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The Great Bass Preamp/DI Comparison

#2,741
Bassist30 said:
Sounds good. Same concept as the Sadowsky. But I believe the only difference is the treble on the sadowsky is 5 K where the aguilar is 4 k. Love simple eq.
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I was a bit surprised at how much I like the sound of this little guy. It's pretty tiny, so I find myself wondering if I could fit the Edison and this on my board. You know... just because. :D

5sg.
 
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#2,742
jmbjandfam said:
The Demeter does it for me in this video. Can you get that in a pedal format?
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I had that Demeter a long time ago when I was going through gear like crazy. Shipping was cheap. tried lots of stuff. Anyway, that was a FANTASTIC preamp. I think I used it with a Crown power amp in a rack. I sometimes miss those days, but Istill love a 5 pound, 800 watt head.
 
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#2,743
ianrossbass said:
Ooh, boy. I just got the Edison about five minutes ago and it is gooey and good. I was concerned about what sort of volume I'd end up with at the gain setting I preferred on it, but it turns out it does just what I was looking for it to do at as close to unity as makes no difference. That is awesome! We'll see how long the honeymoon lasts, but I can definitely forsee this thing being an always on. Like an always always always on. I can't really imagine a scenario in which I wouldn't want the subtle compression and fatness it is adding. Pretty stoked!
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I enjoy the Edison and use it quite often. It's quite good at adding character without radical coloration. I have noticed there is compression and/or low end roll off when I use it with my Mustang's P pickup. It's in the deeper lows, and I only really notice it on that bass. It's not necessarily a bad thing, just an observation.

I do like running the Edison before my Volt Thrower and Zoia's distortion sounds.

Side note - Night Owl is working on a synth unit now. It's a bit unusual, and worth checking their IG page if you like such things. There are a few demos up.
 
#2,744
monsterthompson said:
I enjoy the Edison and use it quite often. It's quite good at adding character without radical coloration. I have noticed there is compression and/or low end roll off when I use it with my Mustang's P pickup. It's in the deeper lows, and I only really notice it on that bass. It's not necessarily a bad thing, just an observation.

I do like running the Edison before my Volt Thrower and Zoia's distortion sounds.

Side note - Night Owl is working on a synth unit now. It's a bit unusual, and worth checking their IG page if you like such things. There are a few demos up.
Click to expand...

I'm still waiting for my Edison preamp, but in the meantime and to give me an idea - if you keep it around unity gain, what type of character/coloration do you get?
 
#2,745
1983L2000 said:
I'm still waiting for my Edison preamp, but in the meantime and to give me an idea - if you keep it around unity gain, what type of character/coloration do you get?
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It is like getting a little extra "tube" character, which I know is a wildly abused marketing term. It's not a 12AX7, so it may be a little different from what similar devices might add. There's probably a bit of compression adding some midrange presence. It's subtle and you won't need to adjust your EQ for the difference between on/off. Otherwise it's reasonably close to the signal going in, with no grit or distortion.

I think some of the character, like many devices, depends where you put it in the signal chain. I've got it as the first thing in my chain, followed by a Volt Thrower and an OCSD and then some delay effects. With it on it makes the VT feel a bit more amp-like.

It's a good, solid traditional foundation for bass guitar tone. It adds a little extra snap and life.

Honestly, it's been part of my signal chain so long it's a little hard for me to explain because I'm not listening for the on/off differences. I went through a phase of trying a few configurations and settling on my current one. I've found a few settings with some basses when I prefer it off. But generally it's on.
 
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#2,747
Aguilar DB 925 bass preamp specs per Aguilar website:

Maximum amount of boost: 18db, occurring at 40 Hz for the bass, and 4kHz for the treble

Sadowsky SBP-1 preamp pedal specs per Sadowsky website:
  • Frequency Response: 5Hz-50 kHz
  • Bass Control: + 18dB Boost @ 40Hz
  • Treble Control: + 18dB Boost @ 4kHz
Frequency response and boost frequencies are distinct concepts. Sadowsky and Aguilar boost only specs are the same. Both FET circuits. Do they sound the same?
 
#2,748
Robal said:
Aguilar DB 925 bass preamp specs per Aguilar website:

Maximum amount of boost: 18db, occurring at 40 Hz for the bass, and 4kHz for the treble

Sadowsky SBP-1 preamp pedal specs per Sadowsky website:
  • Frequency Response: 5Hz-50 kHz
  • Bass Control: + 18dB Boost @ 40Hz
  • Treble Control: + 18dB Boost @ 4kHz
Frequency response and boost frequencies are distinct concepts. Sadowsky and Aguilar boost only specs are the same. Both FET circuits. Do they sound the same?
Click to expand...

No idea where the boost curves are. Aguilar says it uses a wide band boost so the 40 Hz is actually boosting up into the midrange (so says Dave in a demo video). Without knowing the differences in curves it's hard to know without plugging each in.
 
#2,751
Bassist30 said:
The 5 k was right but the bass was different. Its 50hz to 5K. Got it on the Sadowsky Site. "Frequency Response: 5Hz-50 kHz"
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Frequency response and the EQ bands are different things. The frequency response just means what sort of input frequencies the preamp circuit will actually utilize, so in this case a range from 5Hz at the bottom to 50kHz at the top. The EQ bands are at 40Hz on the bass and 4kHz on the treble.
 
#2,757
jmbjandfam said:
The Demeter does it for me in this video. Can you get that in a pedal format?
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James makes an amp called the Bass400; about the same size as the other small boxes in this vid. And, that's as small as James can get it. That's what I use for preamp/DI:
DD748DB1-5B44-42E7-9C47-5E42B5A369DA.jpeg


Not quite as much slam as the full rack version, but close enough for DI work. FWIW, here's the rack:
06E4A40F-4ED0-446F-9527-8363637FB8F1.jpeg


Unfortunately, NONE of the small pedal board preamps are keeping up with my rack preamps so far. But, I keep hoping and trying.
 
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#2,758
bucephylus said:
James makes an amp called the Bass400; about the same size as the other small boxes in this vid. And, that's as small as James can get it. That's what I use for preamp/DI:
View attachment 3838467

Not quite as much slam as the full rack version, but close enough for DI work. FWIW, here's the rack:
View attachment 3838468

Unfortunately, NONE of the small pedal board preamps are keeping up with my rack preamps so far. But, I keep hoping and trying.
Click to expand...

i had the 800D. It is quite nice, and I assume the 400 is similar.
 
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#2,760
monsterthompson said:


Glad I jumped on the preorder.
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Hmm. Maybe its the recording quality but I wouldn't have guessed he was using a Ric in that clip

Rocksolid said:
I came across this video the other day while looking at Preamps. They all sound really good - but the one that piqued my interest was the the London S-Pre. I wish I had the know how to do what he has. looks like you only purchase the Pre itself but he has added a DI etc.
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The Demeter and Monique are superb. The DIY J-B15 sit in the mix nicely and was surprisingly good
 
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