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Trying to Decided between two DI boxes

JustEley

JustEley

May 16, 2014
2
0
38
Virginia, US
#1
I'm trying to decide between two DI boxes for live performances and practice possibly too. I have a Jackson JS3 Concert bass and the Ampeg MicroAmp that is 100W. I've been looking at two different possibilities. I'm not looking to invest a whole lot into it since we aren't currently doing big gigs just smaller local bars and some outdoor events. I have looked at the MXR DI box and the Hartke DI Box. Anyone that has either tried the two or has either let me know your thoughts and how it works for you. I have heard DI is the way to go over mic for live sound even though that's usually based on opinion. Thanks!
 
#2
First, please, everyone just take a deep breath and let that last sentence go. Please. OP, do a search on that subject and you'll see why I'm pleading this.....:D

As for the question, both of the DIs you mentioned are actually small preamps, which is fine if that's what you are looking for. Yes, they are called DIs, but I wish they would distinguish between those fully-featured units and the good ol' plain DIs, but they didn't and won't ask me....I'm sure either of the units you list will work decently enough. The Sansamp Tech 21 seems to be the popular unit for that use.

If you need just a straight DI that only interfaces your bass to the mixer input, there's lots of reasonable options that will work in your situation. I own Radial JDIs (a few of them), but I recently bought a well-built DI sight unseen and unheard for my practice room for $35.00 at Guitar Center. And I was very pleasantly surprised at how good the thing sounded. I'd use it live, no doubt. I'll get home tonight and edit this with the brand, I just can't remember it at the moment.
 
#6
You're maybe getting a little ahead of yourself here...consider all your options. Another route would be selling the Ampeg and getting a more powerful head that has a good sounding DI onboard. Aguilar Tone Hammer 350, GK MB200 and Ampeg PF500 are amps I've used fairly recently with the onboard DI going to the house and gotten a good sound from. There are LOTS of others out there. Doing live gigs you're probably going to outgrow that 100w amp pretty quickly and since most amps now have a built in DI.....

If you do go the DI route consider looking past the low end preamp/DI stomp boxes and getting a pro quality stand alone DI like a Radial JDI or Countryman Type 85. These are bomb-proof, good sounding, industry standard DIs that you can find used for $100. That's $100 you can get back re-selling too. If you buy a new Hartke or MXR preamp/DI it will instantly be worth less than what you paid. Including shipping count on taking a $50+ beating re-selling either the MXR or Hartke.

If you do decide on the preamp/DI stomp box route do some more homework and shop used. Three that I've used and liked very much are the Sadowsky, the SansAmp Bass Driver and the Aguilar Tone Hammer.
 
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#7
The Radial JDI and several other high end passive DI boxes use a $75 Jensen transformer as the heart of the device. With that transformer, an empty utility box, a few jacks, a switch (for ground lift) and a foot of wire or so and you could make a DI equal to the JDI for about $100. They even have a schematic posted... This is an easy DIY project if you can solder you can save yourself about $100 and get a pro level DI that will work well for most bass applications. It is a simple passive device requiring no power to operate, but is the best at what it does, provide a low impedance signal to your mixing board while allowing through output for your stage amp. The ground lift switch is a must imo. I use the DI at every gig (with PA support) and need the ground lift switch feature at about 1/4 of my gigs, without which my bass signal would have a nasty 60hz hum in the PA without it...

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