The Preamp Subjective

[bassballs27]

More looking to poll the talkbass 'audience' with this thread.

Preamps being used for bass guitar are a fairly subjective discussion.

I'm mainly looking to see what people are using lately or have continue to keep from the past.

Feel free to discuss what you've had and why you let it go if you feel compelled to.

Alright, I'll go first...........

1. Trace Elliot GP12SMX - My first experience with a rack preamp. Used it with a Yorkville AP800 back in the day. It couldn't drive that amp very well so I ultimately sold it. I remember it being fairly versatile, but in found the tube / solid state blend knob really didn't change it's character

2. Eden Navigator WP100 - Had this for 12 years and one of the few pieces of gear I bought brand new.
I loved it at first. Sounded great since I played Eden cabinets. Paired it with my QSC PLX2402 which I bought brand new back in 2001. My playing slowed a lot in the second half of the 12 years. I posted it in a local classified and ended trading it for a Mesa Big Block 750. Eye opening experience that was. The Eden cabs left shortly there after and went through just about all of the cabs Mesa makes. Some twice.

3. Ampeg SVT-IIP - Since I've owned a SVT-2Pro and most on here rave about the SVT-II as being the holy grail. I had to try this one. I've also owned a couple SVT-CL's too. Both were SLM made. Pretty good sounding preamp. Didn't like that I had to crank the gain to about 3/4 to get a reasonable volume to work with my QSC PLX2402. It can definitely do very useable SVT distortion. Sold it because the Ampeg tone really isn't my thing.

4. Demeter HBP-1 - Here's a fantastic preamp. The TRS out is amazing. Lots of gain to drive the PLX.
I'd definitely say it's the most versatile pre I've had. And to be honest, I'm not sure why people bother with the VTBP when you can get a 2-Band Parametric with the HBP-1. I agree that this preamp is definitely on the brighter side as oppose to being neutral. I like a brighter sound for the most part.
I ended up selling this one to fund the next preamp.

5. Universal Audio - 6176 - This is a very good preamp for bass. Especially passive basses.
It can produce impressive distortion. Makes a lot of vintage style basses sound good. However, it's not sound great on some modern style basses. It can be either hit or miss. If you're a J or P player..give it a listen for sure. The EQ section is very limited for bass. It's great if you play with flat eq most of the time, but you can't do whole lot with the frequencies that are more designed for voice (as this is ultimately a mic pre). I've just sold this recently.......and am looking for something new.

As for ideas.......the Jules Monique is of interest. The Focusrite ISA430 MKII and Millennia STT-1 are maybes. Still thinking of going for a preamp that was designed for bass like a Kern IP777 or a Read Purity (hard to find either of these).

 

[Dave W]

I have and use:

Ampeg SVP-CL (live, recording)
Ampeg SVP-Pro (live, recording)
Verellen Meatsmoke (mainly recording)
Jule Monique (still haven't used this too much. I messed with it a few times, but I'm not blown away by it yet)
Tech 21 SansAmp ParaDriver (practice, live as a dirt pedal, and live as a backup DI)
Tech 21 SansAmp VT Bass DI (practice, live as a dirt pedal, and live as a backup DI)
3Leaf Enabler (practice)

 

[winegamd]

The Aguilar tube pre's should be on your list, as well as the Reiner pre's. A lot of players enjoy the BBE B-MaxT. There is also still quite a following of the Alembic F-1X. I think the Kern might be a bit dark for you if you liked the HBP-1.

 

[bassballs27]

I have and use:

Ampeg SVP-CL (live, recording)
Ampeg SVP-Pro (live, recording)
Verellen Meatsmoke (mainly recording)
Jule Monique (still haven't used this too much. I messed with it a few times, but I'm not blown away by it yet)
Tech 21 SansAmp ParaDriver (practice, live as a dirt pedal, and live as a backup DI)
Tech 21 SansAmp VT Bass DI (practice, live as a dirt pedal, and live as a backup DI)
3Leaf Enabler (practice)

Cool selection Dave. The Verellen is on my "like to try" list.
There's still a fair bit of hype on the Monique out there. Since it's more of an Ampeg-like design, it probably isn't for me.

Ah crap, I forgot the SansAMP BDDI I had! Sold that recently too. I never used it much.
Found it way too scooped. Heard many good things about the VT Bass and the rack pre too.

Will have to look at the 3Leaf. Thanks for the input.

The Aguilar tube pre's should be on your list, as well as the Reiner pre's. A lot of players enjoy the BBE B-MaxT. There is also still quite a following of the Alembic F-1X. I think the Kern might be a bit dark for you if you liked the HBP-1.

I owned a DB751 for about 6 months. Sounded great with my Aguilar Cabs (I still own a DB810 and DB412).
However, I found that murkiness that some people described about this rig. Others call it "wooly"
I've been meaning to check out a DB680 as I know someone who has one. However, through discussions with Tom Bowlus, he preferred the HBP-1 over the DB680. Who knows, I could be the opposite. The DB659 interests me a little. I've played a DB359 in the past and wasn't overly impressed. Reminded me of the amplified version of the DB924 outboard box.

I'll have to look into the Reiner's pre's. Is this new stuff? I'm going to go check that name out right now.
BBE has been around for so long and I've never checked them out. The same with dBx stuff.
Actually, the Alembic family of pres are of interest. With liking Mesa and not liking Ampeg, I think the Fender style amps are more my thing.
I believe Fender did have a pre but don't recall hearing much about it.

Cool. thanks for your input winegamd.

 

[CL400Peavey]

Good luck finding one, but the Reiner pre amps are about the best out there.

 

[jnewmark]

I did the preamp/power amp thing for years, and tried more preamps than I can remember, but the one that I always went back to was the Ashly SC 40. It was later updated to the BP41, IIRC. Good luck finding one of those in good condition also.

 

[Jeff Moote]

There's still a fair bit of hype on the Monique out there. Since it's more of an Ampeg-like design, it probably isn't for me.

I don't really feel it's Ampeg-like at all - more like a really good tube hi-fi home stereo preamp crossed with a bass amp. Sure there is some Ampeg influence in there (more B15 than SVT though) as well as some Hiwatt, but really it's a unique preamp.

All that said, if you lean towards brighter sounds and really liked your Demeter, the Monique may not be for you. It is a bit darker sounding and not as sparkly up top.

 

[Passinwind]

I did the preamp/power amp thing for years, and tried more preamps than I can remember, but the one that I always went back to was the Ashly SC 40. It was later updated to the BP41, IIRC. Good luck finding one of those in good condition also.

The SC-40 and the BP-41 are substantially different, but both very cool pieces. I still see BP-41s in decent shape pop up occasionally, but hardly ever SC-40s anymore. The schematics for both of these are easy to find and doing a DIY knockoff of either one would be pretty easy for an experienced home builder.

As far as the OP: I'm the wrong guy to ask, I've always ended up substantially tweaking anything that gets within half a mile of my soldering iron. I finally just copped to that and started rolling my own from the ground up, figured I might as well cut out the middle man.

 

[mpiercew59]

More looking to poll the talkbass 'audience' with this thread.

Preamps being used for bass guitar are a fairly subjective discussion.

I'm mainly looking to see what people are using lately or have continue to keep from the past.

Feel free to discuss what you've had and why you let it go if you feel compelled to.

Alright, I'll go first...........

1. Trace Elliot GP12SMX - My first experience with a rack preamp. Used it with a Yorkville AP800 back in the day. It couldn't drive that amp very well so I ultimately sold it. I remember it being fairly versatile, but in found the tube / solid state blend knob really didn't change it's character

2. Eden Navigator WP100 - Had this for 12 years and one of the few pieces of gear I bought brand new.
I loved it at first. Sounded great since I played Eden cabinets. Paired it with my QSC PLX2402 which I bought brand new back in 2001. My playing slowed a lot in the second half of the 12 years. I posted it in a local classified and ended trading it for a Mesa Big Block 750. Eye opening experience that was. The Eden cabs left shortly there after and went through just about all of the cabs Mesa makes. Some twice.

3. Ampeg SVT-IIP - Since I've owned a SVT-2Pro and most on here rave about the SVT-II as being the holy grail. I had to try this one. I've also owned a couple SVT-CL's too. Both were SLM made. Pretty good sounding preamp. Didn't like that I had to crank the gain to about 3/4 to get a reasonable volume to work with my QSC PLX2402. It can definitely do very useable SVT distortion. Sold it because the Ampeg tone really isn't my thing.

4. Demeter HBP-1 - Here's a fantastic preamp. The TRS out is amazing. Lots of gain to drive the PLX.
I'd definitely say it's the most versatile pre I've had. And to be honest, I'm not sure why people bother with the VTBP when you can get a 2-Band Parametric with the HBP-1. I agree that this preamp is definitely on the brighter side as oppose to being neutral. I like a brighter sound for the most part.
I ended up selling this one to fund the next preamp.

5. Universal Audio - 6176 - This is a very good preamp for bass. Especially passive basses.
It can produce impressive distortion. Makes a lot of vintage style basses sound good. However, it's not sound great on some modern style basses. It can be either hit or miss. If you're a J or P player..give it a listen for sure. The EQ section is very limited for bass. It's great if you play with flat eq most of the time, but you can't do whole lot with the frequencies that are more designed for voice (as this is ultimately a mic pre). I've just sold this recently.......and am looking for something new.

As for ideas.......the Jules Monique is of interest. The Focusrite ISA430 MKII and Millennia STT-1 are maybes. Still thinking of going for a preamp that was designed for bass like a Kern IP777 or a Read Purity (hard to find either of these).

I've been using a ISP Beta bass preamp for a couple of years now and I really like it. Completely solid state (I'm the rare bassist that prefers quick and clean as opposed to warm and tubey). It has sweepable mids and a very effective on board compressor as well as noise reduction. It does what it was designed to do very well. Only complaint is the lame AC line with the mini jack and giant adapter.

 

[bassballs27]

I did the preamp/power amp thing for years, and tried more preamps than I can remember, but the one that I always went back to was the Ashly SC 40. It was later updated to the BP41, IIRC. Good luck finding one of those in good condition also.

The SC-40 and the BP-41 are substantially different, but both very cool pieces. I still see BP-41s in decent shape pop up occasionally, but hardly ever SC-40s anymore. The schematics for both of these are easy to find and doing a DIY knockoff or either one would be pretty easy for an experienced home builder.

As far as the OP: I'm the wrong guy to ask, I've always ended up substantially tweaking anything that gets within half a mile of my soldering iron. I finally just copped to that and started rolling my own from the ground up, figured I might as well cut out the middle man.

Interesting recommendations / discussion on these. I've heard a lot of a good things about the Ashly gear in the past. Same thing with their eqs. Rather unfortunate that they're not made anymore. I think the Yamaha PB-1 is another on in this same group with the Ashleys for Solid State Pres?

The Glockenklang Bass Art Classic is actually on my list.........but very tough to find up here.

 

[jnewmark]

The SC-40 and the BP-41 are substantially different, but both very cool pieces. I still see BP-41s in decent shape pop up occasionally, but hardly ever SC-40s anymore. The schematics for both of these are easy to find and doing a DIY knockoff or either one would be pretty easy for an experienced home builder.

As far as the OP: I'm the wrong guy to ask, I've always ended up substantially tweaking anything that gets within half a mile of my soldering iron. I finally just copped to that and started rolling my own from the ground up, figured I might as well cut out the middle man.

In what ways were they different ? I never got to try a BP41.

 

[bassballs27]

I don't really feel it's Ampeg-like at all - more like a really good tube hi-fi home stereo preamp crossed with a bass amp. Sure there is some Ampeg influence in there (more B15 than SVT though) as well as some Hiwatt, but really it's a unique preamp.

All that said, if you lean towards brighter sounds and really liked your Demeter, the Monique may not be for you. It is a bit darker sounding and not as sparkly up top.

I think you've described the difference with the Demeter and Monique best here Jeff.
I still plan on checking out the Monique........but still would like some other options.
And of course a preamp that would fit well with Aguilar cabs!

Thanks for your reply!

 

[Passinwind]

Interesting recommendations / discussion on these. I've heard a lot of a good things about the Ashly gear in the past. Same thing with their eqs. Rather unfortunate that they're not made anymore. I think the Yamaha PB-1 is another on in this same group with the Ashleys for Solid State Pres?

The Glockenklang Bass Art Classic is actually on my list.........but very tough to find up here.

The PB-1 is based on the Fender Tone stack, as are the B-Max preamps. The Ashly pres use more standard hifi-ish stacks, but whatever scheme is in play for the mid control(s) plays a big part in the different vibes between all these pieces too.

There are stickied theads on many of my preamp builds in the Amps FAQ section, with quite a few discussions and graphs on different tone control schemes, if you ever feel like wasting an hour or three.

 

[bassballs27]

I've been using a ISP Beta bass preamp for a couple of years now and I really like it. Completely solid state (I'm the rare bassist that prefers quick and clean as opposed to warm and tubey). It has sweepable mids and a very effective on board compressor as well as noise reduction. It does what it was designed to do very well. Only complaint is the lame AC line with the mini jack and giant adapter.

Cool. I've caught this brand searching through gear on the Guitar Center site.
Looks like something worth a demo for me. I like Solid State too.

-Chris

 

[bassballs27]

The PB-1 is based on the Fender Tone stack, as are the B-Max preamps. The Ashly pres use more standard hifi-ish stacks, but whatever scheme is in play for the mid control(s) plays a big part in the different vibes between all these pieces too.

There are stickied theads on many of my preamp builds in the Amps FAQ section, with quite a few discussions and graphs on different tone control schemes, if you ever feel like wasting an hour or three.

Very cool. I figured there was a connection with those pres. Mesa's are based on the Fender Tone stack as well, aren't they?
Well seeing as Ashly is more pro audio gear based, makes sense it's more hi-fi.

I'll have to check out those thread stickies. I haven't looked at them for awhile.

Thanks Passinwind! (great user name by the way!)

-Chris

 

[Passinwind]

In what ways were they different ? I never got to try a BP41.

The BP-41 has fixed low and high freqs, a fixed mid control and then a swept one with two bandwidth (Q) settings). There's also a contour button, it does biamping, and IIRC the DI format is a little different too. I never owned an SC-40, but I think I still have a schematic that Bill Thompson gave me personally when I toured the factory a zillion years ago. The company still makes kickass PA gear, which was always their main thing.

 

[friendlybass]

Swr grand prix for me. I use it exclusively to record. Also have a sansamp bddi but its not my thing. Good di though

 

[Passinwind]

Very cool. I figured there was a connection with those pres. Mesa's are based on the Fender Tone stack as well, aren't they?
Well seeing as Ashly is more pro audio gear based, makes sense it's more hi-fi.

I'll have to check out those thread stickies. I haven't looked at them for awhile.

Thanks Passinwind! (great user name by the way!)

Chris,

I haven't had the mods put my latest one in the FAQ section yet, but it's detailed in this thread. I'm strictly a hobby builder, nothing to sell or pitch at all. If you want to dive deep into learning about EQ formats, this thread is a great starting place.

 

[BurningSkies]

I don't really feel it's Ampeg-like at all - more like a really good tube hi-fi home stereo preamp crossed with a bass amp. Sure there is some Ampeg influence in there (more B15 than SVT though) as well as some Hiwatt, but really it's a unique preamp.

All that said, if you lean towards brighter sounds and really liked your Demeter, the Monique may not be for you. It is a bit darker sounding and not as sparkly up top.

Having spoken to Jule about the conceptual origins of the Monique, it has some inspiration in a number of classic designs and probably more heavily, his own experience in the tube amp world. Ampeg and Sunn are definitely in the mix, but it's by no means a copy or rip on Ampeg style specifically. To me it has the convincing FEEL of one of the BIG tube amps.

I'm also still holding and occasionally using a Kern IP-777.

 

[Interceptor]

I owned an Ashly SC-40 that I parted with in massive gear purge a few years ago. Nice preamp, very good eq. I was able to get it to mimic a wide range of different tones easily and it was reliable. They do show up on reverb.com from time to time at a decent price.

Right now, I'm running an ART ProChannel II. Very good sounding as long as warmish clean is your intended tone and you can tolerate a little noise. The built in compressor is very usable for bass as well. As of late, I've been using a few dB of compression to thicken things up and love having it all in one box.

Eq is a big deal in finding happiness. Some guys love a channel strip with moveable frequency ranges others like the frequency ranges to be nailed down and voiced for bass. Figuring out which camp you're in is a question to answer before spending money.