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Tech 21 VT Bass (Part 2)

#22
Jjango said:
&*$^%# TB GAS-inspiring threads!!! :mad: :mad: :mad: ;)

GAS wins again. I just ordered a VT from The Perfect Bass. The 15% discount (total price: $127.46) made it irresistible. I've been bordering on buying one for months, and I finally caved.

I can hardly wait for it to arrive. I've never even seen one in person before, so it's a bit of a leap of faith. I'm pretty sure I'm going to love it, though, I'm a sucker for the Ampeg sound.
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Don't worry, if you like Ampeg sound, than there's a 99.9999% chance you will like this! and what a great price!
 
#27
Lemoore-on said:
Then what do you set your pre-amp settings to?

OP, sory for the hijack
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I think I'm going to buy one of these today just to explore the possibilities. I'm really not a fan of the Tech21 sound (although I fully acknowledge it's popularity and prevalence in the industry), but I want to give the device a chance. I'm not sure if it will stay in my rig (I'm very satisfied with my current set-up)- but might add an interesting tonal option for recording...
 
#28
I play it through Ampeg SVT-3 Pro and it gives me infinite possibilities. If you haven't liked the sound coming from it, maybe it's time for a "tweaking session". Those knobs are very sensitive, so only a slight change will affect everything. Finding the OD you like can be hard, but you will certainly be happy with what you get once you get it.

I don't use it as a preamp, I really use it as an OD or a "mild/deep" distortion pedal, and it works really fine, though I agree it does wonders as a preamp (yet I prefer my SVT-3's preamp)
 
#29
I LOVE me my VT, but I will say that I do find the dials to be almost too touchy at times (sorry guys I had to say it). :hiding:

I run it in front of my Mesa M-Pulse Venture600, and I use it for a medium-to-heavy-type overdrive. It seems like any sort of mild twitch in any of the knobs during transportation, and I'm messing with it for many minutes again, trying to find it's sweet spot.

With my M-Pulse, I love its tubey goodness, and as my standard tone I use a fairly medium-gain signal. I'm wondering if I'm pushing too much signal to my preamp and that's why it's harder to dial in (and so touchy as well)? Anyone have any suggestions regarding this? Would it be beneficial for me to bypass my preamp? I've never had any experience doing such a thing. Is this the problem with a tube amp/VT combo that we're talking about? Or am I expecting too much, or the wrong thing from my VT?
 
#31
Spent a little time today comparing the SansAmp RPM with the VT Bass. To my ears, the VT Bass has a definite "Ampegy" vibe overall, perhaps due to the characteristic equalization contour of the pedal. It seems to do a better job of keeping the lows fat and controlled compared with the RPM which tends to get loose in the lows when the drive is pushed. In contrast, the RPM appears to have less of an inherent tone and seems like it might be a bit more flexible overall, in part due to the blend circuit. Which is better is probably a matter of tonal preferences more than anything; however, for those wanting a variety of Ampeg-inspired tube sounds, the VT Bass is probably the obvious choice.
 
#32
Got mine today and I am loving the thing! The lack of XLR doesn't bother me, because I either run a Punch Factory (which has an XLR out) immediately after it or I run XLR out from my amp.

I ran mine through my GK 800RB head, then tried running it straight into the effects return to bypass the GK preamp. Holy crap that thing can drive a power amp! :eek:

I think I've settled on the "fat tube" setting with the bass and drive slightly boosted from the suggested setting. I like the SVT setting as well and I'm sure I'll be dialing that in as well.

Thinking about just taking it and a power amp (as opposed to one of my integrated heads) to a gig in January. This particular band plays a lot of older stuff (Dead, Allmans, The Band, Dylan, etc.) as well as originals influenced by said bands and I think this will give me a nice vintage vibe.

Damn glad I got it. I still have the SABDDI and I still love that pedal, especially for direct studio recording.
 
#34
I think I like the SVT setting best also and this is the setting I generally use. However, has anyone else noticed excess string/finger noise when using a compressor before the VT bass? I get a "clicking" sound which is surprising. I am using chromes and a Line 6 Tonecore Constrictor. I do not get this sound with the VT Bass off and compressor on or with the VT Bass on and the compressor off. The offect order is Compressor > VT Bass > Micro POG > Z.Cat Multi (chorus, phaser, flange, reverb). I don't get this clicking with any other effects.

I have been going with the compressor off since I love the VT Bass sound but I would like to use both.
 
#35
JimmyM said:
It's just a problem with the VT...it's got a lot of range so the knobs are touchy.
Click to expand...

+1.

I would suggest writing down your settings on a sheet of paper to make sure you don't forget your favorite settings, because those knobs are EXTREMELY sensitive, Character set at 9 o'clock can be totally different than character set at 8.5.

I'm currently drawing a VT-Bass on Photoshop (for that exact purpose). I will print it and mark down where my knobs are placed right now, because I have found that even when laying on the floor in the calm rehearsal room, my level knob had been moving from 2 to 1.5 :eyebrow: (fortunately it was only the gain so it didn't really change my tone :bassist:). Strange, but now I'm gonna write down my settings :D

(BTW I might post a link to the image of the "empty" VT with knobs, so if anyone is interested, it might be here by the end of the day or tomorrow morning)
 

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