what are the big names, besides noble when it comes to tube preamps for bass? What should I know about, what has already been there? It seems like there are many small builders when it comes to tube preamps and everyone has his favorite little thing on talkbass, but many are not really avaliable internationally. Im trying to get an overview on the topic and am interested to see what has been tried and proven!
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tried and proven tube preamps
- Thread starter boilingTheDead
- Start date
Broughton is my tube preamp drug of choice.
P-15, SSDI, and Archetype are all incredible depending on what flavor you are looking for.
I ended up with all three I liked them so much!
P-15, SSDI, and Archetype are all incredible depending on what flavor you are looking for.
I ended up with all three I liked them so much!
Many many more here:
Tube Preamp/DI Sound Samples — Noble, Oracle, P-15, Super Stack, REDDI, Tonecraft, Jule...
OK, some of them are just tube DI but you've got a lot the tube preamps here
But beware: this thread is dangerous for one's wallet
Tube Preamp/DI Sound Samples — Noble, Oracle, P-15, Super Stack, REDDI, Tonecraft, Jule...
OK, some of them are just tube DI but you've got a lot the tube preamps here
But beware: this thread is dangerous for one's wallet
My ears and wallet are very happy with all my @Sushi Box FX preamps and DI.
He is proud to ship international for fair rates.
Pedals – Sushi Box FX
He is proud to ship international for fair rates.
Pedals – Sushi Box FX
Yes, and also this link:
The Sushi Box FX Secret Society
Mr Sushi is super active in this thread of 796 pages, where he provides great support to his customers, shares his thoughts, projects, R&D, business approach and questions. He's just so dedicated & honnest... Buying a Sushi Box pedal brings you more than a tube preamp, you become member of a very friendly family (at least, if you want to)
But I must add that the first link I have provided (Tube Preamp/DI Sound Samples) gives you access to great demo soundclips of all the pedals, including a few Sushi Box, whereas it's more difficult to really find samples of the sushi pedals in the Sushi Box TB thread or his website (at least for some of them).
Since you specified "tried and proven", you could check out some of the rackmount tube bass preamps that were all the rage in the 1990s:
- Demeter VTBP-201/S
- Alembic F1-X and F2B
- Ampeg SVP
- Trace Elliot V-Type (very similar to the Alembic F1-X)
- Fender TBP-1
- Peavey Alpha, TB-Raxx, or MAX
in my humble opinion, mojo76 brings up a great point...it's really much more the sound you are going for than the brand...for example if you do not like vintage clean, you might like something other than the Broughton P-15 even though it is an exceptional preamp. A good place to start might be asking yourself what is the tone palette you are going for, and then looking for preamps that focus on those tones For example, at least to me, there is a big difference between the Ampeg Tone Stacks (SVT or B15 variants), and the Fender Tone Stack. Just an idea. I'm no expert. This is just my personal experience. Another thing not to rule out is a Radial JDI and then trying a whole bunch of different preamps in front of it, like the Broughton SV-Pre, or some other pedals that don't have DI's. I've been pretty happy with that approach too. Again, that's just me.
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Welcome to the rabbit hole 
As you can see, there's no simple answer. Good news: many choices, many different options. Bad news: you have to choose the right one for YOUR needs and taste.
Enjoy the ride…
As you can see, there's no simple answer. Good news: many choices, many different options. Bad news: you have to choose the right one for YOUR needs and taste.Enjoy the ride…
I would say think about what you need in terms of functionality.
Are you recording / driving a power amp / also going to FOH?
Also think about do you want it on a pedal board / in a rack / or more of a "desk top unit."
Broughton makes both classic Ampeg and Fender flavors in that kind of desktop format.
Jule has all types of formats.
Arkham Sound has both a rack and pedal format.
Noble - obviously
Alembic (the classic)
The Fender TBP-1 is similar to the Alembic (or maybe the other way around
), and is an absolute tone machine. So many options for recording and live it's a bit overwhelming.
Are you recording / driving a power amp / also going to FOH?
Also think about do you want it on a pedal board / in a rack / or more of a "desk top unit."
Broughton makes both classic Ampeg and Fender flavors in that kind of desktop format.
Jule has all types of formats.
Arkham Sound has both a rack and pedal format.
Noble - obviously
Alembic (the classic)
The Fender TBP-1 is similar to the Alembic (or maybe the other way around
), and is an absolute tone machine. So many options for recording and live it's a bit overwhelming.
The one in my Plexi. But I don't take it out much. It's absolutely baller through bass cabs. I wish I could shrink it. The JC Emerald comes pretty close to my ears.
The Fender TBP-1 has many features , like room adjustment Vari G and the tube overdrive and it has Jensen for the DI. I remember those now. At one point, the TB soup of the day was rack mounted power amp and the corresponding rack pre-amp, Demeter, Alembic, Ampeg SVP, Fender TBP-1, Peavey, SWR, Aguilar -- I am sure there are more. The SWR Marcus Miller preamp was 2U. It had everything - compressor (with 4 knobs), bass intensifier, para EQ, effects loops. But if you want grind the Ampeg and Fender were the ones to get because they dedicated overdrive control
EDIT: Since I have only seen the Fender in one of the now closed music store in town, I just realized how fully featured it is, There is FX send and bi-amp as well. If you go way back, many reviews about here on TB. I did remember how good it sounds. Fender is no slouch in amplification.
EDIT: Since I have only seen the Fender in one of the now closed music store in town, I just realized how fully featured it is, There is FX send and bi-amp as well. If you go way back, many reviews about here on TB. I did remember how good it sounds. Fender is no slouch in amplification.
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It is a killer preamp. It also has push/pull on the bass and treble control for deep and bright.
The drive was cool... I've read more than a few posts on here by people that were disappointed that it was not like a full on distortion thing (like a stompbox). It was very subtle - especially at low volumes, but to my ear made the preamp actually sound like a tube amp that was being pushed to the edge and starting to breakup.
I mostly just used the vintage channel and man did it sound good.
Since @logdrum mentioned the SWR Marcus Miller, how could you forget the Eden Navigator? Like the SWR Marcus, not a pure tube preamp, it has every basic feature you could want. Onboard two knob compressor, some limited tube dirt, enhance knob (love it or hate it) and three band semi-parametric eq and every back panel patch point could possibly imagine. It's still the only preamp I use for IEM gigs.
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