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Telefunken TDP-1: Great passive DI option

Evan J

Evan J

Sep 27, 2023
647
1,264
31
Seattle WA
#1
Just here to say that the Telefunken TDP-1 is worth the money and plays great with effects.

I just did an AB with a Radio Pro DI. Me and our FOH engineer agreed that the Telefunken was the clear winner.

It has clarity AND warmth rather than warmth at the expense of clarity. Ads a little extra punch in the mids. Plays nicely with drives. Likes to be pushed.

Has a similar effect to the Motown DI or even the noble.

If you’re in the market for a simple passive DI i recommend you give it a try!

Got it for $150 used
 

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#4
I bought one a few years ago, gave it a chance, and set it aside for good. I've never heard such a scooped-out tone from a DI. All extreme bottom end and brittle top end, but the crucial mid/high bass and low mids were missing in action. To make things worse, one of the screws holding the XLR connector to the frame was stripped. I had to hog out that screw hole in the connector and install a machine screw, locking nut, and washer in its place.

I can see this DI working well for a Steve Harris or Dave Ellefson tone, or for a slapper. But that's not the music I play. For general purpose use, my ProDI, JDI, SB-1, RNDI, and passive Warm Audio eat the Telefunken's lunch and pop the bag.
 
#5
eniac said:
I bought one a few years ago, gave it a chance, and set it aside for good. I've never heard such a scooped-out tone from a DI. All extreme bottom end and brittle top end, but the crucial mid/high bass and low mids were missing in action. To make things worse, one of the screws holding the XLR connector to the frame was stripped. I had to hog out that screw hole in the connector and install a machine screw, locking nut, and washer in its place.

I can see this DI working well for a Steve Harris or Dave Ellefson tone, or for a slapper. But that's not the music I play. For general purpose use, my ProDI, JDI, SB-1, RNDI, and passive Warm Audio eat the Telefunken's lunch and pop the bag.
Click to expand...
Strange… EQ wise I experienced the opposite.

1-3K was rolled off a tad. A little bump in the lower mids (but clear at the same time) and then some roll off in the really low subs.

Did you have the passive or active version? What you’re describing sounds like it could be active.
 
#6
Evan J said:
Strange… EQ wise I experienced the opposite.

1-3K was rolled off a tad. A little bump in the lower mids (but clear at the same time) and then some roll off in the really low subs.

Did you have the passive or active version? What you’re describing sounds like it could be active.
Click to expand...

Mine was the passive model, just like yours.

More details: I always go straight up to the board, no intervening EQ. I build my own preamps, no EQ at all. I leave it all to whoever's at the board. The first (and only) pre-show run-through I used it on, I knew in less than 10 seconds of hearing myself through the mains that something didn't sound right. So did the sound man. So did two of the other people in the band. Everything sounded hollowed-out, sort of lifeless, compared to my usual DIs above.

Another instrument this DI would be perfect for IMO is an acoustic guitar with a built-in preamp, because the range other instruments typically work in would be slightly attenuated, while the top end sparkle would be left alone.
 
#8
The Carnhill transformer used in this DI is really nice and smooth sounding. The BAE DI uses the same tranny I believe. It sounds just a touch smoother in the upper mids when compared to the JDI tranny.
 
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#9
eniac said:
Mine was the passive model, just like yours.

More details: I always go straight up to the board, no intervening EQ. I build my own preamps, no EQ at all. I leave it all to whoever's at the board. The first (and only) pre-show run-through I used it on, I knew in less than 10 seconds of hearing myself through the mains that something didn't sound right. So did the sound man. So did two of the other people in the band. Everything sounded hollowed-out, sort of lifeless, compared to my usual DIs above.

Another instrument this DI would be perfect for IMO is an acoustic guitar with a built-in preamp, because the range other instruments typically work in would be slightly attenuated, while the top end sparkle would be left alone.
Click to expand...
Very strange. What you describe is quite the opposite of my experience. I also haven’t heard anything like that on the online demos.

Weird! You wouldn’t think there would be that big of a parts differential between the boxes?
 
#12
eniac said:
An old post from someone who heard pretty much the same as I did:

https://www.talkbass.com/threads/new-telefunken-di.1262073/post-21645756

At least I know I wasn't hearing things that weren't there.
Click to expand...
Ah ok I think I know what you mean. I think we were talking about different frequency centers.

I am hearing:
- less deep subs
- a bit more low mids (but not as much as the JDI)
- a bit of a mid scoop maybe around 500
- some extra punch and finger noise in the upper mids
- and then a significant roll of in the high treble

Another thing to note… this DI likes to be fed a hot signal. And I was definitely hitting it with some extra gain, which makes it roll off the high and low end even more. So we may also be hearing the difference of when you push it or don’t push it.
 
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#13
Evan J said:
Another thing to note… this DI likes to be fed a hot signal. And I was definitely hitting it with some extra gain, which makes it roll off the high and low end even more. So we may also be hearing the difference of when you push it or don’t push it.
Click to expand...

Ah, that makes sense. I typically send a mic-level signal up to the board. I have a preamp that'll hit the Telefunken pretty hard. I can always knock the output back with the Shure attenuator I keep on hand, if necessary.
 
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