

#5
At the Sweetwater site I got the impression that some of their folks had actually tried it - maybe it was a demo model for the employees to experiment with. Does anyone have experience with this yet, and if so could you share your impressions of this new version as compared to the older version? Thanks in advance!
 
#6
well look at that!

very awesome and perfectly addresses the drawbacks of the previous gen unit.

but, since this is the internet, allow me to be the first to complain about a detail on a new box the day it comes out :whistle:

where's the "speaker sim bypass" button, ideally set to only bypass the 1/4" out?
 
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#9
Coke Kane said:
The V1 blend control cuts the mids around 750 hz - 800 hz, but the mid control on V2 affects 500 hz or 1 khz, so I'm not sure that it addresses the specific mid issue or adds a whole other issue. Unless V2 cuts the mids in a different frequency...
Click to expand...
It's not the blend that cuts the mids as it is the tonestack.

There's always an inherent mid-range cut at 750Hz (of about -6dB), I've owned a V1 and a V2, and both owner's manuals verified that. However, as you raise the Bass and Treble, it will make the cut more severe, or turn it into a slight boost. Think of it like always having the Ampeg mid switch on 3 and the midrange always dialed back to about 10 o'clock. I'm pretty sure this is actually the 3rd revision of the BDDI. Rather than setting drive and then adjusting volume for unity, it's far easier to set the EQ to taste, adjust the drive, THEN set the Level to unity.

The blend just blends between the input signal and the processed signal.

This new midrange control looks more functional in that it seems like it could emulate the Ampeg mid-range control on 4, or having the Ultra-Lo switch pushed in. I'd be willing to bet it's a new tonestack that fixes the mid frequency with it's own boost/cut section, rather than having an inherent scoop by having an active treble and bass control with fixed mids.

I'm also glad to see they have an adjustable bass frequency as well.

I'm ticked off they did this after I sold off my old V2's and decided to go back to an actual amp--but hey, that's the nature of gear, I guess.
 
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#10
isher1992 said:
It's not the blend that cuts the mids as it is the tonestack.

The blend just blends between the input signal and the processed signal.
Click to expand...


The blend which adds the processed signal does three things to my ears: 1) add compression, 2) add a high and low pass filter, and 3) is a contour control that cuts the mids. See the 2:20 mark of the video above to see the blend knob in action.

So it's not only the cranking of the bass and treble knob that cuts the mids, thought that can cut mids. But with the bass and treble knobs at noon, and the blend cranked, there will be a mid cut.
 
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#13
Coke Kane said:
The V1 blend control cuts the mids around 750 hz - 800 hz, but the mid control on V2 affects 500 hz or 1 khz, so I'm not sure that it addresses the specific mid issue or adds a whole other issue. Unless V2 cuts the mids in a different frequency...
Click to expand...
As I recall, the RBI (fancier rack version of the BDDI) has a mid control centered around 1000 Hz. I suspect that the choice for one of the mid points on the new BDDI being at that frequency was based on the success of the RBI. Getting an additional mid frequency control mid point option at 500Hz, depending on the Q, should be quite useful for adding some clarity and color that the Sans Amp typically takes away.

I think the new Mesa D-800 ended up with the high mid control coming in at 480 HZ and the MXR M80 (which is sometimes thought of as a "clean" BDDI alternative) has its mid centered at 850 (about 1/3 of an octave below 1000Hz). So the choice of 500 or 1000 Hz seems to be offering some known usable EQ points. I am a little surprised that they didn't offer an 800 Hz option to more directly counter the known scoop, but if 1000 Hz works nicely on the RBI, it should be equally effective here.
 
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#14
Coke Kane said:


The blend which adds the processed signal does three things to my ears: 1) add compression, 2) add a high and low pass filter, and 3) is a contour control that cuts the mids. See the 2:20 mark of the video above to see the blend knob in action.

So it's not only the cranking of the bass and treble knob that cuts the mids, thought that can cut mids. But with the bass and treble knobs at noon, and the blend cranked, there will be a mid cut.
Click to expand...
I think we are trying to say the same things, but failing to communicate.

Right, blending will change the mids. It's probably part of how the blend interacts. But the compression, low and high pass filtering is part of the SansAmp processing.
 
#15
isher1992 said:
I think we are trying to say the same things, but failing to communicate.

Right, blending will change the mids. It's probably part of how the blend interacts. But the compression, low and high pass filtering is part of the SansAmp processing.
Click to expand...
That makes sense to me. As I understand it the blend control simply changes the ratio of dry signal (like you'd get with a straight DI box) to the SansAmp affected portion. I believe the drive and presence controls are associated with the SansAmp functionality only, as the level, bass, and treble controls all work even with the blend at zero.

With a completely dry signal (zero blend) and the bass and treble controls at noon there really shouldn't be much of mid scoop (of course nothing is ruler flat). You can cause the mid content to be more present by turning back the treble and bass, but as soon as you start to blend in the SansAmp circuitry, you are going to start introducing a mid scoop against your settings because that is essentially the BDDI SansAmp tonal profile.
 
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#19
DJJazzV said:
Just got one yesterday. I didn't get to put much time into it yet. As expected, it sounds great so far. I wanted a pedal version of my favorite RBI for the smaller practice rig and home recording. Hopefully I'll get to A/B them soon.
Click to expand...
Not to be a pest, but any news you can share? I'm truly hoping this will turn out to be an RBI experience (mostly the mid control part) in a pedal. With the focus on 5 and 6 string basses that Tech 21 mentioned for this model I am also wondering if there is a little more headroom than the last version of the BDDI.
 

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