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Thickener-upper for modern-sounding basses?

#41
Bunch of developments since my last post:
  • Received the Darkglass VMT yesterday.
  • A buddy lent me his extra Focusrite ISA One. These are the kind of friends you want!
  • While troubleshooting a noise problem in the IEM's on Sunday, I bypassed the DI out on my amp (the MB200 this time), swapping it out for a Radial ProDI. Suddenly, the Dingwall sounded like a bass again, instead of a giant guitar.
  • I should add that I love the acoustic output of my G-K/AudioKinesis rig. The problem is with the foldback to my IEMS from FOH, which sounds clanky and hyped, as if I were playing a piezo-equpped baritone guitar.
First impressions of the VMT:
  • Nicely made, and very quiet.
  • I don't like the distortion on the VMT- too fizzy, and separate from the note.
  • Still, there's a fair amount of thickening available at lower drive settings. Sounds more like sinus congestion than "tube warmth" with the Era control backed off, but the blend pot opens it up nicely- a bit of a balancing act between the two controls.
  • The Era control changes the character in a fairly subtle way.
  • Lots of extra gain, probably a good clean boost with a tube amp.
  • Will have to spend more time getting to know it on the gig.
First impressions of the ISA One:
  • The DI channel doesn't serve as a "character preamp". Transparent rather than thick or fat. Sounds very good, though.
  • The Line input was interesting- there was a subtle increase in growl and detail in the low mids, but levels were a little low with my passive bass.
  • Best headphone amp I've ever heard for bass. No transistor quack on transients, B string sounds solid as a rock, lots of drive and level.
  • Much bigger than it looks in photos, flimsy pleather strap handle, awkward, boxy form factor. Not something you just toss in your gig bag.
  • Puts everything under the microscope- Even the most minor settings changes were obvious with the VMT running through it.
Next steps:
  • Bypassing my amp was a revelation. Don't know if the G-K XLR out is that bad, or if the Dingwall just likes being loaded down by a passive DI. Going to have to do more testing.
  • See how my Radial JDI compares to that $100 ProDi. The JDI has been gathering dust ever since I fell for the Streamliner's tube DI, but I may have to put it back into rotation.
  • Check out the ISA One's mic preamp, by running XLR out of the JDI. There are loading controls on the mic pre- I expect it will have more "character".
  • Compare the ISA One with the pre's in my Steinberg UR44 interface, and try the Steinberg out as a DI.
  • Compare the XLR out between the MB200 and MB800, to see if the discrete-FET front end on the MB800 translates into a nicer DI output.
I have a rehearsal tonight and a conference gig on the weekend, so I'll have some good opportunities to check things out this week:
  • Smallish industrial venue, 150 seats, low suspended ceiling.
  • Lots of art on the walls and people in the seats to damp it down.
  • Happy-clappy crowd, party atmosphere.
  • Semi-silent stage, with E-drums and IEM's, mic'd Fender Blues Pro for the lead guitarist.
  • Large PA for the size of the venue. 32-channel Presonus digital board with remote control for personal monitor mixes and FOH.
  • I run my amp as a stage monitor, because of reception issues with our Sennheiser G3 IEM installation.
 
#42
Interesting time at the conference this weekend.

My JDI turned sounded noticeably better than the ProDI or the onboard DI's in either of my amps, confirming my past experience that it is well worth the extra money over any lesser passive DI, especially if you play extended-range basses. Friends noticed the difference from FOH.

I tried to love the Darkglass VMT, but it didn't work out. The low-gain settings that thickened my bass up nicely at home, got swallowed in the mix. Even with a mild volume boost, my bass actually sounded bigger with the pedal bypassed. Adding more dirt seemed to just make things worse.

I tried my MB800 in place of the MB200, and although it brought a ton of firepower to the table in terms of my sound on stage, any difference between the two DI outputs were inaudible at FOH.

Tests at home suggested that the Focusrite could do a great job as a transparent preamp to the MB800. The differences between the Mic and DI inputs were subtle, but interesting. If I played upright, I might actually prefer it, and listening to it actually made me modify my EQ settings on the MB800.

Still, at the end of the day the G-K preamp sounded better for slab, especially below the low E. This was something of a relief, given the size and price of the ISA One.

I'm still looking for a "tuberizer" that's closer to the modded Meek preamp that I tried out a few weeks ago, but for now, I'm happy to have found some new EQ tricks with my existing gear, and with the decision to stop using my head's internal DI in favour of the Radial.

Small steps...
 
#48
steve_rolfeca said:
I have a Barber LTD SR that I love for electric guitar. I wondered about the Linden, but he seems to have discontinued it. Might try giving them a call.

Apart from being beautifully engineered and constructed, Barber pedals are extremely well priced by boutique standards...
Click to expand...

One up for sale is the classifieds. No affiliation.


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#49
I missed out on the Linden, but gave a Markbass Compressore a good run. Surprisingly, it was more at the subtle, fairly transparent end of the scale. Great compressor, but it didn't sound very thick or tubey.

Currently on day one with a Diamond BCP-1. This just might do it, along with my JDI. Lots of subtle tone shaping, thick yet clear...


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Last edited:
#52
It's official. I've been blessed with some great gear over the last 20-odd years, but this is a new high.

While testing pedals for this thread, I stumbled into some new settings on my Dingwall. The neck pickup with the tone control rolled back about 50% AND the signal boosted back up to the same level as series mode, actually has a warmer, more mid-forward feel that sits better in the mix for a lot of material.

Meanwhile, the combination of the Diamond Bass Compressor at moderate levels of compression and treble cut @ 250Hz, followed by my Radial JDI, does exactly what I wanted. With the compressor engaged, I'm finding more use for both pickups in parallel, as well.

My tone at FOH is fuller, with a touch less "gank" than a straight pre-EQ DI feed from my G-K heads. It sounds much like the tube DI output from a Genz Streamliner, and makes for a terrific feed to my IEM's.

Meanwhile, I seem to have arrived at the point I've been seeking my whole career in terms of my rig. Dingwall ABZ-5 with Dingwall nickel rounds > Shure PGXD digital wireless > Turbo Tuner ST-200 > Diamond comp > JDI > G-K MB 200 or 800 > 4-ohm AudioKinesis Thunderchild 112AF makes for a one-trip carry that gives me total freedom and confidence on stage, and sounds exactly like the "target tone" I have in my head. I'm going to make a small pedalboard to simplify setup, and that's that.

I've been like the Princess and the Pea for over 20 years, fussing over my gear. Last night, I literally couldn't find a thing to carp about. Everything from gentle finger style to aggressive pick tones, sounded exactly the way I wanted.

Now that I'm done with my live rig, maybe I can finally finish my home studio!




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#53
You already mentioned what I would have considered:

- Darkglass VMT
- Diamond Bass Compressor

and then a few new ones

- MarkBass Compressore
- Dan Armstrong Orange Squeezer clone (I use the AnalogMan version called the Juicer)
 

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