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The Great Bass Preamp/DI Comparison

#2,921
SteveC said:
It's not tube but I think the Simplifier looks interesting. Lots of options. If it's quieter then the OCSD that would be a good thing.
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I think my question for Scuba would be, given he found the preamp a bit lackluster, is it more in the territory of say, a SansAmp, OneControl Sonic Silver or any number of other broad-stroke SVT-style analog emulations that are subjectively more, er, prosumer for want of a better term? Less refined? I wouldn't really push the thing into overdrive, just run it fat clean. If it does that and sounds good, no complaints from me... unless it feels sterile to play. It seems his review hints at that. It did however strike me listening on YouTube that overdriving it sounds pleasant while the SLO in demos exhibits some of that 'can of bees' thing the 12ax7 can be known for.
 
#2,925
scubaduba said:
It's really this simple. I think the Oracle/RNDI combo is the best sounding preamp setup when compared to the Noble, Shaw, Grace Alix, NUX, or SLO, etc. IMHO anyway. YMMV.

That said, I will definitely get another Alix soon. It is phenomenal in its own right and probably my second favorite preamp scenario and is actualy more versatile than the Oracle/RNDI setup (and Noble, Shaw, NUX, and SLO). It's just that I have a lot tied up in compressors and preamps these days and freeing up some cash would be helpful. The Alix will be in my arsenal once again someday, hopefully soon.
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You should go all out and get the felix next time
 
#2,926
fivestringgecko said:
Or as I like to call them, the "UGH... how much do we have left?!" moments. lol

5sg.
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As a buddy of mine would say after looking at his watch during a set, "Where does all the time come from?!"

Me myself...I never look at a clock while on stage. Makes the time go faster on those loooooong gigs.
 
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#2,928
Rocksolid said:
Well yes, those moments. Don't think many of us will be having any of those in the first few months we get back to gigging. You don't know what you've got until you lose it huh?
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I definitely won't be taking my gigs for granted in the future, that's for sure!

Turn Em Loose said:
Got a Beelzebub on the way. Should be here this week!
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Very much looking forward to hearing your thoughts! I've been *this* close to pulling the trigger on one. To the point that I have some Backstage Points at Musicians Friend and they have a small selection of tubes (seems like the most common ones), and I've been thinking about using my credit for a few in prep of tube rolling... lol

5sg.
 
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#2,929
I've made one more purchase for the Baby Board. I can' t imagine not having a microThumpinator. It met the criteria...a mini pedal under $150...so I bought one. Of course, it will be mounted under the board since there are no controls. That should do it...I'm out of power now. Since the Hooker's Green Bassmachine will run at 18v, I will power it off the one 18v plug on the miniIsoBrick.
 
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#2,931
Bassworship1 said:
For the first time in my life I feel Gas free when coming to my tone. The Noble and Cali76 was a game changer for me and my IEM and FOH tone. That's one reason why I love this board and appreciate the members as there is a wealth of knowledge on here.
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I'm with you. I'm feeling oddly satisfied. I don't know what to do with myself. There really isn't anything I want at the moment. I'm not sure what to do with my free time. But give me 5 minutes. That might change.
 
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#2,932
jacoby75 said:
I'm with you. I'm feeling oddly satisfied. I don't know what to do with myself. There really isn't anything I want at the moment. I'm not sure what to do with my free time. But give me 5 minutes. That might change.
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I'm actually there bass wise also with my Roscoes. I've just found what works for me and my playing style. I guess it's time to just get better now that I have the tools to do it with lol.
 
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#2,933
jacoby75 said:
I'm with you. I'm feeling oddly satisfied. I don't know what to do with myself. There really isn't anything I want at the moment. I'm not sure what to do with my free time. But give me 5 minutes. That might change.
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I'm in the same boat too. So happy with my "main" board that I'm starting an entire new one. Problem with my current rig is that it's absurdly expensive, big, and heavy. I'm fine using it in church or some place where I can keep an eye on it. But I would feel really anxious about that board sitting on the floor at a bar with a bunch of beer swilling drunks. Enter...the Baby Board. Nothing exotic. Nothing expensive. If it gets stolen, it would suck...but not as much as my other board. If someone spills something sticky all over it, I'll be much less heartbroken. If the Baby Board gets me 85% of the tone of my big rig, I'll be a happy guy.
 
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#2,934
chadhargis said:
I've made one more purchase for the Baby Board. I can' t imagine not having a microThumpinator. It met the criteria...a mini pedal under $150...so I bought one. Of course, it will be mounted under the board since there are no controls. That should do it...I'm out of power now. Since the Hooker's Green Bassmachine will run at 18v, I will power it off the one 18v plug on the miniIsoBrick.
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How does a Thumpinator differ from a HPF? I read the description on the site and it sounds like it is doing the same thing:

"The Thumpinator is a bandwidth optimizer designed for bass guitar. It removes the low frequency signals that are outside the range of notes produced by bass guitars.

Subsonic frequencies cannot be reproduced by standard bass cabinets but they often make amplifiers clip especially when they are set to boost the lower frequencies. The Thumpinator filters the signal content optimising the energy delivered by the amplifier. Low frequency clip is substantially reduced and the sound is tighter especially at high volume levels."
 
#2,935
MascisMan said:
How does a Thumpinator differ from a HPF? I read the description on the site and it sounds like it is doing the same thing:

"The Thumpinator is a bandwidth optimizer designed for bass guitar. It removes the low frequency signals that are outside the range of notes produced by bass guitars.

Subsonic frequencies cannot be reproduced by standard bass cabinets but they often make amplifiers clip especially when they are set to boost the lower frequencies. The Thumpinator filters the signal content optimising the energy delivered by the amplifier. Low frequency clip is substantially reduced and the sound is tighter especially at high volume levels."
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It is a HPF fixed at 30ish hz.
 
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#2,936
scubaduba said:
It is a HPF fixed at 30ish hz.
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Scuba beat me to it. But there is some magic in there because I have used other HPF pedals and it removes some of the fatness. The Thumpinator actually makes the tone fatter somehow. But not muddy. My sound guy hardly notices anything changing in my rig but actually asked what changed when I added the Thump.
 
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#2,937
chadhargis said:
Scuba beat me to it. But there is some magic in there because I have used other HPF pedals and it removes some of the fatness. The Thumpinator actually makes the tone fatter somehow. But not muddy. My sound guy hardly notices anything changing in my rig but actually asked what changed when I added the Thump.
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I always use a HPF on my boards hence my curiosity. Can't leave home without them
 
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#2,938
fivestringgecko said:
Very much looking forward to hearing your thoughts! I've been *this* close to pulling the trigger on one. To the point that I have some Backstage Points at Musicians Friend and they have a small selection of tubes (seems like the most common ones), and I've been thinking about using my credit for a few in prep of tube rolling... lol

5sg.
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I've had one in the last. Loved it. It adds a nice, subtle amount of compression, too.

I may have some tubes around here to do some tube rollin'.

IIRC it comes with an ax7 but I preferred a lower gain tube. But I know nothing about tubes and I'm going off my really bad memory from a few years ago. Stay tuned.
 
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#2,940
Turn Em Loose said:
I've had one in the last. Loved it. It adds a nice, subtle amount of compression, too.

I may have some tubes around here to do some tube rollin'.

IIRC it comes with an ax7 but I preferred a lower gain tube. But I know nothing about tubes and I'm going off my really bad memory from a few years ago. Stay tuned.
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I recently tried a lower gain tube in my EBS Valve Drive, which ships with a 12ax7. I put a 12au7 in there (Westinghouse 5963), and I like it a lot more now as a clean-ish tube pre. If I wanted it as an overdrive, I may have stuck with a 12ax7.
 
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