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Tech 21 VT Bass Deluxe - NAD...sort of

Sundogue

Sundogue

Apr 26, 2001
8,795
481
65
Wausau, WI
#1
Finally (after all these years) I snagged a used VT Bass Deluxe pedal. Not sure which forum to post in as I really plan on using as more of a preamp, so if you're a user of it as a preamp and not as an effect, please feel free to post here in this forum with your experiences, good or bad and everything in between. Yeah I know there's a lot of threads out there already (and I've read them all), but a lot of those threads are very old too.

So who is still using the VT Bass Deluxe? What's your setup like, what are your likes, dislikes and perhaps some tips or tricks, or some useful info on what has worked or doesn't from those of you who have used it for a while now?
 
#2
I still use mine, but not as a preamp. Really makes things easy with venue provided backlines. I always have a pretty good idea of what my tone will be.
The 6 presets are also a very handy feature. I can use 2 basses and get 3 presets for each, or 1 bass with 6 (kind of overkill really).
Only thing that I have noticed is that you do have to watch the unity gain when moving from amp to amp, and really watch out when you have a preset with a large amount of DRIVE applied (this particularly applies to backlines IME). But a quick level adjust at sound check usually works just fine.

great device. enjoy
 
#3
I'm using mine in the effects loop but I never turn it off so I suppose it is a preamp to my Eden WT-400. It just sounds terrific, totally SVT. I use only two settings currently. One SVT and one 'fat tube' that is slightly broken up. I have a third distorted sound that I never use. Will have to mess with making a new dirt patch but I love what it does. The extra slots for sounds will come in handy for a second (active) bass.
 

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#4
Still love mine, it makes for a killer DI. My only complaints are:
- No input pad (I use mainly active basses)
- Adapter jack can get bent up and loose rather easily

Those are really the only things I can think of that I don't like about it. The tone is great, it's a lifesaver if you get a really crappy backline amp, and it makes for an excellent DI with great tone.
 
#5
Just from playing around with it for a day I'm finding the tones I can get are fabulous. I'm also finding the controls are very touchy (as in a little goes a LONG way) and they interact with each other far more than one might expect. The Drive and Character controls in particular are very easy to overdo, especially in conjunction with each other. Each control also has a great affect on the Level. I had a gig that same night I played with it so I didn't get a chance to really work on it much, but I can already see where the tones I could get is exactly what I've been looking for. And the fact that I can save each as a preset makes the Deluxe model well worth it.

Now if I can just find some more time to tweak and learn more about how to get the most out of it.
 
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#6
Sundogue said:
Just from playing around with it for a day I'm finding the tones I can get are fabulous. I'm also finding the controls are very touchy (as in a little goes a LONG way) and they interact with each other far more than one might expect. The Drive and Character controls in particular are very easy to overdo, especially in conjunction with each other. Each control also has a great affect on the Level. I had a gig that same night I played with it so I didn't get a chance to really work on it much, but I can already see where the tones I could get is exactly what I've been looking for. And the fact that I can save each as a preset makes the Deluxe model well worth it.

Now if I can just find some more time to tweak and learn more about how to get the most out of it.
Click to expand...
I agree, nice box. One piece of advice that helped me immensely is to write down the setting changes as you make them. With 6 presets and 6 options for each of the presets, I found myself going nuts trying to remember specific setting details. Once you nail your presets down to your liking, then it gets easier. I generally have 3 B15 flavored settings and 3 SVT flavored settings. On each of those groupings (B15 and SVT) I make the 3rd one the dirtiest (if I want any of that at all). This approach at least helps me to organize them in my head a bit.

good luck
 
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#8
Yes when I have some time to revisit it, I'm going to write down my settings. It's not a typical pedal nor preamp. It's the first time I've worked with one where the controls are are so touchy and interactive with each other. It seems that it will take me a while to really understand that interaction.

I'm currently running mine through a Kustom Groove 1200, but I also use a Zoom B2. The reason I got the VTBD was because I want to use a lighter weight power amp, and at least use this preamp with any amp and still have what I want for tone. I've run it straight into the amp's input and also into the Zoom (which then runs into my amp's input). I couldn't get anything I liked out of running into my amp's effects return. I'm not sure where the effects loop sits in the chain on my amp, so maybe that has something to do with it.
 
#9
Love the VT Deluxe pedal, but I'm not a pedal person at the gig** so I use it at home to make my little combo amp sound fantastic. My six presets range from vintage/warm to modern/fuzzy.

**I have nothing against pedals per se, I've just chosen not to use them for various reasons. At the gig I use the SansAmp VT-RM, the rackmount version of the VT-Bass. The VT-RM doesn't have the presets, which is OK because I prefer to "set it and forget it" at the gig. That said, the ability change tones on the fly would be a nice-to-have, even though for me it's never a must-have.

Overall: excellent pedal, full of SVT goodness! And like the SansAmp bass preamps, it does a nice job of modeling warm power tubes... most tube preamps don't do that very well.
 
#10
That's interesting because I normally don't like pedals either. In fact I turned my Zoom B2 into a rackmount because I really never have to switch between effects much and when I tune up it's easy enough to just hit the buttons with my fingers (I removed the footswitches and only use the soft pads in the rackmount).

But...unlike the gobs of different options with the Zoom and the difficulty of switching up and down between presets on it (you can't just hit one button...you may have to hit a button several times to get to the one you want by scrolling through them all), the VTBD allows me to instantly switch between the main tones I'll set up. So it makes more sense for me to have it in pedal form.

Now I just gotta find some time to work with it.
 
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#12
JimmyM said:
What helped me a lot was knowing where near-flat is on the VT. As far as we can determine through consensus of a lot of folks who scoped them, flat is slightly past noon for bass, mids and character at 12:30, and highs at 10:00. Once I learned that, getting it to work right for me became much easier.
Click to expand...

Yes, and thanks for that info Jimmy...I actually copied and pasted your info from another thread. I agree that getting it as close to flat (or the same tonally as bypassed) for starters will help a lot. I've done it with my Zoom as well. I have a couple of tones that I like really well programmed into my Zoom, but I still found it lacking that something. Seems the VT Bass Deluxe was that something.

I got close to a great clean SVT tone the day I played with it, and then of course, I f'ed it all up and couldn't dial it in again. Forgot to save it as a preset. Then again, I was just toying around with it, because I had some time before a gig. New toy syndrome and all.

Damned work is preventing me from getting on with it. But hopefully soon I'll be able to do some serious work with it and get it all dialed in. While I know it's supposed to cop the Ampeg tone, there are still a lot of variables within that whole spectrum that I really dig. It really is less a matter of finding the tone I want than it is getting that tone to work with my rig. Not quite enough "fine-tunable" control on the VTBD (via the Low, Mid and Hi knobs), so I'd really rather run it through my existing preamp because of all the EQ at my disposal. Seemed like I'd be so-o-o close but using my amp's EQ allowed me to tweak it in just right.
 
#14
I got to play around with it a bit today and got a really nice, warm, fat SVT clean tone as Preset 1. Preset 2 is now a brighter version of 1 with a little more bite to it and a tad more mids. This will allow me to play around with my tone using a pick or fingerstyle depending on which I'm after. Preset 3 is like 2, but with some overdrive into it. Not full on fuzz, but more grindy.

Is it just me or do you have to adjust the knobs back to the middle before you switch to another Preset you want changed? It seems like a "well duh" kind of thing, but I switched to a preset where I wanted to lower the highs, but after I switched to it, the "high" knob was already bottomed out (from the previous preset) with nowhere to go but up. So I dialed it up to noon, then went back to another preset, then back to the one I wanted to adjust so the knob could be lowered. I would think that they would make these knobs have limitless 360 degree rotation for adjusting, so that if a knob is bottomed out (or maxed out) for one setting, when you switch to another preset you have flexibility with where to set them (without "re-setting" them first). I know it's analog, but the preset/saving function is digital.

I played each preset and compared it to my tone bypassed and the tone with the VTDB was like lifting a blanket off the speakers. Full tone, but with some depth and more clarity to it. I don't know how else to describe it. Maybe it really does have that tube amp magic to it. Thus far, I really dig it and I haven't even really spent a lot of time tweaking yet. ;)
 
#15
Ah...When I switch to another preset and I want to change it, it doesn't matter where the knobs are. I just have to sweep it to where the preset is for that knob (when it stops flashing) and then adjust it. I still think a digital readout for where that setting is at (for each knob) at each preset and then a rotary knob for control would be easier to use (although maybe not easier to implement). I'm just used to using my Zoom. The knobs are irrelevant. Hit a preset and the digital readout shows the setting and you can turn the knob without limit in either direction to adjust.

Still it's not a big deal and I'm still really digging the pedal.
 
#17
JimmyM said:
Analog isn't as versatile as digital, but it sounds a lot better ;)
Click to expand...

I agree and I have both analog and digital.

Hey, I don't want to be "that guy" who nit-picks and complains about an otherwise wonderful piece of equipment.

I love it and it's worth every penny (or lug, as I traded a drumset for it ;)). I've read everything I could find on it and I sure read a lot of complaints that really weren't very legit. Might as well have been saying, "They should have made it red...if only it were red I'd buy one" kind of stupid remarks.

Seriously though, the only complaint I have with it is that I didn't get one sooner. Anything else is just kind of personal preferences if I actually could build one myself. There really isn't anything not to like unless what this VT pedal does just ain't your thing. Sure is my thing though.

I've been toying with the idea of getting a tube head for years. This just came about because it was too good a deal to pass up. Sure, it isn't exactly a replacement for a tube head but it cops the tube sound better than anything else I've tried. I've never even been into fuzz or overdrive all that much, but for some reason I even dig that a bit.
 
#18
For sure. I don't use mine as much as I used to since I went back to tube amps and a tube DI, but for as inexpensive as it is, it does quite a good job copping those tones, and it's easier to tote with you through airports than an SVT ;)
 
#19
I really need to try out a deluxe version one day. I liked the V2 version Vt bass & now the VTbassDI better than the 1st version VT bass. The deluxe version has the same eq as the 1st version as far as I know without the speaker sim bypass, thats the only reason I never got one. Having the ability to save a favorable setting on such a touchy knob setting pedal would be appreciated. I've found that the character & mids controls play a similiar role, both control mids primarily. I hear the mids nob as pre drive & the character nob as mids post drive. Pulling back mids & boosting character slightly sounds good as well as the opposite. I didn't like the overdrive of this family of pedals until Ifound a happy balance between pulling back mids & raising the character to compensate. Keeping a log of favorite settings has been helpful for me & would help you tweek a setting that you like & even improve on it or modify it for a different bass or cabinet in the future. Cheers, Glen.
 
#20
When they first came out I really wanted to get the VT Bass pedal. I'm glad I couldn't afford one at the time because I love having the 6 presets (3 for two basses, which I do have and might use).

To be able to go from one tone to another easily is something I really like about it.

I'm finding that in checking it out the Character knob is the one I mess around with the most and then use the other ones to tweak.

Definitely have my settings written down for future reference. I found a perfectly sized nylon zippered soft case for it (don't know what it was originally for) that I store it in along with some padding. It still fits in my gig bag.
 

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